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Accidents happen—it’s just part of life with pets. We’ve found having the right tool to clean up can take a lot of the stress out of the mess. Carpet cleaners are one of our favorite solutions to all the hazards that carpets and couches face in a pet parent’s home, whether that’s mud and grime, a surprise hairball, or an inadvertent indoor potty break.
A good carpet cleaner does more than just suck up spills. It uses a combination of cleaning solution, scrubbing brushes, and vacuum suction to extract the stain and erase all traces of its existence.
Whether you’re looking for a heavy-duty carpet cleaner to do some deep cleaning or a lightweight spot cleaner for targeting regular minor messes, our product reviewers have you covered.
- Overall Best: Bissell ProHeat 2X Revolution Max Clean Pet Pro Full-Size Carpet Cleaner
- Best Spot Cleaner: Bissell Little Green Pet Deluxe Portable Carpet Cleaner
- Best Budget: Hoover PowerDash Pet Compact Carpet Cleaner
- Luxury Pick: Bissell Big Green Pet Pro Carpet Cleaner
- Best Heavy-Duty: Hoover Smartwash Automatic Carpet Cleaner
- Best for Multiple Surfaces: Bissell CrossWave Pet Pro All-in-One Wet Dry Vacuum Cleaner
- Professional Pick: Rug Doctor Might Pro X3 Commercial Carpet Cleaner
- Best Cordless: Bissell Pet Stain Eraser PowerBrush Plus
- Best for Upholstery: Rug Doctor Pet Portable Spot Cleaner
- Battery-Powered Pick: Hoover PowerDash GO Pet+ Spot Cleaner
Overall Best: Bissell ProHeat 2X Revolution Max Clean Pet Pro Full-Size Carpet Cleaner
Specifically designed for households with pets, this full-size carpet cleaner features two cleaning modes and separate tanks for clean and dirty water. Express Clean mode is ideal for quick cleanup on light stains while Max Clean delivers a deeper clean for serious messes.
When you need a little bit of extra cleaning power, just step on the CleanShot pretreatment pedal to squirt a concentrated shot of cleaning solution directly onto the stain.
The Bissell ProHeat 2X Revolution carpet cleaner weighs under 18 pounds empty and has a 1-gallon tank capacity. The generous 25-foot cord length means you can probably clean the entire room without unplugging, and the low-profile foot fits under furniture with ease. It comes with a 3-inch tool for tough stains and a 2-in-1 attachment tool to remove pet hair from upholstery and pet bedding.
Key Features:
- Lightweight and low-profile design
- 25-foot cord length
- Multiple cleaning modes
- Comes with two attachments
What It’s Best For: All-around carpet cleaning from everyday messes to tough stains.
Shop on Amazon Shop on PetcoBest Spot Cleaner: Bissell Little Green Machine (Verified Review)
For those more worried about taking care of tough localized stains than regular full-room deep cleaning, a spot cleaner can be a smart investment. The Bissell Little Green Machine is uniquely designed to tackle localized stains with the same power as a full-size unit.
With strong spray and suction, this machine lifts away messes from carpet, car interiors, pet bedding, upholstery, and more. The large 48-ounce tank capacity means you can clean several stains in one go without having to refill.
This spot cleaner also comes with an assortment of attachments, each designed for a specific purpose. The Stain Trapper Tool is ideal for liquid messes, while the Tough Stain Tool adds the scrubbing power of strong bristles. When you’re done cleaning, use the HydroRinse Self-Cleaning Tool to clear the machine’s hose.
Our product tester has a serial puker pup, and she swears by her Green Machine, which can remove any traces of indoor accidents in about ten minutes and leave the carpet smelling fresh.
Key Features:
- Perfect for localized stains
- Large 48-ounce water tank
- Attachments for specific uses
- Includes a self-cleaning tool
What It’s Best For: Quick cleanup of tough, localized pet stains anywhere in the house, including hard-to-reach spots like the stairs or on furniture.
Shop on AmazonBest Budget: Hoover PowerDash Pet Compact Carpet Cleaner
Carpet cleaners can be expensive, but the Hoover PowerDash Pet Compact cleaner gives you the quick-cleaning performance of a full-size model in a smaller, more affordable product. This light carpet cleaner weighs in at just 12.5 pounds, and it’s small enough to store in a hall closet or pantry.
To make sure you can get back to enjoying your home as quickly as possible, this carpet cleaner features HeatForce technology for faster drying.
This carpet cleaner comes with a 20-foot power cord and separate clean and dirty water tanks. As a compact model, the tanks are smaller than you’d find on a full-size cleaner, but the PowerDash is ideal for quick cleanup in smaller spaces.
Key Features:
- Lightweight and compact
- HeatForce technology speeds drying
- 20-foot power cord
- Ideal for small spaces
What It’s Best For: Versatile clean-up of small-to-medium areas on a limited budget.
Shop on AmazonLuxury Pick: Bissell Big Green Pet Pro Carpet Cleaner
For large pet-friendly households and heavily trafficked areas, the Bissell Big Green Pet Pro carpet cleaner is worth considering. Though it’s a pricier pick, you get professional-grade cleaning with a product designed specifically for pet messes.
Strong suction helps lift away even deep-set stains, and faster drying cuts down on the time you spend cleaning. This carpet cleaner comes with two attachments and a long 9-foot hose for use on stairs and upholstery.
Keep in mind that while this carpet cleaner delivers professional-quality results, it’s much larger and heavier than something like the Hoover PowerDash. The extra weight helps push the cleaning solution deep into the carpet, but it makes the unit a little trickier to maneuver.
Key Features:
- Strong suction and fast dry time
- Professional-quality results
- Separate clean and dirty water tanks
- Large 1.7-gallon tank capacity
What It’s Best For: Whole-home carpet cleaning or spot-cleaning with professional-grade results and fast dry time.
Shop on AmazonBest Heavy-Duty: Hoover Smartwash Automatic Carpet Cleaner
If you want a deep clean but find the price and weight of the Bissell Big Green carpet cleaner concerning, the Hoover Smartwash Automatic carpet cleaner might be a better option.
Though more expensive than the Hoover PowerDash, this model features automatic cleaning technology. In other words, it transitions automatically from washing to drying depending on which direction you move the cleaner. Simply push forward to wash and pull backward to dry.
This carpet cleaner is easy to empty and fill, and it has a separate detergent tank. The cleaner automatically mixes detergent with clean water as you go, which means you can discard unused water without wasting detergent.
Key Features:
- Automatically switches from clean to dry
- Separate detergent tank
- Includes 2-in-1 pet tool for upholstery
- Comes with storage mat
What It’s Best For: Large-scale cleanup of heavy pet stains with the convenience of quick refills and automatic transition from cleaning to drying.
Shop on Amazon Shop on ChewyBest for Multiple Surfaces: Bissell CrossWave All-in-One Multi-Surface Cleaner
While the Bissell ProHeat and the Hoover Smartwash are perfect for homes with a lot of carpeting, the Bissell CrossWave is ideal for homes with multiple surfaces. It won’t give you as deep a clean as the Bissell Big Green or other full-size carpet cleaners; it’s good for more standard, everyday cleaning across a range of surfaces.
The Bissell CrossWave enables you to vacuum and wash at the same time. You can transition seamlessly from hard flooring to carpet, so you don’t have to worry about avoiding area rugs when you clean.
What makes this model particularly good for pet-friendly households is the tangle-free brush roll. It is designed to minimize hair wrap, so you spend less time cleaning out the vacuum head and more time actually cleaning.
Key Features:
- Multi-surface cleaning capability
- Tangle-free brush roll
- Lightweight and compact
- Separate clean and dirty water tanks
What It’s Best For: Cleaning up light stains on low-pile carpet, area rugs, or hard flooring, especially with a lot of pet hair.
Shop on Amazon Shop on PetcoProfessional Pick: Rug Doctor Mighty Pro X3 Commercial Carpet Cleaner
In your own home, you can clean as little or as much as you like, but when it comes to businesses and rental homes, clean carpets are a must. The Rug Doctor Mighty Pro X3 is the best carpet cleaner for pet stains when speed and efficiency count.
This commercial carpet cleaner features powerful jets that inject cleaning solution deep into the carpet fibers to target set-in stains, dirt, and odor. The triple-action vibrating brush thoroughly scrubs the carpet fibers before the professional-grade vacuum suctions up the dirty water, leaving behind clean carpets.
The downside of Rug Doctor Mighty Pro X3 is that, like the Bissell Big Green, it’s heavy and expensive. This model weighs about 47 pounds empty, but you’ll be hard-pressed to get a deeper clean elsewhere.
Key Features:
- Powerful jets inject solution deep into carpet
- Vibrating brush scrubs carpets clean
- Strong suction sucks away mess
What It’s Best For: Large-scale carpet cleaning with professional results—perfect for rentals (and the dog-friendly Rover office).
Shop on AmazonBest for Set-In Stains: Bissell Pet Stain Eraser PowerBrush Plus (Verified Review)
The best way to prevent stains is to clean up messes quickly, but sometimes accidents happen when you’re not around. Set-in stains take time and effort to remove, but it helps if you have a tool specifically designed for the job.
The Bissell Pet Stain Eraser features a rotating brush that does the hard work for you, helping power through set-in stains. This handheld cleaner features a rechargeable lithium-ion battery as well, so you can take it anywhere you need it.
If you’re looking for convenience, you may also like that this spot cleaner uses pre-mixed formula. Unlike with the Bissell Little Green Cleaning Machine, you don’t have to mix the cleaner with water to use it.
Our product tester gave it two thumbs up and was especially impressed with both how comfortable it was in her hand and how quiet it was.
Key Features:
- Independently rotating brush
- Great for set-in stains
- Rechargeable lithium-ion battery
- Uses pre-mixed formula
What It’s Best For: Removal of localized, set-in stains where concentrated cleaning with extra scrubbing power is needed.
Shop on AmazonBest for Upholstery: Rug Doctor Pet Portable Spot Cleaner
While the Bissell Pet Stain Eraser is great for “set it and forget it” spot cleaning, stains on upholstery can be tricky. With its dual-action pet tool and four-foot hose, you can clean everything from furniture to drapery with the Rug Doctor Pet Portable Spot Cleaner.
This spot cleaner is larger than some handheld models, but that means it has a bigger water tank for extended cleaning. Though lightweight and portable, it also has wheels and a telescoping handle for hassle-free transport.
What makes this carpet cleaner for pet stains excellent for upholstery is the unique pet tool. It features a bristled head, which helps loosen and trap pet hair while simultaneously removing stains and odor.
Key Features:
- Portable and lightweight
- Cleans upholstery and furniture
- Dual-action pet tool
- Large 64-ounce tank capacity
What It’s Best For: Spot cleaning big spots thoroughly, especially on furry carpets and couches.
Shop on Amazon Shop on ChewyEasiest to Store: Hoover PowerDash GO Pet+ Spot Cleaner
The Rug Doctor Pet Portable Spot Cleaner may be designed for portability, but it’s not the smallest model on this list. The Hoover PowerDash GO Pet+ Spot Cleaner is small enough to store under the kitchen sink, so it’ll always be close by when you need it.
This spot cleaner is also very lightweight, which makes it a good carpet cleaner for pet stains in hard-to-reach areas like the stairs or on upholstery and pet bedding. With an extension cord, you can also use it in the car a little more easily than a bigger model like the Bissell Little Green Cleaning Machine.
The Hoover PowerDash GO comes with two interchangeable tools—a bristle tool for scrubbing set-in stains and a rubber nub tool that helps collect pet hair.
Key Features:
- Lightweight and compact
- Interchangeable tool heads
- Easy to empty and fill
- Uses premixed solution
What It’s Best For: Spot cleaning of carpet and upholstered surfaces in hard-to-reach areas, especially the car.
Shop on Amazon Shop on ChewyHow We Chose
The carpet cleaners featured here were selected based on a combination of our own hands-on testing and a comprehensive look at customer reviews across a wide variety of retail platforms. We’re also guided by the experience of living and playing alongside our own much-loved and strongly opinionated pets, who are never stingy with their feedback.
We prioritized carpet cleaners designed specifically with pet owners in mind. The models on this list combine features like strong suction, bristled brushes, automatic drying to help lift tough stains. We also considered convenience factors such as weight, power cord length, and included attachments when making our selections.