This Hoover PowerDash reminded me of a toy vacuum in the best way. It's light and easily maneuverable, which is a relief compared to a lot of bulky cleaners out there. You can usually find it for around $90 too. (Even at its full price of $120, it's cheaper than others we tried.)

Like the others on this list, this one has a dirty-water tank at the bottom and a clean-water and solution tank at the top. Both are easy to remove and clean. The handle has a solution trigger, which was oddly satisfying to use, for accurately spraying stains first. You probably don't want to deep-clean an old, neglected house with this one, but for bedrooms, area rugs, or cleaning up pet messes or food spills, this should get stains out quickly. One thing I don't love about Hoovers is that the actual nozzle openings tend to be quite thin—I found this to be the case with the larger vacuum-style models and the spot cleaners I've tried. With any cleaner, you shouldn't expect it to pick up large chunks of … blown chunks (sorry), but I find even little pieces of hair or food got clogged in there.