Bissell Big Green Professional
A practical carpet cleaner (upright washer) for a deeper, fresher carpet clean at home.
Spot Cleaner vs Carpet Washer: Which Do You Need?
When buying you'll choose between a portable spot cleaner and a full-size carpet washer. They do related but different jobs, and picking the right one matters more than the brand.
Spot cleaner
A spot cleaner is small, portable and grab-and-go, designed to tackle individual spills, stains, muddy patches and pet accidents on carpets, stairs, upholstery and car seats. It has a small tank and a stain tool, and some are cordless. It's brilliant for dealing with messes the moment they happen, but its small size means it isn't practical for cleaning a whole room of carpet.
Carpet washer (upright)
A full-size upright carpet washer is built for deep-cleaning entire rooms: a wide cleaning head, large clean and dirty water tanks, and powerful rotating brushes let you refresh whole carpets efficiently. Many add heated cleaning. The trade-off is size and weight - they're bulkier to store and overkill for a single spill, and most have a hose and tool for stairs as a bonus.
Which do you need?
Choose a spot cleaner if your main need is dealing with spills, pet accidents and stairs quickly; choose a full-size washer if you want to deep-clean whole rooms of carpet. If you have pets or kids and lots of carpet, many people own both - or buy an upright with a good hand tool to cover both bases.
Our top picks
#1
#2 
Bissell SpotClean Pro
A practical carpet cleaner (spot/portable, 750W) for a deeper, fresher carpet clean at home.
#3 
Vax Rapid Power Refresh CDCW-RPXR
A practical carpet cleaner (spot/portable, 1200W) for a deeper, fresher carpet clean at home.
#4 
Vax Rapid Power Revive
A practical carpet cleaner (spot/portable, 1200W) for a deeper, fresher carpet clean at home.
#5 
Vax SpotWash CDCW-CSXS
A practical carpet cleaner (spot/portable) for a deeper, fresher carpet clean at home.
#6 
Vax Compact Power
A practical carpet cleaner (spot/portable, 800W) for a deeper, fresher carpet clean at home.
Frequently asked questions
Can a spot cleaner clean a whole carpet?
Not practically - its small tank and narrow tool are made for spills and targeted stains, so cleaning a whole room would take forever and many refills. For whole-room cleaning, use a full-size upright washer.
Bottom line
Our top pick is the Bissell Big Green Professional (our score 9.6/10) - A practical carpet cleaner (upright washer) for a deeper, fresher carpet clean at home..