Combine two cleaning tasks into one swift motion with the Bissell Vac & Steam, which does exactly what the name says. It lifts as much dust and hair as possible and then uses water to lift the remaining grime. It’s bigger and heavier than many steam cleaners, and more expensive than most, but, if you have a house full of kids and pets where the floors and surfaces frequently need some major cleaning, it’s a price you’ll be more than happy to pay. The Polti Vaporetto Smart 100_B has a large 2 litre water tank that feeds the boiler, but you can pop out the tank at any time for a refill without waiting for it to cool down or even disrupting cleaning. Take a good look at the accessories you get with the cleaner. The more brushes, nozzles and scrapers, the better, while a gliding mop-head cover for doing carpets is another big plus. Also watch out for the mains lead and the length of any steam hose, as nothing’s more frustrating than not being able to steam-clean in the corner of your shower because it won’t quite reach without an extension cable.

It’s only designed for cleaning floors, so there are no accessories except a filling jug. There are two steam levels: a button on the front of the body of the cleaner cycles between these and off. In our tests, Molly found it heats up in under 30 seconds. Key specs – Type: Steam mop; Water tank capacity: 380ml; Power: 1,200W; Max steam pressure: Not supplied; Accessories provided: 2 x microfibre pads; Cord length: 8m; Dimensions: 10 x 11 x 119cm; Weight: 2.7kg; Warranty: 2 yearsThere are no handheld cleaning tools with this cleaner as it’s just for floors. It’s heavy (4.4kg) and perhaps not as versatile as some of the other options on this list, but it does have the value of a vacuum and steam cleaner combined.

The 380ml water tank is only good for around ten to 12 minutes of steaming, but that should be enough for a couple of good-sized rooms at the pace this steam mop works, and you can refill the tank whenever you need to via the pull-out filling flap. Shark even throws in a handy jug.Testing these cleaners simultaneously has allowed her to see which cleaners excel at which task, and to judge them on ease of use and storage, which is crucially important in her very compact space. What is the best steam cleaner in 2023?

Second, you have steam mops. These integrate the boiler and the head into one upright cleaning machine. As the name suggests, these are really designed to work as a super-powered mop, but a growing number can also double as a regular steam cleaner, either by having a smaller, removable boiler unit or by allowing you to attach additional heads instead of the mop head. They’re now almost as versatile as the classic steam cleaner, but they’re easy to use and very compact.Uniquely, the Shark’s floorhead and cleaning pad are double-sided, giving you twice the surface area for more cleaning. It comes with a second cleaning pad, too, which our Ecommcerce Editor Molly thought was excellent value for money during testing.