--- title: "Best Shop Vacs 2026: Tested and Reviewed Picks From $57 to $249" description: "A 5-gallon Vacmaster with a 5.5-hp motor takes Best Overall, and four more vacs cover wet messes, tight budgets and big jobs." url: https://home.skoop.news/we-tested-shop-vacs-on-both-wet-and-dry-messes-and-vacmaster-f649b3/ published: 2026-10-30T15:35:08.519121-04:00 modified: 2026-10-30T15:35:08.519147-04:00 section: "Home & DIY" publisher: "skoop.news" language: en keywords: ["Amazon", "DeWalt Stealthsonic", "Peak HP NXT", "Best Overall", "Craftsman CMXEVBE17595", "Stanley SL18116P", "Wet Messes", "GFCI", "Lowe", "tools"] hashtags: ["#DeWaltStealthsonic", "#PeakHPNXT", "#BestOverall", "#Tools", "#diy"] image: https://thumb.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/1/14/Turquoise-fronted_amazon_%28Amazona_aestiva%29_head.JPG/1280px-Turquoise-fronted_amazon_%28Amazona_aestiva%29_head.JPG?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail --- # Best Shop Vacs 2026: Tested and Reviewed Picks From $57 to $249 > A 5-gallon Vacmaster with a 5.5-hp motor takes Best Overall, and four more vacs cover wet messes, tight budgets and big jobs. Published 2026-10-30 · Updated 2026-10-30 · Home & DIY, [skoop.news](https://skoop.news/) ## In brief - The Vacmaster Professional Wet-Dry Beast Series 5-Gallon Shop Vacuum is named Best Overall, and it costs $110 at Amazon. [[1]](https://www.popularmechanics.com/home/g13297636/best-shop-vacs/) - The shop vacs were tested by Popular Mechanics team members, including Tony Carrick and Test Editor Brad Ford. [[1]](https://www.popularmechanics.com/home/g13297636/best-shop-vacs/) - The Stanley SL18116P is priced at $57 at Amazon. [[1]](https://www.popularmechanics.com/home/g13297636/best-shop-vacs/) ## The best overall pick The Vacmaster Professional Wet-Dry Beast Series 5-Gallon Shop Vacuum is named Best Overall, and it costs $110 at Amazon. [[1]](https://www.popularmechanics.com/home/g13297636/best-shop-vacs/) If you want one shop vac for the garage or workshop, its 5.5-hp motor is much more powerful than most other 5-gallon shop vacs. [[1]](https://www.popularmechanics.com/home/g13297636/best-shop-vacs/) The Beast Series has an 18-foot power cord and a 7-foot hose. [[1]](https://www.popularmechanics.com/home/g13297636/best-shop-vacs/) The newest version adds wheels. [[1]](https://www.popularmechanics.com/home/g13297636/best-shop-vacs/) The Vacmaster Professional Beast Series FLT+ connects to the exhaust ports of large sawdust-producing power tools. [[1]](https://www.popularmechanics.com/home/g13297636/best-shop-vacs/) It also syncs with connected power tools via a wireless remote. [[1]](https://www.popularmechanics.com/home/g13297636/best-shop-vacs/) ## How we tested The shop vacs were tested by Popular Mechanics team members, including Tony Carrick and Test Editor Brad Ford. [[1]](https://www.popularmechanics.com/home/g13297636/best-shop-vacs/) They ran three timed tests using only each vacuum's hose, with no attachments. [[1]](https://www.popularmechanics.com/home/g13297636/best-shop-vacs/) The first test involved vacuuming up 12 cups of sawdust to measure how quickly each vac collected dry material. [[1]](https://www.popularmechanics.com/home/g13297636/best-shop-vacs/) ## Prices and results at a glance The Stanley SL18116P is priced at $57 at Amazon. [[1]](https://www.popularmechanics.com/home/g13297636/best-shop-vacs/) The Ridgid 12-Gallon 5.0 Peak HP NXT is $128 at Amazon, and the DeWalt Stealthsonic 12-Gallon is $139 at Amazon. [[1]](https://www.popularmechanics.com/home/g13297636/best-shop-vacs/) A 9-gallon DeWalt AC/DC wet/dry vacuum is $199 at Lowe's. [[2]](https://www.bobvila.com/articles/how-to-use-shop-vac-for-water/) The Milwaukee M18 Fuel 6-Gallon Wet-Dry Vacuum is $249 at Home Depot. [[1]](https://www.popularmechanics.com/home/g13297636/best-shop-vacs/) ## Where the other picks differ Stanley's SL18116P is a 6-gallon wet-dry vac that costs a fraction of the price of other shop vacs. [[1]](https://www.popularmechanics.com/home/g13297636/best-shop-vacs/) It completed the sawdust test in 21 seconds and drained 2 gallons of water in 11 seconds. [[1]](https://www.popularmechanics.com/home/g13297636/best-shop-vacs/) Testers wished its power cord was longer than 10 feet. [[1]](https://www.popularmechanics.com/home/g13297636/best-shop-vacs/) The Ridgid 12-Gallon 5.0 Peak HP NXT collected a pile of sawdust in just over 16 seconds. [[1]](https://www.popularmechanics.com/home/g13297636/best-shop-vacs/) It drained a bucket of water in about 6 seconds but struggled to pick up larger bolts. [[1]](https://www.popularmechanics.com/home/g13297636/best-shop-vacs/) The DeWalt Stealthsonic 12-Gallon Wet-Dry Shop Vacuum is named Best for Wet Messes. [[1]](https://www.popularmechanics.com/home/g13297636/best-shop-vacs/) The Craftsman CMXEVBE17595 has a 16-gallon tank and is the largest pick in the guide. [[1]](https://www.popularmechanics.com/home/g13297636/best-shop-vacs/) Its max airflow of 185 cubic feet per minute lets it suck up material faster than any other shop vac the testers evaluated. [[1]](https://www.popularmechanics.com/home/g13297636/best-shop-vacs/) ## Using a shop vac for water Wet messes such as a water main break, leak, or flood can be handled by a wet/dry shop vac that sucks liquid into a canister. [[2]](https://www.bobvila.com/articles/how-to-use-shop-vac-for-water/) A shop vac can also unclog a drain, acting like a powerful plunger. [[3]](https://www.slashgear.com/2202796/how-to-clean-shop-vac-guide-tips/) If your vac has a bag, remove it before vacuuming water, or it may fill with liquid and rip. [[2]](https://www.bobvila.com/articles/how-to-use-shop-vac-for-water/) Plug the vac into a GFCI outlet, and use a wet-rated extension cord if you need one. [[2]](https://www.bobvila.com/articles/how-to-use-shop-vac-for-water/) Moving the vacuum attachment back and forth rapidly across a floor spreads puddles and makes them harder to clean up. [[2]](https://www.bobvila.com/articles/how-to-use-shop-vac-for-water/) A floating ball or puck blocks suction when the water reaches an unsafe height, and then the canister needs emptying. [[2]](https://www.bobvila.com/articles/how-to-use-shop-vac-for-water/) ## Cleaning and lifespan After wet jobs, mold and unpleasant odors can build up inside a shop vac if it is not cleaned. [[3]](https://www.slashgear.com/2202796/how-to-clean-shop-vac-guide-tips/) The key areas to keep clean are the filter, the hose, and the canister. [[3]](https://www.slashgear.com/2202796/how-to-clean-shop-vac-guide-tips/) About a quarter cup of bleach in a gallon of warm water cleans the inside. [[3]](https://www.slashgear.com/2202796/how-to-clean-shop-vac-guide-tips/) Shop-Vac's reusable disc, full polyester, and cartridge filters can be rinsed with water and dried before reinstalling. [[3]](https://www.slashgear.com/2202796/how-to-clean-shop-vac-guide-tips/) Shop vacs may last for a decade before they stop working. [[3]](https://www.slashgear.com/2202796/how-to-clean-shop-vac-guide-tips/) Ridgid says its vacuums are expected to last about 500 to 700 hours. [[2]](https://www.bobvila.com/articles/how-to-use-shop-vac-for-water/) ## Which one to buy If you want the top pick, the Vacmaster Beast Series is Best Overall at $110. [[1]](https://www.popularmechanics.com/home/g13297636/best-shop-vacs/) If you mostly deal with water, the DeWalt Stealthsonic is named Best for Wet Messes at $139. [[1]](https://www.popularmechanics.com/home/g13297636/best-shop-vacs/) If price matters most, the Stanley SL18116P is $57, though its power cord is shorter than testers wanted. [[1]](https://www.popularmechanics.com/home/g13297636/best-shop-vacs/) If you need the fastest suction, the Craftsman CMXEVBE17595 sucks up material faster than any other shop vac the testers evaluated. [[1]](https://www.popularmechanics.com/home/g13297636/best-shop-vacs/) If you need a shop vac for one job, big box stores rent them by the hour or day for less than the cost of a new one. [[2]](https://www.bobvila.com/articles/how-to-use-shop-vac-for-water/) ## Sources 1. [We Tested Shop Vacs on Both Wet and Dry Messes, and Vacmaster Cleaned Up Everything We Threw at It](https://www.popularmechanics.com/home/g13297636/best-shop-vacs/) — YAHOO! 2. [How to Use a Shop Vac to Clean Up Wet Messes](https://www.bobvila.com/articles/how-to-use-shop-vac-for-water/) — Bob Vila 3. [How To Clean Your Shop Vac To Keep It Running Like New](https://www.slashgear.com/2202796/how-to-clean-shop-vac-guide-tips/) — SlashGear Image: Photo: Charles J. Sharp / Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0 (https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Turquoise-fronted_amazon_(Amazona_aestiva)_head.JPG) --- Written from the sources above and checked twice (rules and an independent model) before publishing. How we work: https://skoop.news/how-we-work/ · Corrections: https://skoop.news/corrections/