Dreame vs Dyson

Which brand to buy

The Dreame Z30 exists to be compared with the Dyson Gen5detect, and its owners make the comparison themselves. The Z30 costs $300 and claims 310 AW; the Gen5detect costs $917 and claims 280 AW. Z30 owners say it does what the Dyson does for hundreds less and edged it on short-pile carpet, but concede its 90-minute figure is Eco-only and Turbo drains it quickly. Gen5detect owners prize its power button, a laser visible in daylight and the grit it pulls from carpet, and complain about its 7.6 lb weight and plastic that scratches.

The lineups meet on cordless sticks, wet floor cleaning and, now that Dyson sells them too, robots. Dyson sells uprights, a canister and handhelds that Dreame doesn't. Lower down, the Dreame R20 faced the Dyson V8 Cyclone at $300; the R20 is now discontinued, and Dreame's successor is the R20 TangleX at $200. R20 owners report whole-house cleans on hard floors but hair left behind in medium-pile carpet. V8 Cyclone owners call it the best-value Dyson but miss a battery readout. Several Dyson owners, on the V15 Detect, V11 Extra and V15s Detect Submarine, describe failures arriving around the end of the 2-year warranty.

For mopping the designs differ. The Dyson V15s Detect Submarine, now discontinued and replaced by the V16 Piston Animal Submarine at $1,100, swaps to a mop head with no suction, so you vacuum first and mop second. The Dreame H15 Pro Heat at $550 vacuums and washes in one pass with water up to 185°F and a self-cleaning roller, though owners find its 13.7 lbs heavy to carry. Go with Dreame if you want the most stick for the money, a hot-water floor washer, or a robot. Dyson is the better bet if you want a corded upright for carpet, the laser-led Detect line, or a handheld from the same maker.

Dreame vs Dyson: common questions