Dyson V11 Animal vs Torque Drive vs Outsize

We’ve been big fans of the Dyson V11 series of cordless vacuums since their release. The three main models are the Animal, the Torque Drive, and the Outsize. And if you’re wondering which will give you the most bang for your buck, you’re in luck. In this article, we will be comparing them head-to-head.

We spent a week evaluating them and considering each, and in the end, we were somewhat surprised by our conclusion.

Dyson V11 Animal vs Torque Drive vs Outsize

First, the basics: the V11 Animal is the cheapest, the Torque Drive is in the middle, and the Outsize is the most expensive. Technically, there are a few other V11 versions that have minor differences, which we’ll mention later, but these are the main three.

Dyson V11 cordless vacuum similarities

Auto-adjusting suction

All three V11s have Dyson’s new smart suction adjustment feature, where a sensor in the cleaner head detects if you’re vacuuming hard floors or carpet, and it automatically adjusts the suction. Suction is increased for carpets and decreased for hard floors. The benefit of this is that it optimizes battery life and performance. It’s a pretty cool feature that we find very useful.

Debris pickup on carpet and hard floors

All three V11s are really good vacuums, meaning they’re excellent at their basic job of picking up debris on hard floors and carpet. They all feature a three-level adjustable gate on the front and work well with all types and sizes of debris on carpet. With hard floors, they’re also above average. However, we recommend using them with their front gates fully open if you have hard floors.

No soft roller

None of the V11s come with a soft roller or fluffy cleaner head, which was an option with the previous V10 series. But you can get a version with a soft roller, which is the V11 Absolute, and it’s available in the UK.

Update: Long after our review was originally done, Dyson began including a soft roller with some V11 models.

Deep cleaning carpet

These V11s are really good for deep cleaning carpets. That means using a combination of their suction and agitation to vacuum deeply embedded dirt in carpets. And they perform better than just about any competitor. They also have excellent seals on hard floors. This was clearly evident, too, considering their exceptional performance in things like our crevice pickup evaluation.

Vacuuming hair

The Dyson V11 Animal, Torque Drive, and Outsize are also above average at picking up hair without it getting tangled in the brush, primarily due to Dyson’s unique brushroll design. Since the release of the V11 series, other companies have begun to emulate the design because of its success.

HEPA seal

The last similarity we’ll mention is that they all have incredibly good whole-machine HEPA filtration systems, which keep all the dirty air in the vacuum. This is, unfortunately, quite rare in the cordless vacuum world, especially among the more affordable ones.

V11 Animal vs Torque Drive vs Outsize: differences

LCD Screens

One of the most significant differences with these vacuums is the screen on the back of the handle. The V11 Torque Drive and the Outsize feature LCD screens that display various information, including the power level you’re on, as well as alert animations, such as clog alerts.

The most useful difference to us, though, is that it shows the exact amount of battery life that you have left. That number changes depending on its current power level or the attachment that you’re using. And even when the suction adjusts up and down with the auto-adjustment feature, it changes automatically to reflect the new power level conditions.

On the other hand, the V11 Animal just has an LED screen, which technically has the same basic information, such as power level, clog, tangle indicators, and battery life. However, it’s very basic, especially the battery life indicator, which only displays three bars instead of exact timing information.

We find the LCD screens on the Torque Drive and the Outsize, specifically the battery life countdown feature, to be really useful. It’s something we don’t want to do without now that we’ve gotten a chance to use it. However, it’s definitely not necessary, especially since the battery life is already quite good. Still, it’s something to consider when making your decision.

Battery life

One advantage that the V11 Outsize has over the other two is the battery. On the one hand, the battery life for all three is essentially the same, with only slight variations, which we’ll discuss further when we get to the power specs. But for the most part, they’re all going to get about an hour on low power, about 40 minutes or so on medium, and about 8 minutes on max power.

They will get somewhere in the middle of all that if you have the vacuum on auto power. Auto mode typically ranges in the middle of these numbers and, of course, depends on your floor type since it will automatically adjust.

That noted, the Outsize is the only one that comes with an additional or extra battery that can be clicked into place. Therefore, you can effectively double all battery life numbers for the Outsize. It should be noted that a few people received a V11 Torque Drive with the click-in battery, but this was apparently a limited-time offer. In the future, only the V11 Outsize will feature the click-in battery.

Update: After our review was originally done, Dyson began offering multiple V11 models with a click-in battery.

Size and weight

Another big difference is the size. While the Animal and the Torque Drive weigh the same and have the exact same high torque cleaner head, the Outsize is big. It’s a little over a pound heavier and has a full-size cleaner head about 25 percent wider than the Animal and the Torque Drive. Its bin is also much larger, with more than double the capacity. We’ll have more to say about this size issue in the conclusion.

Power

These V11 cordless vacuums all have the same motor size. However, due to the way they’re programmed and a few other variables, they have different airflow and suction measurements.

For example, the official numbers from Dyson say that the Outsize has about 35 more air watts than the Animal and the Torque Drive. In our suction and airflow evaluations, we confirmed that the Outsize was the most powerful, and by about the same percentage.

But what we weren’t expecting to find was that the cheaper one, the V11 Animal, was slightly more powerful than the Torque Drive. It had more suction and more airflow at the cleaner head. This was also confirmed by the unsealed suction evaluation. 

	V11 Animal	V11 Torque Drive	V11 Outsize
Air Watts	185AW	185AW	220AW
Suction	112″	101″	112″
Unsealed	1.57 kpa	1.92 kpa	2.46 kpa
Airflow	52 cfm	49 cfm	58 cfm

Now, taking a step back here… It’s essential to recognize how significantly more powerful the entire V11 series is compared to almost every other cordless vacuum on the market, regardless of the model you choose. These are incredibly high numbers in general. But for whatever reason, possibly because the Animal doesn’t need as much power for its LED screen, the V11 Animal seems to have more power than the Torque Drive — but not as much as the Outsize.

Attachments

The attachment sets are interesting because most companies don’t offer good attachments at all levels of their lineup. But it appears that, for the most part, Dyson has included the best attachments for all V11 models. 

For example, they all come with the mini motorized tool for stairs or upholstery, a wall mount, the crevice and combo brush tool, and the stubborn dirt brush. Really, the only difference here is that the Animal doesn’t come with the mini soft dusting brush, and the Outsize comes with one extra charger for its one extra battery. All in all, you get an excellent attachment package, no matter which one you buy.

Top Pick

Based on all this, our conclusion is that the V11 Animal offers the best value. It’s true that we really love the digital readout of battery life on the Torque Drive and the Outsize, and it’s a very compelling reason to upgrade. But, in terms of usability and performance, it’s actually just slightly better to get the Animal.

Yes, the Outsize has that click-in battery and more power, but the battery life on the Animal is phenomenal. It’s more than we’ve ever needed in our situation, and the extra battery doesn’t do us much good. In our opinion, Dyson leads the industry in battery efficiency.

Also, we really don’t care about big dustbins. The bin size on the Animal and the Torque Drive has been enough for us so far. And that extra pound of weight on the Outsize is noticeable and substantial. We’ve started to see the Outsize’s big size as more of a con for our situation, but we can see it being a big pro for people who need this for bigger jobs.

The bottom line is that the V11 Animal is the best bang for the buck in the V11 series.

Frequently Asked Questions