Shark Stratos Upright Review: Why It’s One of The Best

When it comes to upright vacuums, Shark models consistently earn high marks in evaluations, with very competitive scores. So, when Shark released their latest flagship upright, the Shark Stratos, we were eager to put it through its paces and evaluate it over several weeks. In our Shark Stratos Upright review, we’ll share our findings and help you decide whether this vacuum is right for your needs.

Shark Stratos AZ3002

Shark’s latest upright packs in the best features from previous upright models. Past technologies that resurface in the Shark Stratos Upright include DuoClean PowerFins, a Self-Cleaning Brushroll, Powered Lift-Away, and Shark’s Anti-Allergen Complete Seal. There are new features, too, including HyperVelocity + accelerated suction and Odor Neutralizer Technology.

Unboxing and setup

One thing that was hard to ignore when we unboxed the Shark Stratos was the following claim: “Strongest suction & best hair pickup of any vacuum.” That’s a big statement, and we’ll cover it further below when we talk about performance.

After removing the Shark Stratos Upright, the hose, and accessories, the next step is putting together the main vacuum. If you’ve owned a previous Shark upright model, such as the Navigator, Rotator, or Vertex, you’ll remember the experience. It only takes a few minutes, and the included manual makes it simple, even for a first timer.

Performance and test results

Where vacuums and performance intersect, we often lead with how a vacuum fares at picking up various debris, from small to large, on different surfaces. In the case of the Stratos, we will start by covering its suction power.

…the Shark Stratos upright is the best Shark DuoClean upright Vacuum Wars has tested on carpet to-date.

Shark Stratos Upright suction

As we mentioned earlier, Shark isn’t shy about touting the Stratos’ suction. And, we were curious how those claims would measure up. We do a variety of evaluations that measure airflow and suction, both sealed and unsealed, at various parts of the upright vacuums we evaluate.

And, we can confirm that the Shark Stratos does have a ton of suction at the hose, wand, and head. After running it through all our evaluations, there’s no question that the Shark Stratos Upright is one of the most powerful vacuums we’ve ever assessed. Compared with all the uprights in this round of evaluations, the Stratos yielded suction and airflow numbers far beyond average.

	Shark Stratos Upright	Average Upright
Suction at Hose	104″	80″
Airflow at Hose	100 cfm	79 cfm
Unsealed Suction	0.76 kpa	0.49 kpa

We compared the Stratos with the last flagship upright from Shark, the Vertex AZ2002. And, to its credit, the Vertex more than held its own. That comparison showed that the Stratos and Vertex had almost identical suction and airflow results.

However, as our evaluations continued, we found that the Stratos outperformed the Vertex in deep cleaning.

This may be due to the evolution of Shark’s DuoClean brushroll system. Regardless, the Shark Stratos upright is the best Shark DuoClean upright Vacuum Wars has evaluated on carpet to date.

This is also a nod to the Shark Vertex, though, especially as we’ve seen it being sold at considerably discounted prices lately.

Vacuuming on hard flooring and carpet

If you’re not familiar with DuoClean, it’s Shark’s patented brushroll system, which combines a soft roller brush and a more traditional brushroll in a single floor nozzle.

Soft roller brushes shine on hard floors. Traditional brushrolls, which are plastic or rubber fins, are best suited for coaxing dirt and debris out of carpet fibers. By incorporating them both, DuoClean-equipped vacuums like the Stratos get the best of both worlds.

Unsurprisingly, the Shark Stratos upright passed every pickup evaluation we put it through. In short, when it comes to vacuuming debris of any size from both hard floors and carpets, it doesn’t get any better than this.

But while it excels on any flooring surface, it is worth noting that the Stratos Upright and its predecessor both earned a top spot in our Best Vacuums for Tile Floors competition.

Finally, another suction-intensive evaluation where the Stratos performed extremely well was in crevice pickup.

Self-cleaning brushroll and vacuuming hair

One of the newer technologies in vacuums is active hair removal. In the case of the Stratos upright, Shark calls it a Self-Cleaning Brushroll. They explain the technology as providing “powerful pet hair pickup, with no hair wrap.”

And we found this to be another area where the Shark Stratos outperforms its peers. We evaluated it by vacuuming up 7″ and 14″ human hair and didn’t find a single strand tangled on its brushroll.

Shark Stratos Upright Review: Features

In covering the Shark Stratos Upright cleaning performance, we’ve already covered many of its features, but not all of them. Here are a few others worth factoring into consideration.

Anti-allergen seal and HEPA filtration

Another feature that the Stratos upright includes is Shark’s Anti-Allergen Complete Seal. It combines a well-sealed system vacuum body and connections with HEPA filtration to “capture 99.9% of dust, allergens, dander and more” for particulates “down to 0.3 microns” in size.

We’ve talked about the benefits of a well-sealed system in our articles and videos in the past. Once debris is vacuumed, cheaper vacuums often leak dust and finer particles back into the area they were just removed from. But many premium vacuums, including the Stratos and a few other Shark uprights have solved the problem.

Powered Lift-Away

Shark’s Powered Lift-Away makes cleaning hard to reach areas easier by transforming the Stratos upright into a portable canister vacuum. With the press of a button, the main vacuum assembly and hose detach from the full-size cleaning head and tube.

With the vacuuming hose still attached to the tube and full-size cleaning head, the Shark Stratos Upright can be used like a stick vacuum. It makes the vacuum far more flexible than an upright with a fixed configuration.

This configuration can be used with the included non-powered accessories. Some Shark packages also include a HairPro Self-Cleaning Pet Power Brush, which is also compatible with Powered Lift-Away.

Odor Neutralizer Technology

A new feature just introduced by Shark, the Odor Neutralizer Technology, was designed to do precisely what it says. The technology leverages an odor-neutralizing pod, which is placed in an opening at the base of the main powered nozzle.

Shark says it “guards against bad odors in the vacuum, leaving you with a fresh-smelling home.” There is also an odor neutralizer technology intensity dial to adjust how much air flows through the cartridge.

After running it through all our evaluations, there’s no question that the Shark Stratos Upright is one of the most powerful vacuums we’ve ever evaluated.

We did try it out, but were ultimately skeptical. We couldn’t smell a difference, but as this is a neutralizer, we didn’t think we would. But the main reason we didn’t warm up to this feature is that for us, it felt like one more thing to maintain. In the Shark Stratos’ manual, it recommended replacing the cartridge every 6 months.

But to be fair, this is merely our reaction and will likely vary from customer to customer. One final note is that it is not required – the Stratos works just fine without a cartridge in place.

Ergonomics

Heavier upright vacuums can get a bit unwieldy. But while we do consider the Stratos to be on the heavier side, it’s lighter than many competing uprights. And, it has a very precise swivel motion that makes it easy to navigate in tight spaces and around obstacles.

Beyond vacuuming, we’re fans of the usability and design of the Stratos’ dirt bin, too. Not only is it a good-sized one at 1.4 liters or just under 1.5 qts, but it is easy to both empty and clean.

Value

The Shark Stratos Upright is at the razor’s edge of upright vacuum technology, has tremendous power, and is approaching perfection with its pickup on both hard floors and carpets.

Its versatility is important. The high suction and sturdy hardware mean it can be used for industrial things, like car vacuuming, as well.

While that does come at a price, with all things considered, the Shark Stratos Upright offers a great deal of value. It does carry a high price tag, but it’s still lower than many of its peers.

Recommendation

The Shark Stratos Upright is one of the best upright vacuums we have evaluated to date. It excels on all flooring surfaces, has excellent suction power, and did very well in all our cleaning evaluations.

We recommend the Shark Stratos Upright for anyone looking for a premium upright vacuum.

Specs

Vacuum type	Corded Upright
Bagged/bagless	Bagless
Motor	1416W / 11.8 amps
Dust cup capacity	1.4L / 1.48 qts.
Cord length	30 ft.
Hose length	2.95 ft.
Cleaning path width	10.63 in.
Powered accessories	Pet Power Brush (select packages)
Headlight	Yes
Dimensions	L x W x H
Weight	17.2 lbs.
Warranty	5 yr. limited

Frequently asked questions