Someday we’ll live in a world like the Jetsons where robots do our chores for us. Until that day comes, however, we’re holding on to our human-steered vacuums. Yes, you can buy a robotic vacuum or mop if you’re thoroughly sick of cleaning, and it’ll do a much better job than tying a duster to your dog’s tail, but there’s not a robot on the market that will get a thorough cleaning job done. Robotic vacuums won’t clean your stairs, your sofas, your countertops, your car interiors, or anywhere else aside from your bare floors and carpets, to be frank. So what are your options?

Well, if you work at Shark or Dyson, you make it your goal to bring better vacuums to the market–vacuums that make cleaning easier, faster, and with a little bit of luck, kind of fun. If you want pure power and suction, the strongest uprights you can currently buy are the Shark APEX DuoClean AX951 and the Dyson Ball Animal 2. But if you’re looking for something in between a V7 Car+Boat‘s handheld portability and a full-sized upright’s power and heft, you’re going to want a stick vacuum.

Having reviewed nearly all current stick vacuums, we’re pretty sure the two best on the market are the Dyson V8 Absolute and the Shark IONFlex 2x DuoClean IF251, with the V8 Animal and IONFlex DuoClean IF201 tied closely for third. But if you want the convenience of a stick and don’t mind if it comes with a power cord, or just want to be able to clean without caring about how much battery life you have left, you’ll want a corded stick vacuum, and today we’re going to review one of the most affordable quality options on the market: the Shark Rocket Ultra-Light HV300 Vacuum (USA, Canada). We’ll also compare it to the Flex DuoClean HV391. To summarize our thoughts, we’d recommend the HV391 for the flexible extension hose and the greater cleaning power on carpets and the HV300 if you’re on a tight budget. Our full review is below, and you can buy the HV300 here in the United States or buy the HV300 here in Canada.

How does the Shark Rocket Ultra-Light HV300 Upright compare to other Shark corded stick vacuums?

The Rocket HV300 is one of  a  range of corded and cordless Shark ultralight vacuums to hit the market in recent years to topple Dyson’s long-held reign. There are too many for us to review; we’re not even sure Shark knows how many they have on the market. However, here’s where the HV300 stands compared to fellow Shark stick vacuums.

Before ranking it, let’s go over a bit of Shark-specific lingo. “ION” means the vacuum is cordless and runs on a Lithium-ion battery. “Flex” means you can bend the vacuum via a joint in the extension wand to make it possible to reach under beds and furniture without hurting your back and knees. Finally, “DuoClean” means you’re buying a vacuum with a dual brush system, which is, per Shark, more efficient than the multiple head system found in Dyson sticks like the V8 Absolute.

The highest-ranked cordless Sharks are the IONFlex 2x DuoClean IF251 and IONFlex DuoClean IF201  respectively (they only differ by the number of batteries included). The highest-ranked corded Shark ultralight is the Flex DuoClean HV391. On its heels you’ll find the DuoClean HV382 and HV322, which include cords and DuoClean but don’t flex, as well as the ION Rocket IR101, which won’t flex, doesn’t DuoClean, but is cordless. The HV300 is an entry level model; it doesn’t flex, it doesn’t DuoClean, and it’s corded.

Pros, cons, and key features of the Shark Rocket HV300 Vacuum

The Rocket HV300’s key features include an estimated 100 airwatts of maximum suction based on comparisons to the Dyson V8 Absolute and V6 Absolute. It’s designed to clean bare floors, low-pile carpets and rugs, and upholstery throughout the home, and it includes an  adjustable cleaning head. Like every Shark ultralight, it can be used in both full-sized stick vacuum mode and in a handheld high-portability mode simply by connecting and disconnecting the extension wand. It includes a wall mount for easy storage. It is 46 inches tall, weighs 8 pounds on our scale, and has a 9.8 inch wide cleaning path. It has 34 feet of reach with a 27 foot power cord; the dust cup holds .07 gallons when full. It includes three cleaning tools: a 5 inch crevice tool, an upholstery tool, and a dusting brush. Inside the box, you’ll also find a user manual, a handy quick start guide, and Shark’s 5-year limited warranty.

What’s the difference between the Shark Rocket HV300 and the Flex HV391?

There are several key differences between the Rocket HV300 and Flex HV391: DuoClean, Flex, suction power, accessories, and price.  Let’s take a look at each in detail.

The Flex HV391’s DuoClean feature means it includes dual brush heads that make it more effective when cleaning carpets (particularly higher piles) than the single brush head in the HV300.

The Flex feature in the HV391 gives it an advantage when cleaning beneath beds or any other furniture pieces compared to the HV300, which you can only use beneath low furniture by stooping or getting on your hands and knees (which gets increasingly hard as you age). The Flex HV391 also offers more suction at an estimated 115 airwatts vs the estimated 100 airwatts of the Rocket HV300, resulting in less work to clean the same area of flooring or upholstery than the HV300.

Regarding accessories, while the HV300 ships with a crevice tool, an upholstery tool, and a dusting brush, the HV391 includes a duster crevice tool, an under appliance wand, and a pet multi tool. Practically speaking, you’re likely to spend the majority of your time using the main cleaning head with the handheld mode reserved for spot cleaning here and there, so the accessories aren’t going to give one vacuum a significant advantage over the other. Regarding price, the HV300 is undoubtedly cheaper, but it comes at the expense of the advantages outlined above.

How thorough is the Shark Rocket HV300 when cleaning floors, furniture, and pet hair?

To bring out thoughts together and end this review, the Rocket HV300, while an entry-level Shark ultralight, is still more than capable of doing a good job in homes, apartments, townhouses, condominiums, and other living spaces. While not as powerful or functional as the HV391, it’ll still allow you to care for bare floors and low-pile carpets and area rugs with the included cleaning heads. This means you’ll be able to deal with hardwood, engineered wood, vinyl, laminate, ceramic tiles, marble, bamboo, concrete, brick, and similar bare  surfaces, and carpets like Saxonies, berbers,and  cut and loops will be within your reach. We’d  mainly encourage upgrading to the HV391 to enjoy better cleaning power (particularly on carpeting) and much greater flexibility if you have a lot of furniture you’ll want to clean beneath.

You can buy the Shark Flex HV391 here on Amazon. If you don’t need the flex and other upgraded features, you can save a lot of money by buying the Rocket HV300 here instead.

Canadians can buy the Shark Flex HV391 here on Amazon or save money by buying the simpler Rocket HV300 here instead.

If you find our research on PMC helpful, you can follow our efforts to keep maniacally reviewing home cleaning tools by shopping through our links above. We promise to keep fighting the good fight against every horror children, animals, and grown, yet messy humans can inflict upon a clean home.