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Milwaukee M18 FUEL 3-in-1 Backpack Vacuum Kit Review

Kenn Muguna Profile image

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Updated May 2, 2023
Expert Rating

Expert Score (From – Experts)
Insufficient Data

Customer Score (From 661 Reviews)
4.2/5

Overview

The Milwaukee M18 Fuel 3-in-1 Backpack Vacuum Kit was announced in 2013 as a mid-tier backpack vacuum cleaner best suited for workshops, construction sites, and woodworking applications. It has a 20-pound weight and a standard size 4.3-liter dirt compartment that is difficult to find even among some of the best vacuum cleaners around.

The vacuum cleaner has a battery life of up to 40 minutes, and similar to the Kenmore Intuition Bagged Vacuum, it also ships with an allergen-trapping HEPA filter that traps up to 99.97% of allergens. Have a look at our Kenmore Intuition Bagged Vacuum review to see what else they have in common.

It’ll take slightly more than 80 minutes to charge, which, as you’ll see in our Narwal T-10 review, is pretty quick compared to the 2.5-hour charge time of the Narwal T-10. These are some of the few features that it shares with some of the best vacuums for cleaning businesses.

Reasons to Buy

  • Standard-sized 4.3-liter dirt bin
  • Anti-allergen HEPA filter
  • Low noise output
  • Decent suction force
  • Quick charge time

Reasons to Not

  • No surface-type adjustment feature
  • Missing cleaning tools
  • No max fill indicator

Market Context

Compared to the same brand’s similar models: The Milwaukee M18 has a larger 4.3-liter dirt compartment compared to the 0.5-liter dirt capacity of the Miele Triflex HX1, as you’ll see in our Miele Triflex HX1 review. Weighing 20.57 pounds, the M18 is way heavier than the 8.8-pound HX1, making the Miele vacuum much easier to maneuver.

Compared to other brands’ similar models: The Milwaukee M18 features an anti-allergy HEPA filter while the Eureka Mighty Mite does not, and its 4.3-liter dirt compartment is also larger than the 2.8-liter dirt bin on the Eureka vacuum cleaner.

Critic Consensus

The Milwaukee M18 FUEL 3-in-1 Backpack Vacuum Kit delighted product reviewers with how well it eliminated debris on hard floors and carpets. Testers at Rtings lauded it for clearing 100% of debris and pet hair on hard floors and about 54 to 69%on low and high pile carpets, respectively. Testers from Pro Tool Reviews were delighted with its build quality and liked that it didn’t feel as heavy as a backpack harness. Also, with a noise output of about 72 decibels, it gets almost as loud as the Atrix VACPB1 (more about it in our Atrix VACPB1 review). Testers also found the M18’s suction decent, as they established during their tests that it had a maximum airflow of up to 55 CFM. As you’ll find out in our Roborock H6 review, this is slightly more than the Roborock H6’s 44 CFM.

Still, the M18 also had its drawbacks. Testers didn’t like its lack of a surface-type adjustment feature and lack of extra cleaning tools.

Kenn Muguna Profile image