I tested the Bissell CrossWave OmniForce Edge – it's ideal for day-to-day floorcare, cutting your floor cleaning time in half by combining vacuuming and mopping

A vacuum-mop is a game-changer. These clever cleaners combine two chores into one, and can give your floors a complete clean in one swift session. It's no surprise that they're becoming so popular.

And as a professional vacuum tester, I like Bissell. Their straightforward appliances are never overpriced, but always tend to do a great job at cleaning up after us.

So, I was excited to try out the Bissell CrossWave OmniForce Edge to find out if it could be my new best vacuum-mop combo. Find out how it fared in our tests on standardized substances and a local pet shelter.

The one-minute review

The Bissell CrossWave OmniForce Edge isn’t the most powerful vacuum-mop combo we’ve tested, but it’s a solid choice for everyday mopping and vacuuming at a budget-friendly price. It handles solids, mops floors, and tackles light stains with ease, leaving floors dry and fresh in under two minutes. While it may not clean as quickly or thoroughly as pricier models, it’s a great way to combine two tasks and save time. If your budget allows, though, we recommend the Dreame H14 Pro, which earned five stars in our tests.

Bissell CrossWave OmniForce Edge: Specifications

Bissell CrossWave OmniForce Edge: Design and features

The Bissell CrossWave OmniForce Edge promises to be the first vacuum-mop combo that can vacuum without mopping. Usually, these appliances can only do both at the same time, as the roller is soaked in water or a cleaning solution to sanitize the floors.

It makes sense, then, to be able to utilize the suction for other tasks. Bissell advises you to do any vacuuming first, then mop afterwards to avoid wetting your area rugs. 'Carpet' isn't specifically listed as a suitable floor type for the OmniForce Edge, so it's only designed for cleaning hard floors and vacuuming area rugs.

Otherwise, it has all the useful features you'll find in any vacuum-mop. A spinning roller releases fresh cleaning solution onto the floor as it scrubs and mops the floors, vacuuming debris and removing stains in the process. It's perfect if you prefer to clean your floors without streaks.

It's cordless with a 30-minute runtime, and you control it using three buttons on the handle for power, moisture, and suction level.

All you have to do is fill the clean tank with water and solution, click it back into place, and turn it on. The dirty water tank separates liquids and solids inside, too, and although it's a little gross, emptying the vacuum is a quick process.

What is the Bissell CrossWave OmniForce Edge like to use?

Like many Bissell floorcare products, the CrossWave OmniForce Edge is straightforward to use. It took less than two minutes to get familiar with its functions, and the simple display clearly shows battery life, moisture, and suction levels.

The device feels sturdy yet remains highly maneuverable, gliding smoothly across floors thanks to rubber wheels that protect delicate surfaces – an ideal vacuum for hardwood floors.

Plus, its charging dock offers a self-cleaning cycle that rinses the brushroll and internal parts, helping reduce bacteria buildup and unpleasant odors.

Strangely, the OmniForce Edge lacks a self-drying feature. Models like the Dreame H14 Pro include a heated drying cycle to prevent mold, so Bissell’s choice to omit this is surprising, especially since drying floors quickly is a major selling point for this vacuum-mop. Because of this, you can’t vacuum rugs until the roller is fully dry, which can take most of a day. While there’s a slot on the charging base to remove and air-dry the roller, a faster, low-effort heated drying cycle would be much better.

The vacuum also offers only one quick self-cleaning mode, but even after running it twice, I found the roller was still dirty. Other brands have perfected this feature, so it’s disappointing that Bissell hasn’t prioritized self-cleaning and drying.

The 30 fl. oz. clean tank includes clear markings for water and Bissell cleaning solution, but the solution runs out quickly, and you don’t get much to start with. After just five minutes of vacuum-mopping, I’d used about a third of the tank.

Bissell CrossWave OmniForce Edge: Cleaning tests

In our test center, I used five standardized substances to assess the Bissell CrossWave OmniForce Edge's ability to clean messes with varying properties:

• 1 tablespoon ketchup
• 1 tablespoon mustard
• 2 tablespoons lumpy tomato and veg pasta sauce
• 1 egg, dropped from 5 feet
• 1 cup of cereal and milk
• Additional test: Half cup of lentils to test dry vacuuming

Ketchup and pasta sauce are usually the simplest messes for a vacuum-mop to tackle. The OmniForce Edge cleaned them up quickly but did smear some sauce around, requiring a second pass to fully remove the residue. Other vacuum-mops I’ve tested have managed this in just one go.

The mustard was also spread around a little, and took a bit longer to clean than the tomato-based stains. Again, this is weaker performance than what I've seen in others, but the Bissell costs around half the price of those that clean in one (like the Tineco Floor One S7 Pro, for example).

Surprisingly, the CrossWave OmniForce Edge vacuumed up the broken egg in one smooth motion – no easy feat, since thick, sticky egg and shell fragments often cause blockages and are one of the hardest cleaning tasks to master.

However, its performance slipped when tackling milk and cereal; it couldn’t pick up the cereal pieces at first and just pushed them ahead until I crushed them with the roller. Though it took longer than expected, it eventually cleaned everything up.

For dry vacuum testing, I scattered half a cup of lentils along the threshold between linoleum and carpet. The OmniForce Edge picked up everything in a single pass, with suction so strong on carpet you could feel it gripping the fabric – truly impressive. If it weren’t for the lack of self-drying, this would be one of the best multi-surface vacuums available for under $400.

Bissell CrossWave OmniForce Edge: Pet shelter tests

I also tested the Bissell CrossWave OmniForce Edge at Bristol ARC, a local cat and dog shelter, to see how well it can handle muddy stains and busy messes from an establishment with high foot traffic.

I learned that it's excellent at light mopping while leaving the floors dry 1-2 minutes later, but it wasn't the best at stain removal. Granted, some of the stains were about three years old, but while I could see the floor was visibly cleaner, the stains didn't budge at all.

The pet shelter had a group visiting that day, leaving behind arts and crafts messes. The OmniForce Edge managed to clear most of the debris but struggled with a few stains that seemed fairly simple to clean, like the one pictured above.

Bissell CrossWave OmniForce Edge: Setup and maintenance

Setup was simple – just attach the handle, wand, and main vacuum unit. I charged the battery from 18% to full, which took a bit over three hours, and then it was ready to go.

Placing the vacuum on the charging dock starts a quick two-minute self-cleaning cycle. However, unlike some other models, there’s no deep clean, and without self-drying, you’ll have to wait quite a while before vacuuming the carpet again.

There’s also a dedicated Bissell FreshStart solution for cleaning the machine, but I found it a bit unnecessary since there’s usually leftover cleaning solution inside already, making it less practical to replace with the special formula.

Emptying the vacuum is straightforward. You detach the dirty tank, throw the solids into the trash, then pour away the liquid.

How does the Bissell CrossWave OmniForce Edge compare?

The CrossWave OmniForce Edge costs $399.99 at Bissell at full price, and is often discounted to $299.99. This is $100-200 cheaper than other models I've tested, but I've learned that the cleaning is less effective, so there's a trade-off of performance against price.

The Dreame H14 Pro is the best we've tested at Homes & Gardens, costing $449.99 at Dreame. It didn't struggle with any of the stain tests, and it leaves the floor looking spotless, sparkling, and dry within two minutes. My full Dreame H14 Pro review reveals why it earned five stars.

Another stand-out pick is the Tineco Floor One S7 Pro, costing $499.99 at Tineco. It's similar to the H14 Pro in many ways, but cleans ever-so-slightly slower, and doesn't lie as flat for reaching under furniture. My full Tineco Floor One S7 Pro review explains why it's such an exceptional floor cleaner.

Should you buy the Bissell CrossWave OmniForce Edge?

The Bissell CrossWave OmniForce Edge is a nifty, user-friendly floor cleaner that can vacuum and mop simultaneously, or just vacuum. It's a neat feature in the market, being able to utilize the motor's suction to tackle area rugs as well as hard floors, and the small, sleek device would look great in any home.

But it's certainly less effective compared to other, more expensive vacuum-mop combos I've tested. It struggled to remove some stains, pushed residue around, and struggled when picking up large pieces. If money's tight, this is a great entry into the vacuum-mop cleaning world. But if you could spend a little more, I'd go for the better ones.

Next, learn whether mopping or wet vacuuming is right for your home, and browse our tested picks of the best robot vacuums for even easier cleaning.