Gtech AirRAM 3 review – as a professional vacuum tester, I love this unique cordless vacuum, but it does have some important drawbacks

British brand Gtech's latest cordless vacuum does things a little differently. Instead of having a handheld vacuum unit, the vacuum exists within the floorhead, meaning it can only be used as a floor cleaner.

It has a compact, stylish design, and a dustbin that compresses itself to make the most of its space. It's definitely an interesting and unique design, and one that I was excited to get my hands on after seeing it demoed at a Gtech event in March 2025.

After spending more than 200 hours testing vacuums, I put the Gtech AirRAM 3 through its paces in our test center, a local pet shelter, and my own home to find out if it's one of the best cordless vacuums.

Gtech AirRAM 3: Specifications

• Buy the Gtech AirRAM for $329.99 at Amazon.

Gtech AirRAM 3: Setup

The Gtech AirRAM 3 arrived in a compact box, with the brand's logo and a British Union Jack flag with the text: 'Designed, developed and patented in the UK by Gtech.'

This is one of the quickest cordless vacuums I've ever set up. As it doesn't have any handheld attachments (or any vacuum attachments for pet hair), all you have to do is attach the handle, wand and vacuum together. Then, plug in the charging base and wait for the AirRAM 3 to fully charge – for me, this took under two hours.

It stands up by itself, and the handle can be shortened so that it takes up hardly any space. It might be one of the easiest options I've seen if you prefer to hide your vacuum when storing it.

Gtech AirRAM 3: Design and features

Pretty much all cordless sticks, like the best Dyson vacuums, have their motor in the handheld unit, so that you can swap out the wand and floorhead for any attachments (my vacuum jargon buster clears up these terms).

But the Gtech AirRAM 3 houses the vacuum inside the floorhead itself. This means that dust isn't travelling up the vacuum and avoids getting caught in any tubes or internal parts.

I'm a fan of this design choice, and it means the floorhead can house some useful technology to make the most of its shape and size. For example, the dustbin is also located in the same unit, and thanks to its wide shape, it compresses dust as you go to maximize the available space. It helps reduce how often you need to empty it to avoid overfilling your vacuum.

It also automatically compresses the dust and cleans the filter when you take breaks between vacuuming. This takes around 3 seconds: a loud voice prompt says 'cleaning the filter' followed by another loud whirring sound, then it's ready to vacuum again.

As the AirRAM 3 doesn't have any handheld tools like a crevice tool or dusting brush, Gtech has instead put small, sweeping brushes on the side of the floorhead to dislodge dirt from edges and corners, some of the hardest household cleaning tasks.

There are also LED headlights to illuminate the floor, and the vacuum self-propels itself forward when cleaning, but they don't achieve much when vacuuming carpet. And personally, I'm a fan of the leather handles. It's a nice, aesthetically pleasing touch.

What is the Gtech AirRAM 3 like to use?

The Gtech AirRAM 3 is a great floor cleaner with a suite of features that make it easy to use, but there are a few drawbacks that prevent it from being as good as it could be. It struggled with the more extreme vacuum tests that you'll see below, but for general cleaning, I was impressed.

Similar to many of our best multi-surface vacuums, the AirRAM 3 has strong cleaning performance across all floor types. It doesn't have different suction modes or dust detection like you'll find in the best Shark vacuums, which means you can pass from carpets to hard floors without changing the settings.

This can be seen as a good or bad thing, as other vacuums do this so that the higher suction is available when cleaning dirtier areas or thick carpets, but the battery can be preserved when it isn't needed. Instead, the AirRAM 3 maintains the same maximum suction at all times, meaning it only lasts for up to 30 minutes, but its cleaning performance stays consistent.

But if you had the Dyson laser vacuums, you wouldn't have to change the settings yourself as the vacuum has floor sensors to automatically adjust for you.

I love that you can tap it with your foot to turn it on. It's a great way to make sure you're vacuuming using only one hand, keeping the other free for moving cables or furniture out of the way.

The battery indicator is located behind the floorhead and is helpfully always visible when you're cleaning. It also lies completely flat so that you can reach under furniture:

It's super easy to maneuver, and the vacuum's self-propulsion means it glides across floors effortlessly. The sweeping brushes do a great job at dislodging dust, crumbs, or hair, but when cleaning carpet, the brushes flung mess into the air. It would be helpful to be able to turn them off without taking them off entirely.

And although these brushes are mostly great, you're still limited by not being able to vacuum furniture, shelves, upholstery – or anything that isn't the floor.

• Buy the Gtech AirRAM for $329.99 at Amazon.

Gtech AirRAM 3: Flour and sugar test

I tested the Gtech AirRAM 3 in our test center using a cup of flour and sugar on carpet, linoleum and hardwood. It's a great visual test to see what the vacuum leaves behind, and flour and sugar work as an effective proxy to dust and dead skin.

The AirRAM 3's suction is clearly strong, but because of the brushes, a fair amount of flour and sugar was left behind in a trail. It took around four passes to vacuum everything except for between the cracks, then 2-4 passes for each crack. This is a little slower than the best cordless vacuums we've tested, but similar to many of the best Dyson alternatives.

On carpets, it took around 10 passes to vacuum everything. The spinning brushes flung some powder into the air which then made things more difficult to clean. If your home is mostly carpeted, I'd recommend one of the best vacuums for carpet.

Gtech AirRAM 3: Pantry test

I tested the Gtech AirRAM 3 using a cup of cereal and lentils on carpet, linoleum and hardwood. This tests how well a vacuum can handle larger debris, and whether it is able to crush down big pieces or fling them around.

For the most part, this is one of the best cleaning performances I've seen on hard floors. The brushes swept the large pieces into the floorhead and it vacuumed them up without fuss. But when it came to vacuuming the final few pieces of cereal, I had to lift up and drop the vacuum on them to get each one.

Usually, taking off the floorhead is the best way to suck them up, but you don't have this option with the AirRAM 3. It might not be the best vacuum for hardwood floors without this feature.

On carpets, I again found that the brushes made a mess. Lentils and cereal pieces were flung around, and it ended up taking a long time to vacuum everything as I had to repeatedly go back and clean areas I've already covered.

Gtech AirRAM 3: Pet hair

I tested the Gtech AirRAM 3 in Bristol ARC, a local pet shelter, to see how well it can handle fur and the general messes found in a building with high foot traffic.

This is where I was impressed by the AirRAM 3. Using it as a general floor cleaner proved effective, and I was able to clear decent amounts of fur, dirt, dust and other mess from all the floors I cleaned.

It could certainly be considered as one of the best vacuums for pet hair. On an entrance mat, the notoriously difficult spot to clean at Bristol ARC, the Gtech AirRAM 3 cleaned about as well as the best Miele vacuums – which are much more expensive and have larger, more powerful motors.

On low-pile carpet it gave a really strong performance. Almost every visible bit of hair was vacuumed in two passes. I found that the suction is quite satisfying when pulling backwards.

And on hard floors, the Gtech AirRAM 3 had no issues whatsoever to clear all mess – hair, dust, dirt – in a single pass.

Gtech AirRAM 3: Cleaning & maintenance

The AirRAM 3's unique dust compression means that its small, 0.8L dust capacity can fit more than you'd expect. And the fact that it periodically cleans its own filters means that you don't have to clean the vacuum filters too often yourself, which is always a bonus.

But unfortunately, emptying it is a messy affair. It pops out quite easily, but when doing so, a large amount of cereal and dust scattered across the floor and inside the vacuum. There were also a few moments where mess fell out of the floorhead while I was cleaning.

I also had to vacuum the floorhead using a separate vacuum to make sure no mess spilled out in the car on my way home.

And as it can't be taken apart like most cordless vacuums can, cleaning the vacuum is a little more challenging, but less involved as there are fewer parts to clean.

How does the Gtech AirRAM 3 compare?

The Gtech AirRAM 3 has a unique design, so there aren't like-for-like comparisons to draw.

But the Shark Cordless PowerDetect is sold for a similar price and cleans much more effectively, with handheld attachments for cleaning furniture, and dual brushrolls that can tackle different floor types well.

The Levoit LVAC-300 is a more affordable option, and although it isn't the most powerful we've tested, it did an impressive job at cleaning considering its price point. It can do what most cordless vacuums can, just less efficiently.

Or, if you fancy spending a little extra, the Dyson V12 Detect Slim is an incredibly powerful vacuum, with automatic dust detection and a green laser that reveals invisible dust.

Should you buy the Gtech AirRAM 3?

The Gtech AirRAM 3 certainly failed a few of our tests, but it's worth mentioning that these tests are an extreme way to see what a vacuum is capable of. I wouldn't trust the Gtech AirRAM 3 to vacuum a massive amount of debris or dust, but for general day-to-day cleaning, I think this is worth considering.

Its brushes sweep mess from edges, its suction is powerful and consistent, it cleans pet hair well, it can be compacted for easier storage, and it periodically cleans its own filter. It's also aesthetically pleasing, and glides across floors effortlessly.

But its drawbacks shouldn't be ignored. It can be messy to empty, the brushes can sometimes make things worse, it can't handle large volumes of debris, and it can only clean floors. If this is the vacuum for you, I'd recommend pairing it with one of the best handheld vacuums to tackle anything the AirRAM 3 can't.

• Buy the Gtech AirRAM for $329.99 at Amazon.

How we test vacuums

At Homes & Gardens, we have a dedicated and thorough procedure of how we test vacuums. At our test center, we test various substances on three floor types (carpet, wood, linoleum) to recreate real-life circumstances.

I also tested the Gtech AirRAM 3 in a local pet shelter to evaluate its pet hair performance, and in my own home to get a complete feel for its features.

Next, browse our tested picks of the best upright vacuums for more serious cleaning, or the best lightweight vacuums for convenience.