The care required to keep your upholstered furniture clean and stain-free can seem daunting, but breathing new life into your old couch or rug isn’t terribly hard or even time consuming. First off, understand the different types of upholstery you’re dealing with in order to avoid permanently damaging the centerpiece of your home with the wrong approach. For example, a delicate fabric like silk won’t respond well to abrasive pulling or vigorous rubbing, but a more durable textile like cotton can take the heat. Read the care label and consult the manufacturer of your upholstery for best cleaning practices, if you’re able to. Next, invest in the right tools that can make your cleaning tasks a breeze!
With so many options available on the market, shopping for specialty cleaning products can seem overwhelming. Which is why we did a deep dive in the virtual cleaning aisle to put together a list of the most essential upholstery cleaning tools that we believe no home should be without. So whether you’re tackling a bright red wine stain on your pristine white couch, or pasta sauce splashes on your vintage rug, you can rely on any of the items on this list to keep your upholstery in tip-top shape.
Best Tools To Clean Your Upholstery
A Vacuum Designed Specifically For Fabrics
The first item on your couch cleaning checklist should be a powerful vacuum, specifically one with a brush attachment for fabric. And that’s where Shark’s Rocket Ultra-Light Hand Vacuum comes in. It’s made for heavy-duty cleaning, and is equipped with both a motorized brush for upholstery and crevice attachment so you can reach every last nook and cranny. The lightweight design and 15-foot cord give you flexibility to clean just about anywhere. And best of all, the filters are reusable, so you’ll never need to make another investment in the vacuum again.
This is especially a hit among pet owners. One happy customer wrote on Amazon: “I have four cats that like to lounge on the furniture and leave furry evidence all over the place… I was at the end of my rope. But this vacuum saved my sanity. The brush attachment makes short work of fur stuck to the couches, and the hose attachment makes it easy to clean up fur from the corners and crevices.”
A Lightweight Handheld Vacuum For Quick Messes
Don’t let a spilled bowl of popcorn ruin family movie night—whip out your Black and Decker Handheld Dustbuster, a small-but-mighty cordless vacuum for dry spills. A smaller, handheld vacuum like this is great to have in your collection for situations where pulling out a full-size vacuum is too cumbersome, or a quick-fix for crumbs and pet hair. The slim nozzle rotates 180 degrees so you can capture every last crumb with its commendable suction powers. The lithium ion battery fully charges in just four hours, and holds a charge for up to 18 months.
The nearly 54,000 reviews for this vacuum on Amazon practically speak for themselves. One such reviewer wrote: “It's great for pet hair, random pet food pieces, dust, dirt, leaves, mulch, cleaning out the car, getting crud out of the couch crevices, sawdust from woodworking, cleaning the dryer lint trap, catching bugs from a distance, it will pick up anything that's dry and doesn't weigh a ton.” For a small spill or for cleaning deep in the nooks and crannies of the couch, this is the vacuum for the job.
The Multipurpose Functionality Of A Clothes Steamer
Yes, it’s advertised for clothes, but OGHom’s handheld steamer is your secret weapon for spot treating your upholstery. Certain types of stains, like food, dirt, and urine can be lifted out with steam alone, but make sure the fabric is water-safe first (you should see a W or WS on the care label.) Power on the steamer and focus it over the soiled area to gently lift out the stain. This steamer is also helpful to have on hand if you have velvet sofas and chairs: You can run it over creases in the cushions to smooth them, lifting the pile and preventing permanent damage.
There are steamers made specifically for upholstery, but they tend to be pricier with more cumbersome attachments. The OGHom steamer, by contrast, is lightweight and easy to work with. Reviews point to how versatile it is: one Amazon customer uses it all over their home and said “It works just as well to help lift stains from sofa, car seats, pillows, and to remove wrinkles from clothing. A very handy tool I’m glad I purchased.”
The Ultimate Stain Remover
For tougher stains that require a little more oomph to remove, try pre-treating them with Woolite Carpet and Upholstery Cleaner. It safely cleans any water-safe textile, bringing soiled furniture back to life. The foam treatment sinks into your upholstery to treat the stain while you scrub it with the attached fabric-safe brush, allowing the solution to penetrate the fibers. Wipe away the excess, and relish in your newly stain-free sofa.
Don’t just take our word for it: The nearly 10,000 reviews are the proof in the pudding. Reviewers report that it lifts out the stain and smell from food, markers, pens, vomit and more. One wrote “This product is my saving grace. I have two young kids, a dog, and an affinity for light gray couches and rugs. Those things do not work well together in the normal world, but these cans of Woolite Upholstery Cleaner have saved my life (and my couches, and my rugs, and my carpets.)”
A Powerful Pet Odor Eliminator
Accidents are bound to happen with pets in the home, and this pet odor eliminator will revive your furniture in no time. The enzymatic formula lifts out the offending stain, leaving a fresh citrus scent in its place for up to 80 hours. The all-natural formula means it’s safe for kids, furry or otherwise, and it can be used on a multitude of surfaces, including upholstered furniture and pillows.
“I have used it on my leather sofa several times and no stains,” one customer wrote. “No smell. Very, very impressed. Will buy again.” Some reviewers wrote that their pets were discouraged from urinating in the same spot after the spray was used, so it’s an effective training tool as well as a practical upholstery cleaning product.
A Fabric Shaver To Eliminate Wears And Tears
Perhaps no other product on this list provides a quick-fix solution quite like this one. This fabric shaver is to your sofa what a razor is to your face: It quickly and easily cuts off lint, pills and other signs of wear and tear without disturbing the rest of the threads. If your sofa or chair has cosmetic signs of use but still functions well, this fabric shaver will make it look brand new (and you can use it on clothes too!)
The 4.6 star rating speaks for itself: thousands of customers have used this fabric shaver to breathe new life into their furniture. One wrote “This little thing is a miracle worker. In fact, it’s so satisfying to see all the little pills disappear that it’s almost addictive. I had a new couch that had horrible fabric and was only one month out of warranty. This little gadget made it look like new again!”
A Lint Roller For Pet Parents
Your guests are on their way, but your couch is covered in dog hair–forget your lint roller and opt for the OXO furlifter furniture brush. It comes in several sizes, the largest of which is the furlifter, suitable for quick removal of pet hair from your chair, sofa and more. Micro-bristles effectively lift pet hair and lint, and the self-cleaning base means the brush is reusable over and over again, unlike tape lint rollers that eventually need to be replaced.
Amazon customers can’t get enough of it, saying “It's the best and easiest way to lift hair off our sofa. We have a large Maine Coon and wow, he leaves behind a lot of hair despite combing and brushing. In the past I've tried using wide tape, wet paper towels, a rubber glove, sticky rollers, and other means to clean the hair from our furniture. It all helps to some degree but a swipe of this FurLifter really picks up far more hair at one time.”
A Solution To Keep Leather And Vinyl Furniture Shiny And New
Leather upholstery is known for its durability, but the better you care for it, the longer it will last. The densely-packed bristles of this horsehair brush gently scrub away dust, dirt and grime without damaging the upholstery. Leather and vinyl upholstery are particularly sensitive to improper cleaning methods, so it’s important to get a brush made specifically for these materials. It’s perfect for leather sofas and car interiors.
Nearly 7,000 ratings later, it’s clear that Amazon customers are big fans of this leather brush. One reported that it “exceeded my expectations and I don’t know how I’ve went so long without one…I could see the dirt coming out of the seats from my dog. It also gets into the leather wrinkles and really saves you from awkward scrubbing with a cloth. Soft, non-abrasive and effective.”
The Miracle Conditioner For Leather Upholstery
You’ll really go above and beyond for your furniture if you use leather CPR, a miracle-working cleaner and conditioner for leather upholstery in all conditions. The cream acts like lotion for your leather goods, removing built-up grime and smoothing over scuffs and scratches. Apply it to your sofa, car seats, and other upholstery with a soft sponge for transformative results.
A cult-favorite product, leather CPR has a 4.5 star average rating with one reviewer stating: “This stuff is incredible! I have no idea how it works but it does. You can see the grime coming off of the leather the first time you go over it and the second time it really moisturizes the leather. Went over my car seats twice with it and [it] made a huge difference. I live in AZ so my leather gets beat up by the sun. Excited to have this for the future.”
In addition to using these tools, here are some tips on keeping your upholstery in top shape:
- Every time you vacuum your floors, you should also be doing the same to your couch and chairs—this will help prevent the dreaded buildup of crumbs, coins and lint beneath your cushions.
- Make a habit of flipping and fluffing each of the cushions to prevent dents and help them wear evenly. Should you happen to spill, spot treat the stain right away, but tread carefully, because different fabrics respond differently to treatments.
- Finally, once or twice a year, perform a deep cleaning on the entire surface of your upholstery—but again, your exact methodology will depend on the fabric in question.
