DeWalt 20V Cordless Dry Hand Vacuum

I’ve been carrying the DeWalt 20V hand vac in my kit for a few weeks, using it on jobsites, in the truck, and around the house. It’s built for quick cleanups—drywall dust on floors, sawdust on benches, crumbs in a car, ash around a hearth—and it’s much closer to a contractor’s utility vac than a household dustbuster. It isn’t a shop vac replacement, but it fills an everyday gap more capably than most handhelds I’ve tried.

Build, design, and what’s in the box

The tool feels solid and compact for what it does. At 3.3 lb bare (figure another pound-plus with a 5.0 Ah pack), it’s easy to one-hand and carry around. The 0.7 L canister is clear, so you can see when it’s time to dump it, and the latch and dump mechanism are genuinely mess-minimizing if you keep the nose upright.

DeWalt includes the right accessories for most common tasks:
- Extension tube and floor nozzle for standing-height pickups
- Flexible hose for reaching into nooks and overhead
- Crevice nozzle for baseboards and between seats
- Gulper brush and round brush for surfaces and dusting
- A drawstring accessory bag and a belt hook

The LED worklight is bright and does help when you’re cleaning under cabinets or in vehicles at dusk. One quirk: there’s no way to turn it off independently, and it stays on briefly after you release the trigger. More on why that matters in a moment.

Performance and suction

On paper, you get 46 CFM and up to 65 air watts with a 5.0 Ah battery. In practice, that translates to strong pickup for fine debris (drywall dust, sand, general construction dust) and confident pickup for small to medium chips (finish nails, wood shavings, crumbs, road grit). It clears bench tops and stair treads well, and the extension tube with the wider floor nozzle did a surprisingly good job on hard floors between cuts.

Where it reaches its limits is with bigger, stringy debris—longer wood curls, clumps of dog hair, and husky stove-ash chunks can bunch up at the inlet flap. The vacuum uses a rubber check valve at the mouth of the bin to prevent backflow when the unit is off; it works, but that’s the choke point. If you tend to pick up coarse debris, the gulper brush or floor nozzle helps keep things moving; I had fewer jams using those compared to the bare inlet.

There’s no powered brush head in the kit, so on carpets and upholstery you’re relying on suction plus the brushes—great for sand and surface hair, not for deep agitation. For vehicle detailing, the flexible hose and round brush are the heroes; they’re also the pair I reached for when dusting blinds, vents, and sills.

Noise is about what I expect from a compact jobsite vac—firm but not shrill. I could hold a conversation nearby, and I didn’t find the tone fatiguing.

Filtration and dust control

The HEPA filter is the star here. It captures drywall dust without leaving a haze in the air, and the seals around the canister are tight. If you do a lot of gypsum work, that’s a big deal—there’s far less of that talc-like plume when you empty it compared to non-HEPA handhelds.

The tradeoff with high-efficiency filtration is maintenance. Fine dust cakes the pleats quickly; expect to tap-clean the filter often during drywall-heavy days. I found that using the round brush to lift dust off surfaces before vacuuming reduced how fast the filter loaded, and if you’re mostly collecting powder, a filter sleeve or foam pre-filter (if you can source one sized for this cartridge) extends intervals between cleanings. The filter is washable; just make sure it’s bone-dry before reinstalling or you’ll lose performance.

Runtime and batteries

With a fresh 5.0 Ah pack, my continuous runtime averaged right around 20 minutes—DeWalt rates up to 21.4 minutes, which lines up. Real-world use is stop-and-go, so I typically got multiple short cleanup sessions from a single charge. A 4.0 Ah pack lands in the mid-teens; a higher-capacity pack (e.g., 9.0 Ah FLEXVOLT) stretches runtime significantly but adds weight.

Two notes:
- The LED cannot be disabled and stays illuminated for a bit after you release the trigger. It’s useful in dark areas, but it’s unnecessary outdoors and does contribute to battery drain over the course of a day.
- Suction remains consistent until the pack is nearing empty, then drops off quickly, which is normal for this platform.

If you’re not already on DeWalt 20V, factor in the cost of a battery and charger. If you are, it’s a painless add—any 20V MAX pack works, and FLEXVOLT packs are compatible.

Ergonomics and handling

The balance is good with a 4.0–5.0 Ah pack, and I like the handle angle; it’s comfortable over long stretches and easy to aim the nozzle precisely. The belt hook is a small but appreciated touch when you’re moving ladders or working overhead. The flexible hose reaches into tight spaces and lets the body of the vac hang comfortably by your side.

The extension tube and floor head convert this into a quick “stick” vac for hard floors, which is handy for construction dust between tasks or for a workshop aisle sweep. Just don’t expect it to replace a dedicated household vacuum for whole-house carpet cleaning.

Emptying and upkeep

Emptying the bin is a one-hand operation and keeps your fingers out of the debris stream. Because of the check flap, you’ll occasionally need to knock loose a wad of shavings that hangs up at the inlet. Keeping the canister from overfilling helps; once you’re above half full with light fluff, airflow paths narrow and clogs are more likely.

The accessories bag is basic but useful—everything lives together, and I actually bring the full kit to the job instead of cherry-picking tools and then wishing I’d packed an attachment.

What it does best

• Quick, controlled pickup of fine dust and small debris in finished spaces without blowing dust back into the air
• Vehicle interiors, stairs, baseboards, and punch-list cleanup
• Overhead dusting with the hose and round brush
• Hard floor spot cleaning using the extension tube and floor nozzle
• Jobsites where a corded vac is overkill or an extension cord is a hassle

Where it falls short

• Large, stringy, or bulky debris can hang up at the inlet flap; it’s not a demo-day vac
• The LED is not switchable, and the afterglow wastes a little battery during intermittent use
• The HEPA filter needs regular attention when collecting very fine dust
• No powered brush; not intended for deep carpet cleaning
• The 0.7 L bin fills fast if you’re tackling anything beyond spot cleanup

The bottom line

The DeWalt 20V hand vac hits the sweet spot for portability, filtration, and real-world utility on light-to-medium messes. It’s stronger than most consumer handhelds, better contained thanks to a proper HEPA filter, and the attachment set makes it more versatile than it first appears. It won’t replace a corded shop vac for heavy debris or long sessions, but that’s not its job.

My wish list is short but specific: a wider, less choke-prone inlet path; a switchable LED; and a pre-filter option in the box for heavy drywall days. Even as-is, the design feels mature, and the convenience of sharing batteries with the rest of the 20V MAX lineup is a clear advantage.

Recommendation: I recommend the DeWalt 20V hand vac for tradespeople and homeowners who want a compact, cordless cleanup tool and already own DeWalt 20V batteries. It excels at fine dust and everyday messes, the HEPA filter keeps the air cleaner, and the attachments cover most scenarios you’ll encounter. If your needs skew toward large, heavy debris or extended cleanup sessions, pair this with a larger shop vac—and if you’re not on the DeWalt platform, weigh the added battery cost. For quick, tidy, and frequent cleanups, this vac earns a slot in the kit.