Bissell CrossWave MAX – is it worth the splurge?! An honest review.

Is the Bissell CrossWave Max worth the splurge? Here I spill the beans and give an honest review!

Wondering if you should splurge on the Bissell Crosswave? It’s a pretty pricey small appliance and can feel nerve racking spending that much on an appliance.

Well, you’ve come to the right place. Here I’ll give you an honest review including the pros and cons of the Bissell Crosswave Max so you can make an informative decision.

Pro 1: Time-saving

The Bissell Crosswave is in fact time-saving! The functions speak for themselves: duo vacuuming and mopping at the same time.  

It’s cordless for easy maneuvering and my favorite feature: two tanks, one for cleaning solution and the other for the dirty water.

My home is over 4,000 square feet and any small appliance that is going to save me time cleaning my floors is totally worth the splurge.

Pro 2: Works well on all hard surfaces

I’ve found that the Crosswave Max works well on not only my hardwoods but also tile and linoleum. The roller brush is plush and has built-in grips to clean your floors well!

I will say that if the roller gets too oversaturated with water it can leave streaks, but the key is to let go of the trigger and roll over that area to pick up the excess water.

It can be hard to get used to, but the Bissel Crosswave has been the best I’ve found at really making my floors feel clean! 

As a bonus, my Bissel Crosswave vacuum came with a second brush for backup! This way, I can alternate the two between cleaning the floors.

My cleaning isn’t delayed by having to clean the brushes, but they do need to be rinsed with hot water between uses.

Pro 3: Cleans carpets!

Probably my favorite feature of the Bissell Crosswave Max is that it works on carpets! Not only does it vacuum everything on my carpet,  but it refreshed my carpets making them smell fantastic.

It leaves your carpets slightly damp, but they dry quickly. I will say, this does not replace a carpet shampooer. This isn’t deep cleaning your carpets, but it gives them a nice refresh.

That doesn’t mean it isn’t cleaning it – just not DEEP cleaning. Shampooing your carpet can take a lot of work and planning, but the Crosswave Max can give you a refresh when you need it!

 The water tank was pretty dirty after cleaning my area rugs so I know it did its job. My real highlight with the Crosswave vacuum is the mop for hard surfaces.

Which makes sense, it is its main feature refreshing carpets is just a fabulous bonus.

The Bissel CrossWave does an outstanding job picking up messes on floors. For instance, it will even pick up items as large as cereal and small legos.

I mean, don’t make it a habit to pick up legos with the Crosswave max, but those blocks can be sneaky! Vacuuming a lego or two at my house is inevitable, so it’s good to know it can!

con: Battery Life

A con I would have to say is that the battery life only lasts about 30 or so minutes. My house is just about 4,000 sq ft. This gives me a challenge for how fast I can work.

I can get about 2,000 sq ft done in about 30 minutes, so about half my house. I just split my upstairs and downstairs into two parts.

Pro: The self-cleaning cycle!!

Yup! The Bissel Crosswave has a self-cleaning cycle! To make sure this vacuum functions the right way every time, cleaning it out is essential.

The Cordless Max has a self-cleaning cycle to make that process so easy!!

To use this feature all you have to do is make sure there is enough solution in the tank – if not fill up the tank with warm water to the self-cleaning line.

Then, place the vacuum on the docking station and press the self-cleaning icon.

This will run for about 40 seconds and shut off when it’s done. The dirty water tank icon will flash to remind you to empty the tank.

At this point, I pop out the roller and windshield attachment to make sure everything is wiped out and cleaned before retiring my vacuum for the day. Seriously, this is my favorite feature!

Bonus – It’s Wifi compatible!

You can easily hook your Bissell CrossWave up to wifi and connect on an app for maintenance, support, cleaning tips, and a usage dashboard.

I don’t know how often I’ll use this, but I suppose I will at some point if I start running into error codes

. I am also uploading a year later review for 2021 – if you’re curious about how the Bissel Crosswave Max holds up after a year, keep an eye out! 

Do you have to use the solution they recommend?

No, you definitely don’t have to only use the Bissel CorssWave’s solution for your vacuum. I used the solution it came with until it ran out and then I used my castile soap solution.

To add the solution to the tank all you have to do is first add warm water to the waterline and then add your solution to the solution line. You can really use any solution in the Bissel Crosswave and it will work fine!

Any downsides?

I’ll be honest, there aren’t many. This baby has saved me so much time it’s incredible! My floors have never been cleaner! Although I will say that it’s tough to get edges and baseboards.

The website does say that they have improved this feature, but it’s still not ideal for those areas because there are no attachments.

So If I wanted to wash down my furniture I actually have to lift up my vacuum and place it on my furniture and work it back and forth. Which is ok – but not ideal and a little awkward.

To me – The advantages outweigh the inconvenience of not having attachments to get my corners closely and my baseboards. I should say it does an okay job with corners, but not as well as it would do with a hose.

Pricey – but oh so worth it!

Boy does Bissell have a good product on their hands… and they know it too! This Crosswave vacuum does not run cheap at just under $400!

I would say this is an investment piece that is totally worth saving up your pennies for. Hands down… I would 100% recommend this vacuum and I can say without a doubt it has saved me time and that my floors have never been cleaner!

If I’ve talked you into buying a Bissel Crosswave Max, I can help you out with some resources. It can be tricky to understand all of its features, like self-cleaning!

Check out this youtube video by Messes with Michelle I found that shows how to use it best – it’s a lifesaver! 

As I said, I am also going to post a year-after review of the Bissell Crosswave Max for 2021, if you are curious about what I think after a year of using this vacuum!

Keep an eye out for my review, and I hope I could give you some good insight on what vacuum to save up for next! 

This vacuum is available at a lot of shops, I would definitely say shop around… But I got mine at Amazon because I love fast and free shipping. You can click the image below to check it out.

Thanks so much for reading along, pals!

Much Love,

Kori ~ from The Farmhouse Life