Dreame Aero Ultra Steam Review: Unbelievable Cleaning Power In A Small Package

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Released at CES 2026 to much fanfare, the Aero Ultra Steam Wet Dry Vacuum is Dreame's flagship entry to the Aero series, which combines a 3.88-inch low-profile body, updated anti-tangle technology, and dual-edge cleaning meant to simplify cleaning along baseboards. While this may sound enticing enough, the Aero Ultra Steam is the only product in the line capable of what Dreame calls "Tri-Force Cleaning Power," utilizing steam, hot water, and foam in a single pass to eradicate tough messes.

Retailing for $799.99 on Amazon, with a limited-time price of $699.99 available until September 28, Dreame's flagship floor cleaner has a lot to live up to in order to make it a safe choice for budget-conscious homeowners. For this reason, I was pleased to receive a review model of the Aero Ultra Steam from Dreame in exchange for this no-strings-attached review.

The device has a laundry list of special features and impressive specs, but I am particularly interested in how well the powerful 30,000Pa suction performs — 5,000Pa more than the Aero and Aero Pro. Dreame says this hard floor cleaner is designed to help homeowners who frequently tackle tough messes, like grease spills and pet hair, so my expectations are set sky-high. The only way to gauge whether or not the price tag is worth it is to put this device through its paces.

After hauling the Dreame Aero Ultra Steam up to my apartment, I knew I'd have to develop a game plan to gauge how effective this product is. I improvised several common messes around my space for the cleaner to tackle — spilt almond milk on the wood flooring, a tuft of cat hair and some litter on the tile, sticky olive oil splatter on the kitchen floor, and a few muddy footprints by the back door — with the intention of recreating scenarios that this device would have to encounter regularly in a home with children and pets. I set up the device, charged it overnight, and fully filled both the water and cleaner vestibules to make sure I could get an accurate gauge of its longevity once it was time to put it to the test.

This cleaner has five cleaning modes (smart, hot water, steam, suction, and eco), as well as a drying mode and self-cleaning mode that are only able to be activated while the device is docked. I tested each mode against a mess that it claimed to be designed to eliminate and used the vacuum's sprayer to add more of the cleaning solution the product came with for tougher messes.

Once these hurdles were cleared, I went over the remaining flooring in my apartment to test the runtime between charges. After this thorough cleaning session, the device was docked in order to try out the self-cleaning and drying modes. At the end of the cycle, the cleaner was given a thorough inspection to assess how well the device itself held up against these challenges.

The first type of mess I wanted to tackle was wet and sticky spills on wood flooring and tile. I'll admit that I was worried this cleaner would damage my wood flooring — it's in severe need of a sand and refinish — but I saw no issue. Instead, I watched as the Aero Ultra Steam sucked up a puddle of almond milk on the floor without leaving a trace. In just one pass, there wasn't a drop of residue left after using the suction mode. When I recreated the test using the smart mode, which is designed to adjust its suction power and water flow based on the type of mess it detects, I saw the same results. There was no sticky residue left behind after this pass, but I decided to spritz out a bit of extra cleaning solution and go over the area one more time for good measure. The floor was slightly damp, but within a minute or two, a clean surface with a subtle touch of floral fragrance was all that was left.

Things got a bit more challenging once I headed to the kitchen. Feeling confident, I kicked things up a notch by attempting to tackle some stubborn grease stains on the floor near my oven. To clear away the dried olive oil splatter, I switched over to the ThermoRinse function, which, at 194 degrees, claims to remove grease in one pass, and waited for the brief pre-heating period to finish. What I found is that although the splatter was cleared away after the first pass, there was still some sticky residue left, which I was able to remove after spraying on more cleaning solution and going over the area a few more times. Surprisingly, the wheels seemed to have a bit of trouble maintaining traction over a sticky surface.

My mudroom is the problem child of my apartment. It's both my most-used entrance point and where I keep my cat's litter box. But for once, I was grateful for the mess of muddy footprints and tracked litter. I decided to test the cleaner's 392-degree SaunaClean steam and eco functions here, and to begin, I lined up a convenient pile of kitty litter with my broom. I went over it while using eco mode, which lowers the suction and water flow to extend the runtime. Although it was a fairly light mess, I was happy to see that even with less power, it was still able to immediately suck it up without leaving a trace. 

From there, it was time for the muddy footprints that always seem to collect on this swath of tile flooring. I flipped things over to the SaunaClean steam mode, which is designed to clean dried-on stains. After a brief pre-heating period, a mist lifted over the machine, and it was ready to go. Although the footprints had fully dried overnight, I was pleased to see they disappeared right away with one pass. In just a few seconds, the entire area was clean without extra cleaning solution or additional passes.

Once I got through the more difficult tasks, it was time to see how this device performed during a more widespread cleaning session. My one-bedroom apartment isn't particularly large, but I decided to keep things going until the cleaner stopped. After about 15 minutes, the battery showed no signs of fading — what did require a pause, however, was a notification to empty the dirty water tank. I was a bit disappointed by this considering the fact I hadn't even fully gotten through my apartment, but I decided to dump it out and continue. The water looked murky and gray — just what I wanted to see — and there was some hair that had collected in the tank, but it had only made it to the max capacity for when it's laid back, which didn't seem like very much (there's another max capacity above it for its upright position). This prompted the device to stop cleaning, requiring me to manually dump it out before I could continue.

I kept on going, but no more than 10 minutes later, I was notified by the device's voice prompt system that I needed to refill the clean water tank, too. This was my sign to call it a day — I had successfully given all of my rooms a once-over, so I filled the tank, returned the device to the dock, and clicked on the self-cleaning mode. It was loud. This first part of the process lasted for around five minutes, then the device triggered the drying mode for around 30 minutes, which was significantly less distracting. Upon inspection, there were no hairs tangled around the now-dry roller brush, and it seemed ready to use again. So, although quite noisy, the device delivered an effective self-cleaning performance.

When it comes to the Dreame Aero Ultra Steam's pure power — the sheer suction was a sight to behold. The steam and hot water modes also left my floors feeling squeaky clean, and the quick release and reabsorption of water allowed me to walk around the space almost immediately after cleaning. What I found disappointing, however, were the interruptions that came along with the cleaning experience. Having to empty the dirty water and refill the clean water before the battery even showed signs of dwindling made me question this cleaner's convenience in larger spaces, but it's safe to say this complaint is not atypical for modern floor cleaners like the Aero Ultra Steam.

Overall, Dreame's flagship floor cleaner is powerful, simple to use, and very effective in tackling the routine and exaggerated messes I put it up against — definitely worth the splurge if you frequently find yourself facing off against heavy-duty spot cleans or are drawn in by the unique steam feature. I can see it being extremely useful for family homes that generate large messes fast and need an equally quick solution to clean them up. That said, be prepared to address its respective water tanks frequently and temper your expectations for uninterrupted whole-home cleaning.