Our Honest Review of Bissell's Little Green Machine Carpet and Upholstery Spot Cleaner

Tested by Brigitt Earley

If you spend any time on social media, you’ve probably seen more than one influencer (or even friend) singing the praises of a small multipurpose cleaner called the Little Green Machine. On TikTok alone, you can watch an endless stream of videos, some with more than a million views, as the tiny yet mighty machine sucks up everything from red wine to coffee to crayons on surfaces like rugs, couches and even car upholstery.

The portable carpet and upholstery cleaner works by spraying a combination of water and cleaning solution onto the mess, then sucking it all — stain included — back up and into a dirty water tank. Because it’s so compact and easy to use, it’s designed for small mishaps like dirty footprints, food spills and pet messes.

But does it really live up to all of the hype? We put the Bissell Little Green Machine to the test to find out.

How We Tested

To properly evaluate Bissell’s Little Green Machine, we put the carpet cleaner through a series of tests, simulating messes that might occur in your own home.

First, we soiled a white shag area rug with creamy peanut butter, red wine and melted chocolate. Following the user manual, we prepared the Little Green Machine to get to work, mixing the brand’s OXY Spot & Stain with water in the clean water tank. Then, we used the carpet cleaner to pretreat each stain by spraying the water and carpet cleaning solution mixture onto each stain. After five minutes (the brand recommends three to five minutes for best results), we used the three-inch tough stain tool to scrub and suck up each mess.

Next, we tested the carpet cleaner on an outdoor pillow to see how it performs on upholstery. We evaluated the machine’s performance the same way. First soiling the pillow with peanut butter, red wine and melted chocolate, then pretreating and cleaning.

After testing, we cleaned the machine and prepared it for storage to evaluate other important attributes like the complexity of breakdown and cleaning and whether the average person can easily store the unit.

What We Liked About the Little Green Machine

It's easy to use.

There are very limited buttons and settings on this machine, which make it exceptionally easy to use. Simply fill the clean water tank with a mixture of solution and water (there are measurement guides on the tank itself), plug it in, and turn it on. It’s intuitive even without the user manual, but we do recommend reading it anyway. We gleaned some helpful advice, including information about pre-treating.

When you’re done cleaning, the dirty water tank easily lifts up and out of the machine without dripping. Just bring it over to the sink and dump the water out of the opening on the top. Our tester wished the opening was a bit bigger to make rinsing the tank more effective but found the process simple enough.

It has strong suction.

One of the best things about the Little Green Machine is its suction power. In tests, we found that more stubborn stains, like peanut butter, required a lot of cleaning solution. But the Little Green can handle it. The machine sends an even mist of solution onto the stain so you can target and saturate a single area. It then expertly sucks up whatever is in its path without much elbow grease from the user — there’s no need to scrub and scrub. The brand simply recommends gently pulling the cleaning brush up and toward you with each pass.

In tests, we were impressed by just how much the brush pulled up with each pass, even though the brush is stationary. “It completely erased a red wine stain from my white shag carpet in less than 60 seconds,” our tester reported. “The thicker substances, like peanut butter and melted chocolate, visibly lightened with each pass but did require a lot more effort and two rounds of pre-treating before eventually lifting completely.”

It features large water tanks.

For such a small machine (compared to other carpet cleaners), we were very impressed by the 48-ounce water tank. After an hour of cleaning multiple stains, the dirty water tank was nowhere near full, and we had plenty of solution left in the clean water tank. We probably could have cleaned an entire sofa without having to stop to empty and refill it!

It's lightweight and portable.

Many carpet cleaners are very large machines that resemble upright vacuums and weigh upwards of 15 or even 20 or more pounds, which is more than many households need. These larger carpet cleaners are helpful in homes with a lot of carpet, but for homes with mostly hard floors and rugs and upholstered furniture, a spot cleaner like the Little Green Machine might be a better fit. The Little Green Machine has a unique oval design that measures just 8.25 x 17.25 x 12.5 inches and weighs just 9.65 pounds. It also features a handle on the top to make carrying the appliance from room to room even more manageable. We also like that the unit has a wraparound hose and cord loop for both the 15-foot power cord and the 4-foot hose.

What We Didn’t Like About the Little Green Machine

It's very loud.

Our tester was surprised by how loud the machine was in testing. It emits the typical hum of a powerful vacuum but also a high-pitched noise that’s less than desirable. Though exact decibels aren’t specified in the user manual, we found that we could not comfortably carry on a conversation while cleaning.

It's limited to the brand’s cleaning solution.

The brand offers conflicting advice on whether you can safely use cleaning agents manufactured by other brands. On Bissell’s website, the FAQs suggest you can use other cleaning solutions, but it is not recommended. However, the user manual for the Little Green Machine does say “Always use genuine BISSELL deep cleaning formulas. Non-BISSELL cleaning solutions may harm the machine and will void the warranty.”

Our tester, who has owned the machine for more than four years and was not concerned about the warranty, was willing to try other cleaning solutions with the Little Green. We successfully used Zep and Nature’s Miracle but found they all offered similar results. With that in mind, it’s probably in the user’s best interest to stick with Bissell’s formula, especially if your machine is still within the warranty period.

It's not ideal for very large stains.

We found the Little Green to be highly effective for small messes, like a spilled glass of wine or even a kid gone rogue with a crayon. During evaluations, our tester was able to completely eradicate the red wine stain in less than one minute with very little effort. In her previous experience with the machine, she was able to remove blue crayon from the back of a cream-colored wing chair in less than five minutes. Thicker, tougher messes like peanut butter and melted chocolate posed more of a problem. They required multiple rounds of pre-treating and a fair amount of elbow grease. In upholstery tests, we were not able to fully remove the peanut butter or chocolate — there’s still a faint reminder of both stains on the fabric.

The Bottom Line

Overall, you can't beat the value of the Little Green Machine, especially if you catch it on sale. The appliance is easy to use, lightweight and portable and offers stellar cleaning prowess. It's a great tool to have on hand, particularly if you have kids or pets that make frequent messes, but note that it's better suited for small stains. While the machine does have large water tanks, cleaning an entire couch or a really stubborn stain by hand requires a fair amount of effort.

Frequently Asked Questions

Does Bissell’s Little Green Machine actually work?

Absolutely! In tests, we were able to fully remove red wine, peanut butter and melted chocolate from a white shag rug. And, in our testers previous experiences, she was able to effectively remove muddy footprints and a toddler’s bathroom accident from carpet, crayon from an upholstered chair and melted red popsicle from outdoor cushions.

Is the Bissell Little Green Machine a steam cleaner?

The Bissell Little Green Machine is not a steamer. There is no heating element, so the appliance cannot produce steam. You can, however, fill the water tank with hot water if you’d like.

Can you use your own carpet/upholstery shampooer in this machine or only the one it comes with?

The brand offers conflicting information about whether you can use your own carpet shampoo. The FAQs say you can use other cleaning solutions, but it is not recommended. However, the user manual says “Always use genuine BISSELL deep cleaning formulas. Non-BISSELL cleaning solutions may harm the machine and will void the warranty.” We recommend using Bissell cleaning solution, particularly if your appliance is still under warranty.

Can you use the Bissell Little Green Machine with just water?

You can technically use the Bissell Little Green Machine with just water, but we don’t recommend it in most instances, since you won’t get the full cleaning power of the solution. It is, however, a good option for upholstery that cannot come into contact with any chemicals.

What materials should you not use the Bissell Little Green Machine (and included cleaning solution) on?

Bissell’s cleaning solution should only be used on materials with the manufacturer’s code WS or W. The brand also recommends testing a small, hidden area for colorfastness prior to use. If color is affected, do not use.

Does the Bissell Little Green Machine leave a couch wet after using?

The Bissell Little Green Machine does leave a couch (or any other surface) a bit damp after using, but you can minimize this by using “drying strokes” — not pressing the spray trigger while making passes over the area. This will remove as much moisture as possible.

Does Bissell Little Green Machine work on old stains?

As is the case with most stain removers, the Bissell Little Green Machine works best on fresh stains. However, our tester was able to successfully remove a series of old stains. She had no idea how long the crayon had been on her wing chair — perhaps months — but was able to tackle it in just five minutes. She was also able to remove some — not all — popsicle stains from outdoor cushions.