5 Ways to Remove Pet Hair From a Sofa

Pet hair can be stubborn and difficult to remove. Make sure you know which cleaning methods will not harm your sofa.

Young goldendoodle feeling cozy resting on the sofa and looking at camera. Oscar Wong/Getty Images/TNS

As pet parents, we love our furry friends—but oh, that fur! The fur itself is harder to love, especially when it’s all over everything we own, including (and especially) the sofa.

Keeping pet hair from overtaking the couch can seem like an insurmountable task, and indeed, it does require regular work. Fortunately, there are plenty of inexpensive tools and clever techniques to help keep Fluffy’s fluff at bay, with no plastic coverings required.

Understanding Your Sofa Type

Couch manufacturers developed a cleaning code or legend that’s important to seek out before you clean your couch in any way. The code, which appears on the care tag that is sewn onto an inconspicuous area of the sofa (usually the underside of the seat) will appear as one of four letter symbols. Here’s what they are and what they mean:

• W = Wet/water cleaning only
• S = Dry solvent cleaning only
• SW = Dry solvent and/or wet cleaning
• X = Professional cleaning or vacuuming only

In addition, any other special instructions will be enumerated on the care tag. The techniques described in this article for removing hair from a couch are safe for most furniture and fabric types, but consulting the care tag before undertaking any cleaning effort is always advised.

Vacuum for the Deepest Clean

The best way to remove pet hair from a couch is also the most straightforward. Vacuuming the sofa will give you the biggest bang for your cleaning buck: A vacuum will pick up loose pet hair and remove dander and other animal body soils that trigger allergies and leave behind odors.