I first charged the vacuum according to its directions and after a little less than an hour I was ready to go. I love how easy it was to vacuum the many different layers of rugs and tile throughout my house. I usually get a backache when I vacuum and I get frustrated with the cords from my other upright vacuum that constantly gets tangled in chair legs or my legs, no problem with this cordless stick vacuum. It is lightweight so it doesn't hurt my back and there are no cords for me to trip over. It's like a dream. I don't know how I did without it before.