10 Robot Vacuums That Clean So You Don’t Have To
Robot vacuums were once awkward, bumbling machines that bounced around your home sporadically, but today, the best robot vacuums are so advanced that they might actually rival your full-size vacuum. (That said, it’s recommended to keep your regular vacuum around for deeper cleans.) These high-tech cleaning tools clean your floors in a methodical manner, creating maps of each room and automatically avoiding obstacles. Some also boast advanced features like automatic dustbin emptying, voice commands and HEPA filtration.
However, if you want a truly autonomous vacuum that can flawlessly handle everyday cleaning on its own, you might have to shell out a bit of cash. While you can find entry-level robot vacuums for less than $200, they tend to lack more advanced features and often don’t navigate quite as well as superior models. They’re great as a supplementary cleaning tool, but you’ll still have to break out your upright vacuum now and again.
At the other end of the spectrum, premium robot vacuums from top brands can cost over $1,000, but they offer high-tech features such as automatic dirt disposal, floor mapping technology and advanced sensors. Some of the best models can automatically avoid wires, stairs, pet waste and other obstacles, threatening to make all other vacuums obsolete.
To find the best robot vacuum for your home, you’ll want to consider factors like your floor type, whether you have pets and, of course, your budget. With those considerations in mind, here are the top picks to help keep your floors spic and span.
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ByJennifer FordForbes StaffBest Robot Vacuum Overall
A Great Pick For Complete Hands-Free Cleaning
Shark IQ R100 Robot Vacuum
Shark is a widely trusted vacuum brand, and consumers seem to be as pleased with the Shark IQ R100 Robot Vacuum as they are with the brand’s full-size vacuums. This robot vacuum is available for a reasonable price, yet it still has a number of high-tech features, including home mapping, Wi-Fi connectivity and voice commands via Amazon Alexa or Google Assistant.
On its first few runs, the Shark IQ takes the time to map out your whole home, and once its mapping is complete, you can select exactly which rooms you want it to clean. It then vacuums each location in a methodical, row-by-row pattern, not just bumping around randomly. The vacuum features an extra-large dust bin, a self-cleaning brush roll and a high-efficiency filter, and the brand claims it delivers the same powerful suction that you’d expect from other Shark vacuums.
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Best Value Robot Vacuum
A Top Pick That Delivers A Solid Performance
iRobot Roomba 694 Robot Vacuum
While the iRobot Roomba 694 may not have as many high-tech features as more expensive models, it’s still a top pick thanks to its solid performance and reasonable price point. It has a three-stage cleaning system that’s effective at loosening, lifting and sucking up dirt and dust from hard floors and carpet, and its Edge-Sweeping brush can pick up dirt lingering in hard-to-reach corners. The unit’s Dirt Detect Technology helps find the dirtier areas in your home and then cleans them more thoroughly. And since it’s Wi-Fi connected, you can schedule and monitor the robot’s cleaning sessions from your smartphone and start it using Google Assistant and Alexa-enabled devices.
Best Robot Vacuum For Pet Hair
The Top Choice For Pet Parents
Samsung Powerbot Pet Plus Robot Vacuum
Pet hair poses a tough challenge for all vacuums, as it often gets wrapped up in wheels and brushes. However, the Samsung Powerbot Pet Plus has a soft-action brush that automatically detangles and removes pet hair that gets wrapped around it, all while picking up fine dust from your floors. The robot vacuum detects the floor type to optimize suction power, and it delivers powerful cleaning on everything from wood to high-pile carpet. Its Wi-Fi connectivity allows you to control and schedule the unit from your phone, and it’s equipped with large wheels that more easily roll over rug edges, door frames and wires.
Best Self-Emptying Robot Vacuum
A Great Pick For Completely Hands-Free Cleaning
Shark RV1001AE IQ Self-Emptying Robot Vacuum
Popularized by models like the iRobot Roomba s9+ (also on this list), there are now a slew of vacuums that empty themselves into a larger trash bin automatically when they return to the dock. This Shark IQ model offers this convenient feature for a surprisingly reasonable price, and it has the same powerful suction and self-cleaning brush roll that you’ll find in other Shark robot vacuums.
This robot vacuum can store a complete floor plan of your home, which means you can direct it to clean the whole house or just specific rooms on demand. You can operate it from the mobile app or using your voice with Alexa or Google Assistant, and thanks to its “Recharge and Resume” feature, if the battery runs down while it’s still cleaning, the Shark can return to its dock, charge up and then automatically restart and pick up where it left off. That’s pretty convenient.
Best Robot Vacuum For Hard Floors
An Affordable Option That Tackles All Types Of Wood, Tile And Vinyl
Eufy RoboVac 30C Robot Vacuum
The Eufy RoboVac 30C is a great low-price option that has thousands of reviews and a high rating from users. This model has a slim 2.85-inch body that can fit under furniture, and it delivers up to 100 minutes of cleaning per charge. The RoboVac 30C works on all types of hard floors and low- or medium-pile carpets and features BoostIQ technology, which automatically increases its suction when it moves onto a carpet. It’s compatible with Vera, Google Assistant and Amazon Alexa and includes boundary strips you can place around the house to keep it cleaning where you want it.
Best Robot That Mops And Vacuums
An Option That Delivers Clean And Sparkly Floors
Bissell SpinWave 2-in-1 Wet Mop and Dry Robot Vacuum
Your floors will be cleaner than ever with the Bissell SpinWave, a robotic vacuum and mop in one. It comes with both a dry and wet tank, allowing you to choose how you want it to clean. The wet tank includes two rotating mop pads that scrub your floors, automatically avoiding carpets and area rugs. When the dry tank is attached, the unit uses its dual spinning brushes, rotating brush roll and powerful suction to vacuum both hard floors and carpets.
Best Splurge-Worthy Robot Vacuum
A Roomba With All The Bells And Whistles
iRobot Roomba s9+ (9550) Self-Emptying Robot Vacuum
Sleek and modern, the Roomba s9+ is one of the brand’s newest products, and this robot vacuum is equipped with all the bells and whistles you could ever need. It offers increased suction, better sensors and a special brush to clean corners and edges. It also has automatic dirt disposal, emptying its dustbin into the unit’s base to save you some maintenance.
The s9+ can be controlled via a smartphone and creates a map of your house as it cleans. It also has an anti-allergen system that captures 99% of pollen and mold—ideal for anyone with allergies. These extra features do come with a higher price tag, though. This model is the most expensive robot vacuum you can buy.
Best Robot Vacuum With HEPA Filter
A Self-Emptying Option That Will Capture Dust And Allergens
Shark AI Wi-Fi Connected Robot Vacuum
HEPA filters are the gold standard for vacuums, as they’re able to capture 99.97% of dust and allergen particles as small as 0.3 microns; the Shark AI Robot Vacuum is one of the only robot vacuums that has true HEPA filtration. This Wi-Fi connected model has a bagless, self-emptying base with a HEPA filter, and it only needs to be emptied every 60 days.
The Shark AI Robot Vacuum can run for up to 120 minutes per charge, and it uses laser navigation to clean your home methodically while avoiding obstacles. It has a self-cleaning brush roll that’s ideal for homes with pets, and it offers an “UltraClean Mode” for more thorough vacuuming.
Best Robot Vacuum For All Types of Floors
A Robot Vacuum That Seamlessly Transitions From Floor To Carpet
Roborock S7 Robot Vacuum
If you have different types of floors throughout your home, the Roborock S7 Robot Vacuum is one of the best robot vacuums for the job. Designed with Ultrasonic Carpet Recognition and an intelligent mop-lifting feature, this robot vacuum automatically identifies changes in flooring, increasing cleaning power and auto-lifting on carpets after mopping to prevent spreading dirt around.
The vacuum scrubs at 3,000 cycles per minute to get rid of dry stains, while intense suction lifts dirt from floors and deep inside carpets. It also has an advanced navigation system that creates accurate maps of your home and uses algorithms to determine the quickest route to get the job done. You can control where the robot goes with No-Go Zones, Invisible Walls and No-Mop Zones, and with 180 minutes of battery life, this robot can clean the largest of homes on one charge. If all this sounds good to you but you want a self-emptying model, the newer Roborock S7+ does just that.
Best Roomba Robot Vacuum
Roomba’s Latest Model That Automatically Avoids Cables And Pet Waste
iRobot Roomba j7+ (7550) Self-Emptying Robot Vacuum
Roomba is one of the most recognizable robot vacuum brands, and one of the company’s latest models—the j7+—promises some of the best performance yet. This sleek robot vacuum has a more compact self-emptying base that can still hold up to 60 days’ worth of dust and dirt, and its improved navigational skills allow the vacuum to automatically avoid power cords, shoes and toys, as well as pet accidents. In fact, iRobot now offers a “Pet Owner Official Promise” (also known as P.O.O.P): If the j7+ doesn’t avoid pet waste, the unit will be replaced for free.
In addition to its new navigational skills, this updated Roomba has a three-stage cleaning system with an edge-sweeping brush and multi-surface rubber rollers, and it allows you to schedule multiple cleanings per day, if desired. You can control it through the iRobot app or your smart home assistant, and it learns your cleaning habits and offers customized schedules.
What To Consider When Choosing A Robot Vacuum
There’s a lot to consider when choosing the best robot vacuum for you. Do you have several floor types in your home? Do you need extra suction power thanks to a pet that leaves all its fur behind? Do you have a lot of square footage to cover, or will a shorter run time do the trick? Here’s what you should look for:
Frequently Asked Questions About Robot Vacuums
Is A Robot Vacuum Worth It?
With the most affordable robot vacuums costing around $200, these gadgets are a substantial investment. You’ll want to consider your cleaning style, as well as your home’s layout and challenges to determine whether a robot vacuum is worth it for your home. If you vacuum several times a week to keep up with pet hair or dirt, a robot vacuum can help take care of this daily maintenance. However, they aren’t as thorough as a full-size vacuum, so you’ll likely still need to vacuum occasionally.
What Robot Vacuum Has The Strongest Suction?
The suction of robot vacuums is typically measured in Pascal Pressure Units, abbreviated as Pa, and the Roborock S7 Robot Vacuum delivers 2,500Pa of suction, making it one of the most powerful options available today.
How Long Do Robot Vacuums Last?
With proper maintenance, which includes regularly cleaning the brushes and replacing components as needed, robot vacuums typically last for around four to six years. High-end models often have a slightly longer lifespan, lasting up to eight years.
Can A Roomba Replace A Vacuum?
Roombas and other robot vacuums are ideal for light, daily cleaning, as they can pick up most dirt, dust and hair off your floors and carpets. However, they don’t deliver the same level of suction as a full-size vacuum, so they often aren’t able to pull out dirt that’s deep in carpets. For this reason, most people use robot vacuums as supplementary cleaning tools for everyday maintenance, then use a full-size vacuum to deep-clean their homes as needed.
