How to Find the Best Robot Vacuum
If you're able to live without advanced features such as mapping, and don't mind emptying the garbage bin every 60 days or so, a basic robot vacuum is likely to work for you. Find one that is clean and works with voice assistants.
It is the most effective robo-vacuum we have tested in getting rid of dirt and pet hair on hardwood floors, tile, and carpeting with low pile. It can also map and create virtual no-go zones for rooms or areas.
1. Powerful Suction
A robot vacuum is able to stay clean of the pet hair, dust and dander that build up on your floors on a daily basis. It can also reduce the frequency at which you have to deep clean, saving your time and effort. The most effective models feature powerful suction that can take on the majority of messes and leave your home clean.
You can cover a larger area with a robot vacuum and mop, which is particularly useful if you have a large house. You can find a model with a tank for water either built into the chassis or as an additional piece that you can swap out after vacuuming. You'll need to empty and refill it, however, so this is an additional chore that requires a little extra work on your part.
In a perfect world, you would clear your floors before you use your robot vacuum, preventing it from hitting anything. However, in the majority of homes, this isn't possible or desirable. Fortunately, the majority of models allow you to use your smartphone to create virtual barriers that the robot is able to be aware of and avoid. Some include no-go zones, which you can use to flag areas you don't want the robot to enter, such as kids rooms or a stack of cords for your device in the corner.
This model is a great choice if you want a basic robot cleaner that does not have all the bells and whistles. It's quiet, and it works on hard floors and low-pile rugs and can be scheduled through the app to mop or vacuum at your convenience. It's got a long battery life of around 180 minutes.
2. Easy to operate
In general robot vacuums require little input from you. They utilize navigation tools like sensors lasers, cameras and sensors to maneuver around obstacles and suck up dust, food crumbs and pet hair from hard floors, tile carpets, and hardwood. Many have boundary strips that help them stay within the walls of a room while pricier models can be set to automatically wake up and begin cleaning at a scheduled time. Some even come with fall detection technology that prevents falling down stairs or becoming tangled in electrical cords.
Find models that allow you to control from your couch using voice assistants like Alexa or Google Assistant. You can also choose Wi-Fi models that permit users to start cleaning from anywhere with an app. Depending on how large your home is, you may want an item with a long-lasting battery and a roomy dustbin that doesn't need to be emptying frequently.
Some robot vacuums can double as mops, using water reservoirs to clean your floors. This is great for mopping, but not ideal for tough messes like pet poop or other wet spills. You can select hybrids that have an able mopping pad made of microfiber, or a self-emptying version that lets you go for up to 60 days without emptying the base.
3. Smart Mapping
Some robots use advanced mapping technology to create a detailed map as they clean. This makes it easier to avoid bumping into furniture and getting caught on cords or chair legs. This feature is usually only available on more expensive models, but it's one of the best ways to make sure that your robot has an accurate understanding of the layout of your house and knows where to go next when it's running out of battery.
If you don't want your robot navigating into areas of your house that you'd prefer it to stay clear from (like your kids' toys or the tangled mess of device cords in the corner) Most robots provide some method of creating virtual barriers, either via their app or physical boundary strips. This lets you block off zones that you don't want your robot explore, so that it can focus its attention on the areas and rooms that require the most cleaning.
A lot of robots can also automatically change floors based on the flooring they are cleaning. This can be done by changing from carpet to hard flooring, or by focusing on specific areas of your house like corners and baseboards. In our tests this was a helpful feature that improved their pick-up scores for both carpeting that is low-pile and hardwood. However, it's still important to secure furniture and cords that are loose prior to using your robot vacuum to ensure that it doesn't get stuck or run into something it shouldn't.
4. Remote Control
The majority of robot vacuums have WiFi connectivity and work with Amazon Alexa, Google Assistant and Siri Shortcuts that enable users to control them with voice commands or through your smartphone. Many robot vacuums connect to smart home systems, and create an outline of the area they clean after each session. This allows them to "learn" how your home is laid out and to plan more efficient routes during future cleaning sessions. Some come with obstacle avoidance built in that prevents them from causing damage to furniture and getting stuck on things such as loose charging cables or pet hair.
Most robots come with a remote that you can use to steer them around your home. The majority of robots can be controlled via a mobile application which has more options. You can usually set multiple cleaning schedules, create an inventory of your favorite rooms and even manually guide your robot to certain areas using directional arrows on the screen.
Some models provide no-go zones that are virtual barriers that you can configure in the app to block the robot from entering certain areas (like toys for children or dog bowls and beds). Some apps allow you to create an outline of your home and provide more detailed information about the floors. The app on our top pick one, the Roborock S7+, has a lot of useful options to help you tidy your home, however its interface isn't as polished as those from iRobot and Shark.
5. Long Battery Life
Robotic vacs that can clean a whole house without stopping to recharge or empty their bins of dust can save you time and energy. Some of them work with smart home platforms like Alexa, Google Assistant and Siri Shortcuts to allow hands-free operation. They can also draw a map of the space that allows you to program them for certain rooms or areas and to stay clear of obstacles.
The majority of robot vacuums come with some degree of object detection, but higher-end models such as the iRobot j7 offer sophisticated features such as "home mapping" and advanced obstacle avoidance, which can simplify your life (although our test bot did "eat" the socks of a pair). socks). If you want to take your home maintenance to the next level consider a robot mop that comes with an water tank that you fill and empty yourself.
While none of the models that we tested could match the dirt-picking ability of a stand-up vacuum they did an excellent job cleaning hard floors and carpets with a low pile. They excel in sweeping up dust and food crumbs, tracked-in dirt and pet hair. They are also able to tackle stray cat litter and metal screws and nuts. The top robot vacuums can easily work their way around furniture and excel at cleaning edges and corners as well. Eufy 11S is a relatively inexpensive and basic model.
6. Convenient Self-Charging
With the right setup and the right setup, a robotic vacuum can aid in keeping your home looking and feeling cleaner on a regular basis without a lot of effort. You can schedule cleanings using the app, and create no-go zones to ensure that your robot does not walk on your plants or favorite chair. Many of our top picks will also empty their dustbins and clean their docking stations.
The most effective robot vacuums are programmable to clean your floors regularly for weeks or even months at a time, thereby which saves you the time and effort of manually sweeping or mopping your floors every week or day. This allows you to spend more time on things you like and cuts down on the amount of time your floors need to be cleaned manually.
In our tests the Q Revo was able to capture fine particles such as baking soda and oatmeal. It also picked up heavier particles such as nails and screws made of steel, as well as fluffy stuff like pet hair. It's not equipped with the advanced mapping and object avoidance features found in our top picks, but it's sufficient for the majority of families.
click to find out more is its ability to detect and avoid obstacles such as power cords, shoes and socks as well as pet waste. This means that you don't need to clean up before running your robot, although clutter in your home can mean your robot could get stuck and not perform as good a job.