Best Rated Robot Vacuum Cleaner

Robot vacuums are great for keeping your floors tidy however they aren't a replacement for a traditional vacuum. Even the best vacuums struggle to penetrate carpets or rugs, and can often get tangled in cords and socks.

Being on top of routine maintenance (replacing filters cutting hair tangled from brushes, and emptying the dust bin) will help your robot last longer.

Battery Life

The majority of robot vacuums are able to handle a couple of cleaning sessions without having to be charged. The second-placed model in our overall selections is the Ecovacs Deebot Q30S Combo comes with a battery that is designed to last for up to 180 minutes (3,230 square feet) of cleaning time on a single charge. The runtime is more than enough time to clean smaller homes with the combination of hard floors and low-pile carpets, or a larger home in which the rooms are about the same size.

A longer battery life means that the robot will spend less time charging and can spend more time cleaning. You should select one with an automatic emptying bin. These models are more efficient at cleaning up debris and bringing it back to the dock to recharge. It is essential to clean or replace filters and clean the sensors and cameras on a regular schedule so they can be seen clearly.

Smart mapping technology can be a valuable feature, as you can program your robot to ensure that it only cleans certain rooms or areas it's likely to crash into furniture and other obstacles. It's also helpful for ensuring your robot is able to go under and around sofas, beds and other furniture with a high height. A few robovacs are cheap and have boundary strips you can place on the floor to block off certain areas, and other models with higher-end features utilize sensors and cameras for this purpose.

Even the best robot vacuums aren't able to replace a traditional vacuum when it comes to heavy-duty large-pile dirt and other debris. It's wise to keep a standard power vac on standby for those tasks and to schedule robot cleaner commercial vacuums regularly for light cleanups throughout the week.

Navigation

A robot should be capable of navigating your home without being caught or running into objects like metal screws, pet hair or sand. In our tests we used a tracking device used to follow the robot around a multi-room lab. It then maps its surroundings. We also examine the way it manages to avoid obstacles like furniture legs, power cords, and pet waste.

The most advanced robots can create different floors and recognize landmarks like doors and windows. The most advanced ones, like the Roborock S8 Pro Ultra, have a dual-sensor navigation system that uses an LIDAR sensor to map the room, and a light camera on the front of the robot to identify objects in real-time. This lets the S8 to stay clear of common obstacles such as power cords and furniture legs, and it can store up to four floor maps within its internal memory.

The majority of the models that are affordable rely on bump sensors which are not as accurate. In my tests they were able to detect dog poop and cords, as well as a pair of shoes placed in the middle. The best value pick, the Dreametech D10+, is one exception to this. It is a great carpet as well as a hard floor, tangle, and hair pickup. It also has an auto empty score that is close to perfect.

Another feature that is important is a large onboard dustbin which doesn't have to be manually emptied, and for the models that mop, a water tank that can last for weeks of cleaning sessions. Karcher's RCV 5 is an excellent illustration of this. It has a large enough footprint to fit under furniture, but not so large that it is unable to fit into the nook between your bathtub and toilet.

Apps

Robot vacuums are similar to their upright counterparts and require an array of technologies to keep them current. The result is a pretty mature market with plenty of options. But even the top models require interaction with their users - particularly when it comes to scheduling cleanings, establishing a home floor plan and establishing virtual barriers.

You might consider a model with its own app that can recognize the layout of your house and save these settings for future use. This will let the robot vacuum start where it left off on subsequent runs, instead of having to restart the mapping process every time.

It's worth looking out for a vacuum that comes with spot or zone cleaning modes. You can instruct the robot vacuum cleaner to focus on an area, like under the table after a large family meal. You can usually choose to do this via the app or via voice commands.

Many models also offer objects avoidance. It allows the robot, when it sees something in its way, like a box of shoes or a crate filled with dog toys, to coach itself around. This prevents it from crashing into things that could damage its sensors or cause jams.

Some of the most expensive models we tested come with this feature. They depend on bump sensor technology to do this however they did not always keep things out of my test home.

Pet Hair

When it comes to picking up pet hair, you should choose a model that's designed specifically to handle this type of debris. The best models will have an extremely high suction, a brush which keeps hair from tangling and an automated vacuum emptying mechanism. Some models can also determine dirt levels and adjust cleaning intensity according to the amount of dirt. They are able to detect objects that aren't a part of your home's flooring, such as furniture toys, food bowls, toys, cords, and more.

Certain robot vacuums come with pet-friendly features, like small water dispensers that can be used to mop floors, and a HEPA filter that can help reduce allergens such as pet dust. They might also have a quieter mode of operation to reduce the amount noise generated during cleaning sessions.

Robot vacuums that have the ability to map are a great option for pet owners. They're designed to evaluate your home and develop an attack plan based on the layout of each room and obstacles. Shark Matrix Plus is a two-in-one robot vacuum that can map a room, and navigate around furniture and other obstacles using accelerometer and Gyroscope smart sensors.

Other advanced models let you create no-go zones, which are areas that the robot is meant to stay clear of, such as fragile items or pet feeding spots--by adjusting settings through an app. This feature is especially useful for families with busy schedules, since it allows you to schedule cleaning sessions without having to be present in the room where the vacuum is. Spot cleaning is an additional excellent feature. You can direct the Remote Control Vacuum Cleaner cleaner to clean an area that is particularly filthy or filled with pet hair.

Dust Bin

If you don't want anything tiny, choose a robot with a big bin or even a self cleaning vacuum cleaner-emptying trash bin. We recommend choosing the one with a large bin or a bin that automatically emptys. The one will let you keep up with emptying your bin often enough to keep it functioning. The latter will help you save time and effort by automatically dropping the contents into an inside container after every cleaning.

No matter the size of your home the majority of robots are able to climb up and around furniture, and almost all are able to detect and navigate around household obstacles like shoes, loose cords and dog puke. Make sure you choose models with smart mapping capabilities. This allows them to "learn the patterns of your house and plan more efficient routes.

Certain models also offer spot cleaning, which allows users to select specific areas of your house for intensive cleaning. We've found that most of the top performers in our tests can remove fine particles such as baking soda and sand, as well as heavier debris such as oatmeal orzo pasta screws and pet hair.

The brand you choose will determine the longevity of the robot. the majority of robots last for a long time and continue to perform in the event that you are on top of maintenance, such as cleaning hair that is tangled from brushes and emptying the dust bin after every use and wiping down cameras and sensors as required. The most reliable robots are more adaptable. This makes it easier to replace or repair parts like wheels and batteries when they get worn out.