Best Rated Robot Vacuum Cleaner

While robot vacuums are great in keeping your floors clean but they aren't able to replace a full-size vacuum. Even the best vacuums struggle to get deep into carpets and rugs. They also often get tangled in socks and cords.

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

Battery Life

Most robot vacuums can handle just a few cleaning sessions before requiring a charge. The second-placed model in our top picks is the Ecovacs Deebot Q30S Combo is that is designed to last for up to 180 minutes (3,230 square feet) of cleaning time on a single charge. This should be more than enough for the majority of small homes with a mixture of hard flooring and carpets with low pile or larger homes with rooms that are about the same size.

A longer battery life also means that the robot is able to spend more time cleaning, and less time charging its dock. It's worth opting for models that have a self-emptying dust bin, as these models are more efficient when it comes to picking up debris and returning to the dock for recharging. It is also essential to empty or change the filter and wipe down cameras and sensors regularly so that they are able to see your home clearly.

Smart mapping technology is a beneficial feature, as it allows you to program your robot to ensure it only cleans certain rooms or stays clear of areas where it's likely to bump into furniture and other obstacles. This feature is also helpful to ensure that your robot can reach under and around furniture like sofas, beds and other tall items. Some robovacs that are inexpensive have boundaries that you can place on the floor to block off areas, while others use cameras and sensors to accomplish this.

Even the top robot vacuums can't replace a traditional vacuum when it comes heavy-duty dirt and debris. It's advisable to keep a traditional power vac in reserve to handle these chores, and to schedule robot vacs regularly for light cleanups throughout the week.

Navigation

A robot should be able to navigate you home without getting stuck or crashing into objects such as metal screws or pet hair that is loose, or sand. In our tests, a tracking device is used to track the robot's movements through an entire lab. It then tracks its surroundings. We also examine how well it avoids obstacles like power cords, furniture legs, and pet waste.

The top robots can map out multiple floors and can recognize landmarks like doors and Windows. The most advanced models such as the Roborock S8 Pro Ultra, feature a dual-sensor navigation system which uses an LIDAR sensor to map the room, and a light camera at the front of the robot to detect objects in real time. The S8 is able to avoid obstacles like power cords as well as furniture legs. It can also store up to four floor maps.

Cheaper models don't come with this kind of object detection and rely on bump sensors, which aren't as precise. In my tests, they plowed right through cords, dog poop, and even shoes that were placed in the middle of the room. The Dreametech D10+ is the most value-for-money option. It is a great carpet, hard floor, tangle and hair pickup. It also has an auto vacuum cleaner empty score that is close to perfect.

Another feature worth mentioning is a large dust bin which doesn't have to be manually emptied, and for those models that mop, a tank of water that can hold weeks worth of mopping. The Karcher RCV 5 has this, and a large enough footprint that it can be placed under furniture but not so big that it can't fit into the nook between your bathtub and toilet.

Apps

Robot vacuums are like upright vacuums, and it takes a lot of tech to bring them up to speed. The result is a mature market that is brimming with options. Even the top models require interaction from their customers especially when it comes to plan cleaning schedules, design a floor plan for your home and install virtual barriers.

To lessen the chance of the impact of this interaction, you should look for a model that uses its own app to identify the layout of your home and save these settings for future use. This will allow the robot vacuum to continue where it began in subsequent runs, rather than having the mapping process restarted every time.

It is also recommended to look for models that provide zones or spot cleaning. You can instruct the vacuum cleaner to focus on a specific area, such as under the table after a large family meal. You can usually choose to use the app or voice commands.

A lot of models also offer objects-avoidance. It allows the robot, when it comes across something that is in its path such as a box of shoes or a crate containing dog toys, to instruct itself around. This will prevent it from hitting objects that could harm its sensors or cause jams.

Some of the most expensive models we've tested come with this feature. However, they tend to rely on bump sensors to accomplish this and weren't always able to stay clear of things in my test homes.

Pet Hair

When you're looking to remove pet hair, choose one that is specifically designed to handle this type of debris. The most effective models come with high suction power, a brush that avoids tangling, and an emptying mechanism that will automatically dump hair into the dust bin when it is needed. Some models are able to detect dirt levels and alter the level of cleaning. They are also able to detect objects that aren't part your flooring in your home, such as furniture, toys and food bowls.

Some robot vacuums come with additional features that are pet-friendly. They include a water dispenser which is used to mop floors, and a HEPA filtration system that reduces allergens such as pet dander. They might also offer an operation that is quieter, which can minimize the amount of noise that's produced during cleaning sessions.

Robot vacuums with maps are a great option for pet owners, as they are designed to analyze your home and devise plans of attack according to the layout and obstructions in every room. For instance the Shark Matrix Plus 2-in-1 Vacuum is a smart vacuum with an amazing ability to map a room and navigate around furniture and other obstacles using accelerometer and gyroscope smart vacuum cleaner sensors which work in tandem to understand the layout of your room.

Other models that are more advanced let you set no-go zones, which are areas that the robot is meant to avoid, such as items that are fragile or pet feeding spots--by adjusting settings using an app. This feature is particularly useful for households with busy schedules, as it allows you to plan your cleaning schedule and adjust settings without having to be in the same room as the vacuum. Another feature that is extremely useful is spot cleaning that lets you direct the vacuum to clean an area that is particularly dirty or brimming with pet hair.

Dust Bin

If you don't want something small, go for a model with a big bin or even a self-emptying bin. That's why we recommend opting for a model that has a large bin, or perhaps a self-emptying dustbin. The former will enable you to keep track of emptying the bin often enough to stay on top of its performance while the latter will help you save time and effort by automatically dumping the contents into an internal bin every few cleans.

Regardless of the best robot vacuum cleaner size of your home Most robots are able to move around and up to furniture, and most can detect and navigate around household obstacles such as shoes, loose cords, and dog puke. Find models with intelligent mapping capabilities, which permit them to "learn" the patterns of your house and plan more efficient routes, and models that detect and avoid objects that could hinder their path (like shoelaces or tangled charging cables).

Some models provide spot cleaning. This lets you manually target an area of your home to be targeted for thorough cleaning. We've discovered that many of the top performers in our tests are able to remove fine particles such as sand and baking soda, along with heavier debris like oatmeal orzo pasta screws, and pet hair.

The brand you choose will determine the longevity of the robot. most robots will last for a long time and continue to perform as long as you maintain them with regular maintenance, such as cleaning tangled hair from brushes and dust bins, emptying them after every use, and wiping down cameras and sensors when needed. The best-performing robots also tend to be more modular and therefore easier and less expensive to replace or repair parts like batteries and wheels as they wear out.