How to Find the Best Robot Vacuum

If you don't need advanced features like mapping, and don't mind emptying your dustbin every 60 to 90 days, a basic robotic vacuum is probably the best choice for you. Look for a model with a clean base and works with voice assistants.

It excels at picking up dirt, clumps of cat litter and pet hair on hardwood floors, tile and carpeting with less pile than any other vacuum we've tried. It can also map out and set virtual no-go zones for rooms or specific areas.

1. Powerful Suction

A robot vacuum will help you keep up with the pet fur, dust and dander that settles on your floors every day. It can also cut down on the frequency at which you have to clean your floors, saving your time and effort. The most effective models have powerful suction that is able to tackle most messes and leave your home cleaner.

You can take care of more space with a robot vacuum and mop, which can be beneficial if you live in an extensive home. Find a model that has a water reservoir either built into its chassis or as a separate item that you swap in when vacuuming is complete. It will need to be empty and refill it, though it's an additional task that will require some extra effort on your part.

In ideal world, you'd clear your floors prior to using your robot vac to keep it from running into things. In most homes, however it's not feasible or desirable. Thankfully, many models allow you to use your smartphone app to set up virtual barriers that the robot will see and avoid. Certain models have no-go zones that you can mark areas you don't wish it to be allowed to enter. For example, a child's room or a pile cords in a corner.

This model is a great option for those looking for an easy robot cleaner that doesn't have all the bells and whistles. It's quiet, it works on both hard floors and carpets with low pile and can be programmed via the app to mop and vacuum at your convenience. It comes with a battery life of around 180 minutes.

2. Easy to Operate

In general, robot vacuums require very little input from you. They use navigation tools like sensors, lasers and cameras to navigate around obstacles and suck up food particles, dust and pet hair from hard floors, tiles carpets, hardwood floors and low-pile carpets. Many models come with boundary strips that allow them to stay inside a room. The more expensive models can be programmed to wake up at a specific time and start cleaning. Certain models come with fall detection technology to help users avoid falling down the stairs or becoming tangled in cords.

If you'd like to control your robot vacuum from the comfort of a couch, you should look for models that can work with voice assistants such as Alexa and Google Assistant. Also, look for Wi-Fi-connected models that allow you to start cleaning sessions from anywhere via an app. You might want to choose one with an extremely long-lasting battery as well as a large dustbin, depending on the size of your house.

Certain robot vacuums are also mops. They make use of water reservoirs to wash the floor. This is helpful for normal mopping, but it won't be effective for messes that are more difficult to clean, such as pet poop or other spills that are wet. You can pick hybrids that have a removable microfiber mopping pad, or a self-emptying version that allows you to go for up to 60 days without emptying the base.

3. Smart Mapping

Certain robots utilize advanced mapping technology to create a detailed map while they clean. This helps them avoid crashing into furniture and getting caught on cords or chair legs. This feature is usually only available on higher-end models, but it's certainly one of the best ways to make sure that your robot has an accurate understanding of the layout of your home and is aware of where to go when it runs out of battery.

If you do not want your robot to go into areas of your home 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 way to create virtual barriers, either through their app or a set of physical boundary strips. You can block off areas you don't wish your robot to enter in order to concentrate on the rooms that require the most attention.

Many robots will also automatically change floors depending on the flooring they are cleaning. This can be achieved by switching from carpet to hard flooring, or by focusing on specific areas of your house, such as corners and baseboards. This feature proved to be useful during our tests and helped improve the performance of the vacuum on both hardwood flooring and low-pile floor carpeting. It's important to tuck away any furniture or cords that are loose before using your robot vacuum, so it doesn't get caught.

4. Remote Control

The majority of robot vacuums have WiFi capabilities and can be controlled via voice commands, Google Assistant, Amazon Alexa or Siri Shortcuts. Many robot vacuums are connected to smart home systems and create a map of the area they clean after each session. This lets them "learn" how your home is laid out and to plan more efficient routes during future cleaning sessions. Some have obstacle avoidance features 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 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 set up a variety of cleaning schedules, and create an inventory of your preferred rooms. You can also manually direct the robot using directional arrows.

Some models have no-go zones. These are virtual barriers that you can set up within the app to block the robot from entering specific areas (like toys for children or dog beds and dishes). Some apps let you create a map of your house and provide detailed information on the floors. The app we ranked as our top choice one, the Roborock S7+, has numerous options to help you clean your house, but its interface isn't as polished and elegant as those from iRobot and shark robot vacuum and mop.

5. Long Battery Life

Robot vacuums that can sweep your entire house without stopping for a recharge or emptying their trash bins save time and effort. Some of them work with smart home platforms like Alexa, Google Assistant and Siri Shortcuts to allow hands-free operation. They can also create maps of the area to allow you to program them to specific areas or rooms and to avoid obstacles.

The majority of robot vacuums come with some level of object detection however, higher-end models like the iRobot j7 come with advanced features like "home mapping" and nearest advanced obstacle avoidance that can really simplify your life (although our test bot did once "eat" socks). socks). If you want to take your home maintenance to the next level consider a robot mop that has a tank of water that you fill and empty yourself.

While none of the models that we tested could match the ability to pick up dirt of a standup vacuum, they did a great job cleaning hard floors as well as carpets with low pile. They are excellent at sweeping up fine dirt, food crumbs, and dirt that has been tracked in. They can also handle screws and nuts made of metal and cats' litter. The most effective robot vacuums are able to effortlessly work through furniture, and they excel at cleaning edges and corners as well. Eufy 11S is a relatively basic and affordable model.

6. Convenient Self-Charging

With the proper setup, a robot vacuum can assist you in keeping your home looking and feeling cleaner on a regular basis without much work from you. You can schedule your cleanings using the app and set up no-go zones so that your robot doesn't damage your plants or ruin your favorite chair. Many of our top picks automatically empty their bins and clean their docking stations for you.

The top robot vacuums can be programmed to clean your floors regularly for months or even weeks at a time, saving you from the arduous task of manually mopping and sweeping your floors on a weekly or daily basis. This lets you enjoy more time doing things you like and reduces the time it takes to clean your floors manually.

In the course of testing the Q Revo was able to grab fine particles like baking soda and oatmeal as well as heavier debris such metal screws and nails, and fluffy stuff like hair from pets. It doesn't have the smart mapping and object avoidance features of our top picks, however it works well enough for most families.

The j7's best robot mop and vacuum combo feature is its ability to spot and avoid obstacles such as power cords, shoes and socks as well as pet waste. This means you don't have to clean the room prior to running your robot, although cluttered rooms will mean that your bot may get stuck and not perform as well.