Best Rated Robot Vacuum Cleaner

While robot vacuums are excellent in keeping your floors clean however, they're not able to replace a full-size vacuum. Even the best robots can struggle to get deep into carpets and rugs. They also often get caught in cords and socks.

Your robot will last longer if you carry out routine maintenance. This includes replacing filters, removing hairs that are tangled from brushes and emptying the dustbin.

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 picks, the Ecovacs Deebot Q30S Combo is that is designed to last for up to 180 minutes (3,230 square feet) of cleaning time on one charge. The runtime is more than enough to clean most smaller homes with carpets that are hard and low-pile carpets or a bigger home where the rooms are roughly the same size.

A longer battery life means the robot can spend less time charging and more time cleaning. You should choose the model with an auto-emptying bin. These models are more efficient in collecting debris and then returning back to the dock to recharge. It's important to clean or replace the filters and wipe down the sensors and camera regularly so they can see clearly.

Smart mapping technology can be a valuable feature, since you can program your robot so that it only cleans certain rooms or avoids areas where it's likely to bump into furniture and other obstacles. It's also useful for ensuring that your robot can get under and around beds, sofas and other furniture with a high height. Some cheap robovacs come with boundary strips that you can use to block certain areas. Other high-end models rely on sensors and cameras.

Even the most powerful robot vacuums aren't able to substitute a traditional vac when it comes heavy-duty dirt and debris. It's recommended to have a power vacuum on hand to tackle these tasks, and also schedule robot vacs for light cleanings throughout the week.

Navigation

A robot should be able to navigate your home without getting stuck or crashing into objects like metal screws or pet hair that is loose, or sand. In our tests, we employ a tracking device to track the robot as it goes through a multiroom lab and maps out its surroundings. We also check the way it manages to avoid obstacles like power cords, furniture legs and pet waste.

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

Most affordable models rely on bump sensors which are not as accurate. In my tests, they were able to see through dog poop and cords, as well as a pair shoes placed in the middle. The Dreametech D10+ is the best value choice. It has excellent carpet and hard floor pickup, good hair and tangle pickup, and a near perfect auto empty score.

A large dust bin onboard, which does not need to be emptying manually, is also a aspect that's crucial. For models that sweep the floor, this water tank will hold enough water for several weeks of cleaning sessions. The Karcher RCV 5 has this and a big enough footprint that it can be placed under furniture but not so big that it can't fit into the nook between your toilet and bathtub.

Apps

Robot vacuums are similar to their upright counterparts and require an array of technologies to keep them up-to-date. There are many choices available in a market that is maturing. Even robot vacuum cleaners advanced models require interaction from their users particularly when it comes to schedule cleanings, create the floor plan of your home, and set up virtual barriers.

To help reduce the impact of this interaction, you should look for a model that uses its own app to recognize the design of your home and save those settings for future use. This will allow the robot vacuum to continue where it began when it runs again, instead of having the mapping process restarted every time.

It's worth looking out for a model that offers spot or zone cleaning modes. You can tell the robot vacuum cleaner to concentrate on an area, like under the table after a big family meal. You can choose to do this using the app or by voice commands.

Many models also offer objects avoidance. It allows the robot to observe something in its path, such as a box of shoes or a crate of dog toys, and then guide itself around it. This prevents it from crashing into things that could damage its sensors or cause a jam.

This feature is available on a few of the more expensive models we tried. They rely on the technology of bump sensors for this however they did not always stay clear of things I tested at home.

Pet Hair

Choose a vacuum cleaner that is specifically designed to collect pet hair. The best models have powerful suction and a brush that is free of tangling, and an emptying mechanism that will automatically empty hair into the bin when necessary. Some models can detect dirt levels to adjust the intensity of cleaning. They are able to detect objects that aren't part of your flooring, such as furniture and toys, food bowls cords, and so on.

Certain robot vacuums come with features that are pet-friendly, such as a small water dispenser that can be used for mopping floors, and a HEPA filter that can reduce allergens, such as pet dust. They might also have a quieter mode of operation to minimize the amount of noise produced during cleaning sessions.

Robot vacuums that have maps are an excellent option for pet owners. They are designed to analyze your home, and create an attack plan based on the layout of each room and obstacles. For instance the Shark Matrix Plus 2-in-1 Vacuum is a smart vacuum with an impressive capability to map a room and navigate around furniture and other obstacles using accelerometer and gyroscope smart sensors that work in conjunction to learn the layout of your home.

Apps let you set up no-go zones. These are areas where the robot is not permitted, such as areas that contain delicate items or pet feeding areas. This feature is especially useful for households with busy schedules because it allows you to schedule cleaning time and make adjustments without having be in the same space as the vacuum. Another excellent feature is spot cleaning that gives you the option to direct the vacuum to clean an area that is filthy or full of pet hair.

Dust Bin

If you're not looking for something tiny it is recommended to select one that can carry at least a full bag of garbage from a single cleaning session. We recommend going for a model that has an enormous bin or self-emptying garbage bin. The first will let you keep up with emptying your bin frequently enough to maintain its performance. The latter will help you save time and effort by automatically dumping the contents into an inside container each time you clean it.

Look for models that have smart mapping capabilities that permit them to "learn" the layout of your home and plan more efficient routes. They also can detect and avoid objects that may hinder their travel (like shoelaces or tangled charging cables). Find models with intelligent mapping capabilities, which allow them to "learn" the layout of your home and design more efficient routes, and ones that can sense and avoid objects that may block their paths (like shoelaces or strangling charging cables).


Certain models also offer spot cleaning, which allows you to manually target a particular area of your home for intense cleaning. In our tests, we found that the best models can take out small particles like sand, baking soda, orzo, metal screws, and pet hair, as well as heavier debris such as oatmeal, orzo, and screws made of metal.

Depending on the brand, the majority of robots last for a long time and remain in good working order so long as you keep up with maintenance, like cleaning out tangled hair from brushes and emptying the dust bin after each use and wiping down cameras and sensors when required. The most efficient robots tend to be more modular which makes them simpler and less costly to repair or replace components such as wheels and batteries as they wear out.