How to Choose the Best Robot Vacuum Cleaner

Robot vacuums will save you time and effort when it comes to cleaning. The best ones are adept at picking up dust, light debris and cords.

The most expensive models can even sweep your floors, but they can't climb stairs. Find models with smart mapping, real-time hazard avoidance and large self-emptying bins.

Best Overall

The top robots that we have tested are effective, easy to use, and able to cope with the everyday messes. You'll need a robot that has decent carpet-picking power and the capability to climb stairs. If you want a robot with additional features, think about an option that incorporates smart mapping technology or an app to control it remotely.

Camryn Rabideau, a contributing shopping writer at PEOPLE and a product reviewer who has tried numerous robotic vacuums, is recognized for her testing of dozens of robot vacuum near me vacuums. She's a big fan of robotic vacuums that offer the greatest convenience, such as self-emptying dustbins and charging docks that automatically empty and fill water tanks for mopping robots. She also enjoys robots that recognize landmarks, such as furniture legs and power cables so that they won't get tripped up when climbing steps.

This robot from Black and Decker has a lower navigation score and less object-avoidance tech than the best-rated models. It comes with a huge non-refillable dustbin as well as a long battery. In addition, it has a feature that allows you to schedule cleaning sessions and return to the place where it last stopped, making it easier to tackle larger spaces. This model is also a great option for pet owners since it can spot and prevent tangled hair as well as fallen food particles.

In our tests we tested the Roborock S8 Pro Ultra combines an LIDAR sensor that is able to map rooms and detect obstacles, with a structured light sensor to identify objects and detect edges. It is able to avoid the steps, liquid droplets and furniture legs easily with this combination. It also has the ability to save up to four floor plans for future use. It can pause and resume cleaning at any point, so you can continue to do chores while it is working. The app comes with a 3D representation of your home, room labels, and more advanced cleaning options.

While this robot can't clean as well as our top-rated models, it is superior in removing small particles like sand and baking soda as well as larger items, such as orzo pasta and screws made of metal. Its only downsides are that it cannot mop and that its navigation system is less impressive.

Best for Carpet

If you have carpeting, choose an automatic floor cleaners vacuum with a high rating for rug and carpet mobility and pickup. A lot of models do a great job of picking up dust embedded in low-pile carpet and some do a good job of sweeping up heavier debris like orzo pasta, metal screws and pet hair. But they don't pick up small particles as well as canister or upright vacuums, and they may be unable to pick up dirt in the vicinity of baseboards and thresholds.

The best choice for most carpeted areas is a 2-in-1 robot vacuum and mop that allows you to swap between the cleaning bin as well as mopping pad with damp. The Roborock Q Revo, for example, vacuums and mops with circular pads that rotate at a rate of 200 rotations per minute. It recognizes and raises its pads when it comes in contact with carpet, which prevents the floor from getting wet. It is not necessary to take them off or replace them each time. The Q Revo also performs better than other robot vacuums and mops in keeping away from obstacles and getting close to rugs and thresholds.

Another solid option is the iRobot Roomba Combo i5, which performed very well in our tests and can be scheduled using the app to clean while you're away from home. It can be set to mop only. We loved its navigation on floors that are not bare and rugs. The Combo i5 has a long runtime and excellent path planning for an item of this size.

If you want a more modern model, you can look at the Shark AI Ultra 2-in-1 Self-Empty Robot Vacuum & Mop. It comes with a large dock that can last for weeks and not need to be cleaned. It also has impressive capability to auto-empty carpets and floors with no floor. It's also got an intelligent mapping system that can be programmed to be operational during certain times of the day (a useful feature that can keep the sly kids and pets from causing havoc). The Shark isn't as powerful than some other robot vacuums and mops however it's still good at picking up hair and pet hair and is the best value of our top choices.

Best for Hard Flooring

robot automated vacuum cleaner cleaner Amazon - Www.Colofor.com.tw - vacuums are the ideal option for hardwood floors since they can easily maneuver around obstacles without damaging bare surfaces. They are excellent at picking up dust and crumbs, but they struggle with pet hair or other debris. They lack the suction power of a top-of-the-line upright or canister vacuum, meaning they're not the ideal choice for carpeted rooms or upholstery that needs deep cleaning.

The best two-in-one robots combine a vacuum and a mop to complete a more complete chore in one sweep. If you have flooring that is mixed choose one with an onboard sensor which detects changes in floor texture and adjusts suction accordingly. This feature is available on the ECOVACS Deebot T9+ and allows it to move seamlessly from hard carpeting to soft carpeting.

If you have lots of hardwood floors in your home, you may want to consider a robot mop and vacuum combination like the Eufy S1 Pro. This model comes with a powerful robotic vacuum with smart navigation that can clean hardwood floors and other surfaces. It can also mop. The sensors help it avoid stairs and other hazards so you don't need to worry about the bot plummeting down the stairs and breaking your hardwood.

The eufy S1 Pro mop is designed to clean hardwood floors by applying downward pressure, not simply swab them to remove dust and dirt. Its reusable pads reduce waste and spread fewer germs. They can also be cleaned at docking stations to reduce time. The mops are also able to be dried, washed, and reused.

Both the robovac and the mop can be controlled by your smartphone, making it easier to manage the device. You can, for instance utilize the app to create zones where the vacuum cannot enter, or to label rooms, or schedule specific cleaning sessions. The eufy S1 Pro also has an auto-emptying dock that collects debris through a trapdoor, and stores it in a bagless or disposable bin, so you don't need to manually empty the bin every time as you would with other models.

Best suited for small Spaces

As the name suggests the robots are best designed for smaller spaces. They have smaller bins that contain less garbage, and are more efficient than larger models when it comes to navigating tight corners. They can also be placed under furniture where larger robots have difficulty reaching. They tend to be cheaper than the more expensive models, however, you'll need to empty their dirt bins at end of each cleaning session.

A couple of years ago, robotic vacuums went through a major change when manufacturers started adding sensors to help them navigate and avoid household objects that their conventional sensors would become stuck on or over. This has reduced the number of times our testers needed to clean up after a robotic floor scrubber snag whether it was a power cord, toy or pet waste.

The new sensors haven't eliminated all the issues with these devices, however. The cheapest models still struggle with the same challenges that the older ones faced and most require a certain amount illumination to see where they're going. Consider getting one that has an LIDAR spinning unit that is mounted on top to create maps of the space. Our top models and runners-up models do this. This allows them to work in the dark and avoid obstacles such as stairs.

These models can also be programmed to use their cliff sensors when they are in or near the ground, but not when they are above it. It's important to cover mirrors to prevent this from happening. The lasers used by LIDAR-based models can bounce off reflective surfaces, making the robot believe it's in a different room.

A few of the models we recommend let you set up virtual no-go zones in areas where you do not want the robot move, which is useful if you have small pets or children. These features aren't on all models we test. Read our full reviews before deciding.