Vacuums have come a long way and have evolved from essential functions to fully automatic advanced machines known as a robot vacuum. You no longer have to bear the indignity of carrying around a heavy plastic hose attached to a cumbersome, wheeled canister that is the size of a tortoise from Galapagos.
Currently, you don’t even have to get off the sofa. While it still feels like a relatively new product category, there are some decent robot vacuum s available to help dispose of your home’s dust, pet hair, and other debris — without lifting a finger. What one is for you, right? We have completed our top-rated robot vacuum s and given some tips to help you find the bot you’re searching for.
Robot Vacuum S Vs. Cannister And Upright Vacuums
Unlike more conventional models of canisters or sticks, the robot vacuum s are autonomous and (mostly) smart. The vacuums we’ve been testing are fitted with lasers, motherboards, sensors, and even Wi-Fi to move around your home without the need for support. With a few examples, you just have to communicate with them barely.
Most robot vacuum s come with docks for charging and can even charge itself. Just pick the dock from a robot-accessible location, and the bot will come back on its own before it runs out of juice. If it does, it will stay there until it has the strength to go back out and start busting dust from where it left off.
You can also set routines to wake up and start a cleaning job for most bots, so it can occur when you’re out of the house. That means you can stop any physical contact before you need to clear the vacuum — you still can’t take the phase-out of the equation.
In comparison to other conventional vacuums, not all of the robots mentioned here use bags to carry the dust, hair, and other debris that they suck up. Alternatively, they use a dustbin that is easy to clean, which you can quickly eject and empty into the nearest garbage can. And many come fitted with HEPA filters that prevent the spread of allergens through the air.
After spending more than 600 hours reviewing hundreds of robot vacuum s, both in a regulated environment and at home, we believe the Shark Ion R85 is the best robot vacuum for most humans. Not surprisingly, when it came to picking up Cheerios, kitty litter, and pet hair, it ranked at the top of our lab tests. However, for the fastest robot vacuum s, it was a little sluggish, taking about an hour to make its rounds, compared with about 10-20 minutes.
Are Robot Vacuum S Worth It?
Typically a robot vacuum is higher in price than a typical vacuum (though not always; the cost of the Dyson Cinetic Animal + Allergy is 700). The models listed here range between under $200 and $1,400. That’s a pretty significant investment, even at the lower end. Let’s just consider what you’re getting for that amount.
The job itself is pretty dull unless you love vacuum especially. Depending on the size of your home, a robot vacuum will save you every week from minutes to hours, by taking care of a reasonably ungrateful chore. For certain men, that alone is justification enough to buy one.
Furthermore, robot vacuum s have reached the point that they are mostly just as efficient and effective as standard vacuums. The robots rounded up here using filters, side brushes, and spinning brushes that clean your home, as well as their upright counterparts, will do an equally good job.
They’re still relatively lightweight, and they’re not going to take up a lot of room in your wardrobe. And they will move beneath most of the couches and chairs, so you don’t need to rearrange your furniture. But if you do, the more advanced robots on this list use memory banks to remember where furniture is put, so that they don’t run into something on a future trip.
Also worth mentioning: Intelligent robot vacuum s are now considerably more affordable. What are the Connectivity benefits? You can configure and monitor most of the Wi-Fi vacuums remotely using your smartphone. Some can also be enabled using voice commands from Amazon Alexa or Google Assistant.
Premium linked bots can produce statistics and maps of the areas they clean. Some of the Neato’s Botvacs also build custom floor plans that remove the need for you to use actual “virtual walls” to cordon off your home parts. Whereas, if you have a SmartThings Hub, the Samsung Powerbot R7070 can easily integrate with other smart home devices into existing routines.
Which Vacuum Is Best For Pet Hair?
In general, all the vacuums that we’ve checked can treat hardwood floors and pet hair without problems. Floor-cleaning robots such as the iRobot Braava Jet are skilled in sweeping and mopping. They’re not eligible for this list because they’re not sucking up dirt and debris, but they’re going to make your hardwood floors clean and light. Some vacuums, such as the Bobsweep PetHair Plus, do come with mop attachments, but overall they are not as powerful.
How Are Robot Vacuum Tested?
In Computer Laboratories and our actual homes, we check robot vacuum s with the following categories in mind: battery life, navigation, configuration, suction, and whether it supports Bluetooth or Wi-Fi, then the device experience.
Chances are you won’t want your vacuum babysitting. That means you are searching for a robot capable of traversing various types of floors or maneuvering around furniture without requiring support.
It is particularly true if you have dark flooring since infrared sensors can confuse a black carpet with a ledge and refuse to move over it. We check hardwood, tile, and darkly colored rugs with vacuums to see how well they handle the transitions between various surfaces.
Also, battery life is a significant aspect to remember, depending on your home size. Overall, most robot vacuum s should last for at least 60 to 70 minutes, which should be adequate to tackle several apartments and single-floor homes.
Unless you have a more extensive living space, you’re going to want to aim for something in the 90-minute range so that it can reach every room in the house until it needs a refill. To test this, we charge the battery to full, start a cleaning process, and monitor how long the robot is running until it has to dock. And if a robot says he can dock automatically, we search to see if he can find his way home easily.
Another note about battery life: Our test result in normal mode is the number you see mentioned in the chart above. High-power or other methods also downgrade the number a bit.
Most robot vacuum s are useful when it comes to getting rid of regular household detritus, so you don’t have to wonder whether they’ll be able to suck up lint, dirt, or fur. Since we are testing all the robot vacuum s in the same home setting, we are checking how complete dustbins are getting and whether visible debris such as food particles and clear dust bunnies are being collected.
We also note that the robot uses a random or systematic pattern for cleaning. Casual cleaners frequently run several times over the same space but take a longer time to get it all. Methodical cleaners do not take as long, but can only once move through a room unless otherwise programmed.
Finally, we check the ease of setting up, programming, and controlling the robot. Some need only an initial charge of the battery, while others ask you to add side brushes and batteries. App architecture and stable Bluetooth or Wi-Fi for linked bots are significant factors affecting your experience.
Best Robot Vacuum To Buy In 2020
Following are the best robot vacuums which you can buy in 2020:
Eecovacs Deebot: Best Budget Robot Vacuum
Overall, our best robot vacuum, the Eecovacs has proven outstanding at cleaning up pet hair and other debris with a minimum of fuss around our house. Although finishing a run in our test space took about an hour on average, it was much more detailed than all other robot vacuum s. Our recommendations? Start it and then leave the house to do some chores.
We also liked the updates that we got from the Shark Ion 85, as well as our smartphone’s ability to monitor it and use it with both Alexa and Google Assistant. Also, the dustbin of the R85 was very easy to empty — not a given with other robot vacuum s — and with an optional stick vacuum, you can buy its charge base.
Advantages of Eecovacs Deebot are as follows:
- It is not very expensive.
- It has powerful suction.
- Further, it also has power software.
- Also, it is compatible with AmazonAlexa.
Disadvantages of Eecovacs Deebot are as follows:
- It gets finicky while setting up on Wi-Fi.
- Also, it has minor navigation problems.
The robot vacuum Ecovacs Deebot N79S provides efficient cleaning, app control, and Alexa voice command support at an unbeatable price.
Irobota Roomba: Wet And Dry Robot Vacuum Cleaner
The Roomba Pro is the best robot vacuum for under $200 that you can buy. Notwithstanding its low price, other robot vacuum s, which cost three times as much, were consistently outperformed by the V3s Pro. It picked up almost all the pet hair in our laboratory tests, and also was successful in our home tests.
There are a few caveats, though, when buying this cheap robot vacuum. The iLife V3s Pro is slow, for example, taking on average more than 90 minutes to clean up our test room. It can also not be operated from your mobile, so you must use the provided remote control, and you can not connect it to Alexa or Google Assistant to turn it on or scheduled cleaning.
Advantages of Irobota Roomba are as follows:
- It has excellent navigation skills.
- It can handle different styles of floors well.
- It is tranquil.
- It can work with the Amazon Alexa as well as Google Assistant Smartphone App and voice commands.
- It shows a map of the area being washed.
Disadvantages of Irobota Roomba are as follows:
- It becomes trapped under low furniture sometimes.
- It can’t use the Phone App to direct.
The iRobot Roomba 960 isn’t cheap, but it’s the best high-end robot vacuum for the price thanks to a combination of quality features and performance.
Roomba i7+: Best Robotic Vacuum Cleaner Wet And Dry India
The highest-end iRobot model makes our best robot vacuum list because it has its dustbin base, so you can go through several cleanings without having to clear the bin. On our pet hair check, it beat out the Shark Ion R85, taking up just over 90 percent of all the fur on the sheet.
It has a variety of other functions, such as the ability to map and build virtual walls on multiple floors. Also, the Roomba i7 + is fast, completing a cleaning run in under 20 minutes. Still, its price — $1,099 — plus the fact that it wasn’t as comprehensive as other vacuums have stopped the i7 + from having a higher score. You can buy the i7 for $799, but this price does not include the base for cleaning.
Advantages of Roomba i7+ are as follows:
- It has a self-vacuuming dustbin.
- It has a multi historical visualization.
- It has excellent navigation which is dependent on video.
- It also has an automatic survey of the space.
- Further, it is also compatible with Alexa and Google Help.
Disadvantages of Roomba i7+ are as follows:
- It is costly.
- Further, it is very loud.
- Its clean Base is massive.
With the ability to clean your dustbin, the Roomba i7 + iRobot is the first robot vacuum we’ve tested that does all the work for you.
Roomba 690: Robot Vacuum At Best Price
The iRobot Roomba 690 is still one of the best robot vacuum s though it’s an older model since it has powerful suction and is exceptionally user-friendly. When this vacuum is set up, it primarily operates by itself. It is also a pretty smart model: You can also use a simple mobile app to monitor the Roomba 690, which also allows you to schedule cleaning times and attach it to voice assistants.
The iRobot Roomba 690 did a fantastic job on both carpeting and hardwood flooring, but with pet hair as our top pick, the Shark Ion R85 did not do as well. Nevertheless, without getting stuck, the Roomba 690 was able to drive over various obstacles, including dense carpet and wires.
Advantages of Roomba 690 are as follows:
- It has a self-vacuuming dustbin.
- Its suction is ultra heavy.
- It has excellent navigation.
- It can work well with Amazon Alexa and Google Help.
Disadvantages of Roomba 690 are as follows:
- It is costly.
- It is very noisy.
- Its battery life is mediocre.
iRobot’s Roomba s9 + is expensive, but its smart navigation, super-powerful suction, and emptying capacity make it the best robot vacuum we’ve ever tested.
Shinebot w400: Best Robot Vacuum
he iLife Shinebot W400 is another mopping-only robot, so, before setting this model to assault your kitchen floor, you’ll want to make sure that you sweep your floors thoroughly. The Shinebot W400 is more significant than the Braava Jet 240, so it’s having a little bit more difficulty under furniture.
Yet at mopping floors, the W400 was more reliable than the Braava Jet 240. We also wanted a dirty-water tank for the W400, so we knew the grime was being cleaned up and not scattered around. Of course, after through use, you must empty the tank, which was not fun. The W400’s cleaning roll is washable, so you don’t have to buy extra cleaning pads all the time, which saves you money and is better for the environment.
Advantages of Shinebot w400 are as follows:
- It has excellent navigation with a laser.
- It supports maps for the cleanup.
- It has a digital boundary line at No-Go.
- It has fantastic Charging.
- It is compatible with Alexa and Google Assistant.
- It combines with the Apple Watch and IFTTT.
Disadvantages of Shinebot w400 are as follows:
- It has less battery life.
- It is very noisy.
The Neato shinebot w400 Connected isn’t cheap, but for less than any other robot vacuum, it provides virtual boundaries and custom cleaning maps.
Bravajet 24: Best Robot Vacuum
Mopping robots are a small subset of robot vacuum s which help you clean your kitchen and bathroom floors. iRobot’s budget mopping robot vacuum, the Braava Jet 240, has been around for a couple of years and is a small and relatively cheap mopping robot that is very powerful.
Unlike other robot vacuum s, you’ve got to put the Braava Jet 240 in the space you want it to scrub, and then it’s in a snake-like pattern going about its job. There is no remote control, nor can you use your smartphone or a voice assistant to do it.
We found in our home tests that the Braava Jet 240 was pretty good at washing up spills and stains, but with a mop, it won’t replace a proper scrubbing.
Advantages of Bravajet 24 are as follows:
- It has good navigation and battery life.
- It has a comprehensive as well as interactive maps to clean up. It has digital boundaries based on an iPhone.
- It also has expanded integration with third parties, including Amazon Alexa, Google Assistant, IFTTT, and others.
Disadvantages of Bravajet 24 are as follows:
- It is costly.
- It has a very small dustbin.
Neato’s bravajet 24 Connected provides digital cleaning charts, long battery life, and better smart home connectivity from third parties than any other robot vacuum.
Things To Keep In Mind When Buying A Robot Vacuum
Start by browsing your room. Is the hardwood or carpet in there? Have you got cats, and do your cat knock her litter out of the box? Those are considerations that first need to be considered when shopping around for a robot vacuum.
Decide what budget you have. You could spend as little as $200, or as little as $1,000. But be prepared to do without some standard features in lower price ranges models — including tractioned brush rollers and Wi-Fi connectivity.
Do you want to get an app for that? Most robot vacuum models are using companion apps, which make the robot vacuum easier to control and schedule. Some models could even map where they’ve cleaned up.
Some models clean up better than others. Not all robot vacuum s purify the same thing. Others are better at picking up pet hair off carpets, whereas others on hardwood or vinyl may perform better.
Here too, battery life is a consideration to be considered. The bigger the battery frequently, the better the cleaning job, particularly if you’ve got a bigger house. But if you want to save some money by choosing a model which has to park itself and recharge in the middle of a session, it’s cool.
Why Do You Want A Robot Vacuum?
It is the future, and we’ve got robots doing everything: cars driving themselves, drones roaming the sky, and robot vacuum s finding their way around furniture. A robot vacuum keeps things reasonably tidy, saving you the trouble of arranging a maid service or nagging your kids to do their work.
A robot vacuum does not replace an upright vacuum or a deep house cleaning, but it helps to pick up items like food crumbs, cat litter, hair of all sorts, dust bunnies, and any other small debris that we leave on the ground when we stay in a home. They are also ideal for office rooms because the last thing you want to think about is why the floor is littered with sprinkles while you’re on the deadline. Many robot vacuum s can be scheduled to run as frequently as once a day or as regularly as many days a week, and some are available with accompanying devices. If you are worried about allergies or dust, models with built-in HEPA filters can be found as well.
How big is your house?
First things: Before you start browsing the Amazon aisles, remember how big your house is. Some robot vacuum s, such as the iLife V3s Pro, function best in small settings such as apartments and townhouses, while models such as the iRobot Roomba i7 are better suited to multiple-room spaces of up to 2000 square feet. Your pick will depend primarily on the size of your accommodation.
Also, you’ll want to find out how much space you have for the robot vacuum to move under the furniture. Robot vacuum s like the Dyson 360 Eye are more than 4 inches long, so as many dressers and beds as other models can’t match. For example, the Eufy Robovac 11s, at just under 3 inches tall, has an easier time to maneuver through tight spaces.
Do you have carpets or hardwood?
Most models of robot vacuum can manage the cleaning of both carpets and hardwood easily, but some are ideal for cleaning one or the other. Higher-end robot vacuum s, such as the Roomba i7, can handle rapid surface shifts by ramping up power whenever carpet is detected, and then throttling back down when hardwood senses. Rugs will also play a part in your buying decision. You may notice that models at the lower end may get stuck in tassels.
You can go as cheap as the $159 iLife V3s Pro if you’re just looking for hardwood maintenance, as it does very well with cleaning pet hair off hardwood floors. If your floors are vinyl and tile, and you’re hoping for some mopping help, there’s the iRobot Braava Jet that’s made specifically for washing and wetting floors. We’ve tried robot vacuum s that can vacuum as well as a mop, but find they’re not doing very well with either job.
Do You Have Pets At Your Home?
Fortunately, several manufacturers are making robot vacuum s ideal for cleaning up after livestock. Models such as the Samsung Powerbot R7070, Neato Botvac Paired, and iLife V3s Pro will reasonably quickly pick up dog fur and cat hair. All three models scored the highest in our robot vacuum laboratory tests. And if you have allergies, these robot vacuum s have HEPA filters to help eliminate allergens that remain in the air.
The downside to making a robot vacuum pick up after your pets is, to course, that you would still need to make sure you do regular maintenance as well. Eventually, stuff like the roller cleaner, side brushes, and HEPA filters will wear out and require replacement. And even if you only want a robot vacuum to help with kitties scootering their litter over the floor, you’ll need to remember to clean the dustbin, so it doesn’t overflow periodically. If you just want to think about emptying it every few cleanings or so, look for dustbins higher than 600 millilitres. Smaller containers are more likely to fill up after a single vacuum.
Do You Have Wifi Connectivity?
The internet is a beautiful thing that helps to keep us connected, not only to other people but to our appliances too. Looking, for example, at the iRobot Roomba i7 or the Shark Ion R85, you’ll see that they both provide power over the companion device. However, many of the app feature sets vary, meaning they also offer specific user experiences.
If a robot vacuum has the functionality of an app, this also means it often provides integration with Amazon Alexa or Google Assistant. If it does, by saying that, let us start cleaning. Further, you can also activate its voice-command capabilities, and after that, the vacuum will start.
If you don’t mind skipping Wi-Fi access in favor of saving a little cash, many robot vacuum s at the entry-level come with remote controls that run on alkaline batteries and are easy to use. Even the Samsung Powerbot R7070-connected device comes with an additional remote in the box, just in case you don’t want to bother setting up an account.
If you don’t mind skipping Wi-Fi access in favor of saving a little cash, many robot vacuum s at the entry-level come with remote controls that run on alkaline batteries and are easy to use. Even the Samsung Powerbot R7070-connected device comes with an additional remote in the box, just in case you don’t want to bother setting up an account.
Battery Is An Issue If You Have A Big House
Here’s the battery life thing on a robot vacuum: It only matters to some degree. The majority of the robot vacuum s that we tested lasted throughout a whole cleaning session without a fee.
A robot vacuum can clean up to an hour and a half on average, with some high-end models taking a full two hours to complete. Some vacuums are also going to move back to their base stations, power up, and finish cleaning to get the act done.
Keep Your Budget In Mind
Robot vacuum s are available at various rates and in all kinds of shapes and sizes. Unfortunately, this is one of those situations where the more features you get, the more you pay. But good robot vacuum s are available at any price.
What You Get For Robotic Vacuum Cleaner Price Less Than $300?
Low to mid-end robot vacs can deliver long cleaning times, wide dustbins and small profiles, but sometimes forget things like Wi-Fi access and advanced navigation to save you a couple of bucks. Our top pick under $200 is the iLife V3s Pro, which is just $159 but was one of the best robot vacuum cleaners we’ve reviewed.
If you’re looking for something that has smart home connectivity, your best bet is the Shark Ion R85. It costs around $200, cleaning up an excellent job, and working with Alexa and Google Home.
What You Get In Less Than $700 For Robot Wet And Dry Vacuum Cleaner?
If you like the concept of a robot vacuum capable of navigating your labyrinthine house properly, you’ll have to pay more. Devices such as Neato Botvac D4 as well as Roomba i7 have more advanced sensors for mapping the environments, meaning they can clean your house faster as well as more effective, and let you do things like building virtual walls and asking the robot to clean different rooms.
What You Get In More Than $800 For A Robot Vacuum?
Secure help does not come cheap. There are relatively few robot vacuum s in this price range, and most people would not need the features that come in this class. Our top pick in this bracket is the iRobot Roomba i7 +, which is the i7 but comes with a Clean Base that not only recharges the vacuum but also sucks the dirt out of it into a larger storage tank, so after every cleaning, you don’t have to drain the device.