How to Find the Best Robot Vacuum

If you’re willing to live without smart capabilities like mapping, and you don’t mind emptying the garbage bin every 60 days or then, a basic robot vacuum is likely to work for you. Choose an option that has a clean base and can work with voice assistants.

It is the most effective robo-vacuum we have tested at getting rid of dirt and pet hair on tiles, hardwood floors, and carpeting with low pile. It can also map out and set virtual no go zones for rooms or specific areas.

1. Powerful Suction

A robot vacuum will stay on top of the dust, pet hair and dander that accumulates on your floors on a daily basis. It can also reduce how often you need to clean your floors, saving your time and effort. The most effective model comes with powerful suction that will easily tackle most messes and leave your home cleaner.

You can cover more area with a robot vacuum and mop, Download free which is particularly beneficial if you live in a large home. Find one that has an water reservoir in the chassis or as a separate item that you swap in when vacuuming is complete. It will need to be filled and empty and refilled, which is an additional task to complete.

In the ideal world, you’d clean your floors prior to using your robot vac to keep it from crashing into objects. But in most homes, this isn’t feasible or desirable. Most robots allow you to make use of an app on your smartphone to create virtual barriers that the robot will observe. Some models have no-go zones which you can use to flag areas you don’t want it to enter, such as kids rooms or a pile of device cords in the corner.

This model is a good option for those looking for an easy robot cleaner that doesn’t have all the bells and whistles. It’s quiet, works well on hard floors as well as low-pile carpets and can be scheduled through the app to mop or vacuum at your convenience. It’s got a long battery life that can last up to 180 minutes.

2. Easy to Operate

Robot vacuums generally need very little from you. They use navigation tools like sensors, lasers and cameras to move through obstacles and collect dust, food crumbs and pet hair from flooring, tile carpets, hardwood floors and low-pile carpets. Many have boundary strips that aid in staying within the walls of a room, while more expensive models can be set to automatically wake up and begin cleaning at a scheduled time. Some even come with fall detection technology that prevents tumbling down stairs or getting caught in electrical cords.

If you’d like to control your robot vacuum from the comfort of your couch, you should look for models that can work with voice assistants like Alexa and Google Assistant. You can also search for Wi-Fi-connected models that allow you to begin cleaning sessions from anywhere through an app. Depending on how big your house is, you may prefer one that has a long battery life and a spacious dust bin that doesn’t need to be emptying frequently.

Some robot vacuums double as mops, using water reservoirs to clean your floors. This is great for mopping, but not for tough messes like pet poop or other wet spills. There are hybrids that come with a removable microfiber pad for mopping, or opt for an auto-emptying model that lets you use the device for 30 to 60 days without having to empty the base.

3. Smart Mapping

Some robots employ advanced mapping technology to create a detailed map while they clean. This allows them to avoid crashing into furniture or tripping over cords or legs of chairs. This feature is only available on the top models, but it allows your robot to be aware of your home’s layout and to know where it should go when the battery runs out.

The majority of robots allow you to create virtual barriers. This can be done through an app or physically-based boundary strips. You can block off areas that you don’t want your robot to go into in order to concentrate on the rooms that require the most attention.

Many robots can also automatically navigate to different floors depending on the surface they’re cleaning, whether that’s switching between carpet and hard flooring or focusing on certain areas of your home, like corners and baseboards. This feature proved helpful in our tests and enhanced the vacuum mop robot cleaner‘s performance on both hardwood flooring and low-pile floor carpeting. It’s nevertheless important to secure furniture and cords that are loose prior to running your robot vacuum so that it doesn’t get caught or come into contact with something it shouldn’t.

4. Remote Control

Most robot vacuums have WiFi connectivity and work with Amazon Alexa, Google Assistant and Siri Shortcuts to allow you to control them using voice commands or from your smartphone. Many robot vacuums are connected to smart home systems, and can create an outline of the area they clean after each session. This lets them “learn” the way your home is laid out and to plan more efficient routes during future cleaning sessions. Some also have built-in obstacle avoidance that prevents them from bumping into furniture and damaging it or getting stuck on things like charging cables that are loose or shoe laces, as well as hair from pets.

Most robots come with a remote you can use to control them around your home. However, the majority of them can be controlled using an app on your mobile that comes with additional options. You can usually set multiple cleaning schedules, create a list of favorite rooms and even manually guide your robot around specific areas using directional arrows on the screen.

Some models provide no-go zones These are virtual barriers you can set up within the app to prevent the robot from entering certain areas (like kids’ toys or dog bowls and beds). Some apps let you create a map of your house and provide more detailed information about the floors. The app we ranked as our top choice, the Roborock S7+, has many useful options to help you tidy your home, but its interface isn’t as polished and elegant as those from iRobot and Shark.

5. Long Battery Life

Robotic vacuums that can sweep all over your home without stopping to recharge or empty their bins of dust save you time and effort. Some work with smart home platforms like Alexa, Google Assistant and Siri Shortcuts to allow hands-free operation. They can also make maps of the area that allows you to program them to specific areas or rooms, and to stay clear of obstacles.

Most robot vacs have some degree of detection of objects however, higher-end models such as the irobot vacuum cleaner and mop (125.141.133.9) j7 offer sophisticated features like “home mapping” and advanced obstacle avoidance that will simplify your life (although our test bot did once “eat” a pair of socks). If you’re looking to take your home maintenance to the next level opt for a robotic mop that comes with a tank of water that you fill and empty yourself.

While none of the models we tested could match the ability to pick up dirt of a stand-up vacuum, they did a great job of cleaning hard floors and low pile carpets. They excel in sweeping up dust and food dust, tracked-in dirt, and pet hair. They are also able to handle nuts and screws made of metal as well as stray cat litter. The most effective robot vacuums can remove dirt from edges and corners and work on furniture. Eufy 11S is a relatively affordable and basic model.

6. Convenient Self-Charging

A robot vacuum can help keep your home clean and tidy without you having to do much work. You can schedule cleanings using the app, and designate no-go areas so that your robot doesn’t walk on your plants or sit on your favorite chair. The majority of our top picks also automatically empty their trash bins and clean their docking stations for you.

The most effective robot vacuums can be programmed to clean your floors regularly for weeks or even months at a time, which saves you the time and effort of manually mopping or sweeping your floors each week or even every day. This allows you to spend more time on things you enjoy and decreases the amount of time your floors need to be cleaned manually.

In our tests, Q Revo was able to grab small particles such as baking soda and oatmeal. It also grabbed heavier particles such as nails and screws made of steel, as well as fluffy things like pet hair. It lacks the intelligent mapping and objects-avoiding features of our top picks but is still a great choice for most families.

The best thing about the j7 is its ability to spot and avoid obstacles like power cords and socks, shoes and pet waste. This means that you don’t need to spend time tidying up before you can run your robot, however cluttered rooms will mean that your robot could get stuck and not be able to do as well.