What to Look For in a Good Robot Vacuum

A good robot vacuum can help you stay on top of pet hair, good lint and dust on a daily basis. Many use apps that allow you to schedule cleaning times and set virtual boundaries or "walls" to keep them away from areas you don't want cleaned.

This smart vac and mop creates a home map with its first run, storing your space for future use. It comes with a self-cleaning brush roll and an large dust bin that is empty automatically.

Object Detection

When choosing a robot vacuum, look for one that can pick up large objects, such as toys and lamp cords, and also fine dirt. This will ensure that they don't get snarled in the roller brush, and aren't left behind on your floors. This feature is particularly important if you have pets or children and may need to clean the robot regularly.

A model that has a powerful engine and lots of suction is a good option. This will allow it to be more effective in eliminating pet hair, dust and lint from carpets as well as hardwood floors.

The size of your home is a different factor to consider. If you have a large home, you may choose models with multiple cleaning zones that cover the entire house in a single session. Some models also come with mopping capabilities that can be used to keep your floors fresh and clean.

Robot vacuums are long-lasting however, they must be maintained in a timely and efficient manner. Cleaning the rotating brushes regularly and emptying your dust bin, and wiping the sensors will ensure that your robot is running smoothly for a long time. Many of the owners of robot vacuums we chat with have owned the same machine for a period of 10 years or more (and have replaced motors, brushes and batteries along the way).

A basic robot will cost less than a full-sized vacuum cleaner, however they'll do a fantastic job at keeping up with dirt and pet hair and lint. They're an excellent maintenance cleaner that you can distribute several times a week to keep your floor tidy. However, they don't have as advanced technology, and could be susceptible to becoming stuck or requiring human intervention.

Object Avoidance

The best robot vacs use sensors, lasers or cameras to guide them around your home without falling off or getting stuck on the stairs. Some models will return to their base or dock when the battery is low. They also can avoid obstacles like furniture legs and cords. The ones that are more expensive usually feature mapping capabilities that allow them to learn the design of your home and lessen the time you spend bumping into walls.

You don't have to spend a lot of money on the most expensive robotic vacuums. You can still find models that do an excellent job of picking up pet hair and dirt from hard surfaces, such as tile, wood and low-pile rugs. They also can handle larger debris such as nails with rusty screws, metal screws or discarded toys. Some models even have an auto-emptying base that is handy if you don't want to empty the trash bin after every cleaning session.

Some robotic vacuums have smart features, making the standard stick vacuum look old-fashioned. These include scheduling, zone-targeting and the capability to control them using an app or voice assistant, like Alexa. You can also set up cleaning zones and 'virtual walls to block off areas where you don't want the robot to venture.

Some robotic vacuums, like the Eufy 11S or my former favorite, Roborock S8, come with obstacle avoidance technology that will stop them from falling over furniture or cords. Others, like the iRobot Roomba j7+, have more advanced AI obstacle avoidance that utilizes a camera and processor-powered smarts to see and avoid items like shoe cords, lamp cords socks, and pet waste. It is a little bit more expensive than other bots I've tried, but it does a fantastic job of avoiding obstacles and rarely is stuck or derails while working on my floor.

While the iRobot's j7+ was a good obstacle avoidance tool however, it wasn't always doing an excellent job of avoiding dirt and crumbs off my carpets. It also was known to over-vacuum specific areas, leading to a lot of dust in the filters and an unclean house.

Smart Mapping

Some of the best robot vacuums come with an app that can help you to customize cleaning settings and schedules, as well as view the floor area that the machine covers. This is an extremely useful feature that other models do not have. It is easy to create profiles that will automatically start your robot at specified times and continue to run on regularly, for example, cleaning the living room before dinner or on a regular basis.

A good app will also allow you to control your robot via voice commands. Some models are compatible with Amazon's Alexa and Google Assistant, which allows you to control your robot using voice commands.

Look for the model with a large dust bin. This will allow you to do many cleaning sessions without having empty it. There are also models that are self-emptying, which takes some of the labor out of emptying the robot after each cleaning run.

If you're looking for a robot that can do more than vacuum, think about a model with mopping functions. They're usually bigger than robotic vacuums, and have a water tank which can hold several cleaning sessions' worth of dirt and dust before having to be emptied.

Robots that are more advanced can create their own maps and keep track of the arrangement of your home from one cleaning session to the next, which prevents them from getting lost or stuck. This can make a big difference in the efficiency of your robot vacuum as it will not have to return to where it was when it comes across walls or furniture.

Our testers found that robots that had this feature were extremely efficient. They could sit and watch TV or do other tasks while the heavy duty robot vacuum was cleaning. Some models employ laser navigation and can make an exact map of your entire home, which means that you can program them to clean only the bedroom after dinner or every room in the house when you're at work.

App Control

If you want to customize the frequency at which the robot cleans your home and choose a cleaning mode it is recommended to purchase one that works with a mobile app. You can also view the status of the vacuum as well as the state of its dust bin within the app. Some of the most effective robot vacuums are controlled via voice with Alexa, Google Assistant or Siri Shortcuts.

It is simple to maintain a robot equipped with an washable filter and self-emptying bin, particularly when the filter is easily cleaned and washed. Another great feature is a powerful brush that gets into corners and along baseboards making it much easier to remove hair and dirt. Some robots are more adept in avoiding chairs' legs than others, and some also have self-cleaning sensors that can prevent the obstruction of brushes that may happen in other machines.

Some robo-vacs use navigation tools that allow them to learn your home and navigate around obstacles. High-end models have sensors and cameras that recognize obstacles like furniture, stairs and cords, while cheaper models sometimes use boundary strips that you put on the floor to mark areas where you don't want it to enter. Object avoidance is especially important for families with children who throw toys and socks scattered throughout the house, since it assists your robot in capturing the items instead of scattering them.

More robots are equipped with mop attachments. This is great for those with hard floors who need to mop regularly. They come with a water tank built into the chassis or an extra piece which you can change out when it's time to mop. They may need to be refilled frequently however, they are perfect for homes that have hard floors that aren't cleaned with vacuum cleaners.

We've seen some amazing technology incorporated into these tiny robots, and they're a lot cheaper than you think. In fact, you can find an affordable model for less than $200 that does a decent job of getting rid of pet hair and crumbs from hard floors while also navigating the edges of lightweight carpets or area rugs. It is possible to schedule the robot to sweep the room regularly and can be controlled remotely with the app or by pressing buttons on its side.