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I’ve tested close to 50 robot vacuums. Here are the best, from budget robot vacuums to vacuum / mop hybrids with and without auto-empty docks and other fancy features.
Robot vacuums are impressive devices that will clean your floors well without complaining (much). As prices have dropped, these busy little bots have become less of a luxury and more of a necessity. They can reach places most standup vacs never see (under beds and sofas) and, thanks to better batteries and robot brains, rarely get tired of cleaning.
I’ve been testing robot vacuums for five years and have run close to 50 robot vacuums all over my house in my quest to find the best. There’s been a lot of innovation in this space, which is slowly getting us closer to that Rosie the Robot dream. Robot vacuums that can actually mop are now a thing, auto-empty docks take a lot of the hassle out of cleaning your robot (although you do still need to do this), and better mapping and obstacle avoidance skills mean robot vacuums largely do get the job done. But we’re still far from a robot that can handle all your housework.
As for price: everyone and their uncle is making robot vacs now, so the market is completely oversaturated. This means you should only be paying the list price if you really want the newest model — and you want it right now. Otherwise, please don’t buy a robot vacuum unless it’s on sale.
You can expect to get a decent basic floor sweeper for under $300, a mapping auto-emptying model for $400 to $600, and a top-of-the-line bot for $800 to $900. For those who want to do the least work, you’re looking at over $1,000 for one that sweeps, mops, and cleans itself while also avoiding smearing pet poop all over your floors. (Yes, this happens. Yes, it’s happened to me).
The good news is that there are a lot of options, and whether you have a 3,000-square-foot home and three shaggy dogs or a small, stylish apartment you share with a goldfish, there’s a robot vacuum to suit your needs.
