A robot vacuum cleaner can make your life easier and even a little more fun. That said, pushing your chores off onto a machine can quickly go awry — robovacs have been known to get stuck, miss corners, or even spread a pet’s accident across the house. Thankfully, the tech has come a long way in the past few years. The best robot vacuums can glide over multiple surfaces, intelligently skirt around obstacles, mop hard floors, and even empty their own dustbin.
While smart bots have yet to completely replace traditional vacuum cleaners in terms of cleaning power, their customizable and regular cleaning programs often result in a satisfactory clean and presentable home. In fact, my family has one robot vacuum cleaner cleaning upstairs and another doing the kitchen downstairs as I write this. Needless to say, we’re big fans of our robot-cleaning friends here at Pocket-lint.
Best robot vacuum and mop duo: All-in-one cleaning
Cleaning your floors is timing consuming, but it can go a lot faster if you drop your broom and mop and get a robot to do it for you.
To help you decide which robot vacuum best fits into your lifestyle and effectively tidies your space, we rounded up the best robot vacuums we’ve tested. The Roborock S8 Pro Ultra holds our pick for best robot vacuum overall thanks to its smart features, extensive cleaning capabilities, and even the ability to self-clean. It’s pricey, however. Read on for the rest of our picks, including a budget option.
Best robot vacuums: Our top picks
Roborock S8 Pro Ultra
1. Best robot vacuum overall
A premium option for hassle-free cleaning
$1400 $1600 Save $200
The Roborock S8 Pro Ultra is a powerful robot vacuum cleaner that’s packed full of features and cleaning capabilities, including self-maintenance.
- Awesome cleaning capabilities
- Hassle-free cleaning
- Smart features
- Loud self-cleaning process
- Some issues with thick rugs
- Very expensive
The Roborock S8 Pro Ultra is a premium robot vacuum cleaner with a lot of cleaning features that make it a joy to have in your home. It’s not cheap, but for your money it does it all. It vacuums, mops, self-empties, cleans, and even dries its own mop.
Roborock S8 Pro Ultra: Superior cleaning and self-maintenance
The S8 Pro Ultra is the flagship of Roborock’s S8 line-up and a real powerhouse.
This robot vacuum also cleverly maps out your home and avoids shoes or other scattered items without you having to re-program anything or conduct an inventory of your space before sending the robot off to clean. The S8 Pro Ultra robot vacuum cleaner also has some serious suction power, so much so that it was sucking up everything in sight when I tested it.
It does have some problems with thick rugs, but if you have hard flooring or hard-wearing carpets, then it’s a great one to buy. The only thing we would say is that it’s not the most compact of the options on our list — nor the best looking — so if you have minimal space, you might want to consider one of our other recommendations.
Roborock recently announced a new flagship vacuum mop combo, the S8 MaxV Ultra. The company’s latest robovac boasts 10,000Pa of suction power, an upgraded mopping system and a “Hey, Rocky” voice assistant. The S8 MaxV Ultra isn’t scheduled to start shipping until April 2024, however. You may want to wait for the most power, but if you don’t mind buying an older model, the S8 Pro Ultra has seen frequent discounts in recent months.
iRobot Roomba Combo j7+
2. Best feature-rich robot vacuum
Two-in-one mop and vacuum with automatic disposal
The iRobot Roomba Combo J7+ is a brilliant robot to have in your home. It features a great design, excellent performance and the iRobot app interface is so simple and easy to use with a multitude of features that it makes this two-in-one device easy to recommend.
- Premium and compact design
- Automatic dirt disposal
- Handles various floor types well
- Great cleaning capabilities
- Expensive
- Noisy
- No option to schedule automatic emptying
- Small water tank
The iRobot Roomba Combo J7+ is an exceptional robot vacuum cleaner and robot mop duo. During our testing, we loved that it not only brought a lovely compact and premium design to our kitchen, but did so without compromising on excellent cleaning abilities.
iRobot Roomba Combo j7+: Putting your cleaner on notice
The iRobot Roomba Combo j7+ combines the j7+ robot vacuum capabilities with mopping features, delivering a two-in-one device that is simply brilliant.
One quirk of the Combo J7+ is that you can’t tell only to mop, though you can choose to only vacuum, which is helpful when you just need a quick only clean. The machine self-empties when the bin gets full, and while it doesn’t clean and dry its own mop like the Roborock option above, you can pop the mop element into the washing machine.
Smart mapping is excellent on this robot vacuum cleaner, allowing you to name all the rooms in your home and create virtual dividers. Working with Google Assistant and Amazon Alexa, you can also utilize voice control. With an app interface that is so simple and easy to use and a multitude of features on board, it makes this two-in-one device an easy recommendation.
Roborock S7 MaxV Ultra
3. Best robot vacuum for convenience
A low-maintenance two-in-one option
The Roborock S7 MaxV Ultra is a two-in-one robotic vacuum cleaner and mop combo. The self-emptying and cleaning dock is a key highlight, and other gems like the obstacle-avoidance system and smart (yet simple) UI make it a convenient and capable option.
- Intelligent room navigation and obstacle avoidance
- Low maintenance
- Highly customizable settings
If you’re looking for convenience without compromising power, the Roborock S7 MaxV Ultra is the dual smart combo for you. Purchased with its accompanying self-emptying dock, this robot vacuum cleaner will not only vacuum (and mop) your home, but will also empty and clean itself when it’s finished.
Roborock S7 MaxV Ultra: Even less work for you
Roborock’s robot vacuum cleaners seem to get smarter and more convenient. This one not only empties itself but also washes its built-in mop.
The huge dock not only works to charge the bot, but also to empty its dustbin, wash its mop and prepare it for the next cleaning session. This makes automated cleaning even more convenient and pleasant. With superb cleaning capabilities, excellent obstacle avoidance skills and much more besides, the S7 MaxV Ultra is well worth a look.
Roomba J9+
4. Best robot vacuum
If you don’t need a mop, you can save a bit of cash while still getting top-of-the-line options with the Roomba J9.
- Self-emptying base
- Excellent cleaning abilities
- Great smart features
- Loud
- Obstacle detection doesn’t work in the dark
If your future robot cleaner will be relegated to carpets, you can save some cash without sacrificing quality by opting for a model that doesn’t feature a built-in mop. The Roomba j9+ is one of iRobot’s top models, like the Combo above, but without the mop, it slides in at under $900. While that price is nothing to sneeze at, it’s considerably less than the top combo options.
The J9+ has the company’s most powerful suction. Its sensors aren’t just looking for obstacles to avoid. When the J9+ sees a messy area, the vac will do more than one pass. Those sensors also have several features for pet owners, including watching out for water bowls and avoiding pet accidents.
While the J9+ delivers a powerful clean with a lot of smart features, the built-in camera means the vacuum doesn’t function as well in the dark. It can also get pretty loud. Either way, it’s not a vacuum you’ll want to run overnight.
SwitchBot Mini Robot Vacuum K10+
5. Best robot vacuum for small spaces
Self-emptying stations can be pretty big, but the SwitchBot Mini K10+ is an exception.
- Compact Self-emptying base
- Small profile navigates furniture well
- Reasonably priced
- Mop is too basic
- Takes longer to do a whole room
Robovacs can take up quite a bit of space, particularly those with self-emptying bins. But for those living in small spaces, the SwitchBot Mini K10+ is one of the smallest options. The base is under 13 inches on the longest side, yet it still empties out the vacuum’s dustbin for you.
The compact size also extends to the vacuum itself. Less than 10 inches wide, it also has a fairly low height for fitting around and under more furniture. Its cleaning capabilities are solid, especially considering the bot costs around $400. There are more powerful options than 2,500Pa, but for the price, it does a great job with carpets and even cleaning in tile grout lines.
The trade-off for the small size is that it takes a bit longer to complete a room, but that’s just basic math, as the smaller vac needs more passes. The built-in mop could be better too. It uses disposable pads and without a built-in water tank, those pads dry out after around half an hour.
Eufy BoostIQ RoboVac 11S Max
6. Best value robot vacuum
A budget option that does(n’t) suck
The Eufy BoostIQ RoboVac 11S Max isn’t rich on features, but it cleans well for the price.
- Affordable
- Privacy-conscious without Wi-Fi
- Cleans well
- No room mapping
- No mop option
- No self-emptying base
High-end robot vacuums often have a steep initial investment, but if you want a cleaning companion on a budget, consider the Eufy Boost IQ Robovac 11S Max. This no-frills vac bounces off obstacles rather than mapping your home, but it picks up dirt and debris quite well for the price. It’s also under 3 inches tall, so it slides under furniture better than larger options. Reviewers also appreciate that the 11S is fairly quiet too.
Instead of a Wi-Fi connection, the Robovac 11S uses a small remote. That means you can’t tell Alexa to clean the floors for you, but Wi-Fi-free smart home products are a plus for privacy. The remote still allows users to set a cleaning schedule, thankfully.
A budget robovac that bounces off obstacles isn’t going to clean as well as one that maps your house. The battery life also isn’t as great as a high-end model. You’ll also spend more time emptying the dustbin than options that have self-emptying bases. But, the 11S Max costs significantly less than options with those features. The lack of Wi-Fi also makes it an excellent choice for those concerned about IoT privacy.
Best robot vacuum: The bottom line
Robot vacuums cover a wide gamut from budget bots that randomly bounce off furniture to camera-clad, AI-smart cleaners that vacuum, mop and then even empty their own dust bin. The best robot vacuums are feature-rich devices that require little maintenance and clean well enough that you’ll rarely need to drag out the stick vacuum. The Roborock S8 Pro Ultra is just that. The robovac offers powerful suction and a decent mop, but the self-emptying dock and self-cleaning mop makes the S8 Pro Ultra hands-off until the base needs the occasional emptying and refilling.
Roborock S8 Pro Ultra
Editor’s Choice
$1400 $1600 Save $200
That said, the Roborock S8 Pro is also an expensive choice that may not suit every lifestyle. The Roomba Combo J7+ or the Roborock S7 MaxV Ultra slides in at a lower price point with similar convenience features. Or, if you mostly have carpet, the mop-free Roomba J9+ offers powerful suction but for less than the Combo edition. If you have a small living space, the SwitchBot K10+ and its smaller base may be the best option. If you are worried about IoT privacy or simply can’t spend more than $250, the Eufy Boost IQ Robovac 11S Max doesn’t use Wi-Fi or a camera.
FAQ
Q: How did we pick these best robot vacuum cleaners?
Over the past decade, the Pocket-lint team has used a range of robot vacuum cleaners actively seeing how much they’ve developed — evaluating them not only for their nuance, but practicality and effectiveness. When we first started testing robot vacuum cleaners, you needed an already spotless environment to avoid the machine running into obstacles and causing counterproductive mess. Luckily, that’s no longer the case, and robot vacuum cleaners these days are no longer just black, plastic boxes, but they self-empty, some will mop too and some have some great designs.
Pocket-lint tested a majority of the robot vacuums on this list. We choose a range of cleaners for various use cases, from the most cleaning capabilities to compact designs. For options we haven’t yet tested, we relied on multiple reviews from trusted sources.
Q: What should you consider when buying a robot vacuum cleaner?
There are a couple of things you should consider if you are planning to buy a robot vacuum cleaner.
- Obstacle detection and clutter: First up, while some options like the iRobot Roomba J7+ and iRobot Roomba Combo J7+ — as well as the Roborock options — have a camera on board for obstacle detection, robot vacuum cleaners work a lot better if your home isn’t full of clutter. If you have things everywhere, there’s a good chance you will schedule your robot to do a clean when you go out to work or to the shop, only to come home and find it has got stuck on something you left in the middle of the floor.
- Floor levels: It’s also worth considering how many levels your home is on. All the robot vacuum cleaners we have added to this list can handle small steps — around an inch — but if you ask for more than that, you will likely find they won’t cope. Many can avoid falling down the steps, but won’t clean multiple levels without interference.
- Mop combos: Finally, consider whether you want just a robot vacuum cleaner, or one that can mop too. We love our combo device downstairs, while upstairs we have just a robot vacuum cleaner rather than a combo device as we mainly have carpet upstairs. You’ll pay less for a vacuum only, but the combination devices are particularly useful in some cases.
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