Parts of some models are interchangeable, allowing owners to mix and match features, or switch to other units for longer battery operation. Additionally, some units can be adapted to perform more creative tasks using an embedded computer in conjunction with the Roomba Open Interface. Many homes have hot spots—a weird door jamb, a lumpy rug—where you will need to rescue your vac. Do a quick run-through beforehand for robot booby traps, like ribbons and pieces of string.
Some have extra features like being able to self-empty, and even the budget models are pretty good now. Be aware, though, that they’re not intended for deep cleaning, so tougher tasks might be best left to one of the best upright vacuums or best cordless vacuums. Although they’re weaker than traditional vacuums, robot vacuums can reliably pick up most kinds of floor debris, and they’ll work on most bare floors and carpets. We’ve found that as long as a robot has a brush roll and a side brush, it’ll pick up crumbs, tufts of pet hair, and other common debris from bare floors and low-pile rugs. That’s enough to keep most homes tidy, and most owners seem happy with it. Some high-end robot vacuums now include advanced obstacle recognition in their nav systems.
It may end up cleaning more of your home than other bots just because it fits beneath more stuff. When I find robots that do well on all of those tests, I run them as much as possible for at least a week to see if they perform consistently. We spoke with sources in the floor-care manufacturing industry to help make sense of all the low-cost, off-brand options. You will get digital access to reviews and ratings for over 8,500 products and services to help you make better choices for life’s big moments and the everyday ones in between. Bare floorsIndicates the vacuum’s ability to remove surface debris from a bare laminate floor. If the S7 MaxV Ultra is out of your price range, the S7+ is an excellent alternative.
In theory, these systems should help the robots simply drive around any floor clutter they find, and even avoid hazards like dog turds. The 11S is quiet enough that you could easily forget that it’s running if you’re home while it’s working. We measured the volume on the bot’s maximum suction setting and found that it was just 57 dBc, a full 5 dBc quieter than the Roomba bissell crosswave cordless 694—that’s a major difference. On its normal suction setting, it’s just 53 dBc, which sounds more like a fan than a vacuum cleaner (“traditional” vacuums are often 70 dBc or louder because of their much stronger suction). And since the 11S stops short of most obstacles, it also avoids creating many of the bonking impact noises that the rougher Roomba 694 does.
It only takes about a minute to review the obstacle images, and doing so can prove extremely useful. This method allows you to quickly and easily create Keep-Out Zones around areas that typically halt cheaper robot vacuums. With so many different features to choose from, which robot vacuum is right for you?
The company has a good history of following through on those kinds of promises, but you should expect the improvements to trickle out over several years, not months. Besides, most good robots at all prices are pretty good at avoiding bot-trapping obstacles. And bot owners tend to get in the habit of picking up bissell crosswave cordless the kinds of floor-bound clutter that can create a problem—toys, shoes, laundry, even certain lightweight floor mats—so that the robot can work effectively. The Electrolux Pure i9 is an oddity that we want to love but can’t recommend. Another surprisingly useful upside to the basic Eufy bots is the short body.
Roombas that include cameras and mapping will get to know the environment and potential obstacles, then utilize that data to create adaptive cleaning patterns. Those without cameras and smart mapping rely on sensors to feel their way around, moving in neat rows for cleaning. All iRobot vacuums use a three-stage cleaning system to loosen, lift, and suction dirt and debris; however, the power will vary depending on the Roomba. For instance, the i7 has 10 times the suction power of the 600 series; therefore, users looking for a heftier clean may want to choose a model with this in mind. The only place the J7+ struggled is the same place where all robot vacuum cleaners seem to struggle in our home and that’s the bar stools in the kitchen, which have metal domed bases.
It’s a relatively quiet and fast operator as well, which makes it ideal to run even when you’re at home. We also like that the dustbin is concealed in the center of the robot, which makes it simple and convenient to access. These are the best robot vacuums based on our testing of the top models from multiple brands. Some robot vacuums take a methodical path across your floors, ensuring the vacuuming process is quick and efficient. However, these tend to be more expensive than robot vacuums that employ a random route when cleaning your floors.
We tested it again in late 2021, and it either improved due to a software update (they’ve issued several since our last round of testing) or some other variable in our testing changed. We’re not confident that you can count on the bot’s AI to avoid a doo-doo catastrophe but if you were thinking about getting a Roborock anyway and are curious about the AI, it’s not a bad option. IRobot doesn’t claim that the Roomba j7 can avoid most kinds of obstacles yet. “You’d be surprised at how many types of poop there are,” said Hooman Shahidi, iRobot’s vice president of product development, in a conversation with Wirecutter. He noted that they’ve curated a large learning library of different “shapes and configurations” of pet waste.
For starters, let’s consider what a robot vacuum gives you and what features actually matter. Roomba is a series of autonomous robotic vacuum cleaners sold by iRobot. Introduced in September 2002, they have a set of sensors that enable them to navigate the floor area of a home. These sensors can detect the presence of obstacles, particularly dirty spots on the floor, and steep drops (e.g., to avoid falling down stairs). That is, unless they have added features that increase the suction power needed to clean thicker fibers. Your best bet is to go with a robot vacuum that has something like Carpet Boost such as the iRobot Roomba 980.