The 4 Best Robot Vacuums - Spring 2024: Reviews

10 Jun.,2024

 

The 4 Best Robot Vacuums - Spring : Reviews

We've tested over 50 robot vacuums, and below are our recommendations for the best robot vacuum cleaners you can buy. These picks are selected based on performance, feature set, design, and price. For more recommendations, look at our list of the best vacuums , the best vacuums for high-pile carpet , and the best vacuums for pet hair . If you're only looking for brand-specific options, you can also see our recommendations for the best iRobot vacuums .

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If you don't have time to regularly sweep or vacuum, robot vacuums are an easy way to ensure your home stays clean without needing to do all the work. Since they use technology like lasers or cameras to navigate and maneuver around a room, they can avoid furniture and get beneath couches and tables relatively easily. Some of the best automatic vacuums can self-empty their dirt compartments, reducing the work you need to do. Although they aren't as good at cleaning carpet as more traditional upright vacuums, many come with smart pathing technology to clean more efficiently. Many also come with companion apps or remote controls to set up scheduled cleaning times or place boundaries to keep it out of certain areas.

The included remote control also allows you to access all of the vacuum's functions, so you don't have to use the Eureka Robot smartphone app, making it a great option if your home Wi-Fi network is unreliable. Unfortunately, the overall debris pickup performance isn't all that impressive. It's quite effective in dealing with pet hair on most surfaces, but it struggles with solid debris on carpets and isn't powerful enough to lift away heavier material.

The Eureka Groove is the best budget robot vacuum cleaner we've tested for those looking to spend as little as possible. Unlike the Wyze Robot Vacuum , it has no room-mapping capability but relies on random bump navigation. This system isn't all that efficient compared to pricier alternatives with LIDAR or optical sensors since the Eureka will cover some areas more than once and get stuck on obstacles like thick rugs or coat racks. That said, actual room coverage is quite thorough, and the vacuum won't miss any big portions of your home.

Debris pickup on carpets is reasonable for the most part, though this vacuum can have a hard time with finer material embedded deep within carpet fibers. It has no trouble dealing with solid debris and pet hair on bare floors.

If you're shopping for something marginally cheaper, the Wyze Robot Vacuum is among the best mid-range robot vacuums we've tested. Unlike the Roborock Q5/Q5+ , this robot vacuum isn't compatible with a self-emptying base station; you'll need to manually empty its tiny dirt compartment at the end of almost every cleaning session. However, it still offers plenty of features for the money. This includes a LIDAR sensor that allows for quick and precise room mapping, even in the dark, and you can use its companion app to set up virtual no-go zones or direct the vacuum to individual rooms.

Check out the Roborock Q7 Max if you want a robot vacuum with a design similar to the Q5 but with a passive mopping system. Ultimately, however, the Q7 Max is noticeably pricier than the Q5, and its mopping system isn't all that efficient, as it doesn't scrub the floor like the S8+/S8's Ultrasonic mop does.

Unlike the S8, the Q5 has a single-roller cleaning head and has Roborock's older brushroll design, which is noticeably more tangle-prone since it uses closely spaced bristles. However, this roller does provide greater surface agitation on carpets. Despite having a high-efficiency E11 filter, it does a terrible job of sealing in fine particles, which are blown out of gaps in its body and LIDAR sensor.

The Roborock Q5+ is a good choice if you're shopping at a lower price. While you're missing out on the real-time hazard identification, twin-roller cleaning head, and ultrasonic mopping systems found on the Roborock S8+ , the '+' variant of the Q5 offers self-emptying capability at a much lower price. It has the same companion app as the S8, which is a good thing, as it's very easy to use and offers a broad range of features, like drawing virtual boundary lines and directing it to clean a specific room in your home. It delivers good performance on bare surfaces like hardwood or tile floors.

Its ultrasonic mopping system differs from most passive mopping systems, as its pad vibrates to scrub away dried-on stains. The S8+ variant of this vacuum comes bundled with Roborock's Auto-Empty Dock Pure station, which allows the vacuum to transfer debris from its dustbin into an external dirtbag when docked. If you want a robot vacuum that comes with a dock that not only empties the internal dustbin but also refills a water tank for mopping and washing mop pads, check out the Roborock Q Revo .

You can also specify different cleaning settings for different rooms, set up no-go zones, or use the pin-and-go feature to direct it to a specific area to clean small spills. Compared to the older Roborock S7 MaxV , the S8 features a redesigned twin-roller floorhead that's far more effective for dealing with pet hair on various surfaces; ultimately, the newer model is a better performer overall. However, it's worth noting that only the S7 MaxV had a color-capable front camera and a built-in microphone that allowed you to use it as a roving security camera.

The Roborock S8+ is the best robot vacuum cleaner we've tested. This high-end robot vacuum has a dual-sensor navigation system, which combines a LIDAR sensor that maps out your home with a pair of 3D scanning cameras at the front of the vacuum. These cameras identify and, if necessary, avoid common obstacles like power cords, furniture legs, or even pet waste in real-time. The vacuum can also store up to four floor maps, so you can use this model on any floor in your home. It can use its camera sensors to spot landmarks and automatically determine which room it's working in. It can also output a 3D representation of your home after mapping.

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FAQ

Can a robot vacuum fully replace a conventional vacuum?

Generally speaking, robot vacuums aren't a wholesale replacement for a full-size, manually operated machine. Most models on the market aren't powerful enough to deal with heavy debris or large piles of material, so you'll want to keep a conventional model on standby for bigger cleaning jobs. That said, robovacs have their market niche covered when it comes to "maintenance" cleaning; that's to say, frequent, low-intensity cleaning sessions that ensure there won't be a buildup of dust or lightweight dirt.

Are robot vacuums worth it?

Honestly, that'll depend entirely on what your expectations are, not to mention your budget. You don't necessarily need to spend a fortune on something that offers reasonable overall performance. Spending somewhere in the region of $200-$300 can net you a robot vacuum with LIDAR mapping, relatively advanced automation capabilities, and decent overall debris pickup performance. A good example of this kind of option would be the Wyze Robot Vacuum. The above attributes are generally enough for most, as many models in this price bracket are quick to map out your home, smart enough not to get stuck too frequently, and powerful enough to deal with most kinds of messes.

If you want to spend less than that, you're likely to be looking at a robot vacuum with a rudimentary random-pathing bump navigation system, like the iRobot Roomba 694; these systems don't generate a coverage map of your home and aren't especially time efficient; while they might achieve good overall room coverage, they're pretty slow in doing so, and are far more liable to getting stuck on obstacles and cleaning the same area more than once.

Vacuums with mopping systems, real-time hazard avoidance technology, and self-emptying capability are generally pricier. None of these features are essential, but if you don't feel like emptying a vacuum's dustbin, scrubbing away stains, or ensuring your home is completely free of any potential obstacles before letting it run, they're worth a shot. It's also worth noting that prices for these niceties are creeping down. Consider the Roborock Q Revo, which offers all of these aforementioned features for not much more than the more basic stripped-down Roborock Q7 Max+.

How often should you perform maintenance on a robot vacuum?

Most manufacturers aren't shy about specifying how and how often a robot vacuum should be maintained, and it's worth noting that these maintenance intervals can vary pretty drastically from model to model. That said, there are absolutely a few things you can look out for, even outside of scheduled maintenance. You'll want to check the robovac's brushroll once or twice a week to ensure no hair is getting tangled in the mechanism; models with rollers with bristles, as opposed to smoother rubber rollers, tend to collect a lot of pet hair. The same goes for side brushes and wheels; stuck-on debris can jam up their mechanisms, compromising overall performance. You'll also want to dispose of any material in the vacuum's dirt compartment.

However, it's worth noting that there are plenty of models on the market that come with docking stations that suck debris from the vacuum's dustbin into an external dirt compartment or dirtbag, so you won't have to go through the process of emptying a dustbin yourself.

Can I run my robot vacuum every day?

Absolutely, this is what most robot vacuums are designed for. Some smarter models allow you to schedule cleaning sessions beforehand, so the vacuum will run while you're out and about.

How do I prepare my house for a robot vacuum?

You'll want to remove small obstacles like socks, slippers, or thicker power cords. While an increasing number of higher-end models, like the Roborock S7 MaxV, boast additional sensors that allow them to spot, identify, and, if necessary, avoid obstacles, these systems are still far from foolproof. You'll also want to remove any super-thick shag pile rugs because a lot of robot vacuums can get bogged down in really plush carpet fibers.

If you have a robot vacuum with a LIDAR sensor, you'll also want to cover up any floor-to-ceiling mirrors before it maps out your home for the first time. The laser emitted from the vacuum will bounce off reflective surfaces, effectively causing the vacuum to 'perceive' a nonexistent room and even bump into the mirror itself. You can also get around this by setting up a 'no-go' zone around mirrors, at least on models that support this kind of function.

Conversely, if you have a robot vacuum that uses an optical sensor to navigate, like the iRobot Roomba i3, leave the light on in areas you want the vacuum to clean. Unlike LIDAR systems, optical sensor-based systems need a certain level of ambient light to navigate.

It's worth noting that many robot vacuums will also struggle with navigating on really dark-colored floors. Most models on the market have cliff sensors that rely on infrared radiation to work, and since dark surfaces absorb infrared radiation, this will trigger the cliff sensors and cause the vacuum to stop.

All Reviews

Our recommendations above are what we think are currently the best robot vacuums for most people. We factor in the price, feedback from our visitors, and availability.

If you would like to do the work of choosing yourself, here is the list of all our robot vacuum reviews. Be careful not to get too caught up in the details. While there's no single best option that's perfect for every use, most are good enough to please almost everyone, and the differences are often not noticeable unless you really look for them.

The best robot vacuums of , tested by editors

Robot vacuums are designed to make your life easier, cleaning the floors so you don&#;t have to. Or at least, don&#;t have to do it as often. They&#;re particularly great for keeping up with pet hair but can also keep your house tidy when you&#;re just too busy (and they&#;ll do it better because they don&#;t mind vacuuming every day).

The best robot vacuums will skillfully and thoroughly clean your floors with little or no effort from you. We tested nine robot vacuum cleaners to see which one is best at navigating a home, picking up dirt and simplifying your life.

iRobot Roomba j7+

The best robot vacuum overall

The iRobot j7+ is the best robot vacuum you can buy right now, with simpler mapping, more cleaning power and smarter features than anything else we tested.

$800 $470 at Amazon

Eufy BoostIQ RoboVac 11s Max

The best affordable robot vacuum

The Eufy 11s may not be smart, but its brute force approach covered our test area almost as well as the connected robots, plus it's quiet, slim enough to reach under most furniture and does a great job cleaning.

$250 $140 at Amazon

iLife V3S Pro

The best robot vacuum for pet hair

The budget-priced iLife V3S Pro uses a suction tube like a traditional vacuum cleaner rather than the roller brushes employed by other robot vacuums, and does a better job picking up pet hair without clogging.

$160 $100 at Amazon

Shark IQ XL

The best value self-emptying robot vacuum

If you want the convenience of a self-emptying vacuum but want to save a couple of hundred dollars over an iRobot or Samsung, the Shark IQ XL cleans and performs almost as well for a lot less.

$600 $332 at Amazon

Best robot vacuum overall: iRobot Roomba j7+

$800 $470 at Amazon

Andrea Smith/CNN Underscored

The iRobot j7+ is the best robot vacuum you can buy right now. It beat out all the others in mapping, creating virtual boundaries and detecting and avoiding obstacles, which means it&#;s the best &#;set it and forget it&#; smart robot vacuum &#; and it even empties itself. More importantly, it picks up dust and debris and cat litter from hardwood floors and low-pile carpeting better than the others we tested.

iRobot uses what it calls Dirt Detect, focusing more cleaning effort when it detects a concentration of dirt. I spilled cat litter on the hardwood floor and the j7+ recognized it as a &#;dirt event.&#; It got to the end of the cat litter spill, reversed itself back to the beginning of the spill area and took another pass at it. It did this several times until all the litter was picked up. Even litter that got scattered by the sweeping motion of the side brush was eventually picked up.

The j7+ leaves behind neat rows of just-vacuumed carpeting and the powerful suction of the unit was able to pick up cat litter and pet hair in my bedroom carpeting. Its multi-surface rubber brushes on the underside kept the brush from getting tangled with pet hair; only the iLife V3S Pro did a better job at not getting tangled, but that&#;s because it doesn&#;t have a roller brush like the j7+ or the other robot vacuums we tested.

Andrea Smith/CNN Underscored

When the j7+ is done cleaning, it returns to the base and empties itself into a bag in the larger dustbin at the back of the base. You need to change that bag every two months or so, but other than that, you likely won&#;t have to interact with it very much at all.

In our testing, the j7+ was the easiest robot to direct while mapping, doing a much better job than the Neato BotVac (which couldn&#;t complete mapping our typical single-floor home in time) and the Shark IQ, which required a lot of work editing and creating virtual dividers to mark rooms. With the j7+, it was easy to set up virtual no-go zones (we blocked off the area around our cat condo). Once the J7+ completes the initial mapping setup of your home &#; which takes some effort and input from you &#; the robot takes care of the rest.

iRobot

The j7+ also did a superb job of steering clear of items like headphones and lamp cords, outdoing similar high-end smart robots like the Samsung JetBot+ courtesy of its front-mounted sensor and lights. Right now it only recognizes certain objects like cords, headphones and pet waste, but once you&#;ve mapped your home, it requests feedback after encountering objects and over time it will learn more about what you leave out and add more objects to its list of items to be avoided.

At just 3.4 inches high, the j7+ fits more easily under furniture than the taller Samsung JetBot+. The Clean Base is shorter and shallower than Samsung&#;s emptying bin base, taking up less space in a room or under a table. It also has a hidden storage area where you can stash your extra bags.

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The Roomba j7+ is not perfect. Those high-end smart features will cost you: At $470 it&#;s one of the most expensive vacuums we tested. It&#;s also the loudest robot vacuum we tested. There&#;s no such thing as it sneaking up on you; you&#;ll always know when its running. When the vacuum empties itself into the base following a cleaning run, it&#;s like a jet engine taking off. Luckily it doesn&#;t last too long. It would be nice to have the option to keep it from emptying after certain runs as it gets super loud, but it is a minor downside for such an effective robot vacuum.

Best affordable robot vacuum: Eufyd 11S

$230 $115 at Walmart

Andrea Smith/CNN Underscored

If you don&#;t want smart features like mapping, don&#;t need a self-emptying dustbin and don&#;t mind picking up before you start the vacuum, the Eufy 11S is the budget robot vacuum we recommend. It&#;s a basic and affordable vacuum with a slim profile, good suction and quiet operation, and should work well for anyone who wants to maintain their floors in between manual vacuuming.

The Eufy does a superb job picking up dirt, excelling on hardwood floors, tile and low-pile carpets. It filled its dustbin with pet hair and cat litter, though it wasn&#;t able to get up all the litter on a higher-pile carpet.

What sets the Eufy 11S above the budget competition is the ability to change the power level while the unit is cleaning. It offers Standard, Boost IQ and Max. This is the only unit we tested that lets you change the power and suction level while the vacuum is operating. The more expensive Shark IQ XL and the Ecovacs Deebot N79S can only be changed with the remote when the unit is stopped. I appreciated this feature as I was able to turn on Boost IQ and then Max when the vacuum got close to the living room, which has a medium-pile carpet. It performed admirably climbing up onto the carpet to clean, though it did get stuck several times on the base of my barstools and had to be rescued.

Unlike our overall pick, the Eufy 11S doesn&#;t have any smart mapping features, so you can&#;t create a map or direct it with Alexa or Google &#; it&#;s a classic &#;bump bot&#; and finds its way by random or bounce navigation, running in a straight line until it bangs into an obstacle like a table or chair leg. This ends up in surprisingly good overall coverage, but you may find that some areas that trap the robot (under a table, for instance) get lots of attention, and more open areas (like the middle of the living room) just get one quick pass.

It took a few hours for the vacuum to fully clean my entire home, which is about 1,500 square feet, and watching as it maneuvered in and out of my office several times for varying lengths of time made me a little frazzled, but to get smart linear navigation, you&#;ll need to spend at least $200 more.

Luckily the Eufy has a recharge and resume feature, so if it runs low on battery, it makes its way back to the base to recharge itself and when ready resumes the cleaning job. In our testing this worked well, except for the fact that it resumed right in the middle of a dinner with friends, but it was easy enough to stop the cleaning run by pressing the button on the vacuum.

The Eufy is smart enough to keep itself from getting into trouble &#; in our testing, it had no trouble detecting stairs with a combination of infrared sensors and anti-drop sensors. And at just 2.8 inches tall, the Eufy 11S is almost a full inch shorter than the slightly more expensive Roborock S4, allowing it to get under more furniture like console tables and kids&#; beds.

The dustbin on the 11S needs to be emptied manually, like others in this price range. It&#;s easy to open and empty, even easier than the higher-end Shark IQ XL. Since there&#;s no indicator to show when the bin is full, we recommend emptying it each time it returns to the base to recharge. This ensures the bin won&#;t fill up mid-cleaning run. You&#;ll also get the satisfaction of seeing how much dirt and pet hair the vacuum picks up that you might not otherwise be able to reach.

The included remote lets you create a schedule for the vacuum; however, you can only set a single daily schedule. Otherwise, you can either press the button on the machine itself to start a cleaning job or use the remote, which comes with a handy guide to the button symbols on the back. There are five different cleaning modes to choose from: Auto sends the vacuum from room to room, Spot cleans a specific area and Edge will send the vacuum hugging the walls of your house for perimeter cleaning. You can also choose a single room or pilot the robot with the directional arrows on the remote.

If you live in a home without high-pile carpets and find yourself constantly vacuuming up pet hair or dirt, and don&#;t need the ability to map your home and create virtual walls or no-go zones, the Eufy 11S is a top choice.

Best robot vacuum for pet hair: iLife V3S Pro

$160 $100 at Amazon

Andrea Smith/CNN Underscored

If your main struggle is keeping up with pet hair and small pieces of debris like cat litter, you don&#;t need to spend hundreds of dollars to get a well-performing robot vacuum. In our testing, the iLife V3S Pro did the best job on cat hair and cat litter on my hardwood floors.

The V3S Pro uses a small suction opening to scoop up debris, much like a regular vacuum, instead of the spinning roller brush on the bottom used by most robots. While the suction isn&#;t the strongest I&#;ve seen on devices in this price range, it avoids having hair and carpet threads build up and get stuck in a brush, and therefore helps it pick up more hair and dirt. Two side brushes with three bristles each push hair and dirt into the robot&#;s path, and do a great job.

Like the Eufy 11s, this vacuum uses random, or bump and run navigation, so while it does take time to clean the house, it covers every room. Again like the Eufy, it returns to the charging base if it runs out of battery before the house is finished and then resumes the job once fully charged. Infrared sensors keep it off the stairs, though like other bump bots, it can&#;t avoid obstacles like lamp cords.

The iLife V3S Pro was able to transition easily from a rug to a floor and back up onto the rug without any problem. Because of its low 11.8-inch-by-3-inch profile, it also fits under a dresser that the Shark IQ and iRobot j7+ couldn&#;t get under.

Andrea Smith/CNN Underscored

Though it doesn&#;t alert you when the bin is full, it&#;s easy to access the dustbin from the top of the unit, right under the cover (most other vacuums have it located on the side).

As with other inexpensive robots, you can only set a single daily schedule; the V3S Pro also offers three cleaning modes &#; whole floor, spot and edge &#; accessible from the included remote.

If you&#;re a pet parent who needs help keeping hardwood, tile or low-pile carpeting fur-free, the iLife V3S Pro is the right vacuum for you. If getting pet hair out of high-pile carpeting is a priority, you should step up to the iRobot 694, which has two brush rollers that work great on higher-pile carpets, but that will cost you about $100 more and the iLife does a better job overall.

Best value self-emptying robot vacuum: Shark IQ XL

$600 $332 at Amazon

Andrea Smith/CNN Underscored

If you like the idea of a self-emptying robot vacuum but not the high price tag of the iRobot Roomba j7+, then we recommend the Shark IQ XL. It has smart features such as linear navigation, in-app mapping, scheduling and voice control. You can&#;t schedule specific rooms to be cleaned with the Shark IQ XL, nor can the robot automatically adjust power levels to deal with different types of flooring like the Roomba j7+, but you get a lot of functionality and effective cleaning for a cheaper price.

Like other self-emptying robot vacuums, the Shark IQ XL returns to the base and empties its contents. The Shark, however, is the only vacuum we tested that features a bagless self-emptying base. To empty it, you simply detach the bin and empty it manually over the trash. This can get messy as dust flies around, but you save money buying replacement bags.

Andrea Smith/CNN Underscored

The base itself stands about 15 inches tall and has a window so you can see how full it is. Shark says it will hold about a month&#;s worth of cleaning.

Another feature that stands out on the Shark IQ XL is Evacuate and Resume, which is designed for homes with lots of pet hair. Instead of waiting for the vacuum to run out of battery life and return to the base, where it will empty its onboard dustbin, in this mode it will return and empty the dustbin after 30 minutes of cleaning, so the robot itself doesn&#;t fill up with pet hair. Once it empties itself, it picks up where it left off.

The Shark IQ XL navigates efficiently in a linear fashion and easily gets over and around furniture. It&#;s the only vacuum out of the 11 we tested that was able to get up and over the base of barstools without getting stuck.

It can get just as loud as the iRobot when cleaning, especially on Max mode, but in our testing, it did a good job on pet hair and cat litter.

If you want a self-emptying robot vacuum with smart features and don&#;t mind emptying the dirt bin yourself, this is a step up from the Shark Ion and Ecovacs Deebot N79S. While it lacks some of the smarts of the more expensive iRobot Roomba j7+, you might find it to be just the right mix of smarts and convenience.

Are robot vacuums worth it?

If you&#;re pressed for time or have a pet who sheds, a good robot vacuum is a worthwhile investment. They&#;re particularly great for pet owners, since even if you depend on a traditional vacuum cleaner, a basic robot can stay on top of the hair, dander and litter on a daily basis, making your chores a little easier once you get around to a deep clean.

A robot vacuum does require some amount of time and input from you. More advanced models require you to set up a map and define the zones of your house you&#;ll want them to clean or stay away from, and even the best vacuum can get stuck and need human intervention.

Robot vacuums can&#;t do everything or completely replace an upright, canister or stick vacuum. They aren&#;t the best tools for taking care of household accidents or heavily soiled areas, and if they end up running over anything messy (pet waste or spilled liquids) they can make things worse.

Even the most advanced models can&#;t get into every crevice and hard-to-reach space, and they can&#;t vacuum upholstery, drapes, closets, drawers and kitchen cabinets, or anything else that isn&#;t a horizontal surface.

But for staying ahead of dust and dirt buildup, they&#;re solid investments that will save you time, and as part of an overall cleaning schedule they make a lot of sense.

How to choose a robot vacuum

Andrea Smith/CNN

Consider the layout of your home and whether you have mostly hardwood floors or deep-pile carpeting. If you live in a Victorian-style home or have medium- to high-pile carpeting, a robot vacuum will likely require a lot of input from you. However, if you live in a more modern, open-flow style of home with tile or hardwood floors, a robot vacuum is a great option. You&#;ll also want to ask yourself how much time you want to devote to prepping the house before you vacuum.

If you don&#;t mind picking up toys and lamp cords and anything else that might get in the way or get snarled in the roller brush, then you can get one of the more affordable robot vacuums. These robots &#; such as our budget recommendation, the Eufy 11s &#; typically run in a random &#;bump and run&#; fashion, and don&#;t have any smart mapping features, so they&#;ll run for a long period of time to clean the whole house instead of progressing intelligently from room to room.

But just because you&#;re not spending a lot of money on a smart unit doesn&#;t mean you&#;re not going to get a clean house. In our testing, we found there are some models that clean really well and can do almost as good a job as a higher-priced option.

If you&#;re not willing to devote the time to prepping the house, then opt for the LiDAR-enabled, connected robot vacuums &#; like our overall recommendation, the iRobot Roomba j7+ &#; that are smart enough to detect and steer clear of obstacles. Spending the time during the initial setup, mapping your home and creating in-app &#;no-go zones&#; will save you the hassle of decluttering each time you run the vacuum.

You&#;ll pay more money for these models, but you get the capability of setting schedules, designating specific rooms to be cleaned and using voice assistants like Alexa and Google Assistant to control your vacuum.

How are you with touching dirt and pet hair clumps? If you don&#;t mind emptying the dustbin after every cleaning run, a standard robot vacuum will work for you. If you&#;d prefer never to touch the dirt, opt for the self-emptying models that automatically empty themselves into a bag or bin. The bag usually only needs to be changed every 60 days or so.

How we tested

Andrea Smith/CNN Underscored

After researching which robot vacuums to test, we settled on 11 models with a wide variety of features and price points. We set up each vacuum, downloading apps and creating accounts where necessary. We ran each vacuum multiple times through an approximately 1,500-square-foot home with two cats, hardwood floors and mostly low-pile carpeting.

We sent them on a normal run of the house cleaning run as well as runs with handfuls of cat litter on the floor and carpeting.

We assessed all the models on the following criteria:

  • Suction power
  • Noise level
  • Navigation style
  • App ease of use
  • Mapping ability
  • Ease of setting virtual no-go boundaries
  • Ability to schedule cleaning
  • Ability to schedule cleaning of individual spaces
  • Ability to navigate furniture, corners and other obstacles
  • Effectiveness of picking up pet hair and litter
  • Cleaning effectiveness on various surfaces (hardwood floors, tile, low- and high-pile carpets)

We also evaluated the individual vacuums based on:

  • Ease of use
  • Availability of remote/app-based control
  • Self-emptying or onboard bin only
  • Size and ease of placement of base
  • Ability to return to base
  • Number and type of brushes
  • Height of unit and ability to maneuver under furniture and reach tight spaces

Other vacuums we tested

$800 $700 at Samsung

Samsung&#;s JetBot+ is a high-end, feature-rich machine that has LiDAR navigation and a self-emptying base. At 21 inches tall and 9 inches deep, the base is just so big and noticeable; we much prefer the smaller, less obtrusive base of the iRobot j7+. The vacuum has a forward camera and obstacle detection, but our testing found it not to be as precise as the iRobot j7+.

$260 $150 at Target

Mediocre suction capability, random navigation and difficulty finding its base made this a nonstarter for us. While the vacuum has features such as voice control and in-app scheduling, it didn&#;t function half as well as the similarly priced Eufy 11S.

$240 at Amazon (renewed)

The Eufy RoboVac X8 is packed with smart features and offers four different suction levels for powerful cleanup. It uses AI to detect and avoid obstacles and builds a virtual map that you can watch in real time, something other vacuums don&#;t do. It took a few tries to get our unit to create the initial map. It also got into a few tangles with power cords and had to be rescued but did a great job scooping up a cat toy that I later found in the dustbin. It&#;s a solid machine, but it&#;s worth upgrading to the the self-emptying and superior iRobot Roomba j7+.

$297 at Amazon

With features such as in-app mapping, scheduling and no-go zones, the Neato BotVac D8 was promising. The signature D-shape design of the machine makes it easier to get into corners and edges, and it was the easiest of all the connected vacuums to set up.

However, we couldn&#;t get it to complete the mapping process despite several attempts and a call to customer service.

The vacuum uses LiDAR to map and navigate along with infrared drop sensors to detect stairs, but it kept mistaking the base of my cat condo for stairs and asked to be moved away from it. Though it claims a whopping 180 minutes of runtime, it ran down at 110 minutes and died before it made it back to its base.

$275 $160 at iRobot

The iRobot Roomba 694 is a solid robot vacuum with some extra features, thanks to its ability to connect to the iRobot Home app. You can schedule cleaning sessions or use a voice assistant to start one, but even though it&#;s connected, you can&#;t map your home or target areas to be cleaned. We don&#;t think the extra connected features are worth the extra money, so for $45 less, we found the Eufy 11S to be a better vacuum.

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