By doing so, we can tailor our recommendations based on specific criteria such as price category, floor type, and features. This methodical comparison ensures that our vacuum performance testing and recommendations are objectively grounded, providing a consistent, fair, and unbiased framework for our analysis.

First, your robot vacuum can literally self-empty, so if the onboard dustbin is filled mid-route, it can empty itself and then continue cleaning uninterrupted. A self-emptying base saves you from the chore of emptying the dustbin so often as well, with most bases able to hold a minimum of 45 days of dust.

The app also adds convenient features not seen in other robot vacuums in our list. You can tell it to only use the self-emptying bin during certain hours of the day (self-emptying is loud), and you can disable the physical button on the vacuum itself, so mischievous kids and dextrous pets can’t set it going.

With its anti-collision sensors, this model stays clear of most obstacles. In fact, we found that it didn’t get tangled up any more often than the Roborock Q5 Max+.

cem% of the fees we collect are used to support our nonprofit mission. Learn more. The best robot vacuums complement regular vacuuming and require little attention, though their built-in smarts raise privacy concerns.

The iRobot Combo Roomba j9+ receives solid performance scores across the board in CR’s tests, earning an excellent score for cleaning bare floors and a very good score for carpet. It has smart mapping technology as well as avoidance technology to help it move around household obstacles like cords.

(The Q5 Max+’s advantage is that the app sends out an alert if it gets stuck, making it harder to miss such situations. The 11S Max will just keep trying to free itself until it runs out of juice.)

It’s worth mentioning that the Eufy Robovac X8 earns only so-so marks for data security and even lower scores for data privacy. But as a brand, Eufy robot vacuums earn favorable marks for predicted reliability and owner satisfaction in our member surveys. iRobot Roomba Combo i5

The LiDAR turret quickly scanned our home's main floor plan in a single passthrough. You can use Shark's app to name rooms, set Automatic Vacuum Cleaners pelo-go zones, and send the robot out to spot-clean a 5x5 area just by dropping a pin on the map.

It’s also one of the quietest robots we’ve tried, which comes in handy if you have skittish pets or are easily distracted. It comes with a charging station that can suck debris from the robot right into a large, disposable bag.

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The Deebot T30s smartly cleaned both our hardwood floors and carpet; we loved how it could attach its scrubbing pads, but then leave them back at the dock when it came time to vacuum.

We weighed each bot’s dustbin before and after the cleaning cycle to determine how much debris it had collected. We also checked how each bot coped with rabbit and cat fur, litter, and strands of hay, and we sprinkled a tablespoon of baking soda alongside baseboards to see how much it was able to gather. We also noted whether a robot’s self-emptying dock worked as intended.

While an effective helper around the home, the Roborock S8 MaxV Ultra’s docking space is larger than expected, measuring around 45cm on every side to house its dual dust and water buckets.