Best Rated Robot Vacuum and Mop

Eufy's top-rated robot mop and vacuum takes a lot of the burden of keeping your floors clean. It can refill its own water tank, self-empty its larger tower bin and then change out the dust bag.

Advanced models can map your home and note furniture arrangement. They also can detect dangers and help you avoid them, like loose charging cables or loose socks.

Object Avoidance

Object avoidance features allow your robot to avoid crashing into things like power cords, toys and even clothes that could be caught in the automatic vacuum cleaner and mop. These features are especially crucial if you have pets or children who may leave things on the floor for your robot to search.

Depending on which model you choose the robot you choose may come with various sensors to help it navigate around obstacles. Some of the most sought-after include crossed IR sensor beams that are infrared-focused lights that scan across the room to look for furniture legs or door frames. Many robots have adopted this technology, and you'll find it in the top models that cost more.

Another object avoidance technology can be found in more expensive robots is 3D Structured Light which uses cameras and a crossed IR sensor to map the surrounding area and identify obstacles. Time of Flight (ToF), sensors that measure and emit the time that it takes for the light to reflect off an object, in order to determine its distance, are available. These are less common but are a great option for your robot in case you're looking to add peace of mind.

Besides picking up dust and debris on hard floors, most of the best robot vacuum cleaner and mop-rated robots can mop your floor as well. Some robots come with their own water tanks that enable them to clean up messes and spills. You'll have to empty your robot's dust bin and wipe down its cameras and sensors between cleaning sessions, but these chores shouldn't take much of your time.

Mapping

Robot vacuums need to have mapping capabilities. This lets them navigate around your home and avoid hitting things like walls. Without mapping, they may be tripped over by furniture, cords or pet toys and end up taking less space from your space. With sensors, the majority of robots map out your space to track any obstacles and assist them to navigate around them. They can sweep the floor in fewer steps and save you time. Many of the top robotic vacuums also have this feature, which enables you to create no-go areas.

Robots that have built-in LIDAR use this technology to map your home quickly and effectively. The Eufy Clean robot separated my room into different areas and cleaned each in a separate manner during our tests. This was a huge improvement over cheaper models that only had sensors on the front of the vehicle. This was a much more precise way to navigate my home and was also easy to control with the app on the device.

Although no robot vacuum has the ability to climb stairs yet, the majority of the top-rated models have good obstacle avoidance and mapping capabilities. These tools allow them to collect dirt from low-pile or hard floors, and prevent falling down the stairs. Some have cliff sensors to stop them from crossing over the edge of stairs, and some have boundary strips that prevent them from certain areas.

Some robots have large towers on the base that collects dirt. This decreases the amount of dust or allergens released within your home. The bases can be left for weeks or months without emptying and are particularly helpful when you suffer from allergies. Additionally, some models come with self-emptying systems that allow you to dump out their onboard dust bins without having to manually open or close them.

Wi-Fi enabled

Some robot vacuums communicate via Wi-Fi to their apps. This allows you to operate them with your smartphone instead (or in addition) to an actual remote. These models are more expensive, but they can save you time as they can schedule cleaning times daily, weekly or even monthly. These models also allow you to modify floor maps and save them for later use. They also offer alternative cleaning schedules.

The most advanced robot vacuums utilize dual sensors, which combine the LIDAR system to map your space using a structured light sensor that can see objects and avoid them even if they're buried under furniture or power cords. These features let your robot access tight spaces, such as the kitchen's nook under cabinets or under sofas. Some robots have difficulty in these kinds of spaces. They also have a faster speed to navigate around obstacles, and have longer runtimes and larger dust bins. This makes them ideal for large homes than entry-level robots.

The top rated robot vacuums tend to be swift, intelligent and powerful cleaning up all kinds of floor debris, including pet hair, cat litter, and other mess. They can also be quiet which makes them a great option for homes with young children and pets. Many of the robot vacuum owners we've spoken to report that they enjoy the ease of keeping their floors cleaned with little effort, especially when used often. Robots can last just as long as traditional vacuum cleaners if they are given the proper maintenance (cleaning rotating brushes and keeping an eye on replacement parts). PCWorld provides a guide that offers some useful tips to ensure that your robot is running smoothly.

Larger Dust Bags

While a robotic vacuum may not be as efficient as a canister or upright model, it is great in picking up dirt and dust that regular vacuuming leaves behind. It can also be used to provide quick touch-ups on bare floors and can navigate through cords and other obstacles in the home. If you don't want to perform the deep cleaning yourself, a robotic cleaner can be sent out to sweep your floors on a regular basis.

The top-rated robot vacuums come with big dust bags that can hold more dirt than a single room. This can save time and money through replacement bags. This feature is available on several models including our top pick, the Ecovacs T30S Combo. This all-in-one robovac has an excellent performance score and has an auto-emptying bin. It also has a mopping feature and an efficient navigation. It is a close race between the iRobot Roomba Combo j9+ and this one, which uses the latest technology for avoidance and smart mapping. This model is more expensive, but it has a larger capacity.

Another major difference between the two models is how they handle long human hair, which can tangle in the rollers on some robots. The most efficient models include the Roborock Q5 Max+ and SwitchBot K10S Plus, both have superb hair pickup and tangle avoidance scores along with fantastic path planning and close to perfect auto empty results. The Shark Matrix Plus and eufy are also excellent options, with respectable hair pick-up and tangle avoidance but not as much path planing or auto empty.

The latest robots are fitted with sensors that can identify dirt and other debris on carpets and they are more adept at picking up pet hair. Some even have a dedicated mopping mode that uses the reservoir of water to eliminate spills and stuck-on mess. This feature is crucial for families with children as well as pets.

Maintenance

A robot vacuum can help you keep up with your home. While no robot can replace an upright or a canister vacuum for deep cleaning, the best models that are rated highly pick up pet hair, lint and other dirt on carpets with low pile and hard floors, picking up much more than you could using the broom. They also have navigation features that prevent them from getting caught on cords for power or rug fringe and are able to glide effortlessly under furniture.

According to the model, you can set up the robot vacuum to run several times a day or watch it in action using an app. However, these handy machines are also susceptible to clogging, and require regular maintenance such as emptying the bin onboard (or the base's larger dust bin in certain cases) as well as checking the brushes for hair that has become tangled and periodically rinsing and allowing the filters to dry according to the manufacturer.

Vacuum expert Emily Rairdin, a store owner apprentice at University Vacuum + Sewing, says a good robot vacuum should last three to five years or more with regular care and attention. She suggests regularly emptying the brush roll and bin and cutting out any hair that has gotten caught up in the brushes and regularly washing and drying the filter if your robot also acts as a mop. It's also recommended to clean the sensors and charging contacts on the dock or robot every now and then with a soft cloth. Then simply refill and recharge the robot whenever you need to for your next cleaning session.