Best Rated Robot Vacuum and Mop

Eufy's top-rated robot mop and vacuum takes a lot of the burden of keeping your floors spotless. It can refill its own water tank and empty its tower bin. It also has the capability to change its dust bag.

Advanced models are smart enough to map your home and note the location of furniture. They can also identify hazards and navigate around them, such as loose charging cables or stray socks.

Object Avoidance

Object avoidance features allow your robot to avoid running into things like toys, power cords and clothes that can get caught up in the vacuum. These features are particularly crucial if you have pets or children who may leave items on the floor for your robot to search.

Depending on the model you select, you might have an array of different sensor options available to assist your robot in its journey through obstacles. Some of the most popular are crossed IR sensors that focus beams of infrared light throughout the room to identify things like doors and furniture legs. This technology has been widely adopted by a variety of robots available and you can get it in top models that cost more than other models.

Other object avoidance technologies that can be found in higher-end robots include 3D Structured Light, which uses cameras and crossed IR sensors to map the surroundings and detect obstacles; and Time of Flight (ToF) sensors that emit light and measure the time it takes for light to reflect off of objects to determine the distance between them. While these are less common however, they are a great addition to your robot if it needs extra peace of mind that it will avoid getting caught up in cords or socks when cleaning.

Besides picking up dust and debris on floors that are hard, most of the best robotic mop and vacuum-rated robots can also mop your floors as well. Some even come with their own water tanks that allow them to wash away wet spills and messes. You'll need to empty the robot's dust bin and clean its cameras and sensors between cleaning sessions.

Mapping

Mapping capabilities are crucial in robot vacuums because they allow them to recognize your home's layout, Best robotic mop and vacuum and avoid hitting things like walls. Without mapping, they could be tripped by cords, furniture or pet toys and end up cleaning less of your space. The majority of robots utilize sensors to map your home and navigate around obstacles. This allows them to clean the entire floor with fewer passes, saving your time. A lot of the top-rated robot vacuums best vacuums also have this feature to create no-go zones, allowing you to set specific rooms that you don't want the robot to enter.

Robots with a built-in LIDAR make use of this technology to map your home quickly and effectively. The Eufy Clean robot separated my room into different areas and cleaned each independently during our tests. This was an enormous improvement over cheaper models that only had a front-bumper sensor. This was a much more precise way to navigate my home and was simple to control via the app on the device.

While no robot vacuum can climb stairs yet, the majority of the best robot hoover rated models have good obstacle avoidance and mapping capabilities. These tools help them to pick up debris from carpets with low pile and hard floors and also to keep them from falling down the stairs. Some have cliff sensors that prevent them from crossing the edge of the stairs and some also have boundary strips that can prevent them from certain areas.

Some robots have a large tower base which holds their collected dirt, minimizing the amount of dust and allergens emitted into your home. These bases can be left for weeks or months without emptying, which is especially helpful when you suffer from allergies. Certain models come with self-emptying dust bins that you can empty without opening and closing them manually.

Wi-Fi enabled

Some robot vacuums connect via Wi-Fi with their applications. This lets you operate them with your smartphone instead of (or in addition) to the physical remote. They are more expensive but can save you time by letting you schedule cleaning times on a daily, weekly or even monthly basis. These models also let you modify floor maps and save them, as well as provide alternative cleaning patterns.

The most advanced robot vacuums use dual sensors, which combine the LIDAR system to map your space with a structured light sensor that can see objects and avoid them, even if they're under furniture or power cords. These features make it easier for your robot to get into tight spaces like the nook beneath the kitchen cabinets or beneath sofas, where many other robots have difficulty. They are also faster to maneuver around obstacles, have longer runtimes, and bigger dust bins. This makes them ideal for large homes than entry-level robots.

The top rated robot vacuums tend to be quick, efficient and effective cleaning up all kinds of floor debris, such as pet hair, kitty litter and other mess. They're also quiet, which makes them an ideal choice for homes with pets as well as young children. Most robot vacuum users have told us that they enjoy the convenience of having their floor cleaned with minimal effort. This is especially true when used regularly. If you take care of maintenance (cleaning the rotating brushes and keeping track on the replacement parts) robots can last longer than a traditional full-size vacuum cleaner. PCWorld offers a guide that includes some helpful suggestions to ensure your machine is running smoothly.

Larger Dust Bags

A robotic vacuum may not be as efficient in cleaning as an upright or canister vacuum, but it is excellent at removing dust and debris that regular vacuuming leaves behind. It is also a great tool for quick repairs to floors and can navigate around cords and other obstacles that are common to household use. You can employ robotics to sweep your floors on a regular basis in case you don't have the time to do it yourself.

A few of the top-rated robotic vacuums come with large easy to empty dust bags which can hold more dirt than a room. This can save time and money by providing replacement bags. This feature is available on a variety of models including our top model which is the Ecovacs T30S Combo. This all-in one robovac is a high-performance robovac that has a self-emptying bin. It also comes with a mopping function and efficient navigation. It is a close race between the iRobot Roomba Combo j9+ and this model, which utilizes the latest technology for avoidance and smart mapping. This robovac has a larger capacity, but it is a bit more expensive.

Another significant difference between these two models is how they handle hair that is long, which can tangle in the rollers of certain robots. The Roborock Q5 Max+, SwitchBot K10S Plus and Roborock Q5 Max+ are the most efficient models. They both have excellent hair pickup and tangle-avoidance scores together with excellent auto empty results and great path planning. The eufy and Shark Matrix Plus are also excellent options with good hair pickup and tangle avoidance, but not as much path planning or auto empty.

The most recent robots are outfitted with sensors that can detect dirt and debris on carpets and they are more adept in removing pet hair. Some have a mopping mode that uses the reservoir of water to eliminate the stains and spills. This feature is essential for families with children and pets.

Maintenance

A robot vacuum will help you keep up with your home. The top models can collect more dirt from the surface, pet hair and lint, than a broom on low-pile or hard flooring. They also have navigational features to keep them from getting stuck on power cords, rug fringe or furniture.

According to the model, you can set up the robot vacuum to run multiple times per day or even watch it in action using an app. However, these handy vacuums are also prone to clogging and require regular maintenance, such as emptying the bin onboard (or the base's bigger dust bin in certain cases) and checking the brushes for tangled hair, and periodically rinsing and letting the filters dry as recommended by the manufacturer.

Emily Rairdin is a vacuum expert and store owner apprentice at University Vacuum + Sewing. She says that a robot vacuum can last up to five years if it is properly maintenance. She recommends emptying the bin and brush roll frequently cutting out hair that gets caught in the brushes, and regularly cleaning and drying the filter if your robot is a mop as well. It's a good idea to wipe the charging contacts and sensors on the dock or robot with a soft clean cloth every now and then. You can refill and recharge your robot for the next cleaning session.