Best robot vacuums: 7 top options for autonomous cleaning

Having one of the best robot vacuums to zip around the home whilst you're at work -or doing something more enjoyable than vacuuming - is a real treat. They'll keep themselves busy, let you know when they're full, and even return to base when they need a charge.

And while the first robot vacuums were pretty, well dumb, things have improved beyond immeasurably, with the latest designs now boasting advanced Artificial Intelligence, piles of sensors, voice control, app control, self-emptying, clever room mapping, and even mopping! They're essentially an extension to the best cordless vacuum cleaners because it's efficient, hands-free cleaning but with these little guys they'll just do all the moving around for you.

Need help choosing? No worries: we've rounded up our seven buys (below) from the likes of Miele, Shark, and iRobot in this guide, so there is a vac to suit all budgets and requirements. They're all served at the best price to help save you more time by doing all the research for you.

Best robot vacuums 2021

The S9+ is the most stylish Roomba to date, and while we also recommend the S7+ and the older, cheaper Roomba 981, this remains the pinnacle of the range with the best cleaning for pet hair, smart room mapping, and navigation, and easy to create no-go zones using the app.

When the S9+ moves from hard floors to carpet the suction increases automatically for a deeper, more powerful clean. It also has a high-quality air filtration system to help keep dust particles and allergens being returned to the room.

But best of all is the Roomba S9+ CleanBase docking station that charges the battery and empties its dustbin automatically, making cleaning even easier and more reliable, and you’ll no longer have to empty the vacuum mid-clean, or come back to half a finished job. Each dust bag has enough room for 30 full vacuum bins of dirt.

If you love the idea of being able to set your vacuum and forgetting about it, down to having to empty the dust bin, consider the Shark IQ Robot XL with Self-Cleaning Base. It offers smart mapping, personalized cleaning schedules, and a self-emptying base that makes it a safe choice for those thinking about getting their first robot vacuum. While not as powerful at the top-of-the-line Roomba S9+, it's an excellent contender and nearly half the price. 

For areas you don't want the Robot to go, the vacuum comes with a roll of No Go strips to cut to size for placing around sensitive zones like plants or pet food areas. The anti-brush roll feature is useful for keeping strands of hair from clogging the machine The robot operates in clean, methodical lines and though the battery lasted almost two hours in our testing, should it need to recharge or empty the dust bin in the middle of cleaning, it will automatically return the dock, and then resume. 

Shark's self-emptying base only needs to be emptied every 30 days, though that differs with how often you run the robot and how messy your floors are. While the self-clean base can not be moved once placed (otherwise the mapping will have to start from scratch) and the robot can only map one floorplan per a time. It's meant to suction everything from pet hair to small messes, though we would avoid relying on it to pick up larger pieces of debris.

The Roborock S7 robot vacuum also washes hard floors as it goes but takes it a step further with its new sonic-mopping ability called Intelligent Mopping. The mopping component instinctively lifts when it comes in contact with the carpet.  The sonic-mopping technology pulses at over 3,000 cycles per minute to scrub out stuck-on dirt, with a large 300ml water tank suitable for large homes. 

Designed for homes up to 300 m², it’s powerful enough to deal with everyday dust and dirt with a rated 2,500kpa that lifts dust from floors and pulls grime out of the carpets. It uses LIDAR navigation to creates accurate maps of your home with precision route tracking and plans the most efficient route, while cleaning in nice straight lines. 

Thanks to the Mi Home app it rarely gets lost or confused. Plus you can even designate no-go areas - around the kid’s LEGOs, or near a particularly delicate plant–  which it will diligently avoid.  You can even set it to clean certain areas – around the kitchen table after breakfast – as well as schedule cleaning sessions.  Plus, during a cleaning cycle,  it shows the route it’s taking so you know exactly where it’s cleaned, so you'll never have to wonder if it missed a spot. 

We wouldn’t throw out the long-handled mop just yet, but the small water tank lets you control the amount of water sprayed and the scrubbing pad leaves floors appreciably cleaner. And we like the fact it has a plastic moisture-collecting tray that sits under the charger, protecting the wet surface until you can get home and rinse out the cleaning pad.

Neato's latest robot offering, the D8 Intelligent Robot Vacuum is a solid all-around option that picks up a huge amount of dust, dirt, and pet hair with its signature D-shaped body to navigate into tight corners.  The square front design 11” brush bar and spinning side arms enable it get right into the corners and also has a wide brush bar for efficient cleaning in large open plan areas.

The D8 uses LIDAR navigation to map your home that works in the dark. To minimize the robot vacuum's footprint, it also includes a slim charge base, while the roomy dust bin can collect up to .7 liters of dirt during its 100 minutes run time. 

Plus, its revamped companion app provides smart control options to optimize your experience. Within the app, you can schedule cleaning cycles, as well as manually start, stop or pause cleaning and choose between two cleaning modes: Eco and Turbo. The app also shows the vacuum's cleaning path, so you can know that every square foot has been covered.  Here, you'll also be able to create boundaries or "Virtual No-Go Zones," but you don't yet have the ability to instruct the D8 to clean only certain rooms.

While customer reviews are more scarce on this newer device, they are quite split between those who've had excellent experiences and those that struggled with the wifi connection and software. Luckily, software updates will enable Neato to improve technology and address glitches over time.

With two extra-long sweeper arms, a powerful brush bar and class-leading two-hour battery life, the Miele Scout RX2 is a wonder for big houses and pets.

It picks up dust and pet hair brilliantly and the slim design navigates easily under the furniture, and while the navigation seems incredibly haphazard, and does bump around quite a bit compared to the Roomba, it gets the job done and covers an awful lot of floor space. 

The bin is easy to empty, and we like the onboard brush that lets you give the filter a quick clean. It’s a neat, stylish design we’d be happy to have on display.

Connecting to the Miele app wasn’t as fast and intuitive as the rest of the vacuums we’ve tested, but the cleaning results are definitely worth the effort. That said, the Scout RX2 does come with a quality remote control that lets you set basic timers and start/stop, so it might appeal to anyone not interested in using their smartphone.  

Still working from home? Well, we can't have a noisy vacuum disrupting your workday, or worse, an important work call. The eufy BoostIQ RoboVac 30C MAX operates at a quiet rhythm of about 55 dBa, which is about the same volume of an electric toothbrush while providing a beefy 2000pa in suction power. 

It's also incredibly slim to slide under low-profile sofas and beds. Using BoostIQ, the robotic vacuum will automatically increase suction power within 1.5 seconds when extra vacuuming strength is needed, such as when moving from hard floors to carpets.  

At this price point, the eufy BoostIQ RoboVac 30C does lack smart mapping and operates in a random pattern. However, it is controllable with both a remote and an app. The large .6L dustbin allows is amply sized to accommodate up to 100 minutes of cleaning without having to empty the dust bin. 

With so many robot vacuum cleaners now available, brands are working extra hard to get noticed with clever features and Samsung has made itself a noteworthy contender with its latest robot vacuum upgrade, Jet Bot AI+ Robot Vacuum, with the ability to recognize objects from shoes to cords and pet accidents and tell you what and where they were. It feels like no detail has been overlooked. Perhaps, the real star is its built-in camera that streams live video (dubbed Jet Live) to your app when it cleans, or when you need to check on what's going on at home. Your own, very unexpected security system, controlled by the the Jet Bot app, or the Samsung Smart Things app.

Another feature we love, the Clean Station self-emptying bin integration that cuts down on how often we'll have to deal with emptying the .4L bin, with 

And for a $1,300 vacuum, we also have high standards for cleaning performance, which the Jet Bot AI+ Robot Vacuum scores high marks for too. The vacuum adjusts suction power by identifying the type of surface and amount of dust, and the high efficiency brush uses fine, anti-static fibers and self-cleans to avoid tangles around the brush while Jet Cyclone power pulls dust and debris fully into the dustbin and reduces potential clogs.

How do I choose a robot vacuum cleaner? 

With models available from $100 to $1,500, choosing how much you want to spend is key, and while automatic dustbin emptying, and Alexa compatibility is convenient it doesn’t necessarily mean cleaner floors. 

As a rule, spend as much as you can, but look out for features that are useful for your home. Robot vacuums work best on hard floors, so if you have deep pile you’ll need a model with extra suction power. 

Timers are also essential – generally set via smartphone app, but onboard controls are available on cheaper non-Wi-Fi models – meaning the cleaner will work when it’s convenient to you. If you, or a family member suffer from allergies, we’d suggest you look for designs with a HEPA (or similar) filter that’s washable to trap allergens.  

Are robot vacuum cleaners worth it? 

A good robot vacuum is an investment, and we would suggest avoiding anything under $300/£300 as anything less tends to be more robot floor sweeper than an intelligent cleaner. 

Our best buy costs up to $1,300 (or £1,300) which is a lot, but you will notice the difference. 

Remember to factor in that you'll also need a traditional vacuum cleaner - or the best vacuum for pet hair- as no matter how good they become, robot vacuums can’t clean the stairs or the car. Are they worth it? If you have pets, they’re especially useful as they help control the hair and dander, for everyone else, choose wisely and you’ll have one less daily chore to do.

Do robot vacuum cleaners really work and clean properly?

While robot vacuums can easily navigate around a room, they’re no match for a shoelace or a pile of LEGO. If you remember to pick obstacles off the floor before you leave for work, you will come back to a much cleaner house. And the beauty is, it will clean every day, without complaining. 

Robot vacuums work best doing routine cleaning and aren't as effective at quick cleans up or spot cleaning. You'll still want to have a vacuum, both cordless and corded models work, on hand for picking up larger pieces of debris, getting into nooks and crannies, and cleaning stairs. 

Those models with built-in mops can also remove light surface stains on hard floors, but it’s the equivalent of a wipe with a microfiber cloth rather than a deep clean.

What is the best robot vacuum cleaner?

To recap... the best robot vacuum cleaner you can buy is the iRobot Roomba S9+. We've tried it, tested it, and absolutely loved it enough to award it five out of five stars. 

The S9+ is the most stylish Roomba to date and performs like a dream, too. As it moves from hard floors to carpet the suction increases automatically for a deeper, more powerful clean. And it also has a high-quality air filtration system to help prevent dust particles and allergens being returned to the room. It does this all on its own and is certainly one which we couldn't live without...

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