The Best Robot Hoover
The best robot vacuum will sweep and vacuum your floors without having to be involved. It also leaves clean. Its price is surprisingly low and top-of-the-line features (such as dirt detection) are a plus.
Make sure you regularly examine the brushes of your robot for hair tangled and large particles and wash them if needed. Some models also self-empty their onboard dust bin into a larger one at the base, which decreases the amount of fine dust that is released into the air.
1. Roomba Q5 Pro
The Q5 Pro, and its more expensive cousin, the Q7 Max Series are among the most powerful robotic vacuums we have examined. They feature top-of-the-line motors that can pull up to 5,500 Pascals of suction force. Like other premium iRobots (including the most powerful model) they utilize smart mapping to create detailed floorplans and avoid household obstacles like furniture leg. They also feature carpet boost, a feature which boosts the robot's power when it sees a lot of dirt on the carpet to get it clean quickly.
Both the Q5 as well as the Q7 Max Series get very excellent scores in our tests on floors that are bare They're also particularly adept at cleaning pet hair. They do have some flaws however, which hinder them from being our first choice. For one, the Q5's navigation doesn't feature AI-powered obstacle avoidance technology which means it's susceptible to become entangled in shoes and socks and can't navigate tight spaces very efficiently in our tests. It also doesn't have cameras that let it see the corners of the room.
It's still a great deal, especially if your office or home has lots of unfinished floors and you want to save money. Plus, it's very quiet and you can use it while you're at work, or school. It's not equipped with the edge-to-edge floor vacuuming feature that's available in the more expensive iRobot Roomba X30. It's also less effective in mopping, as it relies on disposable wet wipes that don't hold on well and aren't able to deal with dried-on debris. The Q5 has an auto-emptying dock, however. If you want to, you can swap the mopping pad to dry ones in a matter of just a few seconds.
2. iRobot Roomba
The iRobot Roomba X30 packs impressive mopping and vacuuming into a compact, sleek package. Its nimble navigation and intelligent cleaning maps make it easy to clean and efficient at tackling larger particles like pet hair. It also comes with self-emptying dustbins, powerful suction, and support for virtual boundaries. It's the best robot hoover for carpets, although it isn't as efficient as some of its competitors in deep cleaning.
This highly efficient mop and vacuum combo utilizes advanced sensors to avoid obstacles and pet waste and it learns the layout of your home over time for more efficient cleaning. The app allows you to customize zones and change the cleaning schedule. It has a battery lifespan that is comparable to other models.
When the X30 Ultra is in a carpeted area, you can instruct it to take off and extend its mop. This helps prevent cross contamination. The flex arm is perfect for getting under low-lying furniture and along baseboards. However, it doesn't have the same washboard performance as our other Editors' Choice picks, the Ecovacs Deebot Ozmo N8 Professional+ and the iRobot Combo j9+.
In the course of testing, X30 Ultra was the most efficient robot vacuum/mop which could sweep the entire house and had 66 percent of its battery remaining. It also did a great job of cleaning a mix of floors and rooms that had different flooring types, including certain area rugs. Its obstacle detection was top-notch and it was nimbly avoiding fake dog turds, socks, shoes and cables.
It's a bit more expensive than iRobot Combo v9+ or iRobot Roomba j9+ but it has superior suction and an onboard bin that automatically empties into the base. It also supports voice commands using Amazon Alexa and Google Assistant. It can even clean the floor after vacuuming, a feature that hasn't been seen in other robot vacuum/mop combos.
3. Roomba X40 from iRobot
The robot vacuum and mop combination is sleek and has a circular look that looks more like the regular Roomba model than the bulky units of the competitors. It's one of our most attractive looking robot vacuums. The newest model from iRobot is among the most intelligent and has advanced features like enhanced dirt detection technology and future compatibility with Matter (another company's robot that can wash its own mop pads).
It's also the only robot vacuum or mop that scored the perfect 10/10 out of 10 in our tests. This is due to a combination high-tech sensors including a structured light system, camera and multiple lasers. The X40 Ultra was the only robot we tested that could fill and empty its basestation in a self-contained manner. It also boasted a suction of 12,000Pa and self-cleaning mop mops.
Like other iRobot models like the X40 is user-friendly, with a simple mobile app interface as well as integration with Amazon Alexa, Apple HomeKit as well as Google Assistant. The only issue is that it's still quite loud which could be an issue if you use it in the morning before work or at night as you try to fall asleep.
It's also a bit costly, but not as expensive as the Ecovacs MaxV Ultra or Roborock S8 Omni, which are equally powerful and more attractive. This is a two-in-one vacuum that's extremely powerful however it's going to cost you more and make more noise.
iRobot L20 Ultra
The L20 Ultra is a top-of-the-range robot vacuum and mop, with a lot of advanced features that let you get rid of your chores. The L20 Ultra is a hands-free cleaning machine that is similar to Ecovacs top-of-the-line X2 Omni or Roborock's S8 Pro Ultra. It comes with a multi-function dock that will automatically emptys the bin of the vacuum, refills the water tank, and cleans and dries mop pads.
The smart robot employs a combination of LIDAR and structured light to map out the floor plan and detect obstacles, and navigates more effectively than its top competitors. It also has a front mounted camera for real-time hazards detection, though this wasn't foolproof in our tests and was sometimes confused with obstructions or power cords.
The vacuum has a maximum suction of 7,000 Pascals, which is more than enough to finish the job. It also comes with a feature called "Intelligent Dirt Detection", that regulates the power of the vacuum and adjusts cleaning frequency for different areas of the house based on how dirty the areas are.
For bigger homes it's recommended to choose models with zone or spot cleaning modes that allow you to tell the robot to clean a specific area of your home by using the app or voice commands. If you have lots of furniture, a stair-mode is also useful. Additionally, a recharge and resume feature that allows your robot vacuum to take over exactly where it left off is ideal for busy families.
iRobot RX3
The RX3 is a more efficient cleaner than you might think from its price. It's a pro at cleaning, removing 55% of the debris we found in our tests (it was second only to the Roomba Q5 Pro). It also mops using one pad, which uses a reciprocating motion, which does a better job cleaning than the other robot mop cleaners we've tried. It's also highly self-sufficient, with a fully-featured application, and a self emptying base that can be washed.
The iRobot application is designed to help you navigate the mapping process, which gathers information on your floorplan and any "no go" areas that you have marked on the map. You can use it to create cleaning schedules, set up the perfect spot for cleaning or prioritize your most filthy rooms to ensure better performance. The app comes with a variety of features, such as seasonal suggestions, custom mapping, and advanced cleaning settings.
Its shape is more rectangular than most other robot vacuums, which means it can get to corners and under furniture more easily. It also has strong 8,000 Pascal suction and intelligent combs for hair of pets. You can also set up a spot cleaning that thoroughly cleans a particular area.
The Miele Scout RX3 Home Vision HD is a more sleek and less expensive alternative to the iRobot Roomba. It's got a more attractive, Dolce & Gabbana-esque design and its twin cameras resemble cute eyes. It is great at vacuuming, however it is more likely to be caught in low thresholds. It is also noisier than other top robot vacuums that we have test. It also has a less user-friendly app and a small base station that doesn't double as a bin for emptying.