Are you unsure which robot vacuum cleaner to buy? With our buying guide, you can find out which robot vacuum cleaner suits you best.
Navigation
One of the most important considerations before buying a robot vacuum cleaner is the robot’s navigation system.
Robot vacuum cleaners can be divided into two types: Those with an advanced navigation system and those with a simple one.
Advanced navigation:
Robot vacuum cleaners with advanced navigation systems have mapping capabilities, significantly enhancing their efficiency and making them more capable of navigating and cleaning your home. They allow far more cleaning customization and are better suited for cleaning households with several rooms. On the other hand, they also have a higher price than models without advanced navigation.
If you want a robot vacuum cleaner with an advanced navigation system, look for a model with one of the following navigation systems: LiDAR, LDS, camera navigation, or VSLAM.
Simple navigation:
Robot vacuum cleaners with a simple navigation system are cheaper but do not clean as efficiently and cannot necessarily clean all rooms. They are not able to create an interactive map in their app and, therefore, have fewer setting options than robot vacuum cleaners with an advanced navigation system.
Overview
LDS navigation
LiDAR navigation
Camera navigation
Gyroscopic navigation
Random navigation
VSLAM navigation
Sensor navigation
Price
High
High
High
Low
Very low
High
Low
Type
Advanced
Advanced
Advanced
Simple
Very simple
Advanced
Simple
Method
Systematic
Systematic
Systematic
Systematic
Non-systematic
Systematic
Non-systematic
Interactive mapping
Yes
Yes
Yes
No
No
Yes
No
Technology
Laser
Laser
Camera
Gyroscope
Camera
Sensor
My experience: I have had many robot vacuum cleaners, and I have been happiest with the ones with an advanced navigation system (LDS, LiDAR, VSLAM, or camera navigation).
Price
The price of a robot vacuum cleaner can vary considerably depending on the features, brand, navigation capabilities, and quality of the robot vacuum cleaner.
When considering the price of a robot vacuum, it is important to think about the features that are important to you. Consider your budget and the size of your home to determine the right price range for your needs.
The best budget robot vacuum cleaner (under £200) is the Honiture G20, which costs £149.
The cheapest robot vacuum cleaner is the Dreame D9 Max at a cost of just £129; in comparison, the most expensive model costs £1333.
The following chart shows how the price is distributed across the robot vacuum cleaners:
Updated April 18, 2024
If you are looking for a cheap robot vacuum cleaner, take a look at the following models, which are the five cheapest:
You can find the best cheap robot vacuum cleaners here.
What are the electricity costs for a robot vacuum cleaner?
What is the power consumption of a robot vacuum cleaner, how much are the electricity expenses, and how much power does it use compared to a regular vacuum cleaner?
£
per kWh
Robot vacuum cleaners are generally very energy-efficient and use less power than you might think.
The energy consumption of robot vacuum cleaners varies from model to model but is, on average, approximately 50 watts.
Based on an electricity price of £0.3 per kWh, the robot vacuum cleaner costs £0.02 per hour. Using the robot vacuum daily for one hour costs £5.5 in electricity per year.
In comparison, vacuum cleaners use an average of 739 watts, which means they cost £0.2 per hour.
Overview
Robot vacuum cleaner
Electricity costs per hour
Electricity costs per month (30 hours)
Electricity costs per year (365 hours)
Robot vacuum cleaner with low power (20 watts)
£0.01
£0.2
£2.2
Robot vacuum cleaner with high power (80 watts)
£0.02
£0.7
£8.8
Average robot vacuum cleaner (50 watts)
£0.02
£0.5
£5.5
Please note that the electricity costs will be affected by the power of the robot vacuum cleaner, usage time, and the price of electricity.
Suction power
It would be best to consider the suction power, but it must be taken with a grain of salt.
The suction power is given in Pascal (Pa) and provides an idea of the robot vacuum cleaner’s suction power. Still, it is not comparable for all models since the ability to suck up dust and dirt also depends on how close the suction opening is to the floor. For example, iRobot generally has a low indicated suction power but performs well in collecting dust and dirt – and better than many other brands with a higher indicated suction power.
The Dreame L20 Ultra has the highest suction power at 7000 Pa.
These are the five robot vacuum cleaners with the highest indicated suction power:
The following chart shows how the maximum suction power is distributed across the robot vacuum cleaners. As the chart illustrates, the robot vacuum cleaner with the lowest suction power has a suction power of 850 Pa, while it is 7000 Pa for the model with the highest suction power.
Updated April 18, 2024
You can learn more about the suction power in this article.
Automatic emptying station
You have to decide whether you want a robot vacuum cleaner with an automatic emptying station or without.
A robot vacuum cleaner with an automatic emptying station can empty the collected dirt, dust, and debris from the robot vacuum’s dustbin into a larger, sealed container, allowing the vacuum to continue cleaning without manual intervention. But the emptying station takes up significantly more space and is more expensive.
If you want a robot vacuum cleaner with an automatic emptying station, consider one of the following models, which are the five best:
You can learn more about robot vacuum cleaners with automatic emptying stations here.
All-in-one emptying stations: Some robot vacuum cleaners have an all-in-one emptying station that empties the dust container, refills the water tank, cleans the mop, and dries the mop after each cleaning cycle.
Mopping function
Do you want a robot vacuum cleaner with or without a mop function?
A mop function is a popular feature that is particularly useful for cleaning hard floors, such as tile, hardwood, laminate, and linoleum.
Robot vacuum cleaners equipped with a mopping function have a built-in water reservoir that needs regular refilling with water.
We have tested the ability of different robot vacuum cleaners to wash the floor, and in general, it works very well and makes the floor even cleaner. Below, you can see an example of a test of the mopping function.
You can find the best robot vacuum cleaners with a mopping function here.
Interactive mapping settings
Robot vacuum cleaners with interactive mapping offer more opportunities to customize the cleaning in the app. These are some of the customization options for cleaning that are typical of robot vacuum cleaners with interactive maps:
No-go zones: You can set up zones where the robot is not allowed to go.
Room selection cleaning: You can decide which rooms the robot should clean.
Real-time tracking: You can follow the robot in real-time.
Zoned cleaning: You can set up specific zones where you want the robot to clean.
Threshold height
The maximum threshold height for robot vacuum cleaners is typically 2.0 cm. It means if your doorsteps or carpets are above this height, then the robot can’t pass it.
If you have high doorsteps, you can buy ramps online so the robot can pass over.
The maximum threshold height for the robot vacuum cleaners is distributed as follows:
Updated April 18, 2024
You can find the robot vacuum cleaners with the highest threshold height here.
Object avoidance technology
Some robot vacuum cleaners are built with object recognition and object avoidance technology, which enables them to recognize and avoid objects. This can be very practical if you have animals or are bad at cleaning up cables.
We have tested the ability of several robot vacuum cleaners to avoid objects, and for some, the technology works almost perfectly,
Below are pictures from a test we did with the Roborock S8 Pro Ultra, where you can see that various objects are almost entirely avoided.
Fast and efficient navigation and cleaning performance
Long battery life
Thorough cleaning; rarely misses a spot
Can automatically empty the dust bin
Auto-empty base is equipped with LED display
Can vacuum and mop at the same time
Equipped with smart navigation system
Can save up to five maps
Equipped with powerful suction
Cons
Quite expensive
Doesn’t provide extra filters or mopping pads
Expensive
Mop is only good for light stains
Auto-empty base produces loud noise
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