5 Best Robot Vacuums of 2023, Tested by Cleaning Experts

"Hearst Magazines and Yahoo may earn commission or revenue on some items through the links below."

We updated this article in September 2022 to add more information about each featured product tested by the Good Housekeeping Institute, how to clean your robot vacuum and why you should trust us.

If your house is like ours, you’re probably sweeping, vacuuming or even just bending over with a wet paper towel after dinner to get rid of the bits of food that inevitably make it onto the kitchen floor after cooking. Now with robot vacuums, there are devices that can do this job for you. While robot vacuums can’t totally make floor cleaning a thing of the past, they can make floor cleaning happen less often in your home, and you don’t need to break the bank to afford one.

In the Good Housekeeping Institute Cleaning Lab, we’ve tested a lot of different types of vacuums — so much so that we have been able to put together and continuously update roundups of the best vacuums, the best vacuums for pet hair and even brand specific lists like the best vacuums from Bissell. There are more robot vacuums than ever on the market today, and they have come a long way from the very first one we tested in our Good Housekeeping Institute Cleaning Lab way back in 2002. To find the best robot vacuums, we set them loose in a specially designed obstacle course to observe how well they transition from hard floors to carpet (i.e. if they get stuck or not), how well they nab debris along walls and in corners, and whether or not they can go under and around furniture and from room to room. We measure the dry debris and pet hair they pick up from carpet and hard floors, plus take a close look at each robot’s accompanying app.

Our experts also look at how intuitive the controls are, how easy they are to program, how loud each vacuum is and how simple the dust bin is to remove and empty. Whether you want a model you can activate to clean before you get home, or a robot mop that does double duty and can wet-mop your kitchen too, these are the best robot vacuums you can buy in 2022.

Our top picks:

Ahead you can read more about how we evaluate robot vacuums in our Lab tests — plus a complete shopping guide and answers to your most frequently asked questions. If you’re looking for the mopping counterpart to your new robot vac, check out our roundup of best robot mops, plus our expert picked home robots.

Best Overall Robot Vacuum

The iRobot Roomba s9+ is the second model from the brand to earn the top spot in our category tests of robot vacuums. It excelled in our hard floor cleaning tests, picking up 99% of the dry oats, sand, baking soda, nuts and screws that we spread on the floor, snagging a spot in our list of the best vacuums for hardwood floors along the way. In fact, it performed so well, the only test where it earned less than a 99% pickup rate was in carpet pickup tests where the average pickup of all vacuums was just 73%. It follows a random pattern to clean so it took longer than many other models we tested to clean up a straight line of debris. Like many other robot vacuums it doesn’t clean right up to the charging base, but it cleaned more thoroughly than any other robot and its spot cleaning function worked faster too. Some of our favorite features were the automatically increasing suction when it detects a carpet and that it can be adjusted to do two passes for an extra thorough cleaning.

Robot vacuums can be messy to maintain, but Roomba has features that make it easier to clean, like its self-emptying dirt disposal system that automatically transfers the dirt it has collected to the sealed, bag-lined dustbin in the charging base and its easy to remove, self-cleaning roller brushes that were noted for rarely requiring any maintenance at all because they didn’t clog with pesky pet hairs like models with bristle brushes did in our test. Its high-efficiency filter traps irritating allergens, but is not washable. Note that this was one of the noisiest robots we tested, earning a 1-star rating from Quiet Mark and a “Quite noisy!” remark from our expert.

We found the accompanying app easy to use and it has a number of useful features like the ability to see the maps the robot makes of your home as it cleans, set a schedule for cleaning when you leave the house and designating areas or even individual items in a room as no-go zones to avoid any possible damage. Its voice command capabilities are one of the smartest we’ve tested, able to recognize when you tell your robot to clean under or around items in a room, such as “Clean under the dining room table,” for example.

Best Value Robot Vacuum

Kyvol’s E20 Robot Vacuum is one of the best entry-level robot vacuums, with many of the high-end features some of the more expensive robots on the market boast. For an affordable price, you get a robot with three cleaning modes (automatic cleaning, spot cleaning and edge cleaning), a 150 minute battery runtime and auto boost carpet cleaning that automatically increases the suction when it detects carpet, making this model a standout from other value models on the market. We were blown away when it ran for 150 minutes at its lowest setting and 114 minutes in its default power mode. The dustbin does not automatically empty into the charging base like other options, but our experts found emptying the dustbin easy and noted that its larger dustbin means less frequent emptying too.

While the robot can be controlled through a remote, voice commands or app, it lacks the ability to set up no-go zones and instead works with strips that have to be set up on your home’s floors to let the robot know that it should not clean an area. It doesn’t create a map of your home either, so you won’t be able to send the E20 to clean a specific room, but you can follow the robot’s cleaning route through the app and manually control the direction it goes in. Like most robot vacuums, the Kyvol E20 knows when the battery runs low to automatically recharge before the next scheduled cleaning. Because it is only 2.85 inches tall, it can fit under more furniture and two filters (one is a HEPA filter!) keep allergens like dust and pollen off your floors and out of the air.

Best 2-in-1 Robot Vacuum and Mop

The Roborock S7 can vacuum and wet-mop your floors simultaneously, with an innovative sonic technology that scrubs floors up to 3,000 times per minute. Users with carpets up to 4 mm high don’t have to remove the mopping pads as this robot will automatically lift the pads to avoid wetting carpets as they are detected. Take note that the pads do need to be removed after each use to keep the robot working in tip-top shape. The ability of the rubber main brush to float to meet uneven surfaces sets this robot vacuum apart from other models we’ve tested and our experts found setting it up very easy, though it does require almost five feet of empty space in front of and two feet to the sides of the charging dock for proper setup. It was loved by our consumer testers in consideration for a previous Good Housekeeping Cleaning Award and was even named a winner by our panel of experts, but one consumer tester noted that it struggled with pet hair on carpet — a common complaint with robots. Like our best overall pick from iRobot, the S7 has a rubber brush instead of one with bristles which helps minimize pet hair tangles and the brand offers an auto-empty charging dock that can make cleanup after the device’s cleaning session even more simple and hands-free. Its filter is not HEPA certified, but it can be washed and is easy to pop out of the robot’s dust bin.

The S7 has some of the most extensive Amazon reviews we’ve ever seen for a floor cleaning appliance and 77% of them are 5-star ratings with dozens of users gushing about the vacuum’s great performance and their love for the Roborock app. One standout comment read, in part, “Download the app and what's this? No email required or accounts to sign up to? Awesome! The app itself is perfect, simple and the connection to the robot is flawless and lag free.” When we tested the app in our Lab, we found it worked like a charm. It lets you schedule automatic cleaning for different parts of your home, set boundaries for the robot around where you do and don’t want it to clean and view the exact route your robot vacuum has taken while it cleans. Plus, if a room in your home needs a little extra TLC (like the kitchen after you make dinner), you can easily set up different cleaning intensities with the app too.

Best Robot Vacuum for Large Houses

With outstanding maneuverability, the Miele Scout RX2 Home Vision vacuumed through our Lab tests faster than any other robot vacuum we tested. This robot vacuum tackled every size mess efficiently and was noted for doing so without bumping into any of the obstacles it came across. On bare floors, it picked up 98% of the dry debris we put down and though it struggled with our faux pet hair, getting most of it stuck in the bristles of its brush, it completed our spot cleaning test in just one minute. The combination of a 500 ml dustbin, over two hour runtime and its speedy, bump-free clean-up make this model a great choice for large homes. It has a lot of modern features like two front cameras that transmit a live image feed via the app to your smart device and excellent obstacle avoidance (one of the best we’ve seen), but does not have the capability to set no-go zones in the app and does not have a HEPA filter. The Scout RX2 reaches deep into corners and edges and automatically increases its suction power when it detects a carpet, though it was significantly louder at the higher power mode.

From the Miele app, you can control the robot’s movements, see which rooms have already been cleaned and direct the robot to an area for spot cleaning. And if you’d prefer not to be connected to your robot vacuum, you can completely remove the Wi-Fi module and use the remote control to schedule cleaning sessions. The cleaning tool for maintenance is installed in the dustbin, so it can’t get lost or misplaced, but the dustbin must be manually emptied each time. Like the many full-size Miele vacuums we’ve tested and included in our roundups of the best canister vacuums and best stick vacuums, this robot is sleek and maintenance is very easy.

Best Robot Vacuum for Kitchens and Other Tight Spaces

Even before the first test, we admired Shark IQ’s compact footprint and streamlined design, impressive for a model with a self-empty bin which is often bulky and does not look great in the living room. It was ready to go after only six hours of charging and with just the press of one button, off it went mapping our test spaces and smoothly navigating — not bumping — its way around and under chairs and other objects we put in its path. It had no problem cleaning under kitchen cabinet toe kicks or figuring out how to clean tight spaces without getting stuck, though the LIDAR sensor at the top of the robot does make it a little too tall to get under some furniture. After methodically covering our test floors, the Shark positioned itself back on the dock and emptied every speck it picked up. Not only did it pick up what we put down, but it went back to nab one straggler that it missed on its first pass. Take note that as it empties the dust bin, it is quite loud, but it should only last about 20 seconds or so.

The dust bin in the self-empty base is extra-large to hold more debris and is easy to remove and empty. The filters in the robot and self-empty base are washable, but only the one in the base is a HEPA filter. Other notable features include its self-cleaning brush roll that prevents the hair tangles we see on other robots and an UtraClean mode that goes back and cleans the same area three times to get the most thorough clean possible. The SharkClean app makes this robot extra customizable, but for users who prefer not to use an app, you’ll find that the AI Ultra has a lot less to offer without it. Through the app, you can select which rooms you want cleaned and which you don’t, send the robot out to tackle high traffic areas that need deeper cleaning or messes you need picked up in a hurry and you can even schedule cleaning sessions ahead of time.

How we test robot vacuums

The Good Housekeeping Institute Cleaning Lab has been testing all kinds of vacuum cleaners for over 100 years. Using testing procedures developed by the International Electrotechnical Commission and ASTM International for testing robot vacuums, we spent almost 300 hours testing 15 robot vacuums, collecting a total of 405 data points that we then used to score each robot. In a 107-square-feet barricaded area made up of two rooms, we tested each robot’s performance in straight-line and obstacle pickup on hard floor and carpet as well as the vacuum's maneuverability under couches, around tight corners, over bumps and across hard floor-to-carpet transferring. In addition to performance testing, we tested ease of use, including how easy it is to use the model's controls, whether the initial setup is clear and whether it's simple to remove and clean all parts of the robot after use. We also rate how helpful we find the user manual for each.

For our hard floor straight-line pickup tests, large and small debris is deposited onto a marked area of the floor (based on the width of the opening of the robot vacuum’s nozzle). Then each robot vacuum is allowed 10 minutes to pick up the debris from the floor and the weight of the dustbin is taken to find how much debris is picked up by each. Straight-line pickup tests on carpet are done in an enclosed area where we deposit mixed debris including potting soil, sand and rayon fibers meant to mimic hair. Each robot vacuum is allowed to clean the carpet for a specified length of time, and the weight of the dustbin is taken to find out how much debris each robot can pick up.

Obstacle pickup tests are done across both rooms of our testing area with a mixture of oatmeal, orzo, baking soda and sand spread out around both rooms. Our robot vacuums are set loose, maneuvering under a couch, coffee table and traversing over an area rug and through a doorway to collect as much of the debris as possible. We calculate the pick-up percentage from the weight of the dustbin after the robot vacuum is finished cleaning.

What to look for when shopping for the best robot vacuum

There are a few things to consider when choosing the best robot vacuum for your home.

✔️ Space: How big is your home? If your robot vacuum will have a lot of ground to cover, you'll want to look into a model that has a long battery life and a large dust bin. You don’t want your robot vacuum to have to recharge frequently during a single chore. Models that recharge and then resume cleaning where they left off after are also a great option for larger spaces.

✔️ Features: Robot vacuums now offer some pretty amazing features. One feature we think is absolutely necessary for any home is mapping capabilities that help guide the robot through your home instead of just bumping into furniture as it goes along. Some others we think are very useful are automatic carpet recognition, setting up no-go zones through an app and recharge and resume capabilities. But, not everyone will need all of these and deciding which ones are important to you are a big part of choosing a robot for your home.

• Mapping Capabilities: Without a good mapping capability like LIDAR or 3D obstacle recognition, a robot will just bump around the objects of your home as it cleans, and every time it starts cleaning again, it will go around your home like it's the first time there. Without it, you won’t be able to view the robot’s cleaning route, send the robot to clean a specific room or spot (more on that below) or set up zones you want to keep it out of.

• No-go Zones: Before robots could accurately map your floors with lasers and cameras, areas of the home you didn’t want your robot to enter had to be physically blocked off. Now, through most robot vac’s apps you can set up virtual barriers to block off entire rooms or just small sections of a room. Homes with lots of areas to avoid (like kids’ play pens or dog beds and bowls) would benefit from no-go zone settings in the app. If you prefer not to use an app to control your device, there are still some options, like the Miele RX2, that come with physical strips to set up on your floors.

• Spot/Zone Cleaning: Looking for a robot that will clean under the dining room table after your kids have finished their dinner? Choose a robot with spot or zone cleaning modes. When you set these cleaning modes, your robot will clean just the area you choose either on the app or through voice commands so you don’t have to watch your robot clean the whole house before it gets to that one messy spot under the dinner table.

• Recharge and resume: Robots that recharge then resume cleaning where they left off when their battery ran low are especially great for large homes. If a model doesn’t have this, it will start to clean a room it already got halfway through from the very beginning again, meaning your robot might just keep cleaning that first half on a loop and never make it through the whole room.

• Automatic Carpet Recognition: Models like our best overall pick, the iRobot Roomba S9+, can automatically detect carpet and increase the suction to better pick up dirt and debris below the surface of the carpet. This isn’t a make or break feature if your home has no carpets or if you plan on setting your carpeted areas as no-go zones, but is especially important for robots that vacuum and mop. You don’t want to wet your carpets and some robot manufacturers are now solving this problem with robots that automatically detect carpets and lift the mopping pads to avoid causing damage.

• Self-emptying: Self-emptying robots take up significantly more space on your floors than the smaller charging bases of manually emptied robot vacuums, but are a much more hands-free option. These bases can often go months without having to be emptied and for models that mop too, many have a water tank inside big enough to hold multiple cleaning sessions worth of water for your robot. Note that most manufacturers do not recommend moving the base after it has been set up so it’s important to pick a spot where it won’t be too obstructive or your robot will have to re-do the mapping of your home often.

• Scheduled Cleaning: For an even more hands-off approach to cleaning, you can look for a robot with a scheduled cleaning mode. After you set up the day and time you want to have a room cleaned, the robot will automatically get started on the task while you’re in bed or at work. Some robots will let you set different schedules for each room in your home, but others might just start cleaning every room each time.

✔️ Price: Robot vacuums can range anywhere from $100 to well over $1,000. Your budget will also determine what kind of features your robot vacuum may have — one with all the bells and whistles will likely be more expensive. If you aren’t interested in having a model with floor mapping or self emptying capabilities, you can opt for a robot vacuum in the lower price range. Note that though there are options that cost even under $100, we do not recommend a model that is that inexpensive and did not include any of these cheap robot vacuums in our picks of some of the best inexpensive vacuums.

How do robot vacuums work?

Using navigation tools like sensors, lasers and cameras, a robot vacuum works its way around your home, suctioning up pet hair, crumbs, and dirt into its dustbin from hard floors like wood, tile and laminate and low pile carpets and area rugs. High-end robots often have the capability to map and learn your space, so you can set the robot to clean only one room or a specific area, while cheaper vacuum models include boundary strips that you place on the floor to keep the robot where you want it. Even inexpensive models have fall-detection sensors that keep them from tumbling down stairs.

Many vacuums are "smart" and work with apps to help you schedule cleaning sessions and some sync with Amazon’s Alexa, Google Assistant and other digital voice aids for a truly hands-free experience. All robot vacuums automatically return to their charging docks to recharge, and some can even pause a cleaning session, recharge and continue cleaning from where it left off. If you have pets, consider a model with a rubber brush roller. We found it was easier to clean off pet hair and lint than bristle brush rollers were.

Before your robot starts cleaning, pick up small items you don’t want vacuumed (check under the bed!), and ensure that power cords, clothing, rug fringe and window blind cords are tucked away. Unless you’re using a wet-mop vacuum, clean up all wet spills. After cleaning, empty the dust bin and wipe down the sensors and charging contacts with a soft cloth so the robot can navigate more accurately and make a better connection with the charger.

How to clean a robot vacuum

Robot vacuums shouldn't require much cleaning, but all robots have different cleaning and maintenance requirements specific to that model. There are things you can do to keep your robot working in tip-top shape like removing any hair tangled around the brushes, emptying (and rinsing if the manufacturer says it's okay) the dust bin on the robot after each cleaning session and wiping the sensors or cameras to make sure that your robot can see your home well for the next cleaning session. For robots that mop too, it's important to remove the mopping pads, clean them and then allow them to dry before re-installing them on the robot. Or, you can buy a robot that washes and dries the pads after each cleaning session, like the Dreametech W10 that recently earned an award in our 2022 Good Housekeeping Best Cleaning and Organizing Awards. If your manufacturer recommends it, you can also periodically rinse your robot's filter, allowing it to dry before re-installing it and replace them when you notice your robot's suction isn't as good as it used to be or however often is recommended.

Are robot vacuums worth it?

While no robot can manage stairs or tackle ground-in dirt and debris as well as a stick or upright vacuum (yet!), the top performers in our tests do have impressive pick-up scores on hard floors and low-pile carpets. They do well at sweeping up fine particles, like sand and baking soda, heavier debris, like oatmeal, orzo pasta, metal screws and nuts and even fluffy stuff, like pet hair.

Consider investing in one if you absolutely hate this chore or want your home cleaned more often than you have the time or energy for. Robot vacuums are great maintenance cleaners. Send them out several times a week, and they’ll nab all the dust and pet hair, lint and surface dirt on your floors before it has a chance to build up or get ground in.

Another benefit is that robot vacuums clean under the bed, behind furniture, along the walls and in the corners that you might often skip or that your regular vacuum can’t reach. (All of the vacuums we tested have brush rollers to lift away pet hair and were slim enough to clean under furniture at least four inches high; most featured side brushes to help scoop dirt from deep corners and edges.) They’ll clean just the kitchen floor after dinner while you catch your favorite show or an entire level of your home while you’re out of the house. Can you get it done faster with your regular vacuum? Sure. But the real question is, do you want to?

How long do robot vacuums last?

Robot vacuums can last just as long as full-size vacuums, with proper care and maintenance. This means that as long as you are cleaning the rotating brushes regularly (hairs will get tangled here!), replacing parts as needed and using your robot vacuum according to the manufacturer’s instructions, it’ll be helping you keep your home clean for years to come — often longer than the average! Robot vacuum manufacturers we've spoken to have shared stories of consumers owning the same robot vac for nearly ten years (with replaced wheels, rotating brushes and even batteries)!

Why trust Good Housekeeping?

Carolyn Forté, the Good Housekeeping Institute's Home Care and Cleaning Lab Executive Director, has over 40 years of experience testing and writing about all kinds of vacuums. For this roundup, she oversaw all of the testing conducted by Lynn Redmile, the testing and product review analyst that conducted our Lab's last full category test of robot vacuums where three of the picks on this list came from. Two of the newer picks in this story were tested by Forté personally and by our panel of consumer testers in consideration for the most recent Good Housekeeping Best Cleaning and Organizing Awards.

Jodhaira Rodriguez has been researching and testing cleaning appliances and other products in the Good Housekeeping Institute Cleaning Lab since 2021. She recently tested all of the robots that were submitted for awards in this year's Best Cleaning and Organizing Awards and contributed new information for this story's most recent update.

You Might Also Like

• 5 Holiday Foodie Must-Have Gifts from Oprah’s Favorite Things

• 67 Best Gifts for Women That'll Make Her Smile

• The Best Pillows for Every Type of Sleeper