The best robot vacuums for every budget

The j7+ uses a new PrecisionVision Navigation camera that helps it to avoid small (less than four inches) obstacles that are typically blind spots for robot vacuums. It's the botvac to get if you're nervous about pet waste being smeared or about a pointy Lego being dragged across the floor. The meticulous eye for its surroundings also assists in navigating on dark floors.

The j7+ showcases other iRobot glow-ups, too. It empties debris into a more compact auto-empty dock without sacrificing the 60-day capacity. The revitalized iRobot Genius app whips up custom cleaning suggestions based on earlier rounds, like offering to schedule a kitchen cleaning after dinner each night.

Read our full review on the Roborock S7.

The mopping feature on many self-proclaimed hybrids doesn't do much more than push water around. Roborock's newest 2-in-1 is a meticulous beast on both wet and dry accounts. With Roborock's August 2021 drop of its auto-empty dock, the S7 now poses a threat to iRobot's Braava Jets and its line of self-emptying vacuums, which don't mop.

The S7 is gentle yet on hardwood, linoleum, and tile, seamlessly switching gears to rugs and carpets. Laser scale sensors scan each room to adapt the route accordingly, adjusting suction for large pieces like cereal or small ones like salt. The mopping feature is just as attentive to soft floors, lifting the entire vacuum off of the surface to avoid a soaked rug.

Editor's note: Product information has been synthesized from a review previously published on Mashable.

Read our full review on the Roomba s9+.

A robot vacuum that rivals a MacBook Pro in price has some serious criteria to cover, and the s9+ crushes it. New additions like a slower side brush that won't scatter debris make it the best Roomba for edge cleaning, but iRobot's first D-shaped can do much more than suck the dust bunnies out of corners.

Both the s9+ and i7+ (the next-best Roomba) have automatic dirt disposal and a Clean Base that holds up to 60 days of debris. The s9+ may fill up faster, but that's just because it's raking in significantly more floor gunk. Boosted suction power (more than the i7+ and the new j7+, improved air flow, and wider dual rubber brushes take on medium-pile carpets, hard floor, and pet hair without tangling. Leave it to the s9+ to remember your home's layout, clean in neat rows, and retreat to its base after two hours of uninterrupted cleaning.

The Wyze Robot Vacuum and its raised LiDAR scanner have a similar vibe to one of our pricier faves, the Roborock S7. The mere presence of that smart mapping lookout is more than the cheapest Roombas can say.

This is what unlocks the ability to send the vac to specific rooms — one of the most coveted features in the robot vacuum market as of late. Laser pointers (2,016 every second, to be exact) cast by that spinning tower allow the Wyze vacuum to generate an in-app map of your home's floor plan, where you can label each area and draw virtual boundaries.

The 692's integration of a mobile app makes it the obvious choice for anyone who would prefer to schedule cleanings when they're away.

iRobot's suite of sensors handle surface changes with ease and can be trusted not to eat scattered toys or low-hanging curtains. This Roomba's cleaning gets more methodical over time, and seeks out high-traffic areas with Dirt Detect. The 692 takes on a more minimalist design — it's objectively sleeker than the Roomba 675, which was the previous (now discontinued) choice for this category.

Roborock's newest series makes it hard to justify going fully premium. The Q5+ acts as a buffer price-wise compared to the brand's pricey S7+ and S7 MaxV Ultra, and could be snagged for a mere $599.99 during its very first sale.

The Q5+ hits in all the right places: Allegedly clocking 2,700 Pa in suction power, it's one of the most powerful vacs in this list (surpassing the Roombas). Its compact dock deals with its own debris for seven weeks at a time, rivaling the 45-day capacity of Shark's XL bin. It navigates via a LiDAR-created 2D or 3D map of your home. Downsides, which are minuscule irks at this price, include eating shag rugs and cords, but you can use the app to set a no-go zone.

Finally, the robot vacuum that's least likely to eat your phone charger is now also the least likely to soak your carpet. In Oct. 2022, iRobot announced a mopping version of its smartest, the j7+ — the first true hybrid Roomba. The Combo j7+ looks nearly identical to the original, but with the addition of what looks like the spoiler on a sports car. That's the retractable mop.

iRobot's PrecisionNavigation allow the j7+ to perceive obstacles that other robot vacuums plow right into. Those smarts extend to sensing carpet in mop mode, too: Instead of letting the mop hover and risking drips, the Combo j7+ lifts its mop on top of the vacuum itself.

Unfortunately, unlike some similarly-priced premium vacs from Roborock or Ecovacs that wash their own mopping pads, you'll be responsible for your Roomba not dragging dirty pads around.

Autonomous wet and dry cleaning plus auto-emptying is typically a pricey checklist, but this Yeedi makes the whole process hands-free for less than $400 on sale (which it almost always is).

The presence of room mapping is also impressive at such a practical price point, despite undercooked quirks like only having the capacity to hold a map of one story at a time. The shaky navigation isn't so annoying when you can still enjoy the convenience of targeting specific rooms and setting virtual boundaries in the app.

Nuisances like noise level or low profile furniture are magnified in confined spaces when a robot vacuum is bumping around. The Eufy Robovac 15C Max is an ideal fit for apartments, where it can slide under space-saving furniture that blocks vacuums over three inches tall.

The bare bones vacuum is a step up from our previous Eufy recommendation, the 11s. Its 2,000 Pa of suction (compared to 1300Pa from the 11s) is great on hard floors and as sufficient on carpet as one could ask for from a budget vac. There's no room scanning tech, so its bobbling cleaning path isn't overly methodical. But unlike the 11s, you'll be able to control the 15C Max through the app (or your voice) to set custom cleaning schedules or adjust suction.

This mid-range Shark checks the basic boxes and gets you off the hook from emptying a dustbin for a month or two at a time. It provides methodical S-shaped coverage of your home, being sure to cover every inch — though it's known to repeat certain spots on occasion.

The suction doesn't necessarily wow, but doesn't disappoint, either. It won't dig into carpet fibers like a premium vac, but surface-level debris on hard floors and carpet are typically scooped up on the first run. A self-cleaning brushroll is particularly helpful for carpets topped with a layer of shedding.

Read our full review of the ILIFE V3s Pro.

Robot vacuums get a rep for being strictly for people with extra cash. Granted, some cheap ones do nothing more than zig-zag and push crumbs around — but for less than $160, the ILIFE V3s Pro is the fighter to choose if you just want to walk on your hard floors barefoot in peace.

Your experience with the V3s Pro depends on managed expectations. Hoping for features like fluffy carpet-mauling suction and an app that zeroes in on specific rooms will leave you bummed. But if you go into it expecting the precision of a cheap vacuum, you'll be wowed. The V3 puts in work on hardwood, sniffing out minuscule debris like pet hair and kitty litter that's basically dust. It's sweeping that rivals most high-end models.

D-shaped vacuums were Neato's thing far before Roomba caught word of that diligent edge cleaning. Amidst the discontinued D7 and pricey (and mediocre) D8, the Neato Botvac D6 oozes with value. Compared to the similarly-shaped Roomba s9+, the D6 won't empty its own small dust bin — but won't empty your wallet, either.

For up to two hours at a time, the D6 uses laser navigation to map out cleaning sessions and chug along in straight lines, which can be mediated by no-go boundaries. Additionally, the phone app can be used to create floor maps for each story or pick specific spots, like along kitchen cabinets.

If you're not one to die on the Swiffer Wet Jet hill, finding a robot vacuum that also mops could doubly simplify your cleaning routine. Coredy's R750 Hybrid model makes up for its lack of brand recognition with nearly 4,000 five star reviews on Amazon.

In vacuuming mode, the R750 uses dual side brushes to cover a wide path or sweep debris under furniture. Coredy's Boost-Intellect technology automatically adjusts suction levels based on where it's cleaning, and it's strong enough for debris and light layers of hair. In mopping mode, the R750 isn't so meticulous with floor type. Though it general controls water well, it won't stop mopping when crossing a rug or carpet. The boundary strips will be your friend.