By Bryan Wall
Product Test Journalist | Kaipūrongo Whakamātautau Hautaonga
A robot vacuum seems to promise effort-free cleaning for your home. These little home helpers certainly have their place, but we reckon you shouldn’t always believe the hype. We’ll sort the facts from the fiction for you, so you know what a robot vac can really do and what’s just marketing guff.
On this page
- If I get one, I’ll never have to vacuum again
- They’re too expensive
- They’re set-and-forget devices
- Massive suction ratings means they’ll clean better
- They can’t clean along edges and into corners
- They’re excellent at cleaning hard floors
- They’re excellent at cleaning carpets
- You can’t have one if you have pets
- They’re only good for single-storey homes
- They’re easy to set up and use
If I get one, I’ll never have to vacuum again
Verdict: False
This is the biggest myth of them all! Robot vacs are improving all the time, and they can do a reasonable job of keeping your floors clean, but they still aren’t quite good enough to warrant getting rid of your old corded or stick vac. You’ll still need to do a manual clean occasionally to get the bits that the bot missed, and an occasional deeper clean of your rugs and carpets.
They’re too expensive
Verdict: False
It’s true there are plenty of eye-wateringly expensive robot vacuums out there, but you can also find models for around $500 that will do the job just fine. Check our test reviews to find the best ones.
They’re set-and-forget devices
Verdict: False
Robot vacuums are reasonably autonomous, but these circular marvels still need a bit of supervision. You’ll need to tidy your floors, lift chairs and make sure doors are open before it starts cleaning. High-end models can recognise, avoid and even photograph objects you’ve left lying around, but you won’t get a proper clean around them, because they’ll leave those areas untouched. There will also be times when you need to intervene – the bot might get stuck on a cord or tasselled rug, miss an area or need its bin emptied or water tank filled. Often, if you’ve only got a small area to clean, it’s easier just to vacuum it yourself.
Massive suction ratings means they’ll clean better
Verdict: False
18L/s airflow, 19,500Pa suction power … what does it all mean? In the real world, not an awful lot! In our tests, we’ve yet to find correlation between suction claims and performance. Many flagship models associated with these huge claims perform no better than cheaper models.
They can’t clean along edges and into corners
Verdict: Partly true
Many robot vac models now have extending brushes and mop heads that can get right along the edges of your skirting, but even the best models still leave dust in corners, or can’t quite get the mop head in there: you’ll still need a manual vac or dustpan for those areas.
They’re excellent at cleaning hard floors
Verdict: True
Yep, you heard it right. Most robot vacs (with a few notable exceptions) are darn good at cleaning floorboards, tiles and concrete floors, and some are great at mopping them at the same time.
Looking for a robot vacuum?
Find out how 32 models rated when we tested them.
They’re excellent at cleaning carpets
Verdict: False
Sadly, robot vacs just aren’t all that good for carpets. Granted, our test is tough: it’s based on the tests we do for corded and cordless vacuums. But so it should be for a fair comparison. Our current top score for carpet cleaning among robot vacuums is only 49. For hard floor it’s twice that, at 98!
You can’t have one if you have pets
Verdict: False
Robot vacs and pets can live together in perfect harmony. Higher-end models will recognise and try to avoid pets and their poops, but many models are also quite good at picking up their shed hairs – check our pet hair pick-up scores. Pets also get used to their new robot overlords pretty quickly and will avoid or tolerate them.
They’re only good for single-storey homes
Verdict: False
Most robot vacs can map multiple areas, which means you can have separate maps for upstairs and downstairs if you have a multi-storey home. They can’t currently climb stairs (although Roborock have recently demonstrated a stair cleaning prototype), so you will have to carry them.
They’re easy to set up and use
Verdict: Partly true
Setting up robot vacs is getting easier, but connecting them to your network, mapping your home and operating the necessary smartphone app still requires some technical understanding. There may also be some troubleshooting required along the way – if they’re not cleaning as well as you expected, or require maintenance. Most apps are pretty good at guiding you through all this.
