How to Find the Best Budget Robot Vacuum

A bargain robotic vacuum is a steal. Beware of the maintenance costs that may be higher than you anticipated: tangles in brushes, clogged air inlets and empty dust bins can quickly make your automatic cleaning dream into a chore.

The iRobot J7 Combo is the most affordable robot for a variety of users. It delivers almost the same hands-off experience at only a fraction of the cost.

Suction Power

Some models that are priced at this level have sufficient suction to perform basic vacuuming, while others might require help from a handheld nozzle to reach the deepest cracks and crevices. A budget-friendly vacuum is likely to complete the job well if you live in a home that has primarily hard floors. However, if the floors are different surfaces and you also have rugs, or if you have pets who shed, a more capable model will give you the most effective results for your cost.

Some models with a budget price include a mopping feature and a water tank, which increases their versatility. The more recent Dyson R7050C, for example, has very good scores in CR's tests of navigation and a huge bin of 770ml, but it is louder than many of the other robots we've tried and doesn't have mopping features. The smaller Eufy Roborock Q5 Pro, by contrast, is relatively quiet and has an auto-empty dock. It also has a water tank, a powerful suction capacity of 5,500pascal and a large bin that can be filled with cleaning solution to make it a more efficient mopping device. You can control the Q5 Pro via the smart app to mop or vac in a room, a sequence of rooms, or an area, and you can set no-go zones and customise suction and mopping settings for different rooms.

The Shark ION is a good option for those seeking something affordable easy to use and reliable. It's not as sophisticated as other models, having a basic app and no-frills maps, but it has superior cleaning and navigation capabilities. It's also one of the few robots we've tested that can tell the difference between carpets and hard flooring, and it has a 300ml dustbin that needs to be emptied every 30 days.

If you want a more sophisticated model that can vacuum, mop and create an outline of your home to avoid obstacles more effectively, consider some of the top models within this price range. The iRobot Roomba 650/750 has a powerful suction and combs to get rid of pet hair and dust, and it can be controlled via your smart home assistant. The Samsung Cleanbot SV8000 is another option that has excellent cleaning capabilities for the price.

Navigation Efficiency

A budget-friendly robot vacuum could be just as effective as the more expensive models as long as it is able to navigate your home and avoid obstacles. To measure the effectiveness of navigation our lab technicians installed a tracking device to watch a robot's movement through a multiroom test home and test its ability to locate the rooms it must clean in a given time frame, while avoiding hazards such as rug power cords, power cords and furniture. We also examine how fast a robot can move through different terrains of a house, including stairways and floor transitions.

The best budget robot vacuums are equipped with navigation systems that allow them to clean a room efficiently without getting lost or running into obstacles. Many robot vacuums come with the ability to map which is essential for a full-house clean. Even budget models without mapping can efficiently cover a room. It's important to consider balancing the price of your machine with the features that you need.

We also consider how easily a robot can pass over common household thresholds like the size of a door's sill or the height of the sofa. A good budget-friendly robot will be able to navigate these obstacles, and some come with settings that alter the suction power according to the type of floor. We also consider whether the robot is compatible with smart home technology and is able to be controlled remotely using an app or voice commands.

The iLife V3s Pro is a great example of a budget robot that comes with basic mapping capabilities as well as intelligent features. It's also very affordable. It can be controlled by the iRobot App, and it has an automatic return feature that will return the robot to its home base when the battery is exhausted and continues where it left off.

The iLife V3s Pro does not come with the advanced object-avoidance technology found on a lot of premium robots. However, it does have a live camera which transmits a grainy feed to your smartphone so that you can observe it working. The cameras can spot stairs and other obstructions and alert the robot if it encounters them. However the iLife employs random navigation instead of a method designed to keep objects from getting stuck against furniture legs, so it may not be able around a leg of a chair or another tight spot as easily as a robot with mapping capabilities.

Cleaning Performance

If you're looking for a robot vacuum it's crucial to balance cost with performance. Budget models may not include advanced features such as mapping but there are some that excel in cleaning your home. Pay attention to the dimensions and capacity of the dust bin. It is essential to have enough space to accommodate all the debris that a robot accumulates, including pet dander, dirt and hair.

You'll want a vacuum that can remove stains and dirt from carpets as well. We test all models on the ZDNET robot vacuum chart for their ability to remove dirt and hair off carpet. The best automatic vacuum ones have a special brush designed to dig into the carpet's fibers and pull out dirt.

The budget models are great at getting rid of small messes on plain floors or low-pile floor carpets but they struggle to remove larger debris and pet hairs from carpets with higher pile. They tend to have less suction power than more expensive models, but can still do an excellent job of getting rid of debris from tight spaces like corners and underneath furniture.

The iLife V3s Pro is the most affordable vacuuming model with top marks in our tests with its ability to lift dirt and hair from carpets. It is also among our quieter models and easy to use. It comes with a suction hole that scoops up debris instead of pushing it through the brush bar. It can also adjust the power to match the surface. It has a sidebrush with three bristles to push hair and debris into the robot's path. However, it's not as effective at picking fine dust.

Look for a model with mop and vacuum functions, such as the Combo j9 Plus. This robot can vacuum and mop simultaneously and you can alter the settings for each room. It's more expensive compared to other budget robot vacs in our list, but it has the advantages of having a forward-facing camera which enables more precise mapping and better protection against obstacles such as power cords and cat piss.

Maintenance

The convenience robot vacuums robot offer is wonderful, however the technology comes at cost. Regular maintenance is essential for everything from emptying the dust bin to changing filters and cleaning their brush bar. They can also get caught up in cords or fall off the steps.

The most affordable robot vacuums reduce these hassles as they require little user management. Top picks are equipped with navigation systems that enable them to avoid obstacles and avoid dangers like electrical cords and food items that have been dropped. Sensors are used to map rooms, and create maps that inform them where they have already cleaned.

Even the most basic robotic floor scrubber vacuums will provide a clean and efficient service when you try them and don't be put off by the high cost of better models. Many of our top budget choices are made by top OEMs like iRobot, Roborock and Dreame, so you'll be assured that they've been designed with the utmost attention to detail and built to last.

If you're willing to spend more, think about mopping machines. These machines can scrub floors using a wet cloth and remove stubborn stains. They can also be used in conjunction with mop pads to tackle tough jobs like dried coffee.

The TP-Link Tapo RV30 plus is the most affordable mopping robot we've reviewed in our roundup. It has the clean elegant, minimalist design of a home hub, but the features and performance of a top-rated robot with LiDAR navigation. In our tests, the RV30 was able to navigate without bumping mindlessly into furniture and create detailed maps of its floorplan that it can reference on future runs. This is the only robot in the budget that we have tested with this feature. iRobot Roomba also has mapping capabilities, but the app's setup guides you through the entire process.

Make sure to keep your robot in good condition regardless of whether you pick an expensive robovac or one that is more affordable. You should empty the trash bin and clean the filter after each cleaning session (refer to your owner's guide or the website of the manufacturer for more details). It is also recommended to replace its battery when needed, and check in on its Wi-Fi connectivity as well as app updates.