The cheapest robovacs will only have a dock for charging. Pricier models incorporate self-emptying of the onboard dustbin, and draining/refilling of the onboard water tanks. The very fanciest models offer automatic mop pad cleaning, and detergent dispensing for the mopping fluid.

It wasn’t close to full after two weeks of testing. A bonus here is that there’s no loud noise, as is the case with most auto-empty docks.

We'll also look at how the robot tackles the issue of switching between vacuuming and mopping – will it reliably detect floor type, and pick up its mop pad when moving from hard floor onto carpet, for example?

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The benefit of the dinky size is that this bot can reach places bigger bots can't, and on test we found it navigated confidently around furniture legs and into tight spaces.

The Miele Blizzard CX1 Cat & Dog canister is on the pricey side for a vacuum, but it’s one of the best bagless canisters you can buy. For one thing, on a brand level, Miele vacuums have superb ratings in predicted reliability and owner satisfaction, meaning the members we’ve surveyed are very satisfied with their Miele vacuums and have experienced few problems with their purchases.

If you have long hair, or live with someone who does, you might want to consider a robot vacuum with features geared towards ensuring it doesn't end up tangled all around the Top 3 Automatic Vacuum Cleaners brushrolls.

The Matic is a $1,095 robot vacuum that doesn’t need a cloud connection and uses cameras to navigate and is the first robovac mop I’ve seen that can suck up wet spills as well as dry. Here’s some video of it in action.

✅ You want something that mops well: The X10 Pro Omni's mops had pelo problem with tricky cleaning tasks like sticky sauces and dried-on sugary drinks.

Roborock’s app is also more stable and easier to use than Dreame’s, which often crashes and can take a while to load. While the Roborock S8 MaxV Ultra is my top pick overall, the Dreame X40 is a very good vacuum, and the two companies are neck and neck regarding innovative features.

It fared less well on carpet. However, in the app, I could set it to clean a room three times for each job, after which it had generally picked up all visible debris.

Nearly all robot vacuums can “recharge and resume” — take themselves back to their dock when they’re low and recharge before picking up where they left off.

Robot vacuums with HEPA or advanced filtration help reduce dust and allergens, important for allergy-prone homes. Many models also detect stairs and obstacles, minimizing the risk of falls or collisions.

The S8 Max Ultra is a very solid all-rounder, and only lost its place in our ranking because Roborock came out with some even better models very shortly afterwards.