Can a robot vacuum really keep your home clean?

Updated June 2025

From doing the laundry, to washing the dishes, we outsourced the grunt work of most domestic chores to machines decades ago. By automating the sweeping and removal of dust and dirt from floors, the vacuum cleaner represented a huge step forward, saving vast amounts of time and energy, while also doing a far more thorough job of sucking up dust than any broom was ever going to manage.

The one shortcoming? Traditional vacuum cleaners still require humans to push them around. Today, technology is allowing us to further reduce the element of manual labour required around the house thanks to smart home devices like the robot vacuum cleaner, many of which now also incorporate a mop function.

Check out 5 of our most popular robot vacs in 2025.

A robot vacuum cleaner, or robo vac, uses sensors, a navigation system and suction power to automatically clean floors.

The sensors help it find its way around furniture, avoid stairs and other obstacles, and identify dust and dirt. The navigation system maps out a floor plan, and then the unit plots virtual walls and follows a cleaning route, methodically vacuuming the whole living room, bedroom, kitchen or hallway.

Like regular vacuum cleaners, the robo vac’s motor creates suction power, which inhales dust and dirt into its dustbin compartment, which can vary in size from around 300 to 900ml. In addition to this suction power, some robot vacuums have brushes that agitate and loosen dirt, enabling it to get sucked up more easily. Most also have side brushes that flick dirt out of edges and corners and into the vacuum.

Robot vacuums keep going until they have either finished cleaning the designated area or, as with cordless stick vacuum cleaners, their battery needs recharging. Some models will return to their charging dock when their battery runs low, and pick up their cleaning duties where they left off once they have recharged. Pretty handy, eh? Unfortunately, they can’t yet tidy up your home before they vacuum it.

Yes, robovacs can clean rugs and carpets - to an extent. Thinner, low-pile rugs and carpets pose no challenge to today’s models, many of which feature specialised brushes and strong suction power designed for this purpose.

Few robot vacuums, however, can effectively clean deeper pile rugs, because the longer fibres can get tangled in the machine’s moving parts. If you have rugs with fringe tassels, there’s also a risk that the vacuum will ‘choke’ on them, though the sensors in higher end models are getting better at detecting obstacles like this.

If your rugs prove too challenging for your robot vacuum, you may be able to program it to recognise and avoid them altogether. While this means that your cleaning companion won’t encounter these issues, it also means that the rug won’t be cleaned. If soft floor coverings make up only a small part of your flooring, this might not be a problem for you, but if you’re a multiple shaggy rug household, you may find the robo vac to be of more limited use.

The size of the unit’s dustbin, how frequently it’s used, and the volume of dirt it collects will affect how often a robot vacuum needs to be emptied. As with any type of vacuum, a robo vac in a busy household with lots of dirty shoes or sandy feet traipsing through it, not to mention pet hair, will need emptying more frequently than one in a quieter home. On average, though, you may find yourself emptying it once or twice a week - on which occasions you’ll thank your little friend for saving you the effort of cleaning up that dirt yourself.

If the vacuum you currently use to clean any deep-pile carpets and shaggy rugs has a transparent dust collection compartment, you’ll know that a lot of what’s sucked up seems to be fibres and fluff. If you use your robo vac to clean these surfaces, their dust compartments can fill up pretty quickly. In these circumstances, you may want to choose a model that has a self-emptying capability, courtesy of an auto-emptying docking station (these are sometimes included and sometimes sold separately). This can save you the effort of continually emptying the vacuum, because your little cleaning buddy will return to its dock to automatically transfer the dirt into a larger dustbin unit.

The suction power of a robot vacuum is measured in Pascal pressure units (Pa). Many vacuums also display their wattage, but that’s an indication of how much energy they use, rather than how powerful their suction is.

The suction power of robovacs generally ranges from around 1000-4000 Pa, though you can increasingly find 6000Pa in premium models, and the Dyson 360 VisNav claims an unrivalled 22,000 Pa. For the average home, and those with predominantly hard flooring, the lower end of this scale should be sufficient. Busier households and those with more carpeted areas, meanwhile, might require a vacuum with higher Pa.

Robot vacuums are unlikely to damage your floor or carpet, but, as with any vacuum, it’s important to regularly check the base of the unit to make sure it’s free of any bits of stuck dirt or debris that could potentially damage the floor. This is particularly important if you have flooring that is more sensitive to scratches, like hardwood or vinyl.

Keeping your robo vac well maintained is one of the best ways of also maintaining the condition of your floor, so you should try to follow the manufacturer’s instructions in this regard, and that includes cleaning or changing the filters as required.

Many of the best robot vacuums from brands including Samsung, Electrolux, Dreame, Roborock, Narwal and Ecovacs now also have mopping functionality, using dampened cloths or microfibre pads attached to the bottom of the unit to mop up stubborn dirt and sticky spills that vacuums don’t get. These usually have built-in water tanks of around 300ml capacity, and premium models can return to their docks to get their mops cleaned and water tanks refilled.

Robo vacs with mopping functions are usually good at recognising rugs and carpets, and either steering clear of them while mopping, or retracting their mops when in contact with them. The first time you try out the mop function, however, you may want to check that the edges or tassels of any rugs are not left damp by the process.

Having a mop incorporated into your robot vacuum can be really useful, but some unsealed or porous hard floors aren’t suitable for mopping of any type, and that includes by robo vacs. It’s always worth checking the manufacturer’s manual for any restrictions in relation to floor surfaces when you’re looking at any particular model.

Robot vacuums that have long battery lives and large dust storage capabilities can clean multiple rooms or large open-plan living spaces on a single charge. Those with a shorter battery life, that need to return to their charging station more frequently, are more suitable for single rooms or smaller areas.

The unit’s ability to map its surroundings and navigate obstacles will also affect the area of your home that it’s able to clean. Smarter, higher end models can generally do a better job of this.

Unfortunately, robot vacuums are not yet able to navigate up and down stairs, so if your home has more than one floor, you may require more than one robovac. You can move the unit between floors yourself, but this may interfere with scheduled automatic cleans. If you live in a single storey home, however, it’s possible for robot vacs with longer battery lives and the ability to return to their docking station, to clean your whole house.

Small kids and pets can get curious and try to play with robovacs, so if possible, schedule it to clean at times of the day when children and pets are out, perhaps once the kids have gone to school or childcare, and the dog’s in the backyard.

Some models have safety features that shut the unit down if the sensor detects interference - and that includes being accidentally stepped on by adults as well. If this does happen, turn the unit off and inspect it for damage. If it appears to be OK, you can switch it back on and keep using it, watching and listening to see if moves normally, sounds the same as usual and is collecting dirt. If not, it may require repair or, potentially, replacement.

For these reasons, it’s best to schedule robot vacuums to clean when there are a minimum of people in the home, or at least in the area that is being vacuumed or mopped.

As with all appliances, the cost of robot vacuums varies according to the features, inclusions and brand. In Australia, good quality entry level models can start from around $400, while higher end units with greater battery life, navigation, suction, bin capacity, mop functionality and features, including wifi, voice control and integration with alexa and other voice assistants, can cost up to $1800 and beyond.

How does that compare with standard vacuum cleaners? It’s more expensive, but you’re not just buying a vacuum, you’re paying for the convenience of a helping hand around the house.

If you have a predominantly hard floor covering - whether it’s wood, tiles, resin or polished concrete - a robot vacuum cleaner can be a really good option, because the latest generation of models can reach far more places than they used to be able to do (including under sofas). Add to this the benefit of the built-in mop that higher end models offer, and you could almost eliminate manual vacuuming for your home.

As well as saving you the time and effort of vacuuming, having a robot vacuum will probably result in your home being cleaned more frequently because you can schedule it to clean daily, or even more often - leaving it almost continually freer of dust, dirt and allergens. Who among us can say they manually vacuum that often?

Despite these benefits, a robot vacuum will probably not entirely remove the need to occasionally give your home a deeper, more thorough manual clean with a stick, barrel or upright vacuum, especially if your home is adorned with shaggy rugs.

Regardless of your floor furnishings, some corners and crevices may still elude your little buddy too, and basic models may also struggle with obstructions like cords, rugs, or furniture, and may need manual intervention to get them back on track. Higher end models with superior navigation and sensors, however, are continually getting better at avoiding these obstacles.

The ‘best vacuum’ is subjective, and you should choose a model that suits your specific needs. If you live in a small home with hard floors and no rugs, there’s probably not much value in buying a more expensive vacuum with the highest levels of suction, longest battery life and carpet cleaning capabilities. You may, however, find it worth spending more to get a machine with a mopping function.

If your home does have greater or more complex cleaning requirements, you should make sure that the robot vacuum you’re considering has the capacity to do what you need it to. There’s no point investing in a labour saving device if it’s not up to the job. Check the specs and the manufacturer’s manual online beforehand (Appliances Online includes this on each product’s page where possible).

In terms of leading brands, Roborock, iRobot Roomba, the Botvac from Neato, Eufy’s RoboVac, Bissell and Dreame offer highly rated models, all of which continue to rapidly improve with each generation.

It’s always a good idea to check online star ratings, and to read customer reviews, which can sometimes help you gauge whether other people with similar domestic circumstances have found the product to be suited to the task at hand.

Check out our rundown of 5 of our most popular robot vacs in 2025.

We deliver robot vacuums, and the rest of our products, to 95% of Australia’s population with Appliances Online's legendary FREE delivery - and we can usually get it to you by the next day (Mon-Fri). Most Australian retailers don’t offer this, so if you’re comparing prices, always factor in the delivery cost and how long it will take to get to you. PLUS, if you’re getting rid of your old vacuum cleaner, we can take it away for recycling when we deliver your new robot vac.

You can view our full range of robot vacuums, or if you need a few more pointers on choosing other types of vacuum, read our Vacuum Cleaner Buying Guide. If you have any questions, you can always call our friendly team, 24/7, on 1300 004 500.