The Best Robot Vacuum For Carpet
Whether you've got low or high-pile carpet, there's a robot vacuum for you. These smart appliances are able to navigate your home on their own clean up debris and clean under furniture.
They are equipped with advanced features, like mapping that help them navigate through your home and help you remember where furniture is located. They can also increase suction power to clean up areas.
iRobot Roomba 694
The iRobot Roomba 694 is an entry-level robot vacuum that is able to work on carpets with a low pile or bare floor. It has a good suction, but struggles with larger debris such as grains of rice or sand. It is capable of cleaning pet hair, but it is not as resistant to knots as premium Roomba models such as the I6 and j7.
The Roomba 694 is simple to use. It features three buttons on the top cover. "Clean," which launches a cleaning session and 'Dock' that places it in its charging station and 'Spot,' which activates an individualized cleaning. It can be controlled with a smartphone app that allows you to schedule and stop/start cycles, as well as adjust settings. You can also pair it with smart home devices such as Alexa or Google Assistant for voice-controlled operation.
This vacuum cleaner is slower than some others, but can still get into the most crevices and corners. It has a large dustbin which is ideal for reducing the frequency which you must empty it. It is compatible with digital maps and virtual barriers which let you set it to avoid specific areas or stop cleaning altogether when you want to stop it from getting stuck on something.
Although it's not the top model in its price range, it's better than many other options. The Roborock E4 is more advanced than the Roomba 694, with better cleaning efficiency on carpets that are low and bare. It also follows an efficient cleaning route and has longer battery life. It also feels better-made, has fewer parts that require regular maintenance, costs less to own over the course of its life, and charges faster than the 694.
It's also worth considering other, more premium models within the iRobot line, such as the 981 or the v7. The v7 and 981 are more expensive, but they offer significant improvements in cleaning performance for both bare and low pile floors. They also have a larger dirt compartment and charge faster, move more easily, and are more a breeze to pair with smart home devices.
Shark RV1001AE IQ
This budget self-emptying robot vacuum cleaner does a good job on carpets with a low pile and hard flooring. The combo brush can reach into edges and corners, and it automatically boosts suction when it senses carpet. It also excels at cleaning dirt that is embedded in the middle of the pile carpet. The IQ's compact footprint for docks and its self-emptying feature are nice touches. If you'd like to change the floor levels or set areas that are not allowed to be used, you'll need to manually reset the map.
The IQ's app has some advanced mapping and automation features however it doesn't have no-go zones which are included on iRobot models. Its intelligent-pathing navigational system gives you greater maneuverability and its high-pile carpet mode cleans well, but it is prone to get caught up on rug tassels. Additionally, its iHome speaker lets you control the robot with voice commands.
During our tests in our tests, the IQ was capable of handling pet hair well, clearing huge amounts of hair from floors with no flooring and fair amounts on medium-pile carpet. It was a little less effective on shag carpet, where it struggled to reach dirt and dust buried in the fibers. It was able navigate chair legs, small spaces and even the base of an IKEA wooden step stool. We did notice that it was a little slower on bare floors however it soon recovered speed and performed better than other robots we tested.
The IQ is a better option for most users than the iRobot Roomba. It has a bigger dustbin, a longer battery life and is more adept at navigating around obstacles. It has mopping tools that can clean up sticky messes. On the other side the iRobot is built better and has fewer parts that require replacement or maintenance and incurs lower costs for recurring maintenance and creates virtual no-go zones with its companion app. It is able to even resume a cleaning session from where it left off if it runs out of battery before it has completed the task. The iRobot can be controlled by voice commands, which is a major benefit for many users.
Eufy 11S
The RoboVac 11S by eufy isn't exactly the most feature-rich robot vacuum around but it does provide excellent cleaning power at a low price. The RoboVac 11S is made for those who are budget conscious and don't require a complicated mapping system, or even an application to control it. The robot is able to last for over an hour. It comes with the remote control, cleaning tool, and AC power adapter.
The 11S is slim, elegant and has a tempered glass upper deck that appears like polished aluminum. It's a refreshing departure from the utilitarian and industrial designs of Roomba, Samsung and Neato.
In our tests, the eufy 11S was very effective in removing larger particles and fine dust on hard flooring. It struggled to deep clean high-pile and medium-pile carpets. The device is capable of bumping into furniture and people along its path. However, it is able detect these obstacles using sensors. When it encounters them, it ceases to move and emits a loud sound so you can manually steer it around the obstacle and get back to work.
Another excellent aspect of the eufy 11S is its BoostIQ mode, which allows you to set vacuum robot the robot to automatically adjust its suction strength to match the type of floor and level of mess. It's also easy to use the remote to direct the 11S in the direction you want it to go.
Single Room Mode is a great option if you have little furniture in the area you'd like to vacuum. The eufy will take 30 minutes focusing on cleaning the space it is assigned to.
Edge Cleaning is another option that can limit the time spent on each area to a maximum of 20 minutes. This will extend battery life. With this option, the eufy will move in a spiral pattern taking care of edges and corners for an efficient clean.
Miele Complete C1
The Miele Complete C1 canister robot is a great mid-range vacuum cleaner that is a winner on carpet. Its performance on floors that are not bare is also exceptional. It is able to remove small particles like rice easily and it doesn't suffer from suction power even when its dirt bin fills. Its air-sealed, allergy-friendly design capture allergens to keep your family safe. It comes with an onboard HEPA filter and a self-emptying bin, so you won't need to purchase additional filters or a separate vacuum bag.
It's not as powerful as more expensive models, but it's great for tackling stains and deep cleaning. It comes with two cameras in front which provide live feeds to your smartphone. It also has one of the most advanced obstacle avoidance systems. It also has a large dustbin, a long running time and a speedy and smooth clean-up.
The Complete C1 is unlike most robots in that it can switch between two heads, a standard and a turbo to suit different kinds of flooring. The turbo head is ideal for carpeting that is high-pile and low-pile and the standard powerhead works well on unfinished floors and light rug. It also comes with an automated height adjustment system, which lets it easily adapt to various types of flooring without any manual adjustments.
The model comes with a SBD 285-3 Classic Combination Floorhead that can handle hard floors as well as carpeting of medium-pile. The motor can also be easily maneuvered and get into difficult areas. It has five levels of surface adjustment as well as a switch that lets you turn off the brushroll to help prevent tangled hairs.
The Classic C1 also has a self-cleaning brush roll, an UtraClean mode that goes around the same area three times for the most thorough cleaning, and a self-emptying dustbin that can be emptied with the press of a button. Its sound level is a little higher than some other models however, its powerful 1,200-watt motor as well as robust construction make it worth the extra expense.
If you're willing to pay some extra money, the Miele Complete C3 canister robot vacuum is a great all-around robot vacuum. It is more effective on carpets than the Classic C1. It is more efficient on all floors, feels more solidly built and comes with a HEPA filter.