The Best Robot Vacuum For Carpet
There's a robot to suit every carpet type, whether it's low-pile or high-pile. These smart appliances are able to navigate your home on their own and pick up dirt and clean under furniture.
They come with advanced features like mapping that help them navigate through your home and help you remember where furniture is. They can also increase the suction power in order to take on dirtier surfaces.
iRobot Roomba 694
The Roomba from iRobot is an entry level robot vacuum that is effective on both bare flooring and floor carpets with a low pile. It has a good suction however it has trouble with larger debris like sand or grains of rice. It is capable of cleaning pet hair, but it isn't as resistant to tangling as the premium Roomba models like the I6 and j7.
The Roomba is easy to use. It has three buttons on the top cover. "Clean," which launches a cleaning session and 'Dock' that puts it in its charging station and 'Spot,' which activates an individualized cleaning. You can control it via an app on your smartphone that lets you to schedule cycles, stop/start them and adjust settings. It can also be paired with smart home devices such as Alexa or Google Assistant for voice-controlled operation.
This vacuum is a bit slower than other models, but it's still able reach the majority of crevices and corners. It comes with a large bin, which makes it easier to empty. It's compatible with digital maps and virtual barriers that let you make it impossible to clean certain areas or even stop cleaning completely in order to prevent it from getting stuck on something.
Although it's not the top model in its price range but it's far superior to other alternatives. The Roborock E4 is more advanced than the Roomba 694, with superior cleaning performance for carpets that are low and bare. It also has a longer-lasting battery and a better path. It is also more durable, has fewer components that require regular maintenance, and costs less over its lifetime, and charges faster than 694.
It's also worth considering other models that are more expensive from the iRobot range, such as the 981 or the v7. The 981 and v7 are both more expensive, but provide significant improvement in cleaning efficiency, both on bare and low pile floors. They also have a larger dirt compartment, charge faster, move more easily, and are easier to pair up with smart home devices.
Shark RV1001AE IQ
This budget self-emptying robotic vacuum cleaner does an excellent job on low-pile carpet and hard floors. Its combinator brush gets to the edges and corners, and automatically increases suction as soon as it spots carpet. It also is effective in cleaning dirt embedded in mid-pile carpet. The IQ has a small footprint and a self-emptying function. However, if you want to change floor levels on the map, or set no-go zones, you'll need to manually reset it to do this, which is quite an inconvenience.
The IQ's app comes with advanced mapping and automation features however it doesn't have no-go zones that are available on iRobot models. The smart-pathing technology allows for greater maneuverability and the high-pile feature of its carpet cleaning mode is effective however it can be stuck on the tassels of the rug.
During our tests during our tests, the IQ was able to handle pet hair with ease, removing huge amounts of debris from floors that were not bare and fair amounts of medium-pile carpet. It was less efficient with shag carpets. It struggled to get at dirt and dust buried within the fibers. It was capable of maneuvering around the legs of chairs and tight spaces, as well as the bottom of an wooden IKEA step stool. It was slower on flooring that was not fully covered but it was able to recover speed and was more efficient than the other robots that we test.
The IQ is a better choice for the majority of users than the iRobot Roomba. It has a bigger dustbin, a longer battery life and is better at navigating obstacles. It comes with mopping tools that can clean up sticky messes. On the other hand, the iRobot is more durable and has fewer components that require replacement or maintenance, incurs lower recurring costs and can even create virtual no-go zones using its companion app. It can even resume a cleaning session from where it left off if it has run out of battery before finishing the job. The iRobot can also be controlled with voice commands, which is an enormous benefit for many users.
Eufy 11S
The RoboVac 11S by eufy isn't exactly the most feature-rich robot vacuum available however it offers excellent cleaning power at a low price. This robot vacuum is designed for budget-conscious consumers who don't need a complex mapping system, or even an app, to control it. The robot is capable of running for a long time and comes with the remote, a cleaning tool, AC power adapter, charging base and extra filters.
The 11S is slim and sleek and has a tempered-glass upper deck that resembles the brushed appearance of aluminum. It's a nice departure from Roomba, Samsung, and Neato designs that are more utilitarian and industrial.
The eufy11S did well in our tests to remove larger debris and fine dust from hard floors. It was unable to thoroughly clean carpets with high and medium piles. The device is also prone to smack into furniture and people that are in its path however, it is able to detect those obstacles using sensors. When it encounters them, it ceases to move and emits an alarm so that you can manually steer it through the obstacle before getting it back to work.
The BoostIQ mode is another great feature of the eufy11S. It lets you set the robot up to automatically adjust the suction force based on the floor type and the level of the mess. The remote control makes it simple to direct the 11S to your desired area.
Single Room Mode is a great alternative if you have a small amount of furniture in the area you'd like to vacuum. The eufy will spend 30 minutes intensely cleaning the area that it's assigned to.
You can also select Edge Cleaning that restricts the amount of time in each location to 20 minutes for maximum battery life. This option allows the eufy to move in a spiraling manner, cleaning corners and edges.
Miele Complete C1
The Miele Complete C1 is an excellent mid-range canister robotic vacuum and a top performer on carpet. Its performance is also excellent on floors that are not bare. It is able to remove rice and other small particles with ease. The suction power doesn't drop as the dirt bin fills. Its design is a breathable one and its air-sealed body captures allergens to keep your family healthy. It uses an onboard HEPA filter and a self-emptying bin, so you don't need additional filters or a separate vacuum bag.
It's not as powerful as more expensive models, but it's ideal for fighting dirt and deep cleaning. The two cameras on the front of the unit provide live images to your smartphone, and it comes with one of the best obstacles-avoiding systems we've seen. It also has a large dustbin, a long runtime best robot vacuum for carpet and a quick clean-up that is free of bumps.
Contrary to other robots the Complete C1 can switch between the standard powerhead and the turbo head to accommodate different flooring types. The turbo head is best with high-pile or low-pile carpeting while the standard powerhead is good for bare floors and light rug. It also has an automatic height adjustment system that allows it to adapt to different types flooring without manual adjustments.
The model comes with an SBD 285-3 Classic Combination Floorhead that can handle both hard floors as well as carpeting of medium-pile. The motor can also be easily maneuvered and reach difficult spots. It comes with five levels of surface adjustments and a brushroll off switch to avoid hairs getting caught in tangles.
The Classic C1 has a self cleaning brush roll, it has a UtraClean Mode that can clean the same area three times, and a self-emptying dustbin that you can empty with a single button press. Its noise level is slightly higher than other models however, its powerful 1,200-watt motor and robust construction make it worth the extra expense.
If you're willing to pay a bit more then the Miele Complete C3 is an excellent all-around canister robot vacuum that is more effective on carpet than the Classic C1. It is better suited for any type of flooring, is more solidly constructed and comes with an HEPA filter.