Best Self-Empting Robot Vacuums and Mops
The Eufy 11S robotic vacuum is one of the cheapest self-emptying vacuums on the market. It was able to efficiently remove dry oatmeal from hard floors and low-pile carpeting in our tests. Its dust bin is open and empty quickly, making it much easier to use than other models in the same price.
It recharges at the base and then resumes cleaning when fully charged. Its obstacle-avoidance technology gets caught in socks and cords, and isn't able to get under low thresholds.
1. iRobot Roomba 11S
The 11S is a less expensive self-emptying robotic vacuum cleaner that a lot of people seem to love. It is good at getting under furniture and is a great choice for those with hard floors or who do a lot of cleaning. Its suction may be a little weaker than those of our top picks, but it still gets the job done. It has a big dust bin as well as a long-lasting battery. The app allows you to schedule your daily cleaning routine, or select a specific room. It's also possible to draw a map of your home, which can aid in avoiding areas you don't want it to visit.
The app is easy to use and has a clear layout. It doesn't have any advanced features, but it's straightforward enough to use and allows you to track the status of your robot. It comes with a tutorial that will guide you through the basics.
Its cleaning pattern doesn't always look logical - sometimes it follows straight lines, and other times it seeks out the edges of a room - however, Bounce Navigation ensures your entire floor gets cleaned. It's not the most adept at negotiating obstacles, though - it struggled to get under our piano pedals as well as pet food bowls, and ended up getting tangled up in our 2.25-inch shag rug a few times.
We think that there are better robot vacuums on the market than the 11S. The iRobot Roomba is easier to maintain, has lower recurring costs and charges more quickly. It also has a larger dustbin and performs better on all surfaces, and it can overcome low-lying obstructions (like electrical cords) more easily.
The RoboVac 11S from Eufy is another good alternative for regular vacuuming. It is a close design to our top choice and is good at picking up small particles and fine dust from hard flooring. It also does a decent job on low-pile and medium-pile carpet. Like the Roomba by iRobot Roomba, it comes with a large dirt compartment and uses BoostIQ to automatically adjust suction power. It also comes with a remote control that's easy to operate and allows you to program daily cleaning routines with the app. Its battery lasts for about an hour and the dustbin can be empty without taking it from the dock.
2. Roborock S7 MaxV Ultra
The Roborock S7 MaxV Ultra is a fantastic robot vacuum and mop with a surprising array of automation options. www.robotvacuummops.com is available in three models that include the basic S7 model, the S7 Plus model and the S7 Ultra. The S7 MaxV Ultra is the only one equipped with an Empty Wash Fillet Dock (or an alternate Auto-Empty Dock). These docks allow the robot to return to its base, empty the collected debris in a dust bag, or reservoir, empty the dirty water tank and wash its mopping pads.
The S7's sensors work together to avoid obstacles and clean the floors. It can recognize flooring types, save a map of rooms and zones, and even detect levels of dirt. It's also capable of scheduling and carrying out spot-cleaning sessions. It did well in our tests, but it didn't exactly match the Roomba j7+ during the carpet deep clean test.
You can program the S7 with the companion app to run a cleansing cycle according to your schedule. You can select an option for cleaning, such as eco or automatic, as well as a day, week or time. You can also decide whether the robot will stop when its power runs out or if it encounters an obstruction.
You can still make use of the S7 if you don't own a smartphone by connecting the charging dock to a remote control. The controls on the remote can be a bit difficult to understand, but once you get the hang of them, they function well. The power button doubles as a general 'Clean' button and the "Spot Clean" button directs the robot to clean the area around it. The "Spot Clean" button also triggers the child lock.
In addition to the new mapping features, Roborock improved its mobile app by adding live view that lets you observe what the S7 is doing at home. You can enable it by pressing a particular sequence of buttons on your S7, and then create an unlock pattern within the mobile app that you can use at any time you want to know what the S7 is doing.
3. Shark IQ SX
Shark isn't as well-known for its robot vacuums as iRobot and Roborock, but our tests on this model has shown it to be one of the most efficient self-emptying robot vacuums available on the market. It's simple to set up and comes with an enormous bin which can be easily emptied (albeit loudly) to a trashcan when it's full. It can also be programmed to clean the whole house on a set schedule.
The IQ XL can connect to your home WiFi, which allows you to monitor it through the Shark app and view its battery levels as it cleans. The app lets you set cleaning schedules, receive notifications by push regarding its current status as well as it can pause and resume cleaning or set it to a single room. It can also be controlled by voice commands using Amazon Alexa or Google Assistant. The app will tell you the power mode it's currently in, namely Eco, Normal, or Max. We didn't discover that any of the modes had a significant impact to cleaning performance.
The IQ XL will automatically empty the bin at the end of a cleaning cycle into the base, which will self-empty. Its bin holds up to 60 days worth of debris It won't require emptying more frequently than that unless you have many pets with long hair. If you have to empty it, all you need to do is remove the side bin, hold it over a trash can, and press a button to eject its contents.
The Shark IQ XL is a great vacuum cleaner. It does a decent job cleaning floors that are not bare and it can maneuver itself well. However the Shark IQ XL feels a little less solidly built than the Roomba 694. It clears many messes on unfinished floors and does a decent job of moving itself around, but it doesn't come as close to achieving the same performance as the iRobot Roomba i7 in terms of performance on carpeted floors. The i7 also feels more durable, is more robust, requires less maintenance, has lower recurring costs, charges faster, and offers comparable battery performance. It also has more advanced technology for automation, such as no-go zones and the ability to select the rooms that should be cleaned.
iRobot j7+
This robot vac and mop combination is a rare find that can do both tasks well. The iRobot Combo J7+ comes with all the features of its j7-based counterpart, including LiDAR mapping and self-emptying, but with additional features for both mopping and vacuuming.
The j7+ makes use of the new acoustic sensor to detect the type of floor and allows it to vacuum or mop the room in its first attempt. It also uses this info to prioritize cleaning rooms with carpet and rug flooring over rooms with hard floors.
The J7+ is quieter than most robotic vacuums when it's in use and is even quieter when it's mopping. The maximum reading of 64 decibels on our decibel meter is similar to office chatter.
It's easy to set an appointment for cleaning and adjust what the j7+ does when its dust container is full. The j7+ can be controlled with voice assistants (Alexa, Google Assistant, etc.).) for a hands-free approach and the app lets you create and view maps of your home.
In our tests, we found that the j7+ was a solid performer on both hard and carpeted floors, and it cleaned up most of the dirt we tossed at it. It has a difficult time dealing with pet hair, large debris and sand. But it can remove them with a bit more effort. It also has decent navigation capabilities, as well as a set of cliff sensors to stop it from falling down a flight of stairs or getting stuck on furniture legs.
The j7+ has a few minor flaws. One of them is that it could get caught on rugs or cords and doesn't always switch off the mopping function when it's finished vacuuming. This is a great model that ticks off all the boxes.
The j7+ by iRobot has one of the best self-emptying systems that we've tested. It puts its 14oz 0.4-liter dust container into the base station where it will automatically empty itself for you. This helps reduce the amount of garbage you must get rid of. You'll only need to replace the bag at the dock once every 60 days, based on the frequency you use the J7+.