The Best Robot Vacuum For Carpet
There's a robot that can be found for all carpet types, regardless of whether it's low-pile or high-pile. These smart appliances are able to navigate your home on their own, pick up debris and clean under furniture.
Many have advanced features like mapping, which helps them navigate around your home and keep track of furniture place. They can also boost suction power to clear dirtier areas.
iRobot Roomba 694"
The Roomba by iRobot is a budget-friendly robot vacuum that is effective on both bare flooring and low-pile floor carpet. It has a good suction and is able to clean up most debris, though it has trouble with larger debris such as rice or sand. This Web site does a good job of removing pet hair, but it's not immune to tangling like premium Roomba models, such as the I6 or j7.
The Roomba is easy to use. It has a trio of buttons on its cover: 'Clean' initiates the cleaning process, 'Dock' puts it back in its charging station, and 'Spot Clean' triggers the targeted cleaning. It can be controlled with a smartphone app which lets you schedule and stop/start cycles, as well as adjust settings. It can also be paired with smart home devices such as Alexa or Google Assistant for voice-controlled operation.
This vacuum is slower than the others, however it is still able to reach most corners and crevices. It has a huge dust bin, which is great for reducing the frequency the frequency you have to empty it. It's compatible with digital maps and virtual barriers, which allow you to restrict it to certain areas or to stop completely cleaning if you want to keep it from getting stuck on something.
It's not the top in its price range but it's better than most other options. The Roborock E4 is more advanced than the Roomba 694 with a much better cleaning performance on carpets with low and no pile. It also follows the most efficient cleaning method and has longer battery life. It is also more robust, has fewer components that require regular maintenance, is priced less over its life and charges faster than 694.
It is also worth considering other models from the iRobot range, including the v7 or 981. The 981 and v7 are both more expensive but provide significant improvements in cleaning performance both on bare and low pile floors. They also have a bigger dirt compartment they charge faster, can move more easily, and are easier to pair with smart home devices.
Shark RV1001AE IQ
This budget self-emptying robot does a decent job on hard floors and carpets with low pile. The combo brush can reach into corners and edges, and it automatically boosts suction when it senses carpet. It is also effective at cleaning dirt embedded in mid-pile carpet. The IQ has a small footprint and a self-emptying function. If you'd like to change the floor levels or set no-go areas, you'll need to manually reset the map.
The IQ's app comes with advanced mapping and automation capabilities but it's missing no-go zones that are available on iRobot models. The smart-pathing technology allows for superior maneuverability and the high-pile feature of its carpet cleaning mode is effective but it could get caught on the tassels of the rug.
In our tests, we discovered that the IQ was able to handle pet hair effectively. It was able to eliminate the majority of hair on floors that were unfinished and a good amount of medium-pile rug. It was less effective on shag carpets where it struggled to get at dirt and dust that was embedded in the fibers. It did a good job of maneuvering around the legs of chairs, tight spaces, and the wooden base of an IKEA step stool. We did notice it was a little slower on bare floors but it quickly recovered and performed better than the other robots we tested.
The IQ is a more suitable choice for the majority of users than the iRobot Roomba. It has a bigger dustbin and a longer battery lifespan, and is better at navigating around obstacles. It also has a mopping attachment that can handle sticky debris. On the other hand the iRobot feels better-built and has fewer components that require maintenance or replacement, incurs lower recurring costs and can even create virtual no-go zones with its companion app. It can even restart the cleaning process 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 a big plus for many users.
Eufy 11S
The RoboVac 11S eufy robot vacuum isn't among the most features-rich models, but it provides great cleaning power at an affordable price. The RoboVac 11S is made for those who are budget conscious and do not require a complicated mapping system, or even an app, to control it. The robot can run for up to an hour and comes with an remote, cleaning tool, AC power adapter, charging base and extra filters.
The 11S is slim and sleek with an upper deck of tempered glass that is covered with plastic, which is finished to look like brushed aluminum. It's a nice stylistic departure from Roomba, Samsung, and Neato designs that are more industrial and utilitarian.
The eufy11S did well in our tests of removing larger debris and fine dust from floors. However, it was unable to provide medium and high pile carpeting an effective deep clean. It is also prone to bump into furniture and people in its path, but it's able to detect those obstacles using sensors. When it encounters them, it stops and lets out a loud beep so you can manually steer it around the obstacle and then get it back to work.
The BoostIQ mode is a great feature of the eufy11S. It lets you configure the robot to automatically adjust suction strength based on the type of floor and the level of mess. The remote control makes it easy to direct the 11S to the desired location.
If you don't have many furniture in the room you want to vacuum, Single Room Mode is an excellent option. The eufy will take 30 minutes intensely cleaning the area it's assigned to.
Edge Cleaning is another option that limits the time that is spent on each area to a maximum of 20 minutes. This will increase the battery's life. This option allows the eufy to move in a spiraling fashion by cleaning edges and corners.
Miele Complete C1
The Miele Complete C1 canister robot is a fantastic mid-range vacuum cleaner that is a winner on carpet. Its performance is also excellent on bare floors. It can remove small particles like rice easily and it doesn't suffer from suction efficiency even as its dirt bin fills. Its allergy-friendly design and air-sealed body traps allergens and keeps your family healthy. It comes with an onboard HEPA filter and a self-emptying dustbin, which means you don't have to buy additional filters or a separate bag for your vacuum.
It's not as powerful as pricier models, but it's great for tackling stains and deep cleaning. Its two front cameras deliver a live image feed on your smartphone, and it comes with one of the most effective obstacle avoidance systems we've ever seen. It has a huge bin, an extended runtime and the ability to clean up quickly and without bumps.
The Complete C1 is unlike most robots in that it can switch between a standard head and a turbo for different kinds of flooring. The turbo head is great for carpeting with high-pile or low-pile and the standard powerhead works well on bare floors and lightweight rugs. It also features an automatic height adjustment system, which allows it to easily adapt to various kinds of flooring without manual adjustments.
This model comes bundled with a SBD 285-3 Classic Combination Floorhead that can handle both hard floors and medium-pile carpeting. The powerhead can be easily moved and can reach hard-to-reach areas. It has five different adjustments to the surface and a brushroll-off switch to prevent hairs getting caught in knots.
The Classic C1 also has a self-cleaning brush roll as well as an UtraClean mode that goes across the same area three times to ensure the most thorough cleaning and a self-emptying trash bin that can be empty at the push of one button. The noise level of this model is higher than other models. However its powerful motor with 1,200 watts of power and durable construction justify the extra cost.
If you're willing to pay a bit more it's worth it. Miele Complete C3 is an excellent all-around canister robot vacuum that performs better on carpet than the Classic C1. It performs better on all kinds of floors and is built more securely, and comes with a HEPA filter.