The cheapest robovacs will only have a dock for charging. Pricier models incorporate self-emptying of the onboard dustbin, and draining/refilling of the onboard water tanks. The very fanciest models offer automatic mop pad cleaning, and detergent dispensing for the mopping fluid.

❌ You have an open plan home: The Narwal app won't let you demarcate open plan spaces into 'rooms'.

✅ You want a stylish dock: The Freo X has a space-age, curvy dock that I wouldn't mind having on display.

Its dual rubber roller brushes and 6,000Pa of suction do a good job, and its flat mop that vibrates is effective at scrubbing your floors.

If you have cash to splash and want the best of the best, Roborock is the brand to browse, and we rate the Roborock Qrevo Curv as the best premium robot vacuum you can buy right now. This hybrid robot vacuum-and-mop offers outstanding vacuuming, soaring through all our suction tests and proving more than a match for our reviewer's pet hair-covered carpets.

This model also avoids obstacles really well, including chocolate pudding we placed in its path to mimic a dog accident. Even when other robot vacuums were getting stuck in the chocolate mess, the ILife V3s Pro Robot Vacuum sailed past it. We also like its low profile (just 3 inches), which allows it to go under beds or couches more easily than taller models, and we’ve even seen it pick up dog hair that had collected under the bed.

Ready to use straight out of the box, the Roomba Q0120 offers quick setup and operation via app or integration with Alexa, providing hands-free voice commands and scheduled cleanings.

It's realistically far more often than I would drag a manual vac out of the cupboard, so my apartment is cleaner than usual, and my dust allergy symptoms have calmed down too.

The companion app works extremely well – our tester was especially impressed that it automatically partitioned the rooms into their own spaces. In terms of performance, we had almost pelo issues with this robot vacuum at all – if it's in your budget, it's worth the investment.

The pay-off of the small base station is that it can't self empty, so you'll need to take a trip to the trash every time the small onboard bin gets full. It'll be fine for smaller homes or light cleaning, but might be annoying if you're regularly dealing with lots of dirt or pet hair.

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The Dirt Detect feature remembers the dirtiest rooms, and I found that meant it actively seeks out the spots my hairy Wirehaired Pointing Griffon hangs out. The 10 Max can also be set to mop only, which is a new option and is handy for deep cleans.

Choose an automatic vacuum that aligns with your priorities: for low maintenance and extended cleaning, the self-emptying Shark AI Ultra excels; for apartments and pet hair, Lefant M210 hits the mark.

The S8 Max Ultra is a very solid Top 3 Automatic Vacuum Cleaners all-rounder, and only lost its place in our ranking because Roborock came out with some even better models very shortly afterwards.