The Best Robot Vacuum For Carpet
No matter if you have a carpet with a high or low pile there's a robotic vacuum for you. These intelligent appliances can will navigate your home in a way that is automated and pick up dirt and clean under furniture.
Many have advanced features like mapping, which can help you navigate your home and recall furniture positioning. They can also increase the suction power in order to clean up surfaces that are dirtier.
iRobot Roomba 694
The Roomba 694 from iRobot is an entry-level robot vacuum that works well on bare floors and low-pile carpet. It has good suction and cleans most debris, however it isn't able to handle bigger debris like rice or sand. It is capable of cleaning pet hair, but it isn't as strong against tangling as premium Roomba models such as the I6 and j7.
The Roomba is simple to use. It has three buttons on the top cover. Clean, which initiates a cleaning session, 'Dock,' which puts it in its charging station, and the 'Spot' button, which triggers a targeted cleaning. It can be controlled via an app on your smartphone which lets you schedule or stop/start cycles, and also adjust settings. You can also pair it with smart home devices like Alexa or Google Assistant for voice-controlled operation.
This vacuum cleaner is slower than some others, but can still reach most corners and crevices. It comes with a large dust bin which is ideal for reducing the frequency which you need to empty it. It is compatible with digital maps and virtual barriers, which allow you to restrict it to certain areas or to stop completely cleaning in order to prevent it from getting stuck on something.
Although it's not the most efficient model for its price but it's far superior to other alternatives. The Roborock E4 has a better cleaning capability than the Roomba 694 and it is able to clean both carpets with low pile as well as bare. It also follows an efficient cleaning route and has longer battery life. It is also more robust, has fewer parts that require regular maintenance, and costs less over its lifetime and charges faster than 694.
It's also worth taking a look at other models that are more expensive in the iRobot range, such as the 981 or the v7. The 981 and v7 are more expensive but offer significant improvements in cleaning performance both on low and bare pile floors. They also have a bigger dirt compartment, charge faster, move more easily and are easier to pair up with smart home devices.
Shark RV1001AE IQ
This budget self-emptying robot does an okay job on hard floors as well as carpets with a low pile. The combination brush is able to reach corners and edges, and automatically increases suction when it spots carpet. It also does a good job of cleaning embedded dirt on mid-pile carpet. The IQ's small dock footprint and self-emptying feature are both nice features. If you want to change the floor level or set no-go areas, you'll need to manually reset the map.
The IQ app provides advanced mapping and automated features, however it does not have no-go zones. They are only available on iRobot robots. Its smart-pathing navigational system gives you greater maneuverability, and its high-pile carpet mode is clean well, but it does have a tendency to get caught up on rug tassels. Its iHome speaker allows you to control the robot using voice commands.
During our tests in our tests, the IQ was adept at handling pet hair with ease, removing huge amounts of debris from bare floors and fair amounts on medium-pile carpet. It was less effective with shag carpets. It had a hard time reaching dirt and dust embedded within the fibers. It was able to navigate chair legs, small spaces as well as the base of an IKEA wooden step stool. We did notice that it was a little slower on bare floors but it quickly recovered and performed better than the other robots we tried.
The IQ is a more suitable option for most users than the iRobot Roomba. It has a larger dustbin and lasts longer on a charge, and is more capable of moving itself around obstacles. It also has mopping attachments that are able to handle sticky messes. The iRobot however, feels better built and has less components that need maintenance or replacement and has lower cost per year, and can create virtual no-go zones vacuum mop robot using its companion app. It can even resume a cleaning session from the point it started if it runs out of battery before finishing the job. The iRobot can also be controlled using voice, which is a huge benefit for many users.
Eufy 11S
The RoboVac 11S by eufy isn't exactly the most feature-rich robot vacuum around however it offers excellent cleaning power at the price of. This vacuum was made for those who are budget conscious and don't require a complicated mapping system, or even an app to control it. This robot can run for a long time and comes with an remote, cleaning tool, AC power adapter, charging base and extra filters.
The 11S is slim, sleek and has a tempered-glass upper deck that appears like brushed aluminum. It's a refreshing departure from the industrial and utilitarian designs of Roomba, Samsung and Neato.
In our tests, the eufy11S was very effective in removing large particles and fine dust on hard flooring. However, it struggled to give high and medium pile carpets a thorough clean. It also has a tendency to smack into furniture and other objects in its path however, it's able detect these obstacles using sensors. When it comes across them, it halts and emits an alarm so that you can manually guide it around the obstacle and get it back to work.
Another great aspect of the eufy 11S is its BoostIQ mode that allows you to set the robot to automatically adjust the strength of its suction to match floor type and the level of the mess. It's also easy to use the remote to direct the 11S in the direction you'd like it to go.
Single Room Mode is a great alternative if you have a small amount of furniture in the room you want to vacuum. The eufy can spend 30 minutes focusing on cleaning the area it's assigned to.
You can also select Edge Cleaning which restricts the time spent in each area to 20 minutes for maximum battery life. With this option the eufy can move in a spiral fashion to clean edges and corners for a thorough clean.
Miele Complete C1
The Miele Complete C1 is an excellent mid-range robot vacuum and a top performer on carpet. Its performance on floors that are not bare is also impressive. It can pick up rice and other fine particles effortlessly. The suction power doesn't decrease as the dirt bin gets full. Its air-sealed design and allergy-friendly design capture allergens to keep your family safe. It comes with an onboard HEPA and self-emptying bin so you don't need additional filters or vacuum bags.
It's not as effective as other models, but it's ideal for deep cleaning and fighting staining. Two front cameras provide live images to your smartphone, and it features one of the most effective obstacles-avoiding systems we've seen. It also comes with a huge dustbin, long runtime and a quick and smooth clean-up.
Contrary to other robots unlike most other robots, Complete C1 can switch between the standard powerhead and the turbo head to accommodate different flooring types. The turbo head works best with high-pile or low-pile carpeting while the standard powerhead is ideal for bare floors and light rug. It also has an automatic height adjustment system which allows it to easily adapt to various kinds of flooring without manual adjustments.
This model is included with the SBD 285-3 Classic Combination Floorhead, which can be used on both carpets with a hard surface and carpets with a medium pile. The powerhead can be easily moved around and get into difficult areas. It comes with five levels of surface adjustment and an off-brush switch to prevent hairs from getting tangled.
The Classic C1 also has a self-cleaning brush roll and an UtraClean mode that cycles across the same area three times to give the most thorough cleaning, and a self-emptying dustbin that can be emptied with the push of one button. The volume of noise produced by this model is greater than other models. However, its powerful motor with 1,200 watts and robust construction justify the extra cost.
If you're willing to pay a little more, the Miele Complete C3 is an excellent all-around canister robot vacuum that is more effective on carpet than the Classic C1. It performs better on any type of flooring and is built more securely and comes with an HEPA filter.