“Bite the dust" is one of those rare phrases you can use on your archnemesis and your robot vacuum. We can't make up for the mayhem your enemies have caused, but we can help you find a robot vacuum that will reduce the mayhem in your home. For Prime Day, some of our favorites are on sale. They not only suck up dust, but can also dump it out, map their path, and even mop up.
The WIRED Gear team tests products year-round, and we sorted through hundreds of thousands of deals by hand to make these picks. Crossed-out products are out of stock or no longer discounted. Our Amazon Prime Day coverage page has the latest stories, and our Prime Day Shopping Tips will help you avoid bad deals. You can also get a 1-year subscription to WIRED for $5 ($25 off) here, which is the best deal of all.
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Emptying a vacuum cleaner manually can cause new messes, which sort of spoils the point. The Roborock Q5+ empties itself when it's docked, so you only have to worry about cleaning out the bin every now and then—a real game changer. The settings are very customizable, allowing you to set emptying frequency and customize up to four maps, all while navigating and cleaning your home well.
We are kind of obsessed with how good the Roomba i7+ is, to be honest. It's got incredible navigation and powerful suction, and the bin has sensors so it empties when it's full. We're most impressed by the Genius feature, which takes customization to the max by learning your schedules and preferences, so you don't have to program it manually.
"I believe our children are the future," is probably what your parents' old vacuum would say to the Samsung Jet Bot AI+ if it could. Really, aside from looking like a miniature spaceship, the AI+ has some of the best navigation we've seen. It's also relatively quiet and does its work pretty quickly. If you can get over the size of both the vacuum (5 inches high) and the docking bin (21 inches high), it's a great vac at this price. For a slimmer profile, check out the Samsung Jet Bot+, which is also on sale for $399 ($400 off).
You know when you wanna tell your kids/partner/roommate to do something around the house? You can channel all that energy into telling Google Assistant or Alexa to turn on your Roomba i4+ vac. This model doesn't work as well as our other high-end favorites, but it does a pretty good job navigating, cleaning, and emptying its bin.
The Yeedi K650 was already a pretty great bang for your buck, but at $100, it's an absolute steal. You'll get more than 100 minutes of battery while it bounce-navigates around your home. If you've never had a robot vacuum before, this is a great place to start. Plus, you can use that extra cash you saved to invest in the compatible emptying station (unfortunately not on sale).
We like the iRobot Roomba 600 series, especially when they're on sale. The Roomba 692 has a self-charging battery that lasts for 90 minutes, it works with Google Assistant and Alexa, and it has an intuitive app that lets you program the vacuum's actions. Like most iRobot vacs, it's powerful.
The Deebot X1 Omni is a behemoth with its chunky base and thick vacuum, but it mops surprisingly well. WIRED editor Adrienne So is usually skeptical about robot vacuum/mop combos, but this changed the game for her. Not only does it mop well, scrubbing sticky stains off floors, but it also dries the mop on the base, preventing mold and mildew from building up—a thoughtful feature to make this function even better.
The Roborock S7 is too expensive to buy if it's not on sale, considering it doesn't have a self-emptying bin. Luckily for you, it is on sale, and it has a mop too. The S7 works with the Roborock interface we already loved on the Q5+, so you can take advantage of the customization features and use voice assistants (Alexa, Google, Siri) to control the vac. The coolest part is the carpet recognition, meaning the S7 identifies the type of surface it's on so it can mop hardwoods and vacuum carpets—rather than vice versa—all in one cleaning session.
