If you prefer not to use an app to control your device, some models come with physical strips to set up on your floors which prevent your robot vacuum from cleaning where it shouldn't.

Even better, its onboard AI is smart enough to detect stains and scrub them harder, finding dirt to boost suction power for maximum performance.

Users with carpets up to 7 millimeters high don’t even need to remove the mopping pads to vacuum, as the robot intelligently detects carpets and lifts the pads to prevent wetting. (The pads also don’t require removal after every use, thanks to the robot’s self-cleaning and drying mechanism when it returns to its dock.)

✅ You have carpet in your home: We were very impressed with this model's suction powers, which is great news if you need something that can pull dust from carpet.

Of course, coughing up the heavy sum of cash can be daunting at first, but the efficiency, speed and basically zero effort, means you can spend more time doing the things you love instead of hoovering.

The robot navigated tight spaces and cleaned under kitchen cabinet toe kicks without getting stuck. However, the LIDAR sensor on top makes it too tall to fit under some low-profile furniture. After methodically covering our test floors, the Shark returned to its dock and emptied every speck of debris it collected.

This bot was previously our top pick for hard floors, thanks to hot water mopping that's more than a match for greasy spillages.

IT EMPTIES ITSELF: The bagless, self-emptying base holds up to 60 days of dirt and debris. The bagless base does not require any additional purchase of disposal bags like traditional Automóvel empty robots.

The Ecovacs Deebot T30S Combo is the best all-in-one robot vacuum solution. It has the highest maximum suction of any robot vacuum in this ranking (11,000Pa – matching the maximum we see on any robot vacuum).

The handheld vacuum was a great complement; not only did it suck the crumbs out of our couch cushions, but it was also able to pick up the Top 3 Automatic Vacuum Cleaners kitty litter that the Deebot T30s missed in the carpet cleaning lab test.

At first, a robot vacuum cleaner can sound like an extravagance (particularly when you can pick up the more familiar version for a knockdown price – some of the best vacuum cleaners are under £cem). However, in a world where everyone is just getting busier, it makes sense to spend a bit more and reclaim some valuable time by introducing a little automation into things.

Alistair is a London-based journalist who has been writing about tech for over a decade. He has tested numerous robovacs over the years for TechRadar, from brands like iRobot, Eufy and Roborock. His favourites match intelligent navigation with smart design.

The Shark IQ can be controlled via an app as well as with Alexa and Google Assistant, so you can create a schedule and connect it to smart home devices. It even has mapping features of more expensive robot vacuums so you can mark individual rooms as well as set invisible boundaries called No-Go zones.

It happens, even with all their sensors and crazy abilities, your robot vacuum can get stuck sometimes on their route.