The Best Robot Mops, According to Real Simple Editors

Final Verdict

After our testing process, the Shark Matrix Plus 2-in-1 Robot Vacuum came out as our top pick because it can be used as a vacuum, a mop, or both. It easily maneuvers around obstacles, the mop pads are reusable, and the spot-cleaning feature is a huge timesaver for dried-up spills and mud. If you’re looking to spend a little less, the Eufy L60 Robot Vacuum is our favorite less-expensive pick.

Our Testing Process

We spent six months testing the robot mops in our lab and at home. We first evaluated how easy each mop was to set up, including downloading any apps, connecting it to Wi-Fi, and mapping out each room.

We then either scheduled specific times for them to run or turned them on manually, taking note of how quickly they began to work and how the mop got around the house. We paid close attention to each mop to see if they had difficulty with obstacles and how well they moved from room to room. We then continued using the vacuum and mop features, taking notes of how well they cleaned the floors day after day.

Along with general cleaning, we focused on how well each one cleaned up pet fur, including whether hair got tangled in the rollers and needed to be removed. We also wrote down how often we needed to change the mop pads, refill the water tanks, and empty the dust bins for the mops that weren’t self-cleaning and self-emptying. We also kept the noise level in mind when choosing our top picks. 

Because we tested the robot mops for six months, we were also able to pay close attention to each device’s battery life and daily performance and see if there were any changes after daily use.

How to Shop for Robot Mops Like a Pro

Features

Robot mops come with tons of features, so it’s important to know which ones are most important to you. Here are some of the most useful ones:

Smart Mapping, Object Avoidance, and No-Go Zones: Most robots today have smart mapping—aka they take a stroll around your home and familiarize themselves with each room instead of blindly roaming about. Object avoidance is a must too. Without it, you’ll have to make sure everything is picked up off the floor at all times, and it may end up bumping into pets and furniture. No-go zones are really helpful as well. For example, if you don’t want it to go into a specific room or area for whatever reason, you can communicate that to it. This is also useful for robot mops that don’t have carpet detection, though all of the ones on our list do.

Wi-Fi, Smart Home, and App Connectivity: While none of the models on our list are manual, some use Wi-Fi while others use Bluetooth to connect an app on your phone to the robot mop. Wi-Fi models let you control and schedule the device from anywhere as long as your phone and the mop are connected to the internet. These can also be used with Smart Homes, like Amazon Alexa or Google Home. With Bluetooth connectivity, you typically have to be in close range of the machine. All of the items on our list have Wi-Fi connectivity.

Self-Emptying: To make an already-convenient product even more useful, go for a self-emptying model. This is exactly what it sounds like: The robot cleans, comes back to the base, and empties its dust bin into it. While you’ll still have to occasionally empty this receptacle, it’s not a daily task and holds way more debris than the dust bin onboard the actual robot mop. Our overall best pick, the Shark Matrix Plus 2-in-1 Robot Vacuum is self-emptying, as is our best mid-range pick, Shark PowerDetect NeverTouch Pro 2-in-1. Our best for pets pick, the Narwal Freo X Ultra, needs to be emptied via the actual robot after vacuuming, but it does self-empty dirty water after mopping.

Self-Cleaning: A self-cleaning robot mop will wash and dry its mop pads after returning to the docking station so you don’t have to. You’ll have to change them when they eventually wear out, but it won’t be as often as a non-self-cleaning mop.

Anti-Tangle Brush: Homes with pets or people with long hair will want to take a look at the brush on each robot mop to see if it has anti-tangle technology. The Narwal Freo X Ultra does, and it works like a charm. If you don’t opt for an anti-tangle brush, you’ll have to remove hair manually.

Floor Type

If you have only hardwood floors or tile, you’re safe to go with pretty much any model. If you have carpet, you’ll want to make sure you choose a machine that can detect it (or let you schedule no-go zones). Many mops these days will lift up the mop pads when it senses carpet so these areas don’t get wet. Just make sure to check the flooring specs before making your purchase.

Scheduled and Spot Cleaning Modes

The cool thing about all the mops on this list is that you can schedule them to clean whenever, wherever, from anywhere through an app. It just takes a few minutes of your time to let the robot know when to start cleaning (and how often you want it to reoccur), and then you pretty much never have to think about it again.

Manual cleaning models are nice too though, for messes outside of the cleaning schedule. A spot-cleaning mode is a plus too, especially for pet owners, parents, and anyone prone to spills. The Shark Matrix Plus has an excellent spot-cleaning mode that we found cleaned stuck-on debris better than the rest.

Battery Life

While battery life varies among robot mops, one important thing to consider is the size of your home. If you have a small apartment, a shorter battery life probably doesn’t need to be a huge influence on your decision. If your home is large, however, you’ll want to make sure the one you choose has enough battery life in between charges to clean all designated areas. The Narwal Freo X Ultra has the longest runtime on our list at 2.5 hours while the others hover around the two-hour mark.

Questions You Might Ask 

Are robot mops better than regular mops?

Not entirely. While they can keep your floors sparkling clean with very little effort on your part, you shouldn’t throw out your regular mop just because you have a robot. Traditional mops can sometimes be better for deeper cleaning or caked-on grime, especially if the robot mop doesn’t have a spot-cleaning feature.

While robot mops are essentially also robot vacuums, you’ll want to keep your regular vacuum around as well. Robots aren’t great at getting into corners, and you can’t use them on stairs or furniture. Traditional vacuums—especially canister models and upright vacuums—typically have stronger suction power too. That doesn’t mean you’ll need to manually vacuum as much as you were before purchasing a robot; it’s especially great when it comes to hair, dust, crumbs, cat litter, and other everyday debris.

How do robot mops know to navigate around furniture and other obstacles?

Object avoidance technology protects your belongings from getting sucked up or damaged by your robot vacuum. This could be a sock you left on the floor, toys, furniture, and even pets or people. This is thanks to all sorts of different sensors, cameras. and/or artificial intelligence.

Do you need to buy a cleaning solution, or can you just use water?

Many robot mops clean with just water, but some, like the Narwal Freo X Ultra, also use soap. For the Narwal in particular, the bottle of soap stays right on the base and gets added to the water automatically before a cleaning session. If you have pets or often make messes yourself, you should consider looking into a model that uses a cleaning solution along with water.

Take Our Word for It

This article was written by Kaitlin Gates, a writer for Real Simple with nearly a decade of experience writing lifestyle content and testing home products, including vacuums.

To find the best robot mops, we tested several models in a variety of household situations to see how they handled dirt, dust, hair, and spills. We also evaluated how well each device maneuvered around household furniture and other obstacles, mapped the home, and cleaned on a schedule.