Yes, many models work well on carpets. They adjust suction and brush settings for different floor types.

The only thing it had trouble on was kitty litter on carpet, but even its worst score of 83% is solid in the grand scheme of robot vacuums we've tested. Outside of a little more prowess on carpet, the Shark PowerDetect 2-in-1 is nearly perfect.

More advanced robot vacuums have lasers on the front of the machine and some on the underside of the device too. These lasers detect where furniture, objects, and edges are in your home, helping avoid bumps, and cliff detection prevents the machine from falling down the stairs. Read our article on how do robot vacuums work to find out more.

Also, it can’t be controlled from your smartphone, so you have to use the included remote control, and you can't connect it to Alexa or Google Assistant to turn it on or schedule cleanings.

Why we love it: We've tested many Dreame stick vacuums, robots and vacuum mops in the GH Cleaning Lab and can confidently say that it's one of our favorite brands because it performs well for the price in multiple categories, including robot vacuums, vacuum-mop combos and mops for hardwood floors.

Who it's best for: Vacuum mops is an excellent floor-cleaning innovation for those who have small storage spaces and want to clean all different floors and messes with one tool.

This is quite a common feature for robot vacuums. By connecting with your smartphone app, you can schedule Top 3 Automatic Vacuum Cleaners when you want it to clean, be it daily, weekly or when you’re not at home.

So, ideally you will still want to run your regular vacuum every so often, while the robot vacuum helps keep dust down in the interim. By keeping on top of the light debris, you won’t need to use your full-sized vacuum so often.

Who it's best for: Designed to last for years, this Miele canister vacuum does an excellent job of picking up and trapping dust and dirt.

Although the RS20 Pro did a decent job at maintenance cleaning, has plenty of settings, and a great app, it fell short on several other things. It couldn't cope well with heavy-duty messes, particularly when tested on cat litter.

The benefit of the dinky size is that this bot can reach places bigger bots can't, and on test we found it navigated confidently around furniture legs and into tight spaces.

Ruth is a Homes Editor at TechRadar, and has been reviewing consumer tech for over three years. She's spent the past year focusing on home appliances, and floor cleaners in particular.

That level of smarts means a high price tag, although our tester felt it was justified by the build quality and featureset. If you're looking for a truly autonomous cleaning solution, the Roborock Qrevo Curv will deliver.

The mop pads spin to scrub floors clean, and the robot seamlessly switches between bare floors and carpet without getting the carpet wet. The only hiccup is that it's pricey.