• Smooth transition from carpet to floor: If you have a carpet covering only part of your floor, check that your robotic vacuum can make easy transitions from carpet to hardwood floor, and vice versa. For example, some might not be suited for very plush carpets.

• Avoids getting stuck: Some robotic vacuums rely on a magnetic strip, that you place down on the floor. This prevents the vacuum from overstepping its bounds and perhaps suffering a fall down a flight of stairs. But it’s not hard to find more sophisticated models, which can do the navigation themselves. The Ecovacs Deebot N79S can be programmed to concentrate on a particular room, or on just a particular spot in the room. It also has anti-drop and anti-collision sensors.

• For people with allergies: Frequent vacuuming will help keep your home’s air free from allergens such as pet hair, pollen, and dust. And models that empty out the debris themselves, such as the iRobot Roomba s9+, empty themselves out into the recharging base once every 30 or even 60 days!

• Suction: In most appliances with motors, you could assume that a more powerful motor meant a more powerful device. But, for vacuums, a more useful parameter is the actual suction that it produces. You’ll see vacuum cleaners will have their suction power measured in “Pa”, for “Pascals”, which is a measure of pressure--that is, force distributed over an area of a square meter. While upright and canister vacuums can have 20,000 Pa of suction, you’ll usually see robotic vacuums with around 1500-3000 Pa. Experts say that 800 Pa will be sufficient for wood or linoleum flooring--but you’ll need 1500 Pa or more for getting dirt out of your carpet.

• Slim design: Robotic vacuums will clean underneath your bed for you, as well as other hard-to-reach areas. But, you have to make sure that it has clearance. For example, the Bagotte BG600 Robotic Vacuum Cleaner is only 2.7 inches in height--that should be thin enough to get under a bed or bookcase.

• Able to handle pet hair: Pet hair tends to be very fine, and can clog a regular vacuum’s brush rollers and filter. (When it’s clogged, the brush roller won’t spin, even though the vacuum provides suction.) Therefore, it’s best to ensure that your choice of robotic vacuum can also handle pet hair.

• Check if for mopping as well: Some robotic vacuum cleaners will mop the floor as well. For instance, the Lefant-T700 includes a mopping cloth and water tank, so that it can also mop tile or linoleum floors.

• Dustbin capacity: The dustbin capacity is the amount of debris that the robotic vacuum can store before you have to empty it out. You’ll see some that have a storage of 600 ml. The Deebot U2 Pro has an extra-large dust bin that can hold 800 ml. The Ecovacs Deebot N8+ only holds 420 ml--but its self-emptying charging station empties it out for you. The charging station will hold as much as 2.5 liters!

The Deebot N8+ going into its docking station, which also empties out the Deebot

• APosen makes appliances for the home, including refrigerators, shavers, and vacuum cleaners. Their vacuums including cordless, corded, handheld, and robotic vacuums. They make robotic vacuums that employ several cleaning modes and can run for almost 2 hours on a single charge.

• Eufy specializes in home appliances, including smart appliances such as smart scales, floodlights, doorbells, and more. They make robotic vacuums that also have the ability to mop the floor as well.

• Proscenic makes robot vacuum cleaners, as well as cordless vacuums. Not only do their robotic vacuums map out your floor themselves and go back automatically to their base to recharge, they even empty themselves out!

• Ecovacs are motivated by the slogan “a robot for every family”, with robotic vacuums and window cleaners that will fulfill that vision. Their Deebot line includes their robotic vacuums, which includes 20 different models, including hybrid vacuum/mop models.