Budget robot vacuums have become increasingly accessible in recent years, with many affordable models now offering features once reserved for premium options. The best budget robot vacuums deliver strong hard floor cleaning and reliable obstacle avoidance. These models typically make tradeoffs in carpet performance and advanced features like mopping, but can still handle daily maintenance effectively.
We've tested over 85 robot vacuums, and below are our recommendations for the best budget robot vacuums. These picks are selected based on their price, performance, and feature sets. If you don't have a lot of carpeting or rugs, you can also try the best robot vacuums for hardwood floors. Otherwise, you'll find more options among the best robot vacuums we've tested overall.
Our robot vacuum recommendations come from our independent testing of more than 80 different models. We purchase every robot vacuum we test, with no cherry-picked units or data. Every robot vacuum goes through the same suite of tests that covers everything from user maintenance to obstacle avoidance. Our testers and writers validate the results to ensure you can easily compare each model side by side, and we keep the products in our lab so we can continuously go back and retest them against the newest models.
Check out our How We Test Robot Vacuums article to learn more about our purchasing, testing, and writing procedures.
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Best Budget Robot Vacuum
Multi-Surface Household6.9Debris Pickup: Hard Floor8.5Debris Pickup: Carpet6.2Station Maintenance Capabilities5.9Obstacle Avoidance7.9See all our test resultsStains1.0The eufy E20 is our top pick for the best budget robot vacuum. It delivers excellent hard floor cleaning, picking up nearly all debris in a single pass, and handles carpets acceptably. It comes with a self-emptying dock, though the station's maintenance capabilities are more limited than pricier models.
A standout feature is its unconventional 3-in-1 design. You can remove the motor unit and dustbin to mount them into a cordless stick or handheld chassis for quick cleanups. Obstacle avoidance is good thanks to multiple LiDAR sensors (top-mounted for mapping, plus front and side sensors for real-time object detection), which is impressive for this price point. While the price fluctuates, this model is consistently available for under $400 and offers its best value when you can find it around $350.
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Best Budget Robot Vacuum With Mopping
Multi-Surface Household6.8Debris Pickup: Hard Floor7.5Debris Pickup: Carpet5.6Station Maintenance Capabilities8.0Obstacle Avoidance8.2See all our test resultsStains7.0The Dreame L10s Ultra is the best budget robot vacuum with mopping capability. This once high-end model has been around for a while and regularly goes on sale for around $350, sometimes even cheaper. The main tradeoff compared to the eufy E20 is pure vacuuming performance. The Dreame doesn't clean hard floors or carpets quite as well, and it struggles more with pet hair. However, if you need mopping, the Dreame delivers decent stain removal with its twin rotating mop pads, something the eufy can't do at all.
The Dreame's dock is more capable than the eufy's, handling self-emptying, filling the mop water tank, emptying dirty water, washing the mops in cold water, and drying them with hot air. Obstacle avoidance is also better than the eufy's. If you have mostly hard floors that need both vacuuming and mopping, with minimal carpet, the Dreame justifies its similar price point. But if pure cleaning performance matters more than mopping, the eufy E20 is the better choice.
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Best Cheap Robot Vacuum
Multi-Surface Household5.6Debris Pickup: Hard Floor7.5Debris Pickup: Carpet6.7Obstacle Avoidance2.0See all our test resultsStains1.0It's important to note upfront that the Wyze Robot Vacuum has been discontinued, so it may be hard to find. At the time of writing, you can still get it from Walmart. It's the most affordable option on our list, but you'll make significant compromises compared to the eufy E20 and the Dreame L10s Ultra. The biggest sacrifice is convenience; it lacks a self-emptying dock and has a tiny dirt compartment that needs frequent manual emptying after almost every cleaning session. Obstacle avoidance is also much weaker than both the eufy and Dreame, so you'll need to remove small obstructions before running it.
That said, the Wyze does have some strengths for the price. It delivers good performance on bare floors, matching the Dreame, though not quite as strong as the eufy E20. It actually handles carpets better than the Dreame or the eufy, and clears pet hair passably. It has a LiDAR mapping sensor for quick room mapping, and the companion app lets you set up virtual boundary lines and schedule cleaning sessions for specific rooms.
Notable Mentions
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Shark IQ 2-in-1 UR2410WD:
The Shark IQ 2-in-1 UR2410WD is also a budget mopping robot vacuum, but its performance is generally weaker than that of the Dreame L10s Ultra in most tasks.
See our review -
eufy Omni C20:
The eufy Omni C20 offers mopping like the Dreame L10S Ultra but delivers significantly worse stain removal. Its obstacle handling is notably worse than that of both the eufy E20 and Dreame, but it cleans carpets better.
See our review
Recent Updates
Feb 04, 2026:
We removed the Shark Matrix Robot RV2310AE as the 'Best Budget With Dock' pick. We also moved the Wyze Robot Vacuum to 'Best Cheap,' and replaced it with the eufy E20 as the 'Best Budget' pick.
Nov 17, 2025:
We modified the structure of this article due to increasing prices at the low end of the robot vacuum market. As a result, we replaced the eufy L60 with the Dreame L10s Ultra due to availability, and removed the SwitchBot K10+ and iRobot Roomba 694 for the same reason. We added the eufy E20 as a Notable Mention.
Jul 02, 2025:
We altered the table to show robot vacuums tested under the new test bench 1.0. We added the SwitchBot K10+ as a Notable Mention and made some minor text changes.
Mar 13, 2025:
We removed the Notable Mention eufy RoboVac G30 due to availability and replaced it with the Shark IQ 2-in-1. We added the Roborock Q7 Max as an alternative to the eufy L60. We also made some minor text changes.
Dec 03, 2024:
We've verified that our picks are available and represent the best choices. We've also made small edits for clarity.
All Reviews
Our recommendations above are what we think are currently the best budget robot vacuums for most people. We factor in the price, feedback from our visitors, and availability.
If you'd like to do the work of choosing yourself, here's the list of all our robot vacuum reviews priced under $300. Be careful not to get too caught up in the details. While no vacuum is perfect for every use, most are good enough to please almost everyone, and the differences are often not noticeable unless you really look for them.