Should you buy a cheap robot vacuum? This $400 model proves it might even be a great idea

Eureka’s path into making robot vacuums seems like a natural step for a traditional vacuum brand that’s been around for over 100 years. It’s a way for the company to modernize its lineup and capitalize on the technology it’s been developing since its creation. And the puzzle pieces fall into place when you see its bagless, self-emptying robot vacuums.

Also: 10 ways to maximize your robot vacuum’s cleaning efficiency and battery life

I’ve been testing the Eureka E20 Plus, one of the first self-emptying robot vacuums without a dust bag, and I’m convinced I will never be able to go back to a bag system over a canister. To clean itself, the Eureka robot vacuum goes to the dock and empties its dustbin into a canister. The canister looks a lot like the dustbin of a traditional upright vacuum, so it’s a system with which most people in the US should be familiar. 

I love a robot vacuum that can tackle my dog’s constant shedding, so I routinely keep one in my home office, where my dog spends most of his time. As a robot vacuum tester, the robot assigned to this task constantly changes, as I like to test each robot in different environments, including controlled testing, before writing about them.

Also: The best robot vacuums for pet hair: Expert tested

Few robots have proven capable of keeping my home office clean. Most get caught on different obstacles, cannot handle the amount of pet hair, or cannot effectively reach the sides of my dog’s bed. The Eureka E20 Plus is only the second vacuum that kept this room clean. 

The vacuum picks up my dog’s shedding hair and any dust, dirt, and debris it finds. The robot then goes to the dock and empties everything into the canister, which I can empty directly into the trash. This approach means I’d never have to buy a dustbag again, which would usually need replacing about every six weeks. 

I only found a few downsides to the E20 Plus: its obstacle avoidance is prone to errors, its side brush often gets pet hair wrapped up, and its mopping feature leaves much to be desired. 

With kids and a dog constantly leaving toys, socks, and other random items, obstacle avoidance gets a lot of testing in my home. The Eureka E20 Plus doesn’t avoid obstacles as expertly as other robot vacuums, so it attempts to suction large items, like paper, pencils, and small toys, often getting its brush roller stuck. This downside is a problem if you have kids that leave stuff behind or if you have a lot of cables that lay on the floor. 

Also: Forget Dyson: I tested Roborock’s wet-dry hand vacuum and it left my floors spotless

I’m unsure if it’s an engineering problem, but while the Eureka E20 Plus picks up most of the pet hair in my office, about a third gets stuck in the side brush. The side brush has never gotten immobilized because of this issue, but I clean it every few cleanings so the vacuum doesn’t look like it’s dragging a dust bunny around.

The mopping feature on the E20 Plus is typical for combination robots in this price range. The feature is one of the systems that drags a mop pad across your floors. Since the robot doesn’t feature a large dock with automatic mop washing, you must manually wash the microfiber pad before and after cleaning. The mop pad lifts to 10mm automatically when a carpet is detected, which is a plus if you have short-pile rugs or carpets.

ZDNET’s buying advice

Never having to buy a dustbag beats all the shortcomings I experienced with the Eureka E20 Plus, especially considering it’s a midrange robot vacuum, not a flagship or a model over $1,000. Removing the maintenance costs of recurrent dustbags every other month makes it easier to maintain the E20 Plus than most self-emptying competitors. 

If you don’t mind tidying up before running your robot vacuum, and only need a robot to mop lightly for maintenance in between deep cleanings (or even if you only have carpets and don’t need the mop feature), the Eureka E20 Plus is a sound investment.