Under $300 robot vacuums work best on low-pile carpets

They exist, but don’t expect deep cleaning on thick carpets.

The Roborock Q5 and Roomba 694 are the two I’d look at under $300. Both have decent suction and rubber brushrolls that don’t tangle as much as bristle ones. On low-pile or medium-pile carpets they’ll pick up daily dirt and pet hair fine. But if you have high-pile, shag, or really dense carpets, you’ll be disappointed — they struggle to pull debris from deep in the fibers.

Suction numbers in specs are mostly marketing. Above 2000 Pa is fine for a robot. Navigation matters more: the Q5 has lidar so it maps your home; the