Robot vacuums for high thresholds: which fit and why
Botsize ran every robot vacuum in its dataset through the finder for a home with 20 mm (0.79 in) thresholds. The verdicts below follow your region, and each card shows the numbers behind its verdict.
Updated
Results for buyers in the US
The home behind this page
Tallest threshold
0.79 in (20 mm)
Climb for a clear pass
0.87 inyour threshold plus 0.08 in; a climb from 0.79 in up to that is tight
Lowest US price first, then the larger threshold margin, then the lower robot. Models without a US price come after priced ones. Suction never decides the order: makers measure it in different ways.
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Fits20
Every check passes with room to spare, and nothing rules the model out.
This page ranks the 37 robot vacuums in the Botsize dataset that are sold in the US. Prices are the maker's list price, or the price its page showed that month (sometimes a sale price), with the month we read it.
A 20 mm threshold
A 20 mm (0.79 in) step is a raised door saddle or a thick transition strip. The finder passes a robot when its published climb is at least 22 mm (0.87 in), the threshold plus the 2 mm (0.08 in) margin. A robot rated for exactly 20 mm (0.79 in) or 21 mm (0.83 in) climbs it on paper with nothing to spare, so it lands in Tight.
22 of the 31 records that publish a climb height clear 20 mm (0.79 in) with the margin. The ones that publish no climb sit under Needs a check: they may climb it, but the maker does not say.
Measure before you trust the label. Stand a ruler on the lower floor against the highest point of the step; where the floors differ, the lower side gives the taller step. Climb figures are single steps: a maker's larger figure for two steps in a row does not apply to one doorway. The threshold guide covers both.
Questions about 20 mm thresholds
Should a tight robot be ruled out?
Not by default. A tight robot meets its published climb at your threshold, with no room for a worn wheel or a measuring error. If your step measured close to 20 mm and the robot is otherwise right, it is worth checking the model's manual for how the climb was measured.
What if the tallest threshold is lower than 20 mm?
Use Change these numbers and enter your own height. Every robot rated 2 mm above it passes, so the list grows as the threshold drops.