Mowing the lawn is a tedious and time-consuming chore, but with a robot lawn mower, it doesn’t have to be. We’ve been reviewing robot lawn mowers for close to a decade, so we know what to look for when buying one. The best robot lawn mower for you will depend on the size of your lawn and whether you have steep grades or obstructions like flower beds and trees. Most models use rechargeable battery packs and quiet electric motors, and many connect to a companion app on your phone. Our favorite is the Husqvarna Automower 435X AWD, which is pricey but can handle tricky terrain thanks to all-wheel drive and has high-end features like rain sensors and an anti-theft mechanism. Check out all of our recommendations below, covering a range of budgets and use cases.
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- Super quiet
- Bluetooth, Cellular, and GPS radios
- All-wheel drive
- Easy to program
- User-friendly mobile app
- Works with Alexa, Google, and IFTTT
- Wildly expensive
- Lacks Wi-Fi
The Husqvarna Automower 435X AWD is expensive, but it’s one of the most advanced robotic lawn mowers we’ve reviewed. It features all-wheel drive, a pivoting rear end, an ultra-quiet battery-powered motor, and automatic docking and charging support. With integrated Bluetooth, cellular, and GPS technologies, it works with an excellent companion app that makes it easy to program, and it supports Amazon’s Alexa, Google Assistant, and IFTTT.
If you’re looking to tackle complex landscaping with minimal intervention and price is no impediment, the Husqvarna Automower 435X AWD is the best robotic lawn mower money can buy. It’s the largest robot mower we’ve come across and is designed to handle lawns of up to 0.9 acres.
Connectivity
Bluetooth, Cellular, GPS
Cutting Time
100 minutes
Lawn Coverage
0.9 acre
Sound Level
62 decibels
Cutting Width
8.7 inches
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Husqvarna Automower 435X AWD Review
- Easy to set up
- Quiet operation
- Good battery life and automatic charging
- Supports yard mapping and scheduling
- Not good at edging
- Only usable during daylight hours
- No bagging option for clippings
The Eufy E18 doesn’t require boundary wires, making it easier to use than models that do. It will map your lawn, and you can create mowing schedules in its app so your yard is always freshly trimmed. This model operates safely and quietly, mows about as good as a human, and will automatically head back to its dock when it’s done.
If you want a plug-and-play robot lawn mower that doesn’t require an extensive setup process, the Eufy E18 should be at the top of your list. It works best for smaller, well-defined lawns up to 0.3 acres, but you’ll still have to do your own edge trimming.
Connectivity
Wi-Fi, GPS
Cutting Time
110 minutes
Lawn Coverage
0.3 acre
Sound Level
56 decibels
Cutting Width
8 inches
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Eufy Robot Lawn Mower E18 Review
- Excellent cutting performance
- Quiet
- Cellular connectivity
- GPS tracking
- Solid mobile app
- Lacks Bluetooth and Wi-Fi connectivity
- Must subscribe to a cellular plan after two years
- Limited onboard settings
The Greenworks Optimow 50H Robotic Lawn Mower is quiet, easy to install, and delivers outstanding cutting performance. It’s also affordable compared with other robotic lawn mowers, and its rechargeable lithium-ion battery provides up to 150 minutes of cutting time on a charge. As a drawback, it relies on cellular connectivity and requires a cellular plan after the first two years. It also lacks some features of more expensive options, like Bluetooth and Wi-Fi connectivity.
If you have a half-acre of lawn or less and you’re looking for an easy-to-use robotic mower with GPS tracking and an intuitive app, the Greenworks Optimow 50H Robotic Lawn Mower is an excellent choice. It delivers consistent results at an affordable price and offers the longest running time of any model on this list.
Connectivity
Cellular, GPS
Cutting Time
150 minutes
Lawn Coverage
0.5 acre
Sound Level
60 decibels
Cutting Width
8.7 inches
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Greenworks Pro Optimow 50H Robotic Lawn Mower Review
- Excellent cutting performance
- Ideal for rough or steep terrains
- Easy to control
- Very expensive
- No phone control or scheduling capabilities
If your lawn has difficult-to-reach spots, rough terrain, and steep grades, the battery-powered, remote-controlled Mowrator S1 Remote Control Lawn Mower 4WD does a fantastic job. It functions like an RC car, but you don’t get any smart features like Bluetooth or Wi-Fi connectivity, so you can’t control the S1 with an app or create work schedules.
If you prefer a more hands-on approach to lawn mowing, have a challenging landscape, or are an RC car fan, the Mowrator S1 Remote Control Lawn Mower 4WD is a top pick. It delivers consistent results and has impressive battery life. It performs especially well on rough or steep terrain where a regular mower might be difficult to use and treacherous.
Cutting Time
135 minutes
Lawn Coverage
0.5 acre
Sound Level
63 decibels
Cutting Width
21 inches
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Mowrator S1 Remote Control Lawn Mower 4WD Review
- Reasonably priced
- Good cutting performance
- Quiet operation
- Bluetooth connectivity
- Lacks GPS and Wi-Fi
- No remote steering
Although it may not have the most comprehensive set of features or the largest coverage area, the Gardena Robotic Mower Sileno City is one of the most affordable robotic mowers on the market. Powered by a whisper-quiet motor, it cuts well and offers scheduling via Bluetooth and an accompanying app.
The Gardena Robotic Mower Sileno City is best for smaller lawns of up to 2,700 square feet (0.06 acres). It does a great job of keeping a lawn well manicured, it’s so quiet you can run it at night, and it’s the most affordable model we’ve tested at under $800.
Connectivity
Bluetooth
Cutting Time
65 minutes
Lawn Coverage
0.06 acre
Sound Level
57 decibels
Cutting Width
6.3 inches
Learn More
Gardena Robotic Mower Sileno City Review
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The Best Robot Lawn Mowers for 2025
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Buying Guide: The Best Robot Lawn Mowers for 2025
How Do Robot Lawn Mowers Work?
Robot lawn mowers look similar to robot vacuums. In action, it’s almost like watching a Roomba darting around your lawn, tidying things up. When it comes to what’s inside, however, things couldn’t be more different.
Most robot mowers rely on a perimeter wire to keep them from wandering off your lawn or into the street, but some do away with wires in favor of satellite-positioning technology. If you do opt for a traditional model, one end of the perimeter wire connects to a terminal on an AC-powered base station and you lay the rest of it along the border of your lawn with stakes. Then, you connect the wire to the second terminal on the base station. Aside from providing that wire with an electrical charge, the base also recharges the mower once it docks. Sensors on the mower guide the mower along the boundaries of your yard and help it navigate back to the base when the device completes a job or starts to run low on power.
Gardena Robotic Mower Sileno City (Credit: Gardena)
Speaking of the battery, robotic mowers use a rechargeable pack (usually lithium-ion) that can last anywhere from 30 minutes for an entry-level model up to four or more hours for a high-end mower. Depending on the size of the mower and the battery capacity, expect charging times of anywhere between 30 minutes and two hours or more.
You typically handle programming via an onboard control panel with a power button and menus for setting seasonal timers, scheduling cutting times, creating zones, configuring edge-cutting settings, running diagnostics, and viewing the cutting history. Nearly all robotic mowers are quiet and operate within the 55dB to 60dB range, but a few models put out up to 75dB of sound. Gas-powered mowers typically run between 85dB and 95dB. You can run the quieter mowers at night (some even have headlights), but you should probably run the louder models only in the daytime.
Consider Your Lawn Size and Cutting Deck
Before purchasing a robotic lawn mower, you first need to figure out the size of your lawn. Residential models typically have a working capacity between 0.20 acres and 1.25 acres. A mower for larger lawns has a higher-capacity battery pack that allows it to work longer and travel farther between charges. The shape of your lawn also comes into play: If you have things like flower beds, trees, or fencing, the mower has to use more battery power to navigate these obstructions than if it were just cutting a rectangular or square plot.
The cutting deck refers to the area underneath the mower where the blades spin. Most robotic mowers use a floating deck design that allows you to quickly adjust the cutting height and prevent the blade from scalping the grass in higher spots. Different mowers use different types of cutting blades. For example, some mowers use a single spinning blade configuration while others use multiple spinning blades or a spinning disc lined with multiple razors.
The mower’s cutting width determines how wide a swath it cuts on a single pass. Models for smaller lawns may only have a 7-inch cutting width, while mowers for big lawns offer cutting widths of around two feet. All robotic mowers cut the grass into a fine, almost sawdust-like state that works its way into the soil as mulch that fertilizes your lawn. Equally important, there’s no bagging involved.
How Much Does a Robot Lawn Mower Cost?
Robotic lawn mowers aren’t cheap, but, in most cases, light-duty mowers are significantly more affordable than their heavy-duty counterparts. Whatever you do, make sure you buy a mower that can handle your lawn. Most vendors have online calculators to help you choose the right model for your needs, and many of them can send a representative out to your house to do a site check. Expect to pay anywhere from $600 or more for a bare-bones model to more than $5,000 for a mower with all the bells and whistles. Dealers that require professional installation may add hundreds of dollars to the total cost.
Once you narrow your choices based on lawn complexity and working capacity, it’s time to consider features. Look for a mower with flexible programming options that allow you to create schedules for multiple zones. For example, if you have a large lawn, you might want to split it into multiple zones and set the mower to concentrate on specific zones on specific days. With multi-zone schedules, the mower travels directly to the area you specify before it begins cutting, which saves battery life.
Most robotic mowers operate in rainy conditions but that can get messy. Caked-up grass cuttings tend to stick to the deck, blades are likely to need frequent cleaning, and some mowers might struggle with wheel slippage. Look for a mower with a weather-sensing feature that tells it to return to its base in the event of a heavy downpour.
If you have a lawn with lots of hills and slopes, you need something with large wheels that can navigate the changing landscape. Most mowers can handle slopes of up to 20 degrees, but some can handle slopes of up to 30 degrees. Husqvarna’s 435X AWD can manage extreme slopes with an incline of up to 70%.
Some robotic mowers let you adjust the cutting height using a dial on the mower, while others let you make this adjustment electronically at the control panel or via a mobile app. Although all mowers use advanced algorithms to ensure total lawn coverage, some models also utilize GPS technology that tells the mower where it’s been and where it needs to go. Some robotic mowers offer built-in Bluetooth, Wi-Fi, or cellular circuitry that lets you program and control the mower using a mobile app and track mowing progress from anywhere.
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A few models even let you use your phone as a remote control to guide the mower to certain areas for spot maintenance. Other features to look for include a dedicated remote, a spare set of cutting blades, and an anti-theft system that locks operations behind a PIN when someone picks it up. Some mowers also have an audible alarm and use GPS tracking to help you locate it if someone steals it.
Eufy E18 (Credit: Tyler Hayes)
Should You Install a Robot Lawn Mower by Yourself or Hire a Professional?
Installing a robotic lawn mower can be tedious depending on the size of your lawn, but it’s not very difficult. Nearly all vendors offer online video tutorials and supply written instructions, a measuring tool for laying the wire, a spool of wire, and stakes to hold the wire in place. Count on spending anywhere from an hour or more (depending on the size and complexity of your lawn) on your knees laying wire. Wire-free models can save you from that manual labor, but some setup requirements make them a bit less practical for some yards.
A handful of robotic lawn mower manufacturers handle the installation for you, but others require you to contract a certified dealer. For the latter case, prepare to spend a bit of money so be sure to get a quote upfront.
Once you install and program your mower, however, all you have to do is keep its cutting deck clean and change its blades every so often.
For more on how to automate the rest of your home, check out the best smart home devices we’ve tested and the best outdoor smart home devices for your yard. Own a pool? We have a roundup of the top pool cleaners we’ve tested as well.
