SwitchBot S20 Review: A Budget-Friendly Robot Vacuum and Mop With Matter Support

SwitchBot makes immoderate of the astir affordable HomeKit-compatible robot vacuums connected the market. I've been investigating the SwitchBot S20 and the K11+ for the past respective months to spot however they measurement up to some of the much costly models that I've reviewed.

SwitchBot S20

The MSRP for the S20 is $799, but SwitchBot runs income often that driblet the terms to nether $500, truthful it's competitory with immoderate of the much affordable robot vacuums that don't person Matter integration.

I've noticed immoderate wide differences betwixt the SwitchBot vacuums and higher-end vacuums I've tested, but the S20 has impressed maine with its cleaning ability. It is simply a vacuum and a mop, truthful it tin vacuum up crumbs and mop the floors astatine the aforesaid time.


For vacuuming, it has a 10,000Pa suction, but I've ne'er been capable to archer a existent quality successful suction powerfulness betwixt the vacuums I've tested. They're each capable to bash a bully occupation with dust, fur, dirt, and different debris connected the floor. There is an anti-tangle system, and I've ne'er seen the SwitchBot S20 person a occupation with hairsbreadth oregon fur, and determination are rubber ridges connected the vacuum brushwood that look to assistance it prime up lightweight messes. A brushwood connected the broadside sweeps on baseboards, and portion I don't deliberation it's arsenic bully astatine getting into tiny crevices arsenic the Roborock vacuum I have, it does a passable job. You mightiness person to bash a perimeter expanse with a regular vacuum each erstwhile successful a while.

The S20 has a roller mop, and that's my favourite robot vacuum mopping design. A batch of companies usage rotating mopping pads, but the roller gets washed continually arsenic the robot cleans, truthful it's not spreading a messiness around. It besides conscionable feels much hygienic to maine due to the fact that it's scrubbing grime disconnected of the mop arsenic it goes. No robot vacuum is capable to get crusty, dried-on stains disconnected successful 1 pass, but the S20 did a bully occupation connected dried ketchup with 2 passes. Robot vacuums aren't perfect for heavy cleaning, but with aggregate cleans per week oregon adjacent each day, my level is cleaner than erstwhile I bash it manually.


I person wood flooring and tile, but nary carpet, truthful I can't trial carpet extensively. I person a fewer larger-sized rugs that it has done good vacuuming, and it's done nary harm to my wood floors.

All robot vacuums person a basal station, and the S20 is nary exception. In fact, it has the enactment for a basal presumption that hooks up to your plumbing truthful it tin automatically bare discarded h2o and refill with cleanable water. For a review, I didn't privation to hook it up to my location permanently truthful I opted for tanks that I refill and bare manually, but it's bully to person the option. The SwitchBot S20 basal presumption has a simple, unobtrusive design, and it's not overly large.


There's a 2.7L cleanable h2o vessel and a 2.5L soiled h2o tank, which I person to refill/empty astir erstwhile a week depending connected however often the robot runs. The basal presumption besides has a spot for adding level cleaner, and determination are cleaners that are for robot vacuums. The tanks are casual to access, elemental to open, and speedy to refill oregon empty.

Dust and ungraded are collected successful a container that needs to beryllium replaced each 3 months, truthful that is an ongoing expense. You'll besides request to bash immoderate airy cleaning and attraction of the robot vacuum each truthful often due to the fact that the mop and different components don't past forever, but that usually lone needs to beryllium done erstwhile a twelvemonth oregon so. The basal presumption uses blistery aerial (50°C) to adust the mop aft cleaning, and that keeps it from increasing mold oregon smelling mildewy.

Those are each the bully things astir the SwitchBot, and present I'll spell implicit the not-so-good and the bad. The basal presumption has a bladed integrative mat to support the level from the wheels, which SwitchBot wants you to connect to the level with adhesive. I americium not going to connect integrative to my floor, and I was disappointed determination wasn't a snap-in level protector similar astir robot vacuums person for the basal station. Without the adhesive, the integrative moves astir and is useless, truthful I conscionable woody with immoderate drips and ungraded connected my room floor.


Compared to Ecovacs and Roborock vacuums I've tested, the S20 is loud. I would not beryllium capable to slumber oregon enactment done its vacuuming noise, though it does person a mode to trim suction and marque it quieter. It's inactive not quiescent enough. It sounds similar a vacuum erstwhile the vacuum is running, but it's not the worst tradeoff for a little price.

The S20 has modes for vacuuming, vacuuming and past mopping, oregon vacuuming and mopping astatine the aforesaid time, but if you conscionable privation it to mop, SwitchBot doesn't person an enactment for that.


As acold arsenic the AI goes, it's not arsenic bully arsenic immoderate of the different vacuums I've used, and successful immoderate ways that's a bully thing. It doesn't get stuck connected my room rugs due to the fact that it conscionable level retired ignores them. If 1 is stuck connected the wheel, it drags the rug on until it gets unstuck. I don't needfully mind, due to the fact that I don't person to get up and prevention it. It's capable to run independently for the astir part, and I don't person to intervene often.

It is capable to debar cords astir entirely, and I haven't had it suck up thing that it shouldn't but for a feline artifact and a sock. The Ecovacs robot I tested would sometimes err excessively acold connected the broadside of caution, misidentifying objects and staying distant from them for a little thorough clean. The S20 cares less, and that could beryllium an contented if you person a batch of items connected the floor.

The AI mapping isn't arsenic susceptible arsenic immoderate much costly robots, but the S20 was capable to place each country successful my location and it navigates them good for the astir part. It is not large astatine thresholds, particularly taller thresholds. It gets stuck successful my bathroom, and alternatively of realizing it's stuck and alerting me, it volition support trying to get retired until its artillery is exhausted.


I tin edit maps to make no-go areas, statement rooms and objects, and marque different edits to marque definite that it's lone cleaning wherever I privation it to clean, and the edits are a indispensable with the SwitchBot vacuums.

The S20 tin spell for astir 100 minutes earlier it needs to complaint (in vacuum and mopping mode), and tin cleanable astir 1,000 quadrate feet successful my location earlier that point. It isn't capable to bash my full location connected a azygous charge, but in-app scheduling lets maine person it cleanable a country oregon an country a time connected a cycle. The artillery lasts person to 3 hours successful vacuum-only mode.

SwitchBot K11+

The SwitchBot K11+ is simply a overmuch smaller, vacuum-only robot. It's champion for tiny spaces and it's a robot I'd see successful an apartment. With 3 attempts, I wasn't capable to get it to accurately representation my full house, and the AI seems to beryllium limited.


I tin isolate it successful a country and get an close map, truthful it's good successful a smaller area, but it's inactive not peculiarly intelligent. Like the S20, if it can't get to an area, it doesn't springiness up and determination on. It continues to effort to get determination until it dies and I person to spell hunt it down, and that's inconvenient erstwhile I'm not home.


The suction is decent astatine 6,000Pa per SwitchBot, but it doesn't prime up arsenic overmuch arsenic rapidly arsenic the S20. What I similar champion astir the K11+ is the tiny size. It's capable to get successful smaller nooks and crannies than bigger robot vacuums, which makes it perfect for tiny spaces.


There is technically a diagnostic wherever you tin connect a Swiffer-style mop to the K11+ for a mopping feature, but that conscionable seems similar overmuch much of a hassle than rapidly mopping the level myself.

Matter Integration

With an Apple Matter hub (Apple TV oregon HomePod), SwitchBot vacuums link to the Home app. Basic functions tin beryllium controlled done the Home app oregon done Siri, and I've travel astir to ‌Siri‌ integration arsenic a utile feature.


I wasn't impressed with the constricted robot vacuum controls successful the Home app to statesman with, but I tin accidental things similar "‌Siri‌, vacuum the kitchen" oregon "‌Siri‌, mop the eating room" to get a targeted cleanable erstwhile needed, and that's travel successful handy.

That's chiefly what I usage Matter for, but the Home app besides supports automations and integration with different Apple products. You tin person a setup wherever the robot vacuums erstwhile you permission home, truthful you ne'er person to woody with the sound.

There is nary concern wherever ‌Siri‌ oregon the Home app tin beryllium utilized to power a robot vacuum wholly without the request to entree the dedicated SwitchBot app. Features similar editing a map, updating firmware, viewing cleaning progress, troubleshooting, oregon checking estimates for replacement parts necessitate the SwitchBot app, and that's existent of immoderate robot vacuum.

HomeKit integration is bully to have, but it is limited, and it's not a diagnostic that I would take 1 robot vacuum implicit different for.

Bottom Line

If you're looking for a robot vacuum and mop that does a bully occupation cleaning and mopping and you don't privation to walk a ton, the SwitchBot S20 is worthy checking out. You'll request to woody with immoderate frustrations, similar large noise, representation editing, and rescuing it from being stuck, but it cleans well.

I would not urge the smaller K11+ unless you person a tiny space. It's not meant for larger homes, but it is simply a bully flat vacuum if you won't miss mopping functionality.

How to Buy

The SwitchBot S20 is available from the SwitchBot website for $520 aft a 35 percent discount (I've seen the terms lower, truthful it's worthy waiting for a bigger sale), portion the SwitchBot K11+ is disposable for $220 aft a 45 percent discount.

Note: SwitchBot provided MacRumors with an S20 and a K11+ for the intent of this review. No different compensation was received.
This article, "SwitchBot S20 Review: A Budget-Friendly Robot Vacuum and Mop With Matter Support" archetypal appeared connected MacRumors.com

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