With robot vacuums becoming an increasingly common addition to people’s homes, the idea of using a robot lawn mower to maintain your yard doesn’t feel so far-fetched anymore. Just like robot vacuums, robot lawnmowers can save you time and energy on mowing the grass and give you back more time in your day. It’s an appealing idea, but with the price of robot lawnmowers ranging from anywhere between $1,000 to $3,0000, depending on the make, model and features, many people still think of them as an expensive novelty.

As with any serious investment, you’ll want to be well educated before you go dropping thousands of dollars. Don’t worry, though — CNET experts have done all the homework for you in our buying guide. In this article, we’ll look at some key things you should know before shelling out your hard-earned money on robot lawnmowers.

What are robot lawn mowers and how do they work?

It’s possible you’ve only recently been introduced to the concept of robot lawn mowers and you’re wondering what exactly they are, and how they manage to provide a hands-free lawn mowing experience. 

Put simply, robot lawn mowers are small, autonomous lawn-care units that map out and mow your lawn entirely on their own, with no labor required on your part. They typically rely on mapping technology, GPS, or limiting systems like perimeter wires to determine the extent of your property, and then they pass over your lawn in patterns, mowing as they go. 

New innovations have made them more accurate, more efficient and more likely to negotiate the obstacles of your unique lawn without getting into trouble. And though they’ve hardly entered the realm of impulse purchase, prices have inevitably started to come down as manufacturers begin to produce them at greater scale. 

New navigation tech means its easier to use

Recent advancements have made robot mowers even more precise and useful. According to Chris Price, senior manager of robotics engineering at Husqvarna (a leading robot mower manufacturer), the newest models no longer need to rely so heavily on older navigation tools like buried perimeter wires. 

“Precision satellite navigation with RTK technology, such as Husqvarna’s EPOS system, revolutionized the robotic mower space by eliminating the need for physical boundary wires,” Price told CNET. 

This new nav tech has unlocked advantages beyond just more-precise mowing and mapping. According to Price, the new tech, available in Husqvarna’s latest iQ series of mowers, enables “incredibly efficient mowing patterns that can double the area capacity, reduce the installation time and maintenance” and leave your lawn looking perfectly striped in a way only traditional mowers have previously been capable of. 

Robot lawn mowers vs. traditional lawn mowers 

Most robot lawn mowers are battery powered, meaning you don’t need to worry about refueling them the way you do many traditional push or riding mowers. After they’ve completed a mowing cycle, they’ll return to a charging dock, much the way robot vacuums do, and refill their battery while waiting for the next call to action. Many models, particularly on the high end, include sophisticated apps that let you modify the mower’s behavior, including manually altering the coverage area or indicating that the mower should return to the dock automatically if it detects rainfall.

Aside from the freedom from fossil fuels, robot mowers have a number of advantages over traditional mowing. The most obvious is that they save you time: Instead of spending hours yourself each week, pushing or driving a traditional mower around your yard, you can lounge around in the sunshine deckside or attend to other chores while your robot buddy does your landscaping for you. 

They’re also significantly quieter than traditional mowers, especially the gas-powered variety with their deafening engines (though they’re also quieter than even electric push mowers, which have larger, noisier blades and other components). And because of their size, robot mowers can get into smaller areas than some larger traditional mowers can. That said, they’re not without their weaknesses.

Pros and cons of robot lawn mowers

We’ve contrasted robot mowers with traditional mowers above, but they have some other advantages that may not be immediately evident.

Pros of robot lawn mowers

Environmentally friendly

Because robot vacuums almost universally are electric, they don’t put out all those emissions you find with gas-powered lawn-care devices. Not only is this better for the environment as a whole, it can also make your personal environment a lot more pleasant. Your house and yard won’t be suffused with the lingering stench of the exhaust belched out of a gas-powered mower, and you won’t have to change out of gassy-smelling clothes to avoid repelling people.

Can improve your lawn’s health and appearance 

Robot lawn mowers aren’t just convenient, they can actually be better for your lawn. Because you can mow more frequently with a robot than you’re likely to do yourself, you won’t have those days when your lawn starts to look shaggy or unkempt. More importantly, frequent mowing can encourage lateral grass growth, which results in a denser, healthier lawn. The same effect can choke out weeds, leading to a more uniform and appealing-looking lawn.

Lawn maintenance even while you’re away

With a robot mower, you also won’t need to worry about hiring landscapers or paying a neighborhood kid to mow your lawn while you’re on vacation. Just set a regular schedule, or manually trigger a mowing cycle through the app, and your grass will look as meticulously tended as if you’d never left.

No annoying grass clippings to deal with 

Robot mowers don’t collect grass clippings, so you won’t have to worry about disposing of giant bags of yard waste. And because they can mow more frequently, clippings are smaller and should decompose quickly, so they shouldn’t be littering your lawn and you won’t have to spend extra time raking them up.

Savings over time

Though robot mowers represent a fairly steep initial investment, they can save you money over time because you never have to worry about buying gas to fuel them up, paying for oil changes, or shelling out to a landscaping company for lawn maintenance.

Cons of robot lawn mowers

There are some downsides to robot mowers.

High up-front cost

You may ultimately save money over time, but you’ll still need to put together a tidy sum to buy a robot mower in the first place. Though cheaper models can be had for $1,000 or less, a high-quality option will run you between $4,000 and $6,000 (or more). 

Can struggle with mowing complicated lawns

Navigation tech has certainly improved, but it isn’t perfect by any stretch of the imagination. A robot mower can still struggle with complex lawn structures that involve a lot of slopes, oddly shaped obstacles or other impediments.

Maintenance costs

You may not be buying gas or paying for oil changes, but robot mowers still require maintenance. This can include everything from replacing the blades to installing a new battery, and some of those replacement costs can be fairly steep. That said, new adaptive mowing technologies may reduce overall maintenance costs, with many new robot mowers able to change speed and mowing height on the fly to reduce wear on the unit.

May struggle with fine edge cutting

Another consequence of imperfect mapping is that a robot lawn mower may struggle to get close to edges, especially if the edge in question is irregularly shaped. This means you may need to do a cleanup pass after your mower is finished to get a uniform, sharp edge around your property.

Are robot lawn mowers worth the money?

With all that in mind, is a modern robot lawn mower worth the money? The answer is a qualified yes.

A robot mower will be more valuable to some homeowners (or renters required to maintain a yard) than others. Of course if you’re the type who genuinely enjoys yard work, you’re likely in a need-not-apply position in regard to smart lawn tech, especially if you already own a push or riding mower you’re happy with. 

Robot mowers also aren’t an ideal fit for anyone with a complicated lawn that has lots of uneven surfaces, changes in elevation or large obstacles. This applies if you’re someone with kids who often leave toys in the yard or if you have portable play structures regularly set up behind your house — you may spend as much time clearing the way for a robot mower and making sure its mapping is still correct as you would mowing the lawn yourself. Also, if you have a really small yard that takes only a few minutes to mow, spending thousands on a robot to do the work for you probably isn’t a great investment.

But if you have a large yard, and particularly if it’s got lots of broad, flat spaces without many obstacles, a robot lawn mower can be a time saver. This is especially true for small businesses with large grassy areas — they’ll appreciate the savings-over-time aspect of a robot mower that sees lots of regular use. If you’re constantly pumping ever-pricier fossil fuels into a traditional mower, the cost savings will make an immediate impact.

A robot mower is also a no-brainer for anyone who’s extremely busy during the week and doesn’t want to burn their precious weekend hours doing boring manual labor. In the same vein, anyone who’s not often home during daylight hours — like folks with an especially long commute or who typically work longer daytime shifts — can reclaim some of those precious sunny hours with a robot mower purchase.

The future of robot lawn mowers

We’re finally hitting the point where broad adoption of robot mowers looks more likely. Improvements in communication between mower units and GPS systems; better and more accurate boundary marking; and better built-in lidar or camera systems mean mapping improvements and more-accurate mowing. At the same time, more-efficient drive and power units mean that even smaller robot mowers may soon match the power of some of the current push and riding options. So though some people might decide now’s the time for a robot mower, others may choose to wait for lower prices and improved tech.

Ultimately, the decision to invest in a robot lawn mower comes down to your individual needs, so consider carefully whether the up-front cost is worth the convenience, time-savings and potential long term savings a high-tech lawn buddy can provide.

FAQ: Robot lawn mowers