Best robot lawn mowers: get lush green lawns without all of the hard work

The best robot lawnmowers can be indispensable tools in your home, saving you so much time and energy. Even small yards can take up to an hour or more to maintain each week, especially during peak season. Manual mowing can be an exhausting chore for some or something that others are unable to perform, leading to the job being pushed to the bottom of the list. But robot mowers can be a game-changer that will pay off in more free leisure time.

In this guide, we will go through the steps of shopping for a robot lawn mower, acknowledging that your needs will vary depending on your yard's size and your own technical expertise. To learn more about the best smart gardening techniques, check out our other guide for inspiration.

Best robot lawn mowers: Quick list

The best robot lawn mowers in 2023

Best robot lawn mower overall

The Husqvarna Automower 415X is an efficient and effective robotic lawn mower that will save you time and effort in the long run.

The model comes with a few impressive features. You can run it effectively without getting stuck with its advanced navigation system, and you can run it at night without disturbing others with its ultra-quiet technology. One of the most significant drawbacks is its price, but it's easy to install and you can set it up using your mobile phone.

The Automower 415X can be used on slopes up to 40%, so it's excellent for hilly or uneven terrain, and it's designed for lawns up to 0.4 acres. You can program and control the lawn mower through the app, and the weather timer adjusts mowing schedules automatically based on the weather.

Livingetc rating: 4.5 out of 5 stars

Best robot lawn mower for large lawns

Husqvarna's AUTOMOWER 315X is a robotic lawnmower with advanced features for efficient mowing and obstacle avoidance. GPS navigation and sensors make it easy to mow lawns up to 0.4 acres and, with its weather timer feature, it can adjust mowing schedules based on weather conditions. It also comes with an anti-theft alarm, a lift sensor, and automatic shut-off.

This mower may not be suitable for uneven terrain or areas with debris, so manual intervention could be required at times. It also doesn't come with a bag for collecting grass clippings, unlike many other robotic mowers. However, it can handle slopes up to 22 degrees and mow up to 18,000 square feet, so it could be a good buy if you're willing to pay for advanced technology.

Best hands-off robot lawn mower

The RM24A robotic lawnmower from MowRo is a budget-friendly option for lawns up to 1/4 acre. A rain sensor and boundary wire create a perimeter within which the mower can operate. However, while the MowRo RM24A has advanced features like GPS navigation and app control, it may need help navigating uneven terrain or areas with obstacles.

With a cutting width of 9.5 inches and a brushless motor, this mower is suitable for smaller, easier lawns. It is an eco-friendly and efficient lawn mower and, once set up, it's fully-automatic and works without your input. For more extensive yards or tougher terrain, you might need a more powerful or gas-powered robotic lawn mower, but if you're looking for a cost-effective lawn maintenance solution, this is an excellent choice.

Best smart robot lawn mower

The Worx Landroid L 20V 6.0Ah Robotic Lawn Mower is designed to handle lawns up to 1/2 acre in size, so it's perfect for homeowners with small to medium-sized lawns. The mower can handle slopes up to 35 degrees with multiple cutting heights, and it learns about your yard over time and adjusts its mowing patterns accordingly.

The rain sensor tells the mower to go back to charging when it's raining, but AI technology may take a while to learn your lawn's nuances, which could lead to suboptimal lawn mowing patterns when you first get started. It's also a little narrower than other robotic mowers, so mowing large lawns might take longer.

Best budget robot lawn mower

An excellent choice for homeowners with small to medium lawns, the GARDENA SILENO MINIMO Robotic Lawn Mower can handle up to 5,380 square feet. With 57 decibels of noise, it's ideal for residential areas, and the Bluetooth app makes setup and maintenance easy. In contrast to other models, this one lacks advanced features like GPS or mapping, so the cutting pattern might not be as accurate.

However, the mowing area is defined by boundary wire, so it is more precise and efficient. That said, it might take longer to mow larger lawns because of the small cutting width. With this in mind, the GARDENA SILENO MINIMO Robotic Lawn Mower is an excellent choice for small to medium-sized lawns but, if you need advanced features, look elsewhere.

A good all-rounder

WORX's Landroid Robotic Lawn Mower can mow up to 1/4 acre or 10,890 square feet with advanced sensors and an intelligent navigation system. With its mobile app, it can navigate tight spaces and avoid obstacles, and has variable cutting heights and mowing patterns for perfectly kept lawns.

The WR140 comes with a battery and charger as well as boundary wire, and though it may not be suitable for large or unusually shaped lawns because of its slightly limited coverage and navigation, the smart features and customization options make it deserving of a place on this list.

Choosing the best robot lawn mower

When choosing the best robot mower for you, considering the size of your backyard is a good place to start. Most manufacturers create robot mower ranges with models increasing in price according to the lawn size they are designed to tackle. 

Next, work out how to calculate the slope of your lawn, especially if your home is built on the side of a hill. Most robot mowers can manage slopes between 15 percent and 45 percent (8.5–24 degrees), and if you have a slope or two, you should look for a model with enough power and traction to handle them. There are many handy videos online to help you measure the gradient of your backyard using a few wooden stakes, tape measure, and some string. 

Blade width is important for larger lawns, and if you have many borders and paths, you should look for a model that supports ‘close to edge’ cutting. If you want to control the mower from your smartphone or device, it should have GPS built-in. 

Do check whether the price you are paying includes the installation kit, as they are often sold separately to suit the size of your backyard. One optional extra worth considering is a robot mower ‘garage’ that protects your investment from the elements and provides a safe haven for your mower to charge.  

About this guide

The entries on this list were chosen through comparing user reviews, tapping into team Livingetc's breadth of knowledge in the smart gardening realm, and digging down into the specs and design elements of the most popular models across a range of price points.

While we attempt to have hands-on experience with and independent reviews for everything we include in our guides, this is only sometimes possible, so some of our guides are put together using the writer's research and existing expertise. We will return to this guide regularly to update the models included, whether due to the latest releases and moves in the industry or the opportunity to test the best robot lawn mowers in person and judge them accordingly.

Models we have tested will be clearly signposted within the article, so you can trust us to be transparent with our choices. You can head to our dedicated page to learn more about our review process.

Linda Clayton

Linda Clayton has been an interiors journalist for 20 years, happily writing about the latest trends, and product reviews and giving her expert design advice for the likes of Gardeningetc, Homes & Gardens, Livingetc, Ideal Home, and Real Homes ever since. She recently renovated and extended her home, giving her plenty of space to road-test lawnmowers like the Husqvarna Automower 415x.