Robomop P7 vs Robomop P9 Ultra: is the $400 upgrade worth it?
We ran both robots side by side for five weeks in a home with a cat and a dog. Both handled pet hair well; the P9 Ultra adds real mopping and better obstacle avoidance, and the P7 costs $400 less.
Sarah Miller
Ryan Mitchell, editor-in-chief
October 14, 2026
5 weeks · 2 models
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The two robots
Prices checked October 14, 2026
Collected the most hair and got stuck only twice in twenty runs.
$499 at Amazon Read the full review
Vacuums and mops, then cleans the mop pads itself with hot water.
$899 at Amazon Read the full reviewThe short answer
- Buy the Robomop P7 if you only need vacuuming. It collected slightly more pet hair than the P9 Ultra and costs $400 less.
- Buy the P9 Ultra if your floors need mopping. Its spinning pads were the only ones in our test that removed dried coffee.
- The P9 Ultra is better at avoiding cables and pet bowls: it got stuck once in 20 runs, the P7 twice.
- Budget for running costs: the P9 Ultra needs about $120 a year in parts, almost three times the P7.
How we compared them
Every robot cleaned the ground floor of our test house in Columbus 20 times over five weeks: oak in the kitchen, a low-pile rug in the living room and tile in the hall. Our cat and dog supplied hair every day, and before each measured run we added a fixed hair mix so every robot faced the same amount.
We weighed what each robot collected, counted every time it needed rescuing, and measured runtime and noise ourselves. We bought every robot at retail price; no manufacturer saw this comparison before publication.
Head to head
The better result in each row is marked. All figures are our own measurements unless noted.
| Test | Robomop P7 | Robomop P9 Ultra |
|---|---|---|
| Pricelowest at time of writing | $499 ✓ Best | $899 |
| Test scoreout of 10 | 8.9 | 9.3 ✓ Best |
| Pet hair% collected | 94% ✓ Best | 92% |
| Pickup, hardwood% of test dirt | 97% | 98% ✓ Best |
| Got stucktimes in 20 runs | 2× | 1× ✓ Best |
| Runtimestandard mode | 2½ h | 3 h ✓ Best |
| NoisedB at 1 meter | 65 dB ✓ Best | 66 dB |
| Heightfits under furniture | 3.8 in ✓ Best | 4.1 in |
| Running costparts per year | $45 ✓ Best | $120 |
| Mopping | No | Spinning pads |
| Base | Bagged, self-empty | Bagged + pad washing |
| Rows won | 5 | 4 |
Which one should you buy?
- You have pets that shed
- You want a robot that rarely needs rescuing
- You want it to mop
- You have little space for the base station
- You want vacuuming and real mopping in one
- Your floors are often cluttered
- You mind $120 a year in parts
- Your home is mostly carpet
If you just want clean, hair-free floors, the Robomop P7 does that for $400 less. Pay for the P9 Ultra only if you want the robot to mop as well.
Frequently asked questions
Is a more expensive robot vacuum cleaner?
Only up to a point. In our test, pickup barely improved above $500. The extra money buys mopping, obstacle avoidance and a station that does more of the maintenance.
Do I need a self-emptying base?
With pets, yes: without one you empty a small bin after almost every run. In an apartment without pets you can do without.
Do any of them need a subscription?
No. Mapping, scheduling and room cleaning are free in all of the apps.
- BrasQ robot vacuum test protocol (2026)
- IEC 62929: Cleaning robots for household use, methods for measuring performance
- Manufacturer manuals and spec sheets
- Prices checked and results updated.
- First published.
Sarah has tested vacuums, mops, air purifiers and dehumidifiers since 2017. Before joining BrasQ, she spent five years as a test coordinator at a national consumer advocacy group. She studied industrial design at Ohio State and lives in Columbus with her family and a long-haired cat.
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