Roomba Combo j9+
iRobot's upgrade to the Combo j7+, with stronger suction and a dock that refills the water tank. Its mop still flips onto its back so rugs stay dry, but you wash the pad yourself.
See the alternatives below, or switch market.
The short version
The Combo j9+ replaced the Combo j7+ at the top of iRobot's older j range. It keeps the clever part: a single mop pad on metal arms that lowers onto hard floors and lifts right up onto the robot's back on rugs. iRobot doubled the suction compared with its i-series, added a back-and-forth scrubbing mode, and gave it a furniture-style dock with a wooden top that empties the bin into a bag and refills the robot's water tank.
What you give up is pad washing. The dock never cleans or dries the mop, so you swap and wash pads by hand after most runs, which newer docks do for you. It isn't quick, either: two testers found it slower to cover rooms than rivals. It's also no longer iRobot's current model; its US store now lists it as available only at other retailers, and the Combo 10 Max took over.
Our take: Buy it if you find one cheaply, you have rugs you never want dampened and you care most about vacuuming carpet thoroughly. It's also a good pick for a pet that has accidents, given how well it dodges mess. If washing pads by hand sounds like a chore, the Roomba Combo 10 Max has the same flip-up mop with a washing dock, and the MOVA P10 Pro Ultra handles nearly all the upkeep.
Where it sits in iRobot’s range
- Roomba Combo j9+Same flip-up mop; you refill the water by hand
- Roomba Combo j9+This model
- Roomba j9+Vacuum-only version with a self-emptying dock
- Roomba Combo 10 MaxAdds a dock that washes and dries the pad
What reviewers found
Four full tests. Vacuum Wars bought one and ran its standard pickup, mopping and obstacle tests over a few weeks; PCMag measured pickup in two rooms; Tom's Guide lived with it for two weeks; Engadget used it in a busy family home with cats. All agree the retracting mop keeps carpets dry and that obstacle dodging is good. They split on pickup: Vacuum Wars rates it among the best, while PCMag found weaker hard-floor results than a rival, and Tom's Guide saw pet hair pushed around.
Vacuum Wars, lab test, A few weeks · PCMag, lab test, Feb 2024 · Tom's Guide, hands-on, Two weeks, Mar 2024 · Engadget, hands-on, Mar 2024
Rugs stay dry and get cleaned
The mop lifts right onto the robot's back on rugs, and every tester found it worked. Vacuum Wars calls the system a big deal because it vacuums and mops mixed floors in one run. Tom's Guide found it mopped within millimetres of a rug's edge without touching it, then vacuumed the rug in crisp rows. PCMag says it keeps carpets drier than any other model it has seen, since rivals only lift their pads a few millimetres.
Excellent vacuuming, with some disagreement
Vacuum Wars found it as good as or better than any robot on the market in pickup tests, with its second-best deep-carpet score ever, and confirmed the extra suction. Tom's Guide saw it clear almost all kitty litter from shag carpet. PCMag measured 95.8% of rice from carpet but only 38.5% of sand, and on hardwood it trailed an Ecovacs rival and scattered rice. Tom's Guide also found it pushed pet hair along hard floors, leaving about a quarter behind. Carpet homes will be happiest.
Good mop, but you wash the pad
Vacuum Wars was very impressed on dried grape juice and wet spills, where spinning-pad robots tend to smear. Tom's Guide saw it lift pasta sauce and melted chocolate in one pass, and needed the SmartScrub mode for thick caramel. Engadget noticed occasional streaks but cleaned dried litter paw prints. PCMag found it wiped up most of a jelly spill but left a sticky patch. Every tester had to remove and wash the pad by hand; Engadget changed it every two or three runs.
Dodges clutter and pet mess well
Engadget put real cat poo in its path, and it stopped about six inches away and backed off. PCMag saw it avoid every cat toy, including a white mouse on a pale carpet, after bumping a food bowl once. Tom's Guide watched it curve round power strips, shoes and fake dog mess. Vacuum Wars scored it about the same as its main rivals: not perfect, but far better than a robot without a camera. iRobot also promises a replacement if it runs over pet mess.
Slow mapping and runs
Speed is where it lags. Vacuum Wars timed about 25 minutes to map and roughly 10 minutes longer than rivals to clean its test area. PCMag measured 39 minutes to map a two-bedroom flat, and later runs in one room took far longer than an Ecovacs rival while the mop arm snagged under a door. Tom's Guide had a quicker experience, mapping 800 sq ft in under 10 minutes. Battery life is good: PCMag got 115 minutes, and Engadget saw runs of two hours or more.
Before you buy
The questions people ask about this one
Can it leave the mops in the dock for carpet?
It doesn't need to. The pad lifts onto the top of the robot whenever it detects carpet, per the specifications, and Vacuum Wars, PCMag and Tom's Guide all found rugs stayed dry. It can also vacuum only if you leave the pad off.
Will it avoid cables and pet mess?
It's one of the better robots for this. Engadget saw it stop short of real cat poo, and Tom's Guide watched it avoid power strips and fake dog mess. PCMag had it bump a food bowl once, then suggest a keep-out zone.
How often do I have to empty or refill anything?
iRobot says the dock's water tank lasts about 30 days, per the specifications, and Vacuum Wars notes iRobot claims 60 days per dust bag. The pad is the chore: Tom's Guide had to wash it after each job, and Engadget swapped it every two or three runs.
How big is the dock, and is it loud?
It's about 40 × 42 × 41cm, per the specifications, and its wooden top works as a side table. PCMag calls it the best-looking dock it has seen. iRobot says it's its quietest dock yet, but none of the testers measured the noise.
Does it fit under low furniture?
The robot is 8.6cm tall and 34.8cm across, per the specifications. Tom's Guide found it slid under a sofa and kitchen cabinet overhangs, and PCMag saw it clean under a desk, coffee table and bed.
Compare with
Roomba Combo 10 Max
The same flip-up mop idea, with a dock that also washes and dries the pad.
Testers found its mapping slow and were let down by the dock.
P10 Pro Ultra
A full self-cleaning dock and long battery life, and it's good on hard floors.
All three of its tests found it weak on pet hair in carpet.
Roomba Plus 575 Combo
A slim newer Roomba with a camera for clutter and a dock that hot-washes and dries its pads.
Its spinning pads lift rather than stow, and one tester hit repeated Wi-Fi dropouts.
Full specifications
Figures come from the manufacturer’s product page unless a source is named. A blank means nobody we trust has confirmed it.
Owner reviews
Own a Roomba Combo j9+?
Tell people how it’s held up: cleaning, maintenance, faults and support. Owner reviews are shown separately from expert tests and never mixed into the score.
Sources
Everything cited on this page. Expert scores are shown as the reviewer gave them.
- Vacuum Wars: iRobot Roomba Combo j9+ Review – the King of Clean?Lab test, A few weeks
- PCMag: iRobot Roomba Combo j9+ Review · 3.5 / 5, GoodLab test
- Tom's Guide: Roomba J9+ Combo robot vacuum and mop review · 4 / 5Hands-on, Two weeks
- Engadget: Roomba Combo j9+ review: The ideal robot vacuum and mopHands-on
- iRobot: Roomba Combo j9+ auto-fill robot vacuum and mopManufacturer