iRobot

Combo J5+

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iRobot Combo J5+

Overall

#291 in

Robot Vacuums

according to Reddit Icon Reddit

User sentiment56% positive
5
1
3

Top Pros

Top Cons

Last updated: Apr 6, 2026

Reddit Reviews

Reddit Iconderping1234 1.0
r/RobotVacuumsWhy shouldn’t I buy a Roomba?
11 months ago

I had an i8+ which died and got exchanged for a j5+ this never worked and after 6+ months of troubleshooting I finally got a replacement unit that works. I will never buy a Roomba again.

Reddit IconTasty_Pool8812 1.0
r/RobotVacuumsI very strongly, STRONGLY recommend against getting a Roomba
7 months ago

I'm really happy with my j5+. Every run is fine and I have ~450 hours on it. It's navigation sucks compared to my lidar bots and it can't run in the dark. It also seems like the older combos are less reliable. With that being said it vacuums well and has good obstacle avoidance. It can handle insane messes thanks to the bin sensors

r/RobotVacuumsWhich is the best for pet hair: Roborock Q5+, Roomba J7+, or Shark AI Ultra?
9 months ago

My j5+ is really good with pet hair. No clogs or tangles. Long human hair does get stored inside the rollers, but will eventually wrap around the rollers My Ecovacs x1 and roborock s6 have a bristle brush that pet hair gets stuck in

r/RobotVacuumsNew Roomba with roller mop
9 months ago

Obstacle detection/avoidance of the j series is good, it's the navigation that is problematic (hard hitting walls/furniture, poor coverage, and getting lost) I feel that this model needs better anti-tangling tech to be more competitive

Reddit Iconbring_dat 0.5
r/BuyItForLifeHere’s a picture of my second Roomba.
5 months ago

It's fine, mine j5 is 3 years in and still going. It is pretty good at cleaning the apartment, it was still a life changer. I bought cheap replacement parts and filters off Amazon and never looked back

Reddit Icondfordium 0.5
r/roombaRoomba combo 10 - is it as bad as they say?
11 months ago

Agreed, I had to have my j9+ replaced once because of several issues and the replacement dock they sent me doesn’t even work! The J5 has been great though, these combo robots are not very good IMO

Reddit Iconidontwannabepicked 0.5
r/RobotVacuumsI analyzed Reddit for the 20 most recommended robot vacuums in the past year
12 months ago

i have a j5+ and it will be the last roomba i ever buy lol. actually the worst thing i’ve ever wasted money on and i got banned from the sub for saying that

Reddit IconNo-Net246 0.5
r/RobotVacuumsLooking for a high quality robot vacuum
11 months ago

The Ecovac Deebot T50 Pro is awesome. I just got in a week ago. I ditched my iRobot Roomba J5 which sucked. Always got lost and stuck. The T50 has honestly been so much better and was only $650. I have 2 other iRobots that I’ll get rid of because they’re all god awful.

Reddit IconOaksInSnow 0.5
r/germanshepherdsRobot vacuum? Best ones?
11 months ago

I run a Roomba J5+ daily on the main floor where my GSD hangs out. And a couple times a week in the bedroom/hallway, because she sleeps in there with me. Been doing this for a little over a year, and it has helped a lot. It does pretty well at keeping up with the hair. One thing I've noticed though is that, at least in my house, the dust filter needs to be cleaned regularly, even with a self-emptying vacuum: every two or three runs or so. This is because dust (not hair) tends to cake onto it, and the self-empty feature doesn't pull that off very well. If it gets even partially blocked the vacuum won't pick up debris and dust as well. Fortunately the dust filter is easy to get at. Keeping the equipment clean will help it perform at its best. My house is probably dustier than many because I have carpet throughout, except in the obvious places (kitchen, bathrooms). There's no roller brush on most Roomba models; instead, it's a pair of rubber (or silicone?) rollers. Nothing gets stuck on them, though you may have to take them out and clean around the axles occasionally. Robot vacuums definitely help, but I don't think any robot vac is going to be completely hands-off, set it and forget it.

Reddit Iconslain2212 0.5
r/PetsDog hair is taking over my house—what vacuums actually work?
8 months ago

A roomba. We have a J5. You can run them every day with minimal effort, and they do a pretty good job, and then just go over once a week with your regular vacuum. We have tiles, and it does a great job. But this week, through a series of unusual events, I ended up using my roomba on medium pile carpet that is original to our late 90's home, and omfg the hair and dander is pulled up is insane. I'm disgusted. We vacuum it once a week with an upright bissel, but apparently, the roomba is so so so much better. For the couch, I have a handheld pet bissel and a reusable lint roller which work amazing. I have 2 blue heelers and a cat.

Reddit Iconsleepytime03 0.5
r/smarthomeAre Vacuum Robots Really Worth It or Just a Scam?
12 months ago

I bought one with a home base that self empties. It also does mopping. I have had it for 2 years, still have not used the mopping function. I have 2 dogs, a very busy house, and it is a champ. We got ours at Costco,I would buy it again in a heartbeat. It is the Roomba j5 for reference.

Reddit IconTopspinG7 0.5
r/homeautomationWhich robot vacuum works the best? Tired of vacuuming constantly.
about 1 month ago

My Roomba did that once, but I'm 70 and once it saw me naked in the shower it immediately turned around and fled then caught on fire 🔥

r/homeautomationWhich robot vacuum works the best? Tired of vacuuming constantly.
about 1 month ago

I can't comment between Roborock and Roomba I can only say that my Roomba J5+ works quite well for vacuuming except on a very very thick (quasi Shag) carpet. I question whether they're going to go out of business especially when they're such a huge market for replacement parts bags etc I'm assuming they license other companies to provide some of those parts aftermarket. I don't use mine to mop so I can't comment on that. I found once I did the initial setup including mapping both floors of my house It works very well except on occasion it has a problem docking and emptying itself But that's usually resolved quickly. When there is some kind of problem I find the information provided to the app is generally pretty helpful. About the only thing that's missing it would be nice to show its current location on the map within the app. But for most people that's not a problem since you can just track it down yourself in your house. If I recall it beeps to help you locate it if it gets stuck but that's been an extremely rare occurrence.