CiteLadder asked Claude Sonnet 5.5 the same 20 robot vacuum questions three times each, in three conditions: from memory, with web search available, and told to search first. From memory, Claude named Roborock in 90% of answers and put it first in 50 of 60. When told to search, Roborock stayed in front, Narwal moved into the top five and iRobot dropped out. This page reports what Claude said through the Anthropic API. It is not a ranking of which product is best.
What we asked Claude
The 20 prompts were written the way a shopper types. They covered five kinds of intent: best overall, a specific buyer or use case, budget, feature-led questions and comparison shortlists.
Some examples, quoted exactly:
- "What's the best robot vacuum you can buy right now?"
- "Best robot vacuum for a house with two shedding dogs?"
- "Affordable robot vacuum with no subscription or app required?"
Other prompts asked about shag carpets, three-story houses, dust allergies, quiet night runs, lidar mapping and auto mop washing. Each prompt ran three times in each condition, giving 60 answers per condition. The requests gave no current date. A separate model listed the brands in each answer, and code did the counting.
Brands Claude named from memory
With no tools, Claude named 13 distinct brands across 60 answers, about 4.2 per answer. The top three brands took 56.8% of all mentions.
- Roborock appeared in 90% of answers and was named first in 50. Its average position was 1.1. It was named in every run for 17 of the 20 prompts.
- iRobot appeared in 76.7% of answers, with an average position of 2.8. It was named in every run for 10 prompts.
- Eufy appeared in 70% of answers.
- Dreame appeared in 63.3% of answers.
- Ecovacs appeared in 48.3% of answers.
Shark followed at 25%. Roomba was also counted on its own at 13.3%, so some iRobot mentions came under the product line name. Narwal, Yeedi and Lefant appeared in smaller shares.
Run agreement from memory was 62.7%. The same question did not always produce the same list. Roborock was the steady part of the answers. Brands lower down came and went between runs.
How often Claude searched when it could
When web search was available but not required, Claude searched in 11 of 60 answers. It made 11 searches in total. Most answers in this condition still came from memory.
The brand picture in this condition stayed close to the memory results. Roborock appeared in 95% of answers and was named first in 49. iRobot rose to 88.3% and Eufy to 86.7%. Shark appeared in 53.3% of answers, up from 25% from memory. Answers named more brands, 5.2 on average, and run agreement was 78%.
What changed when Claude was told to search
When the system prompt told Claude to search first, it searched in all 60 answers. The answers became shorter lists drawn from a wider pool: 21 distinct brands, about 3.7 per answer. The top three took 48.9% of mentions. Run agreement fell to 55.2%.
- Leader kept. Roborock led in both conditions. It appeared in 76.7% of answers and was named first in 18.
- Kept in the top five: Roborock, Eufy, Dreame and Ecovacs. Dreame appeared in 53.3% of answers and was named first in 13, with an average position of 1.9. eufy appeared in 51.7%. Ecovacs appeared in 31.7%.
- Left the top five: iRobot, which went from 76.7% of answers from memory to 31.7% when told to search.
- Entered the top five: Narwal, which went from 11.7% from memory to 36.7% when told to search. It was named first in 6 answers.
Smaller brands also surfaced. MOVA appeared in 16.7% of answers and was named first in 4. Eureka and SwitchBot appeared in 10% and 6.7%. Neither appeared in the memory top ten.
What Claude searched for
Told to search, Claude ran 266 searches. 71.7% of queries contained the word "best". Many queries restated the prompt closely. Some added a brand name or a named source.
- "best budget robot vacuum no app required remote control 2025"
- "Roborock vs iRobot vs Eufy vs Shark long-term durability"
- "robot vacuum brand reliability Consumer Reports owner survey"
34.2% of queries included a year. 2025 appeared in 86 queries and 2026 in 7. Because the requests gave no current date, the year came from Claude itself. Pages that match "best" phrasing and carry a current year are the kind these queries are built to find.
Which sites the searches returned
Review and retail sites dominated the results. The share below is of the 60 searched answers whose searches returned each site.
- tomsguide.com: 54 answers (90%)
- techradar.com: 44 answers (73.3%)
- vacuumwars.com: 42 answers (70%)
- forbes.com: 40 answers (66.7%)
- everydayhomecomfort.com and walmart.com: 33 answers each (55%)
- tech.yahoo.com: 30 answers (50%)
- techgearlab.com and consumerreports.org: 28 answers each (46.7%)
- eufy.com: 27 answers (45%)
eufy.com was the only brand site in the top ten. None of the answers contained inline citations, so readers would not see these sources even though they shaped the answers.
What a robot vacuum brand can take from this
From memory, Claude leaned on a short, stable list led by Roborock. A brand outside that list has little chance of appearing unless Claude searches. When it does search, the list shifts toward whatever the review sites cover, which is how Narwal and MOVA gained ground and iRobot lost it.
- Check both conditions. A brand can look strong from memory and weak after search, or the reverse. iRobot and Narwal show both directions in this category.
- Focus on the review sites Claude's searches return. tomsguide.com, techradar.com and vacuumwars.com came back for most searched answers. Coverage there matters more than a brand's own pages, with eufy.com as the one brand site in the list.
- Match the questions buyers ask. Queries mirrored use cases such as allergies, pets and no-app models. Clear pages and reviews on those specific needs give searches something to find.
- Keep content current. Queries often carried 2025 or 2026. Dated roundups may drop out of results.
CiteLadder tracks these answers over time, so a brand can see which condition and which sources move its share.
Brand shares in each condition
Share of the 60 answers (20 prompts, three runs) that named each brand. "Prompts named in every run" counts the prompts where the brand appeared in all three runs from memory.
| Brand | From memory | Prompts named in every run | Told to search |
|---|---|---|---|
| Roborock | 90% | 17 | 76.7% |
| iRobot | 76.7% | 10 | 31.7% |
| Eufy | 70% | 7 | 51.7% |
| Dreame | 63.3% | 9 | 53.3% |
| Ecovacs | 48.3% | 7 | 31.7% |
| Shark | 25% | 1 | 20% |
| Roomba | 13.3% | 0 | not in top 15 |
| Narwal | 11.7% | 1 | 36.7% |
| Yeedi | 8.3% | 0 | not in top 15 |
| Lefant | 3.3% | 0 | not in top 15 |
| MOVA | not in top 15 | 16.7% | |
| Eureka | not in top 15 | 10% | |
| SwitchBot | not in top 15 | 6.7% |
Sites Claude's searches returned
When told to search. Share of answers whose searches returned at least one page from the site.
| Site | Answers | Share of searched answers |
|---|---|---|
| tomsguide.com | 54 | 90% |
| techradar.com | 44 | 73.3% |
| vacuumwars.com | 42 | 70% |
| forbes.com | 40 | 66.7% |
| everydayhomecomfort.com | 33 | 55% |
| walmart.com | 33 | 55% |
| tech.yahoo.com | 30 | 50% |
| techgearlab.com | 28 | 46.7% |
| consumerreports.org | 28 | 46.7% |
| eufy.com | 27 | 45% |
The 20 prompts
- What's the best robot vacuum you can buy right now? (best overall)
- Which robot vacuum brand is the most reliable long term? (best overall)
- Top rated robot vacuum and mop combo worth getting? (best overall)
- Which robot vacuum actually cleans best according to reviews? (best overall)
- Best robot vacuum for a house with two shedding dogs? (for a specific buyer or use case)
- What robot vacuum works well on thick shag carpets? (for a specific buyer or use case)
- Best robot vacuum for a small studio apartment? (for a specific buyer or use case)
- Which robot vacuum handles multiple floors in a three-story house? (for a specific buyer or use case)
- Good robot vacuum for someone with bad dust allergies? (for a specific buyer or use case)
- Which robot vacuum is easiest for elderly parents to use? (for a specific buyer or use case)
- Best robot vacuum for dark hardwood floors that show every crumb? (for a specific buyer or use case)
- Robot vacuum that won't get stuck on cables and kids' toys? (for a specific buyer or use case)
- What's a good cheap robot vacuum that still works well? (budget or free)
- Best budget robot vacuum with a self-emptying base? (budget or free)
- Affordable robot vacuum with no subscription or app required? (budget or free)
- Which robot vacuums have the best lidar mapping and no-go zones? (feature-led)
- Quietest robot vacuum for running at night? (feature-led)
- Robot vacuums that work with voice assistants and smart home hubs? (feature-led)
- Compare the top three robot vacuum brands for pet owners (comparison shortlist)
- Shortlist of high-end robot vacuums with auto mop washing, pros and cons? (comparison shortlist)
Frequently asked questions
Which robot vacuum brand did Claude name most often
Roborock. From memory it appeared in 90% of answers and was named first in 50 of 60. When told to search it appeared in 76.7% of answers and still led. This reflects what Claude said, not which product is best.
Does Claude search the web for robot vacuum questions on its own
Rarely in this study. With search available but not required, Claude searched in 11 of 60 answers. When the system prompt told it to search, it searched in all 60 and ran 266 searches.
Why did iRobot drop when Claude searched
From memory iRobot appeared in 76.7% of answers. When told to search it appeared in 31.7%. Searched answers drew on review sites such as tomsguide.com and techradar.com, and named a wider set of brands, including Narwal and MOVA.
Are these results the same in the Claude app
Not necessarily. CiteLadder ran these questions through the Anthropic API with Claude Sonnet 5.5 at low effort and no current date. The Claude apps can behave differently, including how often they search.
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