Rising Prices Push Robot Vacuums Out of Workers’ Homes

Once hailed as the ultimate hands-free cleaning solution, robot vacuums are now being abandoned by many overworked consumers.

A quick search for “robot vacuum” on social media reveals a flood of cautionary posts: they can’t clean tight corners, require constant repositioning, get stuck on small objects, and often struggle with tangled hair. The list of complaints is long, and for many buyers, these devices end up gathering dust after only a few uses.

Ironically, prices have been climbing. Since 2018, the average online price of a robot vacuum has more than doubled—from 1,413 yuan to 3,207 yuan. Yet despite higher revenue, leading brands are struggling with profitability. Rockrobo’s 2025 mid-year report showed revenue up 78.96% year-over-year to 7.903 billion yuan, but net profit down 39.55%—a trend that has persisted for over two years.

From Boom to Strain
The industry’s “golden age” peaked in 2021. In 2020, sales hit a record 6.54 million units, but volumes have since dipped. In 2024, sales reached 6.036 million units—up 31.7% from the previous year but still below peak levels. Revenue, however, continues to climb, hitting 19.36 billion yuan in 2024—more than double 2020’s total.

The surge in spending is largely driven by skyrocketing marketing costs. Rockrobo’s marketing expenses in the first half of 2025 grew by an astonishing 144.51%, far outpacing revenue growth, while profits plunged. Ecovacs fared slightly better, returning to positive profit growth in 2024 after two years of declines, but still prioritizing profitability over aggressive marketing.

According to industry veterans, R&D and promotional budgets have ballooned into the billions. Venture capital also fueled competition, with financing peaking in 2021 at 4.084 billion yuan across 10 deals. Even as the top players hit growth plateaus, new brands have poured in with massive funding rounds.

The Innovation Gap
Companies are pushing out products faster than ever—some releasing new models every six to eight months. Rockrobo launched over eight new products in 2024, twice as many as the previous year. Yet these upgrades are often incremental, failing to solve core issues like poor navigation, incomplete cleaning, and short-lived performance.

Technological parity means market share battles are fierce. Globally, Rockrobo leads with a 16% share, but only a 500,000-unit advantage over Ecovacs. New tech innovations are quickly copied, as seen when Rockrobo debuted a 5-axis folding bionic robotic arm, only for Dreame to launch a similar feature shortly after.

New Entrants and High Hopes
Despite modest penetration—just 5.5% in China versus over 10% in developed markets—competition remains intense. Heavyweights like DJI have joined the fray, debuting the ROMO series in August 2025 after four years of development. While expectations were high given DJI’s drone expertise, the products have yet to outperform existing market leaders.

Midea Group, despite reporting losses of over 200 million yuan in its robot vacuum division last year, is committed to staying in the game, viewing it as a long-term global opportunity.

Going Global
With domestic growth slowing, brands are turning aggressively to overseas markets—especially Europe and North America. Ecovacs has leveraged its early overseas presence to build strong local operations, while Rockrobo is expanding rapidly through both online and offline channels, including over 1,400 stores such as Best Buy and Walmart.

In 2024, overseas revenue accounted for over 50% of Rockrobo’s sales, while Ecovacs generated 42.2% of its revenue abroad. Regional market share varies: Rockrobo leads in Western Europe and parts of the Middle East, while Dreame dominates in markets like France, Italy, and Belgium.

Still, even abroad, the relentless cycle of copycat features, incremental upgrades, and intense price wars continues. Once the easy wins are exhausted, brands will inevitably clash head-to-head in every market.