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What to ask before buying a home robot

The short answer: outside mainland China, the only way to get a multi-purpose home robot today is a preorder, and every robot its vendor says is being delivered to households is sold only in mainland China. Before you put money down, find out what the robot has really been shown doing, how much of it is done by a remote human operator, whether it can legally be sold where you live, and what you get back if delivery slips.

This site has not tested any robot and does not recommend one over another. These are the questions its records are built to answer; each robot’s page answers as many of them as the published evidence allows, and says so where it cannot.

1. Can I actually get it where I live?

  • Is it on sale, on preorder, in a trial, or only announced? These are different things. A robot “in trial homes” is not for sale; an “announced” robot has no way to order it yet.
  • In which regions? Many robots are sold, or offered, in one country only. Each robot’s page shows every region this site tracks: where the robot is offered and at what price, and “Not announced”, with the date that was last checked, everywhere else.
  • Can it legally be sold here? Since 28 July 2026 the US has barred new foreign-produced advanced robots, including humanoids and wheeled platforms, from receiving the authorisation needed to be imported, marketed or sold, unless they qualify for an exemption or an approval. Models authorised before that date may still be sold, but may not be modified except for certain software and firmware updates.12 A vendor can take US preorders for a robot that does not yet have a legal route to US customers. Each robot’s page records what is known, which for most is “Unknown”.

2. What will it really do?

  • Is each task shipped, demonstrated, or only claimed? Every capability on this site carries one of those three levels. A task that has only been demonstrated has not yet been shown working in customers’ homes.
  • Was the demonstration done on its own? Ask whether demonstration videos were fully autonomous, remote-controlled, sped up, or the best of many attempts.
  • Will it try tasks that are not on its list? Some vendors restrict their robot to tasks they have tested. That can be sensible, but it means the task list you see at purchase may be all you get until the vendor adds more.
  • Does it need a human operator? Some robots hand difficult tasks to a person working for the vendor, who controls the robot remotely. Ask when that happens and what the operator can see. VLAs and teleoperation, explained covers why this matters.

3. What am I paying, and for what?

  • Up front, subscription, or both? Some vendors offer either: NEO and Isaac 1 both list an outright price and a monthly option.
  • Is the deposit refundable? Check the vendor’s own terms, not a news report.
  • What happens if delivery is late? Several vendors give a delivery season or year rather than a date.
  • What does the price include? A remote operator service, software updates and new skills may be priced separately, or change later.

4. What happens after I own it?

  • Will it get new skills? Some vendors say new capabilities will arrive through software updates. Treat that as a plan, not a feature, until they arrive.
  • What does it need from my home? Wheeled robots cannot use stairs. Reach, lifting capacity and battery life are on each robot’s page where the vendor has published them.
  • What if the company stops supporting it? Home robots depend on their maker’s software and, for some, on its remote operators.

What this site will not tell you

It will not tell you which robot is best: the site does not score or rank robots. It will not give you safety, medical or care advice, and a robot’s care or companionship features are recorded as claims, not recommendations. And it has not tried any of these robots, so it cannot tell you what one is like to live with.

For how the site decides what to list and how it checks its facts, see How this site works.

Notes

  1. Sidley Austin, “FCC Adds All Foreign-Produced Advanced Robotic Devices to the Covered List”, 2026-08-07. https://www.sidley.com/en/insights/newsupdates/2026/08/fcc-adds-all-foreign-produced-advanced-robotic-devices-to-the-covered-list ↩

  2. Wiley Rein, “FCC Adds Foreign-Produced Power Inverters and Advanced Robotic Devices to the Covered List”, 2026-07-30. https://www.wiley.law/alert-FCC-Adds-Foreign-Produced-Power-Inverters-and-Advanced-Robotic-Devices-to-the-Covered-List ↩

Last updated 2026-09-27.