Roborock F25 ACE review: the wet & dry floor cleaner that cleans itself

After about a week of hands-on testing, we're ready to tell you about the Roborock F25 ACE. Roborock is the name we all associate with robot vacuum cleaners, but the F25 ACE is playing a different game: it's an upright wet & dry floor cleaner, the kind you push yourself, designed for anyone with lots of hard flooring who wants to vacuum and mop in a single pass. I've spent weeks putting it through its paces on the floors at home, to find out whether the aggressive Swiss price — CHF 299 — hides any compromises.

Overview

Let's get things straight from the start, because the F25 range is a small maze of names. The F25 ACE is the “smart” mid-range model: it sits above the base F25/GT (which does without the app and sensors) and below the F25 ACE Pro (more powerful, with JetFoaming foam) and the F25 Ultra (with steam). In Switzerland it may also appear on the official store as the F25 XT (new version of the F25 ACE): it's the same product, only the regional label changes.

The concept is that of a self-cleaning upright floor cleaner: a wet roller that picks up liquids and dry dirt at the same time, while the base you park it in washes it with hot water and dries it. There's no autonomous robot roaming around the house: here you do the steering, but with major help from the motorised wheels. It's the same philosophy we've seen in the brand's robots, such as the Saros 20 Sonic — let the machine do the dirty work — applied to a manual format.

This is a product for people with mostly hard floors (tiles, LVT, vinyl, parquet). It isn't designed for rugs and carpets: the very nature of a wet roller rules them out. Keep that in mind, because it's the main dividing line between a “perfect purchase” and the “wrong product”.

Design and dimensions: the trick is lying flat

The F25 ACE weighs around 4.7 kg for the main body, in line with rival upright floor cleaners. The most useful design feature isn't the weight, but the ability to recline almost flat (the FlatReach system): the handle drops down to a profile of 12.5 cm, letting you get under low furniture — sofas, beds, wall-hung kitchen units — where conventional vacuum cleaners can't reach.

The other half of the work is done by the independent motorised wheels (SlideTech 2.0): two small brushless motors that assist the forward and backward movement and handle steering of up to 70°. The feel is obvious from the very first pass: as soon as you push or pull, the wheels carry you along with a gentle nudge. In practice, you steer it with one finger. The only side effect I noticed: if you switch the machine on without holding the handle, it sets off by itself with a little jolt.

Cleaning: 20,000 Pa that vacuum and mop together

The heart of the F25 ACE is a roller spinning at 450 rpm combined with 20,000 Pa of suction. The combination does two things at once: the roller wipes the floor with water and detergent, while the suction lifts liquids and dry debris in the same pass. In my tests it picked up dust, crumbs and hair without mercy, getting practically right up to the wall.

Two technologies deserve attention:

• JawScraper anti-tangle system — a series of comb-like blades that scrape hair off the roller as you work. In my use, it was the first floor cleaner where hair and fur tangling around the roller was never a problem: at the end of a session the roller was clean. For pet owners, it's the detail that changes everything.
• DirTect, the dirt sensor — it detects how dirty the floor is and automatically adjusts suction and water flow. It's the feature that justifies the jump from the base F25 to the F25 ACE: the GT model doesn't have it.

Then there's the separate detergent tank (about 100 ml): you no longer pour soap into the water every time you refill, as the machine doses it by itself according to how dirty the floor is, and it can last weeks between refills. The everyday benefit I appreciated most: your hands stay clean, a huge step up from mopping by hand, with no streaks or residue on tiles and vinyl.

The honest limitation to flag concerns edges and skirting boards: it does very well across the bulk of the surface, but right up against the wall it doesn't always get a thorough clean. On details along the skirting boards and at thresholds I sometimes had to make an extra pass.

Noise

While cleaning, the F25 ACE is audible but manageable (around the claimed 75 dB). The truly noisy moment is the self-cleaning cycle in the base: here it raises its voice considerably. That's why drying has two profiles: fast (~5 minutes, ~66 dB) or quiet (~30 minutes, ~47 dB). In the evening, quiet is the better choice; 47 dB is equivalent to the rustle of a quiet room.

The self-cleaning base: 90°C hot water

When you park the F25 ACE in its base, the cycle that spares you the most unpleasant part of any floor cleaner begins: washing the roller by hand. The station washes the roller with 90°C hot water inside a closed tray and then dries it with warm air, preventing the damp roller from developing bad smells — the classic problem with these products, which I never had here. According to Roborock's figures, the hot wash eliminates up to 99.99% of bacteria.

Two manual tasks remain: emptying the dirty water tank (720 ml) and filling the clean one (740 ml). So it isn't “hands-free” like a robot with a self-emptying station, but it's the normal compromise of an upright floor cleaner.

Battery and runtime

The battery (a pouch-cell pack, a choice Roborock claims is longer-lasting than conventional cylindrical cells) delivers up to 60 minutes in Eco mode and around 40 minutes in automatic, with claimed coverage of up to 410 m². At maximum power the runtime drops, as you'd expect. A full charge takes about 4 hours. For an average-sized flat or house, one charge comfortably covers the whole cleaning session.

App and smart features

The F25 ACE connects to the Roborock app, and this is another difference from the base model. From the app you adjust suction power, water flow, roller speed and — no minor detail — the volume of the voice prompts. That matters: on the base F25 the voice messages can't be turned down, and in the long run I found them annoying. On the ACE the problem is solved in two taps.

There's also a small status display on the body, which shows the detected dirt level and the state of the machine. A few icons are a bit cryptic at first, but nothing you won't learn in a couple of uses.

Comparison: F25 ACE vs F25 GT vs F25 ACE Pro

In short: the GT is the budget option (no app, no sensors, no motorised wheels), while the Pro adds power and detergent foam. The ACE is the sweet spot: it takes everything you really need (dirt sensor, assisted wheels, app) while remaining the best value of the “smart” trio.

Who is the Roborock F25 ACE for?

• Anyone with lots of hard floors — tiles, parquet, vinyl: it's its natural habitat, where it vacuums and mops in one pass.
• Pet owners — the JawScraper anti-tangle roller is one of the best solutions around for dealing with pet hair.
• Anyone who hates maintenance — the base that washes the roller at 90°C and dries it eliminates the worst part of these products.
• Anyone looking for the best value for money — at CHF 299 it offers features that cost far more elsewhere.

Who it's NOT for

• Anyone with lots of rugs or carpets — it isn't designed for textile surfaces; consider a robot vacuum cleaner instead, such as the Roborock Saros 20 Sonic or the more affordable Saros 10R.
• Anyone who wants maximum power — if you're after 25,000 Pa and JetFoaming foam, its sibling the ACE Pro is the one to go for.
• Anyone sensitive to noise — the self-cleaning cycle is loud; in a very quiet home it can be bothersome (use the quiet drying mode).
• Anyone who wants deep steam cleaning — that's the F25 Ultra's territory.

Frequently asked questions

Final verdict: 8.5/10

The Roborock F25 ACE does exactly what it promises, and does it at a price that puts the competition in a tight spot. It vacuums and mops in a single pass, the anti-tangle roller is a blessing for pet owners, the motorised wheels make it almost effortless to use, and the self-cleaning base does away with tedious maintenance. There are flaws, but they're honest ones: the self-cleaning cycle is noisy, edges right up against the wall sometimes need an extra pass, and it must be said plainly that this is not a machine for rugs.

At CHF 299 from Galaxus and Digitec, though, the value for money is hard to beat: you get the “smart” package (dirt sensor, app, assisted wheels) at the price many retailers charge for the base models. If your home is mostly hard floors, it's one of the most sensible purchases of 2026.

See the Roborock F25 ACE at Galaxus — CHF 299

Also available at Digitec and MediaMarkt · official Roborock product page

Full specifications

Also read

• Roborock Saros 20 Sonic Complete: the review — the top-of-the-range robot vacuum cleaner for 2026
• Roborock Saros 10R: the full review — the more affordable alternative
• Roborock Qrevo S Pro — 18,500 Pa and all-in-one station
• Roborock RockMow Z1 — our test of the robot lawn mower
• Roborock Summer Sale — discounts in Switzerland until 5 July

Review based on my own hands-on testing and daily use of the Roborock F25 ACE. Be careful not to confuse the specifications of the F25 ACE with those of the F25 ACE Pro (25,000 Pa, JetFoaming foam) or the F25 Ultra (steam cleaning).

Translated from the Italian original. Read in Italian