Narwal Flow 2 review: The robot vacuum that finally perfected obstacle avoidance
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Indeed, we follow strict guidelines that ensure our editorial content is never influenced by advertisers.ZDNET's editorial team writes on behalf of you, our reader. Our goal is to deliver the most accurate information and the most knowledgeable advice possible in order to help you make smarter buying decisions on tech gear and a wide array of products and services. Our editors thoroughly review and fact-check every article to ensure that our content meets the highest standards. If we have made an error or published misleading information, we will correct or clarify the article. If you see inaccuracies in our content, please report the mistake via this form. Close Home Home & Office Kitchen & Household Robot vacuums Narwal Flow 2 review: The robot vacuum that finally perfected obstacle avoidance The Narwal Flow 2 promises to be one of the best robot vacuum cleaners for obstacle avoidance and mopping - and it is. Written by Maria Diaz, Staff WriterStaff Writer July 22, 2026 at 9:15 a.m. PT Narwal Flow 2 4 / 5 Very good pros and cons Pros It's the best-performer at obstacle avoidance.Features effective mopping, thanks to the track mop and washing system.Takes photos of obstacles to give you insight into what it avoided. Cons The Narwal app isn't the most intuitive.Suction on medium-pile carpet was only average. $1,499.99 at Amazon Follow ZDNET: Add us as a preferred source on Google.For the last few years, Narwal has been working to improve the navigation and obstacle avoidance of its robot vacuums. It has enhanced its devices' ability to navigate around objects, recognizing what they are as they go -- even taking photos to let you know what it avoided.Also: 5 smart home gadgets I actually recommend, after years of testingThe Narwal Flow 2 is the robot vacuum and mop that actually delivers on the manufacturer's promises, cleaning effectively while carefully avoiding important items and obstacles that could get caught in its roller brush. In both our controlled lab tests and in-home experiments, the Flow 2 outperformed most similarly priced competitors. ZDNET RECOMMENDS Narwal Flow 2 Getting the most bang for your buck is important when you're spending over $1,000, and the Narwal Flow 2 delivers. details View at Amazon Best robot vacuum deals of the week Narwal Freo X10 Pro Self-Emptying Robot Vacuum and Mop: $400 (save $300) Eufy Omni S1 Pro Self-Emptying Vacuum and Mop: $700 (save $800) Shark AV2511AE AI Robot Vacuum With XL Self-Empty Base: $250 (save $350) iRobot Roomba Plus 405 (G181) Robot Vacuum and Mop With Dock: $360 (save $440) Deals are selected by the CNET Group commerce team, and may be unrelated to this article. Expert-level obstacle avoidanceDuring our tests, the Flow 2 avoided every single obstacle placed in its path, including cords, tissues, socks, small toys, and even pet waste. The Flow 2's navigation is powered by two 1080p cameras, a LiDAR sensor, and AI-powered object recognition software.Also: 90,000 Flock cameras have quietly gone up in the US: What they track and how to check your cityNarwal says this technology enables the robot to achieve millimeter-level precision and avoid obstacles as close as 0.2 inches. I followed the Flow 2 around my house during its first five cleanings, and I can assure you it gets this close, often even closer. As you can see in the image below, the robot approaches obstacles without touching them. Maria Diaz/ZDNETIn this photo, the robot is so close to the table leg that it looks like it's touching it, but its bumpers aren't depressed, and it never actually touched the leg. This robot did the same for every single obstacle I used, even pencils, which means it hasn't once needed me to rescue it during a cleaning session, earning top marks from me.Track mop vs. roller mopNote that the Flow 2 has a track mop instead of a roller mop. Not sure of the difference? A roller mop is a cylindrical mop pad that spins continuously while it's sprayed with clean water and scrubbed clean as it turns, sending the dirty water to a separate tank. The track mop also spins and is constantly washed as it turns, but often outperforms roller mops, as with the Narwal Flow 2.Also: I set up a solar panel security camera in my yard - and the image quality beat my RingThe track mop has a larger contact patch with the floor than a roller, so it distributes downward pressure more evenly across the track. A track mop is like a moving microfiber belt rather than a rotating roller, which Narwal calls a treadmill-style design. Inside the Flow 2, the mop is sprayed with hot water to effectively remove everything it picks up. In my tests, this combination of features produced the most effective mop for dried messes I've tried thus far. Maria Diaz/ZDNETI recently tried the Eufy Omni S2, which has a fantastic roller mop. As you can glean from that review, the S2's roller mop is quite effective at removing dried-on messes. However, the Narwal Flow 2 outperforms the S2's mopping power, particularly at removing sticky substances, like syrup and dried juice.The only downsideThe Flow 2's vacuuming feature left me only slightly disappointed. In our lab tests, the Mova P10 Pro Ultra is the most effective vacuum cleaner on hardwood, achieving 99.27% pickup. The iRobot Roomba Combo 10 Max is our top performer on low-pile carpet, with 73.62% of pickup efficiency. For comparison, the Narwal Flow 2 averaged 81.02% of vacuuming efficiency on hardwood and 43.38% on low-pile carpet.Also: The best robot vacuums for 2026: Expert tested and reviewedOur in-home tests give us the real-world experience to better interpret the lab results, and they often coincide, but not always. I found the Flow 2 to live up to its lab tests, and it did surprisingly well on low-pile carpet. The vacuum's suction power is very strong, and, while it didn't outperform the Roomba 10 Max Combo on carpets, it did well removing visible pet hair and most dust. ZDNET's buying advice Maria Diaz/ZDNETWith such a fantastic track mop, I'd recommend the Narwal Flow 2 to buyers with mostly hard floors. In my home with three children and a dog, the Flow 2 kept up without stuttering when it encountered small toys or wadded-up paper towels. It paid special attention to dirtier areas, like spills, and cleaned them up without issue.The Flow 2 likely isn't a great fit for mostly carpeted homes, since the mopping feature would be largely wasted, given how central it is to its feature set. If you have a mix of carpets and hard floors, I definitely recommend the Narwal Flow 2 for your cleaning.Featured reviews I walked 3,000 steps with my Apple Watch, Google Pixel, and Oura Ring - this tracker was most accurate After using the MacBook Neo for weeks, switching to the Air has been refreshingly sweet I bought an earwax camera for my toolkit and use it for everything but my ears LG G6 vs. Samsung S95H: I compared the best OLED TVs of 2026 and made a tough choice I walked 3,000 steps with my Apple Watch, Google Pixel, and Oura Ring - this tracker was most accurate After using the MacBook Neo for weeks, switching to the Air has been refreshingly sweet I bought an earwax camera for my toolkit and use it for everything but my ears LG G6 vs. Samsung S95H: I compared the best OLED TVs of 2026 and made a tough choice Editorial standards Show Comments Log In to Comment Community Guidelines Related 6 cheap kitchen gadgets that will make your life easier for under $20 (I promise) I gave Perplexity's agentic AI 5 complex tasks to run on my Mac - and I'll do it again This Levoit is the best smart air purifier I've tested (and it's on sale)