Post contains affiliate links. I have wanted a Roomba for years, pretty much ever since I first heard of them! They combine two of my loves; a clean house and gadgets/electronics! Although my husband and I aren’t big on exchanging expensive gifts, he surprised me with my very own Roomba this year! (I think he’s going for husband of the year after he bought me a Ragababe?)
One problem…
Sometimes I suspect my boyfriend maid Roomba has the I.Q. of a turnip, but he’s tall, dark & handsome and cleans up after the kids. The tall part is the problem.
Not vacuuming under the couch was a bit of a deal-breaker. We have hard floors on the main level, and there are always crumbs, dust bunnies etc. under the furniture. Part of the reason the Roomba was so attractive to me was his (yes, it’s a he) ability to clean under furniture. Having to get the kiddos out of the way and drag furniture around is such a pain, yet if I don’t do it daily, it’s a mess in no time, and highly visible from the vantage point of playing on the floor with kids! I’ve tried crawling around and jabbing my broom under, I’ve tried using the hose on my vacuum…nothing works as well as moving the furniture.
So, I Googled, and Googled, and Googled some more. I tried things like “Roomba won’t fit under my couch, “how to get Roomba to go under my couch,” “bed risers to make Roomba fit under couch” and even “couch that Roomba fits under” (ha ha). I found one person who came up with a Roomba “hack” to keep it from trying to go under the couch. Whoa, wrong way lady!! I even found a review for a couch where the reviewer commented that her Roomba fit under it (my kind of gal.)
I searched for replacement couch feet (too expensive) and finally found Raise Its Furniture Risers. I ordered an 8-pack in black and crossed my fingers.
They are a tiny bit small, but they work. I may end up using double stick tape or shelf liner to make sure they stay secure to the couch feet, but now I don’t have to break up with my Roomba. 😉
I was surprised that no one has jumped on the Roomba bandwagon and filled their store with keywords to bring people with my problem to their website! A store with various furniture risers to make Roomba fit underneath…heck, sell furniture that Roomba will fit under! I know if I ever shop for a new couch or new kitchen chairs, the height and width of Roomba are going to play a big role in my final decision (and I am soooo not joking).
So hey, you…if you sell this kind of stuff, add “make Roomba fit under your couch / furniture” to your description, LOL!!
We’ll see if I love Roomba as much once the newness of the relationship wears off, hee-hee!
Maria wants to live in a world where cloth diapers are the norm and moms can make parenting choices without judgement. When she’s not chasing her 18, 14 and 11-year old kids around, you might find her checking out the latest gadgets, organizing something (again) or exercising in the fresh air. 
[…] got my first Roomba in 2012, and my post about how Roomba won’t fit under the couch is one of my most popular. I […]
Thank you so much! I found exactly what I was searching for. LOL
[…] you click and make a purchase, I receive a small commission, thank you! I loved my Roomba, even if it wouldn’t fit under the couch. Although it didn’t completely replace vacuuming, it was nice to keep up with dog hair, […]
I used to have a Roomba years ago and I loved it! But over the years our furniture arrangement has become more complex and we just don’t have the energy to move all the furniture around whenever we leave the house. I wish someone would design an entire warehouse full of Roomba-compatible furniture! Dining tables with attached, legless chairs, coffee tables designed specifically with Roomba clearance, hanging beds, sofa swings, etc. I’d do my whole house this way and get a new Roomba just to never have to vacuum again.
Wow, you’ve done your research! I’m trying to make sure I’m correctly picturing what you’re saying…so if the couch is right up against the wall, it will definitely clean between the two (front/back) legs, along the wall. If it’s not right against the wall, it won’t have a way to get in there. It has a little side brush but that just helps sweep things into its path.
I’ve been planning ahead, living with hand-me-down furniture. If I’m selected, I return to the big money, and trash my furniture. Currently shopping for robot compatible furniture. Here is what I found; “Ever since iRobot introduced the first Roomba in 2002, there have been 7 different generations starting from the 400 series all the way to the latest 900 series. All Roomba products have the same dimensions – around 13.9 inches wide and 3.6 inches tall.” Bottom line is; Roomba will go under, if clearance is about 4″, but will it clean between the legs and wall, without 14″ between the furniture and the wall?
You can definitely stick a felt pad underneath!
Hi! Great resource! I just got done laying down to reach for my Roomba! It goes it but not out…. What are the bottoms of these like? Are they flat that I could apply a felt pad, do they already have a soft bottom, or are they hollow? I need to put them under my couch but also coffe table! I tried stacking felt pads but by the third on on each leg, it’s getting sad! I don’t want them to scratch my floors when I move the table.
I found this site via Google search, like others. The Irobot site shows that Roombas need 3.6″ or 92mm of clearance. However looking closer, the newer I7 model actually needs 3.7″ or 94 mm of clearance. I added pieces of 5/4″ board (deck boards) under my couch to test how well my I7 cleaned under it. So far so good, other than finding that my couch sags a bit in the center, which will be corrected. Thank you for your post!
Save time building or buying something costly. I used end caps for curtain rods. They come in different colors and stains to match your furniture and they are easy to install. Cheapest solution I found, $3 for two caps. Martha Living brand at home depot.
I have 6 (yes six) kids and came across this because my off brand roomba, Deebot (we call him Deebo 😂), doesn’t fit under my huge sectional. My fiancee thinks I’m being silly but he doesn’t understand this first world problem! Thank you! I will be buying these this week!
This is SO funny! I love my roomba too, but it makes me so sad it won’t fit under my coffee table or couches. 🙁 I have 2 girls, and it drives me CRAZY.
We own 5 roomba’s, a Braava mopping robot, a window washing robot, and a DeeBot robot. The debot is slightly lower, but I feel your pain. Over the last 8 years of roomba fun, I’ve raised my furniture using a chop saw and cutting/staining my own custom risers. With so many robots life is a breeze but yes, we do make sure our home is compatible with the robots. We also take the robots to church when we volunteer to clean the chappel…they go right under the pews without issue.
You are now on top of the search list for the keywords, “increase sofa height for roomba” lol. I am using metal coffee cups in placing them inverted under the legs just for the night and remove them in the morning, but was looking for a better fix when I landed here, nice post! thanks
That’s so funny, I never would have thought of metal cups. Smart! I’m glad the post helped! 🙂
How about risers for a recliner sofa/sectional?
Hmm…would adding risers cause it to be unstable? We ended up putting double sided tape between the risers and couch so it wouldn’t slide. I wonder if that would work?
We finally ripped out our carpet and got hardwood flooring on our first floor. The first thing I bought was a Roomba 880 and I LOVE it. I found out that my couch was too low towards the back when my poor roomba got stuck (and scratched) . That brought me here – how to raise my couch :). I will definitely be buying something for under the legs. I’ve only had my Roomba 2 weeks and a new one came out!!!!!I I would love the new 980 for my first floor and would gladly take the 880 upstairs for the bedrooms :). I can dream….
I would love to have a whole army of Roombas! If only. 😉
I neede to raise my couch 1″ so I could buy a roomb. Went to lowes and got a set of furniture moversthat were 1/2″ glued two together and was able to raise couch high enough and with the felt side down I can move couch freely.
Smart!
Lol! I found this website because I googled “couch a roomba will fit under”. Thanks for the idea:)
Yes, I’m not the only one! These risers are still working well though I did double stick tape them on. The love seat isn’t against the wall and when someone sat on it, it seemed like rather than sitting down, they’d throw themselves backwards and the couch would slide off!
I think we have the same couch. I didn’t get a Roomba because I know it wouldn’t fit. You gave me hope.
These are still working great! We ended up using double stick tape to keep them on. 🙂
You are a life saver! I bought a bobsweep from Groupon because the dimemsons specified that it was only 4.3inches tall. Well apparently I’m not the best at measuring the space between the floor and my sofa and I was off by an eighth of an inch. So my boyfriend Bob kept getting stuck iner my sofa. I’m ordering these lifters today!
Thanks so much for this post!!
Yay! So glad I could help! I am so psyched not to have to clean under my couch, LOL!
Thank you! My Roomba doesn’t fit under the couch either, and it drives me nuts! I saw these risers on Amazon but was hesitant to order them because I didn’t know how they’d work with my couch legs (which are nearly identical to yours) but now I’m going to order them!
We ended up adding some sticky tape on the ones under the couch that isn’t against the wall, so it doesn’t slip off when people flop themselves down. They are awesome! Love not having to vacuum under there. 😉
Good to know, thanks!
I found this website, cause i have the same problem with my furniture, besides that Im in love with this toy, I bought a 770 model the only cons I’ve seen so far is that is missing the lighthouses that comes with the 780, but there is a big difference in price, I’ve been using it for only a week so I can’t tell about durability, but I read they need to be pampered, keep it clean after each use and that will make it last longer.
I’ve only had ours for about 4 months but it is still my favorite toy, ha ha. I gave up on the light houses since my boys won’t leave them alone, LOL. We clean the brushes & rinses the filters maybe once per week. I love it & the furniture risers are still working great!!
My husband won’t buy me (or let me buy) a Roomba 🙁 He says it’s just a silly gadget that won’t work 🙁 I’ve been wanting one for YEARS!
You should get one. I just did, and it’s amazing. Bought the 880 for my carpets and the Scooba for my hard floors. If he says its just a silly gadget that won’t work, then he should do the floors lol
I want one!
i want a roomba sooooo bad!!! when i was preggo my friend lent me her’s and one that mops floors as well, i fell in love!! how how exactly does a couch need to be 😉
I have always wanted a Roomba too, pretty much for the same reasons as you! I keep reading terrible reviews that have kept me from buying one though, like they break at about 13 months, 1 month after your warranty expires. Will you set a reminder in about 14 months to update us on how it is holding up? 😉
I love the idea of a Roomba-friendly furniture store. LOL. But I’d totally shop there.
I am wondering how it will do long-term too!