How Much Did the First Roomba Cost in 2002?
By the Price Time Machine team · Updated
The original Roomba price was $199.95 when iRobot announced its first Roomba, the Intelligent FloorVac, on September 18, 2002. Adjusted for inflation, that is about $372.22 in September 2026 money, roughly 1.9 times the original price.
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iRobot Roomba at a glance
- US launch price
- $199.95
- In today’s money
- ≈ $372.22September 2002 to September 2026 (CPI-U, BLS)
- US release date
- September 18, 2002
- Where it was designed
- Bedford, United StatesDeveloped by iRobot in Bedford, Massachusetts.
- Category
- Big purchases
- Price source
- media.irobot.com
Today’s price is the US launch price adjusted for US inflation with the Consumer Price Index (CPI-U) from the US Bureau of Labor Statistics, comparing the launch month with the latest published month. It updates automatically as new figures come out.
What the $199.95 price included
iRobot’s announcement gave a suggested retail price of $199.95. For that you received the robot, a virtual wall unit, a standard battery charger and a removable battery pack. Extra virtual walls cost $39.95 each and a spare battery cost $59.95.
The virtual wall was a small device that sent out an invisible beam to stop the Roomba entering a room or doorway. iRobot said it could block a doorway up to 15 feet wide.
The original Roomba price in today’s money
Inflation means a dollar buys less today than it did in 2002. Using the US Consumer Price Index, the original Roomba price of $199.95 works out at about $372.22 in September 2026 money, around 1.9 times the original figure. That is what the same amount of spending power would cost now, not what a Roomba sells for second-hand.
Where and when the first Roomba was sold
iRobot said the Roomba would be sold through Brookstone, The Sharper Image and Hammacher Schlemmer, as well as directly from the company’s own website. Online sales started in the week of the announcement, and sales in shops began in October 2002.
These were gadget retailers rather than ordinary vacuum cleaner shops, which tells you how new the idea was. iRobot described it as the first automatic floor vacuum available in the United States.
What it could do
- Run time: between one and one and a half hours on a charge, depending on the floor
- Sensors: a wall-following sensor to clean along edges, and cliff sensors that detected stairs and turned the robot away
- Size: 13.4 inches across and 3.6 inches tall, weighing 5.88 pounds with its battery
- Warranty: 90 days on parts and labour
Where did the Roomba come from?
iRobot was based in Bedford, Massachusetts. The company had earlier built robots for research and defence customers, and the Roomba was its first big product for ordinary homes.
Frequently asked questions
How much was the first Roomba?
The first Roomba cost $199.95 at the suggested retail price when iRobot announced it on September 18, 2002.
How much is $199.95 from 2002 worth today?
Adjusted for US inflation, the original Roomba price is about $372.22 in September 2026 money.
Where could you buy the first Roomba?
It was sold online from iRobot, Brookstone, The Sharper Image and Hammacher Schlemmer, with sales in shops beginning in October 2002.
How long did the first Roomba run?
iRobot said it ran for one to one and a half hours on a charge.
Want to compare the original Roomba price with similar launches? See what the iPod, the Amazon Kindle, the Toyota Prius and the Tamagotchi cost, read our price history guides, browse more famous launch prices, or play the Roomba question in Price Time Machine.
Sources
Launch prices and dates are checked against the sources below. Today’s price is calculated from official US inflation data and updates automatically when new figures are published.
- Press release: iRobot, “iRobot Introduces Roomba Intelligent FloorVac” (September 18, 2002)
- Wikipedia: Roomba
- US Bureau of Labor Statistics: Consumer Price Index (CPI-U)