Automate your lawn — without buying the wrong robot mower

Boundary wire vs wire-free — the 60-second version

Wired mowers (Flymo, Gardena, most Husqvarnas) follow a wire you bury around the lawn's edge. Cheaper machines, proven tech — but the install takes a day (or an installer's fee), and a broken wire means hunting the break with a radio.

Wire-free mowers (Navimow, Eufy, Worx Vision) navigate by RTK GPS, LiDAR or cameras. Setup is an app walk-around rather than a dig, and changing your lawn layout is a remap, not a re-dig — exact setup time varies with garden size and complexity. The trade-off: RTK models want reasonable sky view, and prices start higher.

Whichever type you choose, a robot mower changes how you cut, not the basics of a healthy lawn — the Royal Horticultural Society's guide to mowing and cutting heights is a good primer on setting the right height and frequency for British grass. One safety point specific to robots: because they can run unattended, wildlife charity Hedgehog Street explains in its research on robotic lawnmowers and hedgehogs why you should run them only in daylight and check the lawn first.

Full wire-free comparison →  ·  What installation really costs →

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