Household Robots Market - Growth, Trends, COVID-19 Impact, and Forecasts (2023 - 2028)

Household Robots Market - Growth, Trends, COVID-19 Impact, and Forecasts (2023 - 2028)

The household robots market is valued at USD 7.99 billion. It is expected to reach USD 18.90 billion by the next five years, with a CAGR of 18.81% during the forecast period. The study tracks the demand trends for household robots across various market segments, including application areas and geography.

• Household robots, also called domestic robots, are part of the autonomous service robotics used for carrying out mundane tasks, such as pool cleaning, floor cleaning, and lawn mowing. They can also be used for other purposes, such as entertainment, education, and elderly assistance.
• With the rapidly growing smart home concept, robotics is expected to play a crucial role in the overall smart home ecosystem. The reduction in household activities with the use of robotic vacuum cleaners is the essential factor driving the market’s growth. Modern households are becoming more computerized, delivering suitability and reducing the time spent on house chores. While vacuum cleaners have made home cleaning more manageable, they create noise and increase bulk for everyday use.
• The increasing penetration of automation in household appliances, rising labor costs in developed nations, and increasing health and safety concerns are other significant factors driving the demand for household robots worldwide.​​ The increasing technological development in AI, robotics, and machine vision cameras, among others, also facilitates the market’s growth as these technologies help effectively map edges of the floor, such as a staircase, and to recognize obstacles, such as cables, dustbins, doorsills, and rug, helping these robots operate more smoothly and efficiently.
• However, these robots' higher procurement and maintenance costs are among the significant factors challenging the studied market’s growth. A certain level of technological know-how is required to efficiently operate these robots, which also challenges the analyzed market’s development, especially in developing regions.
• The outbreak of COVID-19 has had a notable impact on the growth of the studied market as the widespread lockdown forced a large section of the worldwide population to spend most of their time inside their house. This factor significantly enhanced their spending on household entertainment and convenience products, creating a favorable scenario for the studied market’s growth. Such trends are expected to have a long-term behavioral impact on the consumer’s consumption pattern, supporting the market’s growth during the forecast period.

• As the world is experiencing rapid urbanization, with 68% of the population expected to live in urban areas by 2050 (as per WHO), urban growth creates major challenges in terms of congestion, pollution, food and water security, energy access, waste management, and infrastructure maintenance.
• Cities, being at the center of the technological changes fueled by the fourth industrial revolution, such as automation and artificial intelligence, are rapidly deploying a range of technologies, including robotics, to address a wide range of urban challenges. For instance, the need for automated support is growing as the global population ages. According to the WHO estimates, there are more than 1 billion people over the age of 60, rising to 1.4 billion by 2030, i.e., one in six people, requiring another 6 million nurses.
• According to the World Population Data Sheet 2022, published by the Population Reference Bureau, North America was the most urbanized continent worldwide, with 83% of the population living in cities. In Latin America and the Caribbean, the degree of urbanization stood at 81%. It is projected that the share of people living in urban areas globally will increase from 56% in 2020 to 70% in 2050.
• However, the fastest-growing market remains in Asia-Pacific. Tokyo-Yokohama, Japan, was the largest urban area in the world in that year, with 39.2 million inhabitants. This figure represents a major scope for market vendors to invest in new products.
• Growing industrialization is also driving the urbanization rate in Asia-Pacific, especially in countries such as China and India. For instance, according to the State Council of the People’s Republic of China, the country’s urbanization rate of permanent residence hit 64.72% in the previous year. According to the 14th Five-Year Plan, the Chinese government aims to raise its urbanization rate beyond 65%.

• The Asia-Pacific region is expected to register high growth due to the significant adoption of household robots in economies such as China, Japan, and India. The demand for and consumption of cleaning robots may increase in the region due to the rapid development of robotic systems by the Chinese and Japanese companies.
• The region is one of the fastest-growing cleaning robot markets, mainly due to the massive adoption of technology and increasing domestic production. The regional vendors also play a significant role in innovation and development in the cleaning robot field. For instance, in May 2022, Haier, a leading consumer electronics brand, launched its first-ever smart vacuum cleaner in India. The 2-in-1 dry and wet mop robot vacuum cleaner is equipped with 2.4 GHz Wi-Fi and Google Home Assistant and offers smart management with the Haier smart app, voice control, and remote control.
• The growing urbanization rate and changing lifestyle of the population across various countries are among the significant factors driving the demand for household robots in the region. For instance, according to the Population Reference Bureau, the urban populations of both China and India are anticipated to grow by more than 340 million by 2030. Even a tiny country such as Laos is expected to add about 3.2 million to its urban population while it moves to a level of only 43% urbanized in 2030.
• Various government initiatives promoting the growth of the robotics industry are also creating a favorable scenario for the market's growth as it facilitates inter-organization collaboration, resulting in the development of innovative technologies. For instance, in its 14th Five-Year plan, the Chinese government has identified the robotics industry as crucial to its economic strategy. China will focus on becoming a key source of global robotics innovation by 2025.
• From driving the demand for cleaning robots to the need for the humanoid robot for entertainment and companionship, such trends are expected to contribute positively to the market's growth during the forecast period.

The household robots market is fragmented with the presence of major players like iRobot Corporation, Neato Robotics Inc., Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd, Ecovacs Robotics Inc., and Panasonic Corporation. Players in the market are adopting strategies such as partnerships, innovations, mergers, and acquisitions to enhance their product offerings and gain sustainable competitive advantage.

• October 2022 - Ecovacs announced two new smart robotics products, GOAT G1, a ground-breaking robotic lawn mower, and DEEBOT PRO K1 and M1, a networked commercial floor cleaning robot.
• September 2022 - The Roomba Combo j7+ was unveiled by iRobot Inc., coupled with intelligent iRobot OS 5.0 improvements. The Roomba Combo j7+ is a 2-in-1 robot that can mop and vacuum through carpets, rugs, and hard floors. It differs from other 2-in-1 robots in that it vacuums and mops in a single cleaning task, saving time and maintaining clean, fresh floors.

• The market estimate (ME) sheet in Excel format
• 3 months of analyst support