Robot buyer guides: prices, payback and how to choose
Practical guides for businesses and buyers: what robots really cost, buy vs lease vs RaaS, and how to choose humanoids, robot dogs, cleaning and restaurant robots.
Guide
How much does a robot really cost in 2026? Prices, hidden costs and total cost of ownership
Price ranges for service, cleaning, dog and humanoid robots, the extra costs that the price tag hides, and how to compare buying, leasing and subscriptions. Most figures are vendor or dealer data and are labelled as such.
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Buy, lease or Robots-as-a-Service: which is cheaper over three years?
A three-year comparison with a worked example based on published dealer prices for a serving robot and a floor scrubber, plus the contract questions that decide the result.
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Which humanoid robot to buy in 2026: from Unitree R1 to enterprise models
Who should buy a humanoid now, who should wait, what the $5,900 to six-figure price tiers really give you, and how to spot teleoperation behind a demo.
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Robot waiters and delivery robots for restaurants and hotels: costs, payback and a site checklist
What serving and delivery robots cost, what the vendor payback claims are worth, the Chili's pilot that failed, and a checklist to run before you sign.
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How to choose a commercial cleaning robot: scrubbers, vacuums, sweepers and cost per hour
How to match a robot to your floor type and area, why the vendor figure of $0.41 an hour needs a closer look, and what to check before buying or subscribing.
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Robot dogs for business and research: Spot, Unitree, Deep Robotics and ANYbotics compared
Indicative prices from about $1,600 to over $150,000, use cases from inspection to firefighting, and what the US FCC import restriction means when you choose a brand.
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