How much does a companion robot cost?

The honest answer in mid-2026: from about $16,000 to well past $150,000, depending on whether you want something that walks, something that looks human, or the rare machine that attempts both. Here is the whole price landscape, using the numbers makers have actually published — with the asterisks restored.

The entry tier: under $25,000

The cheapest way to own a walking humanoid is not a companion at all. Unitree's G1 runs about $16,000 (the 2026 base has dipped near $13,500) — a child-sized research machine with no face and no pretense of warmth.

For actual companionship at this tier, the options are new and telling. 1X's NEO — a soft, knit-suited home humanoid — is $20,000 outright or $499/month. UBTech's U1 Lite, the semi-torso edition of the first mass-produced lifelike companion, starts at ¥119,800 (~$17,650). And Realbotix sells conversational bust versions from about $20,000 — the face and the mind without the body.

Tesla's Optimus belongs here only as a promise: the ~$30,000 figure is a target at scale, not a price you can pay today.

The mid tier: $25,000–$100,000

This is where full lifelike bodies begin. UBTech's full-body U1 Pro lands at ¥169,800 (~$25,000) — the first time a walking, silicone-skinned companion has been priced like a car rather than a house. Realbotix's Melody, the M-Series companion, starts at $95,000 (down from ~$150,000 at launch — this market's prices move fast). Unitree's full-size H1 runs about $90,000, but that buys athleticism, not a face.

The flagship tier: six figures

Realbotix's Aria — the most lifelike face and skin you can buy today — starts at $125,000 for the F-Series (it launched at $175,000). DroidUp's Moya carries a maker estimate near $173,000, unconfirmed until it ships. UBTech's high-dynamic U1 Ultra tops the consumer field near ¥990,000 (~$146,500). And industrial machines show where enterprise money goes: Agility's Digit sells around $250,000, while Ameca, Atlas and Phoenix are quote-only or not sold at all.

The bill after the sticker

Two costs hide behind every headline price:

Subscriptions. The mind is increasingly rented. Realbotix charges $199.99/month for its AI; 1X's $499/month plan is the product for many buyers. Over five years, $200–$500 a month adds $12,000–$30,000 to the real bill.

Everything else. Maintenance, repairs out of warranty, replacement skin, shipping a 40 kg machine back to the maker — and a resale market that barely exists. We've broken this down in the true cost of ownership.

How to read any robot price

Three rules keep you honest. First: distinguish a price (you can pay it today) from a target (Optimus's $30k, Figure's reported ~$20k home target, Clone's "under $20k" cost goal — all aspirations, flagged as such in our directory). Second: ask what the subscription gates — a companion that stops conversing when the payments stop is a lease with extra steps. Third: check the paper trail — in this field, prices fall and ship dates slip, and both tell you about the maker.

Every figure above comes from the maker's own published pricing as tracked in our directory, where each profile lists its sources — or answer four questions and get a shortlist inside your budget.