A mobile robot for determining whether to board an elevator may include a camera configured for capturing an inside of the elevator, an object recognition unit configured for recognizing an area of the elevator and the number of passengers from an image captured by the camera, and a control unit configured for calculating a density of the elevator based on the area and the number of passengers. The control unit may perform a determination of whether to board the elevator based on the density, and control a driving wheel motor based on the determination.