Choosing The Best Refrigerator

Which Model or Brand is the Best?

The best refrigerator for your needs can vary from person to person and shopping for refrigerators can be scary enough without knowing in advance about what you're looking for.

We've tried to streamline this process and have created a list of the Top 10 Refrigerators to make things easy for you. 

Though if you are like the rest of us and need to know more before choosing such a large item, the first place to start would be which style are you looking for.

The most common full size models on the market are:

5 Factors to Keep in Mind

But if you’re trying to find the best refrigerator for your needs, there are a few things to think about:

1. Budget: Be careful not to purchase a unit you simply can not afford. With refrigerators ranging in price between $500 and $10,000 and beyond, there is a lot of room for error.
   
   That said, you should consider how long you plan to have your refrigerator.
   
   Buy one that is big enough to service your entire family, one that will stand the test of time and one that will be durable enough to withstand whatever your family throws at it.
   
   TIP: Consider buying a refrigerator with a great warranty. Refrigerator repairs can be quite costly as well as a huge inconvenience.
   
   If your refrigerator doesn't have a good warranty, consider purchasing an after-purchase service contract.
   
   Brand: There are a number of great trustworthy and reliable refrigerator brands on the market nowadays.
   
   
   
2. Keep in mind what “after sales services” each brand offers to make sure you find the best refrigerator for your needs.
   
   For some help on this, be sure to review our Popular Refrigerator Brands page. Also be sure that the brand you choose has high reliability and customer satisfaction ratings.
   
   This will help avoid any anxiety or regret you might feel after you make your purchase.




3. Usage: Think about how much space you might need right now, but since refrigerators tend to last longer than 5-10 years on average, take into consideration how fast your family might be growing.
   
   Or for that matter, whether your family will be retracting – do you have older teens who will soon be off to college?
   
   Well, you might not need the 36 cubic foot Subzero if it’s just going to be the two of you.
   
   All things to take into consideration.
   
   

What’s the Best Style of Refrigerator?

Although top freezer refrigerators are the most popular model, that doesn’t necessarily mean that a top freezer is the best style for you.

Often top freezer fridges have limited internal storage space as well as a lack in variation of styles to choose from.

Another reason why a top freezer refrigerator ends up being the first choice is based on the fact that they are the cheapest style. For this reason they are perfect first fridge.

Side by Side Refrigerators are also a great choice for many families, but lack a wider interior capacity, this particular model is the most limiting in this realm.

The good news is side by side refrigerators have a great variety of different built in exterior door features that you may not be able to get in other models.

• TIP: Be aware that many of the in door features like a water dispenser or ice maker, although convenient to have, often take up quite a bit of space in the freezer compartment. (This is a major issue in a French door refrigerator.) Make sure to weigh how much storage space you need against what types of features you desire.

As of late one of the biggest trends in refrigerator styling is the French door refrigerator.

The exceptional thing about it tends to be how wide the storage space is (allowing for party trays and casseroles) as well as the ease of seeing and getting food out of it.

The only thing to keep in mind is how you will need to be fairly organized in your freezer as it can be either one or two drawers.

Be aware that bottom freezer refrigerators as well as most top freezer units have rather wide doors and you’ll need to take these measurements into consideration when purchasing your unit.

Other Factors to Consider to Get The Best Refrigerator Possible

Refrigerators are available in such a wide variety of colors and models, how do you know which is the best refrigerator for your needs?

Most refrigerators need a limited amount of annual servicing and it really comes down to your space needs and budget requirements when making your final decision. But there are a few brands that offer a wider variety of features and model styles as well as reliability.

• Kenmore and Whirlpool are consistently high in consumer satisfaction surveys. 
  
  
• Subzero does quite well, but is often out of most peoples price range as the “Sub Z” is the Rolls Royce of refrigerators.
  
  
• Frigidaire, GE and KitchenAid also get high marks, but the LG brand is rising up the ratings rapidly and may be a brand to consider as well.
  
  LG has been adding a wide variety of highly desirable features to its products over the years and its reliability ratings have consistently been steering upwards.
  
  
• If you're looking for a refrigerator for an RV or boat or other transportation unit, the only brand to consider really is the Norcold brand. They have truly mastered the Gas Absorption Refrigerator and portability.
  
  
• Be sure that whichever unit you choose that it is energy efficient and preferably has the Energy Star symbol which means that it will run 15% more efficiently than government standards require.
  
  

When looking at potential features like a built in water dispenser and ice maker, be sure that they have high quality Refrigerator Water Filters to get the best tasting water and ice available.

As well, be sure that whatever replacement filters might be necessary are reasonably priced and easily accessible either via the internet or in a retail store.

Lastly, be sure to check the warranty that is offered by the manufacturer. Find a fridge with the best warranty you can.

Best Refrigerator Related Articles

Best French Door Refrigerators: If a French door refrigerator is what you are looking for then take a look at our top 5 favorites.

Best Refrigerator Brands: If you're wondering what the Best Refrigerator Brands are, take a look at what we found after reviewing thousands of online consumer reviews and refrigerator ratings. You'll be surprised to see which refrigerator brands come out on top. We were!

Best LG Refrigerators: This South Korean company has taken the refrigerator market by storm. We've managed to identify a number of extremely popular well regarded refrigerator models from LG.

Best General Electric Refrigerators: are some of the most highly regarded refrigerators on the market today. We've chosen a few models that tickled our fancy. Find out why.

Best Whirlpool Gold Refrigerators: Not surprisingly, the Whirlpool Gold refrigerators performed extremely well in our tests. Here are the models that really stood out.

Refrigerator Buying Guide: If you're unsure what to look for when shopping for a fridge, try out our buying guide to help you narrow down your choices.

Top 10 Refrigerators: After scouring through thousands of online reviews and through the results of our own internal testing, we've managed to narrow down the top ten refrigerators. See what made the list!

Best Refrigerators of The Year!:  We update this list annually, but check out our most up to date list!