Who makes the best refrigerators? GE? LG? Whirlpool? CR’s lab and survey data show that the answer depends on the type of fridge.
CR tests hundreds of refrigerators. These brands rise to the top.
By Daniel Wroclawski
Data vsualizations by Andy Bergmann
When you’re shopping for a new refrigerator, the large number of configurations and models can seem overwhelming. To help you in your shopping journey, Consumer Reports tests dozens of refrigerators every year, adding to refrigerator ratings that now cover over 250 models that are available on the market. But there are still hundreds more refrigerators for sale with different sizes, finishes, and features.
We want to help you make a great choice no matter what refrigerator brand and model you’re considering. That’s why CR has created brand scores for French-door, side-by-side, top-freezer, and built-in refrigerators. CR members can see the brand scores below. (We don’t currently have enough testing data to score bottom-freezer brands.)
You might be wondering whether there’s a single best refrigerator brand, period. But CR’s statistical analysis of lab and survey data shows that no single brand is best across every fridge style.
“There isn’t one best brand of refrigerator because brands tend to focus on particular segments or styles or prices of the market,” says Breann Chai, who oversees refrigerator testing for Consumer Reports. “That means they may limit their development resources in some categories or not even participate.”
How to Use the Refrigerator Brand Scores
When you’re shopping for a refrigerator, first check our refrigerator ratings, available to CR members, to see whether we have test results for a given model. Those results will give you a very detailed picture of that refrigerator’s performance, features, and reliability.
Here’s a shopping tip: If you don’t see a given model in our ratings, try checking the ratings for that model’s other color finishes. Every refrigerator has a slightly different model number for each of its finishes. For instance, if you’re considering the black stainless Samsung RS27T5200SG/AA side-by-side, which isn’t in our ratings, use CR’s test results for the stainless steel version, the Samsung RS27T5200SR.
If you still can’t find test results, then you’ll want to turn to the refrigerator brand scores. These will give you an idea of how the refrigerator will perform, both when it’s new and over time.
You can also check CR’s guide to the most and least reliable refrigerator brands, which will give you an estimate of how long a refrigerator should last before encountering problems. Reliability information is based on survey data on thousands of refrigerators owned by CR members.
The refrigerator brand scores below are broader. They are based on a statistical model that incorporates both that survey data and CR’s lab test results and also takes into account the breadth of a brand’s product line across price and performance tiers. CR doesn’t currently have enough data to calculate these scores for every brand and type of fridge in our ratings.
Best French-Door Refrigerator Brands
French-door refrigerators are one of the most popular configurations on the market. In our lab tests, most French-doors do a good job of keeping food cold, but their performance can vary significantly when it comes to energy efficiency, noise, and ease of use. In addition, they tend to be less reliable than other types of fridges, such as top-freezers.
LG’s high brand score might surprise some people, given widely reported problems with the compressors in some of the brand’s French-door refrigerators. Our reliability survey data confirm that LG French-doors, side-by-sides, and built-ins have been more prone to failing or faulty compressors than competing models while providing comparable reliability overall. These fridges generally do very well in our lab tests.
For specific French-door models, see our guide to the best French-door refrigerators.
Best Side-by-Side Refrigerator Brands
Side-by-sides have taken a back seat to French-doors in popularity, but they’re a great option for tight kitchens, thanks to their narrow doors. They tend to be a bit more reliable and affordable than French-doors, but their performance in our lab tests can vary.
For specific side-by-side models, see our guide to the best side-by-side refrigerators.
Best Top-Freezer Refrigerator Brands
Top-freezers aren’t the coolest fridges (pun intended), but they are very practical. These fridges are affordable and reliable, and high-end models typically perform well. Cheaper top-freezers tend to do worse in our lab tests, but there are exceptions. As a group, top-freezers tend to all perform poorly in our ease-of-use evaluations in part because their temperature controls are in hard-to-reach places. As you can see below, at this time we have brand scores for only four of the top-freezer refrigerator brands in our ratings.
For specific top-freezer models, see our guide to the best top-freezer refrigerators.
Best Built-In Refrigerator Brands
Built-ins are the most expensive refrigerators on the market. The features largely mirror what you’d get from a cheaper freestanding refrigerator, so what you’re paying for is a fridge that sits flush with kitchen cabinetry, possibly lets you affix wood panels that match that cabinetry, and offers luxurious touches like LED light bars and stainless steel interior walls. Built-ins are available in several configurations, such as side-by-side, column, French-door, and bottom-freezer. They all tend to be quite reliable, but their performance in our lab tests on factors including energy efficiency and temperature uniformity vary.
For specific built-in models, see our guide to the best built-in refrigerators.
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