Best Energy-Efficient Refrigerators

You use your refrigerator so often that you might not think of it as a way to save energy. But when it’s time for a new one, you can reduce your energy consumption while making dinner a little easier and elevating the look of your kitchen. A new energy-efficient refrigerator could even be a centerpiece of electrifying your home with efficient appliances and utilizing clean, renewable energy with home solar panels. 

Here’s our guide to the best energy-efficient refrigerators on the market. 

Best Energy-Efficient Refrigerators

We looked up the current list of Energy Star-certified refrigerators to find the most energy-efficient models in a few categories. We checked to see if they are widely available and well-reviewed by customers. Here are our favorites.

Best energy-efficient refrigerator

The LG LS27T3230S side-by-side refrigerator-freezer came out in 2024 and is the best combination of energy efficiency, value, capacity, and smart functions. 

This and many other LG models are on the Energy Star-certified list. The LS27T3230S measures at 26.6 cubic feet of capacity plus lots of storage space in the doors. It uses an average of 670 kWh a year. The US Department of Energy standard for this size range is 721 kWh/year.

LG, Lowe’s, and Home Depot list this model at $1,200. Customer ratings on the three sites range from 4.5-4.7.

The LG ThinQ app lets you track the fridge’s energy consumption and filter life. You can connect it to Google and Alexa devices for voice commands. 

Best large-capacity energy-efficient refrigerator

The Samsung RF30BB6602 is the top of the Energy Star-certified list in capacity, at 30.1 cubic feet. Yet, it still holds a 2025 Energy Star Most Efficient honor using an average of 545 kWh a year when the federal standard is 728.

This model has top French doors for the refrigerator and a sliding bottom freezer. It is a smart, connected fridge, recommended to be used with Samsung’s SmartThings app. 

Customer ratings are 4.5 on Samsung and Home Depot and 4.7 at Best Buy. The price is about $1,900-$2,000 on those three sites. 

Best budget/smaller energy-efficient refrigerator

The Samsung RT18M6215 is an Energy Star 2025 Most Efficient recipient and in Reviewed/USA Today’s The Best Refrigerators Under $1,000 of 2025 even though this model is eight years old.

It’s smaller, with 18 cubic feet of capacity, so it’s probably a fit for a smaller kitchen, a home with one or two people, or as a second refrigerator. The efficiency numbers come in at 448 kWh a year when the federal standard for this size is 490. 

The model is $900 with a 4.5 rating at Best Buy, and $999 with a 4.4 rating at Home Depot. It doesn’t have smart features. One neat feature is the ability to change the top freezer into more refrigerator space at the touch of a button. 

Best energy-efficient refrigerator for water filtration

The GE Profile PFE28KYNFS is an Energy Star-certified fridge with advanced water filtration among other neat water and ice features. The advanced filtration filters water and ice and the GE Profile has a hands-free, autofill water dispenser. The model is a French-door style and comes in normal depth and counter-depth sizes. It uses an estimated 725 kWh per year. 

This is a high-end fridge, priced at $2,498 and up at Home Depot and Lowe’s.  

Best high-tech energy-efficient refrigerator

The Samsung RF29DB990012 has all the AI and app bells and whistles and is Energy Star-certified. Its AI Vision recognizes what’s in your fridge and can keep you up-to-the-minute on how much milk you’ve got. The AI Family Hub lets you look up recipes, play music, or watch YouTube on your fridge. Or you can turn back the clock and put pictures and notes on your refrigerator door. 

The Samsung SmartThings app and smart features also include energy tracking and energy management and customizable sections, which can act as refrigerators or freezers.

The fridge has 29 cubic feet of capacity and uses an estimated 700 kWh/year. At Best Buy, models cost $2,300 and up with ratings from 4.4-4.7. At Home Depot, it’s $2,500 and up with customer ratings from 4.5-4.7.

Best Energy-Efficient Refrigerator Brands

If one of these specific models isn’t the right fit for your kitchen, consider these as the best brands for energy-efficient refrigerators. 

We compiled reviews from across the internet (giving more weight to hands-on reviewers) and scored brands on their performance to find the three best overall. These companies make the refrigerators most often recognized by experts.

LG

LG refrigerators were rated highly most consistently by the reviewers we looked at. 

CNET gave its Best Overall honor to LG’s LRFCs25D3S model, a French-door, stainless-steel fridge with a bottom freezer. It earned good marks for being a balance of affordability and tested customer satisfaction. 

Good Housekeeping awarded its Best Overall to a different LG model — the LG Smart French-Door Refrigerator with Dual Ice Maker. Its smart features can be accessed with LG’s ThinQ app. It was the best among Good Housekeeping’s testers with its drawers, bins, and interior visibility.

GE

General Electric came second in our rankings. 

Tom’s Guide named the GE Profile PFE28KYNFS atop its Best Refrigerators in 2025. It’s a French-door design and has 28 cubic feet of capacity. Features include a hands-free water dispenser, temperature-controlled drawers, and advanced water filtration. 

New York Times’ Wirecutter made a GE, the GSE25G, its best side-by-side refrigerator. This slightly smaller fridge uses just 646 kWh/year and has advanced water filtration. Testers gave positive marks to the fridge’s adjustable layout, said it’s user friendly, and liked GE’s customer service. 

Whirlpool

Whirlpool came in third in our rankings and had a number of different models throughout the best lists. 

CNET named the Whirlpool WRT112CZJW Best for Small Kitchens. 

Good Housekeeping tabbed Whirlpool’s WRS588FIHZ as its best side-by-side fridge. Its reviewers liked the digital controls and adjustable shelves.

Refrigerator Shopping Guidance

What you need in a refrigerator and freezer may depend on your kitchen, the number of people in the house, whether you care about it being high-tech, and more. Here are some categories to consider.

Depth

A standard refrigerator is 30-36 inches deep. This and the capacity give you an idea of how much stuff you can fit into it. Generally, larger families need more interior space. 

Counter-depth refrigerators, with a depth of 24-30 inches, are more popular these days as they’re built to fit seamlessly into a space between kitchen counters and in smaller kitchens in general. 

Energy efficiency

More than 3,500 models of refrigerators are Energy Star-certified. To be on the Energy Star list, a refrigerator must use 10% or more less energy than the minimum efficiency standards from the US Department of Energy. You can get an estimate of your potential energy and energy bill savings from Energy Star here.

Features (ice maker, smart features, etc)

You may want traditional features on a new fridge like ice makers, water dispensers, humidity control, child door locks, and LED lighting. 

High-tech features, which may be an extra expense but are still in plenty of energy-efficient fridges, include app compatibility and control, smart connectivity to other appliances, screens, and interior cameras.

Whether these features are worth it is up to you. Do you want to display recipes or play music on your fridge? Do you want to see your cheese from anywhere in the world? Or, do you just need your refrigerator to have a nice vegetable drawer?

Finish

Stainless steel, black, slate, glass, and unique colors are finishes on fridges. Some options may cost more.

Shelves and drawers

You want to fit, reach, and see everything in your refrigerator and freezer easily. Poorly designed shelves and drawers limit visibility and can hide spoiling food. Humidity control, airflow, and space help keep food fresher longer and control odors, even if you don’t do a perfect job keeping the fridge cleaned out. 

Size

You need to know a refrigerator’s height, width, and depth to make sure it fits in your space. Factor in how the doors open, too.

Then, there’s also the interior capacity, measured in cubic feet, which combines the refrigerator and freezer space. Normal total capacity for a refrigerator-freezer for a family kitchen is 22-28 cubic feet.

Style (French door/bottom freezer/top freezer/etc)

Refrigerator style generally refers to the layout of the refrigerator, freezer, and doors. Side-by-side models have a larger refrigerator space on one side and a freezer on the other. There are top freezer and bottom freezer styles. French-door models, with double doors for the refrigerator and a slide-out freezer below, are popular but typically considered an upgrade. 

Price

Almost countless variables affect price. On Lowe’s website, standard to large-capacity refrigerators across all brands, options, features, and finishes range from $588-$14,600. On Best Buy, the range is $650-$16,000.

How We Chose the Best Refrigerators

To find the best refrigerators, we started with Energy Star’s list of certified appliances as of January 2025 and reviewed articles from a range of media sources. We found models among the most efficient and best-rated brands in each category. We also checked to see if they are widely available and have positive reviews.

To choose the best brands overall, we looked for brands that consistently ranked high in multiple sources. We gave more weight to sources that did hands-on testing. We scored the brands for where and how often they placed on expert reviews and tabulated a final score and ranking. Other brands that ranked below the top three were Samsung, Frigidaire, Fisher & Paykel, Maytag, Bosch, Insignia, Cafe, Hisense, Hotpoint, Smeg, and Sub Zero & Wolf.

Frequently Asked Questions

How big of a refrigerator do I need?

This depends on how many people are in your home, what your family’s normal routine is, the space in your kitchen, and your personal preferences. Home refrigerators typically range from 22-28 cubic feet. For some homes, you may also keep a second fridge in a garage or basement for extra storage. 

Does Energy Star matter for refrigerators?

Yes, and there are more than 3,500 refrigerators that are Energy Star certified, so it’s not a problem to find a model with everything you need and energy efficiency.

Should I buy a smart refrigerator?

A smart refrigerator, in general, will be more expensive than other similar-sized and similar-featured models. If smart capabilities are important to you and your usual routine, they can save you time, help you enjoy using your kitchen more, and even track energy usage and help you save.

Disclaimer: This content is for educational purposes only. Palmetto does not provide tax, legal, or accounting advice. Please consult your own tax, legal, and accounting advisors.

About the AuthorAndrew GiermakWriter and Editor

Andrew joined Palmetto in Charlotte in August 2024. He’s been a writer in journalism, then in business, going back to almost the 20th century. He’s lived in Indiana, Virginia, Pennsylvania, Virginia again, and now North Carolina for the last 12 years. He likes golf. Is he good at it? Not so much.