Apartment-Sized Refrigerators: How to Choose

Explore a variety of mini fridges in a range of styles and types. From full-size, full-width, half-width, cube-shaped, in-door, slide-out, see-through, two-door and two-liter, you are sure to find one for all your needs. Look through an array of fridges with freezers, adjustable thermostat controls and built-in dispensers with a varying range of storage area in cubic feet. These compact appliances will not only keep you well-fed and hydrated they are also durable and attractive. Browse through a large collection of mini fridges and refrigerators to find the right pick for you.

whirlpool mini refrigerator

Whether you need to keep your favorite soft drinks or canned cocktails cold, store the fixin’s for a late-night snack or chill your jade roller, a mini fridge will come in handy. When shopping for mini fridges, the most important features to consider are shelf configurations , design aesthetics, and whether or not you want a freezer. Mini fridges aren’t generally built to last the way that full-sized ones are, so keep in mind that a good one will need to be replaced around the five-year mark, depending on how much you use it. Learn more about how Insider Reviews tests and researches home products. With a contoured shape and chrome latch handles, this model resembles a 1950’s fridge. However, it has the kind of temperature management you expect from a twenty-first century unit.

The Cooluli C20LDXW is definitely the cutest and smallest mini fridge we tested, with a total capacity smaller than most of the other mini fridge’s freezers. The Frigidaire FFPE3322UM is actually the warmest fridge of the bunch, with an average temperature of 41°F at its default settings. Given that anything above 40°F isn’t safe for food storage, this is a disappointing test result. Fortunately, its temperatures are remarkably consistent, so once it’s properly calibrated you shouldn’t have any problems with its performance. Despite its name, the Arctic King ATMP032AES has some of the warmer default fridge temperatures we measured. On default settings, it was actually slightly warmer than the cut-off for food safety, 40°F.

Please enter your local address in the shipping address category. We do not ship, and only serve the local Lawrence community. Get the best deals and the best advice dropped right in your inbox. Mark Brezinski is a senior writer with over ten years of experience reviewing consumer tech and home appliances. We’ve collectively spent decades testing major appliances in our lab. Its freezer temps were also a bit warm at 3°F, but were also relatively stable—no freezer burn here, just a quick calibration and you should be all set.

From beverage centers with Dual-Temperature Controlled Zones to small refrigerators perfect for apartments, find the features you’re looking for. Wirecutter is the product recommendation service from The New York Times. Our journalists combine independent research with over-the-top Frigidaire fridge testing to save people time, energy and money when making buying decisions. Whether it’s finding great products or discovering helpful advice, we’ll help you get it right . Most of the Midea WHS-65L’s flaws can be chalked up to problems with mini fridges in general.

They’re not designed to work in temperatures below those in a home. We strongly recommend you check your mini fridge’s user manual for recommendations for your specific model. For example, you may or may not be able to put your mini-fridge on the carpet. Also, having separate compartments helps prevent your refrigerated food from getting freezer burn and your frozen food from partially or completely thawing. The cooling system is more efficient that way and you’re much less likely to find thawing food in the freezer compartment or frozen food in the refrigerated compartment.

Speaking from experience, I much preferred having a mini-fridge with a separate freezer vs the mini-fridge/freezer with only one door. Do not place heavy objects or magnet items on top of the refrigerator. Consult a qualified electrician or serviceman if the grounding instructions are not completely understood or if 11. The refrigerant of this product is R600a, which is in flammable. Make sure not to doubt exists as to whether the appliance is properly damage the cooling system during the transportation and installation.

Good Housekeeping participates in various affiliate marketing programs, which means we may get paid commissions on editorially chosen products purchased through our links to retailer sites. Some of these small refrigerators even come with their own freezers. Fridge temperatures higher than 40°F, allow bacteria to proliferate quickly; fridge temperatures lower than 32°F can cause some food to freeze. The ideal temperature settings for the fridge and the freezer are 37°F and 0°F, respectively. We measure each shelf, bin, or other storage location separately, then add those areas together. That way we’re only accounting for the usable storage inside the fridge, and different capacities are more cross-comparable.

Note that if you do use this fridge as a freezer, you’ll want to be hypervigilant about condensation and be sure to get a good seal every time you open and close the door. This is basically destined to be a problem with most similar models, so it’s important to understand that you’re working with a very small, very inexpensively built appliance. I just bought a slightly smaller Whirlpool for $160 at HD, though it has a separate freezer door. A little over a year ago, I bought a Whirlpool microwave and thought little of it at the time.