The Best Storage Fridges in 2023

Finding out up on Domino’s buying guides is like having your private personal product concierge. We do the tedious half—deep-dive evaluation, hands-on testing, and tapping specialists for suggestion—so all you might want to do is hit “add to cart.” That’s why we title them Merely the Best.

We love {{that a}} storage fridge can broaden your chilly storage with out sacrificing space (or mannequin) throughout the kitchen. It’s not that assertion French door second, nonetheless that’s not the aim. And you may’t merely haul any outdated fridge available on the market. Why? Most conventional selections require the ambient temperature to be above a positive stage, typically 40 ranges Fahrenheit, to work precisely. That is smart—they’re meant to be used indoors, the place the thermostat is saved at a cosy setting. For example, if a fridge isn’t constructed for storage use and the temperature drops to 36 ranges, it will likely set off the tools to shut off.

Storage-ready fridges and freezers, nonetheless, are designed to work in non-climate-controlled environments. Significantly, they’re able to protect your up to date meals refrigerated and your frozen meals frozen in further extreme temperatures, sometimes zero to 100 or way more ranges. We’ve chosen a variety of of the right storage fridges for numerous options, along with a transportable beverage fridge and a very useful upright freezer.

Our Favorites

Best Value: GE Storage-Ready Fridge with Prime Freezer

Best Value

GE Storage-Ready Fridge with Prime Freezer, Residence tools Connection

$642

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Freezer functionality: 5.59 cubic ft | Fridge functionality: 13.51 cubic ft | Estimated yearly electrical vitality use: 422 kWh | LED lighting: Positive

Why we chosen it: Extraordinarily adjustable modular storage, plus all the fundamentals.

Do you have to’re searching for a easy workhorse, this top-freezer model from GE checks all the packing containers. With two humidity-controlled crisper drawers, a deli drawer, edge-to-edge adjustable glass shelving, and modular door storage that’s designed to go well with gallon-size containers, we’re hard-pressed to look out one factor that this fridge can’t match. Furthermore, the freezer shelf may be eradicated to retailer greater objects (a Thanksgiving turkey, perhaps?).

Best Convertible: Midea Frost-Free Convertible Upright Freezer

Best Value

Midea Frost-Free Convertible Upright Freezer, Lowes

$829

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Freezer functionality: 17 cubic ft | Fridge functionality: 17 cubic ft | Estimated yearly electrical vitality use: 438 kWh | LED lighting: Positive

Why we chosen it: A giant two-in-one fridge and freezer that you’d be capable to regulate with the contact of a button.

This twin fridge and freezer comes well-reviewed and helpful, incomes a 4.6-star rating from larger than 1,000 customers. Whereas we’re additional conscious of the mannequin’s air conditioners, this express unit is helpful to have spherical if it is important to protect your grocery overflow cool or frozen; merely select the favored temperature via the skin administration panel. “I purchased this product as a result of metal shelving, in my ideas it is safer than glass and can safely preserve additional product,” one reviewer gives. Plus, alongside the door’s inside is slimmer storage glorious for changing into cans and bottles. Crucial perk of shopping for this unit, nonetheless, is the reality that you’ll merely flip flop between freezer and fridge (with no indicators of frost!), which a variety of customers have carried out with out worry.

Best for Drinks: Newair Outdoors Beverage Fridge

Best for Drinks

NewAir 15u0022 Outdoors Beverage Fridge, Amazon

$980.12

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Freezer functionality: N/A | Fridge functionality: 3.2 cubic ft | Estimated yearly electrical vitality use: 248.2 kWh | LED lighting: Positive

Why we chosen it: Retains as a lot as 90 cans chilly, even throughout the warmest local weather.

Being stocked for the social gathering always feels good—and this fridge can protect all your drinks chilled all the best way all the way down to 32 delightfully chilly ranges, even throughout the canine days of summer season season. Created from corrosion- and rust-resistant stainless-steel, the Newair is completely weatherproof (it is going to presumably take care of rain and photo voltaic) and may be utilized practically wherever there’s an outlet. Removable casters suggest this fridge can observe you if wished, and its 5 adjustable cupboards, which slide out for simple entry, may be configured to hold as a lot as 90 twelve-ounce cans, along with bottles of varied sizes. We notably love the auto-lock perform, which suggests associates can’t unintentionally thaw the pleasant by leaving the door open.

Best Freezer-Solely Selection: GE Storage-Ready Frost-Free Upright Freezer

Best Freezer Solely Selection

GE Storage-Ready Frost-Free Upright Freezer, AJ Madison

$1028

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Freezer functionality: 21.3 cubic ft | Fridge functionality: N/A | Estimated yearly electrical vitality use: 495 kWh | LED lighting: Positive

Why we chosen it: The entire storage of a chest freezer, nonetheless lots easier to organize.

A chest freezer is good to have, nonetheless we’d be lying if we said we certainly not forgot about ice cream on the bottom. That’s the great thing about this 76-inch-tall freestanding upright freezer—it’s very easy to see all the contents immediately. In-door storage, three clear drawers (one is full width!), and 4 cupboards (two are stationary; the alternative two are adjustable/removable) all nonetheless guarantee buried freezer meals will in all probability be an element of the earlier. This model choices GE’s “Vitality Outage Promise,” which retains meals chilly for as a lot as 48 hours throughout the event that {the electrical} vitality goes out, along with a key lock and door alarm.

How We Chosen These Merchandise

In distinction to our properties, storage temps aren’t typically managed by a thermostat, so a fridge-freezer should be designed to take care of contents chilled in every kind of local weather, from scorching to chilly. To that end, all of these fashions come garage-ready, which suggests they will perform persistently in extreme temperatures. Since storage fridges are presupposed to be a second cold-storage space, we prioritized these which will merely accommodate big objects and have extraordinarily adjustable shelving. Mannequin standing, warranties, and footprint had been moreover important points.

Our Shopping for Tips

Design

“Storage fridges and freezers are designed to take the acute temperatures and humidity that give customary objects points. These with an enormous family or just throughout the need of further space must go for a specific fridge for the storage when space permits,” explains Albert Fouerti, ceo of Residence tools Connection. “There aren’t many specific choices with this merchandise, it’s principally a each day fridge with a refrigeration compartment and freezer compartment.”

Like kitchen fridges, storage fridges can be found in numerous varieties, with side-by-side, prime freezer, and bottom freezer being the three basic ones. We advocate saving the side-by-side model for indoor use solely and selecting a top- or bottom-freezer mannequin so you’ll take advantage of edge-to-edge cupboards for wider objects (assume: elaborate cheese plates and canapé trays).

Measurement and Functionality

As a rule of thumb, 19- to 22 cubic ft retailers ample meals to feed a family of 4. Nonetheless since that’s meant to be additional storage, most will uncover in any case 17 cubic ft to be lots. Fridges and freezers require in any case 1 inch of clearance on all sides for air circulation, so remember to preserve that in ideas when measuring. And proper right here’s one enormous plus to placing in a fridge throughout the storage: no worries about it not being able to match by the use of the doorway door!

Vitality Effectivity

New fridges embody an EnergyGuide label, issued by the Federal Commerce Payment (FTC), which lets customers understand an tools’s energy utilization. These labels are vivid yellow and embrace an estimated yearly energy use, estimated yearly energy worth, and the best way the latter compares with comparable fashions. Fortuitously, most fridges are licensed by the Vitality Star program these days (all of these alternate options undoubtedly are), which suggests they’re about 9 p.c additional surroundings pleasant than those that merely meet the federal minimal energy effectivity rating.

Ask Domino

Q: Nonetheless really, do I would really like a specific fridge for the storage?

Positive. Most fridges and freezers (and fridge-freezer combos) are made to perform indoors, in a managed native climate, and don’t work successfully (if the least bit) when the ambient temperature falls below a positive degree. Storage-ready fridges, as they’re often known as, are constructed to withstand a wider differ of local weather and temps. To note: Some fridge producers do promote after-market kits to make an indoor fridge acceptable for use in a storage.

Q: Do fridges work in chilly garages?

They optimistic do. Fridges rated for storage use don’t must be in a climate-controlled residence to work appropriately—they’re constructed to function in every kind of temperatures.

Q: How lots does it worth to run a fridge throughout the storage?

It shouldn’t worth far more to run a fridge in a storage than it does to run in your personal house, nonetheless take a look at the FTC’s EnergyGuide label (see above) for energy use and worth estimates. “It is best to always web site this when buying for the fridge,” gives Fouerti.

Q: Must I unplug my storage fridge throughout the winter?

No—garage-ready fridges are designed to manage temperature all 12 months spherical and might mechanically activate and off to remain on the specified temperature.

The Remaining Phrase

Storage-ready fridges can be found in numerous shapes, varieties, and sizes. Essential issue when shopping for for storage use is to confirm the tools is rated for such, in some other case it acquired’t function precisely in very warmth or very chilly temperatures.