They’re ideal for storing drinks, snacks, daily lunches, and leftovers, and the larger ones can also store perishable items for a few days at a time. You can read more about how we evaluate mini fridges in our Lab — plus everything you need to know to shop for your perfect mini fridge for your dorm or office — at the end of this guide. Just like full-size fridges, we tested mini fridges in laboratory conditions and used them normally over the course of a week. This combination of approaches gives us a great sense for how these appliances behave, both in terms of raw performance and overall user friendliness. A product must have both of these qualities in order to earn our recommendation. There are a few reasons this fridge isn’t for everyone, though.
Most minis have no crisper drawer, so produce will lose its fresh taste and texture after a few days. Freezer burn is common, too, and the freezer compartments don’t reach anywhere near the 0 degree Fahrenheit threshold for safe, long-term meat storage. Standing at just over 27 inches tall, this mini fridge provides enough space for snacks and drinks and can fit nicely under most desks or inside a cubicle. The door also has storage for up to eight canned drinks as well as space for larger bottles. The adjustable thermostat aims to ensure an ideal temperature for your food.
Eva (she/her) is a reviews analyst in the Kitchen Appliances and Innovation Lab, where she tests kitchen gear, home appliances and culinary innovations. If you have a Target REDcard, you will get an extra 5% off most purchases and you’ll get free shipping on eligible items if you shop online! Food isn’t properly frozen at freezer temperatures above 0°F. Furthermore, the less consistent a freezer’s temperature is, the more trouble you’ll have with freezer burn. While the Cooluli C20LDXW was the only fridge equipped with a digital readout, we found it wasn’t accurate, as temperatures were 7°F cooler than what we had programmed. We also noticed some frost building up along the back of the fridge within the first few days of operation..
Owen Burke is a Senior Home and Kitchen Reporter at Insider, helping craft a brand new guides section for Insider Reviews. Ever in search of the perfect espresso, he focuses on espresso machines and equipment, juicers, kitchen knives, grills, meat and seafood, and the odd outdoors product. Frigidaire is a solid name in the refrigerator industry, and the 1.6-Cubic-Foot Compact Fridge is a great affordable, no-frills solution. While taking up minimal space, it has enough room for one or two bottles of wine, six packs, and several smaller items. We spoke with several refrigeration experts, including the folks at Liberty Home Guard, to find out what makes a good mini fridge, what to avoid, and how to take care of one in order to ensure it lasts for years.
In the fridge, you’ll find two glass shelves as well as a crisper drawer for fruits and veggies. However, the crisper doesn’t have humidity controls so don’t expect it to keep greens sprightly for more than a week. On the door of the fridge, there’s a can dispenser as well as two shelves, including one for tall soda bottles and a smaller one for condiments. Don’t keep a compact refrigerator in an unheated garage or basement.
Models with the freezer on top tend to use the least energy (versus bottom freezers or side-by-sides). I normally wouldn’t rent anything, nor have buy-here, pay-here. But I couldn’t find many affordable fridges in stock here in FL that could be delivered instead of picked up, that weren’t Samsung.
Make sure you keep your fridge in an ambient temperature of 35 to 38 degrees Fahrenheit. On average, an old refrigerator uses about 35% more energy than a model that has Frigidaire fridge earned the ENERGY STAR. LED lighting is brighter and uses less energy than incandescent bulbs. You`ll see just what you are looking for with LED interior lighting.
The price is typical for a mini fridge, and even with ample capacity, it won’t take up much floor space. GE’s 3.1-Cubic-Foot mini fridge has a separate freezer and plenty of smartly-designated space for cans, food, and more. A mini fridge can be a convenient addition to your dorm, home office, garage, or anywhere else you care to have chilled drinks or assortment of snacks at the ready. Mini fridges are a great solution when you either whirlpool mini refrigerator have very limited space or need somewhere to store excess items. The specific size of mini refrigerator that you need will depend on what you plan to use it for, but most often range from 30 to 35 inches in height, 18 to 24 inches in width, and 19 to 26 inches in depth. Finally, to our eyes the business end of the Midea WHS-65L seemed a bit delicate and cheaply built—but that was the case with every mini fridge we looked at.