What is the best brand refrigerator out of the dozen or so leading brands currently available?
Thousands of people are seeking this information each month, and yet it’s very difficult to come up with an easy answer, because the question really should be, “What is the best brand of refrigerator that is most likely to address my needs at this time?”
Even that question is not specific enough, but let’s nevertheless review the situation among the leading manufacturers at the present time to see if there are any pointers towards which is the best refrigerator for you to buy.
There are over 20 brands of refrigerator in the United States, according to the US Consumers Union, the most popular being GE, Hotpoint, Kenmore, Jenn-Air, Electrolux, Frigidaire, Whirlpool, Samsung, LG, Amana, and Haier.
There are others, such as Bosch and Sub Zero Preservation, but they tend to be either very high-end manufacturers producing very expensive models for the elite, or suppliers to commerce, where refrigeration and freezer demands are quite different from what yours and mine are likely to be.
Taking just the domestic manufacturers we’ve listed above, things are far from clear. Just as many of our cars have parts manufactured by outside companies that produce their own cars, so many of our refrigerators are manufactured by companies other than that which is on the nameplate.
Whirlpool, for example, not only manufactures its own appliances, but also those of Amana, Jenn-Air, Magic Chef, Ikea, Sears Kenmore, Kitchenaide and Maytag. Hotpoint is owned by GE, which makes several models under the Hotpoint label. Kenmore refrigerators are manufactured by Whirlpool, Frigidaire and LG. Some of its compact fridges are made by Haier, and some of its wine chillers are made by Danby.
You might think that appliances made by, say, LG, under its own label and under the Kenmore label would be more or less equal in terms of quality and reliability, if nothing else. But you wouldn’t necessarily be right, according to the US Consumers Union. So don’t make this assumption when you try to determine these issues before buying your appliance.
Something else you should consider is this. As with so many other products, the market share of US refrigerator manufacturers has been declining in recent years in the face of fierce competition from foreign manufacturers such as Samsung and LG. And the competition is not only in terms of price. It’s in terms of quality and innovation as well.
What has happened so often is that imported appliances (or those made in the US by foreign companies), in order to muscle their way into the marketplace, introduce new features, such as child proofing, door alarms and dual air flow for refrigerator and freezer compartments.
Improving existing features such as low energy consumption is another way the newcomers have of competing successfully. Domestic manufacturers then copy and introduce new models with these features in a kind of “catch up” exercise.
Some imported appliances, or those made by an overseas-based company, therefore have better, or extra, facilities for the money. On the other hand, domestic brands often have the upper hand in quality of workmanship, durability and finish.
In summary, probably the best way to establish what the best appliance is for your purposes is to list all your requirements and check them against the models available in your price range. Read reviews online from owners of the appliances on your short-list until you’ve narrowed it down to just one or two.
And next time you consider what is the best brand of refrigerator for you, remember also that many of the features trumpeted by refrigerator manufacturers, such as digital displays and child locks may not be nearly as important to you as simply being able to rely on the machine to keep your food cold or frozen.
