4 Cheap Refrigerators That Are High Quality, According To Consumer Reports

Smart fridges have slowly but surely taken over kitchens with their voice control, touchscreen infotainment system, and AI-powered camera. But as capable as these smart fridges are, not everyone needs and is into their intelligent features. Some homeowners just want a reliable way of cooling and freezing their food without having to deal with all the complicated and unnecessary bells and whistles. 

If you're one of those people, you'll be happy to know there's still a solid selection of non-smart fridges you can choose from. They don't come with internet connectivity, companion apps, and most importantly, the premium price tag. They're good at one thing and one thing only — keeping your food fresh while being friendlier to your wallet. For those who aren't fans of expensive high-tech refrigerators and prefer the basic, no-nonsense type, here are four of the cheap but high-quality models from top brands, all recommended by Consumer Reports.

Available for the cheap price of $949, the LG LT18S2100W is an 18-cu. ft. top-freezer refrigerator. It measures 27.5 by 33.75 by 64 inches and can comfortably fit small kitchens and apartments. Besides being compact, the fridge includes a reversible door hinge for flexibility. This lets you install the unit to swing open either to the left or right, depending on which best suits your room layout. Marketed as garage-ready, the LG LT18S2100W can be set up even in rooms without climate control, such as your garage, basement, or enclosed patio. Just make sure the ambient temperature is between 38 and 110°F (3 and 43°C) for reliable performance.

Like your standard refrigerator, the LG LT18S2100W's interior is laid out with tempered glass shelves, door bins, and a produce bin. Both the shelves and door bins are detachable, so you can move them around to fit items of different heights. This also makes them easier to clean.

While the LG LT18S2100W isn't equipped with smart features like digital displays and wireless connection, it does come with two control dials: one for the fridge and another for the freezer. You simply turn the dial to choose how cold you want the internal temperature to be. There's also a built-in ice maker in the freezer, with an ice storage capacity of 6.6 lbs.

Made by one of the major refrigerator brands, the Frigidaire FFHT2022AW is a garage-ready top-freezer refrigerator with 20 cu. ft. total storage capacity. While it's more generous in capacity, it actually has the same footprint as your standard 18-cu. ft. fridge. That means you get more room inside the fridge without sacrificing your kitchen space. What makes it even more convenient to install is its reversible door swing that can match your kitchen setup.

Inside the fridge, you can find two separate crisper drawers with roller support, five door bins (three in the fridge, two in the freezer), and three glass shelves (two in the fridge, one in the freezer). Some of the door bins and shelves are adjustable, letting you rearrange the space depending on your storage needs. On top of the familiar organization elements, you'll also see three intuitive controls inside. There's a temperature slider control in the freezer, a humidity slider control in the crisper drawers, and a temperature dial in the fridge. You won't find an ice maker inside, though. In case you want one installed, you need to buy the compatible ice maker kit separately.

Because the Frigidaire FFHT2022AW is garage-ready, it can efficiently work in spaces with temperatures ranging from 45 to 110°F (7 to °43C). You can get this fridge for $929 in one of three colors — white, black, or stainless steel.

Measuring just 30 inches wide, the Midea MFR18B4AST is a cheap but high-quality French door refrigerator that comes in the same size as a top-freezer variant. It offers a total storage capacity of 18 cu. ft. with a straightforward interior configuration: two produce drawers, two adjustable glass shelves, three door bins on each fridge door, and two freezer drawers below. The bottom door bins are large enough to accommodate gallon-sized containers, so you can save some shelf space. On the outside, the fridge features a fingerprint-resistant stainless-steel finish to keep the unit looking polished.

Unlike top-freezer fridges with multiple knobs/sliders in different places, the Midea MFR18B4AST is equipped with only a single control panel at the top of the fridge. It has electronic controls for changing the temperature in both the fridge and freezer, canceling the door alarm buzzer that goes off whenever a door is left open for 120 seconds, and going into standby mode, which turns off the cooling, light, and display. The LEDs on the electronic display can also warn you of system faults by flashing.

The Midea MFR18B4AST doesn't include an icemaker out of the box, but it works with the Midea IM1900MD Automatic Icemaker that you can buy separately. You can get this fridge at Costco, Lowe's, and other retailers for $1,299.

The GE GNE25JYKFS is a relatively cheap French door fridge from GE Appliances — one of the refrigerator brands manufactured in America. It retails for $2,299 and has a few nifty features beyond the basics. For one, it connects to your water line and runs an advanced water filtration to filter out over 50 impurities like chlorine, lead, and even microplastics. The unit then uses the filtered water to produce ice via the built-in ice maker and dispense cold water from the internal water dispenser.

For controlling the fridge, there's an electronic control panel with a digital display at the very top of the fridge. This is where you can adjust the freezer and fridge temperatures separately, check the life percentage of the water filter, enable TurboCool mode, and turn on the door alarm. Instead of just temperature levels like on basic fridges, the model lets you set actual temperatures that are then shown on the display. You can even change it from °F to °C and vice versa.

The GE GNE25JYKFS comes with a storage capacity of 24.7 cu. ft., fitting two freezer levels, two humidity-controlled produce drawers, a full-width drawer, four split shelves, and four bins in each fridge door. Two of the door bins are gallon-sized for your milk jugs and large condiment bottles, while one of the split shelves features a sliding half that goes underneath in case you need a tall space for your pitchers and wines. The split shelves and door bins can be removed, so you can customize the interior layout as needed.

You can get the GE GNE25JYKFS in one of four shades: white, black, fingerprint-resistant slate, and fingerprint-resistant stainless. The fingerprint-resistant colors make it easy to clean the surface with just a simple wipe.