What size fridge you need for your household

How the fridge size is worked out

A household needs 4-6 cubic feet of fridge space per person, the rule of thumb Samsung gives in its US buying guide. The calculator uses 6 cu ft per person if you shop once a week and 4 if you shop several times a week, then splits the total and checks what fits your opening.

The steps:

1. Total. People times 6 or 4 cu ft. In metric units the rule is UFC-Que Choisir's: 150 or 100 litres for the first person, 50 litres for each extra one.
2. Fridge and freezer. The total is split 70% fridge, 30% freezer, the usual split of fridge freezers (UFC-Que Choisir). If you freeze little it is split 80/20, like a top-freezer model.
3. Freezing a lot. With a vegetable garden, bulk buying, fishing or hunting the freezer is counted per person: 3 cu ft (80 litres, the top of Stiftung Warentest's 40-80 litre range).
4. Space. The calculator takes 3/8 in off each side and 1 in off the top for air, the tight-space minimum in Samsung's guide. A built-in refrigerator must fit the cutout.
5. Model. Among the sizes that fit, the smallest one with enough fridge and freezer space. Rules of thumb come in round steps, so a model within 10% of the target is accepted. If you freeze a lot and the freezer falls short, a separate freezer is added.

US sizes are the median of the ENERGY STAR certified models of each type and width. The list gives the total and the adjusted volume, which counts the freezer 1.76 times; the freezer is the difference divided by 0.76. On the GE GIE18GTNRWW this gives 4.08 cu ft against 4.04 on GE's spec sheet.

Every value (space per person, splits, clearances, accepted shortfall) can be changed in the advanced options.

Worked example: three people, a 30-inch top-freezer

These are the values the calculator opens with in US units: three people, a weekly grocery run, the usual freezing, a freestanding opening 36 in wide and 70 in high.

• Total: 3 × 6 = 18 cu ft
• Fridge: 70% of 18, 12.6 cu ft; freezer: 5.4 cu ft
• Largest refrigerator for the opening: 35 1/4 × 69 in

The smallest size that does the job is a 30-inch top-freezer refrigerator, 29 3/4 × 66 1/2 in with 13.2 cu ft of fridge and 5.0 of freezer (ENERGY STAR median, 18.2 cu ft). If you freeze a lot the freezer target becomes 3 × 3 = 9 cu ft: the calculator moves to a 33-inch top-freezer (15.0 + 6.1 cu ft) and adds a freezer of at least 3.0 cu ft. A family of four needs 16.8 + 7.2 cu ft: in a 36 by 70 in opening no size has enough fridge space, while a 39 by 72 in opening takes a 36-inch side-by-side (15.9 + 8.9 cu ft).

In the UK, in metres and litres: the same three people with a weekly shop need 175 litres of fridge and 75 of freezer, and in a space 65 cm wide and 1.90 m high the calculator picks a 60 × 176 cm fridge freezer such as the Bosch KGN33NLEB (193 + 89 litres).

Fridge size by number of people

Fridge + freezer space with the usual freezing, and the refrigerator picked for a 39 × 72 in opening with a weekly grocery run:

People	Weekly shop	Shopping more often	Refrigerator
1	4.2 + 1.8 cu ft	2.8 + 1.2 cu ft	top-freezer 24 in
2	8.4 + 3.6 cu ft	5.6 + 2.4 cu ft	top-freezer 28 in
3	12.6 + 5.4 cu ft	8.4 + 3.6 cu ft	top-freezer 30 in
4	16.8 + 7.2 cu ft	11.2 + 4.8 cu ft	side-by-side 36 in
5	21.0 + 9.0 cu ft	14.0 + 6.0 cu ft	French door 36 in
6	25.2 + 10.8 cu ft	16.8 + 7.2 cu ft	French door 36 in

For five or six people with a weekly shop even the median 36-inch French door (18.2 + 8.3 cu ft) is short on fridge space: the calculator flags it. The largest standard-depth 36-inch models in the ENERGY STAR list reach about 31.7 cu ft in total.

Sizes on sale: widths, heights and built-ins

Freestanding refrigerators in the US come in widths of about 24, 28, 30, 33 and 36 inches. Median ENERGY STAR sizes, standard depth:

Type	Width × height	Fridge + freezer
Top-freezer	23 3/4 × 59 3/4 in	7.3 + 2.8 cu ft
Top-freezer	28 × 66 7/8 in	10.9 + 3.8 cu ft
Top-freezer	29 3/4 × 66 1/2 in	13.2 + 5.0 cu ft
Top-freezer	32 3/4 × 66 3/4 in	15.0 + 6.1 cu ft
Bottom-freezer	29 3/4 × 69 in	12.9 + 5.5 cu ft
French door	32 7/8 × 69 3/4 in	15.1 + 6.3 cu ft
French door	35 3/4 × 70 in	18.2 + 8.3 cu ft
Side-by-side	35 7/8 × 70 in	15.9 + 8.9 cu ft

ENERGY STAR lists bottom-freezer and French door models together; at 33 and 36 inches most are French doors. Built-in refrigerators stand about 84 in tall: bottom-freezer 30 in (11.5 + 4.5 cu ft) and 36 in (13.9 + 5.7), side-by-side 42 in (16.4 + 8.7) and 48 in (19.2 + 10.3).

In the UK fridge freezers are 55, 60 or 70 cm wide: 60 × 176 cm holds 193 + 89 litres, 60 × 203 cm 260 + 103, 70 × 203 cm 330 + 108, an American-style side by side 90.8 cm wide 372 + 208. An integrated fridge freezer for a 177.5 × 56 cm space holds 183 + 84 litres.

Common mistakes

• Measuring only the width. A 35 3/4 in French door needs a 36 1/2 in opening with 3/8 in on each side, and the height up to the cabinet above counts too. Next to a wall, the hinge side needs extra room for the door to swing open.
• Comparing total cubic feet only. Two refrigerators with the same total can split it very differently: check fresh food and freezer separately on the spec sheet.
• Buying the biggest that fits. A refrigerator or freezer that is too large cools empty space (Natural Resources Canada).
• Forgetting the garden or bulk buying. The freezer of a 30-inch top-freezer holds about 5 cu ft; a family that freezes a lot needs 3 cu ft per person and usually a separate freezer.
• Taking zero-clearance for granted. Some models are designed to sit flush against cabinets; if yours is one, set the side clearance to 0 in the advanced options, otherwise leave the gap.