Samsung
RB38A7B6BB1
Test score
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American fridge freezers look impressive and promise the end to an overflowing fridge or crammed to bursting freezer.
If you're after a show stopper for your kitchen, then take a look at out the 10 best American fridge freezers, below. These are the top-scoring models from our independent testing. Some will be from our most recent testing, but you may spot one or two older models that we still recommend.
Looking for a different type of fridge freezer? See our Best fridge freezers for 2022 to select the best type for your kitchen and budget.
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This is an outstanding fridge freezer. It’s packed with the latest technology and will store your food perfectly to maintain as much freshness and flavour as possible. Not only is it one of the highest-scoring fridge freezers on test, it’s also extremely energy efficient.
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There’s plenty to like about this spacious American-style fridge freezer. There is plenty of room for your food, and everything will be stored at the right temperature. Despite its large size it makes less noise than most and is energy efficient to run. It’s a fantastic fridge freezer and a brilliant Best Buy.
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This outstanding American fridge freezer aced many of our tough tests and didn't do poorly in any of them. It's so good we've made it a Best Buy. It's one of our highest scoring American fridge freezers.
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We were hugely impressed with this fridge freezer and you can rest assured that it will preserve your food brilliantly. It’s incredibly easy to find the right temperature in every compartment, and it won’t miss a beat if the temperature in your kitchen chops and changes. No wonder it’s a Best Buy. It’s also energy efficient enough to be an Eco Buy, so it will save you money on your energy bills and have a smaller impact on the planet.
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At 71cm-wide this American fridge freezer is worth considering if you want double doors and more storage than a conventional fridge freezer, but don’t have enough space for a full width American model. This energy-efficient model flew through most of our tests, and the fridge and freezer are both fantastic.
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This is a fantastic fridge freezer. Not only does it chill and freeze food rapidly, but it maintains the perfect temperature inside whatever happens to the temperature in your kitchen. It’s also spacious, energy efficient and quiet, so it’s no surprise that it’s a high-scoring Best Buy.
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This is a brilliant American fridge freezer that is available at a bargain price. The fridge and freezer are both excellent at chilling and freezing, respectively. It’s energy efficient, and maintains a stable temperature in a variety of conditions, too.
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This impressive all-round fridge freezer excelled in most of our tough tests and didn’t do badly in any of them. It’s a clear Best Buy. You can count on this super fridge to maximise the lifespan of your fresh food. It chills rapidly to help keep heat-loving bacteria at bay.
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This American fiidge freezer costs the earth, but backs up the high price with stellar test scores. The vast fridge is brilliant at chilling food quickly, and maintains a steady temperature in either hot or cold rooms. It’s energy efficient too. The freezer is a little disappointing at freezing food quickly, but all things considered this fridge freezer is a worthy Best Buy.
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None of the above take your fancy? Don't worry – we've tested more than 100 of the most popular models to help you find the perfect fit for your kitchen.
See all our American fridge freezer reviews.
American fridge freezers (also known as side-by-side or American-style models) are wider than freestanding or integrated fridge freezers and always have at least one set of side-by-side doors.
Most commonly, there are just two doors, with the fridge sitting next to the freezer. However, sometimes the fridge and freezer will each have two side-by-side doors, but the fridge will sit on top of the freezer. Alternatively, the fridge can have two side-by-side doors, but the freezer underneath will have one or two large external drawers.
American fridge freezers are wider and deeper than conventional models, so they take up more space in your kitchen, but they also give you far more space to store fresh and frozen food.
Lots of American fridge freezers come with extra cooling and storage features as standard. These can include:
It depends on your budget and the brand you want as premium features, such as automatic ice dispensers and a stainless-steel finish, are nice extras that inevitably bump up the price.
If you want an American model with the very latest mod cons and cooling technology, consider choosing the following:
Find out more about fridge freezer features in Fridge freezer features explained.
Chilled, filtered water and instant ice are tempting features of American fridge freezers, but most models have to be plumbed into the mains water supply. This will affect where you can put it in your kitchen and can make them expensive to install.
Also, you’ll have to change the water filters every six months or so. Replacement filters can cost anything from £20 to more than £90 each, so it’s worth checking the price before you buy to avoid extra costs later on.
Some models have removable water jugs that you simply top up from the tap. This means you won’t have to factor in plumbing costs and you can put the fridge freezer anywhere in your kitchen – but you’ll only get two to three litres of water before you’ll need to refill the jug.
Read How to deep-clean your fridge for advice on cleaning a fridge water dispenser.
If you're considering buying an American fridge freezer, make sure you know the facts.
They are large and bulky, so it’s crucial to buy one that’s the right size for your kitchen as you don’t want it to dominate the space or block an area that you need access to.
You may also have to factor in extra space at the back, sides and/or top for air to circulate. With this in mind, it’s important to consider the following dimensions carefully:
The standard width of an American fridge freezer is 90cm, so it will take up more space in your kitchen but also gives you far more space to store fresh and frozen food.
Slimmer models are available, but they will always be at least 70cm wide – 10cm more than the width of a standard freestanding model.
They’re also deeper than standard models – typically 70cm or more. So make sure you factor this in if you’re planning to put your new fridge freezer in a different place.
American models can be too deep to manoeuvre through front doors and internal doors, so measure your doorways to see whether you’ll be able to get it into your kitchen. If you’re unsure, ask the retailer whether they will remove (and reattach) the fridge freezer doors when they deliver it and whether this will cost extra.
American models are around 175cm to 190cm tall.
The main appeal is the amount of storage space they contain.
As the table below shows, the average model contains 390 litres of usable space, which is enough for around 20 supermarket carrier bags' worth of shopping.
American fridge freezers | |
Least usable volume | 288 litres |
Average usable volume | 390 litres |
Most usable volume | 595 litres |
Unlike manufacturers, who measure fridge freezer volume with all the shelves and drawers taken out, we measure how much space you can actually use for storing food.
As a result, models with exactly the same external dimensions can vary significantly when it comes to usable storage space.
American fridge freezers are larger than conventional models, so are generally more expensive. Prices start at around £450 and go upwards well over £2,000.
Price | Number of Best Buy models tested |
Less than £500 | 2 |
£500-£1,000 | 10 |
£1,000-£1,500 | 11 |
More than £1,500 | 7 |
Based on all (30) Best Buy American fridge freezers available on which.co.uk. Correct as of February 2022. |
Prices vary hugely between brands and whichever brand you choose, you’ll pay more for features such as a stainless-steel finish, digital displays and water and automatic ice dispensers.
Get a great deal on a fridge freezer: see our Best cheap fridge freezers for 2022.
All refrigeration appliances need insulation to keep cool. This insulation is flammable, so it's essential that it's sufficiently protected in the event of a fire. In July 2019, new British safety standards were introduced which state that the fridge backing that covers refrigeration insulation can only be made from either metal or aluminium laminate.
Before these standards were introduced, plastic could also be used to make fridge backing. Our tests revealed that plastic backing is highly flammable which is why we didn't recommend any appliances with plastic backing. All fridge freezers with this type of backing were made Don't Buys, regardless of how else they performed in our chilling and freezing tests.
While newer models will all have metal backing, it is possible that some refrigeration appliances with plastic backing could still be on the market.
Find out more in our guide to Fridge freezer safety.