For a family of upto two people, a 200-250L fridge is sufficient and typically a single door will be ideal. The main con though is that these are not auto defrost or frost free - which means you will have to manually defrost it periodically (atleast once in 3-6 months, depending on the ice formation). These are considerably lower cost than a double door refrigerator - so ideal if you are short on budget. As always, towards the end, I’ll cover the top recommendations for single door refrigerators.
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I reviewed over 50 refrigerators in the single door category across the brands Lloyd, Haier, LG, Samsung, Whirlpool, Voltas, Godrej, MarQ by Flipkart.
BUY BEST SINGLE DOOR REFRIGERATORS
PRICING, WARRANTY AND REVIEWS OF SINGLE DOOR REFRIGERATORS
All models reviewed are under the 250L size - ranging from 180L to 250L. For a size above that, I would recommend you go for a double door refrigerator. The prices for these vary from 13K to 19K. Almost all single door refrigerators give a warranty of 1 year with a 10 year warranty on the compressor. Only MarQ by Flipkart gives a warranty of 1 year with a 5 year warranty on the compressor. The prices of these are lower as well.
SIZE AND UTILIZATION OF SINGLE DOOR REFRIGERATORS
Let’s talk about some important factors - some spacing in the refrigerator is wasted by the shelving and doors and so on. So the net capacity - which is the actual usable capacity - will be lower. I’m looking at the utilization rate rather than absolute values, higher the better. So Samsung and Haier models in general have a higher utilization rate of above 95%. Whirlpool models have the lowest utilization rates of around 91%.
FRIDGE TO FREEZER RATIO OF SINGLE DOOR REFRIGERATORS
Next is to compare the fridge to freezer ratio. In single door refrigerators, the freezer is anyway within the fridge and is quite small compared to that of a double door fridge. But even in this case, if you are someone who needs more fridge space, then you have to pick a model that has a higher fridge:freezer ratio. In this case - whirlpool fridges have the highest fridge to freezer ratios (only 8-10% is freezer) amongst the models compared and Godrej refrigerators in general have the least (almost 17-18% is freezer).
POWER CONSUMPTION OF SINGLE DOOR REFRIGERATORS
Let’s talk about power. In general - an inverter refrigerator consumes less power compared to a reciprocatory compressor. A reciprocatory compressor will turn on and off periodically to maintain the temperature within the fridge. Second thing that matters is the star rating, higher star rating implies it consumes lesser power. All refrigerators showcase the annual power consumed under test conditions these days. To normalize the comparison, I’m using a metric called power consumed per gross capacity in Liter to help understand which refrigerator has the max power consumption and which ones have the least - because comparing absolute numbers may not make sense as the capacities are different. So as you can see on the screen, most of the 2 star and 3 star refrigerators consume the most amount of power - as expected. The 4 and 5 star rated refrigerators consume the least power - with Haier HED-20FDS and LG GL-B221ASCZ consuming the last power.
CLEAN BACK OF SINGLE DOOR REFRIGERATORS
Clean back is another key feature - some models still show the insides of the fridge - which can be a breeding ground for dust. Many models now come with a clean back feature - which is extremely useful - esp. From a cleaning and safety point of view. Most of my recommendations have a clean back.
BASE STAND WITH DRAWER IN SINGLE DOOR REFRIGERATORS
An interesting aspect that is introduced in some fridges is a base stand with a drawer where you can store items that don’t need refrigeration - like onions, potatoes and so on. While good to have, I don’t think this is a necessity - it’s an expensive basket! The models that do have it are shown on the screen.
SOLAR AND INVERTER COMPATIBILITY OF SINGLE DOOR REFRIGERATORS
Almost all models compared are inverter and solar compatible - except for Godrej models. Almost all models claim stabilizer free operations - however if you stay in an area with very high voltage fluctuations, stabilizer is recommended.
Almost all models have a manual temperature control knob, except for a few Samsung models that come with a digital display.
Most refrigerators under 15000 will be a 2 star refrigerator with a higher monthly energy consumption. Hence most of my recommendations are for 3 star and above in the price range 15-17K. With all these parameters compared and identifying the best refrigerators in each performance criteria, my top recommendations for the best single door refrigerators are:
In the slightly larger size in single door refrigerators, the Samsung Single door refrigerator is a great option. At a price of 17K for a 230L fridge with one of the best utilization of 96%, this 3 star fridge with inverter motor and a clean back is ideal. The main con is being a 3 star fridge, it’s energy consumption is slightly higher than a 4 star and 5 star refrigerator. It also does not have a base drawer, which is not essential in my opinion.
My recommendation for a medium sized single door refrigerator is the Haier Single door fridge - which has a capacity of 190L. It’s a 5 star refrigerator with an inverter motor and one of the least energy consumption per liter amongst all the refrigerators compared. At a price of 17.5K, this fridge comes with a clean back and an additional fruit box. But remember, this additional fruit box takes away space from the main shelving. Similar to the Samsung model recommended, this does not have a base drawer.
One of the only models with an auto defrost is the Whirlpool VITAMAGIC PRO - It is the only model from 2020 in my comparison, but the only model that offers auto defrost option. At a price of 16.5K and with a digital display, this model (and infact all Whirlpool models) offer one of the best fridge to freezer ratio. The con is that this is a 3 star refrigerator with a slightly higher power consumption compared to a 4 or 5 star refrigerator.
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