Whats more energy-efficient, a refrigerator with a top-mounted freezer, bottom-mounted freezer, or a side-by-side?
In general, refrigerators with top-mounted freezers use less energy than refrigerators with either side-mounted or bottom-mounted freezers. However, there is a large degree of variation depending on the size of a given refrigerator/freezer, its defrost type and whether the model has through-the-door ice. The Department of Energy (DOE) calculates efficiency percentages (% Less Energy) for refrigerators by comparing a specific ENERGY STAR qualified model to the federal standards for the maximum energy consumption established by the National Appliance Energy Conservation Acts (NAECA). As an example, if we look at top, side- and bottom-mounted freezers (without through-the-door ice) with an average adjusted volume (AV) of 20, top-mounted freezers use the least energy, with bottom-mounted second, and side-mounted the most. ENERGY STAR qualified refrigerators must use 20 percent less energy than the NAECA maximum. You can compare the annual energy usage of each type of ENERGY STAR qualified
