Energy Consumption of Refrigerators

Photo of a refrigerator

Key facts

  • Increasing consumer preference for larger models – In 2000, only 2.5% of shipped refrigerators were 24.5 cu. ft. or larger, whereas in 2020, 17.2% of them were in that volume category.
  • Continuing reduction in unit energy consumption (UEC) – Although refrigerator volumes increased between 2000 and 2020, the average UEC of refrigerators dropped by 25%. Footnote 1
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Average annual unit energy consumption (UEC)

Refrigerators are available in a range of sizes and with a variety of features, all of which affect energy consumption. EnerGuide groups refrigerators by both refrigerator type and size. Footnote 2 These groups allow the comparison of energy consumption among similar models.

Factors contributing to the decrease in average annual UEC include:

  • Energy efficiency improvements, coinciding with the introduction of, and subsequent amendments to, the minimum energy performance standards (MEPS) in the Energy Efficiency Regulations.
  • ENERGY STAR’s 2008 and 2014 specification updates, as manufacturers implemented further improvements to qualify.
  • More stringent MEPS and updated test procedures which came into force in 2017, through amendments to the Energy Efficiency Regulations.
fig_01.png - Average annual UEC of refrigerators, 2000-2019 (kWh/yr)
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Average annual Unit Energy Consumption (UEC) of refrigerators, 2000–2020 (kWh/yr)

Shipment year UEC (kWh/yr)
2000 638.8
2001 Footnote 1 558.9
2002 506.0
2003 487.1
2004 477.7
2005 Footnote 2 469.2
2006 481.0
2007 483.1
2008 Footnote 2 Footnote 3 467.3
2009 430.1
2010 424.9
2011 421.4
2012 416.4
2013 421.3
2014 Footnote 2 Footnote 3 411.1
2015 387.9
2016 395.7
2017 Footnote 4 478.3
2018 466.8
2019 471.2
2020 481.9

Refrigerator types

The market share of different refrigerator types has implications for energy consumption.

Amendment 13 to the Energy Efficiency Regulations changed the test procedure for refrigerators, which makes 2017 and after UEC numbers difficult to compare with UEC numbers of 2016 and earlier. Regardless, there is a general trend of decreased energy consumption of all refrigerator types up to 2016. If we extend the review period to 2020, we see that all but one type (Type 5 with bottom-mounted freezer) of refrigerator has declining energy consumption.

fig_02.png - Average annual UEC of refrigerators by type, 2000-2020
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Average annual UEC of refrigerators by type, 2000–2020 (kWh/yr)

Shipment year Type 3 (with top-mounted freezer) Type 5 (with bottom-mounted freezer) Type 5A (with bottom-mounted freezer and through-the-door ice service) Footnote 1 Type 11 (compact) Type 13 (compact)
2000 629.3 660.9 323.4 430.0
2001 544.1 610.2 330.6 430.0
2002 485.6 547.0 331.1 405.0
2003 460.8 522.4 323.1 326.7
2004 458.4 496.0 321.3 356.7
2005 453.8 493.2 327.8 406.6
2006 455.4 497.9 580.1 328.6 431.1
2007 453.5 490.8 572.7 328.3 400.2
2008 437.7 482.6 545.4 338.1 340.3
2009 424.4 462.9 560.0 318.1 325.5
2010 417.0 456.3 564.3 322.2 323.4
2011 417.1 454.6 542.0 297.5 336.6
2012 418.0 450.9 534.7 335.6 337.8
2013 415.0 448.0 534.6 278.1 326.7
2014 389.6 441.2 529.8 269.1 306.8
2015 336.3 434.6 528.8 234.6 260.0
2016 337.8 432.9 526.1 229.2 261.8
2017 Footnote 2 373.0 538.5 708.5 223.3 264.2
2018 371.8 544.9 704.9 226.1 258.1
2019 366.7 555.0 698.6 226.5 258.3
2020 365.3 569.0 696.7 223.2 267.6

Refrigerator capacity

The capacity of refrigerators shipped in Canada increased significantly from 2000 to 2020.

In 2000, 31% of standard refrigerators Footnote 3 had a volume of 18.5 cu. ft. or larger and only 3% of them were 24.5 cu. ft. or larger. By 2020, 57% of standard refrigerators had a volume of 18.5 cu. ft. or larger, and 20% of them were 24.5 cu. ft. or larger. Very large refrigerators (those above 26.5 cu. ft.) first started appearing on the market in 2010 and their market share grew to 8% in 2020.

fig_03.png - Distribution of standard-size refrigerators by volume, 2000-2020 (%)
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Distribution of standard-size refrigerators by volume, 2000–#nDataYear# (%)

Shipment year Volume (cu. ft.)
10.5–12.4 12.5–14.4 14.5–16.4 16.5–18.4 18.5–20.4 20.5–22.4 22.5–24.4 24.5–26.4 26.5–28.4 ≥28.5
2000 7.0 8.2 9.7 44.1 9.9 16.4 2.0 2.2 0.5 0.1
2001 6.1 7.3 9.5 39.6 12.4 18.0 3.3 3.0 0.7 0.1
2002 5.9 7.9 7.2 36.9 16.3 17.4 3.7 3.8 0.8 0.2
2003 4.1 6.4 9.0 38.8 16.5 17.7 3.2 3.6 0.7 0.1
2004 3.2 3.5 11.6 41.6 15.2 16.9 3.1 4.6 0.2 0.1
2005 2.7 2.5 10.4 44.8 16.3 14.8 3.1 5.4 0.0 0.1
2006 3.7 2.6 10.0 41.3 17.8 14.7 3.6 6.3 0.0 0.1
2007 3.3 2.3 8.9 40.5 17.6 14.9 4.0 8.4 0.0 0.1
2008 4.0 2.3 6.5 40.1 22.4 12.6 4.8 7.0 0.0 0.1
2009 5.4 1.7 7.1 40.8 22.6 10.5 5.0 6.4 0.2 0.4
2010 5.2 1.5 6.3 39.7 23.0 11.3 5.1 5.9 1.1 0.9
2011 3.9 1.0 5.4 42.5 21.0 12.0 4.4 6.2 3.3 0.4
2012 5.3 0.9 5.3 38.2 20.7 12.9 4.6 7.5 3.9 0.8
2013 6.0 0.8 5.2 34.9 20.5 14.6 4.9 7.4 4.1 1.6
2014 5.8 0.8 8.2 31.3 16.4 17.6 6.2 7.2 3.0 3.5
2015 7.3 1.3 11.5 26.1 15.4 17.2 7.8 7.1 2.9 3.4
2016 7.0 1.3 9.4 25.6 13.8 19.4 8.5 8.3 3.6 3.1
2017 6.7 1.4 6.9 22.2 15.3 22.5 8.3 10.3 3.4 3.0
2018 8.2 1.4 8.5 27.6 12.9 19.2 6.7 9.0 4.1 2.3
2019 7.7 2.5 6.9 28.3 12.6 19.7 6.3 10.5 4.7 1.3
2020 8.2 4.3 3.9 26.3 13.1 20.9 3.7 11.5 7.2 0.9
Note: Data for compact refrigerators (those with a volume of less than 10.5 cu. ft.) data are not included in this analysis, because of the supplementary compact refrigerator data received since 2009 and its impact on data for previous years.

The larger the refrigerator capacity, the more energy it consumes.

fig_04.png - Average annual UEC of standard-size refrigerators by volume, 2020 (kWh/yr)
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Average annual UEC of standard-size refrigerators by volume, #nDataYear# (kWh/yr)

Shipment year Volume (cu. ft.)
10.5–12.4 12.5–14.4 14.5–16.4 16.5–18.4 18.5–20.4 20.5–22.4 22.5–24.4 24.5–26.4 26.5–28.4 ≥28.5
#nDataYear# 336 338 405 402 510 580 672 641 712 757

Annual energy consumption per volume

Although the average annual UEC of refrigerators shipped between 2000 and 2020 decreased, the energy consumption per unit volume decreased even more because of the higher efficiency gains of larger refrigerators. Footnote 4 In 2020, 78.7% of shipped refrigerators consumed less than 30 kWh/cu. ft. per year. Footnote 5

fig_05.png - Distribution of standard-size refrigerators by average annual UEC per cubic foot, 2000-2020 (%)
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Distribution of standard-size refrigerators by average annual UEC per cubic foot, 2000–2020 (%)

Shipment year Average Annual Unit Energy Consumption (UEC) (kWh/cu. ft. per year)
10–19.9 20–29.9 30–39.9 40–49.9 50–59.9 60–69.9
2000 0.0 12.9 60.6 24.9 1.0 0.5
2001 0.0 47.5 36.8 13.5 1.4 0.9
2002 0.0 68.2 28.2 3.3 0.2 0.0
2003 0.1 81.6 16.2 1.7 0.2 0.2
2004 0.4 86.3 11.5 1.3 0.2 0.2
2005 0.6 91.5 6.9 0.2 0.2 0.6
2006 0.4 89.6 8.7 0.9 0.3 0.2
2007 0.4 90.7 7.9 0.6 0.4 0.1
2008 3.1 85.7 8.2 2.6 0.3 0.1
2009 4.2 86.8 6.2 2.2 0.5 0.1
2010 9.2 82.1 6.5 1.7 0.4 0.1
2011 10.6 80.5 5.3 1.0 0.4 2.1
2012 9.5 78.4 6.1 1.7 0.5 3.9
2013 10.8 76.9 7.4 1.7 0.5 2.7
2014 23.8 65.6 5.4 1.2 0.6 3.4
2015 41.9 49.8 2.2 0.8 1.7 3.6
2016 43.3 49.5 2.1 0.7 1.2 3.2
2017 Footnote 1 3.4 71.3 9.2 2.3 1.5 12.3
2018 4.8 75.0 11.3 2.7 2.2 3.8
2019 4.5 73.9 13.9 2.5 2.0 3.2
2020 3.6 75.1 14.4 2.0 1.4 3.6