Best Side by Side Refrigerators 2020

The GE GSS23GSKSS is a really great side-by-side refrigerator option if you already have a separate, stand-alone freezer, or if you simply don’t think you’ll need all that much freezer space. That’s because, despite its excellent design and great features, the freezer side of this refrigerator accounts for a minuscule amount of the average 23.2 cubic feet of storage space. We also found that the layout of the freezer compartment left much to be desired. That is, it incorporates a tiny top shelf and then march larger shelves below. The strangest part, though, was the huge bottom bin underneath the shelves. It seems it would be very difficult to keep such a large bin like this organized for very long.

That said, beyond the issues with the freezer, there are a lot of great aspects to this side-by-side. For instance, the refrigerator compartment side boasts an impressive 16.2 cubic feet of storage space. While this isn’t the largest by any means, if you are looking for a more compact option that still offers a good deal of space, it is still a great option. This space includes three drawers, four shelves, and four door bins. The layout is very user-friendly and is highly customizable, a factor we weigh heavily in our evaluations.

The shelves are spill-proof, which is a feature that we especially love, because it prevents small messes from becoming huge, fridge-wide messes. It also includes humidity-controlled crisper drawers, a dairy compartment, and a deli/snack drawer. Even better, though, the shelves slide out completely, allowing you to get to all of the more hard to reach items tucked in the back of your fridge. All this is to say, if you are an organization-freak, you’ll have plenty of options at your disposal for keeping your fridge nice and tidy.

The GE also includes the standard ice and water dispenser on the freezer compartment side, which also has what seems to be an industry standard now: a child lockout feature. It also includes a door alarm to alert you when the doors have been left open longer than an established span of time.

The door alarm feature further adds to this already energy efficient model. While the GE doesn’t quite meet Energy Star standards, it’s still a very energy efficient refrigerator. You can expect to pay roughly $81 per year to continuously run this fridge, only slightly more than other fully Energy Star compliant models. If you really want the most environmentally-friendly and energy-efficient refrigerator, you’ll want to look elsewhere. However, we think this is still a reasonably efficient and economical option, even compared to Energy Star models.

Of course, you’ll also be receiving fairly standard industry manufacturer warranties. This includes a one-year warranty for parts and labor and a five-year extended warranty on the sealed system (that’s what keeps your fridge cold). As we’ve noted before, this is a standard warranty structure, and there are few side-by-side refrigerator warranties that are much more generous than this.

The Samsung RS25J500DSR/AA is one of the best side-by-side values available. It features 24.5 cubic feet of overall storage space and a few extra features all at a very affordable asking price.

One of the things we especially liked about the Samsung side-by-side is that it comes in three different colors: stainless steel, white, and black. Few other side-by-sides offer so many color options, so if you want something that will match non-stainless steel color schemes, you’ll want to check this one out.

An excellent feature of this model is also that the shelves are fully adjustable, and some of them even slide out for easy access. The adjustability of the shelves is definitely a huge plus, as this will allow you to organize and access even the farthest reaches of this deep refrigerator compartment. It also includes four door bins that are large enough to handle gallon-sized jugs and two-liter bottles easily.

The freezer section is also well-designed and can store a good deal of your groceries with ease. The freezer contains four shelves and three fully adjustable bins, so you’ll have a lot of options when organizing your new fridge. Beyond those, there are also additional freezer drawers underneath the shelves that offer even more storage space for your groceries.

Another great aspect of the Samsung side-by-side is that it is fully Energy Star compliant. Estimates are that you will spend only $83 per year to continuously run this refrigerator. While that’s slightly more for your annual energy costs than some other Energy Star rated side-by-sides, it’s still likely to save you a lot on your energy bill than standard fridges. It also includes energy saving features like the door alarm. You can set the alarm so it will sound to alert you whenever the doors are left ajar for longer than a designated span of time. This will surely help cut down on energy waste and, thus, your energy bill.

The Samsung side-by-side also features a water and ice dispenser on the freezer-side door. One nice thing about this dispenser is that it incorporates an optional child lockout feature that will prevent unwanted hands from making huge, wet messes in your kitchen when you’re not there to supervise.

But perhaps the single best feature of the Samsung side-by-side is its quick cool and quick freeze settings. These settings will automatically drop your freezer or refrigerator temperatures quite low. This is great if there is a brief power outage and you need to get your fridge back to safe storage temperatures. It’s also very convenient if you need to save a carton of melted ice cream or simply want to get your beverages cool in a hurry.

If there’s one thing we didn’t like about the Samsung side-by-side, it’s that it doesn’t feature any kind of dedicated deli drawer. Of course, this isn’t too big of a concern, as you can easily utilize one or more of the crisper drawers for this purpose.

The KitchenAid KRSF505ESS may not have as many exciting luxury and convenience features as some of the other models we’ve considered, but those that it does have make this a great side-by-side option. More importantly, though, is that this KitchenAid side-by-side is one of the most energy efficient options on the market. Of course, to get this high level of energy efficiency, you’ll have to pay quite a bit more, as this model is listed at one of the highest asking prices of any comparable model.

Like the Samsung side-by-side, this KitchenAid refrigerator comes in three colors: white, stainless steel, and black. As we mentioned with the Samsung review, this kind of color variety for refrigerators is somewhat rare. So, if you’re looking for something that will match your current kitchen décor or color scheme, you’ll want to take a look at this one.

The KitchenAid refrigerator is pretty average when it comes to storage capacity and size. It offers 24.8 cubic feet of total storage space. While this isn’t that impressive compared to other models, we found the layout of the storage spaces for both the refrigerator and the freezer compartments to be intuitive and user-friendly. The storage space on the refrigerator side includes five door bins. Two of those bins are large enough to fit gallon jugs and two-liter bottles. But the unique thing about the interior of this side-by-side is the included wire bottle racks under the refrigerator shelves. This will allow you to store wine horizontally or other bottles you want to keep out of the way (or that are just too tall for the other storage areas of the fridge.

The KitchenAid side-by-side also features three drawers, and two of those drawers serve as humidity-controlled crisper drawers. While fairly common, not all side-by-sides include crisper drawers to keep your fruits and vegetables fresher longer, so this is definitely a plus for the KitchenAid.

Another feature that is included with the KitchenAid fridge that the Samsung lacks is a dedicated deli drawer. You can use this drawer to keep meats and cheeses that you don’t want to cross-contaminate with other food odors in your fridge.

Like most other side-by-sides, the KitchenAid fridge also features a water and ice dispenser with an optional child lockout feature. Just like the Samsung, this lockout feature will keep curious hands from making unexpected messes when you’re not around.

When it comes to warranties, the KitchenAid includes the standard fare. In this case, you’ll be getting a one-year warranty on parts and labor, and a five-year warranty on the sealed system. It’s not the most generous warranty package out there, as there are a few packages available for other models that include a longer sealed system warranty than the KitchenAid does.