How Many Watts Does a Refrigerator Use? Running, Starting and per Day

Short answer: a typical full-size refrigerator uses about 1.2 kWh a day (454 kWh a year), the median of 2,503 full-size, freestanding models certified by ENERGY STAR. Spread over 24 hours, that’s an average of about 50 W. A fridge doesn’t draw that steadily, though: its compressor switches on and off, drawing more while it runs, and a burst more for a moment each time it starts. For sizing a battery or a power station, the number that counts is the one on your fridge’s rating plate.

How much electricity a fridge uses per day, by type

ENERGY STAR lists each certified model’s annual energy use. Here is the median by type, with what it would cost at the US average residential price of 18.2¢ per kWh from January to August 2026 (EIA):

Type	Models	Per year	Per day	Average draw	Cost a year at 18.2¢
Top freezer	839	363 kWh	1.0 kWh	41 W	$66
Bottom freezer	1,403	563 kWh	1.5 kWh	64 W	$102
Side-by-side	93	615 kWh	1.7 kWh	70 W	$112
Single door or no freezer	168	270 kWh	0.7 kWh	31 W	$49
Compact (mini) fridge	1,769	246 kWh	0.7 kWh	28 W	$45
All full-size (no wine coolers)	2,503	454 kWh	1.2 kWh	52 W	$83

A top-freezer fridge uses the least of the common full-size types, and a side-by-side the most. Models with an ice maker use more on average (1.6 kWh a day against 1.0 kWh for those without), though they also tend to be bigger models. Size matters as much as type:

Total capacity	Models	Per year	Per day	Average draw
Under 15 ft³	542	315 kWh	0.9 kWh	36 W
15 to 20 ft³	915	440 kWh	1.2 kWh	50 W
20 to 25 ft³	660	570 kWh	1.6 kWh	65 W
25 ft³ or more	386	702 kWh	1.9 kWh	80 W

These are certified models, which ENERGY STAR says are about 9% more efficient than the federal minimum. An older fridge uses about 20% more energy than an ENERGY STAR model on average, according to ENERGY STAR. To see your own model’s figure, search for it in the ENERGY STAR data.

Running watts: why the average isn’t the whole story

A fridge is on all the time, but its compressor isn’t. A conventional fridge has a single-speed compressor that runs at full speed until the inside is cold enough, then turns off, as a Sandia National Laboratories report explains. Virginia Cooperative Extension’s guide to appliance energy use estimates that a fridge runs at its full wattage for about a third of the time it’s plugged in.

So while the compressor runs, a fridge draws more than its 24-hour average. If the median fridge ran a third of the time, its draw while running would be roughly three times its average: about 150 W. That’s our estimate from the rule of thumb, not a measured figure. The Sandia report also notes that the defrost cycle and an incandescent bulb inside raise the draw.

Fridges with a variable-speed (“inverter”) compressor work differently: the compressor slows down and speeds up instead of switching off, so it stays on and doesn’t need a surge to restart the motor each time, according to the same report.

Starting watts: the surge when the compressor kicks in

Electric motors draw much more power for a moment when they start. The USDA Forest Service’s guide to small generators uses a rule of thumb of three times the rated wattage. For conventional fridges, the Sandia report says starting current is typically three times the running current, while its own measurements showed start-up power up to 35% above the steady draw. The extension guide gives the same “about three times” for a motor starting.

That’s why a power station or inverter lists two numbers: what it can supply continuously and the higher surge it can supply for a moment. For a conventional fridge, check that the surge rating covers about three times the fridge’s running watts, along with anything else running at the same time.

How to find your fridge’s watts

1. Read the rating plate. Most appliances have their wattage, or their volts and amps, stamped on the back or the bottom or on a nameplate. If it gives amps, multiply by 120 V, the voltage most US appliances use, to get watts (the extension guide’s method). Size a battery or power station with that figure.
2. Check the yearly figure. Your model’s annual kWh in the ENERGY STAR data, divided by 365, gives energy per day; divided by 8,760, the average draw.
3. Measure it. The extension guide suggests a clamp-on ammeter while the motor runs, noting that it will read about three times more as the motor starts. Use one only if you know how to do it safely.

Running a fridge on a battery or plug-in solar

• Power station or battery: a typical full-size fridge needs about 1.2 kWh for a day, and the station’s surge rating has to handle the compressor starting. Our power station sizer adds it up with the rest of what you want to run, and our guide to what size portable power station you need walks through the math.
• Plug-in solar: a fridge runs day and night, so it uses part of what a plug-in system makes at midday, which is where the savings come from. Our math in how much plug-in solar really saves shows how that share changes the result, and the average electric bill by state puts a fridge’s 454 kWh a year next to a whole household’s use.

This applies in apartments and houses alike. To keep a fridge’s use down, ENERGY STAR suggests setting it to 35 to 38°F, keeping it away from the oven, the dishwasher and direct sun, leaving a few inches behind it for air, keeping the coils clean on older models and checking that the door seals are tight.

How we got these numbers

The figures are the medians of the annual energy use ENERGY STAR lists for every certified residential refrigerator, downloaded from its open data on October 25, 2026: full-size, freestanding models (2,503, wine coolers left out) and compact freestanding refrigerators (1,769). Built-in models aren’t included. Per day is annual energy ÷ 365; average draw is annual energy ÷ 8,760 hours; the cost uses the EIA’s US residential average through August 2026. Your fridge’s real use depends on the room’s temperature, how often it’s opened and how full it is, so treat these as typical values, not a measurement of yours.