The Best French-door Refrigerators Under $2,000 of 2022

How We Tested French-door Refrigerators Under $2,000

The Testers

Hi there! We're Reviewed's appliance testing team. Between the us, we've spent years testing major appliances including washers, dryers, refrigerators, dishwashers, vacuum cleaners, and robot vacuum cleaners.

We have plenty of experience testing these products in the lab, but we've also used them as normal people would in the course of our daily lives, which means that we have a great sense of what appliances are bargains at their price points, and which appliances have truly useful extra features.

The Tests

We test each fridge from two perspectives—first, from a data-driven, objective point of view, and second, as a regular person trying to get at the leftover Chinese food. The combination of these two types of experiences allows us to recommend the best fridge for you at any price point.

Refrigerators pull in air and cool it down to temperatures cold enough (usually around 37°F) to preserve food and limit bacterial growth. This cooling method means that fridges are very sensitive to air conditions. In hot weather, the condenser and cooling coils have to work harder to cool the warmer air. In cold weather, it may get so cold that the fridge condenser doesn’t turn on. This is why, if you happen to have a second fridge in your sweltering hot or freezing cold garage, you may have noticed that the air inside that fridge is not as cold as the air inside your kitchen fridge.

To avoid these temperature effects, we test each refrigerator in a lab that conditions the air temperature to 72°F +/- 5°F (basically, room temperature), and relative humidity to 50% RH +/- 15% RH. This way, each fridge can perform at its best, and doesn’t get penalized by dealing with warmer or colder air than its competitors.

We spend a week putting each refrigerator through its paces. After packing the fridge with water filled containers (fridges operate better when there’s less empty space), we measure the fridge’s temperature, humidity loss, freezing time, usable space, and energy use.

• Temperature — Our ideal temperature settings for the fridge and the freezer are 37°F and 0°F, respectively. With fridge temperatures higher than 37°F, you may have to start worrying about bacteria growth, as 40°F is the start of the bacteria “danger zone.” Food isn’t properly frozen at freezer temperatures above 0°F. Once we set each fridge to those temperatures, we collect temperature data throughout the week’s testing that tells us not only how close the temperature in the fridge and freezer are to 37°F and 0°F, respectively, but how close the air temperature stayed to those ideal values.
• Humidity Loss — For this test, we focus on the refrigerator’s veggie crisper. We add water to a floral foam ball, and measure how quickly it dries. Humidity matters because if the crisper is too dry, your leafy greens will quickly dry out. If the crisper is too humid, your fruits will rot. Fridges that strike a balance between the extremes will preserve your fruits and veggies for longer.
• Freezing Time — Once the fridge is plugged in, we measure the time it takes for the freezer to cool down from room temperature to 32°F (the freezing temperature of water). This is a good measure of how quickly your fridge and freezer can cool down food or beverages that have just been placed inside the refrigerator.
• Usable Space — One of the most common refrigerator specs is the total capacity, or the volume inside the fridge, in cubic feet. You’d think that a higher capacity means more storage, but that’s not always the case as shelves, drawers, and ice makers can eat into that capacity. We measure the usable space, which is how much empty space is actually available in the fridge’s interior to store your food and drinks.
• Energy Use — Using an electric meter, we measure the fridge’s energy usage (in Watt-hours) over the week of testing. The less energy used, the more efficient that fridge is, and the more money it’ll save you on utility bills in the future.

We also use each fridge in a more casual sense so that we can answer usability questions about the fridge’s specs and features, like the doors, shelves, controls, water/ice dispenser, and extras like smart connectivity, door-in-door or flexible storage options, etc. If a refrigerator keeps the temperature at a perfect 37°F, but it’s very difficult to open the doors and the control panel makes no sense, we’re going to penalize that fridge with respect to its ease of use.

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What You Should Know Before Buying A French-door Refrigerator Under $2,000

What Is a French-door Refrigerator?

Traditionally, French doors are a set of double doors you'd have in your home, traditionally made out of glass, which allow a lot of natural light to shine through. In the context of fridges, however, a French door just means a pair of doors seal its refrigerator compartment.

This isn't to be confused with side-by-side fridges, which also have two doors, but in that instance the left door opens to a freezer and the right door opens to a fridge. French-door fridges, by contrast, have two doors over their main cabinet and typically have a drawer underneath for the freezer.

How Do You Organize a French-door Refrigerator?

While there's nothing special about organizing a French-door fridge compared to a normal fridge, it can still be a daunting task. We have a more in-depth guide that breaks down the process of cleaning and organizing your fridge, but we'll sum it up here.

The first step is to empty everything out and give the fridge a once-over with a soapy sponge. It's good to start with a blank canvas, and fridges get gross over time, even under the cleanliest circumstances.

Next it's a good idea to stock the door bins. Food here should be less perishable, as repeatedly opening the door throughout the day means items in door bins tend to run a bit warmer than other foods. Keep the perishable stuff towards the back of the fridge, where temperatures are most consistent.

It’s also important to keep your fruits and vegetables in separate crispers. Many fruits give off ethylene gas, which can exacerbate the ripening process for other fruits and vegetables. Keeping them separate will ensure the maximum shelf life for your leafy greens.

Finally, don't overstock. Your fridge needs to circulate cold air to keep everything at an appropriate temperature, and obstructing that air flow can create warm spots in the fridge where food can spoil much faster. Furthermore, cluttered fridges can often conceal food until long after its expiration date: Keeping things clean and organized will cut down on food waste.

What Temperature Should my French-door Refrigerator Be?

You should aim to keep your fridge at exactly 37°F and your freezer at 0°F.

Food needs to be kept within a very narrow band of temperatures to maximize its shelf life. If temperatures were just 5°F colder, at 32°F, some food in your refrigerator would start to freeze. Warming up by just 3°F gets you to 40°F, the temperature at which bacteria and fungi can proliferate more quickly.

It's the same story in your freezer. If temperatures are warmer than 0°F, it means your food isn't being truly frozen. Furthermore, if temperatures in your freezer aren't kept consistent, it can lead to your food periodically dethawing and refreezing, which greatly exacerbates the process of freezer burn.

How Long Do Refrigerators Last?

You should expect your fridge to last for about 10 years. Of course, several factors can limit the lifespan of your device, such as proper maintenance and keeping them in areas with relatively stable temperatures.

Most manufacturers' warranties cover one year of parts and service. Some companies will offer more robust programs that will cover specific parts up to five years, 10 years, or even for the lifetime of the product.

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