Running cost for the Magic Chef MCUF3WE
At 244 kWh/yr, the Magic Chef MCUF3WE's ENERGY STAR certification puts it one of the cheaper models in its category to run against every other certified freezer.
That $46 is priced at 18.8¢/kWh, the average of all 51 state rates this site tracks. Your own state's rate is one click away.
Efficient, or not, for a freezer
Against the category average of 401 kWh/yr, this model uses 39.2% less, ranking 89 of 658 freezers tracked here for running cost. That average is drawn from all 658 freezers ENERGY STAR currently certifies, not an outside number, a $30/year gap from this model at the national rate. Full sourcing is in the sourcing notes.
Right next to it on the list
A rank or two either side of the Magic Chef MCUF3WE: Magic Chef MCUF3STE ($46/yr, 244 kWh/yr), then Vissani MDUF3WHR6 ($46/yr, 244 kWh/yr).
Within the Magic Chef lineup
Ranked 3 of Magic Chef's 4 certified freezers, this sits between the MCUF3BE ($46/yr, the brand's cheapest) and the HMUF6WE ($53/yr, its priciest).
Lifespan
NAHB's Study of Life Expectancy of Home Components does not publish a figure for freezers, so no lifetime cost is shown here rather than a guessed one. The annual and monthly figures above stand on their own.
Shopping for a new one
Efficient as certified freezers go, $46/year is a reasonable baseline if you're comparing what else is on the market.
See what else is certified in this category before you decide.
If you're keeping it
$46/year to run is the predictable cost of the Magic Chef MCUF3WE; a protection plan covers the unpredictable one, a repair bill.
Where this number comes from
Two sourced numbers, nothing modeled: ENERGY STAR's certified kWh/yr for this exact model, and EIA's published state electricity rate. Ranked 89 of 658, the Magic Chef MCUF3WE sits in the middle of the freezer category, see the guide to why your state changes this number for the other half of the math.