What the ABL AREF18** costs to run
ENERGY STAR certifies the ABL AREF18** at 360 kWh/yr, about average for its category to run for its category.
The $68 figure above uses the simple average of all 51 published state rates. Pick your state for the real number.
ABL AREF18** against the category
That's 6.7% below the refrigerator category average of 386 kWh/yr, and ranks 2,481 of 4,704 certified refrigerators for annual running cost, 1 being cheapest. The category average comes from every refrigerator ENERGY STAR currently certifies (4,704 models), not an outside benchmark, about $5/year below that average at the national rate. See the methodology page.
What sits beside it in the ranking
ABL AREF18B ($68/yr, 360 kWh/yr) costs a little more to run than the ABL AREF18**. Summit LRF714SS ($67/yr, 359 kWh/yr) costs a little less.
Same brand, different models
ABL sells 4 certified refrigerators; this one runs cheapest of them, about the same, within a dollar a year, under the AREF18W, its priciest.
Cost over its typical lifespan
NAHB's Study of Life Expectancy of Home Components puts a typical refrigerator's service life at 13 years; run the ABL AREF18** that long and it costs about $880 in electricity, on top of whatever it cost to buy.
Is it worth replacing?
The ABL AREF18** is already efficient for its category at $68/year. If you're shopping and comparing options, this is roughly what a well-chosen new refrigerator costs to run.
See what else is certified in this category before you decide.
Protecting what you have
A refrigerator like the ABL AREF18** is a real household expense whether or not it needs replacing yet; a protection plan is one way to budget for a repair rather than a full replacement.
Sourcing
Nothing here is estimated from a nameplate wattage; the 360 kWh/yr is ENERGY STAR's own certified figure for this model. The full Refrigerator category page shows all 4,704 refrigerators ranked by cost; the state-rate guide covers the half of this number that isn't the appliance.