Midea MERM33S1AST: running cost
At 260 kWh/yr, the Midea MERM33S1AST's ENERGY STAR certification puts it one of the cheaper models in its category to run against every other certified refrigerator.
That $49 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 refrigerator
Against the category average of 386 kWh/yr, this model uses 32.6% less, ranking 1,311 of 4,704 refrigerators tracked here for running cost. That average is drawn from all 4,704 refrigerators ENERGY STAR currently certifies, not an outside number, a $24/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 Midea MERM33S1AST: Midea MERM33S1ASL ($49/yr, 260 kWh/yr), then Midea MRM33S5*** ($49/yr, 260 kWh/yr).
Same brand, different models
Ranked 56 of Midea's 162 certified refrigerators, this sits between the MRW14B2ABB ($23/yr, the brand's cheapest) and the MRF29D9B** ($147/yr, its priciest).
What this adds up to over time
Over the 13-year service life NAHB reports for this category, running the Midea MERM33S1AST costs roughly $635 in electricity, separate from the purchase price.
Is it worth replacing?
Efficient as certified refrigerators go, $49/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
$49/year to run is the predictable cost of the Midea MERM33S1AST; a protection plan covers the unpredictable one, a repair bill.
Where this number comes from
Ranked 1,311 of 4,704, the Midea MERM33S1AST sits in the middle of the refrigerator category, see the guide to why your state changes this number for the other half of the math. The 260 kWh/yr figure is ENERGY STAR's own certification, not a wattage estimate; exact dataset IDs are on the data sources page.