Whirlpool WRTX5421T Running Cost (Refrigerator)
Whirlpool WRTX5421T: running cost
The Whirlpool WRTX5421T is certified by ENERGY STAR at 398 kWh a year, about average for its category to run among refrigerators currently certified.
That $75 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.
How the Whirlpool WRTX5421T compares to other refrigerators
The category average is 386 kWh/yr; this model runs 3.1% above it, ranking 2,923 of 4,704 refrigerators tracked here for running cost. 4,704 certified refrigerators, one average, about $2/year of daylight between it and this model; the full methodology has the rest.
Neighbouring models
Right next to the Whirlpool WRTX5421T on that list: GE GPE12FSZ ($75/yr, 398 kWh/yr) runs slightly less, while Whirlpool WRTX7421T ($75/yr, 398 kWh/yr) runs slightly more.
Same brand, different models
Ranked 50 of Whirlpool's 156 certified refrigerators, this sits between the AMA27S1E ($40/yr, the brand's cheapest) and the WRF995FIF ($142/yr, 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 Whirlpool WRTX5421T that long and it costs about $973 in electricity, on top of whatever it cost to buy.
Weighing a replacement
Efficient as certified refrigerators go, $75/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
The Whirlpool WRTX5421T already costs $75/year to run; a repair bill on top of that is the kind of expense a protection plan exists to smooth out.
How this was checked
Two sourced numbers, nothing modeled: ENERGY STAR's certified kWh/yr for this exact model, and EIA's published state electricity rate. Ranked 2,923 of 4,704, the Whirlpool WRTX5421T 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.