Best French-Door Refrigerators of 2023
This group of stellar performers includes great picks for value, capacity, aesthetics, and more
French-door refrigerators have two narrow doors and a freezer below—sometimes with a drawer or more in between.
By Daniel Wroclawski
Updated by Justin Krajeski
Have sleek French-door refrigerators been catching your eye in the appliance aisle? If so, you’re in good company. These stylish models have become the go-to configuration for consumers looking to upgrade. They’re generally bigger, with more cubic feet of usable space, and come loaded with more features than most top-freezer or bottom-freezer refrigerators.
After testing more than 100 French-door models in our labs, we found they perform among the best. If you’re looking for one, you’ll commonly find an icemaker, digital controls, spillproof shelves, gallon-sized bins on the doors, and other nice-to-have features. It’s no surprise that our latest survey of CR members reveals that French-door refrigerators with icemakers account for more than half of new fridges purchased by Consumer Reports members; no other fridge configuration comes close. (Side-by-side refrigerators get the next largest share, at only 15 percent.)
During testing, we outfit each refrigerator with thermocouples in a climate-controlled chamber and monitor it for more than a month, collecting more than 5.4 million temperature readings that identify warm and cold spots to determine which models will keep your food fresh longer. We also factor in survey data from thousands of CR members to judge brand reliability and owner satisfaction.
We use all that data to inform CR’s refrigerator ratings charts and each model’s Overall Score. And to help you find the best refrigerator to slot into your kitchen, we also organize our ratings by refrigerator width.
Below, we review the top French-door refrigerators in three standard widths. In our member surveys, LG dominates the French-door market. It has an even bigger presence on this list, though GE makes an appearance. CR members can read on for ratings and reviews of each model.
For even more options, check out our comprehensive refrigerator ratings of over 250 models. And if you’re not sure where to start your refrigerator shopping journey, see our in-depth refrigerator buying guide.
Best 30-Inch-Wide French-Door Refrigerators
Our refrigerator recommendations are organized by width. We recommend you measure the space where you plan to put your fridge before you begin shopping. At 30 inches wide, this category will take up the least room.
GE GNE21FSKSS
CR’s take: Narrow French-door refrigerators can be difficult to find. So the GE GNE21FSKSS is a rare bird, as well as a strong contender, offering admirable performance for its size and price. In our tests, it has top-level marks for thermostat control and temperature uniformity, and it performs respectably for noise and acceptably for energy efficiency and ease of use. According to our latest member survey, GE French-door refrigerators garner adequate ratings for predicted reliability and owner satisfaction. This 30-inch model comes in a stainless steel finish with an icemaker, a built-in water filter, digital controls, and spillproof shelves—in addition to all the other standard features.
LG LFCS22520S
CR’s take: At 30 inches wide, the LG LFCS22520S French-door refrigerator receives excellent ratings for thermostat control and temperature uniformity—and delivers very good noise performance. Like the GE GNE21FSKSS, this LG only achieves midlevel energy efficiency and ease-of-use scores. In our member surveys, we found LG French-door refrigerators receive a lukewarm reliability rating and a near top-level owner satisfaction rating. This model comes with digital controls, a door-open alarm, an icemaker, and spillproof shelves, like the GE before it, but it lacks a built-in water filter.
Best 33-Inch-Wide French-Door Refrigerators
If you have more room in your kitchen for a big appliance, these refrigerators from LG and GE are 33 inches wide, adding another three inches of space to your fridge.
LG LRFCS2503S
CR’s take: The 33-inch-wide, WiFi-connected LG LRFCS2503S performs quite well in our tests, with stellar ratings for thermostat control and temperature uniformity, and strong scores for energy efficiency, noise, and ease of use. In our latest member survey, LG French-doors get a passing predicted reliability rating and an above-par owner satisfaction rating. This model’s array of features includes gallon storage on the door, an icemaker, a built-in water filter, a touchpad, and a freezer light. We expect that its less expensive sibling, the LG LRFCS25D3S, which is mechanically identical to this model, will perform similarly, though we haven’t tested it.
GE GNE25JSKSS
CR’s take: While it costs a little more than the LG LRFCS2503S and isn’t as intuitive to use, the 33-inch GE GNE25JSKSS has similarly top-tier performance—it boasts excellent thermostat control and temperature uniformity, as well as fine energy efficiency and noise. As a brand, GE French-door refrigerators earn middle-of-the-road reliability and owner satisfaction ratings in CR’s member surveys. Still, this model comes with digital controls, an icemaker, and a built-in water filter alongside its spillproof shelves.
LG LRFXS2503S
CR’s take: Where the LG LRFXS2503S shines is in its top-notch thermostat control. This 33-inch fridge also nabs respectable ratings for temperature uniformity, noise, and ease of use. However, iIt falls short when it comes to energy efficiency, compared to the other models in this category. Customers are generally pleased with their LG French-door refrigerators in our member surveys, though the brand’s reliability is only adequate.
Best 36-Inch-Wide French-Door Refrigerators
These refrigerators—more highly-rated models from LG and GE—add another 3 inches to the mix, measuring in at 36 inches wide for top capacity.
LG LRFXC2416S
CR’s take: The 36-inch-wide LG LRFXC2416S comes loaded with the features we track and more: shelves that can be adjusted without moving the food on them, air and water filters, and a second icemaker (in addition to the dispenser in the door) that molds elegantly curved and oversized cubes for cocktails. This model is similar to the CR-tested (and now discontinued) LG LRFXC2406S, and we expect it to perform comparably. The tested model delivers first-rate performance almost across the board. The one exception is energy efficiency, where its middling score lands in the bottom half of the pack. LG French-door refrigerators also receive middling ratings for predicted reliability and respectable ratings for owner satisfaction in our latest member survey. This fridge’s more expensive siblings—the LG LRFVC2406S and the sleeker and still pricier LG SRFVC2406S—have transparent door-in-door compartments that let you access frequently used items on the door without fully opening the cavity. This model is also available in a black stainless steel version, the LG LRFXC2416D.
GE GFD28GYNFS
CR’s take: The 36-inch GE GFD28GYNFS is the quintessential stainless steel French-door fridge, complete with a through-the-door water/ice dispenser, built-in water filter, digital controls, spillproof shelves, and adjustable half shelves for better organization. This model is similar to the CR-tested (and now discontinued) GE GFD28GSLSS, and we expect it to offer almost identical performance. In our tests, that model receives excellent ratings for thermostat control, temperature uniformity, and ease of use, as well as middle-tier marks for energy efficiency and noise. GE French-door refrigerators earn passable ratings for predicted reliability and owner satisfaction in our latest member survey.
LG LRFDS3016S
CR’s take: The LG LRFDS3016S offers quite a bit more room than its top-ranked cousins; its 20.4 cubic feet of usable space is among the most generous in the category. And it performs nearly as well, with impressive ratings for its core cooling functions as well as strong ratings for energy efficiency and noise output. In our latest member survey, LG French-door refrigerators receive satisfactory ratings for predicted reliability and very good ratings for owner satisfaction. In addition to having a door-in-door compartment, this 36-inch model offers a ton of features, including dual evaporators, a second icemaker in the freezer drawer, air and water filters, and adjustable shelves.
Correction: On May 31, 2022, this article was updated to reflect the correct Overall Scores for the products listed. A prior version included Overall Scores that inadvertently drew on older predicted reliability and owner satisfaction data.
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