Home appliances are one of the main reasons why guests prefer vacation rentals over hotels. When it comes to essential appliances, a refrigerator should have a top position on the kitchen checklist. Whether your guests want to store ingredients for cooking or cool their drinks, a fridge is what they’ll need.
After investigating the most popular fridges among rental property owners and travelers, we found that the best refrigerator for Airbnb is the Frigidaire Refrigerator with Freezer (7.5 Cubic Feet) Platinum Series. We’ll explain more about it below and help you pick the best fridge for your rental with useful guidelines.
Should You Invest in a High-Quality Refrigerator for a Vacation Rental?
Buying a refrigerator can take a big chunk of your budget, so you want to get one that will have a long life in your Airbnb. You want to avoid having to repurchase a new appliance every time a warranty expires which is why a high-quality fridge is the best choice.
The expense of repurchasing isn’t the only problem for Airbnb hosts. Low-quality refrigerators are more likely to break, and you’ll have to deal with the unpleasant aftermath—complaints and bad reviews.
What Should You Stock in Your Airbnb Fridge?
Stocking the refrigerator isn’t a requirement, and many hosts skip it. But, if you don’t want the guests to be welcomed by an empty fridge, here are a few basics you can stock:
- Bottled water
- Baked goods (keep them in the freezer)
- Ice trays or bags of ice
- Coffee creamer (if you have a coffee maker your guests would be pleasantly surprised by a creamer)
Optional additions include:
- Beverages
- Dressings
- Cheeses
- Milk
- Eggs
- Butter
- Fresh fruit
What Should You Have in Mind When Buying a Fridge for Airbnb?
Should you get a bigger or a smaller fridge? Do you need a freezer or not? These are just some questions that you’ll have to answer before you decide which refrigerator you’ll buy. To help you with the decision, we’ve noted the most basic factors you should consider:
Durability – A stainless steel fridge with reviews that confirm its durability is a safe choice. You can get a fridge with an ice maker, but they are more likely to break. Ice and water dispensers are great functionalities, but they can get clogged or broken which will result in additional expenses and unhappy calls from guests.
Fridge + Freezer – A freezer is a useful feature since your guests can keep ice, frozen bagels, frozen pizza, and other frozen foods. If you’re going with a full-size fridge you should have a freezer; otherwise, you can just get a mini fridge.
Size – Unless your angle is hosting big events like family reunions, birthday parties, and bachelorette weekends, a compact size fridge is fine. Even if guests cook throughout their stay, they won’t stock enough food to fill it. An apartment-size refrigerator also conserves energy and takes up less space. According to Whirlpool, the common capacity of these compact fridges are 11-13 cubic feet.
Energy Efficiency – As we mentioned, a smaller fridge means less energy consumption and a lower utility bill. If you do buy a bigger fridge, you should look for an Energy Star label which signals that the appliance uses less energy.
Aesthetic – A fridge is the largest appliance in the kitchen, so the look of it can’t go unnoticed. If you’re going for a sleek aesthetic, the color of your kitchen appliances should match (for example, the oven, toaster, microwave, and fridge should all be silver). You can also find a fridge that complements or enhances your rental’s aesthetic, such as this retro refrigerator which can add a pop of color.
Warranty – Overstuffing the fridge or leaving the door open for an extended period are just some of the things your guests can do that can cause damage to the appliance. Since you can’t monitor what they do, you want to get a fridge with a warranty so it can be repaired at the cost of the seller or manufacturer.
The Best Refrigerator for Airbnb and Vacation Rentals
Our top pick for the ideal Airbnb refrigerator is the Frigidaire Refrigerator with Freezer (7.5 Cubic Feet) Platinum Series. It is compact, affordable, and durable, so it already fulfills the main criteria.
Frigidaire Refrigerator with Freezer (7.5 Cubic Feet) Platinum Series
We also picked this fridge because of these characteristics:
Compact Size – The capacity of 7.5 cubic feet is enough for the food and drink basics, and the fridge won’t take up too much valuable space. In addition, the smaller size also means less energy consumption.
Organized Interior – This fridge has four clear door shelves for drinks and dressings, three slide-out glass shelves, and a transparent vegetable crisper so the food and drinks can be well organized and easy to find. The shelves are removable so you can adjust them how you like.
Modern and Versatile Design – The stainless steel design has that modern but also classic look that can complement a kitchen of any style.
Reversible Door – You won’t need to compromise the ease of opening and closing the doors since you can reverse them to suit your specific space.
Other Airbnb Refrigerator Alternatives
For larger rentals and more options to choose from, we’ve picked out these two high-quality refrigerators from trusted brands that will also work well for Airbnb.
If you want an apartment-size fridge with multiple size options, the Galanz Refrigerator with Freezer is a worthy choice. We’ve selected the one with 12 cubic feet capacity for those who want a larger fridge than our top pick (7.5 cubic feet) that is still compact and space-saving. There’s also a 10 cubic feet and a 7.4 cubic feet version with a freezer on the bottom. The Galanz refrigerators are energy efficient and silent so the sound won’t irritate the guests.
Big rentals that often host parties could use a larger fridge to store all the drinks, snacks, and ingredients for a cookout. The Frigidaire Refrigerator with Freezer (20 cubic feet) is our top choice for a large-capacity appliance. In addition to being durable, it has an Energy Star rating for efficiency and other useful features such as frost-free operation and humidity-controlled crisper drawers.
Final Thoughts
A quality refrigerator is a kitchen necessity, so investing in a good and durable fridge will be money well spent. We’ve come across many suitable choices for this vacation rental appliance, but the Frigidaire Refrigerator with Freezer checks all the boxes with its compact size, sleek look, and low energy consumption. If you want a small, simple, and durable appliance, this one will be the ideal pick.
