Making a successful living in a small home possibly means making use of every inch of space available.
Nowadays, small living spaces are not anymore, an excuse since mini freezers offer an ideal way out for smaller spaces where standard-size freezers won’t fit. They are also great for homes that need a bit more freezer space than a standard kitchen freezer has to offer.
They can be ideal for offices, garages, dorm rooms, patios, and other settings but with all honesty, because of their petite size, most small chest freezers and the ones reviewed in this article are all very basic in design and function.
10 Best Buy Small Chest Freezers 2022
The market is flooded with countless options of small chest freezers but only a handful made to our rundown of the best 10.
Luckily, we have explained several factors and features of every freezer that are important for you to know and consider as you shop for the best mini freezer.
1. Midea WHS-185C1 Chest Freezer – Best Basic Small Freezer
View on Amazon
WHS-185C1 is a 5.0 cubic feet chest type freezer from Midea which is an excellent choice for stocking up your favorite food be it meat or ice cream, that too for long-term storage.
With a wide temperature range from -12, for an icy cold to a -28, for keeping stuff positively arctic, this Midea chest freezer locks all the goodness of your favorite foods for long.
Featuring advanced coil technology, Midea WHS-185C1 provides efficient and stronger refrigeration with thinner cooling pipes and layers. Moreover, the Built-in Door Hinge lets you take out/put in food easily from 45º to 75º, rather than holding the door in one hand.
The interior of this small chest freezer is easy to clean, and an Adjustable Temperature Control allows manual adjustment of the freezer’s internal temperature between 10.4℉ to -11.2℉ (-12 to -28 Degrees) ，maintaining freshness for long with the optimal temperature.
The included removable, hanging wire storage basket gives the user ease of access while being able to stock up on vital food supplies. An ergonomically designed depressed handle makes it easier to open the door while the defrost drain, helps to drain defrost water and clean it easily.
Additionally, this Midea single-door chest freezer is almost noiseless thanks to its whisper-quiet and energy-efficient compressor, being Energy Star rated. Although it is compact in size but provides a large capacity because of its design.
2. HOMELABS Chest Deep Freezer – Best High Deep Freezer with Adjustable Feet
View on Amazon
Homelabs HME030366N is a chest-type freezer with a capacity of 3.5 cubic feet. It is designed with a beautiful white finish to accentuate your kitchen, office, or dorm room. The compact freezer has a height equivalent to your average counter shelf which makes it well suited for either indoors or garage placement.
It has a manually adjustable thermostat on the front along with a power indicator light. This highly accessible control allows you to vary the freezer temperature between 10.4°F (-12˚C) to – 0.4 °F (-17˚C) or turn it off for manual defrosting.
The freezer is very energy efficient as it only consumes just over half a kilowatt-hour of electricity in 24 hours operation working via a standard US 115V power outlet through the 5.5 feet long power cord. It’s a compact yet powerful freezer with enough room to cater to all of your perishables.
Its interior is lined with embossed aluminum which acts to trap small icicles to retain the cold temperature for a longer period of time during an emergency blackout. The pure white exterior on the other hand helps it assimilate perfectly with any style within your home or office.
Its lid is attached to the body via two solid auto-hold hinges which keep the door open allowing you to effortlessly use both hands to grab other things without worrying about the door. It also contains a wire basket for storage in a hanging fashion to allow better organization inside your freezer.
While most other freezers require even surfaces, its sturdy adjustable feet are designed to accommodate for any unevenness making it possible to keep it anywhere in your garage, cellar, or porch. The frontal defrost drain outlet is there to help you clear out the unnecessary frost in a quick & supple manner.
3. Igloo ICFMD35WH6A Chest Freezer – Best Rapid Refrigeration System
View on Amazon
The ICFMD35WH6A is a 3.5 cubic. ft. chest type freezer from Igloo and offers you all the storage for your frozen food such as meat, ice creams, and other processed food items. Its compact size makes it perfect for your homes whether garages, basements, or even porch.
It is designed around a peculiar quick freezing system that employs a refrigeration tube in a D-type symmetry enhancing its surface area for rapid cooling & superior efficiency. As a result, ICFMD35WH6A gets cold faster & stays cold for longer.
The manually adjustable thermostat can be easily accessed to set the freezer temperature anywhere from 10˚F to -10˚F. An LED light just below the thermostat acts as an indicator of “power-on”. It, however, does not have a light on the interior of the freezer.
It is also lined with aluminum on the inside for better thermal conduction and a lasting cold temperature. Together with its heavy-duty rubber gasket, the cooling system works extremely well to keep your perishables frozen for long durations of time in the case of any accidental power outage.
Its lid has a recessed style handle and is supported on well-balanced metallic hinges which keep the door open without any support at angles between 45 to 90 degrees.
In addition to its inherent low noise compressor, it is equipped with thick insulating foam which works in a dual way to reduce the noise further while keeping everything cold. It has a removable / slide-able hanging wire basket to hold smaller items & a smart defrost water drain on the front to keep your freezer ice-free.
4. ADT Chest Freezer with Free-Standing Top Door – Best Eco-Friendly Small freezer
View on Amazon
ADT’s new chest type 3.5 cubic feet freezer is a welcome addition to the list. It is light in weight & compact on the outside but can cater to a lot of your frozen items on the inside. You can easily move it anywhere in your house thanks to its lightweight structure.
You can easily & briskly adjust its temperature using the manually adjusted thermostat which is placed on the front. With its seven settings control, you can adjust the thermostat temperature from 6.8°F (-14˚C) to -4˚F (-20˚C) including switch-off setting.
Unlike its competitors, ADT’s compact mini freezer consumes very little electricity with only 0.45-kilowatt hour per day making almost no effect on your next energy bill.
This along with its highly efficient, environment-friendly R600a refrigerant gas, is arguably one of the most energy-efficient freezers in this category. Its state-of-the-art compressor operates in a whisper quiet fashion to eradicate the low humming sound traditionally associated with refrigerators and freezers.
In a similar fashion, the door opening mechanism is designed to effortlessly & quietly open the lid via metallic hinges which can hold themselves open at angles between 45 to 90 degrees.
Its door is manufactured with an ergonomically designed recessed handle that holds the lid through an airtight gasket for extended cooling. The frontal drain opening for defrost water is provided to proficiently clean your freezer.
5. Northair Chest Freezer – Best Energy Efficient Freezer
View on Amazon
This 3.5 Cubic Feet Chest Freezer from Northair is compact on the outside, optimal for the small, modern home however roomy enough on the inside to store a generous amount of your favorite food with two baskets. Not only is it compact but also light in weight and hence easy to move around.
With a fairly modest energy consumption of 0.45 kWh per day, this Northair small chest freezer besides being environmentally friendly is also energy efficient as compared to other Chest Freezers, it also allows you to save on your bills.
All features on the Northair Chest Freezers have been wisely plotted to provide a premium experience to its users.
Be it the top cover of the freezer, which can hold itself open between 45° and 90° positions for uncomplicated access to food. Or the whisper-quiet compressor, which is engineered to keep the freezer very quiet, letting you enjoy the sound of silence at 38 dB.
With 7 Temperature Settings, this Northair Chest Freezer has an adjustable Thermostat located upfront the freezer, temperature setting ranging from 1 which means Off to 7 which is the Coldest, parallel to a temperature between -4°F and 6.8°F.
Moreover, a water drain ensures a clear path for water to travel during defrosting, helping to keep the inside of the freezer dry which in return protects your food. While the Quality airlock system seems to vacuum seal refrigerated temperature inside with almost zero outflows.
6. Arctic King Chest Freezer – Good for Garages & Basements
View on Amazon
This 3.5 cubic ft. White, Chest Freezer from Arctic King, is optimally spacious for small families or even stocking up on your favorite frozen foods for future consumption or even in case of having a big family get-together.
Having an ergonomic design with a recessed handle followed by a convenient size, this Arctic King Chest Freezer, will make an excellent fit not only in your homes but also in your garages, shops, or any underground rooms, or storage place in your house for easy give-and-take of food or whatsoever you put inside it.
Featuring a mechanical temperature control, with an adjustable thermostat, you can change the temperatures to high or low as per requirement.
The Arctic King small Chest Freezer boasts an easy-to-clean interior while the storage basket can also be removed or attached when needed, adding to user convenience.
The balanced hinge on this chest freezer ensures you get your foodstuff in and out of it without any trouble, keeping the door self-opened from 45 to 75 degrees.
It has a top-quality construction with proper storage and a defrost drain to proficiently clean your freezer and keep it dry for the best operation. It is one of the most trustworthy options out there if you’re planning on adding an extra freezer in your garage, as it is built to perform best in locations with extreme temperature settings.
7. Avanti CF350M0W Chest Deep Freezer – Best Spacious
View on Amazon
Whether you’re storing up your favorite frozen meals or avoiding your shopping trips during this pandemic, there’s a high chance the freezer section of your fridge is too tiny for your requirements. Chest freezers, on the other hand, come very handy in situations like this.
Avanti is a compact 51 pounds deep chest freezer with a large 3.5 cubic foot capacity. This spacious freezer is 19.75 inches long, 21.75 inches wide, and 33.5 inches tall that can easily hold tons of food, making it a perfect choice for dormitories, apartments, recreation rooms, and more.
CF350M0W has a slim space-saving design with an integrated door handle allowing for a nice fit against any wall. The single flip-up lid design allows easy access to your favorite items. This stand-alone upright chest freezer comes with ample interior space and a removable storage basket catering to all your frozen food needs.
In addition, the freezer has a built-in defrost drain system, which makes cleaning the interior part a breeze. Comes with a power light indicator indicating that the appliance has the electric supply on and the adjustable temperature control allows you to control the temperature so that your meal stays as cold as you like it.
This Avanti 3.5-Cubic-Foot Upright Chest Deep Freezer allows you to effortlessly access frozen goods when it’s time to eat dinner. It’s a very efficient and well-insulated freezer, as the compressor appears to never turn on… but actually, it does.
It cools down to roughly 4°F (-15°C) on the coldest setting, which is cold enough to keep your food solidly frozen. It has an estimated annual electricity consumption to be 190 kWh or 0.52 kWh per day, lowering your electricity charges.
8. WATOOR Chest Freezer – Best Small Capacity
View on Amazon
Whether you wish to stow this chest freezer into the corner of your kitchen, garage, or basement, it will be a great solution to store your frozen food needs. This is a compact 3.5 cubic feet modern design that comes with a temperature control setting that you can easily set yourself.
The adjustable thermostat control on the exterior allows you to easily adjust the temperature ranging from -4°F and 6.8°F by selecting the number between 1 (Off) to 7 (Coldest) so you can customize the freezing setting for different food items. The indicator light on the freezer lets you know the status of the freeze.
Watoor will ensure that you don’t have bags of frozen kale or chicken tenders hanging out in the kitchen as you re-organize your top or bottom freezer after bringing home the groceries from the store.
It has a compact, space-saving design with dimensions that stands 30.9 inches tall and is 21.2 inches long by 21.8 inches wide
The removable hanging baskets easily slide so you can access the smaller food items including milk, yogurt, or ice cream. It has a highly efficient, low-energy compressor that uses as low as 0.45 kilowatt-hours of power/ energy each day.
The top hinge style of the door stays from 45 to 90 degrees, allowing you to effortlessly choose your favorite foods or beverages from the freezer at your ultimate convenience, making it ideal for use in your home bar, restaurant, kitchen, office, or RV.
9. Smad Chest Freezer – Best Portable Small Freezer
View on Amazon
This 3.5 cubic. ft. Smad chest freezer is not only lightweight and compact but extremely portable because of the Adjustable legs for easy movement and placement on any uneven surfaces, making it an ideal choice not only for homes but also for student dorms, offices, or small shops.
This Chest Freezer from Smad exhibits a modern style mechanical control panel in a durable, powder-covered stainless steel outside the body with an embossed aluminum lining on the inside for easy cleaning of this unit.
This small chest freezer is very easy to use ensuring a quiet operation for your calm with a surplus of lower energy consumption with a highly efficient cooling design having a cooling range of -4 ~ 6.8 degrees.
Including a power indicator light, a removable hanging wire basket, this helps one to keep food organized and the effort saving, auto-hold door hinges which help keep the top door open from 45 to 90 degrees without making any noise when opening and closing; this Smad small chest freezer is a great product.
Smad doesn’t necessarily have the stylish look, but it certainly gets the job done well, so whether you are going on a vacation or setting it up in your RV, this reliable, portable, and versatile unit won’t disappoint you.
Comprising of an adjustable front as well as foot drain, with a front drain cap this unit is very easy to clean, while the detachable and washable anti-bacterial door seal also helps maintain cleanliness inside the freezer.
10. Techomey Freestanding Chest Freezer – Best In terms of Capacity
View on Amazon
This 3.5 Cu. Ft chest styled deep freezer from Techomey is much compact but at the same time big enough to hold a noticeable amount of food. It can be used to store breast milk, meat, ice creams, marine products, cold beverages, as it features quick-freezing and storing your food for a long span.
Techomey combines a modern environmentally friendly design with a whisper-quiet compressor in this unit to let you enjoy peace. Whereas the fast cooling system of this freestanding freezer, with a minimal energy consumption of 0.5 kWh per day, helps you save on your energy bills.
With a space-saving design, it can be put in a limited space, and is light in weight, hence very easy to move. The hanging storage basket keeps smaller items readily available while the sliding can quickly help you see items underneath.
The internal temperature can be easily adjusted using the thermostat knob between ranges of -4℉ to 6.8 °F. The indicator lights on this unit show proper functioning of the small freezer chest with a red Power-on light & a green Run light.
The Techomey 3.5 Cu. Ft chest deep freezer is ergonomically designed with a gasket and a recessed handle for an exertion-saving top open door with auto-hold door hinges to access the freezer hands-free between 45° and 90° angle positions, all adding up for a premium user experience.
Moreover, the easy access bottom drain and the inside embossed aluminum lining make defrosting and cleaning the deep freezer easy. You can easily defrost the machine using the thermostat knob.
Things Consider When Buying a Small Chest Freezers For Your Home
Looking for a small freezer for your home? Chest-type freezers always have the top ranking among the different variants due to their larger storage capacity, energy efficiency, and low noise despite their larger footprint. Our following guide will help you make informed decisions to make the best purchase:
External Dimensions & Storage Space
Chest freezers typically have relatively larger external dimensions as compared to upright freezers; however, they offer up to 20% more storage space. The first & foremost thing is therefore to measure the living space you can sacrifice for it with the inclusion of 3-5 inches of ventilation space all around it.
Also, do measure the width of your doors & corridors through which you have to move your freezer. Next, you have to carefully calculate the storage space that is required for your family.
Typically, you are recommended to add 1.5 cubic feet of storage space for each family member and it should be kept fully up to two-third of its capacity for maximum efficiency most of the time.
Freezing Performance
The freezing performance of a chest freezer is measured in terms of temperature range, controls & its efficacy to keep your food frozen at that specific temperature. Generally, the freezers operate at a temperature of 0˚F (or -17˚C) with either manual or digital controls on the outside.
Efficacy of freezer can be understood in terms of time taken to reach the freezing temperature & keeping it there with minimal power consumption. Although this effect may vary wildly for different areas/climates, you can always compare the working of available models in your climate/area.
Efficiency
The freezers are designed to work round the clock to keep your perishables frozen for your later consumption; therefore energy efficiency is a very important factor to ponder upon. An energy-efficient freezer can significantly lower your electricity bill.
Although chest freezers are relatively more efficient than the upright versions, you would still want to look at the energy star rating to find the one with minimum energy consumption levels. Also, manual defrost models consume way less energy than auto-defrost versions.
Self or Automatic Defrost
Defrosting your freezer increases its capability as well as service life & therefore is a task that should be frequently undertaken. It is advisable to look for a chest freezer that is not too difficult to defrost. Most of the freezers have a manual defrost system which needs your intervention.
Auto-defrost system on the other hand is equipped with a heater that operates a few times a day to evaporate the frost to collect it through a drain mechanism. The only downside is, it uses relatively more energy & thus is less energy efficient than manual defrost freezers.
Emergency / Blackout Operation
Like any other home appliance, freezers also require electric power to operate. In case of any emergency power outage, you would want your freezer to keep your perishables frozen for as long as possible.
Most chest freezers which are inherently better than upright freezers have information about how long they can keep your food safe without power, which is mentioned on them.
Noise Levels
Since compressors are notorious for being noisy, refrigerators & freezers should also have to be weighed in with respect to noise levels, especially if you would keep them near your bedroom.
The noise any appliance makes is measured as decibel (dBA) ratings mentioned on the product. Chest freezers are known to be more silent than their upright cousins.
Additional Features
Chest freezers typically come with some additional features which can make your life way more stress-free and easy. While some features like door locks are not very relevant for chest freezers, interior lighting, indicator lights, and temperature alarms are very desirable.
Cost
Depending on your size & storage space requirements, you can find a reliable freezer starting from $200. While chest freezers generally cost less than upright freezers of the same capacity, features like manual or auto-defrost, freezing performance & build quality also add to the cost of freezers which may range up to $500 for compact / mini chest freezers.
We hope our buying guide will help you choose an excellent small chest freezer that fits your requirements.
Wrapping Up
Although, the market is swamped with countless options of small chest freezers brands here we have shared with you only a handful of options that are undoubtedly the best among others.
However, because of their petite size, the chest freezers appraised above are all basic and reasonably priced but may lack some advanced features, nonetheless, they can get the job well done of making and keeping your food frozen, frozen — whether ice-cold or arctic cold, as you wish!
With any of these small chest freezers, you can keep your favorite foods close by, either in your garage, basement, and patio or even at the terrace, wherever you like.
Buy yourself any of the above listed small chest freezers, and you will feel it paying for itself, very soon; Surely, No regrets! Happy Shopping!
People Also Asked About For Best Compact Chest Freezers
Will a chest freezer work in an unheated garage?
Typically, most of the freezers are designed to operate in moderate temperature regimes. Therefore, if you want to set one in your unheated garage, look for a model which can operate at lower temperatures (0˚F or -17˚C). Alternatively, you can strap a heating coil around the thermostat to avoid letting it trip / shut down due to cold temperature especially at or below freezing point.
Are all chest freezers suitable for garages?
Most of the recent (modern) models of freezers available in the market can work in extreme temperature conditions from around -17˚C (0˚F) all the way up to 45˚C (110˚F); which means that these newer models can be placed in garages to save your living space.
Can I keep a chest freezer on my porch?
Although modern freezers can bear the harsher temperature fluctuations, they need a level floor & less humidity to function effectively. For example, you may want to avoid putting a freezer on your porch especially in tropical or coastal areas to avoid rusting; however, people living in areas with moderate climate can easily use their porch for it. In certain cases, covering your chest freezer does offer some degree of protection in mild weather swings.
Can a small chest freezer be kept outside?
As described above, most modern freezers can handle the relatively extreme temperature conditions provided they are properly covered from water & possible damage from animals while still having adequate ventilation space around them. Of course, you would regularly need to inspect it for any damages.
Is upright or chest freezer better?
Chest freezers take more space but offer over 20% more storage space than an upright freezer. Since air circulation is also reduced in chest freezers, they are less likely to cause freezer burns and will retain freezing temperature for longer periods of time in case of a power outage. Additionally, they are relatively less noisy & more power efficient too as compared to their upright cousins.
