Refrigerator Freezers Less than 2 Cubic Feet in Size

If you need a very small refrigerator, these models all come in under 2 cubic feet, and they all have small freezers as well.



Haier HNSB02 1.7 Cu-Ft Refrigerator/Freezer
$75 from Amazon.com
This comes in white and black. It measures 18-5/8 by 17-1/2 by 19-5/8 inches tall. There is manual defrost and an ice-cube tray, along with a reversable door, a wire shelf that slides out and some door storage. It weighs 41 pounds, shipping weight, so a regular person could lift this by themselves. If you order this from Amazon be on alert for some damage to possibly happen during shipping - a lot of people have complained about getting a dented HNSB02. Some customers have also complained that this is not the quietest refrigerator, so you may not want to have it in a dorm room or a really tiny studio but to be fair others have said it is quiet enough for them... probably depends on your noise tolerance. There's also an HNSB02SS that's basically the same refrgierator/freezer, but in stainless steel. It weighs 38 pounds and is UL approved.

In case you were wondering, "UL-approved" means that the unit has passed inspection by Underwriters' Laboratories (known as "UL"). Underwriters' Laboratories is nonprofit agency in the US that does safety-testing. They have a Canadian partner company called Underwriters' Laboratories of Canada, so approved devices in Canada are "CUL-approved". The UL matters because of the United States National Electrical Code, requires that all lamps and fixtures be tested by an independent party before they can be sold to the public. Because of this, and the laws in some states, many electricians will refuse to install lamps or even appliances that are not UL approved. Most of the time, the UL-approved label will be on the plug of whatever appliance or fixture you buy.

Sanyo SR-A1780K 1-2/3-Cubic-Foot Compact Cube Refrigerator
$160 from Amazon.com
At 3.5 stars, this is the highest-rated compact refrigerator with freezer on Amazon. It is nearly twice the size of other refrigerators in this category. The only complaint about it was damage during shipping, which seems to be a theme with refrigerator from Amazon. It has all the usual features -- ice cube tray, reversable door, door storage, a pull out wire shelf (this one's coated). The temperature setting is more flexible than other models, which typically give you five or seven temperature settings -- this model let's you get more finicky. It is a little shorter than the Haier HNSB0 at 18 5/8 by 19 3/8 by 17 3/4, but makes up for the lost space by being wider.

Emerson 1.8 Cu. Ft Compact Refrigerator
$85 from Target
It doesn't say its a refrigerator/freezer in the title, but this little gem does have a tiny 4 liter sized freezer. This is one of the highest rated tiny frig/freezers I've come across, largely because it works well, but it also gets quite cold. I also like the brushed stainless steel front. At only 18 inches high, 18.5 inches wide and 20 inches deep, its darn near a countertop refrigerator/freezer. There is can storage, plus door storage, and one wire shelf that slides out. The coolant used is also CFC free, so if your college student is obsessive about saving the atmosphere, this is a fridge that's part of the solution. This is has a compressor, though its sized as if it was one of the thermo-electric plate refrigerators, so you'll get more cold power from this than most similarly-size refrigerator freezers. Its pretty energu-efficient, too -- it should cost you about $35 a year to operate. Do make sure it gets shipped to you in protective packaging -- the only problem people report with this unit is that some retailers ship it in its floor box, and it can get banged up badly.