Many refrigerants — the material in a freezer or refrigerator that are used to create a cooling effect — are harmful to the Earth’s atmosphere. As a result, they are labeled as having high “Global Warming Potential” or GWP.
Low GWP freezers and refrigerator do exist and can be spefically shopped for. These appliances usually used R-600a or R-441A refrigerants.
GWP ratings vary depending if you are looking at the number for the 25-, 50-, or 100-year impact of that material on the atmosphere. Lower numbers are better, so an ideal number would be 0, but ratings of 3 an under are considered good.
The common, but outdated, refrigerant called R-22 is a type of hydrochlorofluorocarbon. It’s sometimes labeled as HCFC-22 and has a GWP rating of about 1800 (100-year rating). On the other side of the spectrum there are substances like refrigerant grade ammonia (R-717) which has a GWP of 0, marking a vast improvement.
R-600a, or Iso-Butane, is an increasingly popular refrigerant 2022 thanks to its affordable price and low GWP (about 3). R-600 is commonly found in residential and small commercial refrigerators, freezers, water coolers, and drink dispensers.
Lowest GWP Refrigerators
| Model | Refrigerant Type | GWP | Inital Sale Date |
|---|---|---|---|
| UNIQUE UGP-595L W AC | R-600a | R-600a (GWP:3 | Lower GWP) | November 23, 2023 |
| Midea MRT21D3B** | R-600a | R-600a (GWP:3 | Lower GWP) | November 14, 2023 |
| THOR KITCHEN XRF3016BBP | R-600a | R-600a (GWP:3 | Lower GWP) | November 13, 2023 |
| THOR KITCHEN XRF3619BFP | R-600a | R-600a (GWP:3 | Lower GWP) | November 13, 2023 |
| Zline RBSO-ST-24 | R-600a | R-600a (GWP:3 | Lower GWP) | November 10, 2023 |
| Zline RWDO-GS-24 | R-600a | R-600a (GWP:3 | Lower GWP) | November 10, 2023 |
| Midea MRT18D1B** | R-600a | R-600a (GWP:3 | Lower GWP) | November 1, 2023 |
| Midea MRT18D2B** | R-600a | R-600a (GWP:3 | Lower GWP) | November 1, 2023 |
| Midea MRT18D4B** | R-600a | R-600a (GWP:3 | Lower GWP) | November 1, 2023 |
| Conservator GRMH141A* | R-600a | R-600a (GWP:3 | Lower GWP) | October 27, 2023 |
| Insignia NS-RTM14SS5-C | R-600a | R-600a (GWP:3 | Lower GWP) | October 27, 2023 |
| Insignia NS-RTM14WH5-C | R-600a | R-600a (GWP:3 | Lower GWP) | October 27, 2023 |
| U-Line U-2224RGLINT-00B | R-600a | R-600a (GWP:3 | Lower GWP) | October 3, 2023 |
| U-Line U-29RB-00A | R-600a | R-600a (GWP:3 | Lower GWP) | October 3, 2023 |
| U-Line UHBV524-IS01A | R-600a | R-600a (GWP:3 | Lower GWP) | October 3, 2023 |
| Frigidaire FFHT2022A* | R-600a | R-600a (GWP:3 | Lower GWP) | September 28, 2023 |
| Frigidaire FFHT2022A* | R-600a | R-600a (GWP:3 | Lower GWP) | September 28, 2023 |
| Smad DDT-744WMU | R-600a | R-600a (GWP:3 | Lower GWP) | September 21, 2023 |
| True Refrigeration TUR-24-*-*G-C | R-600a | R-600a (GWP:3 | Lower GWP) | September 15, 2023 |
| Smad DDT-517WSMU | R-600a | R-600a (GWP:3 | Lower GWP) | September 13, 2023 |
| LG LT13C2000* | R-600a | R-600a (GWP:3 | Lower GWP) | September 5, 2023 |
| Samsung RF30BB6602** | R-600a | R-600a (GWP:3 | Lower GWP) | August 31, 2023 |
| LG LF29S8230* | R-600a | R-600a (GWP:3 | Lower GWP) | August 28, 2023 |
| LG LB22T2100* | R-600a | R-600a (GWP:3 | Lower GWP) | August 25, 2023 |
| LG LF22T6200* | R-600a | R-600a (GWP:3 | Lower GWP) | August 25, 2023 |
| LG LF22T6220* | R-600a | R-600a (GWP:3 | Lower GWP) | August 25, 2023 |
| ZLINE, HALLMAN, SAVALO RBIV-30 | R-600a | R-600a (GWP:3 | Lower GWP) | August 23, 2023 |
| FULGOR MILANO, BERTAZZONI, VITARA, FORTE, KUCHT, HALLMAN, SAVALO FM4BM36IFBI | R-600a | R-600a (GWP:3 | Lower GWP) | August 23, 2023 |
| SAPPHIRE; MAXXIMUM SR243SS | R-600a | R-600a (GWP:3 | Lower GWP) | August 23, 2023 |
| SAPPHIRE; MAXXIMUM SW243SZSS | R-600a | R-600a (GWP:3 | Lower GWP) | August 23, 2023 |
| LG LS23C4000* | R-600a | R-600a (GWP:3 | Lower GWP) | August 20, 2023 |
| Beko BFBF2414SSIM | R-600a | R-600a (GWP:3 | Lower GWP) | August 18, 2023 |
| Beko BFBF2414WHIM | R-600a | R-600a (GWP:3 | Lower GWP) | August 18, 2023 |
| Blomberg BRFB1046SS | R-600a | R-600a (GWP:3 | Lower GWP) | August 18, 2023 |
| Samsung RF27CG5010** | R-600a | R-600a (GWP:3 | Lower GWP) | August 17, 2023 |
| Samsung RF27CG5100** | R-600a | R-600a (GWP:3 | Lower GWP) | August 10, 2023 |
| Midea MRT14B3A** | R-600a,1.9 | R-600a (GWP:3 | Lower GWP) | August 6, 2023 |
| Fisher & Paykel RS2474S3**# | R-600a | R-600a (GWP:3 | Lower GWP) | August 4, 2023 |
| Avanti FF14D0W-4 | R-600a | R-600a (GWP:3 | Lower GWP) | August 4, 2023 |
| Avanti FF14D3S-4 | R-600a | R-600a (GWP:3 | Lower GWP) | August 4, 2023 |
Lowest GWP Freezers
| Model | Refrigerant Type | GWP | Inital Sale Date |
|---|---|---|---|
| Kenmore KRFU210AWE | R-600a | R-600a (GWP:3 | Lower GWP) | September 20, 2023 |
| Kenmore KCFU210AWE | R-600a | R-600a (GWP:3 | Lower GWP) | September 20, 2023 |
| True Refrigeration TUF-24-*-**-C | R-600a | R-600a (GWP:3 | Lower GWP) | September 15, 2023 |
| Fisher & Paykel RS2474F3**# | R-600a | R-600a (GWP:3 | Lower GWP) | August 4, 2023 |
| BANGSON US-BSR-017-2 | R-600a | R-600a (GWP:3 | Lower GWP) | June 20, 2023 |
| BANGSON US-BSR-017-1 | R-600a | R-600a (GWP:3 | Lower GWP) | June 20, 2023 |
| BANGSON US-BSR-017 | R-600a | R-600a (GWP:3 | Lower GWP) | June 20, 2023 |
| BANGSON US-BSR-017-3 | R-600a | R-600a (GWP:3 | Lower GWP) | June 20, 2023 |
| BANGSON US-BSR-017A | R-600a | R-600a (GWP:3 | Lower GWP) | June 20, 2023 |
| BANGSON US-BSR-019 | R-600a | R-600a (GWP:3 | Lower GWP) | June 20, 2023 |
| BANGSON US-BSR-019-1 | R-600a | R-600a (GWP:3 | Lower GWP) | June 20, 2023 |
| BANGSON US-BSR-019A | R-600a | R-600a (GWP:3 | Lower GWP) | June 20, 2023 |
| BANGSON US-BSR-019-3 | R-600a | R-600a (GWP:3 | Lower GWP) | June 20, 2023 |
| BANGSON US-BSR-019-2 | R-600a | R-600a (GWP:3 | Lower GWP) | June 20, 2023 |
| Criterion CUF66C1W | R-600a | R-600a (GWP:3 | Lower GWP) | May 24, 2023 |
| Criterion CUF36C1W | R-600a | R-600a (GWP:3 | Lower GWP) | April 15, 2023 |
| Liebherr SF5291 | R-600a | R-600a (GWP:3 | Lower GWP) | March 1, 2023 |
| Sub-Zero CL3650F/S/*/* | R-600a | R-600a (GWP:3 | Lower GWP) | November 4, 2022 |
| Sub-Zero DEC3650FI/* | R-600a | R-600a (GWP:3 | Lower GWP) | September 26, 2022 |
| Sub-Zero DEC3050FI/* | R-600a | R-600a (GWP:3 | Lower GWP) | September 26, 2022 |