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The common, but outdated, refrigerant called R-22 is a type of hydrochlorofluorocarbon.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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| LG LRFES2503* | R-600a | R-600a (GWP:3 | Lower GWP) | January 20, 2023 |
| Samsung RF25C5151** | R-600a | R-600a (GWP:3 | Lower GWP) | January 13, 2023 |
| Samsung RS23CB7600** | R-600a | R-600a (GWP:3 | Lower GWP) | January 13, 2023 |
| Gorenje, Asko, Hisense VCS5297TPGVCS5297TPG | R-600a | R-600a (GWP:3 | Lower GWP) | January 10, 2023 |
| Samsung RF25C5551** | R-600a | R-600a (GWP:3 | Lower GWP) | January 6, 2023 |
| Samsung RS28CB7600** | R-600a | R-600a (GWP:3 | Lower GWP) | January 6, 2023 |
| Crosley CFDMH2257AS | R-600a | R-600a (GWP:3 | Lower GWP) | January 4, 2023 |
| Beko BFSB3622XSS | R-600a | R-600a (GWP:3 | Lower GWP) | January 1, 2023 |
| Insignia NS-RTM20**#*** | R-600a | R-600a (GWP:3 | Lower GWP) | December 29, 2022 |
| Insignia NS-RTM20SS3 | R-600a | R-600a (GWP:3 | Lower GWP) | December 29, 2022 |
| mbm MRF7B | R-600a | R-600a (GWP:3 | Lower GWP) | December 15, 2022 |
| mbm MRF7S | R-600a | R-600a (GWP:3 | Lower GWP) | December 15, 2022 |
| mbm MRF7W | R-600a | R-600a (GWP:3 | Lower GWP) | December 15, 2022 |
| mbm MRN14B | R-600a | R-600a (GWP:3 | Lower GWP) | December 15, 2022 |
| mbm MRN14S | R-600a | R-600a (GWP:3 | Lower GWP) | December 15, 2022 |
| mbm MRN14W | R-600a | R-600a (GWP:3 | Lower GWP) | December 15, 2022 |
| LG LRFS28XB* | R-600a | R-600a (GWP:3 | Lower GWP) | December 7, 2022 |
| Signature Kitchen Suite SKSFD4826* | R-600a | R-600a (GWP:3 | Lower GWP) | December 7, 2022 |
| Beko BBBF3019IMWESS | R-600a | R-600a (GWP:3 | Lower GWP) | November 30, 2022 |
| Beko BFFD3614ZSS | R-600a | R-600a (GWP:3 | Lower GWP) | November 30, 2022 |
| Beko BFFD3616ZSS | R-600a | R-600a (GWP:3 | Lower GWP) | November 30, 2022 |
| Blomberg BRFB1920SS | R-600a | R-600a (GWP:3 | Lower GWP) | November 30, 2022 |
| KOOLMORE RERFDSS-22C | R-600a | R-600a (GWP:3 | Lower GWP) | November 29, 2022 |
| LG LRFS28XB* | R-600a | R-600a (GWP:3 | Lower GWP) | November 25, 2022 |
| Hamilton Beach HBF2067 | R-600a | R-600a (GWP:3 | Lower GWP) | November 24, 2022 |
| Maytag MRFF5033P* | R-600a | R-600a (GWP:3 | Lower GWP) | November 18, 2022 |
| Whirlpool WRFF5333P* | R-600a | R-600a (GWP:3 | Lower GWP) | November 18, 2022 |
| Sub-Zero DET3050R**/* | R-600a | R-600a (GWP:3 | Lower GWP) | November 18, 2022 |
| Sub-Zero DET3650R**/* | R-600a | R-600a (GWP:3 | Lower GWP) | November 18, 2022 |
| Midea MRF29D3ABB | R-600a | R-600a (GWP:3 | Lower GWP) | November 17, 2022 |
| Midea MRF29D3AST | R-600a | R-600a (GWP:3 | Lower GWP) | November 17, 2022 |
| Midea MRF29D3AWW | R-600a | R-600a (GWP:3 | Lower GWP) | November 17, 2022 |
| Sub-Zero CL3050U**/S/*/* | R-600a | R-600a (GWP:3 | Lower GWP) | November 4, 2022 |
| Sub-Zero CL3650R**/S/*/* | R-600a | R-600a (GWP:3 | Lower GWP) | November 4, 2022 |
| Sub-Zero CL3650U**/S/*/* | R-600a | R-600a (GWP:3 | Lower GWP) | November 4, 2022 |
| Insignia NS-CF33BK#*** | R-600a | R-600a (GWP:3 | Lower GWP) | November 4, 2022 |
| Insignia NS-CF33BK3 | R-600a | R-600a (GWP:3 | Lower GWP) | November 4, 2022 |
| Insignia NS-CF33BK3-C | R-600a | R-600a (GWP:3 | Lower GWP) | November 4, 2022 |
| Insignia NS-CF33SS#*** | R-600a | R-600a (GWP:3 | Lower GWP) | November 4, 2022 |
| Insignia NS-CF33SS3 | R-600a | R-600a (GWP:3 | Lower GWP) | November 4, 2022 |
Lowest GWP Freezers
| Model | Refrigerant Type | GWP | Inital Sale Date |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sub-Zero CL3650F/S/*/* | R-600a | R-600a (GWP:3 | Lower GWP) | November 4, 2022 |
| Sub-Zero DEC2450FI/* | 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 |
| Sub-Zero DEC3650FI/* | R-600a | R-600a (GWP:3 | Lower GWP) | September 26, 2022 |
| FINLUX 2451 DUF1650WH | R-600a | R-600a (GWP:3 | Lower GWP) | July 5, 2022 |
| LG LROFC1114* | R-600a | R-600a (GWP:3 | Lower GWP) | April 30, 2022 |
| Magic Chef MCUF3BE | R-600a | R-600a (GWP:3 | Lower GWP) | April 28, 2022 |
| Magic Chef MCUF3STE | R-600a | R-600a (GWP:3 | Lower GWP) | April 28, 2022 |
| Magic Chef MCUF3WE | R-600a | R-600a (GWP:3 | Lower GWP) | April 28, 2022 |
| Midea MRC07M7AWW | R-600a | R-600a (GWP:3 | Lower GWP) | April 21, 2022 |
| Arctic King MRU03M2ABB | R-600a | R-600a (GWP:3 | Lower GWP) | February 9, 2022 |
| WINIA WRSR036H**E# | R-600a | R-600a (GWP:3 | Lower GWP) | December 10, 2021 |
| Whirlpool WZC3209LW | R-600a | R-600a (GWP:3 | Lower GWP) | October 20, 2021 |
| Frigidaire FFUE2022A* | R-600a | R-600a (GWP:3 | Lower GWP) | August 23, 2021 |
| INFIGO NFU*21**** | R-600a | R-600a (GWP:3 | Lower GWP) | April 30, 2021 |
| Marvel MLFZ*24-IS*1A | R-600a | R-600a (GWP:3 | Lower GWP) | March 22, 2021 |
| Marvel MLFZ*24-SS*1A | R-600a | R-600a (GWP:3 | Lower GWP) | March 22, 2021 |
| Marvel MOFZ*24-SS*1A | R-600a | R-600a (GWP:3 | Lower GWP) | March 22, 2021 |
| Marvel MPFZ*24-IS*1A | R-600a | R-600a (GWP:3 | Lower GWP) | March 22, 2021 |
| Marvel MPFZ*24-SS*1A | R-600a | R-600a (GWP:3 | Lower GWP) | March 22, 2021 |