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The common, but outdated, refrigerant called R-22 is a type of hydrochlorofluorocarbon.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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Avanti OR1533U3S | R-600a | R-600a (GWP:3 | Lower GWP) | May 11, 2022 |
| Avanti OR525U5D | R-600a | R-600a (GWP:3 | Lower GWP) | May 11, 2022 |
| Zline RBIV-30 | R-600a | R-600a (GWP:3 | Lower GWP) | May 9, 2022 |
| FULGOR MILANO, BERTAZZONI, VITARA FM4FBM36FBI | R-600a | R-600a (GWP:3 | Lower GWP) | May 9, 2022 |
| FULGOR MILANO, VITARA, FORTE FM4BM28FBI | R-600a | R-600a (GWP:3 | Lower GWP) | May 9, 2022 |
| FULGOR MILANO, BERTAZZONI, VITARA FM4BM36FBI | R-600a | R-600a (GWP:3 | Lower GWP) | May 9, 2022 |
| FULGOR MILANO, BERTAZZONI, VITARA, FORTE, KUCHT FM4BM36IFBI | R-600a | R-600a (GWP:3 | Lower GWP) | May 9, 2022 |
| FULGOR MILANO, BERTAZZONI, VITARA, FORTE, KUCHT, Zline FM4FBM36IFBI | R-600a | R-600a (GWP:3 | Lower GWP) | May 9, 2022 |
| Bosch B36CD51SN* | R-600a | R-600a (GWP:3 | Lower GWP) | May 1, 2022 |
| Bosch B36CT82EN* | R-600a | R-600a (GWP:3 | Lower GWP) | May 1, 2022 |
| Bosch B36CT82SN* | R-600a | R-600a (GWP:3 | Lower GWP) | May 1, 2022 |
| Bosch B36FD51SN* | R-600a | R-600a (GWP:3 | Lower GWP) | May 1, 2022 |
| LG LRONC1414* | R-600a | R-600a (GWP:3 | Lower GWP) | April 30, 2022 |
| APPLIANCE BASICS CR44CABSDSS | R-600a | R-600a (GWP:3 | Lower GWP) | April 28, 2022 |
| THORKITCHEN TRF3602 | R-600a | R-600a (GWP:3 | Lower GWP) | April 27, 2022 |
| Frigidaire FPRU19F7W* | R-600a | R-600a (GWP:3 | Lower GWP) | April 25, 2022 |
| Signature Kitchen Suite SKSSB4202* | R-600a | R-600a (GWP:3 | Lower GWP) | April 22, 2022 |
| Midea MRM33S9ASL | R-600a | R-600a (GWP:3 | Lower GWP) | April 21, 2022 |
| Arctic King ARW14B0ABB | R-600a | R-600a (GWP:3 | Lower GWP) | April 21, 2022 |
| OMNImax 3760-675 | R-600a | R-600a (GWP:3 | Lower GWP) | April 21, 2022 |
| Midea MRW34S2ABB | R-600a | R-600a (GWP:3 | Lower GWP) | April 20, 2022 |
| Insignia NS-WC14SS3 | R-600a | R-600a (GWP:3 | Lower GWP) | April 19, 2022 |
| Insignia NS-WC29SS3 | R-600a | R-600a (GWP:3 | Lower GWP) | April 19, 2022 |
| Insignia NS-WC29SS3-C | R-600a | R-600a (GWP:3 | Lower GWP) | April 19, 2022 |
| LG LRMXS3006* | R-600a | R-600a (GWP:3 | Lower GWP) | April 15, 2022 |
| LG LRONC0605* | R-600a | R-600a (GWP:3 | Lower GWP) | March 30, 2022 |
| LG LRTNC0705* | R-600a | R-600a (GWP:3 | Lower GWP) | March 30, 2022 |
| Samsung RF30BB6200** | R-600a | R-600a (GWP:3 | Lower GWP) | March 18, 2022 |
| Samsung RF30BB6900** | R-600a | R-600a (GWP:3 | Lower GWP) | March 18, 2022 |
| Samsung RF24BB6200** | R-600a | R-600a (GWP:3 | Lower GWP) | March 18, 2022 |
| Samsung RF24BB6600** | R-600a | R-600a (GWP:3 | Lower GWP) | March 18, 2022 |
| Samsung RF24BB6900** | R-600a | R-600a (GWP:3 | Lower GWP) | March 18, 2022 |
| Emerson Radio Corp CR510VSE* | R-600a | R-600a (GWP:3 | Lower GWP) | March 18, 2022 |
| COSMO COS-FDR225RHSS | R-600a | R-600a (GWP:3 | Lower GWP) | March 18, 2022 |
| Samsung RF30BB6600** | R-600a | R-600a (GWP:3 | Lower GWP) | March 11, 2022 |
| COSMO COS-FDR225RHSS-G | R-600a | R-600a (GWP:3 | Lower GWP) | March 10, 2022 |
| Avanti OR543U3S | R-600a | R-600a (GWP:3 | Lower GWP) | March 9, 2022 |
| JennAir JBBFX22NMX | R-600a | R-600a (GWP:3 | Lower GWP) | March 2, 2022 |
| KitchenAid KBBX102MPA | R-600a | R-600a (GWP:3 | Lower GWP) | March 2, 2022 |
| Frigidaire GRMC2273C* | R-600a | R-600a (GWP:3 | Lower GWP) | March 1, 2022 |
Lowest GWP Freezers
| Model | Refrigerant Type | GWP | Inital Sale Date |
|---|---|---|---|
| LG LROFC1114* | R-600a | R-600a (GWP:3 | Lower GWP) | April 30, 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 |
| Samsung RZ11T7474** | R-600a | R-600a (GWP:3 | Lower GWP) | March 19, 2021 |
| Kenmore K*FU021A**# | R-600a | R-600a (GWP:3 | Lower GWP) | March 10, 2021 |
| WINIA W*FU021A*E# | R-600a | R-600a (GWP:3 | Lower GWP) | March 10, 2021 |
| Bosch B18IF905SP | R-600a | R-600a (GWP:3 | Lower GWP) | October 1, 2020 |
| Gaggenau RF411705 | R-600a | R-600a (GWP:3 | Lower GWP) | October 1, 2020 |
| Gaggenau RF461705 | R-600a | R-600a (GWP:3 | Lower GWP) | October 1, 2020 |
| Gaggenau RF463706 | R-600a | R-600a (GWP:3 | Lower GWP) | October 1, 2020 |
| Gaggenau RF471705 | R-600a | R-600a (GWP:3 | Lower GWP) | October 1, 2020 |