Every cooler gets a score from 0 to 100% built from five factors, which maps onto the 5-point rating shown on the site (a 0% score would be 1.5 stars; a perfect score, 5). Each factor is scored against fixed reference points, not against the other products in the list, so adding a new model never moves another model’s rating. Coolers are grouped by what they are built to hold (wine, beverages, or both) and use the same factors in every group, with a different price scale for each. Units the maker rates for outdoor use form a fourth group; they use the same five factors and weights, but value, temperature range and features are measured differently, as described under each factor.
| Factor | Measures | Weight |
|---|---|---|
| Value | price per bottle or can of capacity (per cubic foot outdoors) | 35% |
| Temperature range | how wide a span of temperatures you can set (outdoors: how cold it gets and how much heat it is rated for) | 15% |
| Noise | the maker's noise figure | 10% |
| Warranty | the maker's warranty | 15% |
| Features | compressor cooling, key lock, reversible door, built-in installation and dual zone (outdoors: outdoor listing, stainless grade, lock, built-in, door and water resistance) | 25% |
Where the numbers come from
Capacity, temperature range, zone count, noise, dimensions, weight, lock, door and warranty come from the maker’s spec page, spec sheet or manual: Whynter’s product pages, NewAir’s product pages, Kalamera’s product pages, Wine Enthusiast’s product pages and Black+Decker’s product page, and for outdoor units Blaze’s manuals, Zephyr’s spec sheet and the Summit, Whynter and Bull product pages. Several outdoor makers publish specs only in their Amazon listing copy, and those figures are used and noted as such on the product page. Prices are Amazon prices for a new item. Anything a maker doesn’t publish is left blank rather than estimated. Where a maker’s own pages disagree, the product page figure is used and the product page says so; where they can’t be reconciled, as with a few capacities and weights, the figure is left blank.
The factors
Value (35%) is the current price divided by the number of storage slots the maker states, on a log scale, so halving the price per slot always counts the same. A slot is a bottle in a wine cooler, a can in a beverage cooler, and a bottle or a can in a combination cooler. Wine coolers score zero at $40 per bottle and full marks at $6; beverage coolers score zero at $6 per can and full marks at $1; combination coolers score zero at $14 per slot and full marks at $3. Outdoor units are scored on price per cubic foot of interior instead, since many are food refrigerators that don’t quote a can count: zero at $600 per cu ft and full marks at $100.
Temperature range (15%) is the width of the temperature span you can set, from the lowest to the highest setting across zones. A 20 F span scores zero and a 40 F span full marks. A cooler that can hold a cold zone near 37 F and a cellar zone near 66 F scores highest. A cooler whose maker gives no range is marked estimated. For outdoor units this factor is instead the average of two halves: the coldest setting, from 40 F (zero) to 32 F (full marks), and the highest ambient temperature the maker rates the unit for, from 90 F (zero) to 110 F (full marks). A half the maker doesn’t publish counts as the neutral middle and is marked estimated.
Noise (10%) is the maker’s noise rating, scored from 46 dB (zero) down to 34 dB (full marks). Noise is the maker’s rating, not a measurement. A maker with no published figure is marked estimated.
Warranty (15%) is the maker’s warranty: 1 year scores zero and 3 years full marks. A cooler with no published warranty scores zero and is marked estimated. Wine Enthusiast’s three extra years on the sealed system are noted but only the parts-and-labor year is scored.
Features (25%) adds compressor cooling (30%), a key lock (20%), a reversible door (20%), installation under a counter, which needs front venting (15%), and dual zone (15%). A feature the maker doesn’t state counts as missing and is marked estimated.
Outdoor units score features differently: an outdoor listing from a safety agency such as UL, ETL or CSA (30%), or the maker’s own statement that the unit is built for outdoor use (10%) where there is no listing; 304 or 316 stainless steel (20%); a key lock (15%); installation under a counter (15%); a reversible door (10%); and a water-resistance rating such as IPX4 (10%). An unstated stainless grade, lock, installation or door is marked estimated. A general ETL or UL safety certification that doesn’t say outdoor use counts as the maker’s statement, not a listing. Drawer units have no door to reverse.
What isn’t scored
Capacity, width, weight and glass type are listed but not scored, apart from capacity through price per slot (per cubic foot outdoors). The lowest ambient temperature an outdoor unit is rated for is listed but not scored. Capacity counts depend on bottle and can shape, and the makers’ numbers aren’t comparable one for one. No independent noise or temperature testing has been published for these models.
Missing data
If a figure isn’t published, that factor gets the neutral middle score (50) and the product page marks it as estimated. The exception is warranty: a maker that doesn’t publish one gets no warranty counted, so that factor scores zero and is marked estimated.
What isn’t ranked
Mini fridges with a freezer compartment, commercial display merchandisers wider than 30 inches, kegerators, ice makers and indoor drawer-style units aren’t ranked (outdoor drawer units are), and neither are tall thermoelectric wine towers. Coolers with no maker spec page or manual are held back until one turns up.
Ties and discontinued models
Products are ranked by score within each group. Discontinued models stay listed but rank below every current model and can be hidden with the “Hide discontinued” filter.