Undercounter Fridges

The decision splits four ways: where it goes, how it installs, how big it needs to be, and how loud you can live with. Get those right and the rest is finish and brand. Read More...

Measure first. UK worktops sit at around 90 cm, so undercounter cabinets are built for an 82 to 88 cm niche, with widths of 55 to 60 cm and depths of around 55 cm. Leave a couple of centimetres at the back for the condenser and a few millimetres of clearance at the sides so the door can swing without catching the cabinetry. If the gap is shallower than a standard cabinet, integrated may be the only option that lines up flush with the run.

Freestanding is the simpler buy. You slide it into the gap, plug it in, and replace it the same way years later. The carcass shows, so the finish matters. Integrated sits behind a cupboard door fixed to the front of the fridge, so the kitchen reads as one continuous run. It costs more, the door panel has to match the rest of the cabinetry, and swapping it later means matching dimensions exactly. Use the Installation type filter to split the grid in one click.

Stock on this set runs from compact cabinets around 70 L up to roughly 145 L. Two practical bands cover most kitchens. A 70 to 100 L cabinet suits one or two people, a utility room, a home office or a garden annexe. It will hold a few days of fresh food, milk and a couple of bottles, not a full weekly shop. A 105 to 145 L cabinet is the sweet spot if this is your only fridge for a couple or a small family, with room for a tray of meat, a few tall bottles and a salad drawer. If you'll do a big weekly shop and freeze a lot, an undercounter fridge probably isn't the right format on its own.

A larder undercounter fridge has no freezer compartment, so the whole cabinet is chilled with full-width shelves and a crisper drawer. A model with an ice box trades a slice of fridge space for a small frozen compartment, useful for ice cubes, a bag of peas, a couple of ready meals. If you already have a separate freezer, go larder for the extra usable space. If this is your only cold storage, the ice box earns its keep.

White is the default and the volume choice on this set, fine against most cabinetry and chrome handles. Silver reads as stainless and lifts a darker run. Black suits matt or graphite kitchens and hides marks better than gloss white. Grey is the rarer middle ground. Filter by Colour if the finish is doing visual work in the room rather than hiding behind a panel.

If the fridge will live in an open-plan kitchen or near a sofa, the dB rating matters more than the spec sheet suggests. Anything in the mid-30s dB is genuinely quiet, you'll hear the room before you hear the fridge. Low 40s dB is fine in a closed kitchen or utility room but starts to register in a quiet living space. Sort the grid by Noise (max) to put the quieter cabinets at the top.

Brands you'll typically see on this set include Liebherr, Bosch, Hotpoint, Indesit, Hisense, Iceking, Fridgemaster, Candy, Hoover and Midea. Liebherr and Bosch sit at the premium end, with the longest warranties and the lowest noise figures. Hotpoint and Indesit are the volume mid-market with broad spares networks. Iceking, Fridgemaster, Hisense, Candy, Hoover and Midea cover the value end. Use the Brand filter to narrow down once you've fixed your size and finish.

Headline drops on undercounter fridges tend to cluster around Black Friday, Boxing Day and the January sales, with smaller dips around Amazon Prime Day. If you're not in a rush, sort by Best Deals or Price: Low - High and watch the grid through one of those windows.