American fridges come in two layouts: French-door, with two refrigerator doors at the top and a freezer drawer at the bottom, and side-by-side, where the fridge and freezer are positioned side by side over the full height. They are the same size on the outside, but in day-to-day use they differ considerably.
The difference in a single paragraph
With a French-door fridge, you open two narrow doors to reveal a single wide fridge compartment at eye level. The freezer compartment is at the bottom, in a drawer. With a side-by-side fridge, you have a tall, narrow freezer on the left and a tall, narrow fridge on the right, both running from top to bottom.
The rule of thumb: choose a French-door fridge if you mainly refrigerate, and a side-by-side if you freeze a lot.
What they require from your kitchen
In our range, all French-door models are 83 cm wide and 190 cm high. The side-by-side models range from 83 to 91 cm wide and 176 to 190 cm high. A side-by-side model may therefore be wider — make sure you measure your recess carefully.
More important than the fridge itself is the space in front of it. Both types have two narrow doors instead of one wide one, and that makes a difference: you need less clearance than with an 80 cm single-door fridge. In a narrow kitchen, this is often the deciding factor.
With French-door fridges, do bear in mind the freezer drawer: it slides out forwards. If there’s a kitchen island directly opposite, check whether the drawer can open fully.
Freezers: this is where the real difference lies
A side-by-side fridge gives you a freezer at eye level with shelves. You can see what you’ve got and reach for it whilst standing. That’s handy if you freeze a lot or keep a stock of food.
A freezer drawer in a French-door fridge usually offers slightly less freezer space and you have to bend down. On the other hand, a drawer makes better use of the space: you can stack items rather than having packs disappear to the back.
Refrigeration: the French-door model wins here
The wide fridge compartment of a French-door fridge can accommodate items that won’t fit in a narrow side-by-side: a serving dish, a cake tin, a large oven dish. Anyone who regularly cooks for more people notices that difference every week.
In a side-by-side fridge, each compartment is about 40 cm wide. A party platter simply won’t fit in there.
Price and energy
French-door: 6 models ranging from 449 to 799 euros. Side-by-side: 34 models ranging from 467 to 999 euros. So there’s a much wider choice with side-by-side models.
All models in both groups feNo Frost, so there’s never any need to defrost. The energy efficiency ratings in this segment are D and E; a fridge of this size with No Frost rarely scores lower.
In summary
- French door — wide fridge compartment at eye level, freezer compartment in a drawer. Choose this if you mainly refrigerate food and need space for large dishes. All models are 83 cm wide.
- Side-by-side — full-size freezer at eye level, narrower compartments. Choose this if you do a lot of freezing. 83 to 91 cm wide, wider choice.
- Both have two narrow doors, so they require less space to open than a single wide door.
- Both are ‘No Frost’; expect energy efficiency class D or E.
