HomeWhat size power station you need for a refrigerator
A 2,048 Wh power station runs Whirlpool's 21 cu ft top-freezer fridge for 26 hours, and a 1,024 Wh station runs it for 14 hours. The station's peak rating also has to cover the compressor's start: about 1,300 W for a 27 cu ft Whirlpool fridge, from its tech sheet.
Battery size you need, rated capacity
1,965Wh
Counts 82% of a battery's rated capacity as usable and adds the inverter's own draw while anything runs on AC: the formula in Jackery's runtime calculator. How the maths works
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Its 2,048 Wh runs the fridge, router, light and phone charges in the tool above for 1.04 days, its 4,000 W peak is above the 1,300 W compressor start, and it expands to 4,096 Wh.
At 23.8 lb it is the lightest station here with a peak (3,000 W) above the 1,300 W compressor start. Its 1,070 Wh runs a top-freezer fridge for 15 hours and covers 57% of the day in the tool above.
It is the only 1 kWh class station here that runs a 3.2 cu ft mini fridge for a full day (25 hours). Its 2,700 W peak is above the 1,300 W compressor start, and it covers 61% of the day in the tool above.
Its 4,096 Wh runs the list in the tool for 2.08 days and a French door fridge for 38 hours, and it expands to 12,000 Wh with two EcoFlow extra batteries.
A fridge's compressor switches on and off, so one fridge has three watt figures. The average decides how long a battery lasts. The start-up figure decides whether the station can start the fridge at all.
For the other household fridges and freezers on this page, this site has no running or start-up figure, so it works from their yearly energy use on ENERGY STAR. Whirlpool's 21.3 cu ft WRT541SZD top-freezer fridge uses 399 kWh a year (45.5 W on average) and the 25.2 cu ft WRF535SWH French door fridge 615 kWh (70.2 W). The average already counts the compressor's off time and defrost, so the runtimes use it for all 24 hours.
The EnergyGuide label on your fridge gives its estimated yearly electricity use in kWh. If the label is gone, look up the model number in the ENERGY STAR product finder, which lists Annual Energy Use in kWh/yr for certified models. Then work out two numbers:
Do not size from the nameplate sticker. Its amps times volts is a maximum rating, not the running draw: Whirlpool's spec sheet gives 6.5 A at 115 V for the WRT541SZD, which is 747.5 VA, against its 45.5 W average. The full method is on how we calculate runtime.
One appliance at a time, from the makers' own figures, counting 82% of each battery as usable plus the inverter's own draw (method).
| Model | Capacity | Top freezer, 21 cu ft46 W | French door, 25 cu ft70 W | 27 cu ft, start-up checked42 W | Mini fridge, 3.2 cu ft23 W | Chest freezer, 7 cu ft26 W |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| EcoFlow RIVER 3 Plus | 286 Wh | 4.2 hours | 2.9 hours | Start-up too high | 7.2 hours | 6.6 hours |
| Anker SOLIX C300 | 288 Wh | 4.3 hours | 2.9 hours | Start-up too high | 7.3 hours | 6.6 hours |
| BLUETTI Elite 30 V2 | 288 Wh | 4.3 hours | 2.9 hours | Start-up too high | 7.3 hours | 6.6 hours |
| Jackery Explorer 300 | 293.8 Wh | 4.3 hours | 3.0 hours | Start-up too high | 7.4 hours | 6.7 hours |
| BLUETTI Elite 100 mini | 1,004.8 Wh | 14 hours | 9.7 hours | Start-up too high | 22 hours | 20 hours |
| EcoFlow DELTA 3 Classic | 1,024 Wh | 14 hours | 9.9 hours | 15 hours | 22 hours | 21 hours |
| EcoFlow DELTA 3 | 1,024 Wh | 14 hours | 9.9 hours | 15 hours | 22 hours | 21 hours |
| EcoFlow DELTA 3 Plus | 1,024 Wh | 14 hours | 9.9 hours | 15 hours | 22 hours | 21 hours |
| Anker SOLIX C1000 Gen 2 | 1,024 Wh | 14 hours | 9.9 hours | 15 hours | 22 hours | 21 hours |
| BLUETTI Elite 100 V2 | 1,024 Wh | 14 hours | 9.9 hours | 15 hours | 22 hours | 21 hours |
| DJI Power 1000 V2 | 1,024 Wh | 14 hours | 9.9 hours | 15 hours | 22 hours | 21 hours |
| FOSSiBOT F1800 | 1,024 Wh | 14 hours | 9.9 hours | 15 hours | 22 hours | 21 hours |
| Dabbsson DBS1000 Pro | 1,024 Wh | 14 hours | 9.9 hours | 15 hours | 22 hours | 21 hours |
| Jackery Explorer 1000 v2 | 1,070 Wh | 15 hours | 10 hours | 15 hours | 23 hours | 22 hours |
| BLUETTI AC180 | 1,152 Wh | 16 hours | 11 hours | 17 hours | 25 hours | 23 hours |
| Jackery Explorer 1500 v2 | 1,536 Wh | 20 hours | 14 hours | 21 hours | 31 hours | 29 hours |
| Jackery Explorer 2000 v2 | 2,042 Wh | 26 hours | 19 hours | 28 hours | 41 hours | 38 hours |
| EcoFlow DELTA 3 Max | 2,048 Wh | 26 hours | 19 hours | 28 hours | 41 hours | 38 hours |
| Anker SOLIX C2000 Gen 2 | 2,048 Wh | 26 hours | 19 hours | 28 hours | 41 hours | 38 hours |
| DJI Power 2000 | 2,048 Wh | 26 hours | 19 hours | 28 hours | 41 hours | 38 hours |
| FOSSiBOT F2400 | 2,048 Wh | 26 hours | 19 hours | 28 hours | 41 hours | 38 hours |
| BLUETTI Elite 200 V2 | 2,073.6 Wh | 27 hours | 19 hours | 28 hours | 42 hours | 39 hours |
| Dabbsson DBS2300 Plus | 2,330 Wh | 30 hours | 22 hours | 32 hours | 47 hours | 44 hours |
| Anker SOLIX F3800 Plus | 3,840 Wh | 2.1 days | 36 hours | 2.2 days | 3.2 days | 3.0 days |
| EcoFlow DELTA Pro 3 | 4,096 Wh | 2.2 days | 38 hours | 2.3 days | 3.5 days | 3.2 days |
A power station has two power limits. Its continuous output has to cover the running draw, and its peak (surge) rating has to cover the moment the compressor starts. Whirlpool's 27 cu ft fridge draws 90 to 110 W while running, which is under every model's continuous output, so the start is what rules some models out.
These models are below the fridge's 1,300 W start-up figure, so the table shows "Start-up too high" in its 27 cu ft column:
Every other model has at least 1,800 W of peak, or of continuous output where the maker publishes no peak. The other columns show hours even for the small models because this site has no start-up figure for those fridges and freezers, so the table cannot check them. If your fridge's tech sheet lists a locked-rotor current, multiply it by 115 V and compare the result with the station's peak.
The table covers the 7 cu ft chest freezer. Here are two larger freezers on a 1,024 Wh station and on a 2,048 Wh station:
Both chest freezers are manual defrost; the upright has automatic defrost.
If you run a fridge and a freezer from one station, the inverter's draw is counted once. A 21 cu ft top-freezer fridge and a 7 cu ft chest freezer use 2,141 Wh in 24 hours, so a full day of both needs a station rated at 2,611 Wh:
To run a freezer by itself for 24 hours, a 7 cu ft chest freezer needs a station rated at 1,191 Wh and the 20 cu ft upright 1,943 Wh.
The tool at the top of this page starts with this list: the 27 cu ft Whirlpool fridge for 24 hours, an eero 6+ Wi-Fi router for 24 hours, one 8 W LED bulb for 5 hours and two phone charges.
A 1,024 Wh station covers 55% of that day and the 1,536 Wh Jackery Explorer 1500 v2 covers 78%. The 2,042 and 2,048 Wh models last 1.04 days, the 2,330 Wh Dabbsson DBS2300 Plus 1.19 days and the 4,096 Wh EcoFlow DELTA Pro 3 2.08 days.
Change the hours in the tool to match your own day. For more appliances and longer outages, see power stations for home backup.
With a UPS function, the fridge stays plugged into the station while the station is plugged into the wall. When grid power fails, the station switches the fridge to battery (within 10 ms on the Anker SOLIX C2000 Gen 2).
Plug the fridge straight into the station's AC outlet, and never back-feed a house through a wall outlet. The price per Wh table sorts every model by price per Wh.
Yes. The Jackery Explorer 1000 v2 has 1,070 Wh and a 3,000 W peak, above the 1,300 W start-up figure from Whirlpool's tech sheet for its 27 cu ft fridge, and it runs a 21 cu ft top-freezer fridge for 15 hours. For a full day, the 2,042 Wh Explorer 2000 v2 runs the same fridge for 26 hours.
Yes for power: Whirlpool's 27 cu ft fridge draws 90 to 110 W while running and about 1,300 W at start-up, both under 2,000 W. The hours depend on watt-hours: the 2,000 W Anker SOLIX C1000 Gen 2 (1,024 Wh) runs a top-freezer fridge for 14 hours and the 2,000 W Jackery Explorer 1500 v2 (1,536 Wh) for 20 hours.
Not the 27 cu ft Whirlpool fridge: the Anker SOLIX C300 (300 W, no published peak) and Jackery Explorer 300 (500 W peak) are below its 1,300 W start-up figure. They would run a 3.2 cu ft mini fridge for 7.3 to 7.4 hours if it starts, but this site has no start-up figure for it. A 12 V compressor fridge such as the Dometic CFX3 35 runs 20 hours from their 12 V socket.
ENERGY STAR lists Whirlpool's 21.3 cu ft WRT541SZD top-freezer fridge at 399 kWh a year, an average of 45.5 W, and the 25.2 cu ft WRF535SWH French door fridge at 615 kWh a year, 70.2 W. While the compressor runs, Whirlpool's tech sheet for a 27 cu ft fridge gives 90 to 110 W, and about 1,300 W at start-up.
A 21 cu ft top-freezer fridge and a 7 cu ft chest freezer use 2,141 Wh in 24 hours, inverter included, so a full day needs a station rated at 2,611 Wh. A 2,048 Wh station covers 78% of that day; the 3,840 Wh Anker SOLIX F3800 Plus lasts 1.47 days and the 4,096 Wh EcoFlow DELTA Pro 3 1.57 days.
Yes. A 12 V compressor fridge runs from the station's 12 V car socket and skips the inverter: Dometic lists the CFX3 35 at 0.98 Ah per hour at 12 V in a 90 F room, 11.8 W on average. A 1,024 Wh station with a 12 V socket, such as the EcoFlow DELTA 3 Plus, runs it for 3.0 days.
Specifications are the makers' own published figures, read from these pages. Prices are fetched from the stores at build time and dated where they appear.