The 7 best freezers for stocking up, as tested by Consumer Reports

A freezer that runs warm during a power outage or struggles in a hot garage can spoil everything inside no matter how much room it offers. Chest and upright styles each come with their own tradeoffs in ease of use, noise and organization, so the right pick depends as much on layout preference as on size.

Consumer Reports tested freezers for thermostat performance, temperature uniformity, energy efficiency, power outage resilience and performance in hot environments.

Credit: Appliance TV Outlet

The Insignia NS-CZ70WH0 costs $200 and earned Consumer Reports' top rating among small chest freezers, offering 6.7 cubic feet of usable storage at an annual operating cost of about $45. CR rated thermostat performance and temperature uniformity excellent, with very good scores covering quietness, staying cold through a power outage and holding up in a hot garage, and found it very energy-efficient overall, though some larger chest freezers in this lineup performed even better on that front. Testers gave ease of use a subpar score since the freezer lacks storage dividers and bins. CR did note LED interior lighting and a power-on indicator as useful touches despite the otherwise sparse feature set.

Credit: Insignia

The Insignia NS-CZ10WH6 costs $300 and earned Consumer Reports' recommendation among midsized chest freezers, offering 10 cubic feet of usable storage at an annual operating cost of about $40. CR rated how well it holds temperature, its thermostat and its power draw all excellent, along with strong hot-garage performance, and found food stays safe through a power outage as well. Testers gave ease of use a poor score due to a lack of compartment dividers and interior lighting. CR noted a power-on indicator and tiered bins for organization as the model's main conveniences.

Credit: AJ Madison

The GE FCM16DLWW costs $979 and earned Consumer Reports' recommendation among large chest freezers, offering 15.3 cubic feet of usable storage at an annual operating cost of about $65, measuring 66 inches long. CR gave top marks to its thermostat response, how evenly cold it stays, its power draw and its resilience through outages, and rated it easy to use with strong hot-garage performance as well. Testers noted the freezer runs a bit noisy, though its size makes that a minor concern for many placements away from living spaces. CR pointed to a light indicating power status, an alarm for temperature swings, a lockable door, LED bulbs inside and tiered bins as standout features.

Credit: AJ Madison

The GE FCM22DLWW costs $1,179, pricier than every other freezer in this lineup, and earned Consumer Reports' top rating among extra-large chest freezers, offering 21.3 cubic feet of usable storage at an annual operating cost of about $47, measuring 74 inches long and 33 inches wide. CR found it led its size class by a wide margin, scoring excellent across the board apart from a very good but still quiet noise result. Testers pointed to a light showing power status, an alarm that flags temperature swings, a lockable door, LED bulbs inside, tiered storage bins and compartment dividers as the full feature set. Top scores paired with a generous feature list make it the standout pick among extra-large chest freezers in this lineup.

Credit: Home Depot

The Vissani VSF11US2A16 costs $599 and earned Consumer Reports' top rating among small upright freezers, a Home Depot $HD store-brand model offering 9.6 cubic feet of usable storage at an annual operating cost of about $91. CR rated thermostat performance and temperature uniformity excellent, with very good scores for energy efficiency, power outage resilience and hot-garage performance, self-defrosting automatically to reduce maintenance. Testers found noise levels fell in the middle of the pack compared with other freezers CR has tested, and ease of use rated subpar. CR noted LED interior lighting as the one standout feature on an otherwise sparse model.

Credit: Costco

The Hisense CFU14N6AWE costs $500 and earned Consumer Reports' recommendation among midsized upright freezers, offering 10.7 cubic feet of usable storage at an annual operating cost of about $100. CR rated how evenly it holds cold, its thermostat, its power draw and its hot-garage performance all excellent, with very good scores for noise and ease of use, though power outage performance landed at a midlevel score. Testers noted the self-defrosting feature as a helpful convenience alongside an indicator light for power status, a temperature alarm and a lockable door. CR also highlighted LED interior lighting and a quick-freeze mode rounding out the feature set.

Credit: Hisense

The Hisense CFU21N6AWE costs $899 and earned Consumer Reports' recommendation among large upright freezers, offering 17.6 cubic feet of usable storage at an annual operating cost of about $104. CR found it performed exceptionally well overall, giving top marks to how evenly cold it stays, its thermostat response and its power draw, with very good scores across every other test conducted. Testers pointed to an indicator light for power status, a temperature alarm and a lockable door as core features. CR also noted LED interior lighting and a quick-freeze mode as additional conveniences included on this model.