Top 5 compared
The best mini fridges
Cold drinks, snacks or skincare kept cool on a desk, bedside table or dressing table, without a trip to the kitchen.
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The top 5 at a glance
A mini fridge of this kind is a little box cooler that keeps drinks and snacks cold within reach. There’s no compressor: a Peltier chip, named after the French physicist who described the effect in 1834, moves heat out of the cabinet and a small fan carries it away. So there’s no temperature to set; each cools to a fixed amount below the room, and on a hot day it won’t match the kitchen fridge.
Most also have a warm setting, and they all run from a wall socket, with a 12V car lead or a USB lead for trips. The makers pitch them at drinks, snacks and skincare. Because the cold they give depends on the room, medicines and fresh food belong in the kitchen fridge.
What matters
- A noise figure in decibels, for a bedroom.
- A quiet or ECO mode for night-time.
- Removable shelves and a door pocket for bottles.
#1Subcold Pro10 Mini Fridge (10L)
£50–£75
Roomy at 10 litres: two removable shelves and a door pocket take ten cans, or a mix of tall bottles and snacks. It cools up to 18°C below the room at 35dB, quiet enough for a bedside or a desk.
What owners say: Owners like how quietly it runs and how much it takes for its size, from slim bottles and yoghurts to skincare, and find it easy to carry by the handle.
Heads up: It cools only: unlike the others here there’s no warm setting, so it’s one for drinks and snacks rather than keeping lunch hot.
A closer look: The mains lead runs through a power adapter, so the fridge itself works at 12V, and the same socket takes the car lead for trips. Pull out one shelf to stand taller bottles upright, and keep the door shut as much as possible, since a thermoelectric fridge is slow to win back the cold.
- 2 removable shelves, door pocket
- Runs from mains or car
Best for: Quiet cooling, plenty of room
- Capacity
- 10L, 10 cans
- Cooling
- Up to 18°C below room
- Warm mode
- No
- Noise
- 35dB
- Weight
- 3.7kg
#2FOHERE 15L Mini Fridge (YA-15X)
£50–£75
The big one here at 15 litres, 21 cans or a 4-pint milk carton, with a see-through window to check what’s inside, a removable shelf and door basket, and a handle on top. It cools 10 to 18°C below the room or warms to 55–65°C, with a MAX mode for a fast chill and an ECO mode that turns the fan down once it’s cold.
What owners say: Owners like the size, one fitting a 4-pint milk container, and say it runs quietly and looks smart; the complaints are that it doesn’t always keep things cool and that some broke within a few months.
A closer look: Switch to ECO once the contents are cold: it turns the fan down to run quieter, which suits a bedroom at night. At about 3.7kg it’s easy to carry by the top handle, and FOHERE’s tip for a quick chill is to wrap cans in damp kitchen roll before they go in.
- See-through window
- Fast-chill and quiet ECO modes
- Top carry handle
- Removable shelf and door basket
- Mains and 12V car leads
Best for: Milk cartons as well as cans
- Capacity
- 15L, 21 cans
- Cooling
- 10–18°C below room
- Warm mode
- 55–65°C
- Noise
- –
- Weight
- 3.7kg
#3FOHERE 5L Mini Fridge
£30–£50
A light, simple cooler at 1.8kg, with a magnetic door, a removable shelf and a basket in the door to keep small bottles apart from snacks. FOHERE quotes under 28dB when it’s running, low enough for a bedroom.
What owners say: Owners say it copes in hot weather, one finding it still chills with 30°C outside, and like how light it is to move between rooms or into the car.
A closer look: In warm mode it holds food at the temperature it went in rather than heating it, so put a hot drink or lunch in already warm. Empty the small water tray now and then, as a thermoelectric fridge gathers a little condensation, and wipe the door seal so the magnet closes flat.
- Magnetic door seal
- Removable shelf and door basket
- Removable water tray
- Mains and 12V car leads
Best for: Bedrooms and short car trips
- Capacity
- 5L, 6 cans
- Cooling
- 8–16°C below room
- Warm mode
- Keeps things warm
- Noise
- Under 28dB
- Weight
- 1.8kg
#4Subcold Classic4 Mini Fridge (4L)
£30–£50
Subcold’s simplest cooler: 4 litres, six 330ml cans or two glass pint milk bottles, cooling up to 18°C below the room or warming to 45–65°C at the flick of a switch. It runs from the mains or a USB lead, even a 2-amp power bank.
What owners say: Owners say it keeps drinks nicely chilled, takes two pint bottles of milk, and travels well, festivals included; they’re split on the noise, some finding it near silent and others a little noisy.
A closer look: The USB lead means a power bank or a car’s USB socket can run it, handy in a tent or a caravan where there’s no car-style power socket to hand. Like every fridge here it only cools to a set amount below the air around it, so it does best out of direct sun.
- Runs from a power bank
- Mains and USB leads
Best for: Running from USB
- Capacity
- 4L, 6 cans
- Cooling
- Up to 18°C below room
- Warm mode
- 45–65°C
- Noise
- 28dB
- Weight
- 1.8kg
#5Russell Hobbs Retro Mini Fridge (RH4CLR1001, 4L)
£30–£50
A 1950s-style cooler with curved sides and chrome handles, 25cm tall, so it sits easily on a bedside table. Six 330ml cans fit, it cools 18 to 22°C below the room or warms to about 60°C, and the handle folds down.
What owners say: Owners enjoy the retro styling and find it keeps drinks pleasantly cool, with four 250ml bottles fitting in neatly; opinions split on the noise, and some find it pricey for its size.
A closer look: Its three-way switch reads cold, off and hot, so check it’s set to cold before expecting chilled drinks. Russell Hobbs suggests it for a bedroom, office or caravan, and the 12V lead plugs into a car’s socket for days out, keeping sandwiches cool on the way.
- 1950s style, chrome handles
- 25cm tall
- Folding carry handle
- Cold, off and hot switch
- Mains and 12V car leads
Best for: Fans of 1950s styling
- Capacity
- 4L, 6 cans
- Cooling
- 18–22°C below room
- Warm mode
- About 60°C
- Noise
- 37dB
- Weight
- 2kg
How they compare
Swipe sideways or rotate device to see all 5.
| Feature | #1Subcold Pro10 | #2FOHERE 15L | #3FOHERE 5L | #4Subcold Classic4 | #5Russell Hobbs RH4CLR1001 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Best overall | Biggest capacity | Best budget | |||
| Picked Rating | 9.1 | 8.9 | 8.7 | 8.7 | 8.4 |
| Price | £50–£75 | £50–£75 | £30–£50 | £30–£50 | £30–£50 |
| Capacity | 10L, 10 cans | 15L, 21 cans | 5L, 6 cans | 4L, 6 cans | 4L, 6 cans |
| Cooling | Up to 18°C below room | 10–18°C below room | 8–16°C below room | Up to 18°C below room | 18–22°C below room |
| Warm mode | No | 55–65°C | Keeps things warm | 45–65°C | About 60°C |
| Noise | 35dB | – | Under 28dB | 28dB | 37dB |
| Weight | 3.7kg | 3.7kg | 1.8kg | 1.8kg | 2kg |
| Best for | Quiet cooling, plenty of room | Milk cartons as well as cans | Bedrooms and short car trips | Running from USB | Fans of 1950s styling |
| Buy now | Amazon | Amazon | Amazon | Amazon | Amazon |
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