Model
Ge GDE21EMK****
Rank #822 means 821 of the 1,000 refrigerator models we track cost less to run each year; the 59th efficiency percentile means it uses less energy for its size than 59% of those models.
What does the Ge GDE21EMK**** cost to run per year?
The Ge GDE21EMK**** costs about $106 a year to run, well up the cost table for its class at rank #822 of 1,000. It uses 10% less energy than the U.S. federal standard model in its class, which would cost about $116/yr to run, a saving of roughly $10 a year. Its size-adjusted efficiency percentile of 59 lands in the middle of the pack once capacity is accounted for. This class has no published efficiency-factor figure beyond annual kWh itself, so at 20.9 cu ft (the class spans 1.2 to 31.7), size is the clearest lever we can point to for this model's running cost.
Immediately around it on the leaderboard, the Ge GNE21FYK**** at $106/yr runs a little cheaper and the Lg LF21G6200* at $107/yr runs a little more, a sense of how tightly models are packed at this point in the ranking. A refrigerator typically stays in service for somewhere around 12 years; over that span, the Ge GDE21EMK****'s $106/yr adds up to roughly $1272 in electricity alone, before purchase price or repairs.
By the numbers
The Ge GDE21EMK**** normalized against its whole class, so each figure means something.
What it costs you over time
Running cost is an every-year number, so it compounds. At $106/yr, here is what the Ge GDE21EMK**** adds up to before purchase price, water, or repairs enter the math.
Left running for a decade at today's US average rate, the Ge GDE21EMK**** costs about $1060. That is roughly $100 less than a standard model in its class, which would run closer to $1160 over the same ten years.
How the Ge GDE21EMK**** compares
The refrigerator class we track runs from $8 to $149 a year. At $106/yr, it runs about $42 a year above the class median of $64, and it is about $98 a year more than the cheapest refrigerator to run at $8. Against the US federal standard model for its class at about $116/yr, the Ge GDE21EMK**** uses 10% less energy.
What drives its running cost
At 20.9 cu ft, the Ge GDE21EMK**** is a large refrigerator for its class, which spans 1.2 to 31.7 cu ft with a median of 12.6 cu ft, and larger refrigerator models generally cost more to run than smaller ones in the same class, simply because there is more to keep cold, spin, heat, or light.
- Interior volume. More cubic feet of cold air to maintain generally means a bigger compressor and a higher running-cost figure, even among efficient models.
- Counter depth vs standard depth. Standard-depth models generally offer more interior volume per unit of width than counter-depth models, a tradeoff between built-in looks and cubic feet.
- Compressor technology. How a compressor cycles, full on/off versus a variable-speed inverter design, is one of the biggest hidden differences behind two fridges with similar cubic feet but different running costs.
- Placement and ventilation. Ventilation clearance around the back and top matters more than most owners expect; a fridge starved of airflow runs its compressor longer to hold the same temperature.
Common questions
Is the Ge GDE21EMK**** cheap to run?
Its $106/yr running cost, rank #822 of 1,000, is above what most refrigerator models we track cost to run, so this is not one of the cheaper picks on electricity alone.
How much does the Ge GDE21EMK**** cost per month?
About $8.85 a month, which is the $106 annual estimate spread across twelve months at the US average rate of $0.1856/kWh. Your own bill scales with your local electricity rate and how heavily you use it.
How is this running-cost figure calculated?
The formula is annual kWh times price per kWh: 572 kWh from ENERGY STAR times the US average of $0.1856/kWh comes to about $106 a year. It covers electricity only, not the purchase price, water, or installation.
How efficient is the Ge GDE21EMK**** for its size?
59th percentile once size is factored in. That means its size-adjusted efficiency is a real factor in the running-cost figure above; its capacity plays a large role too.
Cheaper to run in the same class
| Rank | Model | Cost/yr |
|---|---|---|
| 821 | Ge GNE21FYK****20.8 cu ft | $106 |
| 820 | Bosch B36CT82SN*20.8 cu ft | $106 |
| 819 | Bosch B36CT80SN*20.8 cu ft | $106 |
| 818 | Verona VEBFD3620WIFS20.2 cu ft | $106 |
| 817 | Fulgor Milano FM6FBM36SS20.2 cu ft | $106 |
Source
ES_1123206_GDE21EMK****02122016031202_70065123View certified refrigerator listingsENERGY STAR data as of July 2026Ge and GDE21EMK**** are used here for identification only and are not endorsements. Figures are computed by WattWise Labs from public ENERGY STAR data, not measured in our own lab.