Model
Miele KF 2981 SF
Rank #836 means 835 of the 1,000 refrigerator models we track cost less to run each year; the 47th efficiency percentile means it uses less energy for its size than 47% of those models.
What does the Miele KF 2981 SF cost to run per year?
The Miele KF 2981 SF holds rank #836 of 1,000 on running cost, at about $109 a year, a genuinely pricey result for the class. It uses 11% less energy than the U.S. federal standard model in its class, which would cost about $120/yr to run, a saving of roughly $11 a year. Size-adjusted, this model sits close to the class median on efficiency, ahead of 47% of refrigerator models we track. This class has no published efficiency-factor figure beyond annual kWh itself, so at 19.5 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 Kitchenaid KRFF302E**** at $109/yr runs a little cheaper and the Samsung RF22A4121** at $109/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 Miele KF 2981 SF's $109/yr adds up to roughly $1308 in electricity alone, before purchase price or repairs.
By the numbers
The Miele KF 2981 SF 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 $109/yr, here is what the Miele KF 2981 SF adds up to before purchase price, water, or repairs enter the math.
Left running for a decade at today's US average rate, the Miele KF 2981 SF costs about $1090. That is roughly $110 less than a standard model in its class, which would run closer to $1200 over the same ten years.
How the Miele KF 2981 SF compares
The refrigerator class we track runs from $8 to $149 a year. At $109/yr, it runs about $45 a year above the class median of $64, and it is about $101 a year more than the cheapest refrigerator to run at $8. Against the US federal standard model for its class at about $120/yr, the Miele KF 2981 SF uses 11% less energy.
What drives its running cost
At 19.5 cu ft, the Miele KF 2981 SF is a large refrigerator for its class, which spans 1.2 to 31.7 cu ft with a median of 12.6 cu ft, size is usually the single biggest lever behind a running-cost figure, and at this end of the range there is more capacity to service, which tends to push the number up.
- 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 Miele KF 2981 SF cheap to run?
Its $109/yr running cost, rank #836 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 Miele KF 2981 SF cost per month?
About $9.05 a month, which is the $109 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: 585 kWh from ENERGY STAR times the US average of $0.1856/kWh comes to about $109 a year. It covers electricity only, not the purchase price, water, or installation.
How efficient is the Miele KF 2981 SF for its size?
47th percentile once size is factored in. That means its size-adjusted efficiency is not the main reason for the running-cost figure above; its capacity plays a large role too.
Cheaper to run in the same class
Source
ES_0031629_KF 2981 SF_02072019040259_70207296View certified refrigerator listingsENERGY STAR data as of July 2026Miele and KF 2981 SF 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.