Model
Whirlpool WRF535SWH*
Rank #877 means 876 of the 1,000 refrigerator models we track cost less to run each year; the 77th efficiency percentile means it uses less energy for its size than 77% of those models.
What does the Whirlpool WRF535SWH* cost to run per year?
The Whirlpool WRF535SWH* costs about $114 a year to run, well up the cost table for its class at rank #877 of 1,000. It uses 10% less energy than the U.S. federal standard model in its class, which would cost about $125/yr to run, a saving of roughly $11 a year. Size-adjusted, this model beats 77% of refrigerator models we track on efficiency, better than most of its class. This class has no published efficiency-factor figure beyond annual kWh itself, so at 25.2 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 Maytag MRFF4236R* at $114/yr runs a little cheaper and the Samsung RF23BB8900** at $115/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 Whirlpool WRF535SWH*'s $114/yr adds up to roughly $1368 in electricity alone, before purchase price or repairs.
Also sold as: Kitchenaid KRFF136SP***.
By the numbers
The Whirlpool WRF535SWH* 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 $114/yr, here is what the Whirlpool WRF535SWH* adds up to before purchase price, water, or repairs enter the math.
Left running for a decade at today's US average rate, the Whirlpool WRF535SWH* costs about $1140. That is roughly $110 less than a standard model in its class, which would run closer to $1250 over the same ten years.
How the Whirlpool WRF535SWH* compares
The refrigerator class we track runs from $8 to $149 a year. At $114/yr, it runs about $50 a year above the class median of $64, and it is about $106 a year more than the cheapest refrigerator to run at $8. Against the US federal standard model for its class at about $125/yr, the Whirlpool WRF535SWH* uses 10% less energy.
What drives its running cost
At 25.2 cu ft, the Whirlpool WRF535SWH* is a large refrigerator for its class, which spans 1.2 to 31.7 cu ft with a median of 12.6 cu ft, among refrigerator models, bigger capacity is the most common reason a running-cost figure lands on the high side, all else being equal.
- 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 Whirlpool WRF535SWH* cheap to run?
Its $114/yr running cost, rank #877 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 Whirlpool WRF535SWH* cost per month?
About $9.51 a month, which is the $114 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: 615 kWh from ENERGY STAR times the US average of $0.1856/kWh comes to about $114 a year. It covers electricity only, not the purchase price, water, or installation.
How efficient is the Whirlpool WRF535SWH* for its size?
77th 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
Source
ES_0022856_WRF535SWH*_03102017122955_70127081View certified refrigerator listingsENERGY STAR data as of July 2026Whirlpool and WRF535SWH* 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.