Finding accurate reliability statistics
on appliances is incredibly difficult, if not impossible.
In this video, you'll learn about the ten best brands for reliability based on sales
data on over 39,151 service calls logged by our service team just last year.
These tests may not predict your new refrigerator will be working flawlessly,
but the odds will certainly be better. In the end,
I'll give you a tip as important as reliability.
You want to use this video as a resource to compare similar companies
with equivalent products like, say, Bosch vs KitchenAid or LG vs GE.
Then you want to look at the best of each
category, like dishwashers, washers and refridgerators, while those individual
reliability videos published in the next few weeks.
Now let's look at the most reliable appliance brands for 2023.
This is important. We calculate appliance reliability
by dividing the products we service by the products we sold.
Whenever a service technician is sent to your home, that counts as a service call.
One of the benefits of having a huge
service department is data collection. We'll be in 130-150 homes today, fixing
appliances less than a year old and under warranty.
This is the only service data you'll find
on the Internet based on how appliances
work in homes like yours, not in lab tests.
KitchenAid dishwashers are well-featured and reliable.
And where the single most reliable appliance we sold last year just 0.4%
repair. The other appliances, however, especially the refrigerators and stoves,
may need an update for features and reliability.
My mom had a KitchenAid dishwasher growing up, but I still like the brand.
It's hard to believe any company selling mostly built-in refrigerators, Pro ranges,
wall ovens, steam ovens and cooktops can be on this list.
But Thermador's reliability improved
dramatically when Bosch bought the company in the late 1990s.
GE Appliance's service rate reflects mostly
laundry, some cooking and French door refrigerators.
Interestingly, the more feature oriented and expensive GE profile line,
of refrigerators and stoves, is their most reliable.
Gaggenau is the exclusive cooking line from Bosch.
It is German-engineered and manufactured in France.
You can do anything with a Gaggenau appliance.
Their coffee system has 34 different
automatic programs for different coffee drinks.
Additionally, Gaggenau ovens have more modes
and ways to cook than any other brand.
You can even control the percentage of steam in their steam ovens.
At 9.4% the reliability is surprisingly good
for having high tech, harder to install appliances.
SKS is a sub-brand under LG.
SKS features the high-end appliances like
Pro ranges and Integrated refrigerators, along with their best panel ready
dishwashers and French door refrigerators.
Their dishwasher, laundry and wall oven
categories are excellent, when you can buy them.
For most of last year,
Miele's only available dishwasher was their $4,250 Pro line.
Miele's appliances are incredibly
sophisticated with 110 volt heat pump dryers, advanced washers, dishwashers
with automatic dispensers, and cooking appliances with menu-driven controls.
Miele manufactures more of the components than anyone else in this list.
They do not make them like they used to,
except with Speed Queen where they make them exactly like they used to.
I wrote that last year and still like it.
Speak Queen manufactures top load washers in a factory
also producing commercial laundry mat equipment.
The dishwashers are reliable at about 6.5% service, but the refrigerators, stoves,
wall ovens and stovetops are also popular.
We only sold Maytag's most basic laundry set without advanced features in 2022.
The automatic dispensers had issues in previous years.
Still, their laundry is decent.
LG Studio is a sub brand of LG.
Compared to LG's appliances, LG Studios have more advanced features
in all categories like washers, dryers, ranges, wall ovens and refrigeration.
GE Profile is GE's upscale refrigerator, dishwasher, cooking line.
We separated GE Profile from Cafe Appliances,
their most feature line, which rank just out of the top ten for reliability.
I thought their less featured GE line would
be their most reliable, but that number includes their laundry units as well.
LG is number one for the second straight year, and it's surprising because
their French store refrigerators are their most popular appliance
sold at Yale. Refrigerators, especially French doors with external
dispensers have been problematic in the past.
LG settled a class action lawsuit in 2019
about their inverter compressors and refrigerator problems.
Over the last few years,
LG refrigerators have been more reliable than any other brand.
We also sold a mix of ranges, washers,
dishwashers and dryers, all with advanced features. Kind of like Miele,
LG manufactures their core components like motors and compressors in house,
rather than outsourcing their components like most other companies.
Our service rates are probably much lower than national average.
Many service problems are veiled as delivery and installation issues.
For example, if you're in California
buying off the Internet from a retailer in New York that appliance will travel a long
distance through many people and warehouses.
Chances of damage and service related problems increase greatly.
Lastly, the shortage of skilled labor has
affected delivery, but especially skilled installers.
Water leaks and other problems, attributed to
appliances, often start from installation. Once again, and I know I say this a lot,
check store views before you buy any appliance.
Make sure you never sign for less than perfect appliance and installation.
Better yet download our Free Appliance Delivery Checklist to help you.
We'll have it linked in the video description.
If you buy a whole kitchen, there's a chance you'll need service.
Bosch, Thermador and GE's lines have the best
Technician support parts availability, at least in Boston.
Your are could be different.
Most appliance brands, unlike automobile manufacturers, offer minimal service.
Finding competent service should be part
of your buying decision, along with price, installation and delivery.
These reliability rates are a good start.
But remember, no brand can guarantee 20 years of service free life.
Click the link to download our free appliance buying guide.
We all know someone who's been talked into buying the wrong appliance.
Don't let that happen to you.
Over 1 million people have found the right answers in a Yale guide.
Thanks for watching.