What temperature should your fridge and freezer be?

Have you ever opened your fridge and grabbed something from the back that was frozen solid? You might have wondered why some items stay cool-ish while others turn into a block of ice. The main job of your fridge and freezer is to keep your perishables fresh for longer. But just tossing everything inside and closing the door isn’t enough.

In this guide, you’ll learn why fridge temperature matters, the best spots for different foods, and the ideal settings for your fridge and freezer.

What’s the ideal temperature to keep food fresh?

Keeping your food free from bacteria is the biggest reason to keep your fridge and freezer at the right temperature.

Health Canada recommends keeping your fridge at 4°C (40°F) or colder and your freezer at -18°C (0°F) or lower. At that temperature, bacteria growth can be slowed down.

Anything warmer than this puts food in the “danger zone”—between 4°C (40°F) and 60°C (140°F)—where bacteria can multiply quickly.

What’s the best placement for food in a fridge and freezer?

It’s a great feeling when your fridge and freezer are packed full of food. It means you don’t have to go shopping anytime soon and you have enough food to cook and eat. Having a full fridge also means it will be better at maintaining its temperature.

A full fridge actually helps keep food cold. But if you pack it too tightly or place items in the wrong spots, you can block the airflow. Without proper airflow, temperatures become uneven. That’s why it’s important to know where different foods should go in your fridge and freezer.

What foods should be placed in the door of your fridge?

The fridge door is the warmest part of the appliance. It’s not the best place for highly perishable foods. That includes raw chicken, leftovers, and dairy products. Even if your refrigerator has a handy egg compartment on the door, eggs do best when stored on an interior shelf.

Keep your condiments in the door of your fridge. BBQ sauce, jam, mustard, ketchup, and canned drinks all do well when placed in the door.

What should you store on the upper shelves of your fridge?

The upper shelves usually have the most consistent temperature. Store foods here that don’t need to be cooked. This includes milk, butter, yogurt, and other dairy products. It’s also a good spot for pre-cooked meats and other ready-to-eat foods.

What should you store on the bottom shelf of your fridge?

While the top shelves maintain a better consistent temperature than anywhere else in your fridge, the bottom shelves are the coldest. This is the prime spot to store raw chicken or other meat, eggs, and seafood.

What should you store in the crisper drawers?

The crisper drawers are where you store fruits and vegetables. The key thing to keep in mind when placing these foods in the crisper drawers is that they should be kept separate. Some types of fruit emit ethylene gas, and that can make your vegetables go bad a lot faster than if they were in a separate compartment.

Types of fruit that emit ethylene gas include plums, bananas, nectarines, peaches, pears, tomatoes, and avocados.

Best practices for placing food in your freezer

Your freezer keeps food fresh by making sure it’s completely frozen. If you don’t store your food properly in the freezer, you could become a victim of freezer burn. Freezer burn essentially ruins your food, and anyone who has tried to eat a steak with freezer burn will tell you it tastes terrible.

You can avoid freezer burn by making sure all of your frozen food is stored in airtight containers. You should also let your fresh food completely cool before you freeze it. (Items purchased from frozen at the grocery store should, however, be placed immediately into the freezer.) Excess moisture in warm food tends to turn into ice crystals, and that can cause freezer burn.

How to set the temperature in your fridge and freezer

Because there are many different makes and models of refrigerators, the way you set the temperature in one fridge won’t be the same as the way you set it in another. French door refrigerators that open without opening the freezer will need to have the temperature set differently than a one-door refrigerator.

A good rule of thumb, if you aren’t sure how to use the temperature controls, is to check the manual. It contains best practices for your specific make and model.

5 tips for keeping food fresh in your refrigerator

1. Keep your refrigerator door closed – Standing in front of your fridge wondering what to make for dinner causes your fridge to lose cold air, and then it has to start the cooling process all over again.
   
2. Don’t put warm food in your fridge – It takes longer for your fridge to cool down foods that are warm or hot. Leave them on your counter until they cool off, and then put them in the refrigerator.
3. Keep your eye on those “Keep Refrigerated” labels – If a food says ‘Keep Refrigerated’ right on the label, you should keep it inside your fridge whenever you aren’t using it.
4. Eat your leftovers within a few days – Health Canada has a great list of storage guidelines for leftovers, but a good rule of thumb is to keep them no longer than two days.
5. Once defrosted, consume asap – If you defrosted any type of food, you should try to eat it within two days.

Setting the right temperature for fridge and freezer

Following these guidelines for setting the temperature and best food placement in your fridge and freezer means you can minimize any food-borne health threats from eating spoiled foods. You also eliminate food waste, and that keeps money in your bank account by saving on your grocery bill.

Take a look at all of the refrigerators and freezers available right now at Best Buy.