Do You Really Need an Ice Maker? Models That Skip It and What You Save
Built-in ice makers add $200 to $500 to the purchase price, take 0.5 to 1 cu. ft. of freezer space, and are the most failure-prone refrigerator component.
Built-in ice makers add $200 to $500 to the refrigerator purchase price, take 0.5 to 1 cu. ft. of freezer space, and are the most failure-prone component in modern refrigerators. For households that use ice daily, the convenience is worth it. For light ice users, the trade-offs are heavy enough that skipping the ice maker is the better call.
This guide walks who actually benefits from the built-in ice maker, the models that skip it (for households who want to skip the premium), and the alternatives that work for occasional ice use.
The full cost of an ice maker
Three real costs beyond the purchase premium.
Purchase premium. $100 to $300 for an ice maker alone; $200 to $500 if bundled with a water dispenser. Mid-range mainstream models.
Freezer space. Built-in ice makers in the freezer compartment take 0.5 to 1 cu. ft. of freezer storage. For a 6 cu. ft. freezer, that's 8 to 17 percent of capacity gone.
Repair risk. Ice maker components (solenoid valve, motor, harvest arm) account for 20 to 25 percent of refrigerator service calls. Out-of-warranty repairs typically run $150 to $300.
Over 10 years, the full cost of an ice maker can reach $700 to $1,500 when service calls are included. That's a meaningful share of the appliance's total cost.
When the ice maker is worth it
Three buyer scenarios.
Households who use ice daily. Iced beverages, cocktails, water with ice. The convenience compounds over years of daily use.
Households that host frequently. Always-available ice for guests is genuinely useful. Manual ice trays don't scale to 6+ guests.
Households in hot climates. Daily summer use, frequent iced drinks, cooler-filling for outdoor events. The ice maker pays back in raw volume of ice used.
For these households, the ice maker is one of the easier feature upgrades to justify.
When the ice maker isn't worth it
Three scenarios where skipping makes sense.
You barely use ice. If you reach for ice once or twice a week, the built-in ice maker is wasted capacity. Ice trays cost $5 and work fine for low-volume users.
You drink mostly cold-water from the fridge. The water dispenser is the more useful feature; ice is incidental. Some catalog models include water-dispenser without ice maker.
Rental properties or vacation homes. Light, occasional use. The ice maker's repair risk and water-line complexity don't pay back.
For these households, the no-ice-maker catalog offers genuinely cheaper, simpler, more reliable fridges.
The no-ice-maker picks
For top freezer: Amana ART348FFF 18 cu. ft. Top Freezer at $1,000. 18 cu. ft., no ice maker, no water dispenser. Simplest reliable fridge in the catalog.
For top freezer alternative: Frigidaire FFHI1832T 18 cu. ft. Top Freezer at $1,000. 18 cu. ft. top freezer, no dispenser. Similar to Amana.
For French door without ice: Hisense RF266C3FE 27 cu. ft. French Door at $1,200. 26 cu. ft. French door, no ice maker, no water dispenser. The cheapest sub-$1,500 French door in the catalog.
For bottom freezer without ice: Alpha Par Rd RDBM191 19 cu. ft. Bottom Freezer at $1,350. 19 cu. ft. bottom freezer, no ice or water. Less common but available.
The middle ground: ice maker without water dispenser
A subset of the catalog (941 models) includes an automatic ice maker but no through-door water dispenser. This serves households who want ice but don't want the water line plumbing required for a dispenser.
Premium over no-ice-maker models is typically $100 to $200. A water line is still required (the ice maker needs water input), but installation is simpler than the full dispenser package.
This is a real middle option for households who want ice convenience without committing to the full premium-feature package.
The standalone ice maker alternative
For households who want ice but skipped the built-in ice maker, standalone ice makers fill the gap.
Countertop ice makers: $100 to $300 for units that produce 25 to 45 lbs of ice per day. Plug into a regular outlet, fill the water reservoir, get ice in 15 minutes.
Pros: separate appliance, no fridge-integration repair risk, more ice production per day than most built-in ice makers, can be moved between locations.
Cons: takes counter space (12 to 18 inches wide), needs manual water refilling, less convenient than through-door dispensing.
For households who entertain a few times a year or who use ice in volume during specific seasons, a standalone ice maker is a credible alternative to the built-in.
The ice tray approach
Manual ice trays remain a viable option.
Modern silicone ice trays cost $5 to $15 each and produce 10 to 20 cubes per tray. Three or four trays gives a household 30 to 80 cubes available at any time.
Pros: cheapest possible solution, zero repair risk, no water line required.
Cons: requires manual filling (60 seconds), takes freezer space proportionally to the cube count, can taste of freezer odors if not used quickly.
For light-ice households or those committed to skipping the built-in maker, ice trays work for many years without complication.
What the catalog doesn't show
A few buyer insights worth knowing.
The "ice maker not included" SKU. Some refrigerator models ship in both ice-maker and non-ice-maker variants of the same base unit. The non-ice-maker version is $100 to $200 cheaper and has the same capacity (the ice-maker space becomes general freezer space).
Disabling an existing ice maker. If you've inherited a fridge with an ice maker you don't want, most can be turned off via a switch on the ice maker module. The freezer space is still partially occupied by the disabled module, but you avoid the repair risk.
Aftermarket ice maker addition. If you bought a non-ice-maker fridge and decide later you want one, some models accept aftermarket ice maker kits. Cost: $100 to $250 plus installation. Less common; check before buying a no-ice fridge planning to upgrade.
The plumbing question
Built-in ice makers require a water line connection. If your kitchen has no fridge water line, adding one costs $150 to $400 in plumbing work.
For renters or households where adding a water line is non-trivial, skipping the ice maker eliminates a significant install consideration. A no-ice fridge plugs in and works; an ice-maker fridge needs the plumbing in place.
This is one of the strongest reasons rentals and vacation homes skip ice makers.
Bottom line
Built-in ice makers cost $700 to $1,500 over 10 years when purchase premium and repair risk are included. For households that use ice daily and host frequently, the convenience justifies the cost. For light-ice or rental-property use, skipping the ice maker (or using a standalone alternative) is the better call. The catalog has plenty of credible no-ice fridges at every price tier; you don't have to settle for budget models to find one.
Frequently asked questions
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RefrigeratorSelect Editorial Team
The RefrigeratorSelect editorial team writes and maintains every guide in this section. We work from the same dataset that powers our product reviews — close to 6,000 refrigerator spec sheets pulled from the U.S. ENERGY STAR public database and manufacturer documentation. We don't take payment from manufacturers, and our ratings aren't influenced by retailer affiliate relationships.