The Best Under-Counter Wine Cooler for True Enthusiasts

Choosing the perfect wine fridge might seem overwhelming, but you can easily narrow down your choices by opting for an under-counter model. These feature a front-facing vent which directs heat away from the unit, and can be seamlessly installed underneath bars or kitchen counters. Many are also attractive enough to keep out in the open, giving you the freedom to choose where and how yours will be placed in your space. Shop our top picks for the best built-in wine coolers on the market today.

The Kalamera 30-bottle wine cooler is Amazon’s number one top-selling wine fridge, and for good reason: Its smart use of space allows up to 30 bottles to be stored inside the compact, single-zone unit, and it comes with a host of features, including LED controls and a temperature memory function. It’s a compressor system, but is designed to run quietly with minimal vibration. The temperature zone ranges from 40 degrees to 66 degrees Fahrenheit, and the unit includes a carbon filter to minimize any possible odors, plus two interior fans for even air circulation. This counter-height cooler is just 14.9 inches wide, making it a great choice for compact kitchen spaces. A one-year warranty is included.

At an appealing price point for its size, Magic Chef’s 50-bottle wine fridge offers serious bang for your buck. This budget-friendly wine fridge has plenty of space for all of your most prized bottles—and then some. Complete with a digital thermostat, LED interior lighting, see-through door, and flat-back design, it’s easy to incorporate this single-zone wine fridge into your kitchen or bar setup, and the shelves are both adjustable and removable, making it easy to accommodate any irregularly shaped bottles in your stable. The temperature can be set anywhere between 41 and 61 degrees Fahrenheit. With all the bells and whistles of a professional wine fridge, this affordable model is the perfect pick for the savvy shopper with a modest yet growing collection.

With a 149-bottle capacity, this ultra-spacious high-efficiency Lanbo wine cooler won’t actually fit under your standard kitchen counter, but it is equipped with a front vent, so it can be built into any existing kitchen configuration. For those with larger collections, this unit features three programmable zones: The upper zone ranges from 41 to 72 degrees Fahrenheit, with the middle zone at 41 to 54 degrees, and the lower zone at 54 to 71 degrees. Additional features include a double-layered tinted glass door, removable burrless beechwood shelves, a powerful internal fan, digital controls, and a low-vibration compressor system. At 71.3 inches high and 23.4 inches wide, it’s about the size of your average kitchen fridge. A one-year warranty is included.

Sold exclusively by Wine Enthusiast, the EuroCave is a top choice among wine industry professionals, and this 38-bottle unit is worth every cent. Serious wine connoisseurs can customize their own model with unique door configurations and styles, as well as single or multiple zones. Each EuroCave wine cooler is made by hand, and while this one comes with a one-year warranty for parts and labor and a five-year sealed system warranty, it should last for many years to come. The beechwood shelves are adjustable, and the unit as a whole measures 23.3 inches wide by 33 inches high.

I personally own this single-zone wine fridge, and I absolutely love it—the Hisense 54-bottle cooler is sleek in appearance, and it’s the perfect size for storing my special bottles safely in the long term while keeping several sparkling wines chilled for impromptu cork-popping. With six soft-close shelves, a digital display, low energy output, and a UV-blocking reversible glass door, this compressor-run wine cooler offers everything I look for in one neat package at a surprisingly affordable price. It even comes with a built-in alarm system to alert you if you’ve accidentally left the door ajar. The temperature can be set anywhere from 41 to 68 degrees Fahrenheit, and the unit measures 23.4 inches wide by 33.9 inches high. It comes with a two-year parts warranty and a five-year compressor warranty.

The Smith & Hanks 32-bottle under-counter wine refrigerator is a prime example of compact size and dual-zone wine storage coming together in perfect harmony. Equipped with a compressor system, this high-efficiency wine fridge measures 34 inches high by just 15 inches wide, and can easily fit into snug spaces within your cabinetry. The upper temperature zone’s range is 41 to 54 degrees Fahrenheit while the lower zone ranges from 46 to 66 degrees Fahrenheit. Other features include a reversible locking door, a vibration reduction system to ensure minimal sediment disturbance, digital displays, and six removable shelves.

Small yet mighty, the Antarctic Star 12-inch wine cooler is extremely compact, yet still offers enough space to accommodate a surprising amount of wine bottles (18, to be exact). Clocking in at just 11.6 inches wide, this built-in mini wine fridge would fit easily into even the most cramped kitchen spaces. It features a stainless steel door with double-layer glass, adjustable feet, and a safety lock, as well as a quiet, low-vibration compressor system. A one-year warranty is included.

Not all wine fridges are created equally. Here are some features to keep in mind while you shop for your ideal under-counter option.

Most wine coolers fall into one of these two categories. Compressor systems will cycle on and off to maintain the temperature of the unit, while thermoelectric systems run continuously. Wine coolers with thermoelectric systems are quieter, but they can translate to higher energy consumption, and they also tend to break down sooner than those with compressors. If you live in a relatively hot climate, you might want to consider a compressor system to save on energy costs.

The capacity of your future wine fridge depends entirely on the size of your collection, including bottles you’d like to safely store for a period of time and ones you’d like to have on hand for immediate consumption. For example, if you have around 15 cellar-worthy bottles and a small handful that you plan to drink lightly chilled in the near future, you’ll want to look for a wine fridge that holds around 28 bottles, especially if you plan to expand your collection.

If you’re opting for a built-in model, think of it as any other kitchen appliance, and be sure to carefully check the measurements before purchasing. There’s more variation in counter heights than you might think, and the last thing you want is an appliance that won’t fit in the space.

Some coolers can maintain more than one temperature zone. Generally speaking, if your collection is under 300 bottles or so, you can get away with having a single-zone wine cooler. When you’re working with larger collections, multiple temperature zones can come in handy to preserve a wider variety of bottles.

A quality wine cooler should last at least 10 years. Most wine coolers come with warranties for both parts and labor and are offered for anywhere between one and five years.

This depends on many factors, such as the size of your wine cooler, the temperature at which it's set, the temperature of the wine, the ambient temperature of the room, and so on. All in all, if you put a bottle of wine in any cooler, it’s safe to say that it will come to your desired temperature after eight to 10 hours or so. If you wish to chill a bottle quickly, simply wrap it in a wet paper towel and stick it in your freezer for about 20 minutes—this usually does the trick!

Your wine fridge won’t require too much interior upkeep, especially if your model features an odor-minimizing carbon filter, but when you do decide to give it a wipe-down, simply unplug the cooler and use a mild soap to clean any metal or plastic surfaces. If your shelves are made with wood components, use a gentle wood cleaner.