Shopping for Appliances

The Association of Home Appliance Manufacturers (AHAM) has a lengthy section of articles on what to watch for and consider when buying home appliances, and information to remember once the new appliances are in your home. This site is particularly useful for its articles (in Word format) about product warranties and service contracts.

BestBuy.com offers a series of tips for buying several types of appliances, including dishwashers, freezers, refrigerators and more.

LowesMoving.com provides a printable checklist so you can write down the measurements of your current appliances and their styles and features for quick reference while appliance shopping.

ConsumerReports.org is a nonprofit organization that features ratings and recommendations on consumer products. There’s also a section specific to appliance shopping. Visitors have free access to some advice, safety alerts and recall information, as well as trusted buying guides and product reviews. For full access to the site you’ll need to subscribe (check the fee schedule for exact pricing).

Ratings.net offers consumer reviews for large and small home appliances in an easy-to-navigate format. Product descriptions, consumer reviews and reader comments and questions about the reviews are all easily accessible.

Appliance.net hosts an extensive collection of information about home appliances. The forums are a handy part of this site, and make for a quick way to get input on an appliance from other consumers. Free registration is required to participate.

The U.S. Department of Energy ’s “Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy” Web site teaches what to look for when appliance shopping, how to estimate energy use, and what power-controlling devices exist for older appliances, and even how to save energy if you frequently use a computer during the day. There’s also a section on "How to Read an EnergyGuide Label."

Energy Star is the government Web site for the joint program of the Environmental Protection Agency and the Department of Energy. Study various Energy Star products or read a helpful explanation of the difference between the EnergyGuide and Energy Star labels.

DoItYourself.com explains the energy-efficiency ratings on Energy Star labels in this article. Information is presented in a chart format and makes for quick, easy reading.

ServiceMagic discusses some of the features to look for when shopping for several types of home appliances. The suggestions here focus primarily on energy efficiency.

The Federal Trade Commission notes that, although it may seem more economical to purchase an appliance with a smaller price tag, a more expensive, energy-efficient appliance may prove to be the bigger money saver in the long run.

AbsoluteHome provides an extensive selection of home appliances available for purchase online and also has a few helpful appliance buying guides. Garage appliances are also available, which is something you don’t see at most appliance sites.

HomeClick.com offers many of the standard appliances available at other online stores, but the unique feature here is the “Green Living” section of merchandise. Review the “Featured Content” about green living, or shop for earth-friendly home appliances.

Shopping.com makes comparison shopping easy with its intuitive site design. Click an appliance that interests you, then select a specific appliance in that category. Each appliance is listed with prices for the item from a variety of merchants (and direct links to those merchants for purchase). Shopping.com is an eBay company.

MSN Shopping features a “Kitchen & Housewares” shopping section with thousands of large and small household appliances for sale. Search by appliance type, brand, price range or seller.

eBay is best known for its abundant auctions of collectibles but a multitude of other items have found their way to the site, including large home appliances and small kitchen appliances.