7 Common Customer Complaints About LG Refrigerators

LG has established itself as one of the biggest brand names in home appliances, with sleek designs and innovative features, like French door refrigerators, smart technology, and trendy craft ice makers. But none of these modern, flashy features address the true pain points and reliability issues that often emerge with many LG fridges. In fact, despite its reputation as a leading appliance brand, LG refrigerators have a 1.1-star rating on Consumer Affairs, with thousands of reviews detailing disappointing and flat-out frustrating customer experiences.

In fact, the issues are so widespread that customers have created a Facebook group called "LG Sucks" to share their frustrations. From compressors that fail unexpectedly (and prematurely) to malfunctioning ice makers, expensive repairs, and poor customer service, these appliances have caused some real headaches for customers, and they're costly inconveniences as well. While not every LG refrigerator owner has a negative experience, these complaints are common enough that they're impossible to ignore. These are the biggest reasons shoppers are frustrated with LG fridges.

The only thing more frustrating than something going awry with your refrigerator is not being able to get assistance with a repair when it happens. Many LG customers have shared their experiences with poor customer service and limited availability of technicians, making repairs and replacements a massive headache. One Reddit commenter explained, "Their customer service is an endless pit of waiting and transfers to a new department. Totally worthless and frustrating." Others describe their own experience calling several times a week just to try to get a hold of someone to help, and that's only the first half of the problem.

Once they finally manage to get someone on the phone, customers find that it tends to take a long time to schedule a repair, because of a lack of available technicians, even in populated areas. To make matters worse, sometimes the techs cancel or fail to show up altogether. Meanwhile, customers are left without a place to store their food. In one particularly frustrating case, a customer on Reddit wrote, "It's been a nightmare and is starting to affect the family peace. There is nothing I can do but consistently call the support line." Some customers have even turned to the Better Business Bureau after their infuriating experiences with the brand's service.

One of the exciting features of the newer LG refrigerator models is the craft ice maker, which makes fancy, crystal-clear ice cubes. These large spheres of slow-melting ice are popular for adding to cocktails, soft drinks, and iced tea or coffee. However, despite being one of the beneficial features that the brand markets to customers, malfunctioning ice makers are one of the most common problems that customers face, making them question if those old school refrigerators were better than modern ones.

Common issues include loud rattling and clicking noises, ice getting stuck, leakage, or the machine simply not working. In 2025, LG even released a tutorial on addressing the issue, since it had become such a common complaint. This followed 2023, when there was a class action lawsuit levied against the brand for defective ice makers, although it was later dismissed. Some customers have even used their warranty to get the ice maker entirely replaced, only for the same problems to arise with the replacement part.

In addition to malfunctioning ice makers and freezer fan breakdowns, there are several reports to Consumer Affairs describing frost buildup in the freezer of LG refrigerators. Disappointed customers have explained that large amounts of ice build up at the bottom of their freezer, causing leakage. Despite a host of troubleshooting techniques, the fluffy frost keeps building up on stored food, with no way of preventing freezer burn.

Buyers have had technicians come out to figure out the cause of their frost buildup, only for no solution to be found and for the frost to continually build back up every few months. Reportedly, technicians often recommend unplugging the appliance for a full defrost, but this requires taking everything out of the fridge and throwing it out or storing it elsewhere, which is a pain and typically not a long-term solution to the problem.

Compressor failure is perhaps the most common malfunction that occurs with LG fridges. The compressor is essentially the heart of the fridge, as it's the part that controls the cooling cycle and regulates temperature. In fact, there have been several class action lawsuits filed against LG for this exact issue. Customers find that the linear compressors often fail in their LG fridges within only a few years of use. In one case, a shopper was forced to replace his compressor five separate times.

The problem is so widespread that even appliance technicians warn customers. In one particularly bad experience, a customer explained on Reddit, "After less than 2 years, the compressor failed. I had a repairman come out, and he told me that he could replace the compressor ... but he wouldn't recommend it, since it would be an LG part that would most likely fail after 2 years, as he had seen this pattern many times before." Some customers are so frustrated with the constant malfunctions that they think buying a whole new fridge would be easier, saving them trouble in the long run.

Customers constantly deal with fan malfunctions in the freezers of their LG fridges as well. One customer reported that their fridge suddenly stopped cooling due to a fault in the freezer fan. They spent three weeks trying to get a hold of someone with customer service to do a repair, to no avail. To make matters worse, no one could seem to give them a straight answer on whether the malfunction was covered by the warranty or not. They described the experience to Consumer Affairs, saying, "A total disgrace and will not be buying LG ever again."

Others have experienced fan malfunctions that cause loud rattling noises as well, despite regularly vacuuming the air intakes to ensure dust doesn't build up. Repair technicians confirm the fan errors (FF E) are a common occurrence, with one taking to Reddit to write, "Yeah been seeing a lot of freezer fan errors. As well as ice fan errors. (FF E & IF E)... mostly just outright failed motors. When one goes I just change both out now just in case, if they're under warranty."

A refrigerator is not a cheap investment, and reviewers say that LG is one of the most overpriced appliance brands. So when customers make this big purchase, they expect their appliance to be effective for a long time. One of the greatest frustrations that customers have is that despite the high price tag, LG refrigerators seem to crash and burn just a few years into ownership, and the repair and replacement costs pile up quickly.

A newer model LG fridge, for instance, has all the shiny new features including the craft ice maker and Smart InstaView door-in-door that allows you to see the contents of the fridge — but this $4,499 fridge only has a 2-star rating from customers who all claim their appliance broke within the first few years. One customer wrote on the LG site, "The quality of this fridge is just terrible," after spending hours on the phone with customer service.

Another shopper on Facebook agrees that the appliances are notoriously unreliable, warning others, "Never, ever buy an LG product. Nothing but junk wrapped in stainless steel." And because repairs often take days (if not weeks) to be scheduled, the costs continue to rise as customers are forced to replace the spoiled food. One disappointed buyer summed up their whole LG experience on Reddit, saying, "Run away from LG like it was a toxic waste dump trying to hug you ... You don't want that."

LG offers a flat-rate repair program that claims to cover repairs by a certified LG technician and any parts necessary, with a 90-day warranty for $400. This price tag might seem better than investing in an entirely new fridge, which could run you thousands of dollars, but according to customers online, purchasing new is worth it to not have to deal with the constant headache of malfunctions, repairs, and replacements.

One customer on Facebook explained why the repair program is simply ineffective, saying, "They can't keep up with the repairs that their appliances need as it is, and like many have said, a lot of times it isn't a repair problem, it is a design flaw that can not be repaired." Because the first repair often doesn't fix the problem in the long term, some customers believe continuing to invest in the appliance is a waste of money, advising that you're better off cutting your losses and investing in a more reliable brand. Companies like Bosch and Sub-Zero rank among customer-favorite refrigerator brands.