Model
Tcl TRT10T4**
Rank #368 means 367 of the 1,000 refrigerator models we track cost less to run each year; the 51st efficiency percentile means it uses less energy for its size than 51% of those models.
What does the Tcl TRT10T4** cost to run per year?
At about $55 a year, the Tcl TRT10T4** undercuts most refrigerator models we track on running cost, rank #368 of 1,000. It uses 11% less energy than the U.S. federal standard model in its class, which would cost about $62/yr to run, a saving of roughly $7 a year. Efficiency-wise, once size is accounted for, it sits right around the class median, ahead of 51% of the models we track. This class has no published efficiency-factor figure beyond annual kWh itself, so at 10.1 cu ft (the class spans 1.2 to 31.7), size is the clearest lever we can point to for this model's running cost.
Immediately around it on the leaderboard, the Summit FF1089** at $55/yr runs a little cheaper and the Upstreman TM100-SS at $55/yr runs a little more, a sense of how tightly models are packed at this point in the ranking. A refrigerator typically stays in service for somewhere around 12 years; over that span, the Tcl TRT10T4**'s $55/yr adds up to roughly $660 in electricity alone, before purchase price or repairs.
Also sold as: Danby DFF101B2WDB.
By the numbers
The Tcl TRT10T4** normalized against its whole class, so each figure means something.
What it costs you over time
Running cost is an every-year number, so it compounds. At $55/yr, here is what the Tcl TRT10T4** adds up to before purchase price, water, or repairs enter the math.
Left running for a decade at today's US average rate, the Tcl TRT10T4** costs about $550. That is roughly $70 less than a standard model in its class, which would run closer to $620 over the same ten years.
How the Tcl TRT10T4** compares
The refrigerator class we track runs from $8 to $149 a year. At $55/yr, it runs about $9 a year cheaper than the class median of $64, and it is about $47 a year more than the cheapest refrigerator to run at $8. Against the US federal standard model for its class at about $62/yr, the Tcl TRT10T4** uses 11% less energy.
What drives its running cost
At 10.1 cu ft, the Tcl TRT10T4** is a mid-size refrigerator for its class, which spans 1.2 to 31.7 cu ft with a median of 12.6 cu ft, right in the middle of the capacity range, so capacity is roughly a wash compared with the rest of the class.
- Interior volume. More cubic feet of cold air to maintain generally means a bigger compressor and a higher running-cost figure, even among efficient models.
- Counter depth vs standard depth. Standard-depth models generally offer more interior volume per unit of width than counter-depth models, a tradeoff between built-in looks and cubic feet.
- Compressor technology. How a compressor cycles, full on/off versus a variable-speed inverter design, is one of the biggest hidden differences behind two fridges with similar cubic feet but different running costs.
- Placement and ventilation. Ventilation clearance around the back and top matters more than most owners expect; a fridge starved of airflow runs its compressor longer to hold the same temperature.
Common questions
Is the Tcl TRT10T4** cheap to run?
Yes. Its $55/yr running cost puts it at rank #368 of 1,000, below what most refrigerator models we track cost to run.
How much does the Tcl TRT10T4** cost per month?
About $4.59 a month, which is the $55 annual estimate spread across twelve months at the US average rate of $0.1856/kWh. Your own bill scales with your local electricity rate and how heavily you use it.
How is this running-cost figure calculated?
The formula is annual kWh times price per kWh: 297 kWh from ENERGY STAR times the US average of $0.1856/kWh comes to about $55 a year. It covers electricity only, not the purchase price, water, or installation.
How efficient is the Tcl TRT10T4** for its size?
51st percentile once size is factored in, a fairly typical result for the class.
Cheaper to run in the same class
Source
ES_1147781_TRT10T4**_08182025112310_80265235View certified refrigerator listingsENERGY STAR data as of July 2026Tcl and TRT10T4** are used here for identification only and are not endorsements. Figures are computed by WattWise Labs from public ENERGY STAR data, not measured in our own lab.