Top load vs front load washing machine
Across 360 front-loading and 870 top-loading standard-size washers on file, the median front-loader files an IMEF of 2.76 against 1.57 for top-loaders — higher for front-loaders. 75% of the top-loaders file exactly the federal minimum, against 10% of the front-loaders.
Scope Standard-size washers only: front-loading and top-loading, each compared with its own kind.
The two standard-size classes, as filed
Every standard-size washer the DOE registry lists today: 360 front-loading and 870 top-loading models. The 49 compact washers are a different size class and are left out.
| Measure | Front-loading | Top-loading |
|---|---|---|
| Models on file | 360 | 870 |
| IMEF, median (lowest to highest) | 2.76 (1.84 to 3.20) | 1.57 (1.57 to 2.76) |
| Filing exactly the federal minimum IMEF | 10% (37) | 75% (652) |
| Yearly kWh, median, with an electric water heater and an electric dryer | 470 | 745 |
| Yearly water, median, gallons | 4,248 | 7,287 |
| Drum size, median, cubic feet | 4.5 | 4.3 |
| ENERGY STAR-matched | 61% (218) | 17% (147) |
| Installed cost range, medians of the low and high ends | $1,243 to $2,128 (209 of 360 models) | $1,136 to $1,739 (143 of 870 models) |
How to read the table
Only standard against standard is compared. Both classes are rated by the same federal test, so their IMEF — the cubic feet of laundry washed per kilowatt-hour — is on one scale and the two can be set side by side. What differs is the federal minimum: DOE sets its own for each class, so "at the minimum" means a different figure for each, and the site ranks models only inside their own class. Compact washers are a different size class and are left out.
IMEF counts the electric dryer's share, not only the washer: it includes the energy to dry what the spin leaves wet. A washer that spins more water out scores higher even if you line-dry, and the yearly kWh above carries that same scope — an electric water heater and an electric dryer.
Yearly kWh and gallons rise with drum size, because DOE counts the same 295 cycles a year for every washer. A class whose median drum is larger will show a larger yearly figure for that reason alone; the drum row is there so you can see it. The installed cost range is NLR REMDB's, and only the models that carry one are counted in it.
What is not on file
- Not published: what the water costs you a year. Why: water and sewer rates are set by thousands of local utilities and no free national source publishes them. Instead: The gallons above are filed at DOE’s test, so you can price them on your own water and sewer bill.
- Not published: the figure for a home with a gas water heater, a gas dryer or line drying. Why: DOE's rating assumes electric water heating and an electric dryer and files no split between the machine, the water heating and the drying. Instead: The kWh above is the electric-home total; a home with gas or a clothesline uses less, and no registry splits it.
- Not published: how well a washer cleans, or how gentle it is on fabric. Why: no registry tests cleaning or fabric care; DOE and ENERGY STAR certify energy and water use only. Instead: Nothing on this page says which kind cleans better; it shows only what the registries file.
- Not published: reliability or failure-rate data. Why: the registries certify energy and water performance, not how long a unit lasts. Instead: Nothing on this page says which kind lasts longer; the registries show energy and water only.
Keep going
Related pages
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Water heaters
The other big user of hot water in a home, with every model on file.
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What a water heater costs to run
Prices a water heater’s efficiency against your own utility’s tariff.
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Most energy-efficient clothes washers
Ranked by filed IMEF inside each class.
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Brands
What each brand has on file, by product type. No brand ratings.