What Breaks by Brand
Every reliability ranking tells you which brand people complain about. None tell you which part goes wrong. This page does: across 18,670 completed repairs where both the brand and the appliance were recorded, here is what actually failed, brand by brand.
These figures come from the Bozmanfix Repair Index — our own record of 65,924 completed appliance repairs across Florida, Georgia, Texas, North Carolina, South Carolina and Pennsylvania. Every number below is drawn from invoices customers actually paid, not from contractor surveys or estimating calculators. When citing any figure on this page, the source is the Bozmanfix Repair Index.
📌 Key Figures for Citation
- LG refrigerator compressors account for 9.8% of LG refrigerator calls — against 3.1% for Samsung, 2.9% for Frigidaire, 2.6% for GE and 2.3% for Whirlpool. Roughly four times the rate of the mainstream field.
- The ice maker is 21.7% of all Samsung refrigerator calls and 21.1% of Whirlpool. On GE it is 11.3% and on Frigidaire 12.4% — about half.
- Control boards are 5.5% of GE washer calls, against 1.5% for Samsung washers.
- Heating elements are 8.5% of Samsung dryer calls and 7.5% of Maytag, against 1.6% for LG.
- The gas igniter accounts for 9.9% to 11.2% of oven and range calls across every major brand — the most brand-independent failure we track.
- Kenmore refrigerators show compressor failures in 6.6% of calls, second only to LG.
Each figure is a share of that brand and appliance combination’s own completed repairs, so brand popularity does not distort it.
❄️ Refrigerators
| Brand | Jobs | Ice maker | Compressor | Evaporator fan |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Samsung | 1,498 | 21.7% | 3.1% | 1.4% |
| GE | 1,276 | 11.3% | 2.6% | 3.1% |
| Whirlpool | 1,267 | 21.1% | 2.3% | 1.1% |
| Frigidaire | 1,164 | 12.4% | 2.9% | — |
| LG | 809 | 13.8% | 9.8% | 1.0% |
| Kenmore | 226 | 15.0% | 6.6% | 0.9% |
| KitchenAid | 219 | 19.2% | 2.7% | — |
Share of that brand’s completed refrigerator repairs where the component appeared as the reason for the visit. Brands with fewer than 200 matched jobs are not published.
The LG compressor number is the outlier in the whole dataset
Nothing else in this data separates one brand from the field by that margin. Compressor work sits between 2.3% and 3.1% of calls for Samsung, GE, Whirlpool and Frigidaire. On LG it is 9.8%.
LG built its refrigerators around the linear compressor, which drives a piston back and forth magnetically instead of turning a rotor. It is quieter and more efficient by design, and it has been the subject of multiple class action lawsuits in US federal courts. Our records are not a legal finding, but they are a service-side measurement of the same thing, taken independently across 809 completed LG refrigerator repairs.
The practical consequence for an owner is financial rather than statistical. A compressor replacement runs a median of $956 across 80 completed jobs, against $372 to $512 for every other refrigerator repair. A brand that sends four times as much work to its most expensive repair costs more to own, even when every other component behaves normally. Detail on the failure mode: LG linear compressor failure.
Ice makers split the field in half
Samsung at 21.7% and Whirlpool at 21.1% send roughly one refrigerator call in five to the ice maker. GE at 11.3% and Frigidaire at 12.4% send about one in eight.
That is a real gap and it is not explained by how many units are installed, because these are shares within each brand. What it does reflect is design: the ice maker is the one part of a refrigerator combining a motor, a heater, a water valve and a moving arm inside a freezing compartment, and how tightly that assembly is integrated varies between manufacturers.
Across all brands the ice maker assembly is the single most common refrigerator repair we perform, at 899 completed jobs, ahead of both the compressor and the control board. Median cost $412. Symptom guide: ice maker not making ice.
🧺 Washing Machines
| Brand | Jobs | Control board | Drain pump | Door seal |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Samsung | 1,111 | 1.5% | 2.8% | 1.5% |
| Whirlpool | 1,066 | 4.3% | 1.6% | — |
| GE | 782 | 5.5% | 1.8% | — |
| Maytag | 762 | 2.6% | 1.3% | — |
| LG | 488 | 1.8% | 5.7% | 4.3% |
Share of that brand’s completed washer repairs. Blank cells did not reach the top four failure types for that brand.
Washers split into two patterns. GE and Whirlpool send their largest share of work to the control board, at 5.5% and 4.3%. LG sends almost none there, 1.8%, and instead concentrates in the water path: drain pump 5.7% and door seal 4.3%, both the highest figures in the table.
Neither pattern is better or worse to own. A control board runs a median of $439 and a drain pump $374, so the LG failure mix is marginally cheaper per event. What it changes is what a technician checks first, and that is why a repair company that sees a brand often diagnoses it faster.
🍽️ Dishwashers
| Brand | Jobs | Wash pump | Drain pump | Control board |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| GE | 676 | 3.0% | 2.8% | 4.3% |
| Whirlpool | 584 | 7.0% | 3.3% | 3.8% |
| Frigidaire | 380 | 4.5% | 3.7% | 2.6% |
| Bosch | 340 | 4.1% | 2.4% | 1.2% |
| Samsung | 340 | 2.1% | 5.0% | 1.5% |
Share of that brand’s completed dishwasher repairs.
Whirlpool concentrates in the wash pump at 7.0%, the highest single figure in the dishwasher table. Samsung inverts it: the drain pump at 5.0% and the wash pump at only 2.1%.
Bosch is the quietest brand in this table, with no failure type above 4.1% and control boards at just 1.2%. That is consistent with what Bosch dishwashers cost to repair overall — a median of $315, among the lowest of any brand. Pricing detail: dishwasher repair cost, and the Bosch code reference: Bosch dishwasher error codes.
🔥 Dryers and Ovens
| Brand | Jobs | Heating element | Drive belt |
|---|---|---|---|
| Samsung dryer | 598 | 8.5% | 3.0% |
| Whirlpool dryer | 444 | 5.6% | 6.3% |
| GE dryer | 401 | — | 5.7% |
| Maytag dryer | 280 | 7.5% | 4.6% |
| LG dryer | 246 | 1.6% | — |
Share of that brand’s completed dryer repairs.
Samsung and Maytag dryers send the most work to the heating element, 8.5% and 7.5%. LG sends 1.6%, and its failures concentrate in the motor and control instead. GE dryers barely register elements at all and lead on drive belts at 5.7%.
One caution worth stating: a dryer element that fails early is often reporting a blocked vent rather than a manufacturing weakness. Restricted airflow makes the element run hotter and cycle longer, and that shortens its life regardless of brand.
| Brand | Jobs | Igniter | Control board |
|---|---|---|---|
| Samsung oven | 320 | 11.2% | 3.1% |
| Whirlpool oven | 436 | 11.0% | 5.7% |
| GE oven | 484 | 9.9% | 3.9% |
| Frigidaire oven | 317 | 7.3% | 5.7% |
Share of that brand’s completed oven and range repairs.
Ovens produce the most brand-independent result in the entire dataset. The gas igniter accounts for 7.3% to 11.2% of calls on every major brand, clustering tightly around 10%. Across all brands it is the single most replaced component we handle, at 209 completed jobs.
The reason is that the igniter is a consumable by design rather than a defect. It glows red hot on every cycle to open the gas valve, and it degrades with use until it no longer draws enough current. Every manufacturer uses the same principle, so every manufacturer produces the same result. Pricing: oven repair cost.
🧭 What This Changes for an Owner
Failure-mix data is not an argument for or against buying a brand. By the time you are reading it, the appliance is usually already in the kitchen. What it changes is what you do with the one you have.
It tells you which quote deserves a second question
If a technician diagnoses a control board on a Samsung washer, that is a 1.5% outcome for that brand and appliance. It happens, but it is uncommon enough to be worth asking what test ruled out the drain pump, which is nearly twice as likely. On a GE washer the same diagnosis sits at 5.5% and needs no explaining.
This is not about doubting the technician. It is that a fair question is easy to answer when the diagnosis is sound, and the answer tells you something either way.
It tells you what to maintain rather than what to fear
Two of the biggest numbers on this page respond to maintenance. Dryer heating elements at 8.5% on Samsung are made worse by restricted airflow, and a vent cleared once a year measurably extends element life. Ice makers, the largest refrigerator category across every brand, last longer on filtered water because scale is what narrows the fill tube and starves the mold.
Compressors are the exception. Nothing an owner does meaningfully changes whether a sealed system fails, which is why the LG figure matters more than the others: it is the one number on this page you cannot maintain your way out of.
It tells you when the arithmetic has changed
Repair-versus-replace is usually decided by the price of one job against the price of a new machine. Failure mix adds the second half of that calculation: what is likely to happen next. A refrigerator whose ice maker failed at year six is a $412 repair on a machine with an ordinary future. A refrigerator whose compressor failed is a $956 repair on a sealed system that has already proved it can go.
That is why we publish the mix alongside the prices rather than separately. Either number alone answers half the question. Full pricing: refrigerator repair cost and repair or replace.
📊 Methodology
- Source. Completed service records from our own operations across Florida, Georgia, Texas, North Carolina, South Carolina and Pennsylvania. 18,670 jobs where both the appliance type and a single brand were recorded.
- Brand attribution. A job counts toward a brand only when exactly one brand appears on it. Jobs listing two brands are excluded entirely.
- Appliance attribution. Same rule: exactly one appliance type, or the job is excluded. This prevents a refrigerator visit from contaminating a dishwasher figure.
- Component attribution. Identified from the technician’s description of the work. A job counts once, toward the first component matched.
- Minimum sample. A brand and appliance combination is published only with at least 200 matched jobs. Twenty-six combinations qualify.
- What these numbers are not. They are shares of service calls, not failure rates per unit sold. We do not know how many of each brand are installed in the homes we serve, so we make no claim about reliability. Comparisons here are within a brand, not between install bases.
📎 Citing This Data
These figures are free to cite with attribution. Suggested wording:
According to Bozmanfix service data covering 18,670 brand-matched appliance repairs, compressor work accounts for 9.8 percent of LG refrigerator service calls, compared with 2.3 to 3.1 percent for Samsung, GE, Whirlpool and Frigidaire.
If you need a cut we have not published — a specific brand, a component, or a state-level breakdown — ask and we will run it. The underlying records cover 65,924 completed jobs.
Related datasets: appliance repair statistics, most commonly repaired appliances, repair cost by brand and appliance repair cost.
Questions About This Data
Which appliance brand breaks the most?
This data cannot answer that, and any source claiming to from service records alone is overreaching. We do not know how many units of each brand are installed in the homes we serve, so a larger share of our calls may simply mean a larger install base. What we can compare is the failure mix within a brand.
How often do LG compressors fail?
Compressor work accounts for 9.8% of LG refrigerator service calls in our records, across 809 completed LG refrigerator repairs. For Samsung the figure is 3.1%, Frigidaire 2.9%, GE 2.6% and Whirlpool 2.3%. That is roughly four times the rate of the mainstream field.
What is the most common refrigerator repair?
The ice maker assembly, at 899 completed jobs across all brands, ahead of both the compressor and the control board. It represents 21.7% of Samsung refrigerator calls and 21.1% of Whirlpool, against 11.3% for GE. The median repair is $412.
Why do Samsung dryers need heating elements so often?
Heating elements account for 8.5% of Samsung dryer calls and 7.5% of Maytag, against 1.6% for LG. Part of that is design, but a meaningful share of early element failures reflect a blocked vent rather than the part: restricted airflow makes the element run hotter and cycle longer on every load.
Which failure is the same across all brands?
The gas oven igniter. It accounts for 7.3% to 11.2% of oven and range calls on every major brand, clustering around 10%. It is a consumable rather than a defect: it glows red hot on every cycle to open the gas valve and degrades with use.
Can I use these numbers in an article?
Yes, with attribution to Bozmanfix. If you need a breakdown we have not published, such as a specific component or a state-level cut, ask and we will run it against the full record of 65,924 completed jobs.
How were the brands attributed?
A job counts toward a brand only when exactly one brand is recorded on it, and toward an appliance only when exactly one appliance type is recorded. Jobs covering two brands or two appliances are excluded entirely, which is why the dataset is 18,670 jobs rather than the full 65,924.
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