Countertop Ice Makers
The Best Portable Ice Makers
Portable means it plugs into a normal outlet and needs no plumbing. It does not mean light, and it does not mean the ice keeps. Here is what the specs actually say.
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Quick picks
| # | Machine | Best for | Price |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | No photo Frigidaire EFIC235 44 lbs a day at a published 200 W, the fastest sourced machine here. | Best for volume | |
| 2 | No photo Frigidaire EFIC452 14.1 inches tall, the only machine that clears a cabinet gap. | Best for small spaces | |
| 3 | No photo NewAir NIM030SS00 170 W published, the cheapest machine on the site to run. | Lowest draw | |
| 4 | No photo Frigidaire EFIC255 Chewable ice at 185 W, ten inches wide. | Best portable nugget |
#ad We earn a commission on purchases made through this link. How this is funded. Prices last checked September 2, 2026.
Portable ice maker is the term people search when they mean a machine that does not need a plumber. It is a useful category because that is a real constraint, but it hides the fact that the machines inside it make three different kinds of ice and behave very differently.
What portable actually buys you
- No plumbing and no drain. You fill a reservoir. Meltwater recirculates rather than going down a pipe, so there is nothing to connect and nothing to plumb out.
- A normal outlet. Published figures for these machines run from 90 W to 200 W. That is well inside what any domestic circuit or a modest inverter provides. Details on the electrical requirements page.
- Not weightlessness. The published empty weights here are 34.17 lbs (NewAir NIM044BS00), 34.2 lbs (NewAir NIM030SS00), 37.6 lbs (GE Opal 2.0) and 44 lbs (the original Opal). You can move one. You would not want to carry one up stairs.
The machines, compared
| Machine | Rated output | Bin | Electrical | Max $/mo |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Frigidaire EFIC235 | 44 lbs/day [src] | Not published | 200 W [src] | $4.32(published W) |
| Frigidaire EFIC255 | 44 lbs/day [src] | 3 lbs [src] | 185 W [src] | $4.00(published W) |
| NewAir NIM030SS00 | 30 lbs/day [src] | Not published | 170 W [src] | $3.67(published W) |
| Frigidaire EFIC452 | 39.7 lbs/day [src] | Not published | 120 W [src] | $2.59(published W) |
If volume is the point
Buy the Frigidaire EFIC235. Its manual publishes 200 W and 20 kg per 24 hours, and the bullet mechanism gets there faster than any nugget machine can, because it does not have to compress anything. If you are filling a cooler for a weekend, this is the correct machine and nugget ice is the wrong one.
The catch is height: 19 inches. That is one inch more than a standard counter-to-cabinet gap, so it wants an open counter or an island.
If space is the point
Buy the Frigidaire EFIC452 at 14.1 inches tall and 90 to 120 W. It is the shortest machine we have specs for and the lowest published power draw on the site. You give up output — 18 kg a day rather than 20 — and you get clear cubes instead of bullet or nugget, which is either a bonus or a dealbreaker depending on what you are drinking.
If you specifically want chewable ice
Then portable bullet machines are not for you and the Frigidaire Gallery EFIC255 is the machine on this page to look at, at 185 W and 20 kg a day in a ten-inch-wide body. The wider nugget field is on the nugget roundup.
RVs, boats and outdoor use
These machines are electrically undemanding, but two physical constraints matter more away from a kitchen.
- Clearance. 3 inches on the Opal 2.0 and original Opal, 4 inches on the Opal 2.0 Ultra, per their manuals. That air gap is how heat leaves. A machine wedged into a cabinet works harder, runs longer and costs more.
- Level. The reservoir, the bin drain and the overflow all assume level. On a boat or a sloped campsite, that is an actual consideration rather than a formality.
- Ambient temperature. The original Opal manual specifies an operating range of 55F to 90F. Outside that, the machine either struggles to freeze or the ice melts as fast as it is made.
Plan for the melt
No portable machine here keeps its ice. Make ice at home, transfer it to a cooler or the freezer, and think of the machine as a producer. Treating it as a store is the mistake that produces the disappointed reviews. The mechanism is explained on do countertop ice makers keep ice frozen.
The picks in full
1. Best for volume
Frigidaire Countertop Bullet Ice Maker
A bullet-ice machine, not a nugget one — and the fastest route to a full bin if the ice shape does not matter to you.
- Rated output
- 44 lbs/day
- Bin capacity
- Not published
- Electrical
- 200 W published
- Ceiling at 4 hrs/day, $0.18/kWh
- $4.32/month (from published watts)
#ad We earn a commission on purchases made through this link. How this is funded. Prices last checked September 2, 2026.
44 lbs a day at 200 W published. Bullet machines make ice by freezing water onto chilled prongs, which is a far simpler and faster process than extruding nugget ice.
This is the machine to buy if you want a lot of ice for a cooler, and the machine to avoid if you want ice you can chew.
At 19 inches tall it does not fit under a standard 18-inch upper cabinet gap. Measure first.
Skip this if
You came here for chewable ice. Bullet ice is hollow, hard cylinders. It is not nugget ice and no setting will make it nugget ice.
2. Best for small spaces
Frigidaire Countertop Clear Ice Maker
Clear cubes rather than nugget or bullet, the shortest machine here, and the lowest published power draw of anything on the site.
- Rated output
- 39.7 lbs/day
- Bin capacity
- Not published
- Electrical
- 120 W published
- Ceiling at 4 hrs/day, $0.18/kWh
- $2.59/month (from published watts)
#ad We earn a commission on purchases made through this link. How this is funded. Prices last checked September 2, 2026.
90 to 120 W published is the lowest draw of any machine on this site, and it is a published consumption range rather than a nameplate.
14.1 inches tall is the only machine here that clears a standard under-cabinet gap without argument.
Twenty-four cubes per cycle and 18 kg a day. Clear ice melts slowly and dilutes a drink less, which is the entire reason to choose it over nugget.
Skip this if
You want chewable ice. Clear cube machines are slow by design — the clarity comes from freezing water gradually.
3. Lowest draw
NewAir 30 lb. Countertop Nugget Ice Maker
The lowest published power draw of any nugget machine we could source, at the cost of the lowest rated output.
- Rated output
- 30 lbs/day
- Bin capacity
- Not published
- Electrical
- 170 W published
- Ceiling at 4 hrs/day, $0.18/kWh
- $3.67/month (from published watts)
#ad We earn a commission on purchases made through this link. How this is funded. Prices last checked September 2, 2026.
170 W published, like the Frigidaire, is a real consumption figure rather than a ceiling. It gives this machine the lowest sourced running cost on the site.
It is the deepest machine here at 17.64 inches. Measure your counter depth before the cabinet doors decide for you.
NewAir publishes the refrigerant charge (20 g of R600a), which almost nobody does. It is a small sign of a manual written by someone who expected it to be read.
Skip this if
Two people want iced drinks at the same time. Thirty pounds a day is the smallest rated output here and there is no published bin capacity to check.
4. Best portable nugget
Frigidaire Gallery Countertop Nugget Ice Maker
The only nugget machine here whose maker publishes an actual power consumption instead of a nameplate ceiling, and it is a low one.
- Rated output
- 44 lbs/day
- Bin capacity
- 3 lbs
- Electrical
- 185 W published
- Ceiling at 4 hrs/day, $0.18/kWh
- $4.00/month (from published watts)
#ad We earn a commission on purchases made through this link. How this is funded. Prices last checked September 2, 2026.
185 W published means the running-cost figure for this machine is not a derived ceiling — it is arithmetic on a number Frigidaire printed. That is the strongest cost data on the site.
It is rated at 20 kg a day, which is 44 lbs — higher than the Opal 2.0's 38. Both numbers are measured under ideal conditions the manual does not describe.
Ten inches wide and 16.5 tall makes it the narrowest full-size nugget machine in this set.
Skip this if
You need a manufacturer-published bin capacity. Frigidaire's specification table omits it, so the 3 lb figure on this page comes from a retail listing rather than the manual.
Questions people actually ask
What does portable mean on an ice maker?
It means the machine runs from a standard outlet and needs no plumbing or drain: you fill a reservoir and it recirculates the water. It does not mean lightweight. The machines here weigh between about 34 and 44 pounds empty, which is portable in the sense that you can move it, not in the sense that you would want to carry it far.
Which portable ice maker makes the most ice?
Of the machines whose manufacturers publish a rated output, the Frigidaire EFIC235 and the Frigidaire Gallery EFIC255 both state 20 kg per 24 hours, which is 44.1 lbs. The EFIC235 makes bullet ice and the EFIC255 makes nugget ice. NewAir's NIM044BS00 is titled as a 44 lb machine but its specification table does not repeat the figure.
Can you use a portable ice maker in an RV or a boat?
Electrically, these are ordinary 115 to 120 V appliances drawing between 90 and 200 watts where a figure is published, so a standard inverter or shore power handles them. Two practical cautions: they need their clearance to vent hot air, typically 3 to 4 inches, and they must sit level, because the water reservoir and bin drain depend on it.
Does a portable ice maker keep ice frozen?
No. On every machine here the bin is unrefrigerated. Ice melts and the meltwater drains back into the reservoir to be frozen again. For a trip, make the ice at home, transfer it to a cooler or freezer, and treat the machine as a producer rather than a store.
Sources
- Frigidaire EFIC235 User Manual, p.9 (product specifications) (read 2026-09-02)
- Frigidaire EFIC452 Use & Care Manual, p.10 (product specifications) (read 2026-09-02)
- Frigidaire EFIC255 Use & Care Manual, p.12 (product specifications) (read 2026-09-02)
- GE Profile Opal 2.0 Owner's Manual 49-9000029 Rev. 6, p.17 (read 2026-09-02)
- NewAir NIM044BS00 Owner's Manual, p.5 (specifications) (read 2026-09-02)
- EIA Electric Power Monthly, Table 5.6.A, June 2026 (read 2026-09-02)
Read next
- The Best Countertop Ice Makers
The whole countertop category ranked by ice type, with sourced specs and running costs.
- Nugget Ice vs Bullet Ice
Two mechanisms, two products. What actually separates chewable ice from hollow cylinders.
- Do Countertop Ice Makers Keep Ice Frozen?
No. The bin is unrefrigerated and the meltwater recirculates. What to do instead.
- How Much Ice Do You Actually Need?
Why rated output is the wrong number to shop on, and what bin capacity really limits.
- Electrical Requirements for a Nugget Ice Maker
Published current ratings, dedicated circuits, and what a nameplate figure really means.
- Frigidaire EFIC235
200 W, 44 lbs a day of bullet ice, and 19 inches tall. Fast, and tall.