How to Find the Model Number on Any Home Appliance (Brand-by-Brand Location Guide)

Why Your Appliance Model Number Matters Right Now

In January 2026, the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission announced an expanded recall of Frigidaire-brand minifridges — adding model EFMIS121 to a list that already included EFMIS129, EFMIS137, EFMIS149, and EFMIS175. The internal electrical components can short-circuit and ignite the surrounding plastic housing, posing fire and burn hazards. At the time of the expansion, there had already been six fires and more than $700,000 in property damage reported. Total units covered across both recall phases: roughly 964,000.

Here's the problem: the only way to know if your unit is affected is to check the model number. Recalls don't trigger by customer name or purchase date — they're indexed by model number ranges and serial number manufacture-date windows. If you've never needed to locate an appliance model number before, this is the moment to learn.

This is also the first thing a repair technician asks for when scheduling a service call. Model numbers route to parts catalogs, wiring diagrams, technical service manuals, and warranty records. Without the model number, every appliance lookup stalls at step one.

Model Number vs. Serial Number: Know the Difference

Every rating label carries two distinct numbers. Confusing them is one of the most common mistakes in warranty filing and parts ordering — both of which require the model number specifically, not the serial.

Both numbers appear on the same physical label — model typically listed first, serial directly below. For a complete recall verification, you need both: the model number confirms the product is in scope; the decoded serial confirms your unit's manufacture date falls within the recall's affected production window. See our guides to decode the serial for Whirlpool, Samsung, GE, and other brands.

Refrigerators: Location by Style

Refrigerators are the most-searched appliance for model number location — likely because the label is inside the compartment and invisible without opening the door. The exact position depends on door configuration.

French-Door and Side-by-Side Models

Open the main refrigerator door (left door on French-door models). Look at the left interior wall, approximately at eye level or in the upper third of the wall. Samsung and LG consistently use this spot. Whirlpool and KitchenAid often place the label on the door jamb itself — the vertical face of the cabinet opening where the door compresses the seal. If you don't find it on the wall, run your finger along the jamb from top to bottom.

Top-Freezer Models

Open the fresh food door. The label is typically on the interior left wall at mid-height. Older GE and Frigidaire top-freezer models sometimes put it on the ceiling of the fresh food compartment instead — look up when the door is open.

Bottom-Freezer Models

Check the fresh food section first (left interior wall). If absent, open the freezer drawer or door and look at the left side wall or the ceiling of the freezer compartment. Bosch bottom-freezer models often use the plinth behind the removable base panel as a secondary location.

Still can't find it? Pull the base grille out at the very bottom front — there is often a secondary label behind it. Last resort: pull the unit a few inches from the wall and check the back panel near the compressor compartment. This is rarely the primary location for any major US brand, but it exists on some older Frigidaire and GE units.

Dishwashers

Pull the dishwasher door open all the way — flat — and check these spots in order:

1. Inner door edge (side face of the door): The thin strip of metal or plastic along the left or right side of the door, visible when the door is fully open. This is the primary location for Whirlpool, GE, Maytag, KitchenAid, and Frigidaire. The label typically faces upward when the door is flat.
2. Top edge of the inner door panel: Bosch specifically places its label along the top edge of the door — the edge that faces the ceiling when the door is fully open. If you have a Bosch, this is where to look first.
3. Side wall of the tub interior: Some Samsung and LG dishwashers put the label on the left or right wall inside the tub, near the door opening. Look just inside the tub on the side wall at the front.

Washers & Dryers

Front-Load Washers

Open the washer door. The label is almost always on the rubber door seal gasket ring — the thick black or gray rubber ring around the door opening — or on the left side of the cabinet door opening frame, the metal surface exposed when the door is fully open. Look at the 9 o'clock position (left side) of the door opening. Samsung and LG front-loaders consistently use this spot; Whirlpool and Frigidaire may have it on the gasket ring directly.

Top-Load Washers

Lift the lid. The label is typically on the underside of the lid (right or left side) or on the rear cabinet wall just inside the lid opening, approximately 3–4 inches below the lid hinge. Samsung top-loaders sometimes put the label on the front control panel face instead — check the area just below the control knob or display panel.

Dryers (Gas or Electric)

Open the dryer door. The label is on the door opening rim — the ring of cabinet surface where the door seal compresses. Most brands (Whirlpool, GE, Samsung, LG, Maytag, Frigidaire) put it on the left side or top of this opening. Some older units have a secondary label on the back panel, but the door rim is where to start for every brand.

Ranges, Ovens & Microwaves

Freestanding Ranges

Open the oven door. Look at the left or right side of the oven door opening frame — the painted or stainless steel surface that's exposed when the door is down, at roughly 12–18 inches above the oven floor. This is the primary location across every major brand: GE, Whirlpool, Samsung, LG, Frigidaire, and KitchenAid all use this spot consistently. For slide-in ranges, also check the storage or warming drawer at the bottom: pull the drawer all the way out and look at the frame inside.

Wall Ovens

Open the oven door. The label is usually on the left side of the door frame at eye level when kneeling. High-end brands like Wolf and Thermador sometimes place it at the top of the door frame opening instead.

Microwaves

For over-the-range microwaves: open the door and check the left interior wall of the cavity. This is the primary location for GE, Whirlpool, Samsung, and LG. If absent, the secondary label is often on the top exterior surface, accessible by opening the cabinet above. For countertop microwaves: check the back panel of the unit or the underside. These labels are almost always on the exterior on countertop models — the cavity is reserved for ventilation, not labeling.

When the Label Is Missing, Faded, or Unreadable

Labels peel in humid environments, fade under UV exposure, and sometimes get scraped off during moves. These are your recovery options, in order of ease:

1. Owner's manual: The model number is printed on the front cover or first page of every manufacturer's manual. If you no longer have the paper copy, search the manufacturer's website for the appliance type and look for a manual that matches yours visually.
2. Original purchase receipt or email confirmation: Every retail receipt — Home Depot, Lowe's, Best Buy, Costco, Amazon — prints the full model number. Search your email for the brand name plus "receipt" or "order confirmation." The model number will appear in the line-item description.
3. Serial number decoder: If you can read the serial number but not the model, a serial decoder can identify the product family. Use ApplianceIQ's serial decoder tool — it traces the model family from serial, which is often sufficient for recall confirmation and parts lookups.
4. Manufacturer model locator pages: GE Appliances maintains illustrated model-and-serial-number locator diagrams at geappliances.com for every appliance style. Samsung, LG, Whirlpool, and Bosch have comparable support pages with photos pinpointing exactly where the label sits on your specific appliance type.
5. Call the manufacturer: Have your approximate purchase date, retailer name, price paid, and any distinguishing features ready. The manufacturer's support team can narrow it to 2–3 candidate model numbers, which you can cross-check against online photos of each.

What to Do Once You Have the Model Number

Once you have it, here are the immediately actionable next steps:

• Run a recall check: Use the model number on CPSC.gov/Recalls — or run it through ApplianceIQ's four-database recall workflow, which checks CPSC, SaferProducts.gov, Health Canada, and EU Safety Gate simultaneously and matches to serial-number date ranges.
• Verify warranty status: Most manufacturers extend warranty coverage linked to the model's production period. Enter the model number on the manufacturer's warranty portal (Samsung, LG, Whirlpool, and GE Appliances all have these) — bring the serial number for the manufacture-date verification step.
• Order the right part: Parts distributors (PartSelect, Repair Clinic, AppliancePartsPros) are all indexed by model number. "Samsung refrigerator" returns thousands of unfiltered results; entering the specific model returns only parts confirmed to fit your unit.
• Decode the manufacture date: Once you have both the model and serial, ApplianceIQ decodes the manufacture date from the serial automatically — critical for remaining-lifespan estimates, warranty period calculations, and lot-level recall matching. Free tier: 25 lookups per month at no cost.

If you routinely work across multiple appliances — as an inspector, repair technician, or property manager — ApplianceIQ's inspector workflow resolves any model number into recalls, specs, manuals, and manufacture date in a single lookup. See the pricing page for team and API options.