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Appliances›Countertop Nugget Ice Makers

The Best Countertop Nugget Ice Makers

By The Consumer's Guide Research Team·Updated August 31, 2026

Nugget ice is the soft, chewy pellet ice you get at a drive-through soda counter, and once you've had it at home, regular cubes feel like a downgrade. It's made from compacted flakes, so it's porous. That means it chills a drink fast, soaks up whatever it's sitting in, and crunches instead of cracking a tooth. Good Housekeeping's lab work found nugget ice melts more slowly in a glass than the bullet ice most countertop machines make. If you drink iced coffee or seltzer all day, that difference adds up.

Here's the honest part. No countertop nugget machine is a set-and-forget appliance. Every one of them needs you to pour water in by hand, because none of these plumb into a line the way a commercial undercounter unit does. They all build up scale, and they all get louder as the auger wears. Owner feedback for every brand in this guide includes units that started squealing or quit outright inside the first year. Buy one because you love the ice, not because you expect a decade out of it.

So the question isn't which machine is flawless. It's which one makes the best ice, keeps up with your household, and gives you the best odds. We leaned on manufacturer specs, published noise measurements, and the themes that come up again and again in owner reports. We think that the GE Profile Opal 2.0 Ultra is the best countertop nugget ice maker for most people, and that the Newair 44 lb nugget ice maker is the one to buy if you want similar ice from a smaller machine that costs less.

At a glance

Product	Daily Ice Capacity	Water Tank Size	Price
GE Profile Opal 2.0 Ultra Nugget IceTop pick	38 lbs/Day	.75 Gal Tank	$473.10
GE Profile Opal UltraAlso consider	38 lbs/Day	1 Gal Tank	$499On sale
Nugget Ice Maker CountertopRunner-up	44 lbs/Day	1.8L Reservoir	$249.99
Antarctic Star Nugget Ice Maker Countertop withAlso great	33 lbs/Day	1.8L Tank	$248.38
Gevi V2.0 Nugget Ice Maker with ViewingAlso consider	38 lbs/Day	2.8L Reservoir	$322.97On sale
EUHOMY Nugget Ice Maker CountertopBudget pick	44 lbs/Day	1.8L Tank	$199.91On sale
Antarctic Star Nugget Ice Maker Countertop withAlso in lineup	34 lbs/Day	—	$149.99
Frigidaire Countertop Crunchy Chewable Nugget Ice MakerAlso in lineup	44 lbs/Day	—	$318.11

How we picked

Ice quality. We only considered machines that compact flakes into true soft pellets, not bullet or crescent ice sold under a nugget-sounding name. Published comparisons and owner descriptions of texture had to agree.

Output and storage. We compared rated daily production against bin size, because a machine that makes 44 pounds a day but stores 1.5 pounds still has you scooping constantly. Premium units store about 3 pounds; budget ones hold roughly half that, per CNET.

Noise. Tom's Guide measured the Opal at about 44 to 48 dB while some budget models topped 55 dB. Anything that owners repeatedly describe as unbearable in an open kitchen didn't make the picks.

Refilling and cleaning. We favored bigger reservoirs, side tanks and effective self-clean cycles, since none of these connect to a water line. We also checked whether descaling supplies and filters are easy to get.

Footprint and fit. We compared height against typical 18-inch cabinet clearance and looked at whether a machine loads from the top or the front. A top-loader that doesn't fit under a cabinet is a machine you'll move every day.

Top pick

The best nugget ice, if you can live with the upkeep

GE Profile Opal 2.0 Ultra Nugget Ice

GE's Opal makes the softest, most consistent nugget ice you can get on a countertop, and the included side tank means you're not refilling it every few hours. The app lets you schedule a batch, so there's ice waiting when you walk in the door.

$473.10fromAmazon

No other countertop machine makes nugget ice this consistently. GE rates the Opal 2.0 Ultra at up to 38 pounds a day, with the first batch in about 10 minutes and 1.6 pounds an hour after that. Reviewed.com's week-long comparison found it held both ice texture and sustained 24-hour output better than budget alternatives. Cheaper machines make real nugget ice too. This one just keeps making it.

The side tank is the part you'll appreciate on a Saturday with people over. It holds about three quarters of a gallon on top of the internal reservoir, and GE says it cuts refill trips by roughly 75 percent. Without it, you're walking to the sink several times a day with a pitcher. If you're choosing between Opal configurations, get one with the tank.

Wi-Fi sounds like a gimmick until you use it. Through the SmartHQ app you can start or schedule production, so the bin's full when you wake up instead of at lunchtime. You also get cleaning reminders and software updates, and it answers to Alexa and Google Home. The touch display dims when it's idle, which matters on a machine this big sitting out in the open.

It's quiet enough to leave in an open kitchen. Tom's Guide put the Opal around 44 to 48 dB while running, roughly library quiet, while some budget units they measured ran past 55 dB. That's the difference between a background hum and something you turn the TV up over. You'll still hear it, especially at night. But it's the calmest of the high-output machines here.

Flaws but not dealbreakers

Reliability is the real asterisk. A meaningful share of owner reports describe a high-pitched squeal starting within weeks, or the machine simply stopping partway through the first year — often just after the return window closes. Some owners are on their third Opal in five years and keep buying them anyway because they love the ice. Others swore off the brand entirely. Go in knowing that.

It's also big, and it eats consumables. At roughly 17 inches deep and 16.5 tall, it takes up as much counter as a microwave, and the side tank adds width. It uses a scale-inhibiting filter and descaling powder you'll replace over time. And you'll still want to run a citric acid descale every few months no matter how often you use the built-in cleaning cycle.

Runner-up

Nearly the same ice from a machine half the size

Nugget Ice Maker Countertop

Newair rates this one at up to 44 pounds of nugget ice a day from a body under 10 inches wide. It loads and opens at the front instead of the top, so it slides under upper cabinets where the Opal won't fit.

$249.99fromAmazon

The spec sheet is the pitch here. Newair rates it at up to 44 pounds a day with the first ice in 10 to 15 minutes, which is more rated output than the Opal on paper. It draws from a 1.8-liter reservoir, so you'll fill it more often. But you're getting the same soft, flake-compacted pellets out of a much smaller box.

The front-opening design is the underrated feature. Both the door and the water fill are on the front, so you're not reaching over the top of a running machine with a full pitcher. At 14.9 inches tall it clears most upper cabinets. Owners moving up from top-loading bullet ice makers keep coming back to how much easier this layout is to live with.

Newair rates operation at 46 dB, in the same range Tom's Guide measured for the Opal. In a quiet house you'll hear the auger working, and some owners describe it getting louder as the machine ages. There's a self-cleaning rinse cycle and dishwasher-safe removable parts, which is about as easy as maintenance gets at this size.

Flaws but not dealbreakers

The bin is small. Newair doesn't publish a storage capacity, and the compact body doesn't leave room for much, so expect to scoop into a glass or a cooler rather than stockpile for a party. Owner reports also include units that turned loud and then failed near the one-year mark, which is the same story that follows this entire category.

There's less accumulated owner feedback for this model than for the Opal, so it's harder to judge how it holds up over years rather than months.

Budget pickOn sale

Real nugget ice for much less, if you don't mind the upkeep

EUHOMY Nugget Ice Maker Countertop

Euhomy rates this compact unit at up to 44 pounds a day, with the first pellets in about 7 to 10 minutes. It's a one-button machine with a 20-minute self-clean cycle, and the ice it makes is genuinely soft and chewable.

$199.91fromAmazonList price ~~$249.99~~ · Save $50.08 (20%)

This is the machine most people in this category actually buy, and it's easy to see why. Press ICE and it starts. There's a light button for the chamber and a clean button, and that's the entire interface. At 13.9 by 9.85 by 14.95 inches it tucks into a corner of the counter or an office breakroom without rearranging anything.

The ice itself is what surprises people. Owners who expected a compromise describe soft, chewable pellets rather than the hollow bullets that cheap machines usually turn out. It uses the same flake-compaction approach as the Opal. What you give up is polish, smart features and support — not pellet quality.

The 1.8-liter tank is the practical limit. CNET notes that budget nugget machines typically hold 1 to 1.5 pounds of ice, against about 3 pounds in premium units, so you'll scoop and refill more often. If you're filling four tumblers a day, that's fine. If you're hosting, you'll be babysitting it.

Flaws but not dealbreakers

Plan on daily attention. Owners consistently mention emptying and refilling to keep the ice tasting fresh, and the drain plug is a fiddly silicone insert rather than a screw fitting. There's no app, no scheduling, and no side tank to buy.

Squealing turns up in owner reports here too, sometimes within days of unboxing, and support quality varies. A failure hurts less than losing a premium machine, but it's still money you'd rather not spend twice.

Also great

A push-lever dispenser, so you never touch a scoop

Antarctic Star Nugget Ice Maker Countertop with

This Antarctic Star dispenses ice through a lever instead of making you dig it out of a bin. It's 6.6 inches wide, rated at up to 33 pounds a day, and it's the easiest machine here to use with a glass in one hand.

$248.38fromAmazon

Dispensing changes how you use a nugget machine. Hold a glass under the chute and press. There's no lid to lift, no scoop living in the bin picking up whatever's on your counter, and no hand in the ice. If you're building drinks for guests or refilling a tumbler six times a day, that one difference matters more than a few pounds of rated output.

It's also the narrowest unit in this guide at 6.59 inches wide, which is why owners keep putting it in RVs and galley kitchens. Antarctic Star rates it at 33 pounds a day with a first batch in about 10 minutes, and it runs a self-cleaning cycle on its own. Ice-full and low-water alerts keep you from running it dry.

The build reads better than you'd expect. Owners describe it as heavy and solid rather than hollow, even though the drip tray, cover, hopper and auger are plastic — same as everyone else's.

Flaws but not dealbreakers

The bin holds about 1.5 pounds and the tank is 1.8 liters. Between the two, this is a two- or three-glass machine before it wants attention again. Some owners also say it takes a few clean cycles before the ice stops picking up a plastic taste, and it's audible while it runs.

It's new enough that long-term owner feedback barely exists yet. Nearly everything in this category looks great for the first month.

The research

Who this is for

Buy one of these if you drink iced beverages every day and you're tired of a fridge ice maker that jams, or of hauling bags of pellet ice home from a drive-through. They're also a genuinely good fit for a home bar, a small office breakroom, or an RV where a built-in ice maker isn't an option. Nugget ice chills a drink fast and it's easy to chew, which is why a lot of buyers are people who crunch ice all day anyway.

Skip it if you want ice that sits in a freezer for a week — nugget ice clumps once it's out of the machine and the machine keeps recirculating what melts. Skip it too if you can't tolerate any appliance noise near where you work. This guide covers countertop machines only. Undercounter and plumbed-in units are a different purchase, and they're the only realistic way to stop refilling a tank by hand.

How we picked

We started from manufacturer specs and published reviews, then weighed each machine on five things. Ice quality: true soft pellets made from compacted flakes, not bullets with a marketing name. Output and storage: rated pounds per day matched against bin size, since a small bin means constant scooping no matter how fast the machine works. Noise: roughly 44 to 48 dB is livable in an open kitchen, past 55 dB isn't. Refilling and cleaning: bigger reservoirs, an available side tank, and a self-clean cycle that actually reduces the manual work. Footprint and fit: height under typical cabinet clearance, and front-loading over top-loading where we could get it.

Other countertop nugget ice makers worth considering

If you want the biggest side tank and a finish other than stainless: The GE Profile Opal Ultra ($499) — This Amazon-exclusive Opal Ultra is the same 38-pound-a-day machine as our top pick, with a full 1-gallon side tank instead of three quarters, a 3-pound removable bin, and a Chocolate Quartz finish that reads warmer than steel. It ships with a water filter and descaling powder, and it does the same Wi-Fi scheduling and voice control. You're not giving up performance, and you're not escaping the Opal's reliability record either. One thing owners flag: the drip tray is shallow, so melted ice can overflow it if you don't empty it.

If you're tired of refilling a tank by hand: The Gevi V2.0 Nugget Ice Maker with Viewing ($322.97) — The Gevi V2.0 is the only machine here with two ways to get water in — manual fill or an automatic feed for continuous operation. It carries a 2.8-liter reservoir, the largest built-in tank in this lineup, and Gevi rates it at 38 pounds a day with ice starting in about five minutes. Gevi also says the redesigned system cuts scale buildup by half. You give up any app control, the cabinet runs warm to the touch, and owners who've needed warranty help describe a slow process.

The competition

This is what our research surfaced, not a census of the category. New countertop nugget machines appear constantly, many of them the same chassis under a different name. The two below are worth knowing about, either because you'll see them everywhere or because they solve one specific problem well.

The Antarctic Star Nugget Ice Maker Countertop with ($149.99) — Antarctic Star's compact silver model is the smallest machine in this guide at 11.3 inches tall and 8.66 wide, with a carry handle, a scoop and a basket in the box. It's rated at 34 pounds a day with a first batch in about 10 minutes, and it self-cleans with a five-second hold on the power button. It loses to our picks on noise — owner reports about the compressor being loud are common and consistent, with at least one buyer describing it as garbage-disposal loud. Still worth a look if portability outranks everything and you'll run it in a garage or a workshop rather than beside the sofa.

The Frigidaire Countertop Crunchy Chewable Nugget Ice Maker ($318.11) — The Frigidaire countertop nugget maker is rated at 44 pounds a day and carries a name most people trust, which is most of its appeal. The ice is good — owners who came from bullet-style machines are happy with the texture. But it's a wide, tall unit at 18 by 20 inches, and owners report it won't clear standard upper cabinets. The bigger issue is what happens when it breaks: warranty service runs through a third-party licensee, and owner accounts of that process are the harshest in this guide. Choose it only if you specifically want the brand on your counter.

Care and cleaning

Descale every three to six months with a citric acid solution, even on machines with a self-clean button. Good Housekeeping recommends it, and mineral buildup is what turns good pellets into small, hollow, hard bits over time. Run the built-in cycle weekly if you use the machine daily. Empty the reservoir and the bin when you'll be away for more than a few days, since standing water is how the ice starts tasting stale. Use filtered water if yours is hard. And when a new machine arrives, let it stand upright and unplugged for about 24 hours before you power it on so the refrigerant settles — owners who skip that step report more early trouble.

Questions we get

What is nugget ice, and why do people love it?

It's soft, chewable pellet ice made by compacting shaved flakes rather than freezing solid cubes. Because it's porous, it chills a drink quickly, absorbs flavor, and crunches easily instead of threatening a filling. Google Trends shows searches for nugget ice makers grew more than 300 percent over five years, driven mostly by people chasing the drive-through version at home.

Do these need to be connected to a water line?

No, and almost none of them can be. Every countertop nugget maker in this guide fills from a removable reservoir you top up by hand. Only commercial or undercounter units plumb into a supply line. A side tank, like the one included with the Opal Ultra models, is the closest you'll get to reducing refills.

How long does it take to get the first batch of ice?

Most machines produce usable ice within 10 to 20 minutes of a cold start. Filling the bin completely is a different matter — The Spruce Eats puts that at two to four hours of continuous running. If you need a full bin for a party, start it that morning.

Are they loud enough to be annoying in an open kitchen?

The good ones aren't. Tom's Guide measured the Opal at roughly 44 to 48 dB, about as loud as a quiet library, while some budget machines they checked ran past 55 dB. The bigger concern is aging: owners across every brand report a high-pitched squeal developing over months, usually from the auger or its motor.

Can one replace the ice maker in my refrigerator?

Not really, and you shouldn't plan on it. These machines recirculate melted water rather than keeping ice frozen indefinitely, so the bin isn't cold storage. If you want ice waiting in the freezer for next week, you still need a freezer. What these do is give you fresh nugget ice on demand.

Why is my machine making small, hollow or hard ice?

Almost always mineral buildup on the evaporator or auger. Run a citric acid descale and see if the pellets come back. A low reservoir, a hot room or a partly blocked drain line can cause the same symptom. Consumer Reports notes these machines draw 150 to 200 watts while actively making ice, so a weak extension cord can also starve one.

Why you should trust us

For this guide:

We compared manufacturer spec sheets for every machine here: rated daily output, reservoir and bin capacity, first-batch time, dimensions and cleaning modes.
We read published reviews and lab work from Tom's Guide, Reviewed.com, CNET, Good Housekeeping, Consumer Reports and The Spruce Eats, including noise measurements and sustained 24-hour production comparisons.
We read through owner feedback on each listing and looked for themes that repeat rather than one-off complaints, especially around noise, scale buildup, warranty support and first-year failures.
We read owner reviews on every listing, weighted toward the critical ones, because that is where the recurring failures show up.
We have a systematic way of automatically fetching the latest prices, so the numbers on this page stay current.
This is a research-focused guide, so the team may not own every product listed — though we often do own the top winners, which gives us extra context for the recommendations.
We don't accept free products, and the retailer commission never changes which product we recommend.