TopTen and ENERGY STAR: Partners in Helping Consumers

How does TopTen USA partner with ENERGY STAR?

Using our own team of experts and product-specific methodologies, TopTen identifies the most efficient ENERGY STAR products.  With the exception of categories, such as vehicles, which the ENERGY STAR program does not include, all of the products that appear on TopTen lists are ENERGY STAR qualified. In fact, TopTen uses ENERGY STAR data in creating its lists, spot checking to verify the accuracy of the information. 

So how is TopTen different from ENERGY STAR?

The ENERGY STAR program sets a minimum standard for energy-efficient products. All products which exceed that standard earn the ENERGY STAR designation, whether they beat the minimum by a little or a lot.  In practice, that means that hundreds of models qualify for the ENERGY STAR label in each product category. However, for many products, there is a large range in the efficiency of ENERGY STAR-qualified models. So TopTen looks at all of the ENERGY STAR models and finds the 10 most efficient products among them.  In many cases, even though both models carry the ENERGY STAR logo, a product on a TopTen list will use half the energy of one that has barely met the ENERGY STAR qualifications.

What is ENERGY STAR?

ENERGY STAR is the trusted, government-backed symbol for energy efficiency helping us all save money and protect the environment through energy-efficient products and practices.

The ENERGY STAR label was established to:

• Reduce greenhouse gas emissions and other pollutants caused by the inefficient use of energy; and
• Make it easy for consumers to identify and purchase energy-efficient products that offer savings on energy bills without sacrificing performance, features, and comfort.

How Does EPA Choose which Products Earn the Label?

Products can earn the ENERGY STAR label by meeting the energy efficiency requirements set forth in ENERGY STAR product specifications. EPA establishes these specifications based on the following set of key guiding principles:

• Product categories must contribute significant energy savings nationwide.
• Qualified products must deliver the features and performance demanded by consumers, in addition to increased energy efficiency.
• If the qualified product costs more than a conventional, less-efficient counterpart, purchasers will recover their investment in increased energy efficiency through utility bill savings, within a reasonable period of time.
• Energy efficiency can be achieved through broadly available, non-proprietary technologies offered by more than one manufacturer.
• Product energy consumption and performance can be measured and verified with testing.
• Labeling would effectively differentiate products and be visible for purchasers.

How do I find ENERGY STAR-qualified products?

Currently, ENERGY STAR qualifies many more kinds of products than the ones that TopTen ranks.  For a list of those products, with links to the related ENERGY STAR sites, click here.