How Long Do Household Appliances Last?

One of the most common questions we get isn't about a specific problem — it's whether an appliance is simply old enough that a repair isn't worth it. There's no single answer that applies to every situation, but understanding typical service life for different appliance types is a useful starting point.

General ranges by appliance type

Refrigerators, dishwashers, and ranges tend to have longer typical service lives than washers and dryers, which see more mechanical wear from moving parts and heat cycling. Microwaves, especially heavily used ones, often have the shortest typical lifespan among common kitchen appliances.

These are general patterns, not guarantees — usage intensity, household size, and how well an appliance has been maintained all shift these numbers in either direction.

Repair history matters more than age alone

An appliance that's had one isolated repair in its lifetime is a very different situation from one that's had three unrelated failures in the past year. The second pattern is a stronger signal that a unit may be nearing the end of its practical life, regardless of its exact age.

What actually fails, and when

Certain components — door seals, belts, igniters, water valves — tend to wear out on a schedule that's more about usage than age, and replacing them can meaningfully extend an appliance's useful life. Others, like a refrigerator's sealed system or a washer's main control board, are costlier failures that become harder to justify repairing as an appliance gets older.

The bottom line

If you're trying to decide whether an aging appliance in your Bend home is worth repairing, age is one input among several — the actual diagnosed problem, the cost of parts, and your appliance's specific repair history all factor in too.