The reason why I recommend a middle tier Whirpool is very simple.
Whirpool sticks with much simpler designs that have been tried and proven over decades. They are the largest contractor brand and parts for the volume of appliances are easy to find from not only Whirpool but a bunch of third party. And every appliance repair person knows how to repair a whirpool. Think of it as a Honda Civic or Toyota Corolla. Simple, reliable, easily serviced, does not drastically change year after year, lots of people can service it. For every home my parents and I lived in, they were all Whirpool and lasted 15-20 years. I replaced my dishwasher in old primary home in San Diego exactly once when I first moved in while it lasted 15 years and never had a service call. I only recently replaced it because I accidentally left it closed with moisture in it for months, and then when I opened it, there was mildew all over the plastic tub, but it was still working, and could have probably lasted a few more years. But $276 was cheap for a brand new one that looked like stainless steel on the outside for now a rental. And while I am not a full on bleeding heart environmentalist…having a dishwasher last 15-20 years is certainly better for the environment than replacing one every 5-7 years. So pay slightly more for the Whirpool/Maytag with the steel tub liner inside if you want to keep it for a long time. The steel tub liner will also cut down on the sound. For rental, go with the cheapest thing since its going to get trashed anyway. It’s just a stupid dishwasher, you don’t need most of the rinse cycles, and the more simple and less “gimicky” the design is, the more reliable it will be, just like Honda Civics/Toyota Corollas
It’s like the Whirpool Series 60 washers and dryers that have a reputation of being reliable, cheap to fix,and clean really well … often times better than most of the new front loading washers that also break down more easily. again, it’s also a stupid washer and dryer. Who cares how fancy it looks
GE was never really that great, and recently GE was bought by Chinese firm Haier.
Bosch was never known for reliability, just like German cars.
LG & Samsung are slightly more reliable than Bosch, but when they do go out parts supply might be lacking, and they generally cost a lot more to repair, because when they go out, it’s most likely the complicated electronics they put into them, that are not field servicable and must require an entire logic board/etc to be replaced.
Kenmore, I wouldn’t buy unless you know which manufacturer they are contracting with. A long time ago, Kenmore appliances were basically rebadged Whirpools, and that was one of the major reasons with Kenmore brands were very popular. Then they went to the less reliable GE. Then they went to LG and Samsung.
Oh, and check out Lowe’s too. They are pretty good too. I bought appliances there too.
Most people have better ways to spend money than on stupid appliances that are there only for utility, and most of them all look the same these days in stainless steel facades, and it’s probably never going to come up in those conversations “I’m better than you because my dishwasher is a Bosch or LG or Samsung etc”… Nobody cares. It’s a stupid dishwasher.
