Quick Answer: The Magic Chef MCIM22 series makes up to 27 lbs of bullet-shaped ice a day for roughly $130-150 on Amazon, positioning it as one of the cheapest countertop ice makers sold under a recognizable name. It’s a legacy brand now licensed to MC Appliance Corporation rather than built by Whirlpool, and owner reports cite sensor failures and grinding noise more often than pricier competitors — a fine grab-and-go pick for a small budget, not a machine built for years of daily nugget-ice-level output (it doesn’t make nugget ice at all).
Magic Chef is one of the most recognizable names in American kitchen appliances, which is exactly why it shows up in so many ice maker searches — buyers assume decades of stove-and-refrigerator pedigree carries over to a $140 countertop unit. It mostly doesn’t. Here’s what the current MCIM22 lineup actually offers, who really makes it, and where it lands next to the nugget-ice machines that dominate the rest of this site.
Magic Chef ice maker at a glance
| Spec | Magic Chef MCIM22 Series |
|---|---|
| Ice type | Bullet/cylinder cubes (2 sizes) |
| Ice per day | Up to 27 lbs |
| First batch | ~7-9 minutes, 9 cubes/cycle |
| Storage basket | ~1.5 lbs (unrefrigerated) |
| Connectivity | None (digital touch panel) |
| Warranty | 1 year parts & labor |
| Price | ~$130-150 |
Magic Chef MCIM22 Portable Ice Maker
- One of the cheapest countertop ice makers sold under a recognizable name.
- Makes bullet-shaped ice only — no nugget/pebble option.
- Small ~1.5-lb unrefrigerated basket needs frequent emptying.
- Owner reports flag sensor failures and grinding noise more than pricier rivals.
Stocking the bar cart for the same trip? Try Amazon Fresh and get mixers, citrus, and club soda delivered before the first batch of cubes is ready.
Who actually makes a Magic Chef ice maker
This is the same story as several legacy kitchen brands on countertop appliances: Magic Chef traces back to the 1880s as the American Stove Company, later passed through Maytag and then Whirlpool ownership. Whirlpool spun the name off in 2006 into MC Appliance Corporation, which now licenses “Magic Chef” onto budget, largely imported appliances — including its ice makers. There’s no Whirlpool factory, engineering team, or full-size-appliance warranty network behind today’s MCIM22. It’s a legacy name on a low-cost product line, the same licensing arrangement covered in our Frigidaire ice maker review for that brand’s countertop units.
Output, speed, and ice type
The MCIM22 series is rated at up to 27 lbs of ice in 24 hours, with a first batch of 9 bullet-shaped cubes ready in about 7-9 minutes across two size settings. That’s meaningfully behind the Euhomy’s ~34.5 lbs/day and 6-minute first batch, and well short of the GE Profile Opal 2.0’s ~38 lbs/day — but it also undercuts both on price. Note the shape: these are bullet/cylinder cubes, not the soft, chewable nugget ice this site covers most. If nugget ice is the actual goal, see our best nugget ice maker guide instead.
Storage basket and daily use
The onboard basket holds roughly 1.5 lbs before it needs emptying, and like every countertop ice maker it isn’t refrigerated — unused ice melts back into the internal reservoir within a few hours. Magic Chef’s manual recommends refilling or changing the water roughly every 24 hours since there’s no separate large side tank, closer to a manual top-off routine than the GE Opal’s optional side-tank convenience.
Known complaints
Owner reports on Magic Chef’s ice makers cluster around a few recurring issues: full-sensor failures showing up as early as a month and a half of use, audible grinding or humming during cycles, and mixed longevity with some units failing within the first one to two years. That puts it at the low end on both price and reported reliability compared to budget nugget makers like Euhomy or Silonn, which get more consistent praise for speed and quiet operation despite their own failure reports clustering later, around 10-14 months. None of this is unusual for the budget countertop tier — see our ice maker troubleshooting guide if a unit stops making ice — but it’s worth budgeting for a shorter service life at this price point rather than assuming the Magic Chef name buys extra durability.
Magic Chef vs. the competition
- vs. Frigidaire EFIC117-SS (closest rival): Similar price and the same bullet-ice category, with Frigidaire’s licensed unit generally drawing fewer sensor-failure complaints in owner reviews. See our full Frigidaire ice maker review for the direct comparison.
- vs. Euhomy (budget nugget): Not really a fair fight — the Euhomy costs about $40-60 more but makes true chewable nugget ice at higher daily output. Read our Euhomy nugget ice maker review if nugget ice matters more than rock-bottom price.
- vs. GE Profile Opal 2.0 (premium): The Opal is a different tier entirely — Wi-Fi, a side tank, and roughly 3x the price. Full details in our GE Opal 2.0 review.
- Full brand rankings: see our best ice maker brands guide for how Magic Chef stacks up against every major name on this site.
The Magic Chef by the numbers
| Metric | Figure | Why it matters |
|---|---|---|
| Daily output | Up to 27 lbs | About 20% less than the Euhomy's ~34.5 lbs/day and roughly 30% below the GE Opal 2.0's ~38 lbs/day, per each brand's published specs. |
| Price gap vs. Euhomy | ~$40-60 less | At ~$130-150 versus Euhomy's ~$169-190, the savings are real but modest given the jump from bullet to nugget ice. |
| Warranty | 1 year | Standard for the budget countertop tier, matching Frigidaire's licensed units — shorter coverage windows are one reason to budget for a shorter service life. |
Who should buy the Magic Chef?
Buy it if bullet-shaped ice at the lowest possible price is genuinely the goal, and you’re comfortable with a basic 1-year warranty and a smaller basket that needs frequent emptying. Skip it if you want nugget ice, a longer reliability track record, or any smart features — the extra $40-60 for a Euhomy buys a meaningfully better machine, and the extra step up to a GE Opal 2.0 buys the most polished experience in the category.
The bottom line
The Magic Chef name carries decades of kitchen-appliance trust, but today’s countertop ice maker is a licensed budget product, not a Whirlpool-engineered machine — and the bullet ice, small basket, and owner-reported reliability issues reflect that. It’s a defensible pick if price is the only variable that matters; for nearly everyone else, a modest step up to Euhomy or Frigidaire buys a more dependable machine.
Last updated: August 26, 2026.