Bought my first chest freezer a couple of months ago but I live in a teeny, tiny house and so I got the smallest one I could - 3.5 cu. feet and the footprint is basically 22" x 22" - but only two of us and that works well. It was pretty cheap, under $200. I got it because we started getting a monthly “meat” box order and I needed the space to store the extra meat coming while stocking up a bit. I keep a spreadsheet of what is in there and try to remember to update it as I take things out. Not perfect I’m sure but gives me a general idea. And I definitely label / date everything in there too as someone mentioned.
The worst thing about it, which I’ll have to deal with sooner rather than later, is frost. I try to keep the lid shut as much as possible to minimize but it is already building. You have to spend a lot more to get frost free and they were generally much bigger than our space would allow. I also just got a portable battery “power station” for it in case the power goes out (storm season just arrived!) - which cost significantly more than the freezer itself but is close to what the value of the meat is inside it at the moment.
