The concept of refrigeration and air conditioning are similar in many ways. However, the significant difference lies in the point of the gas supply. In the case of refrigerators, HFC-134a gas is used as a coolant. However, the air conditioners use built-in chemicals and the surrounding air to produce the cooling effect. They take up the warm air from the surroundings and circulate it through their internal units. Finally, the ACs redistributes the cooler air in the room.
Thus, AC takes up the thermal energy from the surrounding air to produce a cooler effect. However, in the case of a refrigerator, the in-built apparatus supplies the thermal energy from one location to another of higher temperatures.