A refrigerator includes a compressor, a capacitor to store direct current (DC) power, an inverter to convert the DC power into alternating current (AC) power and to output the AC power for driving of the compressor, a defrosting heater to operate using the AC power from the inverter, a switching unit connected between the inverter and the defrosting heater to supply the AC power from the inverter to at least one of the defrosting heater or the compressor, and a compressor microcomputer to control the inverter. The refrigerator enables simplified driving of the defrosting heater using AC power output from the inverter.