You want to cook low and slow
Ribs, pork shoulder and brisket need a temperature you can hold for six hours or more. A pellet grill does that on its own. Charcoal does it better if you enjoy managing a fire, and worse if you do not.
Get your outdoor cooking setup right.
Gas and charcoal grills, flat top griddles, smokers and pizza ovens. Advice on what to buy, and what you can skip.
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Comparison · Pellet grills and smokers
Pit Boss 700FB2 vs 500FB2
The 700 has 44 percent more cooking space. It also has a 21 pound hopper against the 500's 5 pounds, and that second number is the one that decides whether you can run an overnight cook.
Comparison · Charcoal grills
Weber Original Kettle 22 vs Original Kettle Premium 22
Same bowl, same 363 square inches, same warranty. The Premium costs more for a hinged grate, a lid thermometer and a closed ash catcher. Two of those three are worth paying for, and only if you cook a certain way.
There is a lot of gear out there and most of it is fine. The hard part is working out which kind of thing you need before you start comparing models against each other.
Start with what you cook and where it is going to sit. That usually rules out most of these categories in about a minute, and the rest gets a lot easier after that.
Shop by what you are cooking on
Gas grills
Propane grills. Total BTU is the headline number, but what predicts preheat and recovery is that output spread across the primary grate, and neither figure is on the retail listing.
Griddles
Flat tops. Plate thickness decides how far the surface temperature falls when cold food lands on it, and independent burner control decides whether you get a hot zone and a cool one at the same time.
Pellet grills and smokers
Pellet, electric and propane. What the controller holds at a set point in cold weather matters more than the temperature range printed on the box.
Charcoal grills
Kettles and portables. Vent hardware and lid seal decide whether you can hold a low temperature for a long cook, and cooking area tells you almost nothing about that.
Pizza ovens
Gas, electric and multi-fuel. Peak stone temperature sells the oven. How fast the stone recovers between bakes decides the second pizza, and it is published far less often.
Start with what you actually want to cook
Most people buy the grill first and work out the cooking afterwards. It goes better the other way round.
You want dinner ready in ten minutes
Gas lights instantly and gets to temperature while you are still carrying the food out. You give up some of the flavour charcoal gives you, and most people decide that trade is worth it on a weeknight.
You cook for a crowd, or you cook breakfast
A flat top handles eggs, pancakes, smash burgers and anything that would fall through a grate. It will not do indirect heat, so it adds to a grill rather than replacing one.
You want to cook a pizza properly
A kitchen oven cannot get near the temperature the style is built around, which is the whole reason these exist. Nearly all of them reach it. How fast the stone recovers between bakes is what separates them, and it is the figure nobody prints.
Measure the space before you compare anything
Where the grill will stand rules out more options than any spec on any page. Check the clearance the manufacturer requires to a wall, a rail or a soffit, and check it before you fall in love with something. On a covered patio that number ends a lot of searches on its own.
Check the rules too. Plenty of towns and most apartment leases restrict charcoal and open flame on a balcony, and no product page will mention it.
Then measure the width with the side shelves up, which is never the number in the product title.
Common questions
- Griddle or grill?
- Different jobs. A grate gives you sear marks, fat dripping away and room to run a hot side and a cool side. A flat top gives you a surface nothing falls through, which is what breakfast, smash burgers and diced vegetables need. A griddle will not do indirect heat at all, so it does not replace a grill. Most people who own both use the griddle more than they expected to.
- Pellet, charcoal or offset for low and slow?
- A pellet grill holds a set point for hours without you touching it, which is why it wins for overnight cooks and for anyone who wants to sleep. Charcoal gives more smoke flavour and costs you attention, because you are managing vents and fuel the whole time. An offset gives the most control and the most work. Pick by how much of the cook you actually want to be present for.
- How big a grill do I actually need?
- Count the people you cook for on a normal weekend, not the once-a-year party. Compare primary grate area rather than total cooking area, because the total usually folds in a warming rack and a warming rack will not take a burger. Then measure your space with the side shelves up, which is never the width printed in the product title.
- Propane, natural gas or charcoal?
- Propane goes anywhere and you refill tanks. Natural gas never runs out mid cook but ties the grill to a fixed supply and needs a line run by a licensed fitter. Charcoal costs you the wait and gives you heat and smoke that gas does not. Where the grill will stand usually settles this before any spec does, so measure the spot and check clearances first.