The 6 Very Best Gas Grills
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Grilling is the simplest cooking technique. When it comes down to it, you’re cooking over an open flame: It’s all about heat, food, and the distance between the two. And many frequent grillers keep it simple when it comes to fuel too — for purists, it’s charcoal, wood, or don’t bother.
But even die-hard grilling fans will admit that getting that fire going on a wood or charcoal grill takes a little work. Getting agasgrill ready to go, on the other hand, takes just a few minutes (and they’re much easier to start and manage in bad weather). Gas makes grilling about as convenient as cooking in the kitchen — making year-round grilling more than a fantasy and a real bonus if you have 20 minutes to get dinner done.
To find the best gas grills on the market, we talked to food-industry pros and passionate grillers and went to friends’ houses, dealer showrooms, manufacturers’ parking lots, and our own backyards to test some grills, with steak, sausage, and burgers, vegetables of all sorts, and even pizza.
A good-quality entry-level grill will set you back somewhere in the middle three figures; you’ll pay more for more burners. A higher-end grill with more advanced features — an infrared burner, rotisserie attachment, and outdoor-kitchen cabinetry — starts at around $1,500 and can cost more than $10,000 for the most advanced models.
Today’s grills — full of convenience features that make them more like outdoor kitchens than cooking over a campfire — are overall a delight to cook with. And if you’re looking for more outdoor-cooking tools, check out our guides tocharcoal grills,grilling tools, and evenportable grilling gearfor those who don’t have backyards.
Whatwe’relookingfor
Heat
Grilling, as opposed to the slow smoke roast of barbecue, is great for quick cooking at high temperatures. High heat is essential for the Maillard browning and sugar caramelization that we associate with a grilled rib eye, seared scallops, charred cabbage, grilled pineapple, or leopard-spotted pizza crust, so you’ll want to make sure you choose a grill with good heat output — all else being equal, more BTUs are better. A basic grill may have two or three burners, each putting out around 12,000 BTUs. Some have more than double that output, generating the intense heat needed for a steakhouse-style sear.
Number of burners
You’ll come across gas grills with anywhere from one to eight burners, and the number of burners isn’t just a matter of size — it directly determines how much control you have over your cooking temperatures.
When shopping, two burners should be your minimum, as they allow for basic indirect cooking with one side on and the other off (or set to a lower heat). Three- and four-burner grills offer significantly more flexibility, letting you create distinct high-, medium-, and low-heat zones so you can sear steaks on one side while gently roasting vegetables or warming buns on another. More burners also typically mean higher total BTU output and faster preheating, though the trade-offs are higher cost, greater fuel consumption, and more components that will eventually need cleaning or replacement. Beyond burner count, spacing matters just as much: Look for burners positioned roughly four to six inches apart beneath the grates, since wider gaps tend to create uneven heat and noticeable hot and cold spots.
Cooking space and size
The size of the grill you choose will depend on your budget, but it’s not the only factor you should consider — you’ll want to consider how many people you’ll be serving.
One practical way to gauge a grill’s real-world capacity is by translating cooking surface into burger count. According to grilling authorityMeathead Goldwyn, a standard four-inch burger needs roughly 20 square inches of space on the grate. Once you know the grill’s total cooking area (don’t include any secondary warming racks in this math), you can use that figure to estimate how many burgers will fit comfortably at the same time.
You’ll also want to think about where the grill will live. That means identifying a location with enough clearance from combustible materials. Some manufacturers recommend keeping grills at least three feet from surfaces like house siding or vinyl fencing, but manylocal fire departmentsadvise a wider buffer — often closer to ten feet. Once you’ve figured that out, make sure you select a grill that’ll fit your space.
Features
Grills have become increasingly sophisticated with accessories and add-ons. Some come with a rotisserie attachment, pizza stone, lighting, and smart technology. Others include bottle openers, mini beer fridges, auxiliary burners, and elaborate cabinetry. I’ve indicated when a grill has special features.
Best gas grill overall
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Heat: 3 burners, 49,000BTUs |Cooking space513 square inches |Features: Wi-Fi-enabled leave-in meat probe, sear zone that reaches 750ºF, side table that accepts accessories
The three-burner Genesis EX-325W is the sweet spot in Weber’s lineup. It strikes a perfect balance between power, size, and ease of maintenance, and even adds a dash of modern tech integration. You get dependable, satisfying results and the ability to tackle both everyday cooking and demanding grilling tasks. It uses three burners: one standard version that reaches around 550 degrees Fahrenheit for everyday grilling like burgers, chicken, and sausage, plus two high-output Sear Zone burners that can push up to 750 degrees Fahrenheit when you floor it. That added heat delivers a serious sear and crust on steaks, vegetables, and reverse-seared roasts.
The EX-325W is the smart version of Weber’s midrange three-burner grill, and that means you get a a hockey-puck-shaped hub mounted on the right-side table that features ports for wired meat probes. Once you install the app, you set your target temperature — say, 130 degrees for a medium-rare steak — and receive a notification on your phone when it hits the mark.
The grill will feel familiar to anyone who has used a Weber gas grill: porcelain-enameled cast-iron grates, Flavorizer bars that shield burners from drips while vaporizing fat that adds flavor, a solid build, and smooth-rolling casters for easy patio or deck placement. The Genesis also supports Weber Works accessories that slot into the side table or clip onto rails, keeping tools and seasonings within reach. Stepping up to Weber’s Genesis line from the entry-level Spirit grills gets you upgrades like stainless-steel Flavorizer bars in place of enameled steel for better and longer-lasting heat distribution, along with a heavier-duty build and deeper fireboxes that improve heat retention and overall thermal performance.
The rest of the cooker builds on Weber’s reputation for durability, and you get a 12-year warranty on the cookbox and lid and 10 years on key burner components.
Best less-expensive gas grill
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Heat: 33,000 BTUs |Burners: 3 |Cooking space: 495 square inches |Features: Cast-iron grates, reliable ignition system, folding side shelves
The Napoleon Freestyle 365 hits a sweet spot that few three-burner gas grills around $500 manage to reach: compact without feeling stripped down. For homeowners or renters with smaller patios or tighter outdoor spaces (or budgets), you’re not skimping on cooking performance. Despite its modest footprint, the grill can still handle roughly 18 burgers, making it capable of cooking a full meal for about four people. When the folding side shelves are up, the grill is about 49 inches wide, but pivot them down and the footprint shrinks to under 30 inches, making storage easier. Those shelves are also wide enough to hold trays of raw food, finished dishes, or cooking tools nearby. The enclosed cart, which hides the propane tank, gives the Freestyle 365 a cleaner, more premium appearance than many similarly priced rivals with open frames (the open back helps reduce cost and properly vent the burners).
The three burners produce 33,000 BTUs and heat more evenly than many competing grills, while the porcelain-enameled cast-iron cooking grates retain heat better for searing than standard steel. They take slightly longer to preheat than thinner versions, but they resist rust better and hold temperature far more effectively once hot. Napoleon borrows the reliable flamethrower-like ignition system from its higher-priced models, which lights each burner individually with a jet of flame, avoiding the frustrating start-up issues that plague many mid-priced grills after a season or two. Backed by an impressive ten-year warranty, the Freestyle 365 stands out as one of the strongest overall values in its class.
Best luxury gas grill for serious cooks
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Heat: 65,000 BTUs |Burners: 5 |Cooking space:681 square inches |Features: Side burner for pots and pans, infrared burner for searing, rotisserie spit for roasting larger cuts, smart connectivity to make notifications easier
When you step up to a premium gas grill, the upgrade usually gets you more cooking space and more powerful burners, or features that make the grill feel more like an outdoor kitchen. The Summit FS38X gives you both.
At first glance, the grill might seem like it’s all about power: five stainless-steel burners pushing out 65,000 BTUs across enough cooking space to handle roughly 33 burgers simultaneously. But beyond the raw power and superior searing performance that gives you, what sets this grill apart are the features that don’t just make things more convenient but give you added flexibility, a more pleasant cooking experience, and better results.
You get a 12,000-BTU side burner that can handle sauces, sides, or a lobster pot without having to head inside to the kitchen. Tucked high under the hood, above the warming rack — a space that, honestly, is rarely used in most grills — you’ll find a 16,000-BTU infrared burner that functions like the salamanders used in restaurants. It throws intense radiant heat down onto food sitting on the warming rack, adding crusts to steaks and chops or melting cheese over burgers in a hurry — plus, it doubles as a rotisserie burner, heating roasts mounted on the integrated rotisserie system.
The FS38X is purely a smart grill: There are no knobs here; rather you control the burners using a set of up and down buttons as you monitor everything from a bright, easy-to-read touchscreen display that tracks ambient grill temperatures (no more hood-mounted thermometer), provides readings from the two included wired probes, and gives you cooking alerts. You can also connect to your phone over Bluetooth and remotely adjust burner temperatures from the companion app — useful when slow-roasting something like chicken or pork shoulder. This all means the control module needs to be plugged in, so you’ll need to set up the grill near an outlet (the cord gives you about six feet of room) or have aportable generatorwith you while you cook.
Weber’s modular Crafted grates expand the grill’s versatility, allowing it to support optional accessories like a pizza stone, wok, griddle, or Dutch oven that can replace the stock stainless-steel grates. Add in expansive enclosed storage with integrated organization, and the Summit feels closer to a compact outdoor kitchen than a conventional gas grill.
Best gas grill for building an outdoor kitchen
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Heat:60,000 BTUs |Burners: 4 |Cooking space:864 square inches| Features:No-tool assembly, Piezo ignition systems, side burner, ice bin
I have to admit that I was skeptical of the Tytus when researching this guide. It seemed to offer the platonic ideal of a high-end outdoor kitchen at a fraction of the price of its competitors. Everything I dislike about a freestanding grill — the hours of assembly, the little additional counter space, and the lack of features of affordable grills — seems to have been addressed in the company’s marketing. But, it turns out, my skepticism wasn’t warranted — this grill is a breeze to use and the price is relatively reasonable compared to my best overall pick.
Even for me, the least handy person you could imagine, assembly took the promised five minutes without tools. I was pleased how well Tytus delivered on its promises, especially where it counts most: reliable, even, intense heat. It handled burgers well with a quick preheat and produced an even sear and grill-marked veggies impressively. Designed for partying, this is a grill for impressing the neighbors or achieving a high-end look at a vacation home without needing to call a designer or contractor.
Best portable gas grill
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Heat: 10,300 BTUs |Burners: 1 |Cooking space: 103.85 square inches |Features: H-shaped burner for even heat and a lid that vents to maintain lower temperatures for roasting
Weighing just 24 pounds with a compact footprint of roughly 17-by-14-by-15 inches — about the size of a milk crate — the Everdure Cube Proflame 360 is perfectly sized for tailgates, beach days, camping trips, or park cookouts. But this is a serious grill that can deliver seriously good results: Beneath the lid is a powerful 10,300-BTU stainless-steel H-shaped burner that paints every corner in even heat, and a heavy-duty cast-iron cooking grate that looks more like a grill pan than the narrow bars you’d expect in a portable grill. Plus the short, stable feet let you set the grill down almost anywhere with confidence, and while the body gets hot during cooking, the handles stay cool enough to reposition it safely when needed.
The lid provides roughly five inches of clearance above the cooking surface and includes an adjustable top vent — an unusual feature on a gas grill — that gives you better control over lower roasting temperatures for foods like spatchcock chicken or thick steaks. Despite its compact size, there’s enough room to cook about five burgers at once. Out of the box, the Cube is designed for smaller camping propane canisters; you’llneed an adapterto connect it to a standard 20-pound propane tank. Another accessory worth looking into: agriddle platethat turns the grill into a breakfast station — perfect for camping.
Best portable gas grill with cart
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Heat: 11,000 BTUs |Burners: 1 |Cooking space: 240 square inches |Features: Scissor stand for comfortable waist-height cooking; porcelain-enameled cast-iron grates
The Weber Traveler Compact delivers one of the most practical combinations of portability and real grilling performance in its class. It’s not as compact as most portable grills, but shrunk down to just 32 inches wide and a manageable 37 pounds, this one-piece collapsible design slips into the trunk of a compact car, and when it’s folded you can roll the grill to your campsite on its wheels. Once you’re there, a simple one-handed lever action smoothly opens the cart into an upright position, creating a stable and comfortable grilling base that sits about 30 inches off the ground — slightly lower than standard kitchen countertops. It folds back down just as easily, with an auto-locking lid that keeps everything secure in transit and prevents the top from flopping open in transit.
With a single burner, the Traveler Compact — like most portable grills — is best suited for foods that finish around the same time rather than complex multi-stage grilling. Even so, it can reach temperatures up to around 600 degrees Fahrenheit, giving you enough heat to properly sear burgers and steaks over its porcelain-enameled cast-iron grates, which help retain and distribute heat more evenly than basic rolled-steel bars. A narrow side table provides just enough prep space for essentials like tongs, a spatula, or a small tray, making the setup feel more complete than its compact footprint suggests.
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