The Very Best Pellet Grills and Smokers for Barbecuing
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Grilling is all about immediate satisfaction. Fire up a gas or charcoal grill, and you’re eating in about 45 minutes. A grill isn’t just built for entertaining — it’s great for making Tuesday night dinner. Barbecue, on the other hand, is a weekend project — and there’s a reason people invest that much time and effort in the process. Few meals can stop you in your tracks the way a rack of smoked ribs can. And for that, you need a smoker, not a grill.
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For some barbecue hobbyists, the process of making barbecue in a traditional drum or offset smoker is as enjoyable as eating it. But holding a fire steady at 250 degrees Fahrenheit for 8 to 12 hours isn’t for everybody. One major advance that has made this type of cooking more accessible, though, is automated cooking, introduced with the first Traeger pellet smoker in the mid-1980s. A pellet grill (which, marketing nomenclature aside, is not technically a “grill”) automatically feeds wood pellets into a firebox to maintain temperature and infuse your food with a smoky flavor and aroma, taking a lot of the work (if not the time) out of the process. “It’s brilliant for anyone wanting to get into smoking,” says Jess Pryles, author and live-fire cook. “Very easy to get the hang of and use.”
“I don’t have a pellet smoker, but it gets people about 85 percent of the way to barbecue with a half to a quarter of the effort,” said Joe Zavala, owner ofZavala’s Barbecue. “Pellet cookers are boring, but at the end of the day,” he continued, “we want people to eat more barbecue and cook more barbecue and try other barbecue.”
Today, you’ll find plenty of traditional rigs that put the burden (or pleasure) of fire management on you, and pellet-fueled systems that use computers and sensors to handle all of that for you. By the way, unlike actual grills, very few pellet cookers allow for true direct-flame cooking. Theycanmake burgers, certainly, but the experience is closer to baking in an oven than searing over coals.
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Cooking space
You can find everything from portable smokers to trailer-mounted rigs designed for catering and competitions. Smoker manufacturers typically describe capacity in square inches of cooking-grate space, though some also convert that into more intuitive terms for visualization.
You’ll see claims that a cooker has the capacity to fit three whole briskets (the cut barbecue pros call a “packer brisket”) or nine chickens or two pork butts. A small smoker with roughly 400 square inches of primary cooking space should fit one brisket (which typically measures around 24 inches long by 14 inches wide), or a couple of pork butts, or three racks of ribs, with a little extra room around the meat for airflow. Medium-size smokers, with a primary grate measuring between 400 and 600 square inches, can handle two briskets at once, while models larger than 600 square inches are best suited for cooking for large gatherings.
Because smokers rely more heavily on convection cooking than grills, you’ll want to leave roughly two inches of clearance all around the food so smoke and heat can circulate evenly. Smokers are generally tall enough to accommodate chickens and turkeys on the main grate, but it’s still worth checking the manufacturer’s specs carefully to make sure it will fit the meats you plan to cook. Many brands advertise total cooking capacity that includes upper warming racks, and while those shelves are often more useful in smokers than on grills, they typically offer less vertical clearance and may not fit taller foods like whole chickens.
Materials and construction
Smokers get dirtier inside than gas grills, which use high heat to incinerate grease and food residue left on the grates. Most traditional and pellet smokers have removable grates and internal components that can be cleaned in a plastic tub with warm, soapy water, since many parts are too large for a dishwasher. Look for models with porcelain-enameled or stainless-steel grates to resist rust, along with ash trays and grease drains that are easy to access and simple interiors that don’t have tight corners or hard-to-reach crevices where grease can collect. Smooth interior walls and floors are easier to scrape with a plastic putty knife, a common method for removing built-up grease and residue during deep maintenance.
Unlike grills, smokers rarely use stainless steel for the exterior finish, though some interior parts might be stainless. Most shells are made from painted steel, which is more affordable but also more vulnerable to scratches and rust over time. High-heat touch-up paint can help seal chipped areas before corrosion sets in.
When looking for a traditional offset or drum smokers, focus first on heavy-gauge steel construction. On an offset, look for a smokestack positioned low near grate level to drive clean, consistent airflow across the meat (ones placed too high in the cooker can float smoke right by the main grate). On both styles, easy access to vents helps maintain consistent temperatures and steady airflow. A large, well-sealed firebox that is easy to access with enough room to manage full splits and coals makes fire control easier and more stable over long cooks. Prioritize practical usability features like sturdy log-storage shelves and shelves deep enough to help load and offload food.
Wireless connectivity
Most models now offer remote monitoring of the cooker’s temperature probes to track internal food temps. All of the pellet cookers recommended here use Wi-Fi to connect to your phone, with Bluetooth used only during initial pairing, so you’ll need to position your cooker in range of your Wi-Fi, or add an extender or mesh-network node nearby. If none of those work for you, you can consider a model like theWeber Smoque, which can connect to your phone directly via Bluetooth or use Wi-Fi like the rest of our picks.
By the way, if you need to position your cooker far from an outlet to get it in range, you’ll need a heavy-duty, three-prong, 12-gauge extension cord rated for at least ten amps. These cookers draw a lot of power, cautions barbecue writer Meathead Goldwyn, so be prepared.
Extras and convenience features
Some pellet grills include sear stations or direct-flame access over the fire pot, letting you finish steaks at higher heat, though these areas are usually small. Others offer a “super smoke” or similar mode, which typically works at lower temperatures by increasing pellet feed to boost smoke output for extra flavor. You’ll also see hopper sensors that alert you when pellets are running low and hopper clean-outs that make it easy to switch fuel types or empty the system for storage.
Best pellet-smoker grill overall
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Size: 616 square inches of cooking space |Material: painted steel, insulated body and lid; porcelain-coated steel grates |Extras: Smart controller with wireless probes and Super Smoke setting |Connectivity: Wi-Fi
The Ironwood isn’t Traeger’s cheapest model, but it strikes a great balance by including the brand’s most capable smart controller, generous cooking capacity, a high maximum temperature of 500 degrees Fahrenheit, and an insulated build that reduces pellet consumption while stabilizing temperatures year-round.
Cooking on the Ironwood is very similar to using Traeger’s highest-end models — same insulated build, same controller, same easy ash clean-out (you can just vacuum it out), and same accessory rail. The biggest difference is the absence of the side burner. From pork butts to chicken and steaks, the food I smoked on the Ironwood was just as delicious as what I got using the pricier models.
The main grate provides nearly 400 square inches of cooking space, with an additional 220 square inches on an upper rack for items like vegetables, chicken, rib racks, or side dishes (the XL and 885 models provide even more cooking space). The controller is intuitive and includes Traeger’s Super Smoke setting, which adjusts its fan and pellet feed to produce more smoke for a stronger barbecue profile.
Two wireless meat probes let you monitor internal temperatures without extra gear. The cart includes practical touches like a 17.5-inch-by-21-inch side shelf so you can offload a monster brisket or pork butt, and a modular accessory system lets you hang baskets and butcher-paper holders within easy reach. Underneath, a robust ash and grease system locks in a disposable aluminum cup that makes cleaning easier.
Best less-expensive pellet-smoker grill
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Size: 653 square inches of cooking space |Material: painted steel with porcelain-coated steel grates |Extras: Smart controller with wireless probes |Connectivity: Wi-Fi
Strip away the premium extras from our favorite Traeger’s pellet cooker, add a modest bump in capacity, and keep a simpler but still capable version of the brand’s core controller, and you get the entry-level Westwood. This is aimed at those who are new to pellet smoking, have a smaller space, or will likely only cook on warm-weather weekends. While it doesn’t have the color, smartphone-style touchscreen displays of Traeger’s pricier models, it does feature a clear, intuitive dial-based controller that still delivers the same set-it-and-forget-it temperature stability. It also has a lower maximum temperature of 450 degrees Fahrenheit and a more basic grease-management system, and it doesn’t have Super Smoke mode.
While basic, this cooker produces the classic, mild smoky flavor pellet smokers are known for, and I’ve used it to slowly roast steaks outside before searing them off in a cast-iron pan inside or on a charcoal grill. I use it like an oven, smoking a 13-by-9-inch casserole dish of mac and cheese in the Westwood, then finishing it inside, using my kitchen oven’s broiler to toast the bread crumbs just right.
The Westwood has 428 square inches of main cooking space plus an additional 225 square inches on a warming rack, which is enough to handle everything from chicken wings to larger cuts like bacon or brisket. The cooker ships with one wired meat probe, though you can pair it with the brand’s wireless probes too. A usable side shelf with tool hooks sits on the left, while the flat hopper on the right effectively functions as another prep surface. The front of the unit supports modular accessories, and a lower storage shelf provides space for pellets or other supplies, making the overall setup practical despite its entry-level positioning.
Best luxury pellet-smoker grill for barbecue enthusiasts
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Size: 880 square inches of cooking space |Material: painted steel, insulated body and lid; stainless-steel grates |Extras: Smart controller with wireless probes, Super Smoke setting, and an induction burner |Connectivity: Wi-Fi
The Timberline, like much of Traeger’s lineup, comes in two sizes, and both push pellet smoking closer to a true outdoor-kitchen setup. The addition of an outdoor-rated induction burner finally addresses one of pellet cooking’s Achilles’ heels: producing high, searing heat.
The Timberline offers Traeger’s premium features, like a full-color touchscreen display, an accessory-ready rail system, and a fully insulated body, adding a handsome enclosed cart below to stash pellets, tools, and the grease- and ash-collection system. It offers a wider temperature range, from 165 degrees to 500 degrees Fahrenheit, along with Super Smoke mode. The Timberline also has a 22-pound hopper that can hold enough pellets to cook for well over 40 hours at temperatures around 225 degrees Fahrenheit. A built-in pellet sensor sends notifications through the app when fuel levels get low, and the cooker’s high initial power draw helps it climb to smoking temperatures quickly. Inside, the Timberline offers one of the most versatile shelving systems on the market, with three tiers totaling about 880 square inches of cooking space.
Using the Timberline’s two upper racks and multiple position options, I was able to use the space to keep baked dishes (like mac and cheese) warm and cook bulkier proteins like chickens. With essentially an oven and a burner, it allows me to spend more time prepping and finishing dishes outside and only head back inside to wash my hands. I continue to use it to avoid making a greasy mess indoors with things like smashburgers.
Best pellet-smoker grill for the smokiest flavor
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Size: 811 square inches of cooking space |Material: Stainless-steel body with some painted steel parts; porcelain-coated steel grates |Extras: Smart controller with room for four wired probes and a smokebox |Connectivity: Wi-Fi
While pellet smokers are more convenient than old-school offset smokers, they often fall short on producing deep, smoky flavor because the fuel burns so cleanly. The Woodwind Pro 24 has a workaround: a smokebox positioned right over the firebox that lets you burn real wood alongside pellets, producing a richer, more assertive smoke flavor.
During testing, the food from the Camp Chef was noticeably smokier-tasting than other pellet cookers, though you do have to keep an eye on how quickly those wood chunks burn. Also, using the smokebox on its own with the grill’s fan-only mode, you can cold-smoke foods like cheese or fish at around 90 degrees Fahrenheit without using pellets at all.
The main grate offers 429 square inches of cooking space, with an additional 382 square inches on the upper rack. That taller shape gives the Woodwind enough capacity for large cooks — think up to eight racks of ribs — while still maintaining a relatively compact footprint. The controller connects via Wi-Fi and supports up to four wired meat probes, with two included. Its bright display is easy to navigate using a click-wheel interface.
This grill is built for tinkering, whether that’s experimenting with added fuel or adjusting the pair of rear ventilation vents — a rare feature on pellet smokers, which typically rely on a fixed exhaust. The 22-pound hopper includes a viewing window so you can monitor fuel levels at a glance. The separate clean-out systems for ash and grease make routine maintenance easier.
Best cabinet pellet smoker to feed large crowds
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Size: 1,160 square inches as shipped, can support racks with up to 3,300 square inches of cooking space |Material: Painted steel exterior, steel interior, with an insulated body; stainless-steel grates |Extras: Smart controller, room for up to 10 racks, and a massive 40-pound hopper |Connectivity: Wi-Fi
A cabinet, or vertical, smoker gives you the convenience of a pellet cooker with greater capacity and a smaller footprint. At 28 inches square, the Grilla Mammoth Vertical Pellet Smoker takes up roughly the floor space of a small top-load washing machine, yet it can handle around 450 chicken wings at once. “Getting more distance between the heat and the racks gives you more options,” Pryles says of the Mammoth. “Also a smaller footprint, so great for smaller yards.” Plus, the fully insulated construction helps it hold steady temperatures in colder conditions, while the 40-pound hopper reduces how often you need to refill. And you can add wood chunks or charcoal, which will smolder and push the smoke flavor further.
During testing, adding a lump of wood or charcoal on top of the pellet-burn pot produced a heavier smoke flavor that basic cabinet smokers can’t really match. With other chip-burning cabinet smokers I’ve used, chicken wings I roasted only had a woody smell when I opened the door — it didn’t translate into taste. On the Grilla, though, the drumettes and flats had a noticeably more substantial smoke flavor. Also, hanging a few racks of ribs in this is a pretty cool party trick.
This machine is built for feeding a crowd. It ships with five racks at 22 inches by 14 inches, but can be configured for up to ten total. That flexibility lets you cook a full spread of wings or turkeys, pork butts, or foil pans of bread or sides. A hanging rack with 24 hooks adds another layer of capacity for sausages or ribs, while a built-in water pan helps maintain moisture throughout long cooks.
The controller supports two meat probes (one is included) with Wi-Fi connectivity, which help because the door is gasketed to lock in heat and smoke (this windowless cooker is designed to be run closed).
Best charcoal smoker
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Size: 600 square inches of cooking space |Material: painted steel, insulated body and lid; cast-iron grates |Extras: Smart controller with room for four wired probes and charcoal hopper |Connectivity: Wi-Fi
The ability to burn charcoal is what sets the Masterbuilt apart from pellet smokers, delivering barbecue that lands closer to traditional pit smoking. The Masterbuilt still needs power for the fan, but instead of an auger-driven system, it uses a gravity-fed hopper — basically a vertical chute — you can load with up to 18 pounds of briquettes. As the coal burns down, more fuel drops down, replacing itself throughout the cook, which not only delivers a different flavor profile but makes maintenance and upkeep simpler, removing the most common mechanical-failure point in pellet cookers: the auger.
The Masterbuilt produced pork ribs and spatchcocked chicken with a slightly stronger smoke profile than pellet cookers and nearly the same ease. I added standard-issue Kingsford charcoal, and it gave the ribs and chicken a classic flavor closer to grilled food. While I didn’t use wood chunks, the chute will burn them too, if you want to boost the smoke. SomeYouTubecooks have experimented with using split wood alone in Masterbuilt smokers, which works well provided you cook at slightly hotter temperatures, around 275 degrees Fahrenheit.
As with a pellet grill, a variable-speed fan controls airflow. That same system allows a wide range of control, from smoking at 225 degrees up to searing at 700 degrees Fahrenheit. Add in a few wood chunks with the charcoal, or feed it exclusively small amounts of hardwood every hour, and it starts to behave more like an automated offset smoker. It’s versatile, but even at its hottest, this is a smoker that can sear — it is not a grill where you’re cooking over an open flame.
The build feels solid, with sturdy wheels and an insulated body that helps retain heat. The controller is fairly basic, but it handles core functions cleanly, while most fine-tuning happens through the app. The cooking setup includes 360 square inches on the main grate and 240 on the upper rack. There’s a convenient folding warming rack, and the heavy cast-iron grates combined with higher heat output allow for a respectable sear on steaks or burgers once the oven is hot enough.
Best drum smoker
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Size: 284 square inches of cooking space |Material: painted steel body with porcelain-coated steel grate |Extras: Hanging rib kit
If you want traditional barbecue but do not have room for a large offset smoker, a drum version offers the same flavors with a smaller footprint. The Oklahoma Joe’s Bronco Drum Smoker & Grill improves on bare-bones traditional drum smokers with a pipe-fed intake vent that lets you control how much air hits the firebox. An exhaust pipe on the lid draws heat and smoke up around the food.
Because drum smokers are generally more airtight than offsets, once the vents are dialed in, they run with far less babysitting. “They are where the craft conversation really starts,” said Manny Barella, co-owner of Riot BBQ in Denver. “There’s almost nothing to them mechanically, which is the whole point — a metal drum, some vents, a grate. What you get in return is exceptional smoke flavor and radiant heat that renders fat in a way other cookers don’t replicate as cleanly.”
The included hanging system has room to suspend up to nine racks of ribs (or chickens) from hooks, taking advantage of the smoker’s height instead of relying entirely on horizontal space (with a grate measuring about 19 inches across, fitting a whole brisket in it can be a challenge). It is also one of the few smokers in this category that can double as a charcoal grill. A pair of side shelves adds useful prep space, while the domed lid creates enough clearance for taller foods like chickens or hams.
Below the cooking chamber, a two-piece charcoal basket and removable ash catcher simplify cleanup, and a full load of charcoal and wood chunks can deliver roughly 14 hours of cooking time. The gasketed lid helps retain heat and smoke, while the lower fuel door allows you to add charcoal or wood without removing hot grates or reaching into the barrel. Even the accessories — including the basket tool and rib hanging kit — store directly on the cooker, making the overall design feel more thoughtful and practical.
Best offset smoker
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Size: 1,060 square inches of cooking space |Material: painted steel body with porcelain-coated steel grates |Extras: Firebox doubles as a small charcoal grill
If a drum smoker prioritizes efficiency and a pellet cooker emphasizes convenience, a traditional offset barbecue “rewards the cook who enjoys tending a fire as much as cooking the food and produces the deepest smoke flavor, which can be too much if you aren’t careful,” said Elizabeth Karmel, cookbook author and founding pitmaster of Hill Country Barbecue Market. “They require the most skill, attention, and time.”
Oklahoma Joe’s Longhorn Offset Smoker follows the classic formula: a firebox on one side, a chimney on the other, and a long chamber in between where a whole mess of meat slowly roasts in rolling heat and wood smoke. That indirect flow is what creates the deep bark, pronounced smoke ring, and layered flavor offset pitmasters chase.
Even after I got better at holding a steady temperature with the Longhorn Classic, I was still tending the fire every 45 to 60 minutes — and you should know that’s part of the fun. But it’s hard to argue with the developed bark the pork butt had, which was far crustier than what a pellet grill can produce. The Longhorn Classic includes a basic lid thermometer that gives you a general sense of the temperature in the upper part of the cooker. I found it helpful to add some wired probes to measure the temperature at the grate so I could see how adjustments in the air intake and chimney changed the temperature immediately around the food inside.
The firebox includes two grates: a lower grate for charcoal and hardwood splits, plus an upper cooking grate measuring roughly 17 inches by 18 inches, which is designed to work as a grill. It sits a bit low, but it is large enough to grill steaks, burgers, or chops after they’ve spent time smoking (or the reverse). Inside the main chamber, there is enough room for up to three whole briskets or seven racks of ribs, and the cooker is deep enough to accommodate your largest pan, handle and all, or bulky Dutch ovens.
The trade-off with an offset smoker is that it demands more involvement. The cooker’s roughly 12-gauge steel construction helps stabilize temperatures, while the adjustable intake on the firebox door and the chimney damper let you fine-tune the heat to keep it right at around 225 degrees Fahrenheit. Between them is an uninterrupted stretch of cooking grate and a lid-mounted thermometer that gives you a running sense of chamber temperature. The flat top of the firebox can double as a warming surface for finished dishes or even for preheating the next split of wood before it goes into the fire. Wagon-style wheels make the nearly 238-pound smoker easier to move, while the sturdy lower shelf keeps wood and supplies within reach. It may not be the easiest style of smoker to master, but it comes with the most bragging rights.
Our experts
• Joe Zavala, chef and owner,Zavala’s Barbecue
•Meathead Goldwyn, Barbecue Hall of Famer
•Jess Pryles, live-fire cook and author
•Elizabeth Karmel, author and pitmaster
•Manny Barella, co-owner, Riot BBQ
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