Best Pellet Grills of 2023

Best Overall Pellet Grill

Yoder YS640

Category: Premium
Main Grilling Area / Secondary Grilling Area: 640 sq inches/430 sq inches
Total Grilling Area: 1070 sq inches
Wifi/Bluetooth enabled: Wifi and Bluetooth
Hopper Capacity: 20 pounds
Maximum Temperature: 600 degrees F
What we like: Made in America, 10-year warranty – heavy-duty construction- built for life, maintains the temperature, 
What we don’t: Nothing…except the wheels could be bigger/better

Hands down, Yoder makes our favorite pellet grills. You pay a premium over the competition but nothing else on the market matches the combination of performance, craftsmanship, and durability. The YS640 is the goldilocks model of what Yoders options (the YS480 is the smallest option and the Cimmaron is the largest).   Yoder Pellet Grills come standard with the Yoder Smokers ACS Control System featuring Wi-Fi and Bluetooth connectivity, as well as two integrated food probes for monitoring.  The ability to maintain temperatures between 5-10 degrees throughout a cook is unrivaled.  The YS640 is built using 10-gauge steel construction (that is the thickest steel of all the pellet grills on this list), which translates to a cooker that will literally last a lifetime.  Yoder grills are American Made, with the best warranty of any other grills on the market: 10 years on the cooking chamber, 3 years on the ACS controller, and 3 years on the ceramic igniter

The YS640 offers 1,070 square inches of cook space and combined with nearly 12 inches of headroom, there’s plenty of room for anything from briskets and pork butts to whole chickens and turkeys. These cookers offer unmatched versatility with the ability to truly flame grill or smoke low and slow. All are managed at your fingertips on your smartphone using the Yoder App.  If this is your first pellet grill or your fifth, we guarantee this will be yours for life. 

Most Versatile Pellet Grill

Traeger Ironwood 885

Category: Premium
Main Grilling Area / Secondary Grilling Area: 570 sq inches/315 sq inches
Total Grilling Area: 885 sq inches
Wifi/Bluetooth enabled: Wifi and Bluetooth
Hopper Capacity: 20 pounds
Maximum Temperature: 500 degrees F
What we like: Great build quality, perfect size, unique downdraft smoke system, pellet hopper sensor
What we don’t: long heat up, not overwhelming amount of smoke

The Traeger Ironwood 885 is an incredibly versatile, easy-to-use pellet grill packed with features that wont crush your budget. It’s a nice modest sized grill and smoker that makes it easy to produce making mouth-watering meals for family and friends. The Ironwood 885 boasts a 885 square inches of cooking space and multiple grate positions to grill or smoke anything you can think of.  When smoking ribs or brisket, the grates can be lifted to a higher position where they will receive more indirect heat and greater smoke.

Traeger’s Tru Convection system is a downdraft smoke system that creates a vortex of heat and smoke in the cooking chamber to maximize smoke exposure to the food. Once the smoke has completed its path through the vortex it escapes through the downdraft exhaust system in the back of the wood pellet grill rather than up an out a chimney pipe. The Ironwood 885 also offers Traegers “super smoke mode” that can be used in the 165-225° range, which adds an additional  smoke to the cook, infusing your food with that delicious natural wood smoked flavor. I really like this for smoking fish.

Best Pellet Grill for Searing

Weber Smokefire EX6

Category: Premium
Main Grilling Area / Secondary Grilling Area: 648 sq inches/360 sq inches
Total Grilling Area: 1008 sq inches
Wifi/Bluetooth enabled: Wifi and Bluetooth
Hopper Capacity: 22 pounds
Maximum Temperature: 500 degrees F
What we like: Great build quality, Max temp of 600 degrees and unique heat distribution system for searing, downdraft smoke system, pellet hopper sensor
What we don’t: Lengthy shutdown mode, front shelf not standard, first generation had several problems (fixed with second generation)

The SmokeFire is Webers first production pellet grill, offered in two models, the larger EX6 or smaller EX4.  Weber has used its proven grilling technology to re-invent the pellet grill space to produce a pellet grill that tries hard to be more like a conventional grill than a smoker.   The Smokefire relies on Webers classic patented Flavorizer Bars rather than a full-coverage heat baffles found on other pellet grills.  This translates into a grill that is capable of holding steady low smoking temperatures, but can also produce steady high heat for grilling and searing.   Weber also replaced the tradition smoke stack found other pellet grills for a back vented design that traps and circulates smoke throughout the grill.  

It is no secret the first generation Smokefire (released in 2020)  was plagued with several issues including a poor hopper design that would stop pellets from falling into the auger and faulty glow plugs.  However Weber addressed these issues very publicly and has resolved them in the second generation models, a true testament to the excellent customer service provided by Weber.  Overall the Weber has used generations of grilling success to produce a pretty damn good cooker that challenges the industry heavy weights like Traeger.  

Best Value Pellet Grill

ZGrills 1000D3E

Category: Value
Main Grilling Area / Secondary Grilling Area: 570 sq inches/315 sq inches
Total Grilling Area: 1056 sq inches
Wifi/Bluetooth enabled: None
Hopper Capacity: 20 pounds
Maximum Temperature: 450 degrees F
What we like: Great build quality, large grilling area
What we don’t: Long heat up, not the best insulation

The Z Grills 1000E is a spacious pellet grill offering three tiers cooking space.  A grill of this size, 1056 square inches, is not found at this price point.  

With a top cooking temperature of 450° this cooker really shines if you will primarily use it to smoke food low and slow.  Of course you can grill up burgers and steaks too, but know that you cannot get a high temperature to provide the sear or char that you can get on a Weber Smokefire or Yoder. 

This cooker does not offer built in wifi or bluetooth connections, which is a benefit if you are looking for a no frills unit.  Simply fire it up, set the temperature on the dial and walk away.  The larger pellet hopper will provide up to 20 hours of smoking time before a refill.  This is a perfect for the first-time pellet-smoker who is interested in smoking their own food but does not want to spend all night baby sitting logs or charcoal in a traditional smoker.   The Z Grills 10002B2E will provide  delicious smokey goodness with a very small learning curve for a price that wont break the bank.

Best Luxury Pellet Grill

Cookshack Fast Eddys PG1000

Category: Premium
Main Grilling Area / Secondary Grilling Area: 504 sq inches/280 sq inches
Total Grilling Area: 784 sq inches
Wifi/Bluetooth enabled: None
Hopper Capacity: 25 pounds
Maximum Temperature: 600 degrees F
What we like: All stainless steel construction, American made, well insulated for perfect temperature regulation
What we don’t: Extremely heavy (also a benefit), no built in wifi, high cost

First sold back 2010, the Fast Eddy’s by Cookshack PG1000 blazed the trail to create a cooker that excels both as a low and slow smoker and a fast and hot grill.  The Fast Eddy’s by Cookshack line is a collaborative design from Cookshack of Ponca City, OK and competition barbecue circuit pro, “Fast Eddy” Maurin. The FEC line, (Fast Eddy’s by Cookshack) has been popular with competitive teams for years. The PG1000 was their first residential smoker.  Not only does the striking all stainless steel exterior set it apart from other pellet grills, the PG1000 differs most significantly by moving away from the standard design of a fire pot on the bottom, a diffuser plate in the middle, and a cooking grate above.  The PG1000 instead offers four distinct cook zones that offers the best configuration for direct flame grilling or low and slow smoking.

The PG 1000 is made completely out of stainless steel in the USA and comes with 2-year limited warranties. The company is universally respected for customer care and their online open forum is extremely informative and helpful.   This machine is built like a tank and is sensational at delivering beautifully smoked meat or perfectly seared grilled steaks. If you have the bank, this cooker will be the shining star in your backyard and the envy of your neighbors.

Best Portable Pellet Grill

Asmoke AS350

Category: Portable
Main Grilling Area / Secondary Grilling Area: 184 sq inches/NA
Total Grilling Area: 256sq inches
Wifi/Bluetooth enabled: Wifi and Bluetooth
Hopper Capacity: 4 pounds
Maximum Temperature: 500 degrees F
What we like: Stainless steel construction, porcelain coated grates, ASCA steam system
What we don’t: Small hopper

Asmoke is a relatively new name in the pellet smoker world, but I expect them to be a household name very soon if they keep producing cookers like this. No other portable table top pellet grill offers so many features. The build quality is top notch, the unit is constructed completely of stainless steel and offers porcelain coated grill grates. This unit is made for travel, whether that is to the football game, epic camping trip or just a day at the park.   The 49-pound grill is much lighter than other competitors including Traegers 60lb Ranger. It is self contained suitcase design but is compact enough to easily throw in and out of your car. Its also perfect if you live in a small apartment or townhouse and have limited outdoor space to grill and smokeThe cooking surface can easily accommodate a rack of ribs, 10 dogs or up to 6 burgers. The grill is made to site on a table or the ground. The AS350 also features a patented ASCA system which provides superheated steam during the cook to make your meat juicer and more tender.

Pellet Grill with Most Grilling Space

Traeger Timberline 1300

Category: Premium
Main Grilling Area / Secondary Grilling Area: 544 sq inches/3748 sq inches
Total Grilling Area: 1300 sq inches
Wifi/Bluetooth enabled: Wifi only
Hopper Capacity: 24 pounds
Maximum Temperature: 500 degrees F
What we like: Very large grilling space, maintains temperature very well, large pellet hopper 
What we don’t: Wifire app connectivity issues occasionally pop up, slow to heat up

Not only  does this grill offer the biggest real estate for grilling and smoking, it is packed with features.  The grill is controlled with a patented D2  PID controller, which accurately maintains and regulations stable temperature. The D2 allows the fan to utilize variable speed functionality, meaning it will speed up or slow down as necessary to properly control temperature and air flow. In addition the patented downdraft exhaust creates a powerful vortex of smoke moving inside the Timberline’s barrel. Wth the push of a button you can activate Traegers patented Super Smoke mode to produce some of the greatest smoke available in a pellet grill.

Best Budget Pellet Grill

Green Mountain Grills Daniel Boone

Category: Entry
Main Grilling Area / Secondary Grilling Area: 458 sq inches/NA
Total Grilling Area: 458 sq inches
Wifi/Bluetooth enabled: Wifi and Bluetooth
Hopper Capacity: 17 pounds
Maximum Temperature: 500 degrees F
What we like: Value, Ease of use, quick assembly 
What we don’t:Temp inconsistent in cold temperatures,  smaller hopper,

Green Mountain Grills have been producing quality pellet grills for well over 10 years. The Daniel Boone is proven grill that has stood the test of time but is offered for a modest price. The Daniel Boone is equipped with a digital control, a meat probe, a peaked lid for stand-up chicken/large fowl/rib racks, a convenience tray with utensil hooks, hard rubber tires, and a venturi-style firebox for cyclone combustion. It also features “Sense-Mate”, a thermal sensor which constantly monitors the ambient temperature. If your looking for your first pellet grill you can go wrong with the time tested Daniel Boone.