What is the Best Pellet Grill/Smoker? Reviews of the Best Models for Your Home (2022)

A pellet grill is an essential investment when building an outdoor kitchen. With new and modern models popping left and right, selecting the best pellet smoker and grill to enhance your cooking experience is a tough challenge.

Before you settle on your purchase, make sure to check out our team’s recommendations and reminders when buying grills for your backyard. 

Reviews of the Best Pellet Grills or Smokers

1. Louisiana Grills Estate Series 860 Square Inches 304 Stainless Steel Built-In Grill (LG ESTATE 860BI)

The Camp chef, Camp chef smokepro series, Rec Tec RT 700, Traeger Pro series - all of these brands brands come to mind when looking for the finest grill in the market, but If you’re looking for a cooking adventure beyond grilling, like smoking, broiling, roasting, or baking during your food preps — then Louisiana Grill is one of the finest pellet smokers our team could recommend.

You can set the cooking temperature with Louisiana Grills’ standard flame broiler with a digital controls center that can heat the cooking surface up to 600 degrees Fahrenheit. 

It offers the most versatile grilling functions with a total of 860 sq in cooking area and cooking space when measured along with its upper rack. You can also cook your racks of ribs or any meat in style with its stainless steel body, double-wall construction and top-tier heat retention and direct flame/open flame feature.

Pros:

• Durable and heavy-duty 304 steel construction
• 579 square inch of cooking space/cooking surface, 281 square inches top rack, and a total of 860 square inches pellet grill construction.
• Has 28 pound pellet hopper capacity
• Can high heat up to 600 degrees Fahrenheit
• Includes meat probe/s that prevent overcooking
• Auto-ignition system and feed system that makes it easy to use
• Offers 5-year warranty on defects for steel parts and a 3-year warranty on electrical components
• Ensure even smoking with convection cooking and exhaust system 
• Has a grease management system

Cons:

• Shipping delays due to the pandemic
• Consider consulting experts before installing this product in your backyard

2. Green Mountain Davy Crockett Sense Mate Electric Wi-Fi Control Foldable Portable Wood Pellet Grill with Meat Probes

If you're looking for an affordable option with excellent grilling action, our team recommends the best pellet grills offered by Z Grills ZPG. This product is comparable to the camp chef pro series that has a roomy 811 square inches of cooking surface. However, the Z grills ZPG can offer a 700 square inches of cooking space and an automatic temperature control. You can also get outstanding value for your money with its 8-in-1 cooking functions.

Whether it’s for grilling, smoking, baking, roasting, searing, braising, or the good old BBQ, this Z Grills ZPG pellet smoker can cook up your meal from 180 to 500 F degrees. It also has 700 square inches to 1060 square inches of cooking space and 18 pounds to 20 pound pellet hopper cooking capacity. It also has a cooking grates in its stainless steel body. Cooking grates or grill grates are important not only in holding your food but it also assists in direct and indirect heat transfer. 

This auto-start ignition cooking companion is also recommended to kitchen beginners as it’s equipped with temperature controls and a real-time display.

Pros:

• Advanced wood-fire pot technology
• Has a huge cooking area of 700 to 1060 square inches of cooking space and 20 pound pellet  hopper capacity
• Maintain the optimum amount of temperature throughout from 180 degrees to 450 F degrees
• Designed with waste oil collector for safe and easy cleaning procedures
• Installed with auto-start ignition and heat controls for cooking beginners
• Extremely versatile for any kind of high-temperature cooking

Cons:

• Shipping delays due to the pandemic
• Consult an expert to evaluate if this pellet grill will suit your cooking needs

Pellet Grill or Smoker Buyer’s Guide Design

Design

When buying a pellet grill and smoker, the design is of the utmost importance. There are two different types of pellet grills offered in the market, the free-standing design and the built-in design. This will depend on the kind of construction and functionality you’re looking for in a pellet grill or smoker grills. 

A free-standing pellet grill offers more mobility, which is great if you plan to move them around the backyard or use it during campings. On the other hand, built-in pellet grills are the most commonly installed iron cooking devices in kitchen islands. It usually has a striking appearance that makes it the centerpiece of any outdoor kitchen.

Durability and Build

An outdoor pellet grill must stand the test of time mainly because of exposure to different weather conditions. Most of the recommended models that made this list are built with steel construction, which means they have incredible durability and easy to clean characteristics.

It’s also essential that it has a sturdy grill cover and the exterior of pellet grills suits the high-temperature cooking environment like Louisiana Grill with its double-wall construction and heat retention functions. The right type of model must suit the kind of cooking you usually do and your budget range.

Grilling and Smoking Performance

Many types of food are best cooked by grilling and smoking. The question is, how well do these pellet grills perform their functions? These grills must deliver the wood fired flavor into the meat and keep the heat consistent throughout the duration of cooking.

Some of these options also have auto-ignition functions that make the smoking and grilling/cooking process easier for first-time cooks.

Temperature Range

The top pellet grills offer an direct flame, adjustable heat and wide temperature range. Making a perfectly cooked meal requires a consistent and precise temperature. To perform multiple cooking styles, the finest pellet grills offer a wide temperature range between 200 to 450 F degrees. 

In our selection of pellet grills, all three options have an adequate heating/temperature range, with Louisiana Grills even capable of reaching up to 600 degrees.

Hopper Size

Your 20 pound hopper capacity is as essential as your grilling area. The larger your hopper cooking capacity, the easier it is for you to manage longer cooking hours, especially when handling a meat-y situation. However, this will always depend on how big your grill is.

Large cooking pellet grills tend to have larger hopper sizes than small ones. Among our recommendations, Louisiana Grills Estate Series has the most immense pellet grill 20 pound hopper capacity. This 20 pound hopper capacity is perfect for high volume food servings.

Pellet Consumption

Based on the tests our experts conducted, most pellet grills burn around one to two pounds of pellets per hour. The burning rate of wood pellet grill and smoker like the Pit Boss goes faster with higher temperature and significantly slow smoking in low temperatures (low and slow cooking mechanism). 

Amount of Cooking Necessary

You’ll find that grills for wood pellets are more cost-effective than gas or charcoal powered grills when it comes to cooking. These top-tier models such as Z Grills ZPG which can cook up to 20 to 40 hours with 20 pound hopper of pellets.

Extra Features

The top brands such as Camp Chef pro series, Rec Tec RT 700, and Traeger pro series are all proven and tested to do the job it was required. But of course, these top pellet grill and smokers that was mentioned in our list offer a lot than just flavorful cooking and a gorgeous slide plate & side shelf. Most pellet grills nowadays center on a digital pid controller for power, heat consistency, efficient feed system, and an ash clean out system (for ash removal). 

Price

Setting your budget can get dreary when investing in kitchen appliances. The best advice we can give is to make sure that every penny you spend is worth the functions and convenience your pellet grill of choice will bring.

The most affordable on our list is the leading pellet grill manufactured by Z Grills, but there are many options out there that cost even less. When purchasing pellet grills, you must remember that every price has an equivalent value. It’s wise to go for models that will last in the long run. And we think that Z grills products are the way to go.

Warranty

Considering that the best pellet smoker and grills are built with modern technology and state-of-the-art designs, it’s only natural for them to be prone to malfunctions and defects. From WiFi connectivity, temperature probes, and digital controllers, these pellet smokers need constant assistance.

Therefore, it’s wise to choose a pellet grill brand that offers an extended range of warranty services if you intend to use it for the longest time possible.

Customer Service

Adding the best pellet grills in your kitchen isn’t as easy as you’d think. It involves careful decision-making and constant maintenance. From purchase and installation to reporting a technical issue, the best pellet grills providers must thoroughly assist you for the benefit of your outdoor experience.

Gimmicks to be Avoided

Never depend on the exterior aesthetic of any pellet grills. Even if it’s made all-out steel, it’s crucial to consider other functions that might affect its grilling space and smoking performance.

The best pellet grills must have useful components that make them versatile and valuable companions in your backyard cookouts.

How Pellet Smokers Work

A pellet grill can provide a rich smoky flavor to your meat, similar to authentic and traditional log-burning grills. The best pellet grills in the industry have a digital controller that keeps the grill at a consistent temperature and regulates the use of pellets.

Are Pellet Grills Healthier?

Aside from added flavors from wood pellets, pellet grillers don’t reach the same heat as other grillers. Because of this, it is considered a safer and convenient barbecuing option. However, the health risk factor still depends on what you’re grilling and smoking.

Who Should Use Pellet Smokers

For those who are looking for a fast, easy to maintain, and flavor-centric smoking option, our experts recommend installing a pellet smoker in your outdoor kitchen.

Advantages and Disadvantages of Using Pellet Grills

Pellet grills are incredibly convenient and easy to manage. Once you set the temperature and fill up the hopper, you can attend to different tasks until the food is ready to serve. The amount of pellets you’ll need is also less compared to charcoal because it has a faster cooking time.

However, even the best pellet grills need to be plugged in as they are still considered electric appliances. You must also have enough pellets in stock in case of emergency cooking situations.

FAQ

What is the best pellet?

Though there are products such as the Camp Chef pro series and Rec Tec RT 700. We think that the best pellet for smokers is Pit Boss Natural Wood Pellets. There are countless manufacturers like Camp Chef for these pellets, but Pit Boss has a wide-range of wood flavors like apple, mesquite, hickory, and cherry.

Pit Boss pellets are excellent for smoking as it has no artificial flavors, glues or chemicals added into its mixture.

Are pellet grills worth the money?

Yes, the best pellet grills are worth the money. Besides investing in its utmost convenience, you’re also buying its versatile capabilities that allow you to grill and smoke, roast, bake, barbecue, and sear any kind of meat in one cooking unit.

Are pellet grills bad for your health?

Pellet grills are not bad for your health. Occasional smoking and grilling have a shallow risk of affecting one’s overall health according to experts. When considering health risks, we should be warier of the types of food and cooking procedures. There’s a more significant danger in not being able to cook meat thoroughly.

Can a pellet smoker replace a gas grill?

Yes, a pellet smoker can replace a gas grill. If you’re looking for a cooking companion with more heat retention function and faster grilling duration, then you should grab the best pellet grills available in the market. Unlike gas grills, pellet grills produce more wood-fire flavor, and their digital functions make it easy to use, with its temperature control panel.

Our Top Pick For a Pellet Grill or Smoker: Louisiana Grills Estate Series 860 Square Inches 304 Stainless Steel Built-In Grill (LG ESTATE 860BI)

The top pellet smoker among the three options we listed is Louisiana Grills Estate Series 860 sq. in.304 Stainless Steel body Built-In Grill (LG ESTATE 860BI). With its large cooking surface and 28 pound pellet hopper capacity and cooking capacity, the ease of using this cooking appliance is on the next level.

Although all three options offer impressive and almost similar features, Louisiana Grills provides a remarkable five-year warranty period for its customers, becoming one of the deciding factors in this review.