We Tested Charcoal Grills for a Month—Here Are Our Favorites

Best Overall

Weber Performer Deluxe Charcoal Grill

4.9

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Our Ratings

• Ease of Use
  4.9/5
• Performance
  4.9/5
• Ease of Cleaning
  4.5/5
• Design
  5/5
• Value
  5/5

Weber is one of the top charcoal grill brands today and makes the splurge-worthy Performer Deluxe 22-Inch Charcoal Grill, which performed the best during our testing. This model has a wide variety of useful features that any griller would love, including things like a Touch-N-Go gas ignition system, a work table for food prep, and an enclosed storage bin to protect your charcoal.

That electronic charcoal ignition system worked each and every time we lit up the Performer Deluxe grill. Once the coals were hot, maintaining a set temperature range was simple as the dampers are easy to adjust and position correctly. We were able to keep it within a 10-degree range during an hours-long test smoking baby back ribs and didn't observe any extreme fluctuations when opening or closing the lid. That said, we found the built-in thermometer ran a little high, making it necessary to rely on our secondary thermometer.

It was also easy to add charcoal as the plated steel grate comes with a circular middle opening for just that. We did find that the opening wasn't large enough for adjusting the coals, though. Another up-to-date feature is the intuitive one-touch cleaning system, which swept all the ash into the bottom catcher, and a removable timer mounted to the prep table.

Price at time of publish: $598

Dimensions: 48 x 30 x 44.1 inches | Cooking Area: 363 square inches | Warranty: 5 years (cleaning system, plastic components), 10 years (bowl, lid); 2 years (all other parts)

Best for Smoking

PK Grills Original PK300 Grill and Smoker

4.6

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Our Ratings

• Ease of Use
  4.8/5
• Performance
  4.5/5
• Ease of Cleaning
  5/5
• Design
  4.9/5
• Value
  4.5/5

Grilling cooks food quickly using high heat, while smoking uses indirect heat and lower temperatures to cook food slowly. If you like to switch up your cooking style once in a while, you’ll love the PK Grill & Smoker. We tested (and still recommend) the original version, and enjoyed the "new original" even more.

This grill is made from cast aluminum for superior heat conduction, plus its unique shape and four-point venting system make it ideal for both grilling and smoking foods. It has 315 square inches of cooking surface—that’s big enough for a whole turkey!—and large work shelf where you can prep food. Folding the work shelf down unlocks the grill from the base so you can take it on the road.

The improvements include extra-long handles on the vents, an opening for a probe thermometer, and the ability to adjust the rubber feet for uneven surfaces. Most importantly for smoking, the lid fits even tighter than the original, with a wide sash around the edge to help keep the flavor in. Once you get your charcoal going—which got very hot on both models—controlling those four vents may prove challenging for beginners, especially since there's no built-in thermometer. Not being able to control the heat resulted in at least one very charred steak during our tests. But, once you get the hang of it, this is one of the best grills for smoking of the ones we've tested.

Price at time of publish: $700

Dimensions: 42.75 x 16.2 x 37.35 inches | Cooking Area: 315 square inches | Warranty: 20 years (aluminum bowl, lid) 3 years (stainless steel grates); 3 years (plastic components); 2 years (all other metal parts)

Best Budget

Weber Original Kettle Premium Charcoal Grill

4.9

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Our Ratings

• Ease of Use
  3.9/5
• Performance
  4.8/5
• Ease of Cleaning
  4.5/5
• Design
  5/5
• Value
  4.5/5

Whether you’re replacing a well-loved grill or buying your very first one, you can’t go wrong with the Weber Original Kettle Premium 22-Inch Charcoal Grill. This thoughtfully-designed grill is quite affordable and takes less than 15 minutes to put together.

This Weber grill features a porcelain-enameled lid and bowl for optimal heat retention across the 363 square inches of space. We've tested this model twice, cooking everything from ribs to pineapple, and found that it's consistently a great choice for beginners and seasoned pros. Both will be able to get the hang of positioning the dampers for temperature control, though we do suggest removing the grate when you need to adjust the charcoal.

There’s a built-in lid thermometer, though we found its readings could be quite off from our secondary thermometer. While this worked exceptionally well for grilling and smoking, we did have issues with getting it hot enough to sear. Last of the downsides was that the lid melted the plastic lid hook, making it unusable. It does have the same intuitive one-touch cleaning system as the Weber Performer, though, and is a great value charcoal grill.

Price at time of publish: $233

Dimensions: 27 x 22 x 39.5 inches | Cooking Area: 363 square inches | Warranty: 10 years (bowl and lid); 5 years (cleaning system and plastic components); 2 years (everything else)

Best Kamado

Char-Griller E16620 Akorn Kamado Charcoal Grill

4.5

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Our Ratings

• Ease of Use
  4/5
• Ease of Cleaning
  4.5/5
• Design
  5/5
• Value
  5/5

Kamado-style grills originated in Asia more than 3,000 years ago, and these oval-shaped cooking vessels have become increasingly popular in the U.S. thanks to their superior versatility. Kamado grills, like the Char-Griller AKORN Kamado Charcoal Grill, are used for smoking and baking. They heat up quickly and impart more flavor to food. 

This particular kamado grill has triple-walled steel construction and features 314 square inches of cast-iron grill space, as well as a removable warming rack. It includes a built-in thermometer and can be used to cook at temperatures ranging from 200 to 700 degrees. The grill has two convenient folding side shelves and utensil hooks.

We used this to cook up barbecue classics like chicken wings and ribs and were highly pleased with its performance. Once we learned how to get the grill to the right temperature, the temperature inside the grill remained constant no matter what was happening outside. It is important to get the initial temperature right since this takes a while to cool down. Other aspects we liked were that the grates became more nonstick as the testing went on and the warming rack proved itself to be the perfect bun warmer.

Price at time of publish: $375

Dimensions: 45 x 31 x 47 inches | Cooking Area: 447 square inches | Warranty: 1 year

Best Portable

Masterbuilt Portable Charcoal Grill and Smoker with Cart

4.8

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Our Ratings

• Ease of Use
  4.9/5
• Performance
  4.8/5
• Ease of Cleaning
  5/5
• Design
  4.9/5
• Value
  5/5

Probably the most difficult part of charcoal grilling is stoking and feeding the fire to maintain a consistent temperature. Masterbuilt’s portable grill solves that problem with a simple dial to select a temperature—and it actually works! It’s set up a bit differently than most charcoal grills, with a hopper for fuel at one side and a built-in fan (it can use AA batteries or plug into an outlet) to control the temperature by blowing at different speeds. The dial can be set to anywhere from 250 to 500 degrees, and the grill stayed within 10 degrees of the setting for our entire series of tests. At the top temperature, it was able to add a nice char to both burgers and corn.

And that’s not to mention how, well, portable this portable grill is: The cart folds down with the flip of a clip and even has an extendable handle to roll around nimbly, like a wheeled suitcase if it had heavy-duty tires. It is pretty heavy, so it’s better for car transport than carrying in a backpack. The grill comes disassembled, and we didn’t find it difficult to put together, but the process was time-consuming—think IKEA furniture.

All in all, the Masterbuilt Portable would be a great introduction to charcoal for a beginner, as it makes managing the fire very easy. Though it’s easy to move around, it’s also big enough that a small family could use it as a main grill, too. It’s priced on the higher end for a portable grill, though it’s more in the middle for charcoal grills in general.

Price at time of publish: $330

Dimensions: 45 x 19 x 36 inches | Weight: 52 pounds | Cooking Area: 200 square inches | Warranty: 1 year

Best Cart-Style

Char-Griller Classic Charcoal Grill

4.2

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Our Ratings

• Ease of Use
  4.6/5
• Performance
  3.6/5
• Ease of Cleaning
  4.5/5
• Design
  4.8/5
• Value
  5/5

Cart-style charcoal grills allow you to have a larger cooking surface than kettle grills, but they usually take more skill to control since the vents are harder to adjust. Not so with this Char-Griller model. We were able to easily position the vents into place, and, unlike some of our kettle grills, we could leave them alone during most of our testing.

Whether we were smoking or grilling, this grill performed wonderfully. We achieved good char on our steaks, and it kept a consistent temperature while smoking ribs. A tight seal on the lid helped keep the smoke and heat inside the grill, which didn't fluctuate too wildly when we opened or closed the lid. And while we did have to remove two grates in order to add charcoal, you can also use the front-access door for any adjustments.

We did think the front vent would benefit from being slightly smaller so that it forces more oxygen directly into the flames. That said, this is well-constructed and even a beginner could overcome its learning curve,

Price at time of publish: $349

Dimensions: 57.35 x 27 x 51.7 inches | Cooking Area: 820 square inches | Warranty: 1 year (grate); 5 years (all other parts)