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Pellet grills have certain advantages over other types of grill. They are much easier to use than charcoal and log burning grills. They are versatile as they can both grill and smoke food. They also equal the smoky flavor you get with charcoal or logs. In this article, we will be telling you why a pellet grill is a good investment and giving you our top choices of grills under $500. Believe me, you can get a fantastic pellet grill below this price and it will be well worth the money (maybe even a portable pellet grill).
Table of Contents
- Why Would you Choose a Pellet Grill?
- What to Look for in a Pellet Grill
- Frequently Asked Questions
- Final Thoughts
In a hurry? This is our winner!
Runner Up
Best Pellet Grills Under $500 – Comparison Table
Best Pellet Grills Under $500 – Reviews
This wood pellet grill is versatile. Not only will it grill, but it will also smoke your food, braise, barbeque, roast, and bake. It has fan-forced convection cooking so all your food will cook evenly, and you won’t be left with any hot spots.
It has a digital control board that auto ignites the grill. It also has automatic temperature control and you can set the temperature anywhere from 180F to 450F. There is an LED temperature readout so you can keep an eye on what’s going on under the lid.
You don’t need to check up on how many pellets are left in the hopper as there is an automated electric feed system. The hopper holds 20 pounds of pellets, so you are going to be able to keep going without adding any more pellets for a good 15 hours.
This grill has a large cooking area measuring 19.2″ x 26″, while the warming rack is 6.9″ x 27.5″. In total, you get 700 square inches.
The grill is made from stainless steel both inside and out and is resistant to corrosion. You should be able to keep this grill for many years.
- LARGE CAPACITY DESIGN - 697 sq.in cooking space and ultra-large 20 lbs hopper allow you to place all at once and cook efficiently. Perfect for various gatherings, feasts and BBQ entertainment.
- CONVENIENT SMOKING - Features an easy-to-use digital panel control for accessible monitoring of the internal temperature. Our pellet grill will do all the work for you once you set the temperature. Super easy cooking even for beginners.
- 8-IN-1 VERSATILITY - Bake, grill, smoke, BBQ, roast, braise, barbeque, and char-grill. Empower you to experiment with various cooking techniques and easily create a diverse range of dishes.
- BETTER SMOKED FLAVOR - Unique smoking technology and temperature control system ensure that your food retains its original flavors while slow-cooking, delivering a rich smoky taste.
- BUILT TO LAST - Sturdy construction equipped with a stainless steel lid retains heat, resists corrosion, and makes the pellet grill long-lasting. Bringing you years of ultimate wood-fired grilling experience.
- Lade of stainless steel
- Fan-forced convection cooking
- Digital control board
- Automated electric feed system
- 700 square inches of cooking area
- A few customers complained that it didn’t hold the temperature
If you’re looking for a wood pellet grill that can fold down so you can take it camping or tailgating, you won’t go far wrong buying the Green Mountain pellet grill. It has folding legs which double as handles. The electrics of the unit can run on a 12V plug-in car battery pack.
You can connect this grill to your cell phone’s Wi-Fi so you can operate the grill from the comfort of a chair rather than getting up every 5 minutes to check up on it. The Sense-Mate feature constantly monitors the grill temperature. It also has a built-in meat probe so you can check on the temperature of your food on your cell phone. It will produce temperatures between 150F and 400F.
The lid is peaked, which is ideal for cooking ribs and there are utensil hooks. It also comes with a durable and water-resistant cover so you can leave it outside during bad weather.
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- Can be operated from your cell phone
- Portable for camping
- Has a built-in meat probe
- Thermal sensor
- Grease tray not wide enough
- A customer complained that it wouldn’t keep the right temperature
This grill has amazing technology. It has a digital temperature control so all you have to do is set it and leave it. You won’t need to be standing over the grill throughout the whole procedure. The temperature range can be between 160F – 500F so you can choose what temperature you want. It also has an automatic auger, so it feeds pellets into the grill whenever needed.
This grill is versatile as not only can you grill on it, but you can smoke, bake, roast, braise, and barbeque.
It has a simple ash cleanout system so all you have to do is to take the ash pan out and dump the ash.
The total cooking surface is 570 square inches so you can cook plenty of food on it. The hopper is made from stainless steel which is strong and durable.
- Pellet Grill and Smoker: The Camp Chef XT 24 Pellet Grill and Smoker is the perfect outdoor cooking tool for anyone who loves delicious, smoked flavor
- High-Quality Pellet Grill: With PID technology, you can hold the tightest temperatures possible, ensuring that your food cooks evenly
- Smoke Control: Set your Smoke Number on this pellet smoker between 1 and 10 for a custom smoke taste that will take your outdoor cooking to the next level
- Ash-Cleanout System: The innovative Ash-Cleanout System makes cleaning up after your outdoor cooking sessions a breeze
- About Us: Camp Chef is a passionate team committed to bringing five-star flavor with versatile gear that can stand up to the demands of the backcountry and back patio
- Digital temperature control
- Simple ash cleanout system
- Hopper made from durable stainless steel
- A couple of customers complained about temperature swings
Τhis grill is durable. The exterior is made from heavy-gauge powder-coated steel, the firepot from high-refractory steel, the auger is cast iron, and the grill is porcelain-coated. You can expect this grill to stand up to all weather conditions.
There is a digital control panel. You can control the temperature easily by using this. As well as grilling on a higher heat, you can smoke at a cooler temperature, and this grill will bake, roast, and braise.
Other benefits include a sensor which will add pellets when needed so you don’t have to keep getting up to check if the grill needs more pellets. There is also a sensor that regulates the airflow.
There is an 11-pound hopper which will last you a good 7 hours. The temperature probe will enable you to check up on the heat of your meat. It has 305 square inches of cooking space which can hold up to 10 burgers.
- Wood Pellet Grill
- Cooking Area: BBQ Grate: 305 Square Inch
- Product DimensionHeight: 35" Length: 37" Width: 19"
- Hopper Capacity: 11 lbs
- Durable and tough
- Digital control panel
- Automatically adds pellets
- 11-pound hopper
- Small compared to other grills
This grill has 6-in-1 versatility. Not only can you grill on it, but you can also smoke, roast, bake, braise, and barbecue. It comes with a digital temperature controller on which you can set the temperature from 225F – 450F. Set it low for smoking and high for grilling. There is an LED temperature display so you will always know what temperature you are cooking at.
The Big Horn has a massive 700 square inches of cooking space. On this, you can grill a total of 3 chickens in one go, 6 racks of ribs, or 20 burgers. You will certainly be able to feed a crowd. The grilling area is 26″ x 16.3″ and the warming rack, 22.2″ x 12″.
It is made from strong and durable steel. It has a folding shelf so you can keep your utensils and plates close to hand. There are 3 S shape hooks to hang your grilling tools from. Other benefits include a meat probe, an automated electric feed system, an adjustable damper, and wheels so that you can move it easily around your yard.
- 【 WHY BUY A WOOD FIRED GRILL 】Taste, 6-in-1 Versatility, Ease to Use, Ease to Clean, Consistency - get reliable results for the temperatures every single time
- 【 LARGE COOKING ARE 】Enjoy our Pellet Grill with a large cooking area of 700 square inches, that can accommodate 3 chickens, 6 racks of ribs or 20 burgers
- 【 VERSATIL BARBECUE COOKING 】Low and slow, or hot and fast, the Big Horn Pellet Grill offers 6-in-1 versatility to grill, smoke, bake, roast, braise, and BBQ food to juicy perfection
- 【 EASY to USE 】Professional digital auto temperature control & real-time LED temperature display allows for you to simply set your grill temperature and let it go to work
- 【 DURABLE and STURDY 】Powerful durable steel construction and strong folding surface shelf, adjustable smokestack damper and all-terrain wheels
- LED temperature display
- 700 square inches of cooking space
- Made from strong and durable steel
- Automated electric feed system
- Adjustable damper
- Walls are thin
- A couple of customers complained that it arrived with parts missing
This grill is strong and durable and has a porcelain-coated grill and warming rack. In total, there are 390 square inches cooking space covering both the grill and warming rack.
There is an easy-to-use dial temperature control and it will set temperatures from 180F to 500F. It has a digital readout so you will immediately know if your food is cooking at the right heat.
The hopper holds 11.5 pounds of wood pellets which will give you a good 7 hours of cooking time if not more. The auger system controls the rate that the pellets are added so you don’t have to do much at all. Just relax and wait for your food to be cooked.
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- Automatic pellet feed
- Sets temperatures between 180F to 500F
- Hopper holds 11.5 pounds of wood pellets
- Automated electric feed system
- A couple of customers complained that the temperature wouldn’t go below 300F
Best Pellet Grills Under $500 – Buyers Guide
Why Would you Choose a Pellet Grill?
Easy to Use
Unlike cooking with logs, you don’t have to monitor the whole process. With logs, the temperature can fluctuate so you have to keep an eye on this. Logs need to be added and the airflow adjusted. However, with a pellet grill, all you do is push a button and it works. Just make sure that you have a big hopper, so you won’t have to fill up with pellets too soon. A good pellet grill will have press-button ignition and knobs to set the temperature. Pellet grills are usually accurate with the temperature and will fluctuate 10F at the most.
Versatility
Pellet grills can both grill and smoke. It is possible to cook a whole chicken on a pellet grill while you would struggle to do this on a gas or charcoal grill. While gas grills are easy to use as well, pellet grills have the advantage of a smoky flavor. You also don’t have to carry heavy bottles of propane gas, store them, or refill them.
You can also get a wide choice of smoky flavors using a pellet grill. There are so many different pellets out there that you will be spoilt for choice. Why not infuse a hickory flavor or cherry, mesquite, pecan, or alder? You can even mix flavors for a unique taste.
What to Look for in a Pellet Grill
Quality
Some grills look nice on the outside, but it is the inside that really matters. Make sure that the grates are made of strong and durable material before you decide to buy.
Efficiency
If your grill is made of thin material, it won’t hold the heat as well as one with a thicker casing. This means that you will be using more pellets to heat your grill. However, it doesn’t need industrial-grade thickness as it would be difficult to move. Many wood pellet grills have an internal computer that regulates the temperature. This is definitely something to look for when choosing your grill. Without it, you will have to spend more time keeping an eye on the temperature. You won’t want the temperature to fluctuate more than 10 degrees and you certainly don’t want heat zones. A pellet grill with convection style circulation helps to reduce hot spots. It’s always a good idea to read reviews of the grills you are interested in.
Frequently Asked Questions
Perhaps you still have questions about wood pellet grills. If so, please feel free to contact us. In the meantime, we have tried to answer a couple of the more popular questions below.
What size hopper should the grill have?
Often a reason for buying a wood pellet grill is so that you don’t have to be standing over the grill the whole time. If this is the case, you will need a reasonably sized hopper. The ideal is a hopper that will hold 18 pounds of wood pellets. This should keep you going for around 10 hours. Anything smaller and you will have to refill it more often.
Is it Easy to Clean a Wood Pellet Grill?
The simple answer is yes. Wood pellets burn more efficiently than either charcoal or logs. This means that they produce less waste. They are denser than logs and produce less ash. You may only need to empty your ash can on a yearly basis.
Final Thoughts
We hope that you have found this article informative and that you have found a wood pellet grill to suit. We stand by our decision of our top pick, the Z Grill Upgrade Wood Pellet Grill and Smoker. It has a digital control board so you can set your temperature between 180F and 450F, depending on whether you are smoking or grilling. It has a huge surface area of 700 square inches and a 20-pound hopper with an automated electric feed system. It is also made from durable stainless steel so it will stand up to all weathers. We hope that you have a great summer grilling and smoking.
