Compare the Best BarbecuesJanuary 2020

Barbecues and grills are cooking devices meant for both outside and inside cooking. They usually comprise of a metal grill suspended over a fuel source (charcoal, gas or electric). The food (usually meats) are placed onto the grill, where the high temperatures from the fuel cook it quickly and efficiently. Barbeques are the epitome of summer cooking - great for parties and quickly cooking large amounts of meat and vegetables.

The two names can be used interchangably, but here are the main differences between barbeques and grills. It's important to be clear on which type you want when buying, because outdoor barbecues generally can't be used indoors - they generate a lot of smoke, that will make a kitchen very unpleasant very quickly!

Barbeques don't require electricity - prefering to use a fuel source such as charcoal or gas. They can be significantly larger than grills, meant for cooking for families and groups, which also means they can be more expensive. Their fuel sources generate a lot of smoke, meaning the can also be used for hot smoking meat and fish.

Grills are usually smaller than barbeques and can be used inside. They tend towards either electricity or gas as a fuel source, meaning they produce less smoke, but are more costly to run. They are meant more for small families, apartments, or places where setting up a big barbeque and causing lots of smoke would be more of a challenge. This means they can be significantly cheaper: however, since they don't use charcoal or wood as a fuel, you don't get quite the same chargrilled taste as a proper barbeque.

Size

Grills and barbecues come in all different shapes and sizes - from very small one-person grills that can only cook a couple of sausages at a time, to enormous barbeques that can easily cook entire racks of ribs or whole birds at once. The barbeques and grills on our site have a cooking surface measured in centimeters - the larger it is, the more food can be cooked at once. Smaller grills and barbeques may be marked as portable, meaning they are specially designed for picnics or outdoor parties.

Fuel Type

As mentioned above, barbeques and grills can use several different types of fuel sources. Outdoor barbeques tend towards charcoal, wood or gas, while indoor grills tend to use either gas or electricity. It's important that generally speaking one can't be substituted for the other - so make sure you have access to a source of fuel for your chosen barbeque before you buy it.

Lid

Some of our grills and barbeques are marked as having a lid. These are extremely useful for both increasing the heat of the cooking, and limiting the smoke generated by the barbeque. They are also essential for smoking, since it traps the smoke that gives hot-smoked meat and fish their unique taste.

Extras

Grills and barbeques are extremely customisable, and come with a wide variety of extras that can help you cook more effectively. These can include a non-stick coating to the grill rack, detachable legs for larger barbeques or a double-walled 'cool touch' handles to reduce the risk of accidental burning.

Moreover, some of our models are marked as 'easy to clean' - given how messy grilling a large quantity of meat and fish can be, this is a massive boon if you're going to use your grill frequently!

Barbecue Prices

The price range of barbecues is from $20 to $2,999 and in total we found prices for 60 barbecues. A new BBQ costs on average $521 and 80% of barbecues are priced between $98 and $1,129. The cheapest barbecue that we found is the Weber Smokey Joe at only $20, and the most expensive is the Weber Summit at $2,999.

Barbecue Brands - Price Range

The average price of Everdure barbecues is $1,289 which is the highest average price of all barbecue brands. Everdure barbecues range in price from $979 to $1,600.

The second highest average grill price out of all brands is Weber barbecues with an average price of $907. Weber barbecues range in price from $20 to $2,999.

Broil King barbecues start at $225 and their most expensive BBQ costs $1,800. The average price of Broil King barbecues is $766 which is the third highest average price of all BBQ brands.

Grill Brands - Average Ratings

We have checked 59 expert reviews and 2,641 user reviews for barbecues and used these reviews to evaluate the average rating for each brand of BBQ. The top rated barbecue brand is Weber with an average rating of 94%. The second best brand is Campingaz with 89% and the third best brand is tepro with 77%.

Biggest Grill Retailers

The biggest barbecue retailer by number of products currently for sale is eBay. We found 50 current barbecue offers from eBay. The second biggest retailer is Overstock with 1 offers. That means eBay is over 50 times bigger than Overstock when it comes to BBQs.

When Are Most New Barbecues Released?

January to March is the most common period for new BBQs to be released in. That means that most of the latest grill technology was released in within the last 3 months, and now is good time to buy. Two new grills were released in March 2019 making it the biggest month that year for new grill releases. In January 2018, 39 new barbecues were released making it the biggest month that year for new grill releases. Also the biggest month in 2017 for new barbecue releases was January, with 33 new barbecues released that month.

How Fast Do Barbecue Prices Drop After Release?

On average grills drop in price by 8% in the first 6 months after release.

That means a saving of $43 on a typical $521 new BBQ if you wait 6 months before buying.

Types

The heating system used by the bbq/grill.

We found 282 grills that are barbecues that have a grill Type, which makes grill the most popular type amongst new grills. The second most common type amongst new grills is barbecue. We found 243 grills that are barbecues that have a barbecue Type.

Form Factors

Form factor is the case design of the grill/bbq. It can affect everything from the load capacity to what type of fuel is best used.

Tabletop is the most popular form factor amongst new BBQs. We found 178 BBQs that are grills that have a tabletop Form factor. The second most frequently found form factor amongst new barbecues is cart. We found 139 barbecues that are grills that have a cart Form factor.

Lids

Some barbecues come with a lid which can be closed over the top of grill whilst it is cooking.

Most new barbecues are grills with a lid. 343 barbecues (65%) on Kagoo are grills with a lid.

Heat Sources

The heat source on a barbecue refers to the type of fuel that the barbecue uses (i.e. gas, charcoal, electric etc.).

Electric is the most popular heat source amongst new grills. We found 187 grills that are electric grills. The second most frequently found heat source amongst new barbecues is gas. We found 174 barbecues that are gas BBQs.

Which Are the Cheapest Retailers for BBQs?

The chart below helps you decide which retailer is normally cheapest for buying BBQs. For each retailer it shows the total number of BBQs where they currently have a market leading price. The chart below helps you decide which retailer is normally cheapest for buying grills. For each retailer we took all of their prices and looked at what proportion of those prices where the cheapest on the market. The cheapest retailer that we found was eBay. 50 of their BBQ prices were the cheapest that could be found anywhere.

Proportion of BBQs for Which Each Retailer is Cheapest?

Assessing how cheap each retailer is for BBQs by counting the number of cheapest prices for that retailer, makes the retailers that offer the greatest number of barbecue prices more likely to offer the greatest number of cheapest prices. The chart below considers the proportion of each retailer's barbecue prices that are the cheapest compared to other retailers. The cheapest retailer that we found using this approach was eBay. 100% of their barbecue prices were the cheapest that could be found anywhere.