The Best Gas Grills, According to Grilling Experts

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A gas grill is a convenient, easy, and versatile way to expand your kitchen into your patio or backyard—or, in the case of portable models, even on the road. From burgers and steaks to veggies and fish filets, a gas grill allows you to cook a vast variety of flavorful meals, not to mention fewer pots and pans to scrub afterward.

Not sure if you want a gas or charcoal grill? We asked the experts. "The biggest advantage of the gas grill when compared to charcoal is the convenience," says barbecue and grilling expert Derrick Riches, author of the forthcoming book, The Ultimate Grilling Cookbook. As he points out, starting a gas grill is as easy as turning a knob and pushing a button. "When you are done, simply turn off the gas."

When shopping for a gas grill, you'll want to keep a few factors in mind. First, consider the size of the grill you'll need, which depends on whether you're cooking for a family of four or planning to host larger cookouts. Second, think about what you like to cook and what features can best support that. A side burner, for instance, is handy when preparing a full meal outside or if you'd like the option of cooking strong-smelling foods, like bacon and fried foods, in the fresh air. An integrated smoker box or a combo pellet grill is a nice feature if you're a fan of smoking large cuts of meat. You'll also want to consider the BTU rating of the grill (British Thermal Unit—the amount of gas the grill can burn in an hour); the higher the BTUs, the more powerful your grill will be. Finally, take into account the design of the grilling cabinet, with regard to storage features or space to prep or plate food.

With input from barbecue experts and our Allrecipes Allstars, a community of trusted home cooks, we narrowed down the many options on the market to a select few that will meet specific needs, budgets, and outdoor spaces. Our top choice is the Weber Genesis S-335 Gas Grill, as it has a large cooking area and lots of helpful features. Check out all of our picks for the best gas grills and then stock up on steaks and burgers for a long season of barbecues!

Our Favorites

Best Overall: Weber Genesis S-335 Gas Grill
Most Versatile: Napoleon Rogue XT 5-Burner Gas Grill
Best Budget: Charbroil Performance 5-Burner Gas Grill
Best Small: Charbroil Commercial Series Amplifire Gas Grill
Best Portable: Coleman Roadtrip Grill 285 Stand-Up Propane Grill
Best Gas-Pellet Combo: Pit Boss Pro Series II 1100 Combo Grill

Best Overall: Weber Genesis S-335 Gas Grill

View at Amazon ($1,429)

Also available at Home Depot.

Why It's Great

Sturdy build
Large high-heat zone for searing
Useful storage features
Compatible with lots of Weber cooking accessories

Grain of Salt

No included method for smoking
Pricier than other models of similar size

The Allrecipes Allstars we polled about their favorite gas grills were nearly unanimous: The Weber Genesis is a winning gas grill line. There is a lot to love about the product line, and the 335 model in particular. The main cooking area is 509 square inches, and the top rack has a unique folding design that expands its capacity. You can cook up to 20 burgers at once on the total 787-square-inch cooking surfaces, making it a great choice for those who like to host.

Weber is one of the biggest and oldest names in the grilling category, and our Allstars rave about the quality and longevity of their grills, especially compared to other models that tend to break down after a few years. Allstar Brenda Venable says she's had a Weber Genesis for four years and she expects it to last far longer than previous grill brands she's bought. "It's dependable, easy to use, and going strong," she says.

There are some clever features that make this grill truly special. The main cooking area has an extra burner that creates a large sear zone, ideal for perfectly cooked steaks, and the grill has plenty of convenient storage to offer. Beyond the space next to the propane tank, it has a small side locker that can hold long tools as well as hooks on the side of the prep table to keep accessories within reach. Lastly, the top rack unfolds to expand the amount of indirect-heat cooking surface, ideal for cooking two different things at once or when hosting a crowd.

The Weber Genesis line is compatible with a number of Weber's grilling accessories, including a glazed baking stone, rotisserie skewers, or flat top griddle. It's also compatible with Weber's iGrill 3 system, an app-controlled thermometer. The only drawback is these accessories, designed to fit exclusively in compatible Weber grills like the Genesis line, are pricey.

The Weber Genesis 335 also is our pick for best natural gas grill, as it is available in a version with a preinstalled pipeline system that can be connected to your natural gas source… no more running out of propane!

The Details: Cooking Surface Area: 787 square inches (274 top grate, 509 primary cooking area); Number of Burners: 3 plus 1 side burner; BTUs: 39,000 (main burner), 12,000 (side burner), 13,000 (sear zone burner)

Most Versatile: Napoleon Rogue XT 5-Burner Gas Grill

View at Lowe’s ($1,249)

Why It's Great

Versatile features
Integrated smoker box
Foldable shelves for more compact profile
Immediate, battery-free ignition button

Grain of Salt

Metal cabinet feels a little flimsy

Napoleon grills have a loyal following among barbecue aficionados, and the Rogue XT 625 Gas Grill is a good option for those looking for an extremely versatile grill. With 60,000 BTUs on the main burner, it's also one of the most powerful grills on our list.

Barbecue expert Derrick Riches is a big fan of the Napoleon brand and of this line in particular.

"The Napoleon Rogue is powerful and comes with a variety of features, so you can pick out everything you need for your outdoor cooking," he says.

This model includes a stainless steel smoker box and a side burner with grilling grates that uses infrared technology for intense heat. We're also a fan of this grill's ignition system, as it uses a push-and-turn mechanism that shoots a flame to light each tube burner. If one burner goes out, the neighboring burners will also re-ignite it. Owners of Napoleon grills also really like its signature wavy grill plates, which are designed to heat and cook food more evenly—plus you'll never lose an asparagus spear.

Small but useful design details make this grill an attractive option, including a riser shelf in the bottom cabinet to maximize storage, side shelves that fold down to make the grill more compact when not in use, and tool hooks to keep tongs and flippers at the ready.

The Details: Cooking Surface Area: 935 square inches (625 primary cooking area); Number of Burners: 5 plus 1 side burner; BTUs: 60,000 (main burner), 9,000 (side burner)

Related Link: How to Turn Your Grill into a Smoker

Best Budget: Char-Broil Performance 5-Burner Gas Grill

View at Walmart ($336)

Why It's Great

Good quality for less than $500
Powerful side burner
Comes with an accessory tray

Grain of Salt

Hood and cabinet don't feel as sturdy as other brands

This grill stands out from the others because it offers some high-value features and performance at a great price. The five burners produce the same heat and power of much pricier grills and allow you to configure hot and cool zones on the cooking surface. An additional side burner has a rack for direct cooking and emits concentrated heat for searing individual steaks or burgers, or it can be used at a lower temperature to cook food in pots or pans.

When all the burners are on, their configuration combined with heat-retaining, porcelain-coated cast iron grates, results in a cooking surface with a uniform temperature so all your burgers will be done at the same time.

The storage cabinet beneath the grill has room for storing accessories next to the propane tank, and a panel inside the doors for hanging tools. Plus, the side shelves are ready to customize with Char-Broil's Gear Trax system of storage accessories, such as a tool magnet, a cup holder or tool hooks, making for an organized outdoor cooking experience.

Rounding it out are a couple of other helpful features, including a tray accessory for cooking smaller or delicate items (only available from certain retailers), and illuminated control knobs for better visibility while grilling in the dark.

Our Allstars are big fans of Char-Broil's Performance line of grills. Nosheen Babar says this model is "a good value for the money and has lasted many years." Allstar Lisa Lynn Backus likes this grill for its versatility and how much you can cook on it all at once: "It can cook hamburgers, hot dogs, and chicken all at the same time, while frying French fries on the side burner," she says. "It's perfect for the home cook."

The Details: Cooking Surface Area: 645 square inches (150 top grate, 495 primary cooking area); Number of Burners: 5 plus 1 side burner; BTUs: 37,500 (main burner) 10,000 (side burner)

Best Small: Charbroil Commercial Series Amplifire Gas Grill

View at Lowe’s ($429)

Why It's Great

Packed with useful features
Uses a proprietary technology
Side shelves fold down for storage
Has integrated LED lights

Grain of Salt

No side burner

Even if you only need (or have room for) a small grill, you can still get great features and performance. Our pick for a small but mighty grill is Char-Broil's Commercial Series Amplifire 2-burner Gas Grill, a rebranding of its Tru-Infrared line.

We like the Amplifire technology for its nearly foolproof ease of use. The flames from the burners are concealed beneath a metal plate, so the heat is evenly distributed but drips don't cause flare-ups. The concentrated heat on the grilling surface creates a great sear and seals in juices, and the temperature is easy to adjust and maintain, making this model fantastic for newbie grillers. If you like to add smoky flavor, this grill is also a great choice: You can sprinkle wood chips directly onto the bottom grate, rather than using a separate smoker box.

Some other features make this grill a pleasure to use. The connection to the propane tank has a gauge so you can check fuel levels, avoiding the disaster of running out of fuel halfway through cooking. The side shelves provide a convenient amount of space for prepping food or staging serving platters, but then they can fold down when not in use. LED lights are integrated into the knobs, so you can flip burgers after dark.

Finally, the 325-square-inch cooking surface may seem small compared to most standard grills, but it is plenty room for a family of four or even a small party—the company promises there's room enough for 16 burgers.

So home cooks who don't plan on big parties should find plenty to love about the Char-Broil Commercial Two-Burner Grill. "Bigger may seem better, but smaller grills take up less patio space and tend to be more fuel-efficient," says Riches. And, he says, "Two hundred square inches can grill most foods for a family of four."

"With Char-Broil's Infrared grill, everything I've made turns out spectacular." Allstar Donna Michaels says.

The Details: Cooking Surface Area: 325 square inches; Number of Burners: 2; BTUs: 20,000

Best Portable: Coleman RoadTrip 285 Portable Stand-Up Propane Grill

View at Amazon ($290)

Also available at Home Depot and Kohl's.

Why It's Great

Lightweight construction
Wheels and handle for easy transport
Uses a small (1-pound) propane cylinder
Includes many features of full-sized grills

Grain of Salt

Drip tray can be fussy and messy to use

For camping, tailgating, beach trips, and picnics in the park, the Coleman RoadTrip is our favorite pick for a portable gas grill. It comes with its own stand, which folds down and turns into a carrying dolly, with wheels on one end and a handle on the other. When closed, the lid locks into place, and the side shelves slide underneath to make it more compact.

We love how the grill functions very much like a traditional gas grill, despite its small size. The three burners, each of which can be independently adjusted, can be used to create hot and cool zones for cooking different types of foods. They're ignited with a push-button, matchless ignition. The lid doesn't have as much room underneath as full-sized grills, but it's still big enough to enclose the food you're cooking, plus it features a temperature gauge monitors what's going on inside. The side tables have a clever slide-out construction and are a handy landing pad for plates or a bowl of marinade.

We found that it heats up quickly and the metal grates retain the heat nicely, so you get the same even cooking and performance as a larger grill.

One complaint is with the water pan, a shallow removable tray that slides underneath to catch cooking grease. While the pan is intended to make it easier and safer to capture and dispose of the drippings, the grill needs to be perfectly level so the tray can be filled, and it's hard to remove it without sloshing the dirty water onto yourself.

The drip tray also tends to rust over time, and sadly, there's not a replacement part available for it. However, Coleman does sell some useful accessories for this grill, including interchangeable plates that convert the cooking surface to a griddle or a stovetop and a hose to fuel the grill with a traditional 20-pound propane tank for longer-lasting grilling sessions.

The Details: Cooking Surface Area: 285 square inches; Number of Burners: 3; BTUs: 20,000

Best Gas-Pellet Combo: Pit Boss Pro Series II 1100 Combo Grill

View at Lowe’s ($799)

Why It's Great

Uses liquid propane or hardwood pellets
Enormous cooking surface
Compatible with WiFi and Bluetooth

Grain of Salt

Takes up a lot of space

Sometimes you want to quickly grill a piece of salmon for dinner, other times you want a low-and-slow, all-day cooking project. Derrick Riches recommends the Pit Boss Pro Series II Combo Grill because it offers the best of both worlds in one easy-to-use unit.

Among the features we like about this grill are the diamond-shaped grates on both sides that give you steakhouse-style, cross-hatch grill marks, a sliding smoke damper to get a smoky flavor while using the gas grill (or even cold-smoke), and the digital display that connects with Pit Boss's Smoke IT app.

The pellet grill features a 20-pound hopper for the pellets and an adjustable flame broiler to add sear or char to your foods. The digital display allows you to set and monitor the temperature or use one of nine recipe settings. It also shows what functions are running, such as the fan or auger, and will monitor interior meat temperature with the use of the two probe thermometers. All this information can also be accessed by connecting to the company's app, which allows you to control your cooking process even while you're not at home.

On the gas grill side, there are three burners plus a side burner. Each side has a cooking area of 631 square inches, divided between a primary cooking surface and an upper rack. A grease bucket underneath holds disposable foil liners so cleanup is easy, although the bottom of the pellet grill needs to be scrubbed so the sliding flame broiler won't stick.

All this functionality comes at a cost, in terms of real estate on your patio. The assembled length of this grill is more than 5.5 feet, which is longer than even most six-burner gas grills. Plus, you'll need to connect it to an electrical outlet to power the mechanics, such as the fan and auger, of the pellet function.

Riches says combo grills, like this one, are good for reverse searing, which is smoking meat at a low temperature with the pellets and then finishing it with a quick surface sear on the gas side.

The Details: Cooking Surface Area: 1,262 square inches (631 gas grill, 631 pellet grill); Number of Burners: 3 plus side burner; BTUs: 40,000

Our Takeaway

We found that among all the gas grills on our list, Weber's Genesis S-335 Gas Grill stood out for its durable, innovative, and useful design elements, as well as its reliable, long-lasting components. It offers plenty of cooking space for grilling a variety of foods and plenty of storage for all your tools.

How to Pick the Right Gas Grill

Size

Make sure you're buying a grill that is an appropriate size for your needs. You'll want one big enough to cook for your immediate family or to grill for a party, but not too big. "People tend to overbuy when it comes to gas grills," Riches notes. "For the average family, I recommend a three-burner gas grill with about 400 to 500 square inches of primary grilling space." The number of burners typically correlates to the size of the primary grilling grate, and multiple burners will allow you to customize different grilling zones so you can cook different foods at different temperature settings.

Features

AllstarLisa Lynn Backus' favorite features are the side burner, the option to add a rotisserie, and a side shelf for holding utensils or food waiting to go on the grill. Other options to look for are a smoker option, a fuel gauge, and whether or not the manufacturer has accessories that can customize the grill, such as a griddle or baking stone insert.

Construction

Cast iron grates for durability, a stainless steel body construction that will withstand rusting, and a heavy lid that won't blow closed in a gust of wind are all marks of quality that Allstar Sarah Stone looks for in a grill. Consider caster wheels with locks if you will need to move the grill around your patio.

Other Factors

If you intend to keep your grill for a long time, check to make sure the manufacturer offers replacement parts for sale (not all of them do!), suggests Allstar Brenda Venable.

About Our Research

Wanting to get the best possible feedback from those who use gas grills, we tapped our Allrecipes AllStars to get their top grill recommendations and input on the most important factors when shopping for and using a grill. We also consulted barbecue and grilling journalist Derrick Riches, author of the forthcoming book, The Ultimate Grilling Cookbook who's been writing about barbecue and grilling for 25 years, for his expert point of view.

When selecting the gas grills to include, we considered these metrics:

Design: Does the construction feel durable and well-made? Is it designed with ease of use in mind?
Features: Does the grill offer features that will expand its usefulness?
Size: Is the size and dimensions of the grilling surface suitable for a typical family? Is there enough space for cooking for a crowd? Is the grill too big for an average patio space?
Value: Does the grill offer the best value for its price point?

Common Questions

How do you use a gas grill to get the best results?

Becoming proficient at using a gas grill takes a little education, practice, and experimentation. Starting with a clean grill and oiling the hot grates just before putting the food on will get you off to a good start. As tempting as it is to constantly flip it over, it's important to let the food cook undisturbed with the lid closed before turning it over to cook the other side.

For thick steaks, use indirect heat (where the food is not directly over the heat source) and the reverse sear method to get a perfectly cooked steak that has a beautifully seared exterior. Indirect heat is also a great way to cook thicker pieces of grilled chicken so it cooks internally but doesn't overcook on the outside. Quick-cooking foods like salmon and burgers are easier: simply add them to a hot grill, close the lid, and set your timer. Burgers take only about five minutes for medium-rare results, flipping them over halfway through cooking, and salmon takes about 10 minutes per inch of thickness. Because it is so delicate, consider grilling the salmon on a wood plank that's been soaked in water. The plank will impart smoky flavor and will also prevent the salmon from sticking to the grill.

For larger cuts of meat, like ribs, roasts, or pork chops, set up a hot and cool zone with the burners. Sear the meat first directly over the heat source, then transfer them to the cooler side of the grill, close the lid, turn down the heat to the temperature specified in your recipe, and allow them to cook at a lower temperature in the enclosed heat.

How do you clean a gas grill?

The grates on a gas grill should be cleaned after every use. After you take the food off the grill, turn all the burners up to the highest heat level for about 10 minutes. This will turn any drippings to ash (some grills have a "clean" setting that does this). Then, use a stiff brush or a scraper to scrub the charred drippings off the grates before turning the grill off.

Many grills also come with a grease collection tray under the grill, which needs to be cleaned out occasionally. The instruction manuals that come with grills typically have detailed instructions on how their model should be cleaned.

How do you smoke on a gas grill?

Riches says, "The key to adding extra smoke flavor to your grilling is to use a smoker box." These boxes are made of metal with holes for the smoke to escape. Fill it with dry wood chips and place it on or below the cooking grates. When the box begins smoking, add the food to the grill and keep the grill lid closed during cooking to allow the smoke flavor to permeate the food.

To smoke pieces of meat, such as smoked turkey legs, you'll want set up your burners as an indirect heat source; in other words, turn one burner on, but place the food on the other side of the grill. Monitor the temperature and adjust the burner as needed for the recipe, and be sure to use wood chips to generate that smoky flavor.

Why Take Our Word For It?

This piece was written by Jessica Harlan, a cookbook author, cooking equipment expert, and graduate of the Institute of Culinary Education. Jessica uses her decades of experience developing recipes, testing cooking equipment, and teaching cooking classes to help inform her product evaluations and recommendations. For this piece, we also consulted Derrick Riches, a barbecue and grilling journalist with 25 years of experience and author of the upcoming book The Ultimate Grilling Cookbook.

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