Best Charcoal Grill for 2023

A small gas grill usually costs between $500 and $1,000; a medium costs between $1,000 and $2,400; a large costs between $2,400 and $3,800. A small charcoal grill usually costs between $90 and $400; a medium costs between $400 and weber charcoal grill $1,200; a large costs between $1,200 and $2,300. For a family of four, look for a grill with approximately 400 to 500 square inches of cooking area. When summer rolls around, there’s nothing like a delicious barbecued meal.

weber charcoal grill

A culture and product journalist for over nine years, he’s covered everything from men’s fashion and sneakers to e-bikes and video games. He was most recently the style editor for a leading product-recommendation site, and previously covered the music and podcasting industries at Mass Appeal and The A.V. Club. In his spare time, he walks his perfect little dog, Cash, and reads graphic novels. Rachel Klein is a Senior Commerce Editor for Popular Mechanics, where she writes about everything from garden hose reels and patio furniture to mesh wifi systems and robot vacuums. Fast-forward another five years and her area of expertise includes home decor, appliances, tech, and outdoor adventure gear.

At $139, Weber’s original, kettle-style charcoal grill continues to stand the test of time. In our high-heat searing tests, Weber delivered the best balance of seared exterior and medium-rare interior steak. The Weber kettle grill gave us tasty chicken too, with crispy chicken skin.

It also has an easy-to-remove ash pan, a professional temperature gauge, and large air dampeners for superior airflow control. The best charcoal grill for steak searing in our lineup was the Weber Classic Kettle. The steak had nice grill marks while keeping a medium doneness on the inside.

The worst was our Tacklife review unit, which didn’t hold much heat and didn’t sear while cooking. The steak on that grill needed an additional five minutes to get to a temperature of 135 F, the minimum for medium rare. We measured charcoal in weber charcoal grill a chimney by grams, and in a ratio for that grill’s specific surface area. We lit the charcoal inside the chimney, letting it burn until the smoke dissipated and the coals began to turn grayish-white, then put the charcoal into the grill.