Since 1995, Epicurious has been the ultimate food resource for the home cook, with daily kitchen tips, fun cooking videos, and, oh yeah, over 33,000 recipes. We tested a few top-rated portable induction cooktops and found the best one for boiling, browning, and frying. Sign up to receive new product news, exclusive offers, grilling tips & recipes, and more from Weber and its affiliates / subsidiaries!
For an even lighter portable option, our tester loved the Cuisinart Petit Gourmet Gas Grill—and it’s cheaper than the Weber. Whether you’re an avid tailgater or off-roading enthusiast, the HitchFire Forge 15 is a worthwhile splurge for those who are always grilling on the go. This heavy-duty propane grill can be used on a table, but what makes it special is its included mount, which attaches to a 2-inch vehicle hitch. Once installed, you can drive, off-road, and cook with the grill mounted to the rear of your car.
In our testing, we grilled burgers, hot dogs, and bone-in chicken on the GoBQ, all of which culminated with the expected, delicious results. While the standard fare was quite easy, the chicken cooked over indirect heat required a little more manipulation of the charcoal, which wanted to settle to the middle of the basket. This one gets the job done almost entirely through conduction—its single burner provides heat to a porcelain-coated weber charcoal grill cast-iron cooking grid that functions much like a 189-square-inch pan. No matter your level of grill experience, budget or the size of your outdoor space, we’ve found the perfect top-rated charcoal grills for summer eats, entertaining and adventures. The Flatback Portable Grill and Fire Pit is aptly named as it collapses completely flat, allowing you to throw it in your backpack before heading out for your next adventure.
Essentially an oversize version of Weber’s classic 14-inch Smokey Joe grill, the Jumbo Joe expands the cooking surface to the size of a standard charcoal grill while remaining quite portable. Despite being bigger, the Jumbo Joe has a lot in common with its smaller sibling. Charcoal briquette portable bbq disposal is another drawback of portable charcoal grills. You’ll have to budget time to let the charcoals cool before you can safely dispose of them, and find a safe place to put them. The BergHOFF Steel Tabletop BBQ is the perfect portable grill for hosting in your own backyard.
Because of the grill’s small leg footprint and light weight, users should be cautious while flipping burgers and encountering subsequent resistance; we feared the grill might overturn. After assembling the grill, which took about 20 minutes, we loaded it up. The nice thing about the Smokey Joe is that it doesn’t require a huge amount of charcoal—it only took about 20 briquettes to fill it up.
Although we wouldn’t want the Grill2Go as a primary patio grill, it’s a decent dedicated portable for camping and tailgating. Char-Broil’s five-year warranty covers the burners, lid, and firebox. While all the grills on this list are portable to some degree, certain models are decidedly more portable than others. The NomadiQ portable propane grill folds up into a case the size of a small bag, with easy-grab handles. It also weighs just 12 pounds, making it the best truly portable gas grill I tested.