Best Charcoal Grills of 2024
These highly rated barrel- and kettle-style charcoal grills cook evenly and give you plenty of control
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Charcoal imparts a unique taste to food while offering the utmost control when you use it in your charcoal grill.
With charcoal, the more you add, the hotter the fire. If you know what you’re doing, you can control the cooking surface to masterfully grill anything from a quickly seared steak to a slow-smoked pork shoulder. (If you’re really serious about grilling and smoking, you might consider trading up to a kamado-style grill, which combines charcoal with an airtight design to give you even more control.)
In This Article
Best Barrel-Style Charcoal Grills • Best Kettle-Style Charcoal Grills
Today, charcoal grills are the second most popular type of grill after gas grills, far outpacing the sales of pellet grills or kamado grills. Not sure where to start? Check our grill buying guide for a rundown of all your options.
Best Barrel-Style Charcoal Grills
Barrel-style charcoal grills are rectangular; many have helpful features, such as adjustable cooking grates and a door to add charcoal. Most also have a removable ashpan. These grills hold more food than other grills but they’ll use more charcoal, so expect to add lots of coals while cooking.
Best Kettle-Style Charcoal Grills
Kettle-style charcoal grills are smaller than most barrel grills, so they take up less space. The tapered shape lets you build a deeper bed of coals than you can with a barrel grill, so you can sear or cook for a longer time without adding coals. But they hold less food.