The Best Pellet Smokers Reviews for 2020 – Your Complete Guide

Image	Product	Features	Price
Camp Chef SmokePro DLX	Camp Chef SmokePro DLX BEST CHOICE Ash System for SIMPLE CLEANUP LARGE capacity hopper (18 pounds) DIGITAL Temperature Display Monitors	40.5 x 25 x 22 inches 140 pounds	Check on BBQGuys Check Price on CampChef
Traeger Pro Series 34	Traeger Pro Series 34 RUNNER UP Easy to use LOW MAINTENANCE Excellent value for the price The original wood-fired pellet grill brand	22 X 59 X 49 Inches 163 pounds	Check on BBQGuys Check Price on TraegerGrills
Z GRILLS ZPG-7002E	Z GRILLS ZPG-7002E VALUE CHOICE SUPER EASY Cooking even for Beginners EASY To Assemble and Use Great ALL AROUND Smoker & Grill	42 x 22 x 49 inches 98 pounds	Check Price on ZGrills Check Price on Amazon
Green Mountain Davy Crockett	Green Mountain Davy Crockett TOP PORTABLE CHOICE WIFI MONITORED Grill Temperature FOLD-DOWN Ultimate Tailgating Grill Electric 110V or 12V + Adapters	32.1 x 16.5 x 20.9 inches 57.3 pounds	Check on BBQGuys Check Price on Amazon.com
Cookshack PG500	Cookshack PG500 FOR GAS GRILL ENTHUSIASTS AUTOMATED Temperature Control DURABLE Stainless Steel Quality MASSIVE 784 sq. in. Grill	784 sq. inch cooking space 330 lbs	Check on BBQGuys Check Price on Amazon.com
Louisiana Grills Country	Louisiana Grills Country TOP LARGE PELLET GRILL Digital Temperature Controls to 500°+ Smoke Whole Hog in 1700 sq. in. Grill BEST LARGE GRILL on the Market	1700 sq. Inch 437 pounds	Check on BBQGuys Check Price on Amazon.com

Pellet grills or smokers use an electronically controlled thermostat and feeding system to feed wood pellets into the smoker. This allows the smoker to keep an even, predictable heat by adding wood as needed.

Unlike pellet stoves, the wood pellets made for smokers are food safe and can be had in a variety of wood types and flavors to suit the foods being smoked or grilled.

If you’re looking for a high end, portable or set-it-and-forget-it best pellet smoker and pellet grill that gives the rich and smoky flavor to your favorite meat then continue reading and see the list of the best pellet smoker and best pellet grill and see which one suits your needs.

Here are the best pellet smokers you can buy:

1. The best all-around pellet smoker – Camp Chef SmokePro DLX Wood Pellet Grill
2. Runner Up – Traeger Grills TFB88PZBO Pro Series 34 Pellet Grill and Smoker
3. The best budget pellet grill– Z GRILLS ZPG-7002E Wood Pellet Grill & Smoker
4. The best freestanding pellet grill – Traeger Timberline 1300 Wood Pellet Grill
5. The best portable pellet smoker – Green Mountain Grills Davy Crockett Pellet Grill
6. Traeger Pro Series 22-Inch (Gen 1) Wood Pellet Grill
7. Cookshack PG500 Fast Eddy’s Pellet Grill 

The 11 Best Pellet Grills Reviewed

1. The best all-around pellet smoker – Camp Chef SmokePro DLX Wood Pellet Grill

For the perfect to use around the house, look no further than the Camp Chef SmokePro DLX. The SmokePro DLX gives users a lot of great features for a reasonable price.

With nearly 600 square inches of cooking chamber, it has plenty of room to cook for the whole family. A large capacity hopper holds plenty of pellets.

It incorporates an easy to use automatic starter and a dual LED temperature readout that allows users to monitor both the temperature of the pellet grill and the food being cooked.

Camp Chef also incorporates a unique ash removal system. Users simply pull a lever to remove old ashes.

Read full review: Camp Chef SmokePro DLX

What We Liked

Large Hopper Capacity

An 18 lb hopper capacity give you freedom to only load this pellet grill once for an entire grilling or smoking day, making it an efficient use of your time and effort.

Electronic Ignition

Easily ignite and keep aflame the pellets with the electronic heat rod ignition from just one twist of the knob. Other internal components keep the flame hot and pellets cycling through for long term, no hassle smoking and grilling.

Convenient Side Table

Attached side table give you a place to sit your utensils and sauces without needing another table, though there is not enough space for full prep work to be done just on the grill’s attached table.

Ash Catcher

Ash catcher is bottom mounted and slides out to easily empty and replace without getting in the way.

What We Didn’t Like

Poor Smokestack Placement

The position of the smoke stack makes it likely for your lid to bump it when opened, reducing the range that the grill’s top can open. It also makes it more likely that even a slight wind could send your pellet grill top crashing back closed.

Small Grill Capacity

429 square inches is not a good size for the price, particularly with all of the other flaws this pellet grill has. It compares unfavorably to the Lil Tex Elite 22 in this regard, which prices the same but is overall higher quality.

High Temperature

Variance: Average temperature variance is between 15 and 30 degrees, making it less accurate than many other pellet smokers on the market. This increases the amount of monitoring you need to do to make sure your food doesn’t over or under cook or get scorched.

Quality Control

Some users report problems with shipping and the grill arriving damaged or defective in other ways (such as faulty electronic ignition). While the pellet grill is under warranty, it is still a hassle to ship back a product this large and heavy (140 lbs).

2. Runner up – Traeger Grills TFB88PZBO Pro Series 34 Pellet Grill and Smoker

If you want better, go with the original. Traeger Pellet Grills came up with the first models in the mid-1980s and the same innovation that led to the first products, has kept Traeger at the top of the game.

One of the best models out there is the Traeger Pellet Grills Pro Series 34

With over 800 square inches of cooking space, it has plenty of room to cook for a crowd. Traeger Pellet Grills Pro Series 34 is also capable of temperature of up to 450 degrees Fahrenheit, giving you plenty of power to cook just about anything.

An automatic electric ignition allows for quick, simple starting. Traeger’s thermostat controls are operated with a simple to use dial that keeps pellet grill temperatures within 20 degrees of the desired setting. The temperature control even have a ‘smoke’ setting, keeping temperatures low and slow for ideal smoking.

What We Liked

Versatility

The Pro Series 34 is an all in one grilling machine, able to smoke, bake, roast, braise, barbecue, and (of course) grill to perfection. If you wanted you could use the Pro Series 34 as your only means of cooking and do just fine, which is what we like to see in a product.

Electronic Ignition

The Pro Series 34 ignites pellets with a hot rod deep inside its mechanism, making the usually tedious task of lighting pellets as easy as flipping a switch.

Huge Capacity

Both the grilling space (a whopping 844 square inches; enough to cook eight whole chickens side by side) and hopper (18 lbs of pellets; about 36 hours of smoking and 7 hours of grilling before needing a refill) are huge, and make large batch grilling a breeze.

What We Didn’t Like

No Included Accessories

The Traeger Pro Series 34 is an advanced, well made grilling machine but lacks any additional pieces that could be considered standard for most pellet grills. The lack of side tables and under cart storage in particular stand out, and make using the grill a slight annoyance without any built-in convenient place to put utensils or sauces.

Primitive Grease Catcher

With how forward thinking and advanced the rest of the pellet grill is, the grease catcher being a simple bucket hanging beside a hole is odd. Plenty of pellet grills have cracked the tech of bottom mounted, screw on or slide in grease catchers that stay out of the way and are easy to remove and easy to clean, without the danger of bumping them and sending hot grease flying everywhere.

3. The best budget pellet grill – Z GRILLS ZPG-7002E Wood Pellet Grill & Smoker

On the surface this grill is everything you could ask for. It’s a 8 in 1 barbecue: it roasts, braises, sears, smokes, grills, barbecues, char-grill and bakes

The smoker section works as you’d expect for a high end smoker. It has an automatic pellet feeding system that should allow you to set it up and let it do the work unimpeded, pushing in new pellets as needed to keep the temperature regulated. Auto-start ignition and digital temperature control round out the smoking package.

It has a decent 700 square inch grilling space to make use of. Good for most meals and single items, though struggles with cooking multiple kinds of things at once since it’s a wood fire pellet grill, and may be a bit too small for certain things (like especially large racks of ribs).

The frame is solid, the wheels are good and roll well, and the overall construction seems reliable. It even looks nice. A 3 year warranty covers most parts to finish things out.

Unfortunately, a lot of what I’ve said is not necessarily accurate. There are severe quality control issues with this model, making it hit or miss. When it works, it works and it’s a great purchase (and very cheap for what it is). But many users report issues with the pellet feeding mechanism breaking down, and temperature regulation often seems to be completely shot, leaving the grill either far too cold or too hot to function as you want it.

Read full review: Z GRILLS ZPG-7002E Wood. In addition, we have this newest product too: Z GRILLS ZPG-700D 2019 

What We Liked

Versatility

It roasts, braises, grills, smokes, bakes, and barbecues, leaving it a great option for any type of meal.

Grilling Space

700 square inches is quite a lot for most people’s uses. It can cook meals for a whole family at once with ease.

Warranty

A 3 year warranty is excellent for a grill this price.

Price

For what this grill provides the price is more than reasonable, about half of what I might normally expect for a pellet grill for around this size.

Construction

The construction is a sound stainless steel design that can weather pretty much anything thrown at it.

What We Didn’t Like

Quality Control

The greatest flaw with this grill is widespread quality control issues. While many users report that the grill works fine for them, quite a few do not, all with very consistent complaints. The pellet smoking portion does not properly work, and will not feed pellets properly. This can result in, at best, poor temperature regulation, leaving food under or overcooked. At worst the pellets can all catch fire at once, both wasting them and damaging the grill.

Customer Service

On top of the quality control, customer support is hostile towards users attempting to make use of the warranty, often taking days to get back to you or bouncing you to multiple departments to get anything done.

4. The best freestanding pellet grill – Traeger Timberline 1300 Wood Pellet Grill

While many grills are large, this one puts pretty much any grill you could think of to shame, with an enormous 1300 square inches of usable grilling space to play around with. That’s enough for an almost mind boggling amount of food; 12 whole chickens, 15 racks of ribs, or 12 pork butts, simultaneously.

Enough food to feed the largest gatherings and then some, this is the perfect grill for someone who need to feed a lot of people often, whether for commercial reasons or personal ones. If you’re running a small business or are frequently roped into cooking food for your family reunion or something, you’re going to want a grill as large as this.

But size isn’t the only factor here. This is a very advanced piece of machinery, with all of the fancy features Traeger grills are known for, including the D2 direct drive engine, which make sure the grill heats up fast and stays the perfect temperature set by the digital temperature controller, using variable air flow technology.

Everything about this grill is top of the tine, and it shows. Grilling on one of these is some of the easiest grilling you’ll ever experience.

It’s also well constructed of solid stainless steel, and built to last a lifetime. The only drawback is the price; top of the line performance commands a top of the line price with this grill.

What We Liked

Construction

Stainless steel construction is sturdy and built to stand the test of time.

Temperature Controls

Digital temperature controls are easy to understand and use, and provide a consistent and easy grilling experience every single time.

Drive Train

The D2 direct drive is an advanced drive train that makes the grill start up easy, heat up faster, and provide a more consistent temperature throughout even long cooking sessions with automatically controlled variable airflow.

Capacity

An enormous 1300 square inch grill capacity provides enough grilling space for the largest meals. Perfect for light to medium commercial use and heavy personal use for large gatherings like neighborhood-wide barbecues and family reunions. 

What We Didn’t Like

Price

This is an extremely expensive grill. While well worth it for what it offers if you need the large capacity, if you don’t it’s insane overkill. In that case you’d be better off buying a smaller grill.

5. The best portable pellet smoker – Green Mountain Grills Davy Crockett Pellet Grill

Great smoked flavor doesn’t have to stay home.

Whether it’s tailgating or camping, grilling on the go is often part of the experience. The great thing about this model is that there are some truly great portable options.

Also one of the best unit for searing, read the full review here: Green Mountain Grills Davy Crockett.

The Davy Crocket is a highly portable grill with fold up legs and an overall weight of under 60 pounds. At around 32 inches long, 16 inches wide, and 21 inches tall, it will fit in most car trunks and stow easily in a truck or SUV.

For maximum versatility, this grill will run on 12 or 110 volt power. In addition to this, the grill is Wi-Fi enabled and users can control the unit the Green Mountain iOS or Android apps.

The Davy Crocket ignites automatically. Temperatures can be adjusted from 150 degrees all the way up to 550 degrees Fahrenheit.

Check out our other choices for the best pellet grill for searing.

What We Liked

Small and Portable

The Davy Crocket weighs only 68 lbs, and is designed for tailgating, camping, and similar pursuits. This makes it a unique and interesting pellet grill that can really vary up your mobile grilling experience.

Huge Hopper Capacity

The Davy Crocket holds 17 lbs of pellets, an enormous amount for its small size (only 1 lb less than the Traeger grills above, which are four times the size). This makes it easy to fill it once, throw whatever you want to smoke on, and relax to enjoy the game or whatever pursuits your campsite has to offer, freeing you a bit from the role the grill master usually plays where cooking detracts from you having fun with everyone else.

Extremely Adjustable

The Davy Crocket has a temperature range of 150 to 550 degrees, and can be adjusted in 5 degree increments, making it an extraordinarily precise smoker.

Convenient

This smoker can be controlled via a mobile app that gives you an accurate mobile readout of the internal temperature, and can be controlled via wifi!

What We Didn’t Like

Grease Catcher

Its grease catcher is a simple bucket attached to a grease chute. This one fares even worse, as it is precariously perched on the clope of the chute and likely to slip once the bucket gets heavy enough.

6. Traeger Pro Series 22-Inch (Gen 1) Wood Pellet Grill

Bigger isn’t always better.

Many people just don’t have space for massive grill, or just don’t want one. Having a grill you can take along on your next tailgate or camping trip is a nice bonus.

If you’re looking for a smaller model that you can take with you, the Traeger Pro Series 22-Inch (Gen 1) Wood Pellet Grill is one of the best choices. With a compact form factor and a set of folding legs, this grill can be easily stored or transported.

The Pro Series gives cooks the same great controls found on all Traeger models, including an electric starter and temperature control.

Despite its small size, this Traeger still has 572 square inches of cooking space. That’s enough for two whole chickens or 12 hamburgers. You can do grilling a wood-fired pizza, to even baking a homemade apple pie, you can do it all with Traeger.

Alternative product review: Traeger Lil Tex Elite 22

What We Liked

Hopper Capacity

While the grill itself is small, the Traeger Pro Series 22 shares the same 18 lb hopper capacity as the Pro Series 34, giving it the same 7 hour grill capacity and 36 hours of smoking time as its larger brother.

Electronic Ignition

The twist of a knob heats the electric heating rod inside the grill, safely and quickly igniting the pellets inside. As an added bonus the temperature of the grill interior can be adjusted with the knob to within 20 degrees of the ideal temperature, increasing your control over how the meal is cooked and ensuring it will never be over or under cooked.

Versatile

Baking, roasting, braising, grilling, smoking, and of course barbecuing anything you throw on it. The only limits are your imagination.

What We Didn’t Like

Small Grilling Space

572 square inches is fine for a lower end grill, but the Pro Series 22 is decidedly not one of those. The smaller space makes it more limited in its applications, being mostly limited to grilling for a single family’s needs. Which feeds right into…

Price

The Pro Series 22 is about half as good as the Elite 34, at decidedly more than half the price. The price difference is small enough that serious consideration should be given to just going up to the Elite 34 if you feel you are ever (even if only rarely) going to be hosting barbecues with a large enough number of guests. The time and hassle saved in those situations with the almost double grill space is well worth the bump in the long term.

Primitive Grease Bucket

Similarly to the Elite 34, the simple “bucket next to a chute” design is strange and unwelcome. Particularly if your grill is set in some high traffic area, the design could lead to a lot of frustration and unnecessary cleaning.

7. Cookshack PG500 Fast Eddy’s Pellet Grill 

If your smoking needs extend beyond the typical family gathering, you may want to explore commercial grade models.

The Cookshack PG500 Fast Eddy’s gives users commercial grade features and durability in a compact, easy to use package.

With 100% stainless steel construction, it is very durable. And with nearly 800 square inches of cooking surface there’s plenty of room for the biggest jobs.

This model uses an automatic ignitor and digital temperature controls. Pellets are fed into the grill from a large capacity hopper.

Inside, the PG500 has an upper and lower grate for true indirect and direct cooking. Below the burner are two warming rack and drawers for keeping food warm before serving.

What We Liked

Electronic Ignition

A single button flip is enough to ignite the pellets, and electronic temperature control allows for easily adjustable and accurate interior temperatures for grilling and smoking.

Large Doors

Doors easily open from the sides at the perfect height to easily view and adjust the meat inside.

Storage

Side table and under grill drawers provide convenient storage and prep space for utensils and other grill accoutrements.

What We Didn’t like

Overall Design

The Fast Eddy PG500 is bulky, jagged, and ugly. More than appearance it takes up far more space than necessary for what it provides. It is unwieldy to move, difficult to properly store or permanently place (it is too large for most porches and still unsightly for patios). It is also horrendously heavy (330 lbs!), being made entirely of stainless steel. This in itself is an issue as the steel is unfinished, leaving it highly reflective. Cooking in the summer heat and brightness is a nightmare with a grill this shiny, and overall makes using this grill an unpleasant, irritating experience.

Small Grilling Space

Despite this grill’s insane bulk, it still only boasts a 504 square inch grilling space. It attempts to claim an over 700 inch space, but that deceptively includes the warming racks in the total estimate.

Chute Fed Pellets

Most modern pellet smokers feed the pellets via an auger and induction fan to properly maintain temperature and speed of pellet use. This grill does not, leaving it less efficient than its competitors.

Finicky

The proper temperature range for smoking is narrow, and results in small miscalculations in temperature dissipating most of the smoke, leaving your meat less flavorful than it should be.

Price

This grill has a price as monstrous as its size, despite the myriad flaws plaguing every aspect of the grill’s design. Were it a cheap and simple grill the other flaws could maybe be forgiven, but this is the final nail in the coffin.

8. The best large pellet smoker – Louisiana Grills Country Smoker Whole Hog 

While some users might love a small, easy to transport smoker, others need all the space they can get. For those big family gatherings or community events, bigger is definitely better.

The Louisiana Grills Country Whole Hog is a great model for those who need some serious space. At seven feet long overall and with over 1700 square inches of grill space, the Whole Hog really can handle the whole hog plus some.

It is really more like two products welded together. Both sides have their own large capacity wood pellets hopper and separate burners, allowing users to operate both sides at different temperatures. The two sides can even be partitioned to really separate your cooking surface.

Temperature control can be adjusted from 180 to over degrees Fahrenheit. And, this pellet smoker can be ignited easily with an automatic, electric ignitor.

What We Liked

Unmatched Capacity

The Whole Hog boasts an unparalleled 1750 square inches of grilling space, enough to live up to its name. It also has two hoppers, necessary for the two independent grilling spaces (separated by a removable partition).

Versatility

Due to the design, you can use the Whole Hog as either two separate grills, only using one, the other, or both as needed, or as one enormous grill with the partition removed. This makes it excellent for both huge crowds of people or simply grilling for your family.

Grease Catchers

The grease catchers are under mounted and out of the way of easily being bumped. Wheels: The wheels are large and lock easily, perfect for the size and weight of this grill. Electronic Ignition: In addition to electronic starting, this grill has temperature control in both sides, so you could cook two entirely different meals at different temperatures with the partition up.

Sleek for the Size

The Whole Hog is huge, but handles its weight well. While taking up the expected amount of horizontal space, it still manages to make itself easy to fit along any standard wall, fence, or railing and isn’t too tall to use either. It’s well designed to take up exactly as much space as it needs to and no more.

What We Didn’t Like

Price

The Whole Hog is fairly priced for what it is; it’s the size of three grills and cost three times as much as a normal pellet smoker. This is fair enough, but may make most balk at the cost considering the vast majority of people have no use for quite this much grilling space, and would be better off with a cheaper option.

Simplistic Pellet Feed

No augers or induction fans here; just a simple chute and pellets sitting in the bottom of the smoker. This can make it cook more unevenly without careful tending, so you’re less able to light it up and then forget about it for hours on end.

9. Memphis Grills Elite Wood Fire Pellet Smoker Grill

If you really need the right, the Memphis Grills Elite Wood Fire really delivers. While it doesn’t come cheap, the Memphis Grills Elite packs a set of world class grilling features into a durable stainless-steel package for long lasting durability.

With over 700 square inches of cooking space, it has plenty of room. A 24 pound wood pellet hopper provides above average capacity and up to 62 hours of smoking.

One great thing about this model is its temperature flexibility. Cooks can smoke, grill, or bake at temperatures ranging from 180 to 700 degrees Fahrenheit. An included ITC temperature probe lets you quickly track your food’s progress.

Users can also control the grill through Wi-Fi with an iOS or Android app.

What We Liked

Convenient Storage Cart

The Memphis Grills Elite has a lot of under grill storage space and can easily store your utensils, pellets, and other accoutrements when not in use. The added tables are sizable and convenient as well, adding a lot of utility to the grill.

High Temperature Range

This grills burns up to 700 degrees, higher than many of its competitors, and burns as low as the standard 180 degrees. This high temperature range make sit excellent for any kind of grilling, being able to go low enough for perfectly slow smoked meats and high enough for even the most aggressive searing necessary. This temperature range is hard to match, much less beat.

Wifi Enabled

This grill can have its temperature controlled via phone app, and can be adjusted quite accurately within it, with electronic ignition to boot.

Huge Hopper Capacity

A 24 lb hopper capacity puts other grills to shame, and offers up to 62 hours of smoking on a single load, or over 9 and a half hours of grilling.

Good Grill Capacity

658 square inches of grilling space make this grill more sizable than most, and makes it perfect for larger than average crowds.

What We Didn’t Like

Price

While everything looks good on paper, for the asking price (6 times the price of our best choice, the Traeger Grills Pro Series 34) it is actually quite basic and unimpressive. Most of its features are shared by other, cheaper grills, and its raw stats both in capacity and storage space don’t justify such a baffling price, with the grilling space being far smaller than one that costs nearly half (and only a bit bigger than one which cost 6 times less) and the storage cart being reliable but nothing special. This grill is costed at roughly 3-4 times what it’s actually worth, which is a shame because otherwise it is a very high quality pellet smoker…just not for what Memphis Grills is asking you to pay for it.

10. The best professional-grade smoker- Traeger Grills Select Elite Pellet Grill

These products do more than just smoke. Many do an excellent job with traditional grilling too.

Most of Traeger’s products make great grills as well as smokers. And if you want the best wood pellet grill, look no further than the Traeger Grills Select Elite.

This grill uses Traeger’s simple to use controls, giving users quick access to a range of grilling temperatures. An 18-pound capacity pellet hopper provides plenty of space for wood pellets and many hours of smoking.

The Select Elite has over 500 square inches of cooking space and can be easily moved around on the caster wheels it sits on. This grill also incorporates a storage cabinet beneath the grill, providing some extra storage space.

Porcelain grates really round out this premium grill by giving users a non-stick cooking surface that’s easy to clean and maintain.

What We Liked

Easy to Use

The Select Elite is a pellet smoker with the ease of use of an electric or electronically started propane grill. Ignition is performed with the simple turn of a knob, saving time and reducing risk of burns. The temperature can be controlled with 20 degrees Fahrenheit of the ideal temperature, ensuring perfect and thoroughly cooked meat every time.

Versatility

The Select Elite is a pellet smoker with the ease of use of an electric or electronically started propane grill. Ignition is performed with the simple turn of a knob, saving time and reducing risk of burns. The temperature can be controlled with 20 degrees Fahrenheit of the ideal temperature, ensuring perfect and thoroughly cooked meat every time.

Storage and Counter Space

The Select Elite has enough counter space to do all your prep work right by the grill with no other tabletop necessary, and the under grill storage capacity is just enough to tore all of your grilling utensils and materials out of the way and neatly arranged.

Spacious

589 square inches is larger than average, and enough to cook meals for multiple families on one grill space. 20 burgers, five whole chickens, six racks of ribs, or any combination of other foods of similar size can be cooked all at once. The 18 lb hopper capacity provides longevity and reduces the need for refilling the hopper with pellets constantly (one of the worst chores involving a pellet smoker).

What We Didn’t Like

Price

The Traeger Select Elite charges a premium for the storage cart and table space, prompting a question on whether the reduced hassle is worth the vastly increased price over similar Traeger grills like the Pro series, which are simpler and cheaper.

Wheels

The wheels are simple caster wheels which lock, and are quite small for the grill’s size and weight. This makes it portable but prone to wiggling when you don’t want it to.

11. Camp Chef PG24STX SmokePro Pellet & Smoker

It can get a bit pricey. They’ve got a bit more going on than the traditional grill and all of those enhanced features really add to the price tag.

For those just getting started or looking for something slightly more expensive, the Camp Chef Smokepro STX is a solid option with a great set of features.

Users get over 400 square inches of coking space and an easy to use digital temperature control. With heats ranging from 160 to 500 degrees, there’s plenty of room for both smoking and grilling.

The Smokepro STX also includes a meat probe, making it easy to track the progress of your meal.

What We Liked

Automatic Pellet Feeding

The Smoke Pro STX’s augur system ensures a steady feed of pellets for a more hands off grilling and smoking experience. No need to constantly tend to the pellets and make sure enough are moving in to keep the fire burning.

Electronic Temperature Control

Just a twist of the knob starts the fire and sets the temperature, making finding the right temperature easier. Combined with the automatic pellet feeding, your meat practically smokes itself!

Attached Meat Probe

A meat probe comes with the smoker and plugs right into the temperature console. This will make sure safe and properly cooked meat every time, so long as you abide by the internal temperature guidelines for meat.

Ash Catcher

The bottom mounted, screw on ash catcher is unobtrusive and easy to clean.

What We Didn’t Like

Relatively Small Grilling Area

The Camp Chef Smoke Pro STX only has 429 square inches of grilling space. Even the pictures on Camp Chef’s website shows meat (in this case, three racks of ribs) needing to be packed very tightly into this small space to cook properly, making arranging the meat a pain to deal with and will cause constant fiddling, particularly if meat ever needs to be flipped.

No Included Attachments

The Smoke Pro STX has no cooling rack or side table included, making it less convenient to use. Attachments are available separately but are generally not priced well for the overall quality.

Poor Leg Design

Legs are simplistic and relatively flimsy for the purpose. It is constructed like a camp grill, but too large and reliant on a steady supply of electricity to effectively serve that purpose. This puts the longevity of the smoker in question, as it’s likely to fall apart within a year or two.

by Brands

Final Verdict

If you look long and hard at the pellet smokers available, there’s not quite as many choices as many buyers might like. And not many of them are cheap. Most of the pellet fueled grills on the market are close to $1000.

The Camp Chef SmokePro DLX Pellet Grill is a great grill for those looking for a good mix of value and features. With the Camp Chef name and features behind it, the  is Camp Chef SmokePro DLX is a solid performer.

If you’re in the market for a pellet smoker or grill, take a look at Camp Chef SmokePro DLX Pellet Grill today.

How Pellet Smoker Works?

If you’ve made it to this page and you’re still wondering what a pellet smoker is, you’re not alone. Pellet grills and pellet smokers are not quite as ubiquitous as their traditionally powered cousins. We also created a beginner’s guide for BBQ enthusiasts out there.

After all, they haven’t been around nearly as long. While pellet stoves and heating have been around for a while, Traeger Grills did not introduce the first pellet smokers until the mid 1980s

Rather than relying on charcoal, propane, or other fuel sources, pellet smokers burn wood pellets. The pellets are made of compressed saw dust and tend to burn longer than regular firewood.

Pellet burning smokers look pretty similar to other pellet smokers and grills, the design and size are very similar. Unless you know what you’re looking for, you’d have a hard time telling the difference if you put a propane grill next to a pellet grill.

The Benefits of Smoking with Pellets

The biggest benefit of using a pellet smoker is the ease of use. Rather than trying to get charcoal up to a certain temperature and keep it there for hours, a using pellets gives you an even consistent heat that lasts for many hours.

While the same can be done with traditional pellet smokers, it takes a fair amount of skill and practice to keep the temperature and conditions consistent.

How to Choose the Right Pellet Smoker for Your Needs

These model come in a few different shapes and sizes. But they all work—essentially–the same way. But, quality and features do vary from manufacturer to manufacturer.

What to Look For—the Thermostat

Models that use wood pellets have a little more going on than your average pellet smoker. Since they use athermostat and a mechanism to fee pellets into the fire, you’ve got a bit more to consider than size and BTUs.

The first thing you’ll want to consider is the thermostat. Many model fueled grills don’t reach very high heats—with around 400 to 500 degrees Fahrenheit being the max for many. That’s something you’ll want to consider if you plan to do any searing while cooking.

Don’t Forget About the Pellets

Another big consideration is how the pellets are fed into the grill and what type of pellets can be used.

Many brands, like Traeger, recommend using only products made by them in their grills. While others may work, performance may not be the same.

Other Features

A lot of models also include other features, like a separate searing compartments or integrated meat thermometers. Other units have fold up legs, perfect for tailgating or camping.

Traditional models have a problem.

It’s not that they don’t make great food—you’ve probably had many a great brisket or side of ribs expertly smoked by a barbeque pro.

It’s the skill and time involved in making great smoked meats and other food with traditional wood fired or charcoal grills or smokers. Unless you’ve invested some serious practice time or learned from a seasoned barbeque cook, getting the temperature and timing right in your pellet smokers is tough.

Thankfully, if you want to make great food in pellet smokers, you’ve got options.

While electric models are one way to take the guess work out of smoking, another—perhaps better—solution is this.

Looking for something to cook in your backyard? Check out our pellet smoker recipes page!