The Best Charcoal Grill for Every Kind of Outdoor Cook

Grilling purists will tell you that charcoal cooking is the only way to go, and seasoned grillers I’ve spoken to maintain that a Weber kettle is the best charcoal grill you can buy. It’s hard to argue with the first part because propane simply won’t give you the same smoky flavor you get from charcoal. But that second part? It’s a bold claim, even given Weber’s reputation for manufacturing high-quality charcoal and gas grills. To see for myself, I filled my yard with highly rated grills and enlisted the help of a year-round charcoal grillmaster who also happens to be a Weber enthusiast (and also happens to be my husband). With open minds and lots of raw meat, we tested seven promising charcoal grills under $500. Read on for our top picks. And to learn more about how we tested and what we looked for, scroll to the bottom.

Weber has been making kettle grills for 70 years, and it shows, even in one of its more basic offerings, the 22" Original Premium Kettle Charcoal Grill. This classic kettle grill is our top pick because it has everything a backyard griller needs: A durable porcelain-enameled body, a smooth top damper for nearly foolproof temperature control, a built-in thermometer, an enclosed ash catcher, and 363 square inches of steel cooking grates with the perfect girth for producing gorgeous grill marks. The grate is also hinged, which makes it easy to add more coals while cooking. The Premium is a step up from Weber’s bare-bones charcoal grill, which lacks the lid thermometer, hinged grill grate, ash catcher, and two tool hooks, and we think most users will find the upgrades to be well worth the $80 (dog owners, especially, will appreciate the ash catcher as it will keep any meat-scented embers away from their pups).

This grill hits the sweet spot size-wise too since it’s lightweight and fairly compact, but still has plenty of room to create both a high-heat and indirect-heat zone. The round grate has ample cooking space for an entire Thanksgiving turkey, at least 10 burgers (Weber claims you can fit 13, but nobody likes an overcrowded grill), or a few beer-can chickens.

Cleaning this grill is easy thanks to Weber’s One-Touch cleaning system—a lever-controlled tool that forces ashes down into the ash pan or catcher for easy cleanup—and the enclosed ash catcher. Assembly is pretty straightforward and additional assistance is available through the BILT app. All Weber charcoal grills come with a limited 10-year warranty covering rust and burn-through of the body (other parts are covered for two or five years).

There’s really nothing to dislike about this grill. The thick wire handle of the ash catcher can be a little hard to move at first, but it does loosen up with use. Just make a habit of emptying it every time you clean the grill and you’ll be fine.

With more than 800 square inches of cooking space, a stainless steel smokestack, and a heavy-duty matte-black body, the Char-Griller Classic will make you feel like a true grillmaster at your next cookout. Under the lid it looks more like a gas grill than a charcoal grill thanks to 549 square inches of porcelain-coated cast-iron grates plus a secondary steel rack for warming or indirect cooking. This grill has enough room for a three-zone charcoal fire—and a handful of beer-can chickens, multiple racks of ribs, or (at least) 20 burgers. It’s also a great grill for slow cooking a whole pork shoulder and then some with or without Char-Griller's optional side fire box.

The most exciting thing about this grill, however, is the crank handle that raises and lowers the charcoal tray. This allows greater control over the cooking temperature—even with a grill full of hot coals—and is especially helpful when searing or trying to regain control should you encounter any issues or flare-ups while cooking. An access door on the front of the grill makes it easy to add or manipulate coals while cooking too.

Cleanup is easy, if a little messy. The main cooking grate is actually three separate pieces that can be lifted off of the grill for access to the charcoal tray—which has holes big enough to brush ash through. Below, a slide-out ash tray/shelf/drawer runs the entire width of the grill.

The biggest problem with this grill is assembly. Out of the box we thought it would be quick and easy to put together, but we kept running into problems—namely the fact that the machine holes didn’t always match up. We never ended up attaching the side shelves because we couldn’t. Still, the Char-Griller Classic has impressive features and enough cooking surface area that it’s worth the hour or two of frustration, especially considering the relatively accessible price. Another drawback: For such a heavy-duty grill, Char-Griller doesn’t offer a great warranty. The grill body is covered for five years, while other parts are guaranteed for just a year.

We assembled each grill according to the manufacturer’s instructions. I timed each build and noted any confusing directions or hard-to-finagle parts. Assembling each grill also allowed us to assess the quality of the materials. When it was time to cook, we filled a charcoal chimney starter with Kingsford Professional Competition Briquettes. When coals were ready we dumped the coals to cover exactly half of each grill’s charcoal grate (using grilling tongs to adjust if necessary). We replaced or unfolded the cooking grate, depending on the grill, put the lid on, and let each grill warm up for 15 minutes.

Once the grills were sufficiently hot, we tested the high heat grilling capabilities by cooking lamb chops and marinated boneless, skinless chicken breasts. To test the indirect heat, we cooked raw beer brats and bone-in, skin-on chicken thighs. Cooking a variety of meats allowed us to observe grill marks, crispiness, and doneness. After the grills had fully cooled, we cleaned each, following the manufacturer’s instructions as closely as we could.

Are the grill parts made of high-quality materials? Does the grill feel like it will last more than a few seasons with heavy use and exposure to the elements? Is the grill stable on grass, gravel, and pavement?

We looked for charcoal grills with good heat retention, but that also allowed for easy airflow adjustments through dampers and vents or other functions like an adjustable charcoal tray.

Are the grates easy to cook on? Is it easy to dump and rearrange hot coals if needed? Does the grill have any noticeable hot spots?

What features enhance the grilling experience? Which ones don’t? Are the features worth the money?

How easy is it to clean the grill? Are the removable parts actually easy to remove? Does the manual include instructions for proper cleaning?

The Weber Performer is one of many feature-heavy upgrades to Weber’s Original 22" kettle grill. It’s basically the Premium model built into a mobile cart with four wheels, three utensil hooks, a tuck-away lid holder, and a heavy-duty folding side table. While it’s a beautiful, high-quality grill that we’d be happy to have as our only grill, it’s not necessarily the best upgrade from the Original Kettle because its upgrades come in the form of nice-to-have features—not quality, performance, or cooking surface area.

The Char-Griller Super Pro is a versatile steel barrel charcoal grill with a whopping 850 square inches of total cooking area, if you count the top warming rack. The main grates are made of heavy-duty cast iron and resemble the grates of some of the best gas grills we tested this year. As such, they produce beautiful grill marks. Like the Char-Griller Classic, the Super Pro can also be converted to a proper smoker by attaching an optional side fire box, and the enameled steel body does a great job of retaining heat. Overall, this is a good basic barrel grill, but assembly was frustrating and it lacks many of the features that made the Classic our pick for best upgrade.

The Americana Walk-About is supposed to be a portable charcoal grill—it has adjustable-height retractable legs and a hinged lid with a latch—and unlike the other grills we tested, it is portable enough to transport to a tailgate or take along on a camping trip. While not an amazing grill by any means, it’s easy to use and offers a better grilling experience than what you’d get with a cheap portable grill (if you want a good portable grill, check out our full review here). With a price tag well below $100, this is also the kind of grill you could have shipped to a vacation destination and wouldn’t have to feel bad leaving behind.

If you don’t need a ton of grill space, but want a more classic look than what you’d get with a portable grill, the 18" Cuisinart Kettle Charcoal Grill is more affordable than Weber’s 18" kettle grill and it has more features—namely a built-in lid thermometer and an enclosed ash catcher. Still, there’s room for improvement here. The lack of a simple lid hook feels like a design oversight and removing and replacing the ash catcher isn’t as smooth as it should be because the damper handle gets caught on the legs. There’s no function for pushing the ashes into the catcher, either, so it has to be done manually with a grill brush or other tool. I also worry about longevity, mainly because the handles, ash catcher, and lid damper are identical to the same parts on the worst grill we tested.

The Leuwd 22" kettle grill was the only charcoal grill we tested that we really disliked. Though it had mixed reviews on Amazon, I was hopeful it would be a decent budget alternative to the classic Weber. I can confidently say that it is not. When we wheeled it across the driveway it sounded cheap and it wobbled when we flipped chicken breasts. The most confounding thing about this grill is the little “trap door” in the center of the cooking grate with two wire pieces that stick up about half an inch at a 45-degree angle. We were able to arrange our food around them, but they would definitely poke and indent (if not impale) a large piece of meat placed on the center of the grate. If you’re trying to stay under $100, you’re much better off with the smaller Cuisinart or even the Americana Walk-About mentioned above.

For a durable, easy-to-operate charcoal grill, nothing compares to the timeless 22" Weber Original Kettle Premium Charcoal Grill. If you’re looking for a heavy-duty charcoal grill with generous cooking space and incredible versatility, the Char-Griller Classic won’t disappoint (once it’s fully assembled, that is).