Compare the Best BarbecuesOctober 2018

Barbecues and grills are cooking devices meant for both outside and inside cooking. They usually comprise of a metal grill suspended over a fuel source (charcoal, gas or electric). The food (usually meats) are placed onto the grill, where the high temperatures from the fuel cook it quickly and efficiently. Barbeques are the epitome of summer cooking - great for parties and quickly cooking large amounts of meat and vegetables.

The two names can be used interchangably, but here are the main differences between barbeques and grills. It's important to be clear on which type you want when buying, because outdoor barbecues generally can't be used indoors - they generate a lot of smoke, that will make a kitchen very unpleasant very quickly!

Barbeques don't require electricity - prefering to use a fuel source such as charcoal or gas. They can be significantly larger than grills, meant for cooking for families and groups, which also means they can be more expensive. Their fuel sources generate a lot of smoke, meaning the can also be used for hot smoking meat and fish.

Grills are usually smaller than barbeques and can be used inside. They tend towards either electricity or gas as a fuel source, meaning they produce less smoke, but are more costly to run. They are meant more for small families, apartments, or places where setting up a big barbeque and causing lots of smoke would be more of a challenge. This means they can be significantly cheaper: however, since they don't use charcoal or wood as a fuel, you don't get quite the same chargrilled taste as a proper barbeque.

Size

Grills and barbecues come in all different shapes and sizes - from very small one-person grills that can only cook a couple of sausages at a time, to enormous barbeques that can easily cook entire racks of ribs or whole birds at once. The barbeques and grills on our site have a cooking surface measured in centimeters - the larger it is, the more food can be cooked at once. Smaller grills and barbeques may be marked as portable, meaning they are specially designed for picnics or outdoor parties.

Fuel Type

As mentioned above, barbeques and grills can use several different types of fuel sources. Outdoor barbeques tend towards charcoal, wood or gas, while indoor grills tend to use either gas or electricity. It's important that generally speaking one can't be substituted for the other - so make sure you have access to a source of fuel for your chosen barbeque before you buy it.

Lid

Some of our grills and barbeques are marked as having a lid. These are extremely useful for both increasing the heat of the cooking, and limiting the smoke generated by the barbeque. They are also essential for smoking, since it traps the smoke that gives hot-smoked meat and fish their unique taste.

Extras

Grills and barbeques are extremely customisable, and come with a wide variety of extras that can help you cook more effectively. These can include a non-stick coating to the grill rack, detachable legs for larger barbeques or a double-walled 'cool touch' handles to reduce the risk of accidental burning.

Moreover, some of our models are marked as 'easy to clean' - given how messy grilling a large quantity of meat and fish can be, this is a massive boon if you're going to use your grill frequently!

Grill Prices

Grills range in price from £15 to £1,795 and in total we found prices for 204 grills. The average price of a new grill is £277 and 80% of barbecues are priced between £42 and £669. The OFYR Classic 100-100 Firepit / BBQ With Storage is the most expensive barbecue that we found at £1,795, and the Clatronic RG 3592 is the cheapest at only £15.

BBQ Brands - Price Range

The average price of OFYR BBQs is £1,745 which is the highest average price of all barbecue brands. OFYR BBQs start at £1,695 and their most expensive barbecue costs £1,795.

The average price of Bartscher BBQs is £1,739 which is the second highest average price of all barbecue brands. Bartscher BBQs start at £1,739 and their most expensive barbecue costs £1,739.

The third highest average BBQ price out of all brands is Traeger grills with an average price of £1,259. Traeger grills range in price from £1,259 to £1,259.

Grill Brands - Average Ratings

We have analysed 79 expert reviews and 5,976 user reviews for barbecues and used this data to calculate the average rating for each brand of BBQ. The top three grill brands are Weber, tepro and Barbecook. Weber has an average rating of 93%, tepro has an average rating of 80% and Barbecook has an average rating of 80%.

Biggest Barbecue Retailers

The biggest BBQ retailer by number of products currently for sale is Amazon UK. We found 120 current BBQ offers from Amazon UK. The second biggest retailer is eBay with 118 offers. That means Amazon UK is very close in size to eBay when it comes to BBQs. John Lewis is the third biggest retailer with 20 current offers.

When Are Most New BBQs Released?

We looked at the release dates for new grills over the last 3 years, but couldn't see any prominent pattern. January was the biggest month in 2017 for new barbecues, with 34 new barbecues released that month. 70 new barbecues were released in September 2016 making it the biggest month that year for new BBQ releases. The biggest month in 2015 for new grill releases was July, with 94 new BBQs released that month.

How Fast Do Grill Prices Drop After Release?

On average, in the first 6 months after release, grills drop in price by 15%. That means that on a typical grill costing £277 you could save on average £41 by waiting 6 months before buying.

Types

The heating system used by the bbq/grill.

Grill is the most common type amongst new grills. We found 232 grills that are BBQs that have a Grill Type. The second most popular type amongst new barbecues is Barbecue. We found 220 barbecues that are grills that have a Barbecue Type.

Form Factors

Form factor is the case design of the grill/bbq. It can affect everything from the load capacity to what type of fuel is best used.

The most frequently found form factor amongst new BBQs is Tabletop. We found 140 BBQs that are barbecues that have a Tabletop Form factor. We found 124 grills that are BBQs that have a Cart Form factor, making Cart the second most common form factor amongst new grills.

Lids

Some barbecues come with a lid which can be closed over the top of grill whilst it is cooking.

Of the 455 new BBQs currently listed on Kagoo, the vast majority are barbecues with a lid. 67% of BBQs are barbecues with a lid.

Heat Sources

The heat source on a barbecue refers to the type of fuel that the barbecue uses (i.e. gas, charcoal, electric etc.).

Gas is the most frequently found heat source amongst new grills. We found 153 grills that are gas BBQs. Electric is the second most common heat source amongst new grills. We found 146 grills that are electric grills.

Which Are the Cheapest Retailers for BBQs?

The chart below helps you decide which retailer is normally cheapest for buying BBQs. For each retailer it shows the total number of BBQs where they currently have a market leading price. The chart below helps you decide which retailer is normally cheapest for buying BBQs. For each retailer we took all of their prices and looked at what proportion of those prices where the cheapest on the market. The cheapest retailer that we found was Amazon UK. 92 of their barbecue prices were the cheapest that could be found anywhere.

Proportion of Grills for Which Each Retailer is Cheapest?

Assessing how cheap each retailer is for barbecues by counting the number of cheapest prices for that retailer, makes the retailers that offer the greatest number of BBQ prices more likely to offer the greatest number of cheapest prices. The chart below considers the proportion of each retailer's BBQ prices that are the cheapest compared to other retailers. The cheapest retailer that we found using this approach was Amazon UK. 76.7% of their BBQ prices were the cheapest that could be found anywhere.