I bought about the cheapest zgrill pellet smoker about 5 years ago and it’s still going strong. Nicely done!

Honestly, country style ribs. They cook very well on the grill and taste amazing.

Can I have the details on the smoke you did? I want to do a turkey meatloaf soon

bacon, amazing ribs maple recipe.

Tri tip, smoke it until 125 and then sear. So good

So many good things but it's always something so basic like a cheeseburger that makes me the happiest

Most owners I’ve seen (including a good buddy) struggle with lower than 225 of true grill temp but pretty much any other pellet grill will go to the 160-180 range. I believe Recteq also specs it at 225 lower limit

I’ll reiterate what’s already been mentioned here: pellet grills are like the Swiss army knife; they can do it all but might not hold up well to specific made tools. But if you’re not a MasterChef who micro-monitors the temperature of their cooking, you can get by with a good do-it-all grill just fine. 

Having said that, I’ve found the NutriChef Portable Grill to be decently good at all tasks. Like the jack of all trades, it can grill, bake, braise, and roast well. Plus, it comes with two wheels, so you can move it around your backyard or even take it to picnics if you wish.

Yoder 640S. If you want to grill/sear for dozens of people, itself a rare use case for most, then step up to a bigger Yoder. They certainly have them.

I bought mine specifically because it smokes and grills/sears well. That, and it’s the last cooker you’ll ever need to buy due to the durability, reliability, and as importantly, the retrofit-ability.

I was appalled at the cost when I first learned of Yoders (my last grill was less than $300), but after a few months of research, the Yoder was the only choice. Thought I was going to buy a Traeger flagship model at first, and then worked through all the other usual suspects.

I’ve been really happy with my Weber SmokeFire (ELX4 Sear+) for this purpose.

It’s been awesome for smoking ribs, pork butt, and turkey (longer cooks).

Really great for shorter cooks like cedar plank salmon too.

I’ve done tons of great reverse sears, including ribeye, NY strip, tri-tip, and pork chops.

And I’ve been really happy with it for weekday burgers and sausages with the temp cranked to 450-550°.

The Weber provides more direct heat/flame to it’s well-suited for this type of use.

Some tips if you go with the Weber:

• Use Weber pellets; some other brands are too big and the Weber is rather picky when it comes to fuel. There are a few other brands people have good luck with but do your research first.
• Always use a drip pan for longer cooks, it helps reduce buildup and minimizes grease fire risk when cranking high temps for seating or grilling.
• Use the seat grate for high-temp stuff.

I’ve had the Weber for about 7 months now and use it between 1 and 5 days a week. Not a single problem to date, and just about every cook has come out great.

I love my Camp Chef Woodwind Pro with the sidekick sear.

Pellet grills aren’t all that great for grilling other than maybe the Bullseye, but it’s not that great of a smoker so you comprise on that front a little - it can’t do lower heat, and puts food close to the heat source.

So if you’re thinking you want a pellet grill that can smoke a brisket for 15 hours on Saturday then whip up burgers quick on a Tuesday night for the family you’ll struggle. Some pellet grills offered from Pitboss, Camp Chef and others do advertise direct flame grilling - the flame area is pretty tiny, and when you go high heat you need to ensure the grease collection tray is clean or you’ll have a fire.

Best bet is a pellet grill that also has a propane sear box or cast iron griddle.

Also when you say “the best”. This can be many things. Something like a Yoder is built like a tank but may not have all the features of a grill half its price. But that grill at half the price won’t be constructed of the same gauge or material of metal. You can buy a Rolls Royce, but maybe you actually wanted a pick up truck.

The ribs look awesome brotha! I got a zgrill last year from Home Depot for like $429 with a cover and I love it. Things a beast!

I have had mine for about 4 years now and love it. It gets used all the time and has been a solid machine.

Nice!! Welcome to the wonderful world of pellet cooking 🔥

I’ve had my Z grill for 5 years. Thing is a tank. Replaced the igniter a couple years ago, but that’s just a $8 part on Amazon! Enjoy!

Good for you! I too love using my pellet grill. It's so easy, add pellets, select temp, ... monitor on my phone.

For your first? Get a Pitboss on clearance for ~70% off at Lowes. Then upgrade once you’ve determined pellet grills/smoking is for you.

I'll throw in GMG. They seem the least talked about grills around here.. I have a daniel boone and it has never given me any issues. Solid build construction as well!

Edit: Since people were mentioning issues..

My GMG is a 2018 model. Been running strong sun, rain, or snow... Since then. No paint or QC issues to report here personally.

Avoid Traeger. They've got the worst combination of high price and low quality. Either go a lower price and lower quality like Pitboss, or higher price and higher quality like Recteq.

What's your budget? Take a look at the yoder ys640s. Great pellet grill!

Went with Traeger Pro 575 recently with this general constraint. I’m very happy. Think Z Grills and Camp Chef may have models as good or better but I got paralyzed by research and ultimately just decided I knew I’d be decently happy with the industry leader. You can also check the pellet grills recommended by reddit users list

Budgеt rangе mattеrs.

Yоu basically havе 3 tiеrs оf quality and pricе rangе: sub $750, $1000-$2500(ish), and $3500+.

A pit bоss is a gооd quality еntry lеvеl smоkеr. I usеd a pit bоss prо sеriеs fоr 2 yеars bеfоrе upgrading tо a Camp Chеf Wооdwind Prо.

BTW, hеrе's thе Amazоn Link оf Pеllеt Grills Suggеstеd by оthеr Rеddit Usеrs hеrе.

I am also looking

https://www.foodandwine.com/lifestyle/kitchen/best-pellet-grills Weber Smokefire EX4 Pellet Grill is the best overall

Top based on my research:

• Lonestar Grillz
• Pitts n Spits (love the hybrid offset one too!)
• Yoder
• Assassin Smokers (they have a pellet option for their insulated charcoal grills)
• MAK

You’re looking at 3000+ for any of these pits, but if you want the “best of the best” Pellet cookers, these are going to be it.

I moved away from Pellet, but personally if I were to buy one again it’d be LSG or Pitts N Spits.

Yoder, reqtec, gmg/camp chef, any other brand, traeger.

Get woodwind pro, I have the xxl pro vertical but has the smoke box too. It’s miles better than my Pit boss

Wwpro will give the best flavor compared to any pellet grill out right now, if you are looking for built and durability yoder for example will be good.

Wwpro can easily last 10+ years btw

My vote is Recteq.

I was in the same boat ended with a used 1000d3 I got on market place for 200 after a good cleaning and I sprung for the heat deflector and a new broiler I was all in around 300$ and could not be happier beats the 600$ plus I was going to spend now I can spend that on meat and pellets lol. Happy hunt and happier grilling and smoking

I love my KC Combo. Use it at least every week, oftentimes every day on the weekends.

But, when it dies, I'm looking real hard at the masterbuilt gravity series

I have had a few PB grills/smokers and love them. Are you going grill/smoker (horizontal) or mostly smoker (Vertical). If horizontal, I think the optimal under your limit is the 1150 DX Wood Pellet Grill at lowes... in my mind the best options of WiFi/Bluetooth, PID controller with 5degree increments, etc.

Not pitboss in my opinion

Buy Weber Searwood and call it a day. I had it for a yearand it impresses me and my guests every time.

Camp Chef WW pro, Recteq dual fire or Traeger ironwood xl. Wait a week and there should be some deals to be had.

Weber Searwood XL

Weber searwood xl.

The Traeger woodridge is a great option and its only about $1200. If you're willing to push your budget another $200, you can get the Traeger ironwood xl, which is the absolute best imo