Planning to hit the road this summer? Take one of the best portable grills along with you for delicious meals anywhere!
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Best Portable & Tabletop Grills: Gas, Charcoal, & Wood
Updated on Mar. 04, 2024
Sometimes you need to get your outdoor cooking act together and take it on the road. That’s when the best portable grills come in handy. Whether you’re tailgating, heading to the beach or going camping—or you just want a simple option for a backyard party—you need a grill that’s compact for travel but has enough space and heat to get the job done.
These best grills to take with you are thoughtfully designed to be both easy to set up and pack away, while offering ample space and heat to sear up steaks, brown burgers or cook up kebabs.
The Best Portable Grills
- Best Overall: Weber Q 1200
- Best Budget Gas:Â Weber Go-Anywhere
- Best Budget Charcoal: Cuisinart Portable Charcoal Grill
- Best Portable Pellet Grill: Traeger Ranger Grill
- Best Ultra-Portable Grill: Fire Sense Notebook Charcoal Grill
- Best Portable Grill for Camping: Blackstone Tabletop Griddle
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Best Portable Grill Overall
Weber Q 1200 Gas Grill
Pros:
- Porcelain-coated, cast-iron grill grates
- Removable pan for catching grease
- Thermometer built into the lid
- Fold-out side tables
- Comes in six colors
Cons:
- With short legs, it's best placed on a tabletop (a portable cart is sold separately)
- At 31 pounds, you won't want to carry it too far from the car
When Weber came out with the original Q portable grill in 2004, it was a major advance in grill design, combining an eye-catching capsule shape with light weight materials and the high cooking performance one expects of the Weber brand. It’s only gotten better since. The latest Q 1200 has new features like electronic ignition and a grease pan on top of the original features, including fold-out side tables, 189 square inches of grilling space and a 8,500-BTU burner. It even comes in your choice of bright fun colors.
While electric models are also available, we’d stick with the gas grill version that runs on liquid propane canisters for its portability, as it doesn’t need to be plugged in. You can also get an adapter to add a regular 20-pound propane tank for longer use (but you’ll have to tote that with you, too).
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Best Budget Gas Grill
Weber Go-Anywhere Gas Grill
Pros:
- Lightweight and compact
- Handles on the top and the side
- A charcoal version also available
Cons:
- May be hard to clean without running water
For less than $90, Weber’s little Go-Anywhere actually lives up to its name. At just 13-1/2 pounds, it weighs about as much as a well-stocked tackle box. At only 19-1/2 inches wide and 11-1/2 inches deep, it will fit easily into any car trunk, yet its rack offers a reasonable 160 square inches of cooking space—enough to cook up six burgers at a time.
The wire legs pivot to hold it tightly closed when not in use, while the porcelain-enameled lid and base hold in the heat of the 6,500-BTU burner during cooking. The gas fuel feature and ultra-portability of this little Webber grill are hard to beat at this price.
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Best Budget Charcoal Portable Grill
Cuisinart Portable Charcoal Grill
Pros:
- Very affordable
- Ultra-lightweight
- Relatively easy cleanup
- Four legs for stability
Cons:
- The grate doesn't fit tightly and can tip if grill is on an uneven surface
Whip up your own flame-broiled burgers on this Cuisinart grill, which costs about the same as a fast-food order for four. At only 14 inches round and weighing 2 pounds, this charcoal grill is small enough to lift with one hand—just don’t forget to latch the lid into place before you try it. The chrome grate still packs in 196 square inches of cooking space, large enough to hold six burgers with room to spare.
If you’re looking for one of the smallest portable charcoal grills on the market, this is one to check out.
Bonus: For another excellent charcoal grill option, take a look at the Everdure grill—it’s a portable grill, prep station, and food container all in one!
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Best Portable Pellet Grill
Traeger Ranger Grill
Pros:
- Two latches secure the lid during transport
- Porcelain-coated grill grates
- Separate cast-iron griddle included
- Meat probe included
- 'Keep-warm' mode holds food until you're ready to eat
Cons:
- It's heavy and gets even heavier after adding pellets
- Pricier than many other portable grills
For the control of gas and the flavor of charcoal, a pellet grill arguably offers the best of both worlds. Traeger’s Ranger has several upgrades from its last portable pellet grill, replacing the analog control with digital and improving its temperature control to be accurate within 5 degrees. With 176 square inches of cooking space, this little pellet grill can handle a decent amount of food. And with the keep warm mode, food stays palatable until the whole crew is ready to eat. Here are a few tips for cleaning a pellet grill.
It’s larger than other portable grills at 21 inches wide by 20 inches deep by 13 inches tall and weighing in at 54 pounds before adding pellets (which you’ll have to carry along), so it’s best for those with larger cars or SUVs who don’t stray too far from where they park. P.S. If you love the brand, check out their new Traeger Timberline XL grill, too.
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Best Ultra-Portable Grill
Fire Sense Notebook Charcoal Grill
Pros:
- The compact folding cooking grates are easy to carry and store
- Made of high-heat resistant painted steel
- Cools off quickly after the coals are removed
Cons:
- No lid to hold in heat
- Small coals can fall from the bottom
When you got a distance to schlep before you make camp, the ultra-portability of the Fire Sense Notebook comes in handy. The clever flat-packing design folds open to offer an approximately 200-square inch grill surface that rests on a sturdy 13-inch-tall, X-shaped stand. When all closed up, it measures about 18 inches wide by 18 inches tall and an inch thick and weighs just 8 pounds, with handles cut into the sides for easy carrying.
The chrome cooking grate is large enough to handle six burgers at a time with room to spare, while the sides are deep enough to protect hot coals from wind. That said, it lacks a lid, so food may cook slower than on other grills. And you’ll have to tote charcoal with you to use it.
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Best Portable Grill for Camping
Blackstone Tabletop Griddle
Pros:
- Suitable for making a wide variety of foods
- Rear grease trap for easier cleanup
- Raised edges around three sides to deflect wind and concentrate heat on the surface
- The two burners can be lit independently, providing more heat control
- The rubber feet can be adjusted for stability on uneven surfaces
Cons:
- Not technically a grill
- Less portable than many
Technically this is not a grill, but hear us out: When going camping, especially for more than a weekend, a flat cooking surface is much more versatile for making everything from breakfast eggs and bacon to searing freshly caught trout fillets. Blackstone’s 22-inch griddle offers a roomy 339 square inches of cooking space—more than twice the area of the smallest grill on this list.
The two burners run off a liquid propane canister, with “H”-shaped burners for even heat distribution. When you’re finished cooking, the griddle flips over to form a top for storage. If its 32-pound weight and overall dimensions of 22.5 inches long by 19 inches wide by 9 inches tall have you wondering how you’ll transport it, you may opt for a smaller 17-inch size. Both can be purchased with or without a hinged hood for closed-lid cooking, though the lid adds more weight and size.
Psst! While you’re at it, also check out the LoCo flat top grill.
What to Consider When Buying the Best Portable Grill
The best portable grills aren’t just small and lightweight. You’ll need to consider what size will fit how you travel and who you’re feeding. A larger portable grill that fits in a truck bed or RV may not work in a small car trunk. But more portability often means less cooking space, so if you have a larger group, you’ll have to cook in shifts. In general, you should figure 72 square inches per person per meal to determine how a portable grill might suit your needs. Some portable grills have lids, which can make cooking go faster but adds to the bulk of your cooker. At the minimum, look for sides that come up past the grill surface to help keep heat in.
Types of Portable Grills
The kind of fuel makes a difference, too. Charcoal grills create the best flavor, but the actual coals are heavy to lug with you, and you have to be able to dispose of hot coals safely if you aren’t staying long enough for the coals to cool completely.
The liquid propane canisters for portable gas grills usually weight only 1 or 1.5 pounds, but they won’t last longer than an hour or so each. Many portable gas grills can be converted to handle a 20-pound propane tank, but then you have that to carry a big tank with you as well.
Portable pellet grills provide smoky flavor without the mess of charcoal, but as these use both propane and wood pellets to cook, you’ll have to bring along both of those fuels to your campsite or party.
Finally, there are portable electric grill options, but for those, you need access to an outlet—which is why we didn’t include any of those on this list.
How We Found the Best Portable Grills
As shopping experts, our only job is to help you find a winning product. We start with the research and reporting basics—what products are made of, what they look like and how much they cost—to ensure that we’re only recommending the buys that are worth your time and money. Then we research the features that speak to the product’s quality, taking advice from industry insiders and subject-matter experts on what makes a product a smart value (or worthy of a splurge). Finally, we do the work of combing through user reviews to see how real people interact with the product, and if it stands up to the test.
FAQ
How do you clean a portable grill?
If you’re traveling with a grill, cleanup is an important consideration. Hot charcoal and ash has to be carefully disposed of, or you have to allow enough time for the coals to fully burn out and cool before dumping. Some portable grills have grease catchers that need to be emptied and cleaned. When camping in areas where bears might be present, it’s especially important not to leave a greasy grill sitting out in the open where the smell could attract them. Generally, you can get away with using a wire grill brush on the grates during your trip, but you’ll want to make sure to do a more thorough grill cleaning when you get home.
Can you put a portable grill on a plastic table?
If you don’t know what surface will be available, make sure you get a portable grill that has legs or feet. However, the bottom of the grill may still get hot enough to damage a plastic table, so use caution when you pick your spot for cooking.
How do you attach a propane tank to a portable grill?
The small liquid propane canisters simply screw into the attachment built into the grill. Some portable propane grills can be converted to attach to a propane tank, but you’ll have to buy a separate attachment.
