6 Charcoal Kettle Grills go head-to-head as we test and assess which one is the best kettle grill for you.
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► Spider Grills Huntsman: (save 10% with code LAB10)
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► Slow N Sear Accessories: (Save 10% with code BBQLAB) or
► Napoleon Pro 22″ charcoal kettle: or – (Code – “BBQLAB75″ for $75 off $1,500 purchase)
► Kamado Joe Kettle Joe: or
► Weber Master Touch 26”: or (Code – “BBQLAB75” for $75 off $1,500 purchase)
► Weber Performer Deluxe: or (Code – “BBQLAB75” for $75 off $1,500 purchase)
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What's the BEST Kettle Grill You Can Buy in 2025
29 Comments
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Used to be like $20, little square grill. Minor modifications. It's $60 now but I get just the same performance. You would even though I have a pellet grill also.😊😊
I realize I haven't used my Weber Performer in two or three years. If I'm using a kettle, I like the Char-Broil Kettleman. You should check it out. That said, I'm a PK grill guy. Once you get the hang of them it's hard to settle on something else.
I have the 22" Weber Mastertouch. I can smoke two 8 lb pork butts using the snake method. I love it. I purchased a second one for my girlfriend. I've had the first one for 12 years. The second one I bought 18 months ago. They are great grills.
The Weber is a kettle, as is the Napoleon..
A fucking kettle Joe is not. Nor is the spider as excellent as they may be. I'm sure someone has mentioned this before
10:28 Full disclaimer, I have a Weber Master Touch 22", and at some point would love to pick up the Huntsman at some point as well. Why does the Huntsman get points for the optional add-on heat deflector when the Weber kettle has various optional 1st party heat detectors? The Weber heat deflector also doubles as a Vortex.
The Huntsman gasket lid is awesome, but I hate that it only opens to a 45 degree angle. That's the most off-putting part for me.
Ultimately, I agree on the top 2, just swapped. Any of the Weber 22 kettles is a fantastic first/only grill. If the Huntsman was half the price, it would be the no brainer.
You are entitled to your opinion of course, but I have very little faith in your conclusions. I have used the most basic 22” Weber. Not the performer, just the standard22” with no side table, no lid thermometer, no fancy ash catcher, just the little frisbee looking ash tray. I have no accessories like vortexes, baskets, slow and sear, etc. I can direct grill, use two zones cooking, snake, bank coals or anything else I want. I can cook anything as well or better than my friends with fancier, gadget filled smokers and grills. I use wired probes that plug into a base that wirelessly sends the info to a portable unit I carry around as I multitask. Yes, it can take a little time at the start to get low and slow cook temps dialed in, but once it gets there, I rarely have to touch it again. The Weber 22” may not be the best in any one category, except price, but it is clearly the overall. Best and most basic.
This was Project Farm level of testing and review.
👏🏽👏🏽 well done (on the review, not cooking time 😅)
Weber 22". Mods = adaptable
I have a performer with venom and ceramic inserts. With all of the accessories you can buy for the weber kettle, getting the performer is a no-brainer, in my opinion.
Ditching Weber for Napoleon for the obvious (Canadian) reason…
The Napolean is on par with the Weber
21:30 What man is so weak that lifting these grates would be considered a workout?
Who moves their grill through grass?
Fantastic video.
Leaving less ash, Is better because the better insulation hottest can sear better. Just my opinion. ❤excellent content
Cast iron is far superior for grill surface. It doesn't bend and lasts foever
Can Spider grill control connect to wifi 6?
I have been thinking about turning my 26” into a stainless Performer for two reasons. I don’t like the three legs on it and I want a side table.
4:08 It’s hard to take this seriously when the Joe and Weber are rated 1 & 2 for height. Are they ground level? 😂
I think the best value, performance, price, etc is probably the Weber 22" Premium. I am partial to Weber, but the premium kettle in 22" would be my all around recommendation. I have the 22" Master Touch and it's great, but I do agree the grate system is a little pain to clean.
WSM is my smoker choice, but the Kettle would be my desert island choice.
I'll take the Weber 26" all day long over those others. It's the one I use the most. As far as a side table for it you can buy one from Heat Beacon for around 50$. The only downfall to the 26r is it's week legs. Also you can buy a heat deflector for it as well to be able to use the whole cooking surface for smoking. The only reason I keep my Weber 22in is for the rotisserie.
I think that the Kettle Joe should of got more points for the cooking height cooking height, considering that you're main going to be using it with the slo-roller which would increase the cooking height.
Hands down the SNS MasterKettle is the most versatile grill of the bunch with the best user experience. 🙌🔥
One thing that can be said for the Weber 22" kettle is that they are abundant. If you don't have the budget for a new one, you can easily find used ones for reasonable prices. The grates on the Huntsman look amazing, but I've been fine with the SnS stainless steel grate on my Weber.
As an owner of the Huntsman, I can tell you that the SnS does work with it. I own that accessory.
I absolutely love the Huntsman.
I sometimes use it in Venom mode to preheat for grilling temps then switch to manual vents during the cook while still using the Venom to monitor grill and food temps via the display or app. Other times I let the Venom do it all.
Such a versatile grill.
Point of correction on the 2mm measurement you reported. That's just the gasket mounting surface that is attached to the bottom of the lid. The actual lid thickness is 5 mm.
That Weber cheap tin ash catcher is terrible. I think a fox tried to get into the grill it knocked the ash catcher loose it’s bent and will not sit right under the grill and keeps falling off, the replacement from Weber $66 for a cheap piece of tin.
How well build is the ash catcher on the Napoleon.
I'd be interested in hearing your thoughts on either a ReqTeq Bullseye or Pit Boss Phoenix "kettle" pellet grills/smokers, the latter of which can also be used with charcoal.
I have so many disagreements here, the main one being the lack of a scoring system for price. It is absolutely no surprise that the 2 most expensive grills offered the most functionality and quality of cooking experience. By ignoring price as a factor, this list immediate becomes a list for those where money is no issue and, as you mentioned at the very front end of the video, in this rough economic time is a very privileged position to take. I also question some of the testing, for instance I wonder if you were aware of the SnS Master Kettle's air venting system and if you left said vents open making the cooldown time take over 8 hours, a feature that most BBQ cooks would view as a positive for low and slow cooking but was considered a negative here for charcoal retention. Also, only offering a point or two for grills that have accessories is a massive shortcoming as things like the massive Napoleon suite of accessories and the SnS dominating the two zone space in any kettle (22" and 26") bring the value of almost every kettle on this list up in some way. Those same exact points were then deducted and held to the same value as a lift and set lid or the only option for cast iron grates. I appreciate the work you put into this, but I believe your rubric is flawed and allowing for far more personal bias than is fair.
Tariffs 😂😂