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If you love hosting BBQ parties as much as we do, then you probably know that the right equipment makes a huge difference. Apart from the meat itself, you need a high-quality wood pellet, thermometer, and of course, a finger-licking recipe.
Most importantly, you need a top-notch pellet grill to get you started. However, if you do not own a smoker and you are on a tight budget as well, it can be challenging to find one with amazing features. This is where we come in.
In this article, we have reviewed five of the best pellet grills under $500 for your benefit. If you can stretch your budget a tiny bit further you should also check out the Camp Chef SmokePro Slide Smoker.
Top 5 Pellet Smokers Under $500 Reviews
Since there are various models of smokers available in the market, it can be challenging to choose a budget-friendly one for your BBQ party. Keep reading our top five pellet smokers under 500 dollars reviews in the following section to find the best one for your needs.
#1. Camp Chef SmokePro DLX Pellet Grill
Based in Utah, the US, Camp Chef was founded in 1990 to produce robust and high-quality outdoor cooking appliances. The brand makes sure to test all its products thoroughly to offer only the best grills and smokers to the customers.
With a stainless steel body, their DLX Pellet Grill offers rust-resistance and a long lifetime. The 140-pound grill is supported by two caster wheels for portability, allowing you to move it from your storage to the backyard quickly.
Along with this, you get a large cooking capacity of 570 square inches in this grill. Its 3778 cubic inches chamber includes the main cooking space of 429 square inches and an upper warming rack, measuring 141 square inches.
Moreover, the grill provides a dual LED temperature control, a sturdy stainless steel temperature probe, and an integrated sensor gauge to measure the internal temperature. An automatic auger, meanwhile, maintains the set temperature by feeding wood pellets periodically.
Overall, the grill’s temperature control features offer a wide range from 160 to 500° F. Simply, set the desired temperature and let the smoker do its job.
Apart from all of the above, the grill contains an 18-pound hopper, which minimizes the need for refills and gives you prolonged smoking. Furthermore, the smart ash cleanout system cleans out all the ash and debris from the pellets by just pulling a lever.
Besides all this, the grill contains a side-shelf for prepping food and an electronic ignition system for faster start-ups.
Pros
- 18-pound hopper capacity
- Easy ash clean-up
- Electrical ignition for faster start-up
- Built-in sensor gauge
- Automatic auger for wood pellets
- Temperature probe
- LED temperature read-out
Cons
- Less cooking space for the money
- Temperature varies
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#2. Z GRILLS ZPG-7002E 2021 Upgrade
Officially founded in 2017, Z Grills has over 30 years of experience in producing some of the most affordable yet high-quality pellet grills in the market. Their 7002E 2021 Upgrade is one of their top-selling products.
The sturdy grill has a stainless steel body for durability and rust-resistances and includes porcelain-enameled cast-iron cooking grates. Their durable construction ensures that the grates do not chip and retains heat evenly. Along with this, the grill contains two heavy-duty wheels for portability too.
The ZPG-7002E Pellet Grill provides you with 8-in-1 versatility. It allows you to grill, roast, braise, BBQ, smoke, bake, char-grill, and also sear on the same appliance. Besides this, it contains a primary cooking space of 504 square inches along with a warming rack to give you a total of 700 square inches of cooking space.
A massive 20-pound hopper feeds pellets to the fire via an automatic auger to maintain the set temperature. Meanwhile, a convection fan disperses the heat evenly inside the air-tight chamber for versatile cooking and precise temperature control.
The pellet grill contains many easy-to-use features, including an electrical ignition system for faster start-up, a side and bottom shelf for holding utensils, and a handy waste oil collector for easy clean-ups.
Moreover, the digital control on the grill can help you set the temperature between 180 to 450°F, keeping the variations within 10 degrees. You also get a smart LED screen to read-off the internal temperature.
Pros
- Durable construction
- Large cooking space
- 8-in-1 versatility cooking
- Automatic pellet feeder
- Precise temperature control
Cons
- Quality control issues
- No proper ash disposal system
- Does not contain meat probes
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#3. Green Mountain Grills Davy Crockett Wi-Fi Pellet Grill
Green Mountain Grills is an American-based company that specializes in the production of wood pellet grills and its accessories at a budget-friendly price. Their Davy Crockett Grill is one of the most innovative grills in the market.
The grill has a portable design with dimensions of 32 x 16 x 21 inches and a weight of just 68 pounds. It includes foldable legs which can be turned into carrying handles, allowing you to fit the compact grill in your car and take it for your picnic.
Besides this, the grill comes with 12V adapters to connect it with a car battery or small generator for powering up the grill. With the Sense-Mate technology, you can read off the internal temperature of the grill quite accurately too.
Along with this, the brand has added a massive 17-pound hopper to feed pellets to the fire automatically. You can set the temperature with five-degree increments between 150 to 550°F.
The most unique feature of this grill, however, lies in its Wi-Fi temperature control from its mobile phone app. Here, you can control the temperature, smoke settings, and even add exact cooking timers to keep a keen eye on your dishes.
In addition to all this, this Davy Crockett Grill offers a sufficient cooking space of 12 x 16 inches, a side rack for your utensils, and an auto-ignition to minimize the use of chimneys or lighter fluids.
What We Like
- Lightweight design
- Foldable and compact
- Adapters offer powering options
- Large hopper capacity
- Wi-Fi digital temperature control
- Option to add timer through the app
- Precise temperature control
What We Don’t Like
- Poor grease drainage
- Small cooking capacity
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#4. PIT BOSS 700FB Pellet Grill
Based in Phoenix, Arizona, Pit Boss is a subsidiary of Dansons, Inc. and was founded in 1999 to produce a durable grill using excellent craftsmanship.
Their 700FB Pellet Grill has a high-grade steel gauge body with porcelain-coated cast-iron grilling grates. Its construction offers rust-resistance, durability, and sturdiness to ensure that the grill lasts a long time. Along with this, heavy-duty steel wheels offer maximum portability to the 118-pound pellet grill.
The grill provides you with 8-in-1 versatility in cooking, allowing you to sear, broil, grill, smoke, bake, BBQ, roast, or char-grill. Using this smart set-it and forget-it grill, you can set the preferred cooking style with ease, or just sear your meat over a high flame.
Moreover, you can set the temperature between 180 to 500°F using the innovative digital control board. Additionally, an LED display shows the internal temperature to help you keep an eye on your food.
When it comes to the cooking capacity, the Pit Boss 700FB offers 700 square inches of cooking space, which comes with a primary cooking area and a warming rack also. While the automatic auger feeds wood pellets to the fire, the cleanout door makes it easy to clean up the hopper anytime.
Pros
- Large cooking space
- Pellet cleanout door
- Versatile cooking
- Large temperature range
- LED display
- Broil feature for searing
- Digital control
Cons
- Difficult to adjust broiler
- Minimal warranty
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#5. Traeger Tailgater 20 Grill
The brand was founded in Joe Traeger in 1985 in Oregon, the US, to produce the first wood pellet grills in the world. Now, it is one of the leading manufacturers of high-quality outdoor grills.
This grill has a durable, sturdy, and rust-resistant design, allowing you to use it for a long time. It contains non-stick porcelain-coated grilling grates that can be cleaned easily after each BBQ.
Along with this, the tailgater 20 grill offers multiple portable features in its construction also. Its robust stainless steel legs can be folded completely, helping you to pack the grill and take it with you for tailgating. Besides this, the compact 76-pound grill has two sturdy caster wheels for portability.
The grill provides 6-in-1 versatility by allowing you to smoke, grill, bake, roast, BBQ, and braise on one grate to get the perfect, renowned wood-fire taste. With almost 300 square inches of cooking space, you can accommodate 12 burgers, 18 hot dogs, two whole chickens, or three racks of ribs on the grates with ease.
When it comes to temperature control, the wood pellet grill can even give competition to high-end grills. The grill contains a Digital Elite Controller, which keeps the temperature variation within a 20 degrees limit. Moreover, you can easily set the temperature on low and slow smoke setting or turn it up high to 450°.
Additionally, you get an LED display to read the heat and electronic ignition for automatic, faster start-ups.
Pros
- Foldable legs
- Compact and portable design
- Digital Elite Controller
- LED display
- 6-in-1 versatile cooking
Cons
- No meat probes
- Small hopper capacity
See also:
- The best pellet smokers under $1000
- The best pellet grills for 2021
- The best charcoal grills for 2021
- The best gas grills for 2021
Conclusion
A high-quality pellet grill can change your whole BBQ game by adding the sought-after wood-fire taste to all your dishes. If you are on a tight budget, opt for one of the best pellet smokers under $500 on our list to make your life easier.
Among our top five reviews, the Green Mountains Grills Davy Crockett Grill offers some of the most innovative and smart features in a grill. However, it is one of the most portable options in our grill and provides a smaller cooking capacity. If you want a larger grill, opt for the Pit Boss 700FB Pellet Grill to meet your needs.
