If you love having barbeque parties with your family and friends, grilling and smoking your food with wood pellets will help you prepare a yummy barbeque feast and lots of other benefits like flexibility, taste, and ease of use. The best pellet grills under 500 will allow for great heat distribution, effortless ignition, and fewer flare-ups.
Comparison table
| Product | Grilling space | Check on Amazon |
|---|---|---|
| Z grills ZPG-7002E 2020 wood pellet grill | 700 sq. feet | Check price |
| Traeger grills tailgater 20 grill | 300 sq. feet | Check price |
| Cuisinart CPG-4000 wood BBQ pellet grill & smoker | 450 sq. feet | Check price |
Best pellet grills under 500. Review
Z grills ZPG-7002E 2020 wood pellet grill
- LARGE CAPACITY DESIGN - 697 sq.in cooking space and ultra-large 20 lbs hopper allow you to place all at once and cook efficiently. Perfect for various gatherings, feasts and BBQ entertainment.
- CONVENIENT SMOKING - Features an easy-to-use digital panel control for accessible monitoring of the internal temperature. Our pellet grill will do all the work for you once you set the temperature. Super easy cooking even for beginners.
- 8-IN-1 VERSATILITY - Bake, grill, smoke, BBQ, roast, braise, barbeque, and char-grill. Empower you to experiment with various cooking techniques and easily create a diverse range of dishes.
An affordable yet high-tech pellet grill that features a stainless steel frame for durability and rust resistance, porcelain-enameled cast-iron grates, a 700 sq. feet cooking area with a warming rack, auto-start ignition, LED temp display, digital auto-temp control, side and bottom shelves, and a waste oil collector for easy clean-ups.
Pros
- Easy to use features
- Huge grilling area
- Huge hopper capacity
Cons
- Can only use pellets from the same company
Traeger grills tailgater 20 grill
- NEVER USE GAS OR CHARCOAL AGAIN: Traeger created the original wood-pellet grill as the ultimate way to achieve wood-fired taste. The Tailgater is our most capable of our portable wood pellet grills
- PRECISION TEMPERATURE CONTROL: The Digital Arc Controller maintains a plus/minus 15 degree F temperature control to guarantee precision grilling, and a temperature range of 180-450 Fahrenheit
- Take your grill and your wood-fired BBQ wherever you go. Whether it’s your truck tailgate, the parking lot, out at the campsite or anywhere your travels take you, you’ll never have to leave your smoke behind
A lightweight pellet smoker grill that’s easy to move or store. It features a digital thermostat you can easily adjust the cooking temps, a 300 sq. feet grilling area, and an 8-pound hopper capacity. This grill takes time to get the temps up during cold weather, but in summer it can get to 450 degrees F. very easily.
Pros
- Precise temp control
- Lightweight and portable
- Has foldable legs
Cons
- Can cause slow temps during the cold months
Cuisinart CPG-4000 wood BBQ pellet grill & smoker
- Free weather resistant grill cover included in purchase. This cover is the perfect combination of durability and convenience.
- Product Dimensions: 39.4" L x 18.1" W x 22.8" H | Weight: 103.6 lb
- Enjoy the wood pellet BBQ grill & smoker's large 450 Square inch cooking area and 15 pounds of hopper capacity
A grill and smoker with a unique portable design with all-terrain wheels and a stable handle. It features a 2-tiered cooking grate, a folding shelf for your spices and cooking tools, a grease bucket holder, 450 sq. feet grilling area, 15-pound hopper, precision temp control, and an LED display of the temps.
Pros
- Easy to use design
- Huge grilling area
- Versatile cooking
Cons
- Ash tends to clog
What is a pellet grill?
A grill that uses wood pellets, a feeding system that pushes the pellets into the firebox under the grates, and a system of fans that heat your food to a specific temp, just like an outdoor conventional oven. You can use the pellet grill to cook any type of food you would make in a standard oven.
Benefits of using pellet grills
- They’re versatile grills you can use to make everything from burgers and sautéed veggies to baked food and even breakfast.
- They infuse your food with a rich smokey flavor, so if you’re using hickory or mesquite wood pellets, your meat will have the flavorful taste from the pellets.
- You get perfect temp control just like you would on an oven when you set the temp on your digital controller and let it cook.
Conclusion
Choosing a pellet grill on a budget can be tricky, but if you know what you’re looking for it becomes easier to make a choice. The Z grills ZPG-7002E 2020 wood pellet grill is an affordable grill with great features that will make grilling a fun experience.
FAQ
Are pellet grills bad for your health?
When used properly and on their own, they don’t pose more risk than any other grill. Moderate use is recommended.
Do pellet grills take longer to cook?
They take longer to grill than propane, but it will also depend on other several factors like the mass of the food.