There are not many pleasures in life greater than having grilled food on a camping trip after a long tiring day. It’s a joy that can transform an ordinary camping trip into a memorable one but it’s important to get the best camping grill, as a lot of products vary in quality.
When it comes to getting the best camp grills, there are a lot of aspects to consider from temperature control and cooking surface area, to how the grill would ignite and what type of fuel it uses.
That’s why we have looked at the camping grill reviews to give you a list of the best camping grills out there and prepared a comprehensive buying guide. Once you’ve read through it, you’ll know exactly what you need.
OUR TOP PICK
Blackstone Table Top 22 Inch Propane Camping Grill
With 330sq inches of cooking surface, Blackstone Table Top 22 Inch Propane Camping Grill stands out among its competitors with a design that allows it to turn into a portable grill.
Performance
The top surface area provides a great space to cook when it is in use and once you’ve done, you can turn it over and secure it to create a portable box. It has an easy to use electric ignitor, so you’ll be able to get it fired up in no time at all. With this one, you also have a grease management system as well as a heat a defiant handle grip.
Extra Features
The simple cooking surface makes this propane grill easy to clean and you can easily hook it up to a one-pound propane tank that will give you 12,000 BTU’s. There are also changeable heat zones according to the food you can use in our number one choice for the best portable grills for camping.
What Makes This Camp Grill Stand Out
· Ideal size with 330sq inches of cooking surface
· Changeable heat zones
· Heat defiant handle grip
· Portable according to the need
· Barbecue without the mess
· Grease management system
MODEL SPECS
Product Dimensions: 22.5*19*9 inches
Product Weight: 32 pounds
EDITORS CHOICE
Cuisinart CGG-180T Petit Gourmet Portable Tabletop Gas Boat Grill
With a 5,550 BTU stainless-steel burner and the capacity to cook 8 steaks or 6 to 10 chicken breasts, Cuisinart CGG-180T Petit Gourmet Portable Tabletop Gas Boat Grill is one of the top rated portable grills for camping, too.
Performance
Cuisinart has a 145 square inch cooking area with foldaway legs making it very easy to use and store. Despite its smaller size, it’s still able to look a lot of food and can fit up to eight burgers. It contains a spill-resistant drip tray and lid latch. It also comprises of an even-heating grate.
Extra Features
This top rated camping cooker comes in three different colors of red, stainless steel and black so you have a few options available and the whole grill looks great. It can be put up instantly and has a porcelain-enameled plate that will cook your food to perfection.
What Makes This Camp Grill Stand Out
· 5,500 BTU powerful stainless steel burner
· Constant heating ceramic enameled grate
· Easy to handle briefcase style and light weighted
· Foldaway aluminum legs and portable gas grill with spill-resistant
· Bulk cooking, no need for second and third rounds
· Instant heat up with less gas usage
MODEL SPECS
Product dimensions: 12.2*18*12 inches
Product weight: 2.2 pounds
BEST VALUE
Coleman Gas Classic Propane Camping Grill
Coleman Gas Camping Grill is not only an affordable alternative for all indoor and outdoor cooking activities but also a great camping gas grill with 20,000 BTUs cooking power.
Performance
What we love the most about Coleman Gas Classic Propane Camping Grill are the wind blocker panels which provide maximum consistent performance even in extreme conditions. You have 20,000 BTUs cooking power as well as adjustable burners that can control two temperature zones.
Extra Features
It doesn't matter at what altitude you are, pressure control technology keeps the heat steady consistently. Coleman is adjustable 10-in and 12-in pan at the same time and provides high productive cooking with less usage of fuel. One of the clear winners in our list, Coleman will add more memories to your camp adventures for sure.
What Makes This Camp Grill Stand Out
· Wind blocker panels and maximum consistent performance even in extreme conditions
· High productive cooking with less usage of fuel
· 20,000 BTUs cooking power
· Adjustable burners that can control two temperature zones
· Ideal for all indoor and outdoor cooking activities
· Adjustable 10-in and 12-in pan at the same time
MODEL SPECS
Product dimensions: 4.1*21.9*13.7; 4 ounces
Product weight: 11.9 pounds
Weber Q 1200 Titanium Camping Grill
Weber Q 1200 Titanium Camping Grill is just another camping electric stove from Weber, a name that has become synonymous with delicious backyard barbecues.
Performance
Whether you're cooking a basic burger or an extensive meal, you'll love the performance of the aluminum body and lid. Weber's gas-grill cook boxes are efficient, durable, require minimal care and maintenance, and can resist the heat needed to grill at any temperature.
Extra Features
Combined with the shroud, the shape of the cookbox allows for the proper circulation of heat. A built-in thermometer is also there to closely monitor the heat according to the type of food you're cooking. There is also an unlimited burner control valve as well as a detachable catch pan.
What Makes This Camp Grill Stand Out
· Fold over side tables
· Built-in thermometer
· Aluminum body and lid
· Iron cast cooking grates and porcelain-enameled
· Unlimited burner control valve
· Detachable catch pan
MODEL SPECS
Product dimensions: 20.5*40.9*24.6 inches
Product weight: 29.2 pounds
Weber 10020 Smokey Joe 14-Inch Portable Camping Grill
Weber 10020 Smokey Joe 14-Inch Portable Camping Grill is another grill that comes in the classic BBQ style with its circular cooking surface which is 14 inches wide.
Performance
It has dampers inside the grill which will allow you to regulate heat and also contains a durable plated steel cooking grate which will not only be able to retain heat but it is also easy to clean too. This is a grill that requires charcoal which many believe gives a better taste than propane.
Extra Features
The grill is light and compact so it can easily be stored in a car or whatever vehicle you are traveling in. The lid of the grill is porcelain-enameled in order to retain heat and a nylon handle which will remain cool to touch. There's also an ash collector aluminum plate.
What Makes This Camp Grill Stand Out
· Steel-plated cooking grate
· Heavy steel gauge with the charcoal grate
· Ash collector aluminum plate
· Bowl and lid porcelain enameled
· Steel cooking grate maintain the temperature
· Easy to clean
MODEL SPECS
Product dimensions: 14.2*14.5 * 17 inches
Product weight: 9.5 pounds
Camp Chef Explorer Double Camping Grill
With two 30,000 BTU cast-aluminum burners that give you the power to cook whatever is on your menu, Camp Chef Explorer Double Camping Grill is a versatile portable barbeque.
Performance
You will be able to cook for a large group of friends on its 448 sq. in. stove cooking area with appliance-style temperature controls. The cast iron griddle or grill heats evenly and holds heat well, you can cook fresh fish or make your favorite hot sandwiches on the professional flat surface.
Extra Features
If the groud is uneven, you can adjust the legs until they sit perfectly on the surface. You can also remove them upon your preference. It is also easy to clean because of its restaurant style high sides. It can be equipped with many different Camp Chef accessories, as well.
What Makes This Camp Grill Stand Out
· Removable legs and 3 sided windscreen
· 3ft controller and hose
· Well-suited with 14 in camp chef accessories
· Temperature control of appliance style
· Two cast aluminum burners of 30,000 BTUs/Hr
· Easy to clean because of high sides
MODEL SPECS
Product dimensions: 14*32
Product weight: 36lbs
Weber 121020 Go-Anywhere Charcoal Camping Grill
If you want to bring a taste of home wherever you go, you will love Weber 121020 Go-Anywhere Charcoal Camping Grill, a lightweight, and compact portable charcoal bbq for camping.
Performance
A great companion for tailgate parties and camping, you can fit four medium steaks on the generous grilling area. You can safely use it in windy weather, too thanks to built-in lid hangers that allow you to rest the lid on the side of the grill creating an effective barrier against the wind.
Extra Features
By locking the lid into place with the pivoting legs, you can carry it around in one hand. The triple-nickel-coated steel grate is also easy to clean, and the porcelain-enameled steel lid and cooking box are built to last. You can also use the Weber burger press while cooking your cheeseburgers.
What Makes This Camp Grill Stand Out
· It can grill 6 burgers at a time
· Lightweight and easy to carry everywhere
· Heat retainable base
· Temperature control technology enables maintain heat inside the grill
· Easy to clean durable steel plated grate
· Compact to fit in your trunk
MODEL SPECS
Product dimensions: 12.20*21.00 * 14.50 inches
Product weight: 14.5 pounds
Coleman RoadTrip 225 Portable Tabletop Propane Camping Grill
If you want to achieve perfectly cooked meats, seafood, or veggies, just push the Instastart ignition button of Coleman RoadTrip 225 Portable Tabletop Propane Camping Grill for matchless lighting and then select your heat.
Performance
What you are offered is 225 sq. in. of cast iron grill grates coated in porcelain with a range of grilling power from 2,500 to 11,000 BTUs. Both outer and inner burners are adjustable for the required temperatures. Looking for more meal options? You can switch the grill grates with a griddle or stove grate thanks to the Swaptop interchangeable cooktops.
Extra Features
You can securely transport it thanks to the lockable lids. The water pan is also easy to clean as it can be removed. Coleman RoadTrip uses a 1 lb. propane cylinder and arrives fully assembled. Before starting a fire outdoors, make sure that you have checked the user manual carefully.
What Makes This Camp Grill Stand Out
· Prepares perfectly cook meals with grilling power of 2500 to 11,000 BTUs
· Griddle to stove grate switching options
· Adjustable burner provides accurate temperature control
· Easily removable water pan to catch grease and clean later
· Lid locks to move easily
· Manual temperature settings of inside and outside burners with an ignition button
MODEL SPECS
Product dimensions: 28.8* 18.3 * 10.6 inches
Product weight: 28lbs. 13oz
Coleman Party Propane Camping Grill
With two independently adjustable burners provided and sanctioning precise control for two different temperature zones, Coleman Camp Propane Boat Grill will be perfect for your camping trip.
Performance
Coleman features panels on the sides which can either act as windbreaks or side tables if conditions are calmer. It supplies a fully adjustable 11,000 BTU of heat and provides a consistent level of performance and efficient cooking. It has 180 square inches of cooking space and a removable great management tray that you can easily clean.
Extra Features
We love the fact that it is durable with a grate coated in porcelain. There is also a removable cooking surface. It’ll last for two hours on a 16.4oz propane tank making it perfect for camping and tailgating. It has non-skid feet that enable easy stirring of pots and pans, as well.
What Makes This Camp Grill Stand Out
· Consistence performance in extreme conditions with PerfectFlow technology
· 8000 BTUs cooking power and 122sq cooking area
· Instastart button ignition for perfect lightning and push button
· Removable cooking plate for simple cleaning
· Ideal for all picnics, tailgating, and other outdoor activities
· Removable legs for easy storage and traveling
MODEL SPECS
Pr0oduct dimensions: 13.2* 13.4 * 7 inches
Product weight: 5.8 pounds
Lodge L410 Camping Grill
The rugged, charcoal hibachi-style Lodge L410 Camping Grill is perfect for picnics, tailgating, and car camping or patio with its heat retention technology with less consumption of charcoal.
Performance
There is a draft door that regulates the heat. The coals are accessible behind a flip-down door when you need a self-contained cooking source. The broad grill surface accommodates several whole fish or enough steaks and burgers for a small crowd. It has two adjustable heights designed the comfort of the user in mind.
Extra Features
If you want a perfect sear, you will get it thanks to the all cast iron construction. American craftsmanship is there to make sure that it lasts many years to come. Did we also mention the multipurpose size, which is a great fit for your backyard or backwoods?
What Makes This Camp Grill Stand Out
· Heat retention technology with less consumption of charcoal
· The descending mechanism increases airflow
· Safe door to add coals without mess
· Multipurpose size is a great fit for the backyard or backwoods.
· Iron construction is an ideal tool for great scorch
· Dual adjustable-height grills
MODEL SPECS
Product dimensions: 19*8.25 * 10.25 inches
Product weight: 27 pounds
How To Choose A Camping Grill – Buying Guide
Considering the fact that your kid will be using your camping stoves quite often you need a quality one that you can count on and made to last. The best camping grill has important criteria taken into consideration during manufacture and you should look for exactly the same.
Temperature Control
In order to cook properly on travel grills, you need to have a level of temperature control otherwise things might cook far too slowly, burn or they could cook unevenly. With gas grills, this should be fairly easy as you should have knobs that control the amount of gas that is powering the grill.
With charcoal grills this can be a lot more difficult as you don’t have a knob that can turn it down but you can contain the amount and placement of the charcoal as well as the amount of oxygen that it is receiving through dampers and vents. Whatever type you buy, you need to ensure that there are ways to control the temperature.
Surface Cooking Area
The surface cooking area is going to be one of the key reasons as to why you will purchase the product or not. You need to work out how many people you are going to be cooking for and then get a cooking area that is going to be able to match that.
For a family, a cooking area of around 180-200 square inches should be able to cook enough food. If you are going to be on your own or with a partner then you can look into something smaller but if you’re cooking for a group of people then an area of 250 square inches or over would be ideal.
Burners
There are two key things to look out for with burners. The first is simply how many there are which will generally be either one or two. Two burners give the opportunity to cook to separate items at different heats if you have independent burners on your gas grill.
Some grills though will just have the one cooking area, especially on charcoal grills where you can manipulate the temperature by moving the charcoal around and making cooler spots, the number of burners on a gas grill dictates how big it will be which is something else to keep in mind.
If you have a gas grill then you also want to check the amount of BTU’s that they have which is a direct correlation to how hot your grill can get. The more BTU’s, the higher the temperature will be and you would want a figure of at least 8,000 on each burner it has.
Grates
Most camping grills will come with a grate over them which you will place your food for it to be cooked. Most of these grills are made out of stainless steel as it will be able to resist the heat of the grill, act as a good conductor and is easy to clean.
An option which is often better for having tastier food though is to have a cast-iron grill as this will help to improve the flavor over time and is a material used in many types of permanent cooking. The biggest problem with cast iron grills is that they tend to be quite heavy and therefore less portable.
Ignition
On gas grills the ignition method should be as easy as possible and you often don’t have to use a match or a lighter in order to get the grill going. The easiest models come with a simple ignition system that will be able to create a spark for your gas.
There are some gas grills that will require a match or a lighter as these are more basic and compact models. This should always be done with care and on the lowest heat possible, until it is lit. On charcoal grills there is obviously no button to press and this can take a lot longer to get going. You’ll need to carry matches or a light to be able to get it going and get those flames rising up from the charcoal.
Construction
Some of these camping grills are made to be more durable than others and the importance of that often depends on the trip you’re taking. If it is going to be taken from a car to a large permanent camp then it’s not an issue but if it’s going to be a bit more rugged then you’ll want it to be protected.
You also want to make sure that the grill remains stable too so you need to pay attention to how it is going to sit on a stand or on a tabletop. All of the grills we have reviewed here are made out of the highest quality materials but some are tougher than others in their construction.
Transportation
The importance of the ease of transportation varies massively on the type of trip you are taking. The Lodge Cast Iron grill for example is heavy and not very portable while there are others that will be able to fold up into a lightweight case.
You therefore just have to bear in mind how much space you have when you are packing up for your trip and how far away your camp is going to be. There are options like the Coleman RoadTrip which can be wheeled along the ground and therefore taken quite a fair distance even though it’s a relatively large grill.
Fuel Tanks
If you have propane grill then obviously you have to bring along the tanks to fuel them. It’s worth noting that a one-pound propane tank will be able to cook on a high heat for around an hour and a half so it’s important to bring enough tanks to last for your trip.
If you’re going to be on a longer trip in a more permanent camp then it might be best to bring along something like a 20-pound propane tank and convert it to your grill so that you don’t have to keep changing the bottle if you are cooking often. Taking propane tanks can drastically change the amount of gear you can carry which is an important consideration if you’ll be doing a lot of walking.
Shelves
One very useful feature that you can on a grill are shelves which come in more useful than you think. Having two shelves on either side can make the process easy from having uncooked food on one side before placing the cooked food on the other side.
They can also be used to place any plates or any tools that you may need while you are cooking. This is less important if you have a tabletop grill as you should be able to use the table as a shelf. A lot of these products let the shelves fold in on each other after use to make sure the grill remains compact.
Assembly
If you’re out there camping then you don’t want to spend the whole of your day trying to put up a grill as it would be a waste of time that you could be spending relaxing and enjoying yourself. These grills need to be very easy to use and to put up so you can focus on doing what the grill was designed to do and start cooking that food.
Thankfully all the products that we have reviewed in this guide are very easy to use. They can either simply fold out or lock into place easily so you can get cooking in no time. With propane tanks, they will have an easy to connect to a one-pound bottle so this process would be quick too.
Fuel Type
In terms of gas grills, there are some which can be connected through other types of gas but the vast majority of them will be hooked up to propane. This is easy and safe but common sense has to be applied in terms of transportation of the bottles and ensuring that you have enough.
With charcoal, this can take up a lot of space in your storage but is lighter than propane. While it may take a bit longer to fire up, there are distinct advantages such as the fact that you don’t have to worry about taking tanks with you and it’s also better for the environment too.
Size
Size is going to be a crucial factor in your buying decision as firstly you need to make sure that there is enough space with all your other items for you to take it in your car. You also need to consider how long you will be traveling to your campsite. If you’re carrying something big and heavy then this could end up being a huge burden. The temptation is always to go for a bigger model but sometimes it’s important to resist that temptation for something more practical.
Cleaning
Whether you are using a grill at home or in a camp, they can always be very difficult to clean so you want to make sure that it is well-designed so you don’t spend all of the time on your break trying to clean it. Having flat metal surface will help with this and there are other grills which support pans.
You also want to look for removable parts so that you are able to clean it separately, which can be very useful. Another key aspect of many grills is to have a drip tray, which will be able to funnel fat or lost food out into an easy to clean or disposable tray.
Safety
Camping can be a dangerous place which is full of little hazards and grills can be dangerous too when not treated with respect. Making sure everything is installed correctly and lighting the product in the safest way are always vital aspects of staying safe with your grill.
Perhaps the most important safety aspect though is making sure that your grill is on level ground. While they may be marketed as tabletop grills, a lot of people try and perch then on other items but it’s imperative that you have a stable base when you start cooking, otherwise the results could be disastrous.
FAQs
Q: What Is The Difference Between A Grill And Stove For Camping?
A: A camping stove is generally where the cooking surface is directed toward a specific point where you will be able to place pots and pans in order to cook your food. A grill on the other hand will have a much larger surface area of cooking where you can use the whole platform to cook.
Q: How To Properly Grill Outdoors?
A: Before you grill you should always follow the proper process in order to ensure that your grill is working properly and you are cooking safely. This involves inspecting and preparing your grill before igniting it safely and making sure it has a consistent burn and then controlling the temperature to ensure nothing burns.
Q: What Accessories Should I Bring For My Grill?
A: You can always make your grill experience easier and that includes making sure that you have the right items with you. That definitely includes a utensil set which is vital for easy use and also making sure you have everything you need to eat off too. Other useful items include a grill table if you don’t have one, heat-resistant gloves, and a washbasin.
Globo Surf Overview
There is something about cooking in the open air that appeals and doing that with a high-quality and easy to use grill will only add to that experience. As we have seen here though, there is a lot to consider before you are able to get the best grill for you and your situation.
The biggest initial decision is deciding whether or not to get a propane grill or a tabletop charcoal grill. It comes down to personal preference but charcoal grills generally have to be bigger in size in order to store that charcoal at the bottom. A lot would say though that charcoal provides a better taste through its smoke and they also don’t want to hassle of having to buy propane tanks and having to fill them up.
After that decision when you need to focus on the size of the grill, how portable it is, and how that relates to your situation. You also want to make sure that it will have enough power for your needs and then you can look into the smaller details such as how easy it is to assemble, how easy it is to clean, and also how safe it is going to be.
Once you have worked all that out then you’ll know exactly how to work out the top-rated grills for camping. Hopefully, this guide has given you all the information that you need in order to know exactly what you want and how to get it. Once you have the perfect grill for you, you’ll be able to taste food like never before on a camping trip and make the whole experience and even more memorable one.