By Dylan Clay
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The main thing that separates smokers is their price.
As a beginner, you want a smoker that’s easy to use, will last (quality materials combined with regular maintenance), and is relatively inexpensive.
An issue I have with a number of other resources is they will seemingly recommend inferior products with the sole intention to monetize your visit to their website.
Unlike other websites, I actually own a number of these smokers including all other equipment I review.
Weber Kettle / SNS Grills / Drum Smokers / Water Smokers
In my opinion, the Weber Kettle is the first Grill/Smoker that every person who is remotely interested in Barbecue should purchase.
The first Weber Kettle I used was given to me by my Father and lasted me 12 years before I replaced it.
The first model I used was so old that it didn’t have what I’d deem “newer” features like the heat deflector on the handle, the thermometer on the lid, or the tuck-away lid holder.
Note: I just bought myself a new Weber Kettle in November 2021!
While those features would certainly be great to have, it just goes to show how long the Weber kettle can and will last.
Not to mention, Weber is essentially synonymous with grilling.
I can hear your thoughts now – Grilling implies high-heat (350F+), which is the opposite of low and slow smoking temperatures (225-275F) – How can a charcoal grill be a smoker?
Through the strategic placement of charcoal, the Weber kettle can be transformed into a smoker.
I have dedicated articles that go over the primary methods that people make use of.
Namely:
The short of it is – You’re essentially taking unlit charcoal, in the form of either lump or briquettes, and placing them inside the kettle. You’re then taking a few hot coals and placing them on or around the other coals.
You’re then taking wood chunks and placing them on top of these coals.
The lit coals will light the unlit charcoal over-time as well as the wood chunks. The result is a fire that will last several hours (5+) while maintaining 225-275F.
You could even introduce a water pan above the coals to help with temperature stabilization; It also adds humidity to the smoker.
Absolutely.
However, Weber is one of the most affordable brands out there; There’s a reason they’ve been around forever.
With that said, other Manufacturers do exist.
A good example is Slow N’ Sear (SNS). SNS is famous for their add-on they created for kettle grills (like the Weber kettle) in order to make smoking easier (or searing easier) – essentially it makes a quintessential two-zone fire.
The SNS drops into the kettle and features a “trough” where you place your unlit charcoal.
Then on one end you place your lit coals. They also have a designated area to act as a water pan (reservoir) and a perforated bottom (recent advancement on the deluxe version) to allow ash to fall away from the charcoal.
Apart from this add-on, SNS started to manufacturer kettle grills in 2020.
Their kettle grill is roughly $100 more (without the SNS add-on) than a Weber kettle. However, they certainly thought about what other kettle grills – like the Weber – lack.
For example:
Kettle grills are great in that they can be transformed into a smoker, however if you’re after a beginner-friendly charcoal option that’s a sort of step-up from a kettle, Drum smokers are a good option.
Of the brands that exist, the most popular are:
PBC is more so beginner friendly and certainly more affordable.
I have an entire article where I reviewed the PBC – You can read my review here.
PBC is owned by Noah and Amber Glanville; Essentially their goal with the PBC was to make smoking food more approachable – I’d wager to say they accomplished their goal.
The Gateway Drum Smoker is almost double the cost of the PBC.
However, it is similarly raved about by those who own it. Gateway regularly updates their Facebook where you can even see Gateway pits being used to win Barbecue Competitions.
Apart from Drum smokers, there are also water smokers like the Weber Smokey Mountain (WSM) also called “Bullet Smokers.” These smokers are so popular they even have entire forums dedicated to them.
Famous barbecue competitors even use the WSM because the results are consistent and repeatable.
Harry Soo from Slap Your Daddy BBQ is someone who regularly mentions the WSM as he uses it for competition brisket. A lot of barbecue teams even make use of several WSMs when competing.
To quote Harry Soo:
Grilla Grills, Camp Chef, Weber, Traeger, etc.
Pellet grills are a relatively new in terms of their offerings.
Traeger’s original patent on the pellet grill expired in 2006, meaning innovation has really only started taking place.
Pellet smokers work similarly to a kitchen oven – they’re thermostatically controlled. Meaning, you plug it into an outlet, set/dial a temperature on the grill, and the smoker cooks the food – about as beginner friendly as it gets.
Most pellet grills/smokers are engineered in the same way.
They feature:
The whole system looks like this (in most cases):
Heat is generated by “food-grade” pellets made of hardwood that smoke without the hassle of achieving perfect thin blue smoke.
The first pellet grill I bought was a Camp Chef – the model is so old they no longer make it.
With that said, several brands now exist:
My current Pellet grill/smoker is the Grilla Grills Silverbac – You can read my full review here.
Most if not all Pellet smokers will make use of what are referred to as “modes” of cooking through a “controller.”
Typically they’re simply PID or non-PID – with is a way of calibration temperature and determining when to feed the firepot with pellets.
Aside from that, most if not all pellet smokers will have a combination of the same features. However, a number of companies will simply slap on a gimmicky term in order to entice your purchase.
Be sure to look for quality materials being used (like stainless and heavy gauge steel) and PID/non-PID controllers – these features should always be your primary consideration.
If you’re someone who is looking to get into smoking meat and your only experiences with grilling are gas grills, you’ll be pleasantly surprised at how easy a pellet grill is to use – and clean.
Masterbuilt, Charbroil, Bradley, Cuisinart, Smokin Tex’, Smokin-it
The first smoker I ever purchased with my own money was an electric smoker – back when I was roughly 13 years old.
Since then I’ve only had to replace my Masterbuilt Electric Smoker (commonly called MES) once and my current one shows no signs of failing (replaced in 2018).
My primary intention back then was to make beef jerky as well as a few other meats – like ribs – and I knew that an electric smoker was about as beginner friendly as possible.
Electric smokers, are in my opinion, the closest resemblance to a regular kitchen oven.
They’re thermostatically controlled – you set a temperature and it will maintain that temperature precisely.
The smoking component is fairly straightforward too – you put wood chips into a “loader” that drops into a tray. The electric heating element then causes these wood chips to smolder resulting in smoke (pictured below).
A big advantage of electric smokers is their ability to maintain super low temperatures which a lot of other types of smokers struggle with.
For instance, cold smoking cheese requires you to smoke at roughly 90F or below for 30 minutes – 2 hours.
Without the use of an add-on like the A-MAZE-N (AMNPS) you won’t be able to achieve low, consistent temperatures like that – ever.
To this day, I still use my Masterbuilt electric smoker for jerky, cheese, or even ribs/pork butt. Just because it’s set it and forget it essentially.
Electric smokers will teach you the importance of both how much smoke is too much and how exhaust vents play a big roll in airflow.
My first time using an electric smoker I made beef jerky and pushed way too much smoke at the meat and nearly had my exhaust vents entirely closed – the result was acrid creosote flavored meat.
I also grew up in a house where you eat what you make so I choked it down and learned my lesson.
Electric smokers are also super cost effective.
Most range from $150 – $250 and will last a long time. More often than not the part that fails first is the heating element (also fairly inexpensive to replace if need be).
If you’re someone who is super into jerky or smoked cheese an electric smoker is essentially unmatched.
Of these options the most beginner friendly are likely the Pellet grill and the electric smoker.
This is mainly because you don’t have to play around with charcoal nor do you have to adjust vents.
Essentially, you dial a temperature and the smoker will maintain that temperature.
In terms of price though, Pellet Grills can be fairly expensive. Prices range from $500 – $2000+. Where-as most electric smokers are somewhere between $150 – 250.
If you are interested in using Charcoal though, the Weber kettle is by far the best option. It’s more affordable than both of these options and you can also grill on it. On an electric smoker, that’s not an option – However, it is on a pellet grill.
This question is super hard to answer only because there are a number of limiting factors.
However, in my opinion, the Weber Kettle is a great entry-level smoker that will output wonderful food. It also has the least amount of limiting factors and is the most cost effective.
While pellet grills and electric smokers are wonderful, they also sort of imply that you are in proximity to an outlet. If you don’t have an outlet near you, you won’t be able to use the smoker.
Aside from Kettles, the Pit Barrel Cooker, the Gateway Drum, and the Weber Smokey Mountain are also great smokers that can output awesome food; However, all of these options also cost significantly more than a Weber kettle grill.
I’ve attempted to be as thorough as possible in terms of the latest offerings in the barbecue world. However, not much has really changed in the past decade or more.
Even asking my father for his input on this article, he’d make the same sort of recommendations to a beginner – the Weber Kettle or the WSM – couple this with a beginner-friendly meat and you’re off to wonderfully smoked food.
Great explanation on smoking/bbq methods and units available.
Thanks for the comment Bill and I’m happy to help!
This was an excellent source of information. Thank you! I have been researching to get my husband a smoker for Father’s Day. I learned everything I need to know.
I appreciate your kind words Michelle!
-Dylan