Pellet Grill vs Gas Grill: What’s the Difference?

If you are looking to invest in a new grill, then you have some choices to make. Today, we are here to compare two specific types of barbecues. We want to compare wood pellet grills and gas grills, specifically propane grills.

Wood pellet grills involve using wood pellets and making a fire with them to generate heat inside of the grill. Gas grills, obviously use gas to create fire.

What many people don’t realize is that there are many differences between wood pellet grills and gas grills. Some of these differences might seem very obvious, whereas others are not. Let’s figure out exactly what you are getting into when you buy a wood pellet grill vs gas grill.

Main Differences Between Pellet Grills & Gas Grills

There are ten main differences between pellet grills and gas grills that we want to take a look at right now.

1. The Fuel Source

The primary difference here of course is that pellet grills used wood pellets for fuel, whereas gas grills use gas, usually propane.

On one hand, with wood pellet grills, you always have to have wood pellets on hand. Having a stockpile of wood pellets ready can consume a lot of space.

They aren’t exactly lightweight to carry around either. With that being said, it is a natural fuel source. If you run out of wood pellets, you can always use other small chunks of wood that you find.

With a gas grill, you need to have a propane cylinder on hand. Propane tanks usually last for a very long time. With a full propane tank, you should be able to barbecue for at least a few weeks every single day before it needs to be refilled.

However, propane tanks themselves can be pretty heavy as well. On a side note, you can always have a spare propane tank on hand. Propane does tend to be the cheaper of the two.

2. The Flavor

One of the most notable differences here is going to be the flavor. Food grilled over gas grills, propane, taste just fine. However, some people do say that the propane leaves a bit of an after taste. For this reason, many people do prefer using wood pellet grills.

Generally speaking, there is just no better flavor than a piece of meat cooked over a real fire with real wood. There’s just something about using real wood that produces this amazing smoky and charcoal-like flavor that people seem to love. You just won’t get this kind of flavor out of a gas grill.

3. Portability

Portability is another thing to consider here. Gas grills tend to be more portable than pellet grills. Gas grills don’t need to have a hopper for those wood pellets, and propane tanks can be very small too. You can generally find much smaller propane gas grills than you can wood pellet grills.

Wood pellet grills tend to be much larger and heavier, plus you also need to have a stockpile of wood pellets with you. If you are going for something portable that you can take with you on the go, then a gas grill is definitely the better of the two.

4. Ease of Use

Another bonus that you are going to get by using a gas grill is ease of use. With a gas grill, you just have to open the gas valve, hit the ignition, and wait for it to heat up. It really doesn’t get much easier than using a gas grill.

On the other hand, a wood pellet grill requires a lot more work and effort. You have to first fill the wood pellets into the hopper, and you then have to get the fire going.

If you’re not good at making fires, then using a wood pellet grill is going to be difficult. However, as mentioned above, the flavor that you get from a real wood fire is completely unbeatable. Most people would say that it is worth the effort.

5. Prep & Cooking Time

Another difference to consider here has to do with preparation time and cooking time. With a gas grill, you can just turn it on, let it heat up, and get grilling within about 10 minutes of turning it on.

However, with a wood pellet grill, you first have to fill it with pellets, make a fire, and wait for the fire to really get going.

It can take a half an hour or even longer for you to be able to use a wood pellet grill after starting it. Therefore, if you are in a hurry and need to grill quickly, then a wood pellet grill is definitely not the best option to consider.

6. Ability to Smoke Foods

Something that does really stand out about wood pellet grills is their ability to smoke foods and to cook at low temperatures. Wood pellet grills are ideal for cooking at lower temperatures and for smoking foods.

For one, the wood pellets themselves create a really smoky flavor. Second, it’s not hard to insert a smoking contraption into a wood pellet grill. Many wood pellet grills are even built specifically for smoking.

This is just not something that you will be able to do with a gas grill. Gas grills certainly don’t excel at smoking foods, and they don’t work too well for cooking at low temperatures either. If you want to go low and slow, then a wood pellet grill is the way to go.

7. Grilling at High Temperatures

On the other side of the equation, if you want to sear meat really quickly, and you want to grill at high temperatures, then a gas grill is the way to go.

Although gas grills don’t do well with low and slow, they do certainly excel at grilling quickly at high temperatures.

If you want to get a really nice sear on that beef steak, then a gas grill is the better option of the two. Achieving extremely high temperatures in a wood pellet grill is not easy.

8. Temperature Control

Another thing that can be challenging about wood pellet grills is temperature control. Some pellet grills have better temperature controls than others, but it really all comes down to the fire that you make. Adjusting the temperature with a gas grill is much easier done thanks to simple control dials.

Gas grills tend to have separate compartments, and individual burners that can be individually controlled as well. You just don’t get the same amount of temperature control out of a wood pellet grill as you do out of a gas grill.

9. Cost

Something else to consider here is the cost. You can find a simple and small gas grill for $100 or $200 at the most. Of course, you can get much more expensive ones, but there are also very affordable ones out there.

On the other hand, for a basic wood pellet grill, you are looking at a minimum of $300 or $400. Generally speaking, wood pellet grills are way more expensive than gas grills.

10. Ease of Cleaning

The final thing to consider here is ease of cleaning. Propane burns fairly clean and it doesn’t create much of a mess. Gas grills are therefore fairly easy and quick to clean.

On the other hand, wood pellet grills are much more difficult to clean. You have to clean out the compartment for the hopper for one.

You also have to deal with the ashes created by burning wood pellets. There’s also the fact that burning wood creates charcoal, which is going to get all over the inside of your grill.

Pellet vs Gas Grill – The Bottom Line

Now that you know the main differences between pellet and gas grills, you can make an informed decision between them!