Best BBQ in the UK 2023: gas and charcoal barbeques

Sun's out, buns out - the best BBQs to enhance your outdoor cooking experience

You’re here because you want to buy the best BBQ in the UK, and that’s exactly what you’ll find below — a list of the best barbeques to help fill those sunny days and mild nights with hot, tasty, delicious food. If you’re in the US, then you’ll want to take a look at our list of the best outdoor grills.

There are plenty of gas and charcoal options across a variety of price points, so let’s dive right in, shall we?

We reckon Char-Broil’s Gas2Coal hybrid model (check price) is one of the best choices for most people, given its ability to use both gas and charcoal for cooking. You can even use gas to quickly and easily ignite the charcoal, making for a much faster all-charcoal experience, if you prefer.

The Char-Broil’s Gas2Coal isn’t quite right for you? Fear not, for there are plenty of other grills we recommend:

If you’re looking for a portable BBQ, then check out our guide to the best portable BBQ, too.

If you’re indecisive, then Char-Broil’s hybrid model is one of the best choices for you, thanks to its ability to convert from gas to charcoal in less than 60 seconds. Simply remove the supplied charcoal tray, and cook with regular gas burners if you’re short on time with hungry mouths to feed.

If you’ve got a hankering for old-fashioned charcoal though, load up the tray, and handily light the charcoal with the gas burners themselves — no chimney stacks or lighter materials required. The charcoal tray itself also helps prevent flare-ups, resulting in more even cooking.

Better yet, there’s a built-in side burner for additional cooking powers, along with a warming rack and porcelain-coated cast iron grates for longevity and easy cleaning.

Weber’s Original Kettle charcoal BBQ is one of the most iconic choices and one that will spring to mind for most people. But we’re big fans of the Master-Touch model, which keeps the essence of the Kettle, while serving up a multitude of improvements in the process.

It’s a little taller, for starters, making for a more comfortable grilling experience. The lid is a little deeper too, and can be handily stored in a built-in lid holder, which is an improvement over the original’s lid hook. The addition of Weber’s Gourmet BBQ System grill is another big draw, letting you swap out different modules like pizza stones for more versatility. It’s a easy to clean too, thanks to a clever ash sweeping/collection system, and we think the Slate Blue variant, in particular, is rather dashing.

Overall, if you’re a charcoal fan, this is a BBQ that will serve you well for years to come, while looking superb in the process.

Landmann’s capacious four-burner entry has more than enough space to feed large, ravenous groups, with specially designed enamel-coated steel flame tamers to help distribute heat evenly across the grill. A built-in warming rack lets you serve everything at an appropriate temperature at the same time, while a modular cooking system supports extra accessories like pizza stones.

The real star of the show though, is the infrared side burner, which is capable of reaching a blistering 1500°F (800 °C). This makes it an absolute godsend for creating perfectly seared steaks in record time, letting you create perfect outer crusts without over-cooking the insides. Once you’ve tried infrared, you’ll never want to sear on anything else ever again.

If you’re sold on the wonderful world of flat-top griddles, then you can’t get much better than Blackstone. This huge gas-powered 36in model is one of the best BBQs in the UK, and features more than enough space for feeding smash burgers to a horde of hungry guests — though there’s nothing stopping you from using it for stir-fries, pancakes, eggs, or anything else you require.

Four independent heat zones provide plenty of control over your cooks, while there’s plenty of space on either side for storage/prep. If you find yourself cooking in cast iron skillets, why not cut out the middleman and cook directly on this massive surface instead? You won’t regret it.

Don’t be put off by the flat-top nature of this griddle. Yes, the lack of bars means no aesthetic grill lines, but it makes up for it in practically every other way. The flat surface means that everything from burgers and sausages, to steaks and vegetables will make full contact with a heated surface, resulting in a much better, more consistent Maillard reaction (aka, the delicious browning that makes food extra delicious).

This also makes it a perfect choice for smash burger fans, who can press down balls of mince to create super-slim and crispy patties for multi-layered burgers bursting with flavour. Throw in the fact that this is easily portable for both backyard and camping use, and it could potentially even replace your dedicated BBQ. Win-win.

Masterbuilt’s Gravity Series is aptly named, with the 1050 model featuring a capacious gravity-fed hopper capable of fuelling your cooks for a whopping 12-15 hours of use. Supporting up to 9.9lbs (4.5kg) of lump charcoal or 15.4lbs (7kg) of briquettes, you can enjoy slow-cooked delicacies like brisket and ribs without being chained to your outdoor cooking station.

Cast-iron grates produce perfectly-seared results, while a digital control panel, complete with an accompanying Bluetooth/Wi-Fi controlled app, make keeping an eye on everything a breeze too. With convenient racks and numerous shelves, it’s got everything you need for a hassle-free backyard cookout.

This capacious, affordable charcoal grill features ample cooking space, along with porcelain-enamelled steel cooking grates for durability and performance. A built-in thermometer provides an easy way to keep an eye on the temperature at a glance, while a height-adjustable charcoal pan allows for quick and easy control over the level of cooking heat.

If that wasn’t enough, it also has a useful built-in offset smoker, complete with its own lid, letting you smoke anything from meat to vegetable side dishes for an extra dash of BBQ goodness. An included cover, utensil hooks, and a smoke stack, round off the features rather nicely. Plenty for your money, at this price.

If a BBQ has world-renowned chef Heston Blumenthal’s seal of approval, it’s not going to be cheap. Or ordinary. And the charcoal-fuelled Hub BBQ makes good on both.

Hefty price tag aside, you’re clearly getting something that’s far more refined than your average heap of industrialised, functional metal. With sharp lines, rounded corners, and angular legs, it’s as much a design talking point as it is a food-searing powerhouse.

On that note, it’s a heck of a performer too, managing to stand out from the rest of the competition with its built-in rotisserie system. From succulent chicken to mouth-watering pork, the possibilities for both taste and visual theatre are endless. And if you require something a little easier, there’s an electric-powered version too.

While Tepro’s Grillwagen is lacking in the brand recognition department, it more than makes up for it with excellent bang for your buck. The cheapest offering on our list, this is a charcoal BBQ that offers plenty to love, including a speedy assembly time of just 30 minutes.

A generous grilling area is made even better by a built-in warming rack and handy ash collection tray, while a Grid in Grid system lets you pop in modular accessories like pizza stones if you wish to mix things up.

The best part, though, is a built-in handle which can be turned to raise and lower the coals, letting you change the intensity of the heat to achieve the perfect finish. If you’ve ever suffered from burnt buns or overly-sizzled sausages in the past, this will be a particularly useful defence mechanism.

If you fancy that delicious charcoal flavour without the pesky smoke, then LotusGrill’s clever grill should be your first choice. Its built-in battery-powered fans not only help your coals come to temperature in a blistering five minutes, but the extra aeration they provide also results in far less smoke than a regular charcoal BBQ.

You can even adjust the speed of the fans to control the temperature, and the generous grill size of the XXL model should be good enough to feed around 20 people. It looks the part too, with a range of eye-catching colours and a UFO-like design.

Its closed-container nature also reduces the risks of flying sparks and escaping embers, providing extra peace of mind if you’re surrounded by curious pets and inquisitive toddlers.

Char-Broil’s answer to Weber’s iconic kettle BBQ is far from a mere shape-inspired copy. Thanks to some clever design features, it promises to do more with less charcoal. In other words, you can cut back on how much charcoal you use per cook, while getting more heat out of it. Neat.

The first of these clever design tricks are the 360-degree air inlet holes that surround the main body of the BBQ itself, letting plenty of oxygen get sucked in to fuel those flames at all times. Not only that, but the Kettleman also has Char-Broil’s TRU-Infrared tech, which prevents flare-ups for more evenly cooked food.

This not only creates an even temperature across the entire grill surface, but the end result also provides juicier food than normal. Up to 50 per cent juicer, in fact, according to Char-Broil. Consider us sold.

After the Lambo of gas grills? Look no further than Weber’s eye-wateringly expensive Genesis. Featuring three gas burners and an extra large sear zone, it also has an expandable top cooking grate for simultaneous grilling, letting you whip up mains and sides at the same time.

Its biggest trick though, lies in its smart real-time food temperature monitoring, which lets you keep an eye on internal meat temperatures remotely via your smartphone, letting you achieve perfectly delicious results without any guesswork involved.

Compatible with Weber’s Gourmet Barbecue System, you can add additional accessories as you see fit, and it even has built-in illumination, for night-time grilling sessions. With an extra side burner, generous side shelves, hooks, and a spacious cabinet, it’s practically an outdoor kitchen in its own right.