What Is a Grill? Every Type, Explained

At its simplest, a grill is any appliance that cooks food with direct, high heat, usually from below. That definition covers a surprising range of equipment, from a $30 tabletop charcoal grill to a multi-burner gas unit with a rotisserie.

This guide is the complete picture. It covers what separates each type of grill, how each one actually works, what features are worth paying for, and how to use, clean, and store whichever one you end up with.

What Makes Something a Grill

A grill cooks food quickly over intense, direct heat, usually through a grate that leaves the food exposed to open flame, radiant heat, or both.

That’s different from an oven, which surrounds food with heated air, and different from a smoker, which relies on low heat and sustained smoke over many hours rather than fast, high heat.

The heat source is what separates one type of grill from another. Everything else, the shape, size, and features, is really a variation on how that heat gets delivered and controlled.

The Six Main Types of Grills

Every grill on the market falls into one of these categories, or combines two of them.

Gas Grills

Gas grills burn propane from a tank or natural gas from a home line, through metal or infrared burners under the cooking grates.

They’re the most popular type sold, largely because they light instantly and hold a steady temperature with a simple knob. That convenience is the entire appeal.

The tradeoff is flavor. Gas produces mostly water vapor and carbon dioxide as it burns, so it doesn’t add the smoky character that charcoal does.

If you’re shopping in this category, our roundup of gas grills under $500 covers solid options at a range of price points.

Charcoal Grills

Charcoal grills burn briquettes or lump charcoal in an open bowl or basket, with vents controlling airflow and heat.

They take longer to light and require more attention than gas, but they reach higher searing temperatures and add real smoke flavor as fat and juices vaporize on the hot coals.

Our full guide on how to use a charcoal grill covers lighting, heat control, and technique in detail, including compact and portable models.

Electric Grills

Electric grills use a heating element, similar to a stovetop coil, instead of any live fuel source.

They’re the easiest type to use, since there’s no flame, no tank, and almost no learning curve. Many models are safe for indoor use, apartment balconies, and buildings that restrict open flame entirely.

The tradeoff is flavor and top-end heat. Electric grills don’t produce smoke, and most can’t reach the searing temperatures a charcoal or gas grill can.

Our Gotham Steel smokeless grill review covers an indoor-friendly electric option, and our guide to balcony grilling safety tips and rules explains why electric is often the only fuel type allowed in restricted buildings.

Pellet Grills

Pellet grills burn compressed hardwood pellets, fed automatically from a hopper into a firebox, with a digital controller managing temperature like a thermostat.

They work more like a convection oven than a traditional grill, circulating heated, smoky air around the food. That makes them excellent at long, low-and-slow cooking, and much more hands-off than charcoal.

They’re generally not as good at high-heat searing as charcoal or gas, since their strength is steady, moderate heat rather than a blast of direct flame.

Kamado Grills

Kamado grills are thick-walled, egg-shaped ceramic cookers that burn charcoal, with the Big Green Egg as the best-known example.

The thick ceramic walls hold heat exceptionally well and use very little fuel by comparison, which makes kamados capable of both searing and long, slow smoking in the same cooker.

They’re also the most expensive category on this list, and their round shape makes it harder to build separate hot and cool zones than it is on a kettle grill.

Infrared Grills

Infrared grills use a heating element or burner to heat a metal or ceramic surface, which then radiates intense heat directly onto food, rather than heating the air around it the way a standard gas burner does.

This produces very high, very even searing heat with less flare-up risk from dripping fat, since there’s often less open flame directly beneath the food.

Infrared is usually a feature on part of a larger gas grill, like a dedicated searing burner, rather than a grill’s only heat source.

Fuel Comparison at a Glance

Type	Flavor	Ease of use	Heat control	Best for
Gas	Mild	Very easy	Precise	Weeknight cooking
Charcoal	Strong, smoky	Moderate	Manual, via vents	Searing, weekend cookouts
Electric	Mild	Very easy	Precise	Apartments, indoor use
Pellet	Smoky	Easy	Automated	Long, low-and-slow cooks
Kamado	Strong, smoky	Moderate	Manual, via vents	Searing and smoking in one
Infrared	Mild, high heat	Easy	Precise	Fast, hard searing

Combination and Hybrid Grills

Plenty of grills don’t fit neatly into just one category, and that’s often a practical advantage rather than a compromise.

Gas-and-charcoal combo units give you a charcoal side for flavor and a gas side for convenience, without needing two separate grills taking up patio space. Our roundup of gas and charcoal combo grills covers models built this way.

Some gas grills add an infrared side burner specifically for searing, closing part of the flavor gap with charcoal while keeping the rest of the grill’s everyday convenience.

Smokers: A Related but Different Category

Smokers deserve a mention here, since people often lump them in with grills, even though the technique is different.

A smoker cooks low and slow, usually between 200 and 275 degrees, with sustained smoke doing most of the flavor work over hours rather than minutes. That’s the opposite goal of most grilling, which favors fast, high heat.

Propane smokers are a popular, relatively low-maintenance way to get into this style of cooking. Our guide to propane smokers covers a straightforward option for beginners.

Choosing the Right Size and Setup

Size matters more than most other features, since a grill that doesn’t fit your space or your typical cook size gets used less.

For one or two people, a compact or portable grill is usually plenty. Our roundups of small grills for balconies and patios and portable grills for apartment living cover models sized for exactly this.

For a family or regular entertaining, look for enough grate space to cook multiple mains at once, with room left over for an indirect, cooler zone.

If space is the main constraint, setting up the area around the grill matters as much as the grill itself. Our guide on how to set up a small patio for grilling covers layout and clearance.

Features Worth Actually Paying For

Grill listings are full of features. Some matter, and some are mostly marketing.

Solid, heavy-gauge construction matters more than almost anything else. A thin, flimsy grill body warps, rusts faster, and holds heat poorly compared to a heavier one.

BTU rating, for gas grills, measures heat output, but a high number doesn’t automatically mean better performance. Cooking area and burner efficiency matter just as much, so compare BTUs per square inch of cooking surface rather than the raw number alone.

A built-in thermometer is convenient but not essential, since a separate instant-read thermometer is more accurate for checking food doneness anyway.

A side burner is genuinely useful if you cook sauces or sides while grilling, but skip it if you won’t use it, since it adds cost and another part to maintain.

Multiple burners on a gas grill let you create heat zones, similar in concept to a charcoal two-zone fire, which is worth having even on a smaller grill.

How to Use Any Grill: The Shared Basics

Regardless of fuel type, a few fundamentals apply to nearly every grill.

Preheat before cooking. A cold or barely-warm grate causes sticking and uneven cooking, whatever the fuel source.

Oil the grates, not just the food, right before cooking starts. This makes cleanup easier and reduces sticking on any surface.

Build heat zones where possible. A hot zone for searing and a cooler zone for finishing gently or avoiding flare-ups works on gas, charcoal, and kamado grills alike.

Use a thermometer for meat and poultry rather than relying on time or color alone. This matters equally across every fuel type.

For technique specific to charcoal, including lighting without lighter fluid and building a two-zone fire, our complete charcoal grilling guide covers the full process step by step.

Cleaning Your Grill

A clean grill performs better and lasts longer, whatever type you own.

After every use, brush the grates while they’re still warm. Residue comes off far easier hot than cold, and this single habit prevents most heavy buildup.

Every couple of months, or after roughly 8 to 10 uses, do a deeper clean. Remove the grates and scrub them, empty the drip tray or ash catcher, and wipe down the interior.

Once a year, or before long-term storage, do a full deep clean. This includes the burners and heat distribution parts on a gas grill, or a thorough ash removal on a charcoal grill.

Greasy, carbon-caked grates don’t add flavor, whatever anyone tells you. Built-up grease is also a genuine fire risk, since it can flare up unexpectedly during a hot cook.

Storing a Grill Between Uses and for the Off-Season

Storage habits protect the investment you’ve already made in a grill.

Cover the grill when it’s not in use. A fitted cover keeps rain, dust, and debris out of the vents and burners, and slows rust on the body and grates.

Store propane tanks outside, upright, and away from direct heat, never inside a garage attached to your home or inside the house itself.

Before long-term or winter storage, clean the grill thoroughly first. Storing a dirty grill invites pests and lets grease residue sit for months, making the spring cleanup far worse than it needs to be.

If you’re storing a charcoal grill, make sure all ash is fully cool and removed before covering it, since ash can retain heat and hold moisture that promotes rust.

Grill Accessories Worth Having

A short list of tools covers most of what any grill setup actually needs.

A stainless grill brush keeps grates clean with minimal effort, and a model with a scraper edge handles stuck-on residue faster than bristles alone. The GrillArt21-Inch 3-Sided Grill Brush covers wide grates and tight edges with the same tool.

An instant-read thermometer takes the guesswork out of doneness on meat and poultry, regardless of which grill you’re using. The ThermoPro TP03 Digital Instant Read Thermometer is an inexpensive, reliable option many home cooks start with.

Long-handled tongs and a spatula keep your hands safely away from direct heat.

A properly fitted grill cover protects your investment between uses, and matters even more if the grill lives outdoors year-round. The Weber Premium 22-Inch Grill Cover fits standard kettle grills and resists UV fading over a full season outdoors.

For a genuinely short, non-redundant list, our guide to small-space grilling accessories you actually need is worth reading before you buy extras you won’t use.

What to Cook First on a New Grill

A new grill is worth breaking in with something forgiving before you attempt anything technical.

Burgers, sausages, and vegetables are all a good starting point, since they cook fast and tolerate minor heat-control mistakes while you learn your specific grill’s quirks.

Corn on the cob is another easy, low-stakes place to start, and it works well across gas, charcoal, and electric grills alike. Our full guide to how to grill corn on the cob covers husk, foil, and shucked methods with exact times.

Once you’re comfortable, a cast iron skillet placed directly on the grates adds another dimension, letting you sear or sauté things that would otherwise fall through the grates. Our Lodge cast iron skillet review covers a versatile, affordable option that works indoors and out. A flat griddle does something similar for foods better suited to an even surface; our best griddle pan for pancakes guide covers options that double for savory cooking too.

Grilling Away From Home

The same basic grill types show up in smaller, travel-friendly versions for camping, tailgating, and trips.

Compact charcoal grills and portable gas units both scale down well without losing much functionality, and pairing one with sturdy, packable cookware rounds out a solid travel setup. Our guide to best camping cookware covers gear built for exactly this kind of use.

A Simple Starter Kit for a First Grill

If you’re buying your first grill, a few extras make the learning curve much shorter.

For charcoal specifically, a chimney starter is worth buying on day one rather than relying on lighter fluid. It lights charcoal evenly in about 10 to 15 minutes with no chemical taste.

Compact charcoal grills have become especially popular lately, and a model like the Weber Smokey Joe 14-Inch Portable Grill works through the exact same fuel and vent principles as a full-size kettle, just at a smaller scale. Pair it with a standard bag of Kingsford Original Charcoal Briquettes and you have everything needed for a first cook.

Keep the kit small at first. A brush, a thermometer, a pair of tongs, and the grill itself cover nearly everything until you know what you’ll actually use regularly.

Understanding Direct and Indirect Heat

These two terms come up across every grill type, and they describe the same basic idea regardless of fuel source.

Direct heat means food sits right over the flame, coals, or element. It cooks fast and produces the sear most people associate with grilling.

Indirect heat means food sits away from the heat source, often with a lid closed, cooking more gently and evenly, similar to an oven.

A gas grill creates this by turning off one burner and cooking food over the unlit side. A charcoal or kamado grill does it by piling coals on one side and leaving the other empty. Even an electric grill can approximate indirect cooking by using a lower setting and a farther section of the cooking surface.

Most complete meals use both. Sear for color and flavor, then move to indirect heat to finish cooking through without burning the outside.

Common Mistakes to Avoid

• Choosing a grill type based on price alone. Match the fuel type to how you actually want to cook, not just the sticker price.
• Skipping preheating. This causes sticking and uneven cooking on every fuel type.
• Ignoring routine cleaning. Buildup reduces performance and creates a real fire risk over time.
• Storing a dirty grill for the winter. It invites rust, pests, and a much harder spring cleanup.
• Assuming more features mean better cooking. Solid construction and adequate heat matter more than extras.

Related Guides

• How to Use a Charcoal Grill
• Best Gas and Charcoal Grill Combo
• Best Small Grills for Balconies and Patios
• Balcony Grilling Safety Tips and Rules

The Bottom Line

A grill is defined by its heat source, not its shape or price. Gas is convenient. Charcoal adds smoke and searing power. Electric works where flame can’t. Pellet and kamado grills handle long, slow cooks well. Pick the type that matches how you cook. Keep it clean and covered. It will serve you for years.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the actual definition of a grill?

A grill is an outdoor or indoor cooking appliance that applies direct, high heat to food from below or the side, usually through an open or partially open cooking surface. That heat can come from gas flames, burning charcoal, an electric element, wood pellets, or a wood fire, depending on the type.

What is the difference between grilling and barbecuing?

Grilling means cooking quickly over direct, high heat, like a burger or a steak. Barbecuing traditionally means cooking low and slow over indirect heat and smoke, like a brisket or pulled pork. Many home cooks use the words interchangeably, but the techniques are different.

Is a charcoal grill or a gas grill better?

Neither is better across the board. Charcoal gives a smokier flavor and higher searing heat but takes longer to light and control. Gas lights instantly and holds a steady temperature but doesn't deliver the same smoke flavor. Many people choose based on how much time they want to spend on setup versus flavor.

What does BTU mean on a gas grill?

BTU stands for British Thermal Unit, a measure of heat output. A higher BTU rating means the burners can produce more heat, but it doesn't automatically mean a hotter grill, since cooking area and burner efficiency matter just as much as the raw number.

How long do grills usually last?

A well-maintained gas grill typically lasts 5 to 15 years, depending on build quality and how often you clean it. A simple charcoal kettle grill, with no burners or electronics to fail, can last for decades with basic care.

Can you use a grill in the rain?

Yes, for the most part. Light rain doesn't stop a gas or charcoal grill from working once it's lit, though you should keep charcoal itself dry before lighting it. Avoid grilling in a thunderstorm, and never move a grill under a roof or overhang to escape rain while it's lit.

What size grill do I actually need?

For 1 to 2 people, a compact or portable grill with a small cooking area is usually enough. For a family or regular entertaining, look for enough grate space to fit multiple main items at once, plus a cooler zone for indirect cooking.

Do I need a grill with a side burner or extra features?

Only if you'll actually use them. A side burner is useful for sauces or sides, and a built-in thermometer is convenient, but neither changes how well the grill cooks the main course. Prioritize solid construction and adequate heat before extra features.