The Best Gas Grill Under $500 Review and Comparison

Gathering up your friends and family for a BBQ party can be one of the little joys you have in life. Maybe you even enjoy making a burger or two alone on a lazy Sunday afternoon. That can all be great until you realize that you can’t afford to buy a BBQ grill.

BBQ grills nowadays can be expensive, especially if you want to buy a high-quality one that will last through the years. Fortunately, not all quality grills are ridiculously expensive.

In this article, we’ve found 4 of the best BBQ grills under $500, so that you can enjoy your outdoor cooking without breaking your bank.

How to Pick The Best Grill for Your Next BBQ?

One person’s use for a grill differs from another and in order to pick the best grill that fits your own personal needs, you should consider the following.

Proper Heat Distribution

The more burners a grill has, the more evenly it’ll be able to distribute the heat. And the better the heat is distributed, the better you’ll be able to control the temperature of your grill, and the better your food will turn out. 

This is not to say that you should simply buy the grill with the most burners, but consider how the burners are distributed within and relative to the cooking area. The larger the grill, the more you’ll want to pay attention to the number of burners and their distribution.

Size of The Cooking Area

Speaking of the cooking area, you should also consider how big you want that to be. If you intend to throw large BBQ parties or you know you’ll always be feeding a few mouths at a time, then it’s better if you opt for a larger grill.

However, if you simply want a grill to cook yourself a couple of burgers or a few hot dogs and you actually don’t have much space to accommodate for a large grill within your backyard, then a compact grill like the Weber 46110001 Spirit E-210 LP Gas Grill below will fit you well.

Durability

This one is an obvious one. Nobody wants a flimsy grill that won’t stand the test of time. All the grills we’ve picked for you in this list are durable enough live through a few years without any significant damage, like buttons melting or lids warping. 

If you want something exceptionally durable, however, consider the sturdy Char-Broil Performance 475 4-Burner Cart Liquid Propane Gas Grill mentioned below.

How we picked these 4 BBQ grills under $500

Here’s a quick glance at the criteria which we’ve based our choices on.

Best Grill Under $500 – The Shortlist

The choice is never easy and the market is no short of grills of all types. That’s why we compiled our shortlist of the best 4 grills under $500 and we’ll be reviewing them here. 

Char-Broil Performance 475 LP Gas Grill

Features:

• Total cooking area: 650 square inches
• Number of burners: 4

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The Char-Broil Performance grill comes with 4 burners within its 475 square-inch main cooking area. Its secondary cooking area adds another 175 square-inches of space perfect for toasting burger buns or keeping food warm using the warming rack.

Its equipped with porcelain-coated iron grates and a porcelain-coated swing-away rack. It also has a removable grease pan that makes cleaning grease a quick and easy task. The whole grill is very easy to clean, in fact – simply wipe it down with a damp cloth and some soap.

The grill is built in a very sturdy and durable manner with heavy-duty use in mind. It’s mainly made out of stainless steel and porcelain-coated materials.

It also has two large side shelves that make preparing food a lot simpler and keeps everything within reach. One of the side shelves actually doubles a side burner with a lid that can be closed to transform it back to a shelf.

Pros

• Has a total of 650 square inches of cooking space
• Has an added transformable side burner
• Perfect for large parties
• Has a removable grease pan
• Has 4 burners to distribute heat evenly

Cons

• The wheels aren’t very durable
• Takes a long time to heat up
• Doesn’t heat up enough for a good sear

Weber 46110001 Spirit E-210 LP Gas Grill

Features:

• Total cooking area: 450 square inches
• Number of burners: 2

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This space-saving model from Weber is the perfect choice for anyone looking for a grill that fits into tight spaces; it’s only 23-inches wide. It doesn’t skimp on cooking space though. The Weber E-210 provides a generous 450 square-inches of cooking space equipped with porcelain-enameled cast-iron cooking grates.

Since the grates are porcelain-enameled, they do a great job at retaining heat to cook your food evenly. The stainless steel burners also do a great job at heating up the grill really quickly so you never have issues with undercooked food.

This grill has a heavy-duty construction that will stand the test of time. It comes with caster wheels that make it very easy to maneuver over grass.

The grease management system installed makes this grill low-maintenance and easy to clean. The sides of the grill are equipped with foldable side tables that unfold to form an added work-space and fold down to keep the whole grill compact and make it easy to store.

Pros

• Heats up very quickly
• Very compact at only 23 inches wide
• Low maintenance grease management system
• Porcelain-enameled cook box won’t rust or peel
• Rugged and heavy-duty construction

Cons

• Doesn’t live up to Weber’s famed quality
• May start to leak gas after several uses
• The handle’s sides heat up

Weber 44020001 Spirit II E-210 LP Grill

Features:

• Total cooking area: 450 square inches
• Number of burners: 2

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This new and improved model Weber has put outcomes with the improved Gs4 grilling system. Weber has been setting the standard for backyard cuisine for over 30 years and they haven’t fallen short with the new infinity ignition, burners, and Flavorizer Bars installed within this grill.

This 450 square-inch two burner grill comes with porcelain-enameled cast-iron cooking grates to evenly distribute and retain heat. The cooking grates are also reversible with one side thicker than the other. This’ll allow you to grill small foods like shrimp or larger foods like steak with ease.

And like the Char-broil model, this grill comes with a secondary warming rack that makes for the perfect space to toast your buns. It also has two foldable side shelves that provide extra space for BBQ preparations.

It’s also worth noting that this grill has an open cart design which provides you with a large shelf to store away all your bowls and tools during and after grilling.

Pros

• Powered with an improved Gs4 grilling system
• Comes with reversible cooking grates
• Has a secondary warming rack
• Open cart design allows for extra storage
• Has two folding side shelves

Cons

• Assembling all the pieces can be a tedious process
• Knobs are a bit loose
• Not very well constructed

Weber 46510001 Spirit E310 LP Gas Grill

Features:

• Total cooking area: 529 square inches
• Number of burners: 2

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This last grill, also from Weber, has a large cooking area of 529 square-inches making it fit for large family meals. The stainless steel burners in this grill are well-spaced and distributed in a way that’ll keep your food juicy.

It comes with porcelain-enameled cast-iron cooking grates just like the previous Weber models to retain the most heat. The lid and cook box are also porcelain-enameled so that they don’t rust, peel, or get damaged through the years.

The two side shelves here also have 6 tool hooks to keep your grilling utensils close by.

The grease tray is very easy to clean, although some users may experience an issue with the grease clearing out all the way. Due to their new grease management systems, Weber may have missed the mark with how the grease is drained from around the burners. If this is left after several uses without clearing, it may accumulate and actually catch fire.

Pros

• Large cooking space of 529 square-inches
• The grease tray is very easy to clean
• Has heavy-duty caster wheels
• Retains heat to cook well
• Porcelain-enameled cook box won’t rust or peel

Cons

• Assembly isn’t smooth and no instruction manual is available
• Relatively expensive
• No side burner

Wrap up

Weber grills are known for their exquisite cooking but they’re lacking in terms of durability. That’s where Char-Broil precedes. Char-broil has one of the highest quality designs and constructions on the market, making it withstand years and years of use. However, you can’t beat the flavors you get from a Weber.

If you’re looking for the best grill in terms of value, the Char-Broil Performance 475 4-Burner Cart Liquid Propane Gas Grill model takes the win here, as it’s loaded with features such as even heat distribution, easy assemble, and great flames. All of these come at a really reasonable price!

However, the best grill on this list regardless of price is probably the Weber 46110001 Spirit E-210 LP Gas Grill simply because it gets the job done and it gets it done well. Not to mention, it takes up so little space, so it’s perfect for small balconies or patios.