Barbecue Grill Economics: Wood Pellet Grills vs. Propane

Pellet grills provide superior flavor when cooking meats and vegetables. Many people ask if wood pellet grills are cheaper to operate vs. other grills. Specifically - are barbecue wood pellets cheaper or more expensive than propane grills? We hope to give you a rough idea of the cost differentials.

Grilling with propane costs about $1.25 per hour of use (based on the March 2021 propane retail price), for a 62,000 BTU grill running at ~75% capacity, which would mean cooking at medium heat level for most grills. An average propane tank used for grilling has 20 pounds of capacity. One pound of propane contains 91,502 BTU's of heat Because propane infuses zero flavor, many people add wood chips, which further increases the cost.

Pellet grills set at 225 degrees burn pellets at about one pound per hour.  So, the cost of pellet grilling is about $0.77 per cook. So you get more flavor for less money if you barbecue with a pellet grill vs. a traditional propane gas grill.

Barbecue wood pellet fuel is much cheaper than cooking with propane, offers superior flavor and is much easier to handle. Most barbecue wood pellets are available in 20 pound bags, so they are easy to carry. If you switch from propane to a pellet grill, it also eliminates that annoying trip to the gas station for a refill. After all, who wants to carry around a 40 pound propane tank on a Saturday afternoon?! Barbecue wood pellets can be ordered on Amazon and many other sites for easy home delivery.

To conclude - pellet grills are cheaper to operate, more convenient and offer better flavor than a propane grill could ever hope to. If you cook with a pellet grill, you will get the best flavor for the lowest price.

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