15 best gas BBQs for a summer of next-level grilling, tried and tested

The American manufacturer has really come up trumps with this budget gas barbecue, distilling many of the features we love about its more-elaborate models into this supremely efficient three-burner.

The sizeable cast aluminium cook box – which retained heat better than many barbecues costing three times as much – made it easy to maintain a consistent temperature and even heat distribution across the cast iron cooking grids, adding to the ease of barbecuing, because you won’t be caught out by hot spots that can burn your ingredients.

The burners were responsive and, on high heat output, the burger juices were instantly vaporised and imparted a lovely flavour back into the food. Meanwhile, on lower outputs, we were able to crisp up chicken skin while retaining moisture, so the flesh was succulent and delicious.

The steel base holds and hides the propane tank securely, and there’s everything you need to make your cookout go smoothly, from fold-down side shelves and tool holders. Get yourself a magnetic bottle opener and you have one of the most complete barbecue stations on the market, and for a very good price.

This grill didn’t require a degree in engineering to set it up, with clear instructions, correctly labelled parts and screws that you can pop out from an annotated card, as needed, so they don’t go missing. Once it’s been put together, it doesn’t feel like it’s about to fall apart at the first breath of wind, either, and we were pleasantly surprised with the overall build quality.

It may not win any awards for design but Argos has really gone for function over form, and the grill was effective, distributing and retaining the heat supplied by a nicely responsive two burner that can easily satisfy a ravenous horde.

The high cooking hood left plenty of room for any smoke to circulate, and there’s a handy side burner for frying. The good-sized cooking area (made from a wired grate) enabled plenty of heat to get to the feast, and left a good sear on our burgers.

It’s rare that you will find a four-burner barbecue for less than £250. If you do, we’ve found you will usually have to compromise on build quality. Not in this case, though. We were very impressed with the idiot-proof assembly and the quality of the end product.

The controls were responsive, with good heat retention across the entire cooking area, and the lid-down performance was solid, which meant we got some great results when it came to the proteins and vegetables we had on the menu.

There’s a side burner to keep your sauces bubbling, while the warming rack is ample to keep the family feast at the right temperature until it’s time for everything to come off the grill.

This really is two barbecues for the price of one, because it was just as capable in situ on a patio as it was being unpacked at a camp site, thanks to its snap-in legs, fold-away side tables and its ability to be carried, suitcase-style, from the car boot or camper van. It’s the combination of the cast iron cooking grid and the thick cast aluminium cook box that meant all the food with which we loaded the grill was evenly cooked, juicy, seared and tinged with a wonderful smoky hint.

The former boxer’s brand might be best known for his healthy grill but we also really enjoyed cooking on this barbecue grill, because it offered up straightforward assembly and the end product was as robust as the big fella himself. The lid gave a good seal in the cook box, trapping in the heat and the smoky flavours, and making cooking very easy.

The 60cm x 12cm warming rack was well-positioned and a good size, so we didn’t have to keep fiddling with the food. Plus, there are two side shelves and some hanging utensil hooks to make sure everything stays organised, leaving you to concentrate on the cooking.

As the name implies, this barbecue has packed a lot into a smaller body, so cooks with limited outdoor space can still enjoy the versatility of three-burner barbecuing. Those burners deliver plenty of power to the cooking surface, which is at a good height and distributes the heat well. This means cooking a family feast never gets stressful, and you can have total control while producing delicious, evenly cooked food.

Ignition and controls were efficient and responsive, and heat circulation was excellent with the lid down, so the food was juicy and smoky when it came off the grill.

In addition, the barbecue boasts an in-built lid thermometer, warming rack, drop-down side table, and a good side burner, while the gas canister is hidden away behind some doors.

Campingaz models always offer straightforward assembly and the compact LS was no different.

This is a much more affordable version of the phantom freestyle 365 that we reviewed last year, and it comes brimming with many of the features we really liked about the phantom. In particular, the manufacturer’s “flame tamers” that vaporise meat juices, which not only adds to the smoky flavour of your food but also ensures the heat distribution stays efficient as long as the burners are lit.

When the roll-top hood is down, the aluminium cook box means cooking is incredibly efficient, as the heat is reflected and convected, which means this was one of the easiest barbecues when it came to maintaining temperatures, making for a stress-free experience.

The graphite grey finish and bottle screen add to the barbecue’s good looks, while the well-sized warming rack, built-in bottle opener, and folding side shelves add to the overall appeal.

One thing for which gas grills are renowned is not being particularly beautiful to look at, but Campingaz seems to work hard on the aesthetics of its grills. We particularly like the all-black look of the onyx S, offset with its four blue, backlit dials that control the four main burners, which we found really responsive – they got the grill up to temperature rapidly.

Heat distribution across the generous enamelled cooking surface was faultless, and the well-calibrated controls mean you can create different heat zones across the grates, so you can cook to order, according to how well-done the meat-eaters like their burgers and steaks.

Whether it was red meat or chicken on the grill, flare-ups were practically non-existent, and the whole cooking process was made even easier with the addition of a sizeable warming rack and a very efficient side burner.

Once the cooking is done, the onyx S offers up a very easy clean, thanks to the Aqua Pro system. This relies on a grease drawer that contains a level of water, so the fats that drop down into it float in the liquid, rather than being burned and hardened onto the trays, and can then be drained away, once you’re finished cooking.

For its size, this four-burner barbecue came together very easily, and you can tell from the componentry that build-quality was extremely high, which is something we’ve come to expect from the US brand.

Heat distribution was excellent across the expansive cook box, which is made up of reversible grates, one side of which is pointed, for steakhouse-style searing, while the other is grooved, so you can capture the juices from the meat you’re cooking, to stop it drying out.

One of the other things we really like about Broil-King barbecues is the searing stations (not a hob), which essentially add the finishing touch to steaks and fish dishes, by using an infrared heat source to create appetising sear marks, while keeping the food deliciously succulent.

Even more cooking versatility comes in the form of a full rotisserie set with its own rear-mounted burner, so legs of lamb or whole chickens can be cooked without you needing to be ever-present.

The cabinet will easily swallow your gas cylinder and keep it out of sight, while there’s plenty of room on the side table, and all the control knobs are backlit by LEDs, which adds to the shadow’s overall appeal as a great grill, offering the chance to cook in a number of different ways.

This grill has remained in our round-ups ever since we began reviewing gas barbecues, and with good reason. It’s ideal for barbecuers with limited space, thanks to its compact dome lid and drop-down shelving, which means it can be stored in the corner of a balcony or patio.

You can also detach the grill from the stand, so it sits on a table. The cast iron grill grates were ready for cooking quickly and produced some of the best burgers we tasted, mainly because it cleverly cooked them using an indirect heat system, which sits above the burner and redistributes the heat evenly over the whole surface.

There’s minimal assembly, and a small canister will fit in the body of the barbecue. It comes with some nice practical touches, too, such as somewhere to store your kitchen towel and even a mini bin.

The Everdure range can’t be faulted for its looks, and the two-burner force is no exception, with its side-mounted and raised taps that control the two burners under the retro coloured aluminium hood. With its simple 12-step construction, the force scored well for ease of assembly, too.

The grill plates have the flame tamers built in to them, which allows the burners to be closer to the grill and for the heat-up time to be one of the best we tested. We were ready to begin searing in around five minutes, so, you can expect to get cooking quickly and spend less time at the grill when you’ve got friends and family around.

With a hot spot in the middle of the grate and a cooler zone around the edge, we found we were able to place different foods accordingly, and there was never any danger of burning.

Lots of ready-mounted components made putting this three-burner, stainless steel barbecue together very easy. The finished product was solid and compact, with a left-sided shelf that can be folded down – ideal if you aren’t blessed with lots of outside space.

Foolproof ignition meant the porcelain enamelled cast iron grill was ready to cook in minutes, and distributed the heat evenly across a generous cooking area.

Char-Broil’s TRU-infrared system sits above the burners and redistributes the heat over the whole surface, so we could time the cooking of different meats to perfection, so they were succulent to eat.

As well as a raised warming shelf, there’s another burner contained within the right shelf, which reaches super-high temperatures quickly, for adding a final sear and enhancing flavour – we found it was well suited for cooking vegetables, too.

The gas bottle stores away out of sight in a compartment under the grill, and there were plenty of details to make for an enjoyable cooking experience, from the chrome-plated knobs, illuminated with red LEDs, to the integrated bottle opener, so you never have to worry about getting thirsty.

This Danish company consistently produces great-looking outdoor products, and its gas forno barbecue is no exception. The two burners supply the enamel-coated cast iron grate with heat across the surface, so, we managed to get good caramelisation on our burgers, without overcooking them.

What we really liked about this one was that the domed design enabled us to roast large joints of meat with the lid closed, with the end product being out of this world – not surprising, for a barbecue that looks like it’s just landed from another planet.

Outback’s assembly video walk-throughs, which you can view on the brand’s website, remove a lot of the frustration from the assembly. That was certainly the case for the Jupiter 4, which came together in less than an hour – pretty good for a big four-burner.

This model proved easy to light, and it hit cooking temperature quickly, giving a good sear to burgers, while the porcelain-coated grill meant we never had to worry about leaving the flavour of the food stuck to the grill.

The Jupiter gets its “hybrid” tag from a charcoal basket that fits under the grate to the right of the cooking area, which can be lit with the gas flame, but still imparts smoky flavour to the ingredients being cooked. The grates can also be switched out for a multitude of additional cooking surfaces, from pizza stones to griddles.

There’s a sizeable warming tray, an efficient side burner (which saved repeated trips to the kitchen to cook onions), as well as plenty of other nice details, including hangers for tools, a magnetic bottle opener and an integrated chopping board on the side table, which you can remove to take your meat and veg to the grill.

You also have a decision to make when it comes to colour, as the Jupiter 4 comes in either a red, green, blue or stainless steel frontage.

This is an excellent patio barbecue offering plenty of versatility for the serious chef. By experimenting with the burners, shutting off some or turning down others, we were able to create different heat zones easily, so meat could be cooked to order. We also found it particularly adept at colouring the meat over the heat source, before we moved it to an area without any direct heat and closed the lid, so it finished without burning.

Added to this, there is a high-heat side burner, for finishing off and searing your steaks. With reliable ignition, the freestyle hit the required temperature quickly and we got good heat distribution across the big grilling area. There’s a well-proportioned warming rack, sizeable foldaway side shelving, and a matte finish offers an eye-catching alternative to stainless steel.