8 flat top grills lined up for testing

The outdoor griddle is a hot commodity in the outdoor cooking space, and it's time to determine who makes the best outdoor flat top griddle. We recently put 8 different brands to the test.

Why Trust Our Review

We have personally used every outdoor griddle mentioned in this article. Not only have we used each one, but we also used each one side-by-side so that we could best compare similar qualities. Don't just take my word for it. The evidence is in the pictures and video.

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This article was not written by AI; it was written by real humans who have actually used these products.

We have run each outdoor gas griddle through the same series of tests and will let the data speak for itself.

Though the flat top griddles themselves were supplied to us for free for this video and article, none of the manufacturers have paid to be involved or "win" this review.

We are affiliates, however, and will earn a small commission if you purchase any of these gas griddles using our link. That is one of the ways we are able to continue doing what we do, so we do appreciate your support in that way.

Our Quick Picks

Winners

Product Information

BEST FLAT TOP GRILL

Traeger flat top grill is our winner for best outdoor griddle

Traeger Flatrock

  • Huge side shelves provide ample prep space
  • Recessed griddle top protects the burners from wind
  • Baffles between burners create 3 separate heat zones

BEST USER EXPERIENCE

Weber Slate

Weber Slate

  • Tons of prep and storage space
  • Griddle surface comes pre-seasoned and ready to use.
  • Cooks evenly from front to back and side to side.

BEST GRIDDLE COMBO

Grilla Grills Primate gas grill and flat top grill combo

Grilla Grills Primate

  • The Primate is a full gas griddle and a full gas grill in one box
  • All 304 stainless steel construction
  • The recessed griddle surface protects the burners from being affected by wind

BEST BUDGET GRIDDLE

Camp Chef Gridiron

Camp Chef Gridiron 

  • 634 square inches of cooking area
  • Even cooking from front to back
  • Very affordable and reasonable price

BEST BUILT IN GRIDDLE

Le Griddle 30" flat top grill

Le Griddle "The Ranch Hand"

  • 304 stainless steel construction
  • Stainless steel griddle surface will never rust
  • The cast iron plate welded under the griddle provides even cooking throughout
  • Get a free gift with purchase using code: BBQLAB

Download our Outdoor Griddle Cheat Sheet to see a side-by-side comparison of all 8 flat top grills!

How We Tested For The Best Outdoor Griddles

Testing for Hot Spots and Cold Spots

Time to temperature, BTU's, heat zones and more are all fine and good, but here's a test designed to check the evenness of the flat top griddle heat.

We set each grill to 350 degrees as measured by our Thermoworks IR gun, then covered the entire griddle surface with slices of bread. We set the Big and Loud timer to 5 minutes and sat back to smell the toast.

At the 5-minute mark, here's how the toast on each flat top griddle looked. The most even cooking of the 8 models came from the Traeger, Weber and the Camp Chef.

If I was going to call a winner, I’d say that the Traeger had the most even cooking across all slices followed by the Weber Slate, which came close to the Traeger, but had some spotty coverage, but great color. 

The Gridiron I would place in third, solely because the right hand 3 slices came up quite pale while the rest of the flat top griddle looked almost perfect.

The two that I would place at the bottom would be the Blackstone with a very dark center and almost white edges and the Pit Boss with a super dark streak straight down the middle.

Griddle bread test results
Griddle bread test results

Download our Outdoor Griddle Cheat Sheet to see a side-by-side comparison of all 8 flat top grills!

Wind Test

We're based in the Midwest, and it's rare that we're cooking without wind as a part of the equation. It's been annoying to me that some outdoor griddles have a hard time functioning in the wind, so we wanted to test these 8 griddles with an artificial wind test to see how they fared.

We picked up a fan that we could set to the perfect height on the left side of the gas griddle and set it to medium-low speed. We heated the flat top griddle to 400 degrees in the middle and let the bacon cook until it was ready to turn over.

Testing the Blackstone griddle with wind from a fan

The Wind test setup for our Best Griddle 2023 roundup

Here's what we saw from each flat top griddle after we turned the bacon.

Composite of bacon cooked on the Traeger Flatrock, Grilla Grills Primate, Pit Boss, and LoCo Cookers in windy conditions

Wind coming from the right side of the flat top griddle

Composite of bacon cooked on the Traeger Flatrock, Grilla Grills Primate, Pit Boss, and LoCo Cookers in windy conditions

Wind coming from the left side of the griddle

The Grilla Primate, Traeger Flatrock, Halo Elite 4B and the Weber slate all passed the wind test with flying colors. I would cook in the wind with any of those models. The Grilla Primate had the best bacon cook this year followed by the Traeger Flatrock and the Halo Elite 4B.

The Blackstone struggled to cook the bacon closest to the fan, very similar to the cook we got from the Loco griddle. The Pit Boss was very much affected by the wind. The Camp Chef Gridiron showed us an even gradient from fully cooked at the farthest away to barely cooked closest to the fan.

Cooking Space

I’m sure you noticed there is a wide range of flat top griddle sizes in our comparison, with the largest being 37" and the smallest coming in at 28 inches. You can see the breakdown in griddle sizes here, but basically there’s a group of griddles that range from 28-31 inches, and another group that range between 36-37 inches.

chart showing the range of sizes of griddles

The Weber and Blackstone are also available in larger sizes as well as what you see here. 

So what’s the difference in capacity between a 28” and a 37” griddle? Let me show you in pancakes.

Download our Outdoor Griddle Cheat Sheet to see a side-by-side comparison of all 8 flat top grills!

Capacity

Melissa made a batch of her homemade buttermilk pancake recipe on each of these griddles to see how many standard size pancakes could fit, as well as if the grease drain impacted the capacity at all. We were able to fit 15- 1/4 cup size pancakes on the Blackstone, Traeger, and Weber.

Pancake capacity test

The larger griddles all comfortably fit 18 pancakes with no trouble at all.

Pancake capacity test

Cooking Height

Cooking height is something to strongly consider if you’re very tall, or more on the petite side. Melissa is 5’2” and I’m 5’11” so what’s comfortable for me probably feels too high for her and vice versa. There's about an 8 inch difference in cooking height between these models, with the Loco having the highest cooking position at 40 inches and the Blackstone with the lowest cooking height at 32 and a half inches high.

chart showing the height of all 8 outdoor griddles

Low temperature test

We get a lot of questions about how low of a temperature each flat top griddle can run, so we tested each griddle using the Thermoworks IR Gun and the Pro Surface Thermapen. The Pro Surface Thermapen has a flat swivel tip on the end designed for flat surfaces, and was perfect for this test as long as we stayed under 572 degrees. Once we got over that, I switched to the IR Gun which can handle over 1,000 degrees.

We ran each griddle on low for 15 minutes and even though I felt that 15 minutes was a fair test, in reality, if I'm cooking for a crowd, I want my griddle to continue to run low as long as I'm cooking, so I let the test run all the way to the 30 minute mark, and here's how the numbers changed for each griddle. 

The Loco had the lowest consistent temperature of the testing group by almost 100 degrees at 247.5 degrees. At the 30 minute mark, it actually went down about 10 degrees in temperature, so there’s amazing low temperature control with the Loco. The Halo Elite 4B had the highest low temperature at 469 degrees, and at the 30 minute mark, it was 540 degrees.

temperature test chart

Download our Outdoor Griddle Cheat Sheet to see a side-by-side comparison of all 8 flat top grills!

High Temperature Test

At this point, the griddles were already warmed up, so it seemed logical to run a high temperature test and see how hot these guys would get if I gave them 15 minutes set to full power. The graph above shows the highest average temperature measured across the entire griddle surface for each griddle in the testing group.

The Weber Slate takes the prize for a high temperature of 650 degrees, almost 200 degrees hotter than the high of 480 degrees for the Loco Series II.

Ambient Temperature Test

I also wanted to test the temperatures around the flat top griddle to see how hot it got where we stood as well as how hot it gets on each of the side shelves while cooking. We ran this test alongside the lowest and highest temperature test, so for the first 30 minutes the griddle was set to low, and for the last 15 minutes, it was set as high as it would go. 

During our testing, the Loco side shelves were the least affected by the griddle heat, staying under 114° for the entire 45 minutes.

The Camp Chef Gridiron shelves were the most affected, reaching temperatures as high as 200° when set to high.

Download our Outdoor Griddle Cheat Sheet to see a side-by-side comparison of all 8 flat top grills!

The Results of Our Flat Top Grill Testing

Best Flat Top Grill: Traeger Flatrock

Traeger flat top grill

Griddle Feature

Measurement

Cooking Surface

594 square inches

Cooking Height

37.5"

Number of Burners

3-burner 43,500 BTUs

Warranty

5 years

What we like:

  • We absolutely love the side shelves on the Traeger Flatrock. They are nice and huge when you want them, but fold down easily when you don't. They can also utilize the Traeger pop and lock system for additional storage, though we don't have any of those accessories to demonstrate.
  • The grease bucket on the Flatrock uses the same grease bucket liners used in their pellet grills, so it's substantial in size, which we appreciate. We also love that it's secured nicely under the griddle top and will not be collecting rainwater when the griddle is left uncovered.
  • The griddle is recessed, meaning that this flat top performs flawlessly on a windy day.
  • During our bread test the Flatrock demonstrated even cooking from front to back and side to side.
  • We absolutely love the idea of the propane tank sensor that will help you understand how much propane is left in the tank.
  • There are baffle plates between the burners allowing for 3 distinct zones of cooking.
  • Traeger offers a 5-year warranty on this flat top grill. That's impressive and confidence-boosting.

What we don't like:

  • We have never managed to get our propane tank sensor to work properly, even after multiple calls with customer service and new parts being installed.
  • We don't love the placement of the grease trap hole and find that it sometimes interferes with our cook.

If the Flatrock price is within your budget, you will not be disappointed with this griddle. You won't have to worry about the weather, there's tons of space to set stuff when you're cooking. You can cook in up to 3 different temperature zones. I don't know about you, but it checks all the boxes we're looking for in an outdoor griddle.

Best User Experience: Weber Slate

Weber Slate

Griddle Feature

Measurement

Cooking Surface

540 square inches

Cooking Height

36"

Number of Burners

3-burner 36,000 BTUs

Warranty

5 years

What we like:

  • I can't say enough good things about the prep and storage space on this Slate griddle. The side shelves are very sizeable and this model includes an extendable side table for even more space.
  • Below the bottom shelf are two plastic tubs with lids to store and protect all of your griddle tools and supplies from the weather.
  • The top of the right side shelf lifts out leaving a hole perfectly sized to hold the storage bins from below.
  • The griddle surface is silky smooth and already seasoned right out of the box.
  • During our bread test the Slate demonstrated even cooking from front to back and side to side.
  • The digital temperature display shows the temperature of the griddle surface.
  • The grease trap is protected from the weather and easy to clean out.
  • Weber offers a 5-year warranty on this flat top grill. 

What we don't like:

  • Nothing even comes to mind.

My favorite thing about the Weber Slate is that the griddle top comes seasoned right out of the box. There’s no coating, so metal utensils are good to go. I really like the bin system underneath providing extra space for storage and the accessory options that can be purchased for the side shelves. I can tell that the people who designed this griddle actually cook on griddles, because the functionality of space was spot on.

Best Griddle Combo: Grilla Grills Primate

The Grilla Grills Primate is a regular gas grill and griddle combo with high quality stainless steel construction

Griddle Feature

Measurement

Cooking Surface

490 square inches

Cooking Height

36.5"

Number of Burners

4-burner 60,000 BTUs

Warranty

4 years

What we like:

  • The Grilla Grills Primate is both a gas griddle and a gas grill in one box. The griddle easily pulls out to replace with stainless steel grill grates. There's even a 2/3 griddle available so that you can have griddle and grill options in place simultaneously if you want.
  • This is the only fully stainless steel cart and lid in the bunch and this unit is solid.
  • The griddle is recessed, protecting the burners from wind so we were able to achieve an even cook on the bacon even with a fan blowing from the side.
  • The 4 year warranty from Grilla Grills gives buyers additional confidence in their purchase.
  • The Primate can easily convert to a built-in griddle with Grilla Grills outdoor kitchen modular pieces.
  • The Grilla Grills Primate gives a pretty even cook from front to back and side to side.
  • It includes a paper towel holder.

What we don't like:

  • The Primate gives us the smallest cooking area out of all the griddles.

If you're trying to decide between a gas grill and a griddle because you only have room for one, the answer is quite simply: Grilla Grills Primate. In my opinion most combo grills fall under "Jack-of-all-trades-master-of-none" but the Primate is definitely an exception. Grilla Grills builds high-quality outdoor cooking appliances and in the case of the Primate, you get two for the price of one.

Read our full Grilla Grills Primate review.

Best Budget Griddle: Camp Chef Gridiron

Camp Chef Gridiron

Griddle Feature

Measurement

Cooking Space

634 square inches

Cooking Height

36"

Number of Burners

4-burner 48,000 BTUs

Warranty

1 year

What we like:

  • The price is very affordable.
  • It is very spacious with 634 square inches of space to cook.
  • This flat-top offers pretty even heat distribution from front to back.
  • The removable grease trap is protected from the elements, safely stored underneath the gas griddle.
  • The side shelves are spacious and can expand functionality with the addition of the magnetic accessories.

What we don't like:

  • The Gridiron seems to be impacted by wind as was evidenced (on purpose) during the bacon test and (on accident) during the bread test.
  • The side shelves get very hot while this flat top grill is in operation.

The Camp Chef Gridiron really punches above its weight class. It’s currently priced at only $499 with performance to match griddles hundred’s of dollars more. This is definitely a great option to consider if you're looking for something under $500.

Best Built-In Griddle: Le Griddle "The Ranch Hand"

Le Griddle flat top grill utilizes a stainless steel griddle plate with a cast iron plate fused to the under side

Griddle Feature

Measurement

Cooking Space

464 square inches

Fuel

propane or natural gas

Number of Burners

2 U-shaped burners 18,000 BTUs

Warranty

5 years

What we like:

  • Le Griddle uses 304 Stainless steel construction all throughout.
  • There is a large cast iron plate welded to the bottom of the stainless steel griddle that helps with heat distribution.
  • The removable grease tray sits at the front of the griddle, not interfering at all with the cooking surface.
  • Cleaning the stainless steel griddle is simply done by dropping ice cubes on the hot surface and allowing the steam to break loose the cooked particles.
  • There is a 5-year warranty on the burners and a lifetime warranty on the stainless steel.
  • A cart is available for purchase if you aren't planning on building it into an outdoor kitchen.
  • Though there are ventilation holes along each side, the burners are largely protected from the wind.

What we don't like:

  • The lid must be purchased separately.

We've been using our Le Griddle 30" gas griddle in our outdoor kitchen for about 3 years now. We use it all the time, probably 4-5 times a week, easily. I have utmost confidence that this griddle will last the long haul out there and when you install appliances in an outdoor kitchen you want products that will last. If you're planning to build an outdoor kitchen, I can't recommend the Le Griddle enough for your built-in griddle.

Be sure to use the code: BBQLAB to get a free gift with purchase

Download our Outdoor Griddle Cheat Sheet to see a side-by-side comparison of all 8 flat top grills!

Halo Elite 4B Outdoor Griddle

The Halo Elite Outdoor griddle has an innovative rear grease management system

Griddle Feature

Measurement

Cooking Space

720 square inches

Cooking Height

37.25"

Number of Burners

4-burner 48,000 BTUs

Warranty

5 years

What we like:

  • We love the rear grease management system that doesn't interfere at all with the cooking surface.
  • We REALLY love the spatula squeegee in the grease trap where you can scrape the residue off of your spatula and the debris will just fall into the grease bucket.
  • The griddle separates from the cart pretty easily to make this a portable flat-top grill.
  • This was probably the easiest of the 8 griddles to assemble.
  • The side shelves are pretty large and have grooves where the Halo griddle tools can stick to them magnetically.
  • It includes a level and a magnetic wrench to adjust the wheels so you can always make sure that your Halo griddle is level before lighting it up.
  • There is a warming rack built into the lid of the griddle.
  • The griddle is recessed, protecting the burners from exposure to the wind so we were able to achieve an even cook even when a fan was directly blowing on it.
  • Halo offers a 5 year warranty that is certainly impressive.

What we don't like:

  • While the grease bucket is somewhat covered, it still is exposed and would certainly collect rainwater if left out.
  • This griddle has consistently run hot for us as we've used it over the last year. It can be difficult to do lower temperature cooking for very long.

Blackstone Omnivore 28"

Blackstone Omnivore

Griddle Feature

Measurement

Cooking Surface

524 square inches

Cooking Height

32.5"

Number of Burners

2-burner 24,000 BTUs

Warranty

1 year

What we like:

  • This Blackstone griddle model comes with ample storage, not only in the form of a cabinet but more importantly drawers. We love all the extra space to store griddle tools and accessories when not in use.
  • We love the location of the grease trap and that it doesn't really take away from the usable cooking surface of the griddle.
  • The side shelves both have tool hooks and the ability to slide on additional accessories to add features.
  • This is a very affordable option for anyone working with a limited budget and looking for a smaller griddle .

What we don't like:

  • The grease bucket is exposed to the elements so it will collect rainwater if the griddle is left uncovered.
  • We were surprised by the uneven heating of the cooking surface. It was clearly much hotter in the center than the outer edges of the griddle surface.
  • The Blackstone griddle struggles to cook evenly in windy conditions.

LoCo Cookers 36" Griddle Series II

LoCo Cookers 36" Gas Griddle

Griddle Feature

Measurement

Cooking Space

738 square inches

Cooking Height

40"

Number of Burners

3-burner 46000 BTUs

Warranty

1 year

What we like:

  • The side shelves are nice and large, just the way I like them, with plenty of room to hold everything I need for my cook.
  • The digital knobs are cool, but more importantly, the temperature regulation technology in the burners is impressive and not typically seen in outdoor griddles.
  • I love that the grease bucket is completely tucked into the cabinet cart, protected from the elements.
  • There are baffle plates between the burners to separate the different cooking zones.
  • We love the large wheels that make this a breeze to move around.
  • Not only does it come with a paper towel holder tucked under the left shelf, but there is also an arm that secures the paper towel from unraveling.

What we don't like:

  • The grease trap hole is quite small and can be tricky to get all the grease and debris to exit the griddle top.
  • We were not able to achieve an even cook from front to back and side to side.
  • The LoCo gas griddle only comes with a 1-year warranty. With the additional technology built into this model, that makes me a little uneasy.

Pit Boss Deluxe 5 Burner

Pit Boss Deluxe 5 burner griddle

Griddle Feature

Measurement

Cooking Space

750 square inches

Cooking Height

34"

Number of Burners

5-burner 62,000 BTUs

Warranty

2 years

What we like:

  • It's pretty clever the way the side shelves double as the lid, offering a lot of prep space when cooking.
  • With a cooking surface 37" across, this griddle has a nice and big cooking capacity.
  • This griddle did a nice job keeping the surface temperature under 400° during our low temperature test.

What we don't like:

  • This Pit Boss gas griddle doesn't perform well on a windy day.
  • The Pit Boss Deluxe struggled to cook evenly showing a particularly hot streak across the middle of the surface.
  • The grease cup is exposed to the elements when the griddle is closed.

How To Choose The Best Flat Top Griddle For You

We did a full week of testing 8 griddles and in the process, we were able to conclude what our favorite (or favorites) were from the bunch. The thing is, we don't necessarily use outdoor gas griddles the same way you might. And the things we care about might be different from the things you care about. So you and I might look at the exact same data and reach different conclusions about which flat-top we prefer.

Here are a few questions we recommend asking to help you decide which griddle is right for you.

How much cooking area do I need?

Outdoor gas griddles come in a variety of sizes and it can be difficult to decide what the perfect size might be for you. You don't want to go too big and have a cooking appliance that takes up too much patio space, but you also don't want to go too small, limiting what you can cook on your new griddle.

Before you commit to a particular griddle size, I recommend making a list of 5-10 foods or meals you plan on cooking on your griddle. Does your list consist of mostly single-course foods or do you find that you're wanting to cook full meals?

In our experience, we often run out of space when cooking a full meal on a griddle, so more space is better for us.

What is the heat source for a flat-top grill?

Most flat-top grills on the market are heated by propane or natural gas burners below the griddle surface. These burners can come in all shapes, sizes, and BTUs.

Sometimes the arrangement of burners results in hot spots and cold spots that present challenges when cooking. Other times the arrangement is just right for even cooking front to back and side to side.

When shopping for your next outdoor gas griddle, take a look under the hood to see what the burner situation is.

How is grease managed?

Flat-top cooking often produces grease and food debris that needs a place to go, so manufacturers have designed their griddles to channel grease into some type of removable grease tray. The location of the grease trap varies from griddle to griddle; some in the front, and some in the back. As you compare each grease management system here are some things to consider:

  1. How much cooking surface is lost to the grease trap and does it look like food might accidentally get lost down that hole while cooking? There's nothing worse than accidentally knocking a shrimp down the grease trap.
  2. Is the removable grease tray exposed to the elements? If the griddle is left uncovered and it rains, will the grease tray collect rainwater?
  3. What's the capacity of the grease tray? Will it need to be emptied after every cook?

How will the flat-top grill perform in windy conditions?

Not all outdoor gas griddles perform equally in windy conditions. Many griddles are built with a gap between the griddle surface and the burners below for airflow. These griddles struggle to perform well in windy conditions.

There are some flat-top grills available with a recessed griddle surface, protecting the burners from exposure to the wind. These flat-top griddles perform equally regardless of the wind.

I highly recommend choosing an outdoor griddle that will perform well on a windy day.

How much prep and storage space will I need?

Griddle cooking is typically hot and fast. Emphasis on the fast.

It is important to have all your ducks in a row before you start cooking because you can't generally leave your food on the hot griddle surface and run back inside to grab something. Not only do you need to have all your ingredients and cooking utensils ready, but you also need to have your clean dish or dishes to transfer the cooked food into when it's done cooking.

This is why sufficient shelf space is absolutely critical in my opinion. Unless you want to have to set up a table every time you cook on your griddle, your griddle shelves need to be able to accommodate the tools and ingredients for the job.

Do I need to season my outdoor gas griddle before I use it?

Most carbon steel outdoor griddles will need to be seasoned before use unless clearly labeled "pre-seasoned" in the manual. Stainless steel griddle surfaces do not require seasoning.

The seasoning process will help your griddle develop a non-stick cooking surface as well as help protect your griddle from rust, extending the life of your flat-top grill.

What griddle care and maintenance is required?

Treat your carbon steel griddle surface the same way you would your favorite cast iron pan. Season it with oil (several layers) before first use, don't wash with soap, but instead, use water and an abrasive scrub tool to remove any food debris, and reseason with oil after each use. Failure to reseason your griddle surface after each use may result in rust developing.