Most small patios and townhouse decks can take a cart about 45 inches wide, and the Z Grills 450B is the best small pellet grill that fits in one. For about $450 in November 2026 it carries a full 18 lb hopper and 459 sq in of grate, and owners report it holding 250°F in freezing weather.
If you have a table and no floor, the Traeger Ranger at about $480 is the tabletop to buy. With more to spend, the Weber Smoque is the best small smoker and the Searwood 600 is the best small grill that also sears.
Small means one of two things here: a cart under about 46 inches wide, or a tabletop you can put away. Wherever I could, I kept to grills with real hoppers, because the thing that sours people on a small pellet smoker is a 7 lb hopper that runs dry before the pork butt stalls. The full rankings cover grills of every size, and the portable list is for grills that leave the house.
How the small grills were chosen
I have not cooked the same chicken on all six of these. The picks come from manufacturer specs, retailer listings, owner reports and our test plan, and this page will be updated with dates and numbers when hands-on results land.
Footprint came first, then hopper size, then controller, then grate. A small grill with a big hopper is what most people need, which is why the 450B and the Smoque rank above tabletops that cost more per square inch. Prices are from November 2026 and move with the pellet grill sale calendar.
Small grills by size and capacity
| Grill |
Type |
Footprint |
Grate |
Hopper |
Top temp |
| Z Grills 450B |
Cart |
about 45 in wide |
459 sq in |
18 lb |
450°F |
| Traeger Pro 22 |
Cart |
about 41 in wide |
572 sq in |
18 lb |
450°F |
| Weber Smoque |
Cart |
compact Weber cart |
594 sq in |
20 lb |
500°F |
| Weber Searwood 600 |
Cart |
a two-burner gas grill’s space |
648 sq in |
20 lb |
600°F |
| Traeger Ranger |
Tabletop |
60 lb box |
176 sq in |
8 lb |
450°F |
| Pit Boss FB2 150 |
Tabletop |
43 lb box |
256 sq in |
7 lb |
500°F plus flame broiler |
The Pro 22 squeezes the most grate into the least width, and gives up PID control to do it. The 450B is the better cooker for 4 more inches.
Measuring your space before you buy
Measure with both lids in mind. A pellet grill’s main lid swings up and back and the hopper lid opens on the side, so a 45 inch cart needs about 50 inches of room to work around. Then check the manual’s clearance-to-combustibles figure for walls, railings and siding, because a small deck tempts people to push the grill right up against the house.
For a tabletop, the table has to take 60 lb plus a hot bottom panel. A metal table or a heat-resistant board under the grill is the safe setup, with a drip tray beneath the grease outlet.
Watch out: Vinyl siding warps from radiant heat well before anything catches fire. Keep the back of the grill and the exhaust away from the house, however tight the deck is.
What to look for in a small pellet grill
Hopper size. This is where small grills go wrong. An 8 lb hopper gives about six hours at 225°F, and an 18 lb hopper gets a pork butt through the night. If you want to smoke anything bigger than ribs, buy the small cart grill with the big hopper over the tabletop. The pellet calculator tells you how long a hopper lasts for your cook.
Temperature range. Most small grills top out at 450°F, which roasts a chicken and crisps wings if you finish hot, but won’t sear a steak. The Pit Boss tabletop gets around that with a flame broiler plate, and the Searwood 600 reaches 600°F.
Controller type. PID on the 450B, the Ranger, the Smoque and the Searwood. The Pro 22 and the Pit Boss use older controllers that swing more, and a 25°F swing hurts more in a small box because there is less steel and air to even it out.
Grate area. 176 sq in fits a rack of ribs cut in half. 459 sq in fits two racks and a chicken. 572 sq in on two levels fits a packer brisket and a butt, with the butt on top. A small grate is fine for two people and painful for a party.
Warranty. Weber and Pit Boss give five years, Traeger and Z Grills three. The igniter is the part that fails on small grills, and it is a cheap part on all of them.
Wind and cold on a small grill
A small grill has less steel and less air inside, so a 15 mph wind on a 40°F morning can drop a thin tabletop 30°F or more while the controller runs the auger hard to catch up. Set the grill against a wall out of the wind and expect to burn about a third more pellets in winter than in July. A thermal blanket on the Z Grills, or a windbreak around the Ranger, takes care of most of it.
When a small pellet grill won’t work
If your balcony has no outlet, none of these work. If your building bans open flame, assume it bans pellet grills too until the property manager says otherwise in writing. And if you cook for two and mostly grill, a small gas grill is cheaper and faster, and pellet grill vs gas grill explains the trade.
Small pellet grill questions
What is the smallest pellet grill that can smoke a brisket?
The Z Grills 450B. A trimmed 10 to 12 lb packer fits its 459 sq in grate, and the 18 lb hopper gets it through the night at 225°F. The brisket recipe covers the timing. A tabletop will take a flat, not a packer.
Can I use a small pellet grill on an apartment balcony?
Only if your lease and building allow it, and many don’t because of the smoke. If they do, a tabletop like the Ranger on a metal table with a drip tray under it is the safest setup.
Tabletop pellet grill or small cart grill?
Buy a tabletop only if it will actually get stored or moved. For the same $400 to $500, a cart grill gives you more than twice the grate and twice the hopper. The portable pellet grill list is where tabletops make sense.
Should I buy small or go bigger?
Buy for the cook you do most weekends, not the party you host once a year. A 450 sq in grill with an 18 lb hopper covers a family, and if you host every month, go to the main best pellet grill list and look at 800 sq in.