Natural gas is one of the most common methods of grilling, and it’s easy to see why. Natural gas grills have none of the hassles associated with charcoal, they are relatively easy to light, you have more control over their heat distribution, they burn cleaner, and fuel costs are lower than charcoal. And unlike propane grills, natural gas grills hook directly to your home gas system so you don’t have to worry about running out of juice in the middle of a grilling session. Also, natural gas fuel costs are lower than propane as you don’t have to constantly replace the tanks.
The only downside of natural gas grilling is that it’s not portable, you must have a natural gas line to provide fuel for the burners. So, if you have access to a natural gas line, and you’re looking for a new gas grill, choosing a natural gas grill is a complete no-brainer. It’s certainly more convenient and less expensive than using a propane or charcoal grill.
We’ve created a detailed guide to help you find the best natural gas grill that fits your needs and style. We’ll walk you through it with a review of the things you’ll want to consider when comparing natural gas grills and their features. What size grill do you need? How many burners do you need? and what cooking grid and flame tamers are best for you?
But before we go deeper, let’s take a look at our picks of the best natural gas BBQ grills available. They were chosen because of their quality, craftsmanship, and features surpass every other natural gas grill model.
Best Natural Gas Grills to Buy: Weber Natural Gas Grills
After many hours of researching, we’ve decided that Weber’s Natural Gas Grills are the best natural gas grills for most people. They’re UNBEATABLE when it comes to the combination of durability, reliability, and competitive price. Natural gas grills from Weber are also known for with the convenience of a wide grilling area, excellent heat retention and even cooking to give you a superior grilling experience. They also give you a maximum control over the heat and can create a natural convection of air flow.
Designed intelligently with attention to details and built to last, Weber natural gas grills look good, work beautifully, and will LAST FOREVER. Weber’s natural gas grills are very durable and will last long so you won’t have to replace them every few years (Weber offers a 10-year warranty for all of its full-sized gas grill models). As you can see when searching on Amazon, Weber is dominating the gas grilling market in almost every segment, from economy to medium-priced to premium luxury; with the average rating of all the models is above 4 stars.
We’re not Weber’s employees and didn’t get paid to say good about them, but we must admit that Weber gas grills are really really good. There is no better choice, at least at this time. So if you’re looking for a natural gas grill that will help you to cook delicious food at home, a Weber natural gas grill is the best way to go.
Weber offers a wide selection of natural gas grills that complement every lifestyle, they are available in four main series: Weber Spirit II, Genesis II, Genesis II LX, and Summit.
#1. Weber Spirit II Natural Gas Grills
The Spirit II is the most economical Weber natural gas grill and good for basic grilling. It is available in 2 models: Spirit II E-210 and Spirit II E-310. The Spirit II E-310 natural gas grill is more popular and it’s by far the most popular natural gas grill on the market. The main difference between these two models is moving from 2 to 3 burners for more BTU and a slightly bigger grilling area. If you grill infrequently or basically, then the Spirit II is the best choice grill. It is very good quality and will last far longer than the cheaper natural gas grills.
#2. Weber Genesis II Natural Gas Grills
If you’re looking for a grill that’ll crank things up a notch, the Genesis II series is the way to go. Genesis II is higher quality and more expensive than the Spirit II. There are four models: 2-burner, 3-burner, 4-burner and 6-burner ranging from 26,000 to 60,000 BTU and between 494 and 998 sq. in. cooking areas.
The Genesis II is perfect for everyday grilling. It has a better system and performs more consistently in terms of heat and ignition than the Spirit II. But it does not have cabinet doors. So, you should clean the grease trays often as they will be exposed to animals.
#3. Weber Genesis II LX Natural Gas Grills
The Genesis II LX is an upgrade from the Genesis II adding: more BTU and cooking area than the equivalent Genesis II, doors below for storage area, 12,000 BTU side burners for boiling corns or sauces. It has stainless grates instead of porcelain, so it can never chip and corrode. There are four models: 2-burner, 3-burner, 4-burner and 6-burner ranging from 26,000 to 60,000 BTU and between 360 and 720 sq. in. cooking areas.
#4. Weber Summit Natural Gas Grills
The Summit Natural Gas Grill is Weber’s top-of-the-line gas grill. The Summit’s cooking system (burners, flavorizer bars, and beefy cooking grids) are all stainless steel. Along with the durable cooking system, there are several convenient features not found on other Weber natural gas grills that separate the Summit as the best. The Summit adds a Sear burner, a smoker burner box for adding wood chips for flavoring, a tuck-away rotisserie motor, and lighted control knobs.
If you’re a grill pro, the Summit is the best natural gas grill for you with many top-notch features that make BBQ grilling a breeze. It has great features like a professional style grill at less than half the price.
If you still don’t know which Weber gas grill model is best for your needs, check our Weber Grills Buying Guide. If you’ve decided not to go with a Weber natural gas grill, read on to find out your best natural gas grill.
How to Choose the Best Natural Gas Grill?
You’ll want to learn the basics of all things grill related before you decide which natural gas grill is best for you, so let’s break it down. Here are some things you’ll want to familiarize yourself with before buying a natural gas grill.
1) What size natural gas grill do I need?
One of the first things we like to find out is, what size natural gas grill do you need?
At first, people generally try to answer these questions with how many people will they be grilling for? Space, family size, and how many people you will regularly be cooking for are all important considerations when purchasing a natural gas grill. Are you cooking for a two-person family? A six-person family? Do you want to be able to host large outdoor parties and feed crowds of people? Are you using the grill in a corporate setting? The amount of people you will be grilling for is an important consideration which will help you determine the perfect-sized natural gas grill for your needs.
Natural gas grills are available in a wide range of different shapes and sizes. The best natural gas grills for you should be big enough to accommodate all you want to cook.
How many burners do you need?
Small natural gas grills typically contain 2 to 3 burners, such as the Weber Spirit II E-210 Natural Gas, can cook up to 18 burgers at a time and are suitable for a two to four person family.
A mid-size natural gas grill will have around 4-5 burners, such as the Broil King Regal S420 Pro, can cook between 18 to 30 burgers at a time and work best for larger families four to six person. This is the most widely sold grill size in North America.
Large natural gas grills contain six or more burners, such as the Weber Summit S-670 Natural Gas Grill, can cook more than 30 burgers at a time and work best for big families and entertaining purposes. These grills usually have the biggest cooking areas and typically cost more than $1000.
But you also should try to keep in mind that the more burners you have, the more versatility. And by that we mean if you have a nice wide grill, even if you’re only cooking for a couple of people, if you want to cook indirectly, possibly smoke on your natural gas grill, you’ll need more space for that. So also keep those kinds of things in mind when looking at the number of burners in a grill.
How much grill real estate do you need?
The size of a natural gas grill is also measured in square inches and can range anywhere from 380 square inches to more than 1000 square inches main cooking area. This is also an important thing to take into account before you buy. The larger the cooking area, the more food you can cook at a time. Ask yourself these questions when considering:
- Do you frequently cook for large crowds?
- Do you want to be able to cook a 20-pound turkey?
- Do you usually cook just a few burgers or pieces of chicken?
2) What type of burner system do I want?
Material
First and foremost, the best natural gas grill must have the burners that are made out of high-grade stainless steel. Any other material will not hold up well and should be avoided (unless you are looking at infrared cooking systems).
Stainless steel burners are not only high in quality but also relatively low maintenance. Cast iron burners are a solid, but less popular choice when it comes to burner types. They’re durable; however, if they break down, can be costly to repair. Aluminized steel burners do a good job as well, and are less pricey; however, they won’t last nearly as long as cast iron or stainless steel burners.
All of the natural gas grill models we review in this article have the burners made from stainless steel.
Shape
There are many different burner shapes including bowties, H-shaped, E-shaped and tubes. They will all do a nice job of cooking as long as they are spaced to provide even heat across the entire cooking surface, can be independently controlled with at least two-control knobs, and are in proportion to the grill.
Infrared Burner
Infrared burners, also known as a searing burner or searing station, cook food using infrared radiant energy. An infrared burner heats up faster and burns hotter than a conventional burner. It’s used to grill at super high temperatures of 1000 to 1400 degrees Fahrenheit. Grilling at temperatures that high creates a series of chemical reactions that rapidly take place when proteins and sugars are super heated, also known as searing. This locks in essential juices and adds flavor to your meat.
Benefits of Infrared Burners:
- Direct heat – more efficient
- Faster pre-heat time
- Better searing
- Less wasted energy
- Higher cooking temperatures
So, should the best natural gas grill for me have an Infrared burner? Well, it all depends on how you cook. If you like to cook fast, then infrared is better. It is also better for steaks and meats in general.
You can buy a great natural gas grill without an infrared burner for much less money. If you only cook hotdogs and vegetables, a natural gas grill without an infrared burner could be right for you. If you do any sort of burgers or steaks, we recommend getting a model that has at least one infrared burner. We believe you will find the infrared burner ideal for direct-heat cooking.
The grill with infrared burner has made it possible to charbroil steaks and other types of barbecuing that could formerly only be done with commercial equipment. The infrared technology is easy to use and will have you barbecuing great tasting food in a fraction of the time that it takes with traditional gas and charcoal grills.
Most of the traditional grill companies now sell an infrared burner option in the normal burner position (with conventional burners in the rest of the grill).
They market these as “sear zones” and instruct their customers to sear the food on the infrared burner and move it over to the conventional burners to finish it. This is required for some manufacturers because their sear zones don��t have temperature control – they only work on “high”. Others have temperature controls, but they still instruct the cook to move the food over. While this works, it effectively reduces the cooking surface area of the grill by as much as ¼ to 1/2 of your cooking area depending on the number of burners.
For that reason, some natural gas grills have an infrared burner on one side and an Infrared Rotisserie Burner under the lid for saving cooking space.
The Weber Summit S-470 and the Napoleon Grills Prestige 500 are two of the best natural gas grills with an infrared burner available. If you’re looking for a natural gas grill with an infrared burner, these are the best choices.
Side Burner
One of the most under used pieces of outdoor cooking equipment is the side burner. Many grillers swear they need one, but never use it because they aren’t sure what to do with it or prefer to use their kitchen stove. But, when you’re grilling, the side burner is right there. You don’t have to go inside to cook corn or warm up beans on the stove or in the oven. The natural gas grill with side burner really is an essential and undervalued outdoor cooking tool.
Benefits of Having a Side Burner
- Maximize your time outside.
- Unless you’ve got a Fitbit and are trying to maximize your step count, the side burner will be a major improvement on your efficiency.
- With everything all in one place, you won’t have to worry about food burning while you’re inside or the pot boiling over while you’re outside.
- Anything you can cook on an indoor stove top element can be cooked on a barbecue side burner. Pot, pan, or wok, it can handle it.
- Perfect for making side dishes or sauces while grilling. Make bacon for your burgers at the same time!
- Avoid heating up the house forcing your A/C to kick in less.
- When the power goes out, you have a backup plan!
3) What’s Inside Matters?
The internal components of your natural gas grill are just as important as its burner system. The best natural gas grills are not only well designed but will also stand the test of time and not break down after the first grilling session.
Flame Tamers (sometimes call Flavorizer Bars)
The job of the flame taming system is to vaporize, or funnel away, juices and other drippings that fall from what you’re cooking before they can catch fire and cause flare-ups. In addition to this, the vaporized grease also adds to the flavor of your grilled meats and intensifies that mouthwatering aroma you get when you grill on the ‘cue. There’s nothing quite like it.
And just like burner shapes, there are many different methods used to tame flare-ups, including V-shaped stainless steel bars and ceramic grids. The most important thing to look for is that the flame tamer is directly over the burners, and that the burner is completely covered.
Cooking Grates
Cooking grates are the workhorse of your natural gas grill. They are exposed to the most wear and tear of any part of your barbecue and for that reason require to be made of very durable materials. The best natural gas grills should have cooking grates that are made of materials like individually welded stainless steel, porcelain-enameled steel or cast iron. All of these materials will work well as long as you clean them properly and take care of them. Keep in mind porcelain-enameled grates will rust if they get chipped.
Stainless steel cooking grates are best. They are often found on the higher-end models of natural gas grills (such as Weber Summit, Lynx, Napoleon Grills Prestige). Stainless steel grates are virtually rust-proof, easy to maintain, and spread the heat evenly.
Cast iron cooking grates heat up quickly and hold their heat extremely well. These are the types of grates that chefs use in restaurants (and they’re also where those much-coveted grill marks come from). Cast iron grates are often found on the regular natural gas grill models (such as Weber Spirit, Weber Genesis, Char-Broil, Broil King Signet series). However, cast iron grates require more maintenance than stainless steel grates.
Best Natural Gas Grill Reviews
#1. Weber Genesis II E-410 Natural Gas Grill Review – Best Overall
Let the four burners of this Weber Genesis II E-410 Natural Gas Grill take charge of your backyard entertaining. This popular mid-size grill combines the quality construction Weber is known for with the convenience of a wide grilling area, excellent heat retention and even cooking to give you a superior grilling experience. With many great features plus a 10-year warranty, and more importantly at a very reasonable price, this is probably the best natural gas grill you can buy.
The Genesis II E-410 is powered by the exclusive GS4 High-Performance Grilling System. GS4 is the core of all Genesis models. The GS4 grilling system is composed of four key components: The Infinity Ignition, High-Performance Burners, Flavorizer Bars, and Grease Management System.
These components ensure that every aspect of your grilling experience is easy and reliable; from the moment the burners are lit to the general maintenance of your grill. You can watch the following video to better understand how the GS4 system works.
Weber Genesis II Series Gas Grills | Video by Weber
The Genesis II E-410 natural gas grill has four stainless steel primary burners that cook evenly and efficiently with a total of 48,000 Btu of heat. The grill takes around eight minutes to reach a preheat temperature of 500 degrees, but because of its construction, it maintains a high temperature using less fuel than other natural gas grills.
The Genesis II E-410 does not include an infrared burner for rotisserie cooking or a side burner for cooking your toppings while you grill burgers or steaks.
The cooking grates are made of cast iron and coated with a porcelain enamel. They are wider than the traditional round bars on stainless steel grates. This design gives you wide, attractive sear marks on your food, and the narrow spaces between the bars decreases the chance of losing a burger between them. These cast-iron grates retain heat more efficiently and longer than a stainless steel grate, making this grill a better choice for slow cooking.
#2. Weber Spirit II E-310 Natural Gas Grill Review – Best Natural Gas Grill for Basic Grilling
The Weber Spirit II E-310 is the best natural gas grill for basic grilling. It’s a perfect grill for most families. With 424 square inches of primary cooking space, it can easily accommodate 12 large hamburgers, two whole or cut-up chickens, or a large cut like brisket for smoking. Its overall compact size suits almost any patio or deck, but its grilling surface is big enough to cook a complete meal for a family or a dozen burgers for a party. Plus, with durable all-weather wheels, an iGrill3 ready thermometer, and accessories like a flat top grill, grilling stone, and grill cover, this natural gas grill meets the many needs of BBQ enthusiasts.
The Weber Spirit II E-310 natural gas grill features Weber’s new GS4 grilling system consisting of their battery-powered Infinity Ignition, three 10,000 BTU stainless steel burners, and the porcelain enameled steel “flavorizer” bars and grease management system.
Although Spirit II is Weber’s entry-level natural gas grill line, it is still more expensive than many popular low-cost brands. However, most Spirit owners feel that Weber’s quality, durability, performance and customer service are worth it. Many other cheap models only last three to four years while Spirits can keep grilling for decades. All Weber Spirit II models come with a 10-year warranty.
#3. Broil King Signet 320 Natural Gas Grill Review – Best Cheap Natural Gas Grill
Broil King is an American grill brand. They produce many high-quality gas grills that you can count on for the utmost in performance and built with quality materials for years of durability. Broil King has grills for every budget yet the exceptional quality always remains the same. Broil King’s gas grills are completely manufactured in North American plants located in Huntington Indiana, Dickson Tennessee and Waterloo Ontario.
The Signet 320 Natural Gas Grill is the best entry-level natural gas grill offered by Broil King with tons of features. This grill gives you a 40,000 BTU main burner, 635 sq inches of total cooking space and heavy-duty cast iron cooking grids that are reversible to give you perfect grilling marks on one side and a grooved side to capture juices for basting all for a low price.
The Signet 320 Natural Gas Grill has three stainless steel Dual-Tube burners. Broil King has solved one of the major issues with natural gas grill burners where more of the gas is jettisoned to the back of the burner causing spots in your grill. They put a perforated tube inside your tube burner that allows the gas to burn evenly from front to back. The tubes are 1.25″ in diameter, other manufacturers generally have 1″ thick tubes.
The Flav-R-Wave cook system of the Signet 320 Natural Gas Grill gives you incredible flavor! In between the grates and the burners, the Flav-R-Wave system instantly vaporizes any juices that fall through protecting your burners and infusing the vapor back into your meat. Broil King’s heat deflectors are set at a 32° slope where other grills, like Weber, have a 54° slope and a lower slope means more vaporization of juices for more flavor!
#4. Weber Summit S-470 Natural Gas Grill Review – Best High-End Natural Gas Grill
From burgers on the grate to crispy chicken on the rotisserie, or even adding a touch of smoke to any dish, the Weber Summit S-470 Natural Gas Grill will exceed your expectations. The Summit S-470 is an expensive natural gas grill produced in the US with all parts (burners, flavorizer bars, and beefy cooking grids) are stainless steel.
Compared to Genesis II, the Summit is more for the specialty, gourmet griller.
For example, they both have a rotisserie (Genesis II is an accessory), but the Summit is better because it has a dedicated rotisserie burner on the top for more even cooking. The Summit offers the smoker box – which makes the grill a propane smoker. Equally, you have a sear station to add char marks to your meat. As for the Genesis II models, you do not have the ability of a dedicated sear.
As one of the best natural gas grills for experienced grillers, the Summit S-470 Natural Gas Grill has tons of features that will make you satisfied. The grill has four main burners at 12,200 BTU each, a 10,600 BTU sear burner in the center and a 12,000 BTU side burner. The primary cooking area is 468 square inches, and the removable warming rack is 112 square inches. There is a 10,600 BTU rear-mounted, infrared burner for the rotisserie. A smoker box with dedicated 6,800 BTU burner occupies the right side of the cooking area.
One of the most appealing features of the Summit S-470 natural gas grill is the “Tuck Away Rotisserie System” that needs an electric outlet. A rotisserie motor folds down into the left side shelf, flush with the surface. Pull a small latch and it pops up and snaps in place ready to roll. The spit is stored in the cart and accessed via an opening under the right side shelf. Rotisserie forks hang on hooks inside the cart. It’s easy to get up and running in no time flat.
#5. Dyna-Glo DGA480SSN-D 4-Burner Natural Gas Grill Review
One of the most economical natural gas grills on the market is the Dyna-Glo DGA480SSN-D 4-Burner Natural Gas Grill. It has 4 stainless steel burners which allow you to take advantage of approximately 48,000 BTUs of heat to cook your food. This incredible amount of heat is spread out over four large burners plus one side burner. The heat is then transferred to the porcelain enameled cast iron cooking grates that seamlessly and thoroughly cook your food to perfection every time, leaving no cold spots or undercooked food to speak of.
The Dyna-Glo DGA480SSN-D Natural Gas Grill is an excellent choice for the entire BBQ experience and with 667-square inches of cooking area, there’s enough space to grill for your family, friends, and neighbors. This grill comes with a reliable quick-start ignition button that can have your grill fired up in no time at all. Simply press the ignition button that comes on the grill to get it going.
We think you should opt the Dyna-Glo DGA480SSN-D if the price is something that drives you. This grill isn’t the best natural gas grill we reviewed. It isn’t as durable as the Weber but the quality is good and you can use it for many years to come. And if you opt this grill, you’d get an included protective grill cover that allows you to save your asset from any sort of water or moisture damage. This grill cover can resist water and help to stop the grill from rusting or corroding over time.
#6. Napoleon Grills Prestige 500 Natural Gas Grill Review
This is a basic, relatively expensive natural gas grill similar in many ways to the Weber Summit. Manufactured in Canada by Napoleon, the Napoleon Grills Prestige 500 Natural Gas Grill is one of the best natural gas grills available that is built to last and cook with a high, even heat. With 900 square inches of total cooking space and a capacity of up to 80,000 BTUs, this natural gas grill can truly enhance your barbecuing experience.
Equipped with six burners – four main burners, one infrared rear rotisserie burner, and one infrared side burner – you’ll be able to confidently grill platefuls of juicy burgers (grill up to 30 burgers over the main burners and up to 8 burgers over the infrared side burner) and flavourful vegetables for your guests in no time.
The Prestige 500 Series natural gas grill features a side sear zone that heats up to about 1,800 degrees Fahrenheit in seconds and is perfect for searing steaks. Once your steak is seared to perfection, toss it on the main grill and cook it over indirect heat to finish it off – just like the pros do. You can also use the side burner to sear your veggies, too.
The Prestige 500 Series natural gas grill is similar to the Weber Summit in many ways. Both grills have lighted knobs except Napoleon’s also illuminate the control panel for added light should you be grilling in the evening. In addition, Napoleon’s knobs have a safety glow feature and turn from blue to red when the burners are on.
Napoleon and Weber both have a stainless steel cooking system that includes heavy-gauge tube burners with crossover lighting, a stainless steel heat distribution system (Weber calls their Flavorizer bars while Napoleon deems theirs DUAL-LEVEL sear plates). Napoleon offers Stainless WAVE rod cooking grids while Weber’s is a traditional rod, both have rear infrared rotisserie burners and warming racks.
Like the Weber Summit S-470, the Napoleon Grills Prestige 500 is one of the best premium natural gas grills to buy. Both are the top models in their product line.
