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Large external A baking tray can change the look of summer. The best flat grills can make dinner look like an event to be proud of. What’s a more satisfying sound than the smack of a spoon on chopped onions and rib eye Dedicated to the perfect cheesesteak? Blister cornflakes cooked in the fat left by badly burned carne asada? Smashing a burger at a backyard barbecue? Is the blessed evenness of pancakes cooked on a well-seasoned griddle plate? All you need is a great tray to set you up for success.
The outdoor gas griddle is the essential backyard counterpart to the satisfying direct heat of a high-performance charcoal or wood-burning grill – adding all the versatility of your favorite diner to your sunny-day arsenal. I spent months cooking dozens of burgers, pulled pork, tacos, and pancakes to find the best outdoor griddle for every type of backyard cookout. Now, I find myself using the grill more than the classic grill.
My top rating Traeger Flatrock ($1000) It delivers the most consistent and reliable heat of all the cars I’ve tested, and it feels like a Cadillac idling in the yard. Meanwhile, the four burners are rust-resistant Weber Slate 36-inch ($1,049) It provides a spacious cooking surface, an easier seasoning process, and the best set of features to build your flattop grill into a true workstation. For those keeping to a lower budget, my best recommendation is to just downsize your Weber. Agreement The 28-inch Weber Slate is the best at $798superior to lower-cost brands whose durability is less guaranteed.
For more outdoor cooking routines, check out WIRED’s guide to Best pizza ovens, Best smokeless fire pitsand Best cast iron skillets.
Updated May 2026: Added a 28-inch Weber Slate, a Solo Stove Stainless Grill, and a 22-inch Weber Slate Portable Grill. I moved the LoCo 36-inch baking pan to honorable mentions. I’ve also added context and updates on how the network is performing over time and made sure links and prices are up to date.
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Best grill overall
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Photo: Matthew Corvage
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Photo: Matthew Corvage
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Trager
Flatrock 33 Inch 3 Zone Grill
Wired
- The most even heat on any stove I’ve tested
- Sturdy construction and wind shield
- Wide cooking surface
exhausted
- The side tables do not have hooks for utensils
- The temperature reaches 600 degrees
I grew up in Oregon, where Treasure was also born. Even after she sold the company and moved to Utah, A.J Trigger grill or smoker In the backyard remained a source of aspiration and pride for those who raised me – a sign that you are living right and doing well. Flatrock’s sturdy, three-zone tray creates the same look.
The perpetual enemy of stovetop grills is uneven heat, a byproduct of the amount of thermal energy required to heat thick steel or iron plates. The Traeger, like every flattop grill I’ve tried, is designed to provide impressively even heat distribution despite the thickness of its burner. The secret is the three U-shaped burners that essentially double the heat sources under the thick, thermally conductive carbon steel. Flatrock also gives tight temperature control between zones and a wind shield above and below the burners. In my year of cooking, I have never had a fire. There’s barely a hotspot, with less than a 20-degree difference across the main cooking space. This means easy seasoning on the grill for beautifully browned patties; Burgers that are cooked the same way over the entire surface; And easy to regulate the temperature between vegetables, meat, cakes and tortillas.
The Flatrock is large, solidly built, and doesn’t shake or wobble. It installs quickly with the wheels mounted on its wheels. If you keep it plugged in, there is a useful additional feature that allows you to check the filling status of your propane tank. It doesn’t get very hot (it registers below 600°F), which isn’t ideal if you’re trying to get super-fast grilling on a smashburger, but the temperature remains beautifully stable for a more dignified grilling of fish or steak.