Z Grills and Pit Boss Grills are both well-known for being very budget-friendly, yet promising great features.
Since the grills from both these brands are relatively cheaper than other smokers present in the market, it’s safe to assume that they lack many features of expensive grills.
They might not have fancy digital controls, or a construction that features double insulation. But in the price that they come in, they still offer a great deal.
We’re here to help you pick one of these two brands for your next grill purchase.
Camp Chef Vs. Traeger – A Comparison
You may assume that since these brands fall on the cheaper spectrum of grills available today, they might not be upto mark.
That’s not true at all – in fact, we’ve used these brands and our money was well-spent.
In fact, if they have any shortcomings, you can easily get rid of them by purchasing the right smoker accessories for them.
| Features | Z Grills | Pit Boss |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Construction | Durable, offers a choice between fully powder-coated, and powder-coated plus stainless steel construction | Durable, fully powder-coated constructions (newer series have platinum construction) |
| 2. Cooking space | 450 to 1000 square inches | 250 to 2000 square inches |
| 3. Pellet hopper size | 8, 16, and 20 pounds | More or less than 18 pounds, a few can accommodate 55 pounds |
| 4. Portability | Portable | Portable |
| 5. Waterproof grill cover | Included | Not included |
| 6. Temperature range | 180 to 450 degrees Fahrenheit | 180 to 500 degrees Fahrenheit |
| 7. Temperature control | Easy and automated (PID-style) | Easy and automated |
| 8. Meat probes | 2 included | 1 included |
| 9. Direct flame access | Present | Present |
| 10. WiFi | Not included | Only included in one recent model |
| 11. Running time | 13 hours (low and slow), 6 hours (grilling) | 13 hours (low and slow), 6 hours (grilling) |
| 12. Price | Budget-friendly | Budget-friendly |
| 13. Warranty | 3 years | 5 years |
| 14. Manufacturing country | Based in USA with a warehouse in California, manufactured in China | Based in USA, manufactured in China |
| Visit Z Grills’ Website. | Visit Pit Boss’ Website. |
Everything You Need to Know About Z Grills
Z Grills was established in 2017, and gained popularity pretty quickly because of their strong campaigns.
Since they are a recently established brand that also features low prices for their grills, you might think they’re not the best brand out there.
However, the truth behind this company is that its founders have been working for much bigger companies for many years, helping them design their grills.
Hence, it’s safe to say that you can trust them with their designs and approach. In fact, you’ll be glad to hear that if you do have any complaints (which we’re sure you won’t – at least we didn’t!) they’ll be more than eager to hear you out.
The company has its headquarters in the US, with a warehouse in California, but their manufacturing process takes place in China.
Our Pick
Z Grills Flame Elite 600D3E
A rather lightweight smoker, in just 81 pounds, the Flame Elite 600D3E can provide you all the perks of the heavier alternatives it has in the market.
The price of this smoker might be low, but it has been designed to be as convenient for its users as any expensive grill. It features the new digital PID control board and advanced technology for taking precise temperatures.
It uses 100% natural hardwood pellets for its fuel, and works on the fan-forced convection cooking method.
Most grills have an upper temperature limit of 500 degrees Fahrenheit, and can reach 650 degrees Fahrenheit on an open flame. However, the Flame Elite 600D3E can reach a temperature of 750 degrees Fahrenheit on direct heat!
This is a durable smoker that has a construction of heavy duty steel, and even features a stainless steel lid.
Everything You Need to Know About Pit Boss
Unlike Z Grills, Pit Boss Grills entered the market in 1999. They were one of the earliest companies to join the competition for grills as soon as Traeger’s patent expired.
You might want to check out the shared features and distinct differences between Pit Boss and Traeger as well.
Since it’s very beginning, the company has focused on making affordable smokers that neither lack in quality, nor their size and capacity.
Although they established as a company for designing smokers, they have since expanded their manufacturing process to products like propane and charcoal barbecues.
Despite a shift in interest, they have not forgotten their aim to produce ‘bigger, hotter, heavier’ grills and smokers.
Like most other companies today, they’re based in the US but manufacture all their products in China.
Our Pick
Pit Boss Austin XL Wood Pellet Grill
The Austin XL Wood Pellet Grill is one of the highest rated grills designed by Pit Boss.
Despite being budget-friendly, this smoker offers an easy-to-use LED control panel that also features automatic start and shut down options.
This is a 178 pounds wood pellet grill, with heavy duty steel construction, that comes with porcelain-coated grid construction. It has a total cooking space of 930 square inches – which really is big in our opinion.
It also includes a high temperature copper finished, embossed lid, along with a removable and stainless-steel side shelf.
The product uses fan-forced convection cooking to make your meat juicy, tender, and extremely flavorful.
With this 8-in-1 grill, you can cook your food on an open flame as well. This allows you to cook your meat at a temperature even higher than the 500 degrees Fahrenheit upper limit on it!
A Side-By-Side Comparison
Construction
Pit Boss designs highly durable pellet grills that have been fully powder-coated. In their latest models, they even introduced platinum construction for their grills.
However, Z Grills takes a win when it comes to great construction.
This is because they offer you to pick all your pellet grills in model in not one, but two different constructions!
All Z Grills pellet grills are available in both fully powder-coated steel, as well as powder-coated plus stainless steel construction.
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Cooking Space and Pellet Hopper Size
Z Grills offers you a good and wide range for cooking spaces, between 450 to 1000 square inches.
However, Pit Boss has defeated this range by allowing you to pick from an even wider range of 250 to 2000 square inches.
The same goes for their pellet hopper sizes. While Z Grills offers 3 different sizes for pellet hoppers, 8, 16, and 20 pounds, Pit Boss gives you a much greater range.
Most of their pellet hoppers can accommodate less or more than 18 pounds pellets, depending on your choice and purchase. A few of their models can carry up to 55 pounds of pellets at one time!
Temperature Control and Range
Both the companies include a similar temperature range in all their pellet grills. Z Grills have a range between 180 to 450 degrees Fahrenheit, whereas Pit Boss has it between 180 and 500 degrees Fahrenheit.
They also have easy and automated temperature control, with a specific PID-style controller in Z Grills.
Also, both the brands have included open flame in their grills, allowing you to cook on a direct flame for reaching much higher temperatures – ranging between 750 to 1000 degrees Fahrenheit!
Portability
When it comes to portability, both Z Grills and Pit Boss design all their models keeping the ease of transport in mind.
Therefore, this causes a tie between the brands as they’re equally good with respect to portability.
Price
Price should no longer be a concern to you when you’re searching for your options between Z Grills and Pit Boss.
Both these companies have tried their best to be as budget-friendly as possible, and have so far succeeded in their efforts.
Warranty
Like most other brands, Z Grills offers a warranty for up to 3 years of purchase.
Yet, Pit Boss defeats this by providing their customers an even higher warranty for 5 years!
Additional Features
Z Grills make sure to include an additional waterproof and UV resistant grill cover for the protection of your grills. For Pit Boss, you have to buy the cover separately.
But Pit Boss has now included WiFi technology in its latest model, whereas Z Grills is yet to make this update.
Both the brands include accurate meat probes with all their grill purchases.
Which is Better – Z Grills or Pit Boss?
We could easily tell you which of the two grills we would recommend you to purchase.
However, our verdict is based on our judgement and needs! You need to know your own requirements in a smoker to be able to pick the right grill for yourself.
Therefore, to decide whether Z grills are better than Pit Boss grills, or vice versa, you need to know what you’re looking for.
Wrapping it Up
A grill is only as good as it fulfills your specific needs. We hope that our article has helped you decide which of the above mentioned brands suit you the best.
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