Best BBQ Thermometers

Top Rated Meat Thermometers

You know that so-called grill hack about testing your meat’s doneness by touch? Or how about waiting for the juices to run clear? If you’ve lived by those techniques, then we hate to burst your bubble: neither is a truly accurate measurement of meat doneness. No, the only foolproof method is with the help of a trusty grill thermometer. The best BBQ thermometers quickly and accurately give readouts of meat’s internal temperature — the only true way to be sure if your meat is done. Any other approach runs the risk of you becoming ill from undercooked food or (even worse, depending on your perspective) overcooking your grill grub. We’d hate for either to happen, so we collected our best grill thermometers in one place for you to quickly shop our top choices. These rankings are based on each thermometer’s quality, performance, features, and value, each of which is explained in greater detail below.

• Quality - We judge quality according to the strength and longevity of the materials used in construction. In the case of BBQ thermometers, we prize construction that resists prolonged exposure to high heat. Otherwise, what good would a melted thermometer do?

• Performance - Whether you need a last-minute readout or are monitoring the progress of your cook, thermometer performance comes down to responsiveness and accuracy. If you desire a Wi-Fi or Bluetooth model (more on that in a bit), wireless range also matters.

• Features - Thermometer features are all about ease of use. That’s why Wi-Fi and Bluetooth are nearly standard at this point — the convenience of wireless monitoring is indispensable — but we also love automatic alerts, simple interfaces, and multi-probe designs.

• Value - Simply put, value is a combination of quality, performance, and features as it relates to price. We believe those 3 factors give the best overall picture of a product, so it all comes down to one question: are you getting what you’re paying for?