What Is the Best Time of Year to Buy A Pellet Smoker Grill?


Is there a single best time of the year to buy a pellet smoker or pellet smoker grill? In my experience, the answer is yes and no. One thing I’ll say at the start is to keep in mind you’re buying something that should last for many years to come. Saving $50 over the span of 8-10 years or more may not be a big deal especially if it means you can start smoking tomorrow versus next month!

There will always be Black Friday Deals, Clearance, and Memorial Day Sales and many others. But there will also be those unpredictable times of simply being at the right place at the right time. Be sure to sign up for manufacturer’s email lists because every once in a while they’ll offer a secret insider’s special that the general public will never see.

You want to get some good meat grilling done, but the sheer price of the grilling machine is somewhat driving you away. Like any other piece of merchandise, though, you are sure that there are some times of the year when these grills are sold for lesser than they were usually listed for.

If that is wat you have had in mind, we can tell you that you are not farther from the truth.

In this piece, we will discuss the best times of the year to cop a new smoker grill, when not to buy and other options to help you get better deals on the units you so desire.

When Should I Get A New Grill?

To be honest, there will always be great deals on wood pellet smokers all year round, and that is what lures a lot of people into making their purchases at these times. Trust us when we say that not all of the deals are great for you.

Afterall, would you rather save $10 on a grill when you could hold off for a little while and save $200 or more instead?

That said, the best time to wait for would be late summer to fall.

It is not rocket science that since this period marks the closing out of the grilling season, many stores will not want to keep their old stock into the next year. This period also coincides with the Labor Day celebrations, helloing to drive prices down even more.

If you don’t believe us, what should we say about the case of Walmart who cuts back the price of grills by as much as 60% of their original list price?

Buying at this time also gives you all the time to get in on smoking as many pieces of meat as you want, and joining in on the next smoking season. At the end of that season, you can sell off your used grilling machine to someone else looking to get a deal – and use the proceeds to get a newer model.

Try this every year, and you will always have the latest model to call your own, except for when you are not in the mood to pick up a new unit.

How Else Can I Get Great Deals on Smoker Grills?

You might not always have to wait for Labor Day to come around before you snag up a wood pellet grill deal. Of course, the holidays might provide you with the steepest discounts, but you can get great deals at other times of the year too.

Here are some of the ways to make that happen for yourself:

  • Buy a Used Grill:

Many people do not use their grills for more than a year before they feel the need to upgrade. If you have been using wood pellet grills for a while, you will agree that many grills are still very solid and hold their own well against newer models even a couple of years after manufacture.

Thus, you won’t be getting a bad deal on the old model. Should you buy from a user who was responsible enough with their unit, you would be getting a like-new device for about half the initial cost price or less.

  • Get the Floor Models:

When the floor models go out of season, they are usually in for one of the steepest discounts.

For one, they will come cheaper since the market / store will be preparing for newer stock. Besides that, floor models are known to have dents, scratches, smudges and such other cosmetic defects. That is to be expected since they are the test and inspection units.

If you don’t mind the minor cosmetic differences, though, you would be getting a new unit for a very good deal too.

  • Online Deals:

Don’t restrict your search for a good grill deal to retail stores only. In fact, you can get some great deals from online stores too, and you only need to go looking for them.

Amazon is a great place to look, and you could be lucky enough to hit a great deal.

  • Manufacturer’s website:

While stores are preparing for new stock, manufacturers are also trying to get rid of the old grills in their inventory. At such points in time, they become a very good source of deals for you.

The best thing about this is that you save more on the initial cost price (since you didn’t have to go through a retailer who would have marked up the selling price), and also enjoy the discount on the reduced price. Furthermore, you get the peace of mind that you are buying directly from the manufacturer, making claims and returns easier in the case any problem(s) presents itself.

To get in on these kinds of deals, it is recommended that you sign up to join the mailing lists of your favorite wood pellet smoker manufacturers.

When Should You Not Buy A Grill?

While you will get grills at a good value for money in the late summer to fall, they will be ridiculously high priced in the spring. That is no coincidence, given that this period marks the beginning of the grilling season.

If economics has taught us anything, it is that a higher demand will drive up the price of the available units. What more do retailers love than the freedom to mark-up their products considerably and still be able to sell them?

During this time, either go for the older models or make do with the grill you still have at home. Wait till all the fuss around the shiny new models have died down before you go for it – in the late summer to… you get it already.

Another trap you should never fall into is the Memorial Day offer from retailers.

They claim to offer you discount and even try to sell it off as the best you can get. That is not true.

This is a great way to confirm this hypothesis:

Pick a product and commit the price to heart. Come back at the suggested timeframe and check again. You will see a considerable drop in price then.

What Is the Best Grill for The Money?

A lot of thought should go into what qualifies as the best pellet grill for you. So far, the most important factor is you.

What you want, and how you want it, beats all other factors. By other factors, we mean the build and design, temperature range, cooking area, additional features and controller type, to mention but a few.

Looking at all of the above, here are some pellet smokers you just cannot go wrong with (click the links to see prices and availability):

Where Can You Get the Best Grills?

Besides your local store? Well, the online world is one of the best places you can check out too.

For one, buying your grills online allows you check and compare prices, know what you are getting and of course, promises convenience.

For those who would love to get a used unit, Craigslist is a good place to be. Amazon also has a solid market for used units, but don’t forget to inspect well before buying.

Besides used grills, though, Amazon is way better for when you want to get new units. They have an extensive catalogue featuring many of the top manufacturers so you never run out of options.

Now that you know when to get them for lesser, and the ones to look out for, smoking your meat is just a grill purchase away.

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