Broil King Vs Weber: Which Grill is Worth Your Money?
When it comes to buying a propane grill,
There’s no doubt
So, if you’re looking to get a new propane grill and don’t know which of these brands is the best choice, we’ve put them head to head to see which comes out on top!
The Brands
Before we get into the specifics of the grills we’ve chosen to compare, let’s take a closer look at the two brands in question.
Weber
Weber is the most popular gas grill brand and has been around since the early 1950s.
Since then,
Broil King
If
In 1999, the Broil King brand was purchased by Cadco, a large manufacturer of high-quality food service equipment, which allowed them to expand their range of grills.
The Grills
Both Broil King and
Weber Genesis E-435 Propane Gas Grill
The
We have reviewed the slightly higher spec Genesis SPX-435 Smart Gas Grill if you want to learn more about the new Genesis range.
Broil King Sovereign XLS 90 Propane Gas Grill
Broil King grills have a reputation for being reliable and well made, and the Sovereign XLS 90 is no different. The cooking grids on this model are an excellent example of this. Made of heavy gauge 9mm stainless steel, they are hugely durable, provide superior heat retention, and come with a 5-year warranty.
The details:
- Dimensions: W65″ x H50.4″ x D24.4″
- Weight: 196 lbs
- Main burners/BTUs: 4 burners producing a total of 50000 BTUs
- Total cooking surface: 1000 square inches
- Side burner: yes
The Head to Head
Rather than a vague overview of both models, we’ll get granular and break them down into their most significant features before comparing them head to head.
Burners/BTU output
We’ve spoken before about how BTU output isn’t as important as you might think, but it does give us a general idea of how fast each grill will heat up and how hot it can get.
The
The main
By comparison, the Sovereign XLS 90 uses stainless steel dual-tube burners. These produce 50000 BTUs that combine with a 10000 BTU side burner and a 18000BTU rotisserie burner for a total BTU output of 78,000BTUs, significantly more than the
While BTUs aren’t everything, the dual tube design on the Sovereign, coupled with the high output of these burners, produces a well-distributed and consistently high heat.
While the
Warranty
Both
The Genesis E-435 comes with
Broil King offers a slightly more granular and less encompassing warranty, including a limited lifetime (ten-year) warranty on the cook box and burners. There’s also a five-year warranty on the stainless steel Flav-R-Wave cooking system and stainless steel grates, and a two-year warranty on all remaining parts and the paint.
While the Broil King guarantee is pretty comprehensive and is pretty standard for a high-end grill, you just can’t beat
Cooking surface
As you can see from the specifications above, the Sovereign XLS 90 is the larger grill, and it does have a correspondingly larger cooking surface.
The main cook box is 600 square inches, which, added to the combined 400 square inches of the side burner and rotisserie, adds up to a total of 1000 square inches.
By comparison, the Genesis E-435 has a primary cooking surface of 646 square inches and adds 348 square inches for its side burner for a total of 994 square inches.
While it might seem like the Sovereign XLS 90 has won the cooking surface comparison hands down, it is worth remembering that around 200 square inches of that cooking surface is a rotisserie, which just isn’t as uniformly useful as a side burner.
If you remove the rotisserie, both grills have around the same total cooking area, but the Broil King is still the larger grill. It’s a close race here, but if you don’t have any use for a rotisserie, the
Cooking system
Both the Genesis E-435 and the Sovereign XLS 90 have proprietary cooking systems installed on them.
For the Genesis, it’s the tried and tested
In the Sovereign, you’ll find the Flav-R-Heat Partitions and the stainless steel Flav-R-Wave cooking system. The Flav-R-Heat Partitions separate off your individual burners, allowing you to cook food at different temperatures in different areas.
The Flav-R-Wave cooking system is similar to the
While both systems work really well, the addition of the Flav-R-Heat Partitions in the Sovereign does add significantly to its utility. You get all the heat distribution and flare-up protection you’ll find in the
Standout features
When it comes to it, both of these grills are excellent choices for the amount you’ll be paying for them.
Both grills are well built, well designed, and come with a range of features that will make any pitmaster’s life easier.
The Genesis E-435 stands out thanks to the
Nearly all of the Genesis is made of solid stainless steel, and the quality of construction is backed up by the ten-year
The Genesis really is an excellent grill.
However, the Sovereign XLS 90 is equally well built and has just a few more bells and whistles than the Genesis.
The stainless steel dual-tube burners are great for heat distribution and flare-up control while also kicking out nearly 10,000 more BTUs than the
The stainless steel Flav-R-Wave flame tamers are every bit as good as the
Added to this are the little touches, like the fact that, while both grills come with fold-down side shelves, the Sovereign’s side burners also fold down for easy storage. It also comes with side shelf bins and tool hooks that give you additional storage space.
While there really isn’t much to choose between these grills, and we really love the Genesis E-435, the Sovereign XLS 90 does everything it can, plus just a little bit more.
Other grills to consider
Of course, both
For more details, check out our Weber Spirit VS Genesis guide which has a breakdown of all the major models.
Weber Spirit E-330 Propane Gas Grill
The
Like the Genesis, the Spirit E-330 doesn’t put up the highest numbers when it comes to pure BTU output, with 32,000 BTUs across three stainless steel burners, but it does distribute that heat effectively to ensure even cooking.
The Spirit also comes with a 7,500 BTU sear station with an independent electronic ignition for searing steaks and a folding side table for extra storage.
Broil King 28-Inch Vertical Propane Gas Smoker
If you’re looking to get into smoking food, and you definitely should be, the Broil King 28″ Vertical Smoker is an excellent starting point.
Constructed entirely of stainless steel, this smoker comes with a 15,000 BTU burner ignited by a Sure-Lite electronic ignition system. Airflow is controlled by corrosion-resistant cast aluminum Roto-Draft dampers, for precise control of the cooking chambers’ temperature.
There are 770 square inches of cooking space inside the main chamber, and the smoker comes with a multi-purpose chrome coated roast/rib rack and 16 stainless steel meat hooks, so you’ve got everything you need to start smoking immediately.
While you might be tempted to upgrade to the Broil King Smoke XL 32-Inch Offset Charcoal Smoker, we’d actually advise against it.
While there are some great offset smokers on the market, the Broil King Smoke XL suffers from some fairly significant design issues that actually make the 28″ Vertical Smoker the better choice.
Wrapping it up
Both the Genesis E-435 and the Sovereign XLS 90 are excellent entry-level grills, and both would be a fantastic starting point for any aspiring pitmaster. However, having put them head to head, we think some of the extra features on the Sovereign XLS 90 just edge out the
Have you used either of the grills we’ve reviewed and think we’ve missed something? Do you have an entry-level grill you believe to be just as good as the