Vertical vs Horizontal Smoker – What’s The Ideal Pick For You?

Vertical Smokers Overview

Vertical, bullet or upright smokers have gained much popularity in the past few years because of their exciting features, such as ease of use, portability, and consistent cooking performance. 

As their name suggests, they come in vertical shape and can have different fuel sources like charcoal, pellet, gas, propane, or electricity.

Due to their upright shape and wheels on their legs, you can move them quite easily, and if your vertical smoker cooks food through charcoal or gas, they can also be a suitable option for picnic and camping use. 

Mostly, these smokers use gas, propane, and electricity for cooking food, which is why they lack in providing that authentic smoky taste to your foods, which is the most prominent drawback of these cooking appliances.

Moreover, you will see several cooking racks in these smokers, probably 4 to 7 or even more which is an excellent addition to those who like cooking multiple food items at once. 

But due to the narrower design of these racks, it can be difficult for them to accommodate a heavy brisket or turkey, so you will need to split them into two pieces for better outcomes.

The heat regulation system on these smokers is my favorite feature as it adds maximum convenience to the users, especially those who are new to food smoking. 

You only need to rotate the control knobs to adjust and maintain steady heat inside the cooking chamber easily. As a result, the food comes out evenly cooked from all sides.

You will also see many vertical smokers with an LED screen at the bottom, showing real-time cooking stats. So overall, they are a great cooking appliance that is easy to use and offers great cooking results.

Advantages Of Vertical Smokers

• Portability: One of the most admirable features that I like about these smokers is that they are relatively more portable than the horizontal ones because of their compact upright shape and the wheels on their legs.
• Easy To Use: A vertical smoker lets you cook in a set-and-forget style and can be the most suitable option for beginners BBQ lovers. The reason is that it is easy to control its temperature using control knobs. 
• Budget-Friendly: A vertical smoker costs you less than a horizontal one, and you can surely invest in this smoker if you are currently short on budget. There are lots of quality vertical electric smokers under $500 easily available in the market.
• Water Pan Availability: You will come across many upright smokers that come with a water pan which helps in different cooking conditions. For example, it prevents your meat from drying out and allows the smoker to maintain its internal temperature when you are grilling in rain or cold conditions.
• Multiple Cooking Racks: Due to their vertical shape, they have multiple racks where you can cook various food items at once.

Disadvantages Of Vertical Smokers

• Specified For Smoking: This type of smoker is specified for smoking purposes, and you may not use them as a grill. Now, it can be a benefit for you if you are a smoking lover and a drawback if you prefer a smoker that can be used for both smoking and grilling purposes.
• Lack of Smoky Flavors: If your vertical smoker operates through electricity, gas, or propane, it may not offer the expected intensity of smoke flavors, even with the inclusion of a wood chip tray.
• Heat Leakage: These smokers have a door outside the cooking chamber, and when you need to check the food’s condition, the heat can escape and disturb the cooking session.
• Not Suitable For Thicker Meat Cuts: No doubt, it has multiple food racks, but they are smaller in width, which means they might not easily accommodate thick meats like brisket.

Horizontal Smokers Overview

Horizontal smokers mainly refer to offset smokers, but pellet ones are also in a horizontal shape. Therefore, I will look into the features of both of them.

Firstly, the offset ones have a drum-shaped cooking chamber and firebox on the side where the charcoal burns and sends heat toward the cooking area. 

In their structure, you’ll also see a chimney pipe from where the heat escapes and four legs with two or four wheels, depending on the smoker’s model.

On the other hand, a horizontal pellet smoker grill also has a drum-shaped cooking chamber to place food and a hopper box where you can put a good amount of wood pellets. 

It also consists of a metal pipe for the heat escape and legs and wheels at its bottom part. So basically, both of these smokers are pretty similar in shape but have different fuel sources and working techniques.

One (offset) uses charcoal and wood logs, and the other (pellet) uses wood pellets to cook food. It is important to note that you can reuse charcoal if any of the pieces remain unburnt.

A huge convenience that you get with the horizontal pellet smokers (not offset) is that most of them have Wi-Fi and Bluetooth connectivity features, allowing you to control the whole cooking session through your smartphone.

These types of smokers are mainly known for their ample cooking space due to their horizontal design and are capable of both smoking and grilling purposes. 

If I talk about temperature control, the pellet smoker grill usually has knobs to regulate heat, or some models, allow you to get this job done through a smartphone app. 

In contrast, on offset smokers, you get to control heat through vents and dampers or by adjusting the amount of charcoal you add while cooking.

Whether you have a horizontal pellet or offset smoker, you can use them for smoking and grilling because of their ability to reach higher temperatures of around 500 °F or even more. 

Furthermore, whether you want to smoke your meat to perfection with authentic smoky flavors or want to grill your food, horizontal smokers shine as a perfect smoker-grill combo for you.

A slight drawback of these outdoor cooking appliances is that they are pretty heavy and measure big; that’s the reason they are less portable than vertical smokers.

Advantages Of Horizontal Smokers

• Huge Cooking Area: Due to their horizontal shapes, they have plenty of cooking space (around 500 sq in) where you can cook whatever you want to, including bigger meat cuts like brisket.
• Convenience: It is relatively easy to use if you own a horizontal pellet smoker because of its advanced features like PID controller and smartphone app availability.
• Cooking Versatility: You can smoke your foods with unique smoky flavors as well as grill them with a nice crispy and crusty exterior.
• Long-Lasting: Most horizontal-shaped smokers are made of robust and thick materials like stainless steel, making them a perfect choice for long-term use.

Disadvantages Of Horizontal Smokers

• Unsuitable For Beginners: The newbies may not like using horizontal offset smokers because they require manual steps like charcoal ignition and heat regulation through vents or the amount of fuel. In such case, horizontal pellet smokers are a great option.
• Not Easy To Clean: The offset ones create a lot of mess because they use charcoal as a fuel source and don’t have any built-in ash management system like the pellet smokers.
• Bulky: Horizontal smokers tend to be heavy, which means they are not easy to move, and you can’t take them alongside you on a picnic.
• Requires Sufficient Space: These smokers measure big because they have a hopper or a firebox attached to their cooking chambers. Therefore, you’ll need plenty of space to accommodate them adequately.