Published 10 May 2026 · Last updated 14 October 2026 · By Ben Austen · Affiliate disclosure
Researched
Aldi Kamado BBQ
Grill about 38cm, according to buyers. Wooden side tables.
Researched
Lidl Medium Ceramic Egg Grill
40cm grill. Bamboo side tables.
Tested
Big Green Egg Large
46cm grill. The stand is extra: Big Green Egg’s own stand with shelves is £570.
If you’re looking at an Aldi kamado or a Lidl one, you’re looking at the cheapest way into a ceramic kamado in the UK. Aldi’s went on sale on 3 May 2026 at £244.99 and Lidl’s on 30 April at £249, and both came with side tables. Neither was on sale when I checked in October, so you’d be waiting for the next one. Buyers say the Aldi’s grill is about 38cm across, and Lidl’s is 40cm. My Big Green Egg Large has a 46cm grill and is £1,495 from Big Green Egg UK with nothing to stand it on, or £2,065 on Big Green Egg’s own stand with shelves. I’ve cooked on my Egg more than twenty times. I haven’t cooked on either of the cheap ones, so what I say about them comes from Aldi, Lidl and people who’ve bought one. Which makes sense for you comes down to how often you’ll cook on it.
Key takeaways
- If you’re not sure a kamado is for you, or you’ll only cook on it a few times a year, an Aldi or Lidl kamado is a cheap way to find out. If you’ll cook on it most weekends for years, I’d buy the Egg.
- Aldi’s kamado was £244.99 and Lidl’s was £249 when they came out in spring 2026, both with side tables. Neither was on sale in October.
- My Big Green Egg Large is £1,495 on its own, or £2,065 on Big Green Egg’s own stand with shelves.
- Buyers say the Aldi’s grill is about 38cm across. The Lidl’s is 40cm and my Egg’s is 46cm, so the Aldi has about a third less room than the Egg.
- Buyers say the Aldi doesn’t come with a deflector, and you need one for long, slow cooks. Aldi sold a Divide & Conquer set for it separately at £34.99.
- Over five years at 40 cooks a year, an Aldi with its deflector set comes to about £780 and my Egg on its stand about £2,565. That’s the same £500 of charcoal on both, and the Aldi figure has no stand in it.
At a glance
| Aldi Kamado BBQ | Lidl Medium Ceramic Egg Grill | Big Green Egg Large | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Price | £244.99 at launch, 3 May 2026 | £249 at launch, 30 April 2026 | £1,495 at Big Green Egg UK |
| What comes with it | Wooden side tables | Bamboo side tables | Mine came with a ConvEGGtor and a grid. Big Green Egg’s site says new ones come with its Dual Zone kit. No stand |
| Stand | Not stated in what I read | Not stated in what I read | Big Green Egg’s stand with shelves is £570, so £2,065 together |
| Grill | About 38cm, according to buyers | 40cm | 46cm |
| Deflector for long cooks | Not included, buyers say. Aldi’s Divide & Conquer set was £34.99 | Not checked | Included (ConvEGGtor or Dual Zone kit) |
| On sale in October 2026 | No | No | Yes |
| Where | Aldi stores, when it comes round | Lidl, reserved through Lidl Plus | Big Green Egg UK and its dealers |
| Warranty | Not checked | Not checked | Limited lifetime warranty (Big Green Egg UK) |
Aldi kamado vs Big Green Egg: what’s the same
All three are ceramic kamados, with thick walls that soak up heat and give it back slowly. You light lump charcoal in the bottom and control the heat with a vent at the bottom and one at the top. Each has a thermometer in the lid. Aldi says its grill rack is stainless steel, and so is mine.
How they’re built
My Egg has been flawless so far. More than twenty cooks in, nothing has loosened, the glaze hasn’t chipped, and the felt gasket around the lid still seals.
I haven’t cooked on an Aldi or a Lidl, and I couldn’t find anyone who’s written up a cook on this year’s models. The nearest I found are owners of earlier Aldi kamados on PistonHeads in 2023. One said his father-in-law’s and a friend’s “work very well”, but that he’d seen plenty of reports of the firebox cracking, and that getting a new one from Aldi was tricky. Another had used his for three summers with no cracks, and kept it covered all winter. On this year’s Aldi, one buyer on hotukdeals said there was no instruction manual in the box.
The Lidl kamado
Lidl’s is the Medium Ceramic Egg Grill. Lidl Plus members could reserve one from 23 April 2026 and collect it from 30 April, at £249. Ideal Home describes an enamel-coated ceramic shell with bamboo handles and side tables. The grill is 40cm, a bit bigger than the Aldi’s. I couldn’t find an owner’s report on this year’s Lidl.
Vents and holding a temperature
On my Egg, holding a temperature is the easy bit. To hold 220°C (428°F) I have the bottom vent open a finger’s width, maybe two. For 120°C (248°F) it’s about 99% shut. A small tweak moves it 15 to 20 degrees. Coming back down is the hard part, because the ceramic holds the heat, so if you go past your target it can take an hour to drop. I can have mine cooking in about 20 minutes now, but it took a while to learn. None of the owners I read said how the Aldi or the Lidl hold a temperature, so I can’t tell you.
How much fits
Grill size is where they differ most. Buyers say the Aldi’s grill is about 38cm across, which is about 1,134cm² of cooking area. The Lidl’s 40cm is about 1,257cm², and my Egg’s 46cm is about 1,662cm², so the Aldi has about a third less room than my Egg. Buyers on hotukdeals describe it as an 18-inch kamado with a smaller cooking grill. On my Egg I’ve had four whole trout, a lamb rump and sausages on the one grid together.
Accessories
The Egg has the most kit made for it. Mine came with a ConvEGGtor, the ceramic plate that sits between the fire and the food so you can cook indirect. Big Green Egg’s site says new Larges come with its Dual Zone kit, which is also £245 on its own. Its multi-level rack is £160 and a cover is £93.
Aldi sold a Divide & Conquer set for this year’s kamado at £34.99, and buyers on hotukdeals said it sold out faster than the kamados. One put the kamado and Aldi’s accessories at about £320 all in. On PistonHeads, an Egg owner said he didn’t think you’d find a rotisserie, pizza stone or cast iron grid that fits the cheap ones.
What it costs over five years
This is what an Aldi and my Egg cost over five years if you cook on them 40 times a year. I’ve left the Lidl out because I couldn’t find whether it comes with a deflector. I’ve used the same charcoal figure for both, about £2.50 a cook, which is what I burn on my Egg, because I couldn’t find what an Aldi burns. Aldi doesn’t say whether it comes with a stand, so its figure doesn’t include one.
| Aldi Kamado BBQ | Big Green Egg Large | |
|---|---|---|
| Kamado | £244.99 at launch, with side tables | £1,495 |
| Stand | Not stated | £570, with shelves |
| Deflector | £34.99, Aldi’s Divide & Conquer set | Included |
| Lump charcoal, 200 cooks | About £500 | About £500 |
| Five years | About £780 | About £2,565 |
Owners of earlier Aldi kamados have reported fireboxes cracking, and I haven’t costed a replacement, because I couldn’t find what Aldi charges for one.
Where to buy them in the UK
The Aldi and the Lidl are seasonal. Aldi’s was in stores from 3 May 2026, and one buyer on hotukdeals picked one up for £199 later that month. Lidl’s had to be reserved through the Lidl Plus app. Neither was on sale in October, so you’d be waiting for the next round. B&Q’s GoodHome Sagami was £500 earlier this year, but I couldn’t find it on B&Q’s site in October. The Egg is a standing product: Big Green Egg UK sells the Large direct at £1,495, and so do its dealers.
Where each is right
I haven’t cooked on an Aldi or a Lidl. From what I’ve seen, they work. They’re not the same as an Egg, but they’re not embarrassing. Owners of earlier Aldi kamados on PistonHeads said much the same: one said his “works fine”, but that he’d like a bigger cooking area.
If you’ll cook on a kamado a few times a year, or you want to find out whether you like kamado cooking before spending four figures
Buy the Aldi or the Lidl when they’re next on sale
Get a deflector with it: one buyer on hotukdeals called a deflector “a necessity for smoking”.
Not on sale nowIf you want the bigger grill of the two cheap ones
Buy the Lidl
Its 40cm grill is a bit bigger than the Aldi’s.
Not on sale nowIf you’ll cook on it most weekends for years, or you want kit like a rotisserie or a pizza stone to fit
Buy the Egg
The Egg owner on PistonHeads said he didn’t think you’d find that kit for the cheap ones, and he uses his rotisserie almost every Sunday.
Buy at Big Green Egg UK →Common questions
Is the Aldi kamado any good?
I haven’t cooked on one. Owners of earlier Aldi kamados on PistonHeads said theirs work well, though one had seen reports of the firebox cracking. This year’s has a small grill, about 38cm according to buyers, and buyers say there’s no deflector in the box.
Is the Lidl kamado any good?
I haven’t cooked on one, and I couldn’t find an owner’s report on this year’s. It was £249 in April 2026, and its 40cm grill is a bit bigger than the Aldi’s.
Are kamado barbecues any good?
Yes. I’ve cooked on my Egg more than twenty times, and it holds a low temperature for hours with the bottom vent almost shut. The hard part is bringing the temperature back down if you go past it.
Does Aldi do a mini egg BBQ?
I think what people mean by an Aldi mini egg is the Aldi Kamado, which Aldi sold as an 18-inch kamado in spring 2026. Smaller 13-inch kamados are sold elsewhere, including through B&Q’s website.
Does the Aldi kamado come with a deflector?
Not according to buyers on hotukdeals. Aldi sold a Divide & Conquer set for it separately at £34.99.
Sources and how I checked
Everything here about the Egg comes from cooking on mine, more than twenty times, and its prices are from Big Green Egg UK. I haven’t cooked on an Aldi or a Lidl. Their prices and specs come from the Aldi UK Press Office (20 April 2026), Ideal Home (18 April 2026) and buyers on hotukdeals (April and May 2026). What owners say comes from hotukdeals and from owners of earlier models on PistonHeads (June 2023). I checked Aldi, Lidl, B&Q and Big Green Egg UK in October 2026.
Provenance and final verdict
My Big Green Egg Large was a Christmas present from my sister Kate. Smoke and Lump has no commercial relationship with Big Green Egg, Aldi, Lidl or B&Q and earns nothing from this page.
If you’re not sure a kamado is for you, the Aldi or the Lidl is a cheap way to find out, as long as you get a deflector with it. I haven’t cooked on an Aldi, so I can’t give you an Aldi kamado review of my own. Mine’s an Egg, and if you’ll cook on it most weekends for years, that’s what I’d buy.