Published 1 August 2026 · Last updated 13 October 2026 · By Ben Austen · Affiliate disclosure
Tested
Big Green Egg Large
46cm grill. The stand is extra: Big Green Egg’s own stand with shelves is £570.
Researched
Kamado Joe Classic III
46cm grill and a three-tier Divide & Conquer rack. The cart is extra: with it, the Classic III is £2,199.
If you’ve narrowed it down to Big Green Egg vs Kamado Joe, you’re looking at the two kamado brands most people have heard of: the green one and the red one. The Egg is the one most people picture when you say kamado. Kamado Joe started in 2008, and has had to win buyers off it. Both have the same 46cm grill, so you’re not choosing on size. You’re choosing between the brand with the history and the newer design with more in the box.
The Big Green Egg Large is £1,495 from Big Green Egg UK, and the Kamado Joe Classic III is £1,999 on Kamado Joe’s own site. Neither comes with anything to stand it on. Big Green Egg’s stand with shelves is £570, and the Classic III on its cart is £2,199. Mine’s an Egg, and I’ve cooked on it more than twenty times. I’ve never cooked on a Kamado Joe, so what I say about it comes from Kamado Joe’s own specs and from reviewers who’ve used both. If I were buying today, I’d go for the Classic III, and it’s the one I’d recommend. To win buyers off the Egg, Kamado Joe has had to make the small things better, like the hinge, the gasket and clearing the ash, and I think it does those better. The cooking itself is very similar on both. I checked every price in October 2026.
Key takeaways
- I’d recommend the Kamado Joe Classic III over the Egg. I think it does the small things better, like the hinge, the gasket and clearing the ash, and Yale Appliance, whose reviewer owns an Egg, says the same. The cooking itself is very similar on both. If you want the brand with the history, buy the Egg.
- The Egg Large is £1,495 and the Classic III is £1,999 without its cart, so the Joe is £504 more. Neither comes with anything to stand it on. Big Green Egg’s stand with shelves is £570, and the Joe’s cart adds £200.
- For the extra, the Classic III comes with a three-tier rack and the SlōRoller, an insert Kamado Joe says turns it into a smoker. Big Green Egg’s site says a new Large now comes with its Dual Zone kit, for cooking direct on one half and indirect on the other.
- Both have the same 46cm grill and a lifetime warranty on the ceramics. Kamado Joe covers the gasket for two years and Big Green Egg for one, but Kamado Joe’s warranty only counts if you register the grill.
- On my Egg, 220°C (430°F) is the bottom vent open about a finger’s width, maybe two, and 120°C (250°F) is the bottom vent about 99% shut. Going up is easy. Coming back down after you’ve overshot can take an hour.
- Over five years, the grill alone works out at £299 a year for the Egg and about £400 for the Classic III. Charcoal costs the same whichever you buy.
Big Green Egg vs Kamado Joe at a glance
| Big Green Egg Large | Kamado Joe Classic III | |
|---|---|---|
| Price | £1,495, at Big Green Egg UK | £1,999 without its cart, at Kamado Joe |
| Stand | Not included. Big Green Egg’s stand with shelves is £570 | Not included. On its cart with aluminium side shelves, it’s £2,199 |
| Grill | 46cm | 46cm |
| Cooking levels | Dual Zone kit, per Big Green Egg’s site: two half-moon deflectors and two half-moon grids, on two levels. Mine came with a ConvEGGtor and one grid | Three-tier Divide & Conquer rack |
| Top vent | Cast-iron daisy wheel | Kontrol Tower |
| Gasket | Felt | Wire mesh fibreglass |
| Charcoal basket | None | Stainless steel, included |
| Warranty: ceramics | Lifetime | Lifetime, if you register |
| Warranty: metal parts | 5 years | 5 years |
| Warranty: gasket | 1 year | 2 years |
| Where to buy | Big Green Egg UK and its dealers | Kamado Joe dealers |
Prices checked 15 October 2026 on Big Green Egg UK and Kamado Joe’s UK site.
What’s the same
Both are ceramic kamados with a 46cm grill, and they work the same way. The thick ceramic walls soak up heat and give it back slowly. Air comes in through a vent at the bottom and goes out through one at the top, and how far you open the two sets the temperature. On mine I’ve held 120°C (250°F) for low-and-slow and 220°C (430°F) for hot and fast. Kamado Joe gives the Classic III a range of 107°C to 398°C (225°F to 750°F). Both burn lump charcoal, and each maker gives a lifetime warranty on the ceramics.
Build: stand, hinge, gasket and ash
The Large Egg needs something to stand on, and it doesn’t come with one. Big Green Egg’s own steel stand with fold-away shelves is £570. The Classic III at £1,999 doesn’t come with one either. For £2,199, Kamado Joe sells it on a powder-coated steel cart with wheels, a storage shelf underneath and aluminium side shelves.
The hinge on my Egg is fine. Kamado Joe says its Air Lift hinge takes enough of the dome’s weight that you can lift it with one finger. I haven’t used one, so I can’t tell you how the two compare.
Mine has a felt gasket, which is the seal between the dome and the base, and it’s been good so far. Big Green Egg covers the gasket for a year. The Joe has a wire mesh fibreglass gasket, and Kamado Joe covers it for two.
Clearing the ash is one of the worst bits of the Egg. I take it out with a dustpan and brush, and it’s a bit annoying. Kamado Joe’s answer is a slide-out ash drawer at the bottom of the base, and a stainless steel charcoal basket it says is “for easy clean up”. I haven’t used either, so I can’t tell you how much easier it is.
Vents and temperature
Both are controlled the same way. The bottom vent lets air in, the top vent lets it out, and on my Egg the bottom one does most of the work. To hold 220°C (430°F) I open it about a finger’s width, maybe two. To hold 120°C (250°F) for low-and-slow it’s about 99% shut. A small change can move the temperature 15 to 20°C (25 to 35°F), so I move it a little at a time.
Holding a temperature is the easy bit. Going up is straightforward, but coming down is hard, because the ceramic holds on to the heat. If I overshoot, it can take an hour to get back to where I wanted it.
The Egg’s top vent is a cast-iron daisy wheel. The Joe’s is the Kontrol Tower, which Kamado Joe says keeps the airflow the same when you open and close the dome. I haven’t used one.
Cooking space: one grid or Divide & Conquer
Both have the same 46cm grill, and both let you split it in half. Big Green Egg’s site says a new Egg now comes with its Dual Zone kit: a basket that goes in above the charcoal, two half-moon ceramic deflectors and two half-moon grids, which can sit at two different heights. Put a deflector under one half and leave the other open, and you can cook indirect on one side and direct on the other. The Kamado Joe Classic III does the same with its three-tier Divide & Conquer rack, which Kamado Joe says lets you cook several things at different temperatures at once.
Mine didn’t. It came with a ConvEGGtor and one grid, so I haven’t used the Dual Zone kit. You can still fit a lot on the one grid. On one cook I had four whole trout, a lamb rump and sausages on it together.
The Joe’s third level comes in the box. On the Egg, Big Green Egg sells a multi-level rack that sits on top of the Dual Zone basket.
Accessories
The first thing you’ll add to either is something to stand it on: £570 for Big Green Egg’s stand with shelves, or £200 more for the Classic III on its cart. Big Green Egg’s UK site lists 167 accessories and Kamado Joe’s lists 40, so there’s more to choose from for the Egg. Kamado Joe’s range still covers what most people would add: a rotisserie (the JoeTisserie, £279.99), a soapstone, a pizza stone and a set of Karbon Steel pans, including half-moon ones.
Alongside the ConvEGGtor, the extras I use on mine are a Broil King vertical roaster for chickens, a Le Creuset pan and a ThermoPro TP20 thermometer. None of them is Big Green Egg’s own.
Five-year cost
| Big Green Egg Large | Kamado Joe Classic III | |
|---|---|---|
| Grill | £1,495 | £1,999 |
| Per year, over five years | £299 | about £400 |
Without a stand or a cart, the Classic III costs £504 more than the Egg, about £100 a year over five years.
Charcoal costs the same whichever you buy.
I haven’t put in a replacement gasket, because mine is still fine. Big Green Egg covers its gasket for a year and Kamado Joe covers its for two.
Where to buy in the UK
Big Green Egg sells the Large direct at £1,495, and through its UK dealers.
Kamado Joe doesn’t sell direct in the UK, and its site sends you to a dealer. When I checked in October 2026, Kamado Joe listed the Classic III at £1,999 without its cart and £2,199 with it, and The BBQ Centre had both at the same prices. BBQ World lists an older Classic III as superseded and no longer sells it. Dealers also sell it in bundles with extra kit, so check what’s in the box before you compare prices. Kamado Joe also sells the Classic II, from £1,399 without its cart.
Which kamado to buy
I’ve only cooked on the Egg, so for a verdict I’ve gone with reviewers who’ve cooked on both. Smoked BBQ Source found the two built to the same quality and picked the Kamado Joe because it does more. Yale Appliance, whose reviewer owns an Egg, found the Joe’s hinge easier to lift and its ash drawer easier to clean. Clearing the ash is one of the worst bits of my Egg, so that one rings true. Ideal Home tested both brands and found them on a par for cooking.
If you want the name with the history
Buy the Egg
Big Green Egg has been making kamados since the 1970s, it’s the brand most people know, and Ideal Home rates its range of accessories above Kamado Joe’s.
Buy at Big Green Egg UK →If you want the best kamado you can get
I’d go for the Kamado Joe Classic III
Kamado Joe started in 2008 and has had to fix the things reviewers mark the Egg down on, like the weight of the lid and clearing the ash. Monolith is another. The Classic III costs £504 more than the Egg without a stand or cart, and comes with more in the box.
Buy at The BBQ Centre →Frequently asked questions
Is Kamado Joe worth the money?
The reviewers I read who’ve cooked on both think so. Smoked BBQ Source rates the two the same on build and picked the Joe because it does more, and Yale Appliance found its hinge easier to lift and its ash drawer easier to clean. The Classic III is £1,999 without its cart, £504 more than the Egg Large, and for that you get a three-tier rack and the SlōRoller. I haven’t cooked on a Kamado Joe, but I’d recommend the Classic III.
What is better than a Big Green Egg?
The reviewers I read who’ve cooked on both lean towards the Kamado Joe, for its hinge and its ash drawer. Monolith is another challenger brand. I’ve only cooked on the Egg, but I’d recommend the Kamado Joe Classic III.
What is the best egg BBQ in the UK?
If you want the name with the history, the Big Green Egg. If you want the best kamado you can get, I’d probably go with one of the challengers, like Kamado Joe or Monolith.
Which holds temperature better on a 12-hour cook?
My Egg holds 110°C (230°F) indirect for 8 to 12 hours without me touching it. I haven’t cooked on a Kamado Joe, so I can’t compare the two on a long cook.
What about the Konnected Joe?
It’s a Classic Joe with a fan and a digital control board. You set the temperature on the board or in the Kamado Joe app and the fan holds it, and there’s a button that lights the charcoal for you. John Lewis had it with a cart and cover for £2,019 when I checked in October 2026.
Sources and method
Everything here about the Egg comes from cooking on mine, more than twenty times. I’ve never cooked on a Kamado Joe, so the Joe’s details come from Kamado Joe’s own site, and the verdict on the two comes from reviewers who’ve cooked on both: Smoked BBQ Source, Yale Appliance and Ideal Home. The Egg’s prices and specs are from Big Green Egg UK. I checked every price in October 2026, at Big Green Egg UK, Kamado Joe, Charlies, The BBQ Centre and John Lewis.
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 or Kamado Joe and earns nothing from this page.
Mine’s an Egg, and it’s a really good piece of kit. If I were buying today, though, I’d go for the Kamado Joe Classic III, and it’s the one I’d recommend. The cooking is very similar on both, and I think the Joe does the small things better, like the hinge, the gasket and clearing the ash. Yale Appliance, whose reviewer owns an Egg, says the same. If the name with the history matters most to you, buy the Egg.