When it comes to the best way to smoke meat, there are two main types of smokers that people use. The first type is an offset smoker which uses propane or charcoal and wood chips in order to create a smoky flavor while cooking. The second type is a pellet smoker, which works by using pellets made from compressed sawdust in order to generate heat and smoke for cooking meat. While both have their pros and cons, each one has something unique about it that makes them special. So here’s a list of what you should know about how these two compare! 

What is the difference between an offset smoker and a pellet smoker?

The Pros and Cons of Using an Offset Smoker

Pros: An offset smoker is cheaper than a pellet grill, but it can also be cost-effective depending on how much fuel you use to run it.

Cons: The amount that the temperature varies while cooking because of the design of an offset smoker can impact the finished product. Also, because this type works by using wood chips, there is a good chance your food will taste like smoke no matter what meat you’re smoking.

The Pros and Cons of Using a Pellet Smoker

Pros: Instead of using wood chips for flavor, a pellet smoker has machines that compress sawdust into pellets which then burn at high temperatures with smoke to generate heat and smoke. This allows the meat to have a more pure smoke flavor and makes it easy to keep the temperature consistent.

Here is the link: https://theoffsetsmoker.com/offset-smoker-vs-pellet-smoker/

Cons: You can’t use just any wood with a pellet smoker, you need to use a specific type of wood that has been premade into pellets for this type of smoker. If you don’t, your food will have a bitter taste.

How do they work?  

Offset smokers were traditionally used for smoking food because the fire was off to the side of where you are hanging your meat.  A pellet smoker works in a similar way, but instead of wood that is burned off to the side of your meat, it burns pellets made specifically for this machine.  The heat comes from below since they run on electricity and is regulated by an internal thermostat which makes it easier to keep a steady temperature.

Which one should I buy for my needs?

Although pellet smokers are becoming popular because of their ease, that doesn’t mean that an offset smoker isn’t good for you.  Offset smokers were made to do one thing extremely well while pellet smokers can also do other things like smoke cheese or make jerky in addition to smoking your meat.

Since there is no set temperature with this type of smoker, it takes some experience and practice before you can get the hang of it. On the other hand, since a pellet smoker has its own thermostat, all you need to do is load up your hopper with pellets and set the temperature according to whatever meat you are cooking. Know that wood chips will give off more smoky than pellets if you want a

Are there any other options that are better than these two types of Smokers?

You can also look into having a smoker that has both an offset firebox and a pellet hopper. This gives you the best of both worlds because you are able to set different temperatures for different things if necessary, but it does cost more money. For example, the Camp Chef Smokepro DLX is expensive yet versatile. You can check out our full review of this product here.

There are also electric smokers which come in many shapes and sizes so they will fit on any patio or tabletop. An electric smoker works by using electricity to heat up a metal plate called the heating element until it gets hot enough to smoke your meat over that element.