The best wood pellets for your smoker, plus how to choose

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Cooking food on one of the best pellet smokers imparts unmatched flavor and texture: It tenderizes meats like brisket and pork shoulder and adds a kiss of smoke to everything from vegetables to enchiladas. The key to that flavor is choosing the best wood pellets to fuel that smoker. 

With years of outdoor cooking and testing experience, coupled with expert advice, we found the best smoker pellets. Our top pick is Traeger's Signature Blend of three hardwoods, which highlights the flavor of meat, vegetables, and seafood. A close second is Bear Mountain's Gourmet Blend, whether you choose the standard tri-blend or the flavored selections.

"Using pellets creates smoke, which is a flavor profile to add to whatever you are cooking," says Stephen Chavez, senior chef-instructor at the Institute of Culinary Education in Los Angeles. "Depending on the meat, vegetable, pizza, or whatever you are cooking, you may want a different flavor that compliments that item."

Our top picks for the best smoker pellets

Best overall: Traeger Grills Signature Blend Wood Pellets — See at Traeger

Runner-up: Bear Mountain Gourmet BBQ Craft Blends Wood Pellets — See at Target

Best for brisket: Cookin Pellets Hickory Pellets — See at The Home Depot

Best budget: Camp Chef Premium Hardwood Apple Pellets — See at Amazon

Best specialty: Traeger Turkey Pellets and Turkey Brine Kit — Ace Hardware

Best overall

It's hard to think about smokers and pellet grills without thinking of the best Traeger grills. The brand launched its first wood pellet grill in the 80s and has been cooking ever since. To go alongside its pellet grills, Traeger also sells its own line of pellets under the brand label. I turn to the Traeger Signature Blend time and time again.

This 20-pound bag of the best smoker pellets is a blend of hickory, maple, and cherry. Thanks to those three woods, the mix is an excellent versatile option for everything from beef, chicken, and pork to fish and vegetables. Made from compressed hardwood, these pellets have no fillers or binders, and ash accumulation after use is minimal. I keep the Signature Blend on hand for its versatility, but other wood pellet options from Traeger, including mesquite wood pellets and pecan, are available and just as great. 

Runner-up

This blend checks all the boxes for smoking any food. A mixture of oak, hickory, maple, and cherry, this hardwood blend brings a punch of flavor to anything on the smoker, with excellent balance thanks to the addition of versatile oak. The oak wood allows for a consistent burn, with hickory, maple, and cherry making anything you pull off the smoker taste great. 

The pellets come in a 20-pound bag and are free from fillers or additives. While the Bear Mountain Gourmet Blend is a go-to of mine, the brand offers others such as Bold BBQ and Savory BBQ, along with just apple or cherry pellets. Any of those bags deserves a spot among the best smoker pellets.

Best for brisket

If you're making brisket, you're investing a lot of time to get juicy and flavorful meat. While the cut of meat is a popular choice because it won't break the bank, it does take hours of smoking and quite a few steps to produce a juicy, tender cook. As the meat is cooked low and slow, these 100-percent hickory pellets are a great choice to add flavor along the way.

There's no oak or alder as the base of these pellets — it's pure hickory hardwood for a bold and balanced flavor. "In my experience, blends do not have the same flavor and characteristics as a single type of wood does," says Chavez. "The individual woods seem to have a more strong, smoky, and distinct flavor profile which will really enhance your foods."

Best budget

If you're always using your smoker, buying bags and bags of pellets can add up. The Camp Chef 20-pound bag is a great way to shave off a few bucks. No oils, flavors, or other fillers are added to these pellets, and they can be used in a Camp Chef smoker (we selected the Woodwind series in our guide for the best barbecue smokers) or another smoker depending on the pellet requirements and warranty specifics.

This variety is made from apple hardwood, which is an excellent pairing for chicken and pork. It's also a great fit if you're baking in your smoker, adding a kiss of smoky apple flavor. You can also get cherry, hickory, and mesquite pellets.  

Best specialty

Wood pellets range in price depending on the brand and the hardwoods they're made from. If you're looking to splurge for incredible flavor, this specialty blend from Traeger is well worth the higher price tag. This pellet blend is made up of maple and hickory; the addition of rosemary infuses a unique taste. Yes, it's meant for smoking a turkey, but I've found it's a great match for anything from pork and chicken to potatoes and other vegetables.

Like other Traeger pellets, there are no fillers, and the bag will last between 10 to 20 hours, depending on the temperature you have your smoker set to.

How to choose smoker pellets

"The best type of wood is whichever fits with whatever you are cooking," says Chavez. "Some are more traditionally 'smokier' and taste more like what you would consider 'barbecue.' Others are sweeter and lighter which can add a lot of flavor to fish or vegetables." 

Flavor of wood:

Oak is one of the most common wood pellet options. It grows and can be harvested in many locations, making it easily accessible for brands to mill it and turn the wood into pellets. "Oak has a good, consistent flavor that is not overpowering but compliments most meats and other items," says Chavez.

According to Chavez, mesquite is to barbecue as oregano is to Italian food. "It just works and smells like that traditional barbecue flavor that you are often looking for," he says.

Smoker pellets FAQS

What is the best type of wood for smoker pellets?

You'd be hard-pressed to find wood pellets for cooking that are made from softwoods, and that's by design. Hardwoods such as oak, hickory, maple, cherry, and apple are common for smoker pellets because of how long they burn while imparting excellent flavor. 

How do you store wood pellets?

Unless you're doing a long low and slow smoke, you most likely won't go through a bag of pellets in one day. "Keep them in a cool, dry place," says Chavez. Pellets should be stored in a closed container, which will help to retain their flavor.

Is it safe to cook with heating pellets?

It's important to remember that not all wood pellets are the same. Heating pellets, often used in pellet stoves or fire pits, cannot be used in smokers designed to cook food. Only use food-safe smoker pellets for cooking.

What are filters and additives in smoker pellets?

As you're searching for the best wood pellets for your smoker, be sure to avoid pellets with additives or fillers. "Fillers are good to give you more quantity, but they come at the heavy cost of flavor, which is why you smoke things in the first place,' says Chavez. "Fillers tend to burn faster, so although you may get a larger quantity of pellets to begin with, they burn off much faster. Most brands display the wood composition of their pellets online." 

Charcoal versus pellet smoker

Both charcoal and pellet smokers can cook everything from meat and vegetables low and slow while infusing flavor. Many of the best charcoal grills can be used as a smoker with the right technique. Charcoal is known for imparting that classic, robust barbecue flavor, but it does require a bit more active attention as you open and close vents to achieve ideal airflow. 

Wood pellet smokers often offer less of a learning curve and are easier to set and forget. Plus, you'll often get extra features like WiFi connectivity and integrated meat thermometers. Pellet smokers lend food a delicious grilled flavor, but pitmasters will tell you that it's not the same in-depth or nuance as what you get from a barbecue smoker.