The best charcoal to buy for grilling in 2024, according to reviews

If you love the taste of a charcoal grill, then you know one of the keys to great flavor is the type of charcoal you use.

Depending on the charcoal you select, you can cook up some serious flavor for those burgers, steaks and wings. Some charcoals also burn hotter and longer, which can determine you sear and how long a bag lasts. Plus, a clean burn means less waste and clean up, which is always a grilling benefit.

But with so many different types of charcoal to buy, it can be a challenge to choose the right one for you.

Related: The best grills to buy in 2024

To help you decide, here are some of the most recommended charcoal for grilling available, including options from Royal Oak and The Good Charcoal Company.

1. Royal Oak Hardwood Lump Charcoal: “It produces minimal smoke and ash while imparting a light smoky flavor that does not overwhelm. This is a good, multi-purpose charcoal, suitable for high heat, slow cooking, and smoking, with a strong value proposition when compared to its quality,” Food & Wine says.
2. The Good Charcoal Company Premium Hardwood Lump Charcoal: “We loved the dense, uniform composition of this lump charcoal, which reminded us of high-quality briquettes. It’s sourced from sustainable acacia wood, and burned incredibly clean, allowing the food we grilled to shine,” Serious Eats says.
3. Cowboy Hardwood Lump Charcoal: ”This charcoal burns hot and fast when needed for excellent searing and has the longevity required for low and slow cooking. It imparted a wonderfully smoky flavor to our food without any off-notes, akin to what you’d expect from a BBQ restaurant,” Spruce Eats says.
4. B&B Competition Oak Charcoal Briquettes: “B&B’s Competition Oak Charcoal Briquettes burn hot, long, and slow, all without too much smoke, and yet still imparting the smoky flavor you’d expect from good old-fashioned charcoal,” Business Insider says.
5. Fogo All Natural Premium Hardwood Charcoal: “The Fogo hardwood charcoal burns extremely hot and pure with no additives, producing very low amounts of ash. Any lump charcoal is irregular in size and shape, though, which can make predicting temperature and grilling times difficult,” Wirecutter says.

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Dawn Magyar can be reached at dmagyar@njadvancemedia.com. Have a tip? Tell us at nj.com/tips/.