Weber Smokey Joe 14 vs Smokey Mountain 18
147 sq in on one grate against 481 on two. The Smokey Joe 14 grills hot and travels; the Smokey Mountain 18 is a 41-inch column built for long cooks.
No single winner. Here is how to choose.
This turns on what you cook, not on which is better made. For steaks, burgers and sausages for two to four, the Smokey Joe 14 does it for $54.99 and fits in a car. For brisket, pork shoulder and ribs over hours, the Smokey Mountain 18 is built for it: a water pan and two stacked grates, 481 sq in. Neither does the other's job well. The Joe's cool side is small, and nothing on the Smokey Mountain sears.
What actually differs
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Food over the fire, or food above it
The Joe puts 147 sq in directly over a 14-inch bowl of coals. The Smokey Mountain stacks two grates above a water pan, so the meat sits in moderated heat rather than over flame.
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A small fire needs watching; a big one coasts
A 14-inch bed has little mass, so the Joe wants checking on anything long. The Smokey Mountain's 18-inch bed is the point of it: cold meat or a wind costs it proportionally less.
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Both put ten years where rust starts
Bowl and lid on the Joe; bowl, lid and center ring on the Smokey Mountain. Neither has a cord or a controller to fail. The Smokey Mountain ships with a cover and a lid thermometer; the Joe's cover is sold separately.
How they score, category by category
The Weber Smokey Joe 14 scores higher in 2 categories, the Smokey Mountain 18 in 4 categories.
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Heat Performance
Counts for 25% of the scoreWeber Smokey Joe 14 7.7Smokey Mountain 18 9.0 Better by 1.3Why the Smokey Mountain 18 scores 9.0A wider barrel carries a bigger charcoal bed, and a bigger bed resists change better than the 14 inch model.
Why the Weber Smokey Joe 14 scores 7.7
Lid and bowl dampers give the full kettle control system, over a fire only 14 inches across.
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Long-term Reliability
Counts for 20% of the scoreWeber Smokey Joe 14 8.3Smokey Mountain 18 9.5 Better by 1.2Why the Smokey Mountain 18 scores 9.5Ten years against rust through on bowl, lid and center ring, so the cover is longest exactly where rust starts.
Why the Weber Smokey Joe 14 scores 8.3
Ten years against rust through on bowl and lid, five on plastics, two on the rest, over porcelain enamel.
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Build Quality
Counts for 18% of the scoreWeber Smokey Joe 14 7.8Smokey Mountain 18 8.0 Better by 0.2Why the Smokey Mountain 18 scores 8.0Plated steel grates sit inside porcelain enamel, the one place Weber economised on this cooker.
Why the Weber Smokey Joe 14 scores 7.8
Porcelain enamel matches the big kettles, but it stands on a short wire tripod, and Weber names the grate two different materials.
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Ease of Use
Counts for 15% of the scoreWeber Smokey Joe 14 8.1 Better by 1.1Smokey Mountain 18 7.0Why the Weber Smokey Joe 14 scores 8.1The Tuck-N-Carry lock holds the lid for travel and while cooking, but at 17 in tall it wants a table to cook at.
Why the Smokey Mountain 18 scores 7.0
One built-in reading, taken at the lid, on a cooker whose fire you otherwise cannot see at all.
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Value
Counts for 12% of the scoreWeber Smokey Joe 14 9.5 Better by 1.5Smokey Mountain 18 8.0Why the Weber Smokey Joe 14 scores 9.5At $54.99 the bowl and lid carry the same ten years Weber puts on kettles costing several times more.
Why the Smokey Mountain 18 scores 8.0
Weber's page showed $419.00 in August, and a cover and a decade of rust protection are included.
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Maintenance
Counts for 10% of the scoreWeber Smokey Joe 14 7.3Smokey Mountain 18 8.0 Better by 0.7Why the Smokey Mountain 18 scores 8.0A water pan comes out dirty after every cook, which is the price of the steadiness it buys.
Why the Weber Smokey Joe 14 scores 7.3
Porcelain wipes down and the catcher lifts away, but the feature list names no One-Touch sweep to push ash into it.
See all six scores in one table
| Category | Weber Smokey Joe 14 | Smokey Mountain 18 |
|---|---|---|
| Heat Performance (25%) | 7.7 | 9.0 Better |
| Long-term Reliability (20%) | 8.3 | 9.5 Better |
| Build Quality (18%) | 7.8 | 8.0 Better |
| Ease of Use (15%) | 8.1 Better | 7.0 |
| Value (12%) | 9.5 Better | 8.0 |
| Maintenance (10%) | 7.3 | 8.0 Better |
| Avid Griller Score | 8.1 | 8.4 |
Both reviews are scored on the same six weighted categories, on the same 0 to 10 scale, and each reason is the one that review gave. A category is marked better only where the two differ by a tenth or more. How we score →
Where the spec sheets differ
Quoted from each maker's own specifications, as each review records them. Figures the two products publish identically are left out, so only the differences are listed.
Which one is for you
You grill direct for two to four, want it in the car boot, and smoke only the odd chicken over banked coals.
Check price →You already own something that sears and want weekend brisket and ribs that hold steady without a cord.
Check price →More head-to-heads
Every score and figure on this page comes from our own reviews of these two products, linked above. We have not tested them side by side in one place; the comparison is between two full reviews, each built from the maker's published specifications and documentation. Prices move, and the ones quoted are the ones each review checked on its own date.