Weber Searwood 600 pellet grill review from specs and owner reports: 648 sq in, 180 to 600°F, DirectFlame searing, the XL 600, and $999 October 2026 pricing.
Reviews are built from manufacturer specs, retailer listings and the pattern of owner reports. Our hands-on cooks and temperature tests are pending, and each page will say when one has happened and on what date.
Our take
The Searwood 600 is the pellet grill for people who grill more than they smoke, with a 180 to 600°F range, DirectFlame searing and a PID owners say holds steady. At $999 in October 2026 it has less grate than a Traeger Woodridge, but it gives you a real sear.
Best for
Weeknight grillers who want pellet smoke on weekends and don't want a second grill for steaks and burgers.
Who should pass
Skip it if a brisket and a pork butt together is your usual weekend; the Traeger Woodridge has 860 sq in for $899.99, or step up to the Searwood XL 600.
about $1,000
Price checked October 2026. Retail prices move.
Pros
Cons
Owners who run the Searwood 600 at 600°F with DirectFlame on report a full crust on a 1.5-inch steak in about 3 minutes a side, on the main grate, which no Traeger can do. That’s the reason to buy it, and it makes the Searwood 600 my pick for anyone who cooks steaks and burgers on weeknights and smokes ribs on Saturday. It was $999 on weber.com in October 2026 and $899 on sale at Ace and Walmart the same month. Across our pellet grill reviews, it’s the one for people who grill more than they smoke.
The trade is grate space. 648 square inches for $999 is less than a Traeger Woodridge gives you for $100 less. The other complaints are smaller: some owners report a hotter right side, a one-dial controller that takes a week to learn, and a standard cover that won’t fit over the folding front table. The auger jams and grease fires from Weber’s SmokeFire era haven’t followed this grill.
We haven’t cooked on a Searwood 600 yet. This review comes from Weber’s spec sheet, dated retailer prices and owner reports on retailer sites and forums, and our test results will be added with a date.
It’s for a cook with a gas grill on the patio who wants to replace it with one grill rather than add a second. Owners who made that swap mention two things first: heat-up time (Weber claims 15 minutes or less, and owners agree) and the sear, which a Traeger Pro or Woodridge can’t manage over the main grate.
It’s also a natural fit if you already use Weber Connect with a Smart Grilling Hub or a Genesis Smart grill, since the app, probes and alerts are the same.
It’s the wrong grill if your regular weekend is a 14 lb brisket plus a pork butt. The main grate is 24 by 17.5 inches, so one packer fits and two don’t. For that kind of cooking, the Searwood XL 600 at $1,299 has 972 square inches, and a Traeger Woodridge has 860 for $899.99.
From Weber’s US product page, October 2026:
| Spec | Searwood 600 |
|---|---|
| Cooking area | 648 sq in: 420 bottom (24 by 17.5 in), 228 top |
| Hopper | 20 lb, holds a standard bag; owners report 14 to 18 hours at 225°F |
| Temperature range | 180 to 600°F, plus SmokeBoost at the low end |
| Controller | Rapid React PID, digital LCD and one dial; Wi-Fi and Bluetooth |
| DirectFlame | Opens the fire pot to the grate for searing and crisping |
| Manual mode | Fixed fuel and fan rate for lid-open cooking |
| Grates | Porcelain-enameled cast iron |
| Size, lid closed | 45.75 in high, 38.5 in wide, 23 in deep |
| Weight | 125.4 lb |
| Warranty | 5-year limited, labor not included |
Rotisserie and griddle inserts are sold separately. The XL 600 shares the controller, hopper and temperature range, with 972 square inches (630 bottom, 342 top) and a weight of 157.8 lb.
Temperature stability is the strongest theme in owner reports. The PID holds 225°F through a 5-hour rib cook without drifting and gets back to the set point within a couple of minutes after the lid opens, with about 10°F of swing in still weather. Weber support has told owners that a dip approaching 100°F right after opening the lid is within spec. Expect the display to fall sharply and climb back fast; the grate itself doesn’t swing nearly that much.
How even the grate runs depends on who measured it. AmazingRibs’ bread test found the cooking surface fairly even, with a slight drop-off on the left side, and its thermometer read the main grate about 15°F under the set temperature at 225, 350 and 600°F. On the Weber forums, owners who mapped theirs mostly name the right side, the back right in particular, as the hottest spot. Owners cooking a full grate of wings or thighs rotate the tray halfway through.
Pit tip: For a mixed grill, run a bread test on your first hot cook, then put steaks on the hottest spot and chicken or vegetables on the coolest. On this grill the hot spot is a feature as long as you know where it is.
Smoke flavor scores well. SmokeBoost runs the fire cool and slow at about 180°F, and owners who start ribs or a brisket with an hour of it say the smoke is there, more than a Traeger at the same price gives. The caution from owners is not to leave a brisket on SmokeBoost for hours, because the meat dries before it gets tender. One hour, then 250°F.
Searing is what this grill is built for. Owners report the steak crust above and burger char a Traeger can’t match. Grease flares happen with the fire pot open, so trim excess fat and keep the lid close at hand.
Watch out: DirectFlame and fatty food mean flare-ups. Burgers with 20 percent fat or skin-on chicken thighs can catch, so sear in batches and close the lid for 30 seconds if the flames climb.
Owners report about 1 lb an hour at 225°F and close to 3.5 lb an hour at 600°F. With pellets around $0.50 to $1 a pound in October 2026 (see our pellet guide), a 5-hour rack of ribs costs roughly $3 to $7 in pellets and a steak night at 600°F, including the preheat, about $1 to $3. A full 20 lb hopper covers a brisket at 250°F with a little to spare; the pellet calculator will confirm your cook.
The body is double-walled steel with a porcelain-enameled lid, and owners compare it to a Weber kettle built into a pellet grill. The folding front table is sturdy enough to carve on. The small build complaints are a grease tray that’s awkward to remove without spilling, a hopper lid that lets rain in, and a standard cover that doesn’t seal with the front table fitted.
Weber Connect is a good app, with cook programs, probe graphs and remote set-point control, and owners rate it about even with Traeger’s. The controller on the grill is the sticking point. One dial and a small LCD carry a lot of menus, and owners say it clicks after a week and annoys before that.
The warranty is 5 years limited on the grill, labor not included. Owners report Weber support is responsive and parts are easy to find at Ace and Home Depot.
In October 2026 the Searwood 600 was $999 at weber.com and $899 on sale at Ace and Walmart. The XL 600 listed at $1,299 and dropped to $1,199 in the same sale.
| Grill | Price, Oct 2026 | Grate | Hopper | Max temp | Direct flame | Warranty |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Weber Searwood 600 | $999 | 648 sq in | 20 lb | 600°F | Yes | 5 years |
| Traeger Woodridge | $899.99 | 860 sq in | 24 lb | 500°F | No | 10 years |
| Traeger Pro 575 | $799.99 | 575 sq in | 18 lb | 500°F | No | 3 years |
The decision rule is simple. If you smoke more than you grill, buy the Woodridge, and if you grill more than you smoke, buy the Searwood. That’s laid out in Weber Searwood vs Traeger and the Woodridge review. The Pro 575 is smaller and cheaper, covered in the Pro 575 review.
The Searwood 600 appears on the best pellet grills, the best pellet grill for the money, the best pellet grill for beginners, the best small pellet grills and our pellet grill deals page, which is where the $899 price shows up. The whole Weber line, Smoque included, is in the Weber pellet grill review.
Buy it if burgers and steaks outnumber briskets in your year, and try to catch it at the $899 sale price, which has come around most months. Buy the XL 600 if you want the same grill with room for two big cuts. If you mostly smoke, the Traeger Woodridge gives you more grate and a longer warranty for less money.
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Brine the breasts for 45 minutes, then smoke them at 250°F on apple pellets for 50 to 70 minutes, about 2 hours start to finish. Pull each one at 160°F and rest it 5 to 10 minutes to reach 165°F.