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Fire pits are typically fueled by wood logs or propane tanks, and they come in a variety of designs to match your outdoor setting. To help you host outdoor gatherings throughout the year, the This Old House Team researched the best fire pits on Amazon. Here are our top four selections.
Top 4 Fire Pits
- Most Portable: UCO Flatpack Portable Stainless Steel Grill and Fire Pit
- Best Glass Pit: Endless Summer Outdoor Glass Top Fire Pit
- Best Traditional Pit: BALI OUTDOORS Wood-Burning Fire Pit
- Best Multipurpose Pit: YAHEETECH Outdoor Metal Fire Pit
Most Portable
UCO Flatpack Portable Stainless Steel Grill and Fire Pit
- $35.5
- $49.99
- 29% off
Prices taken at time of publishing.
Key Features
- Wood fuel source
- Made of metal
- 3.3 pounds
- Lifetime warranty
- Carrying bag included
What Customers Are Saying
Customers were impressed with how many items this grill could cook at one time. Many reviews said that it worked well for camping because of how lightweight and easy to assemble it was. Negative reviews noted that it was challenging to fit this grill in the included canvas bag and that its parts sometimes snapped off.
Best Glass Pit
Endless Summer Outdoor Glass Top Fire Pit
- $289
- $385
- 25% off
Prices taken at time of publishing.
Key Features
- Propane fuel source
- Made of metal and glass
- 80 pounds
- One-year warranty
- Glass beads, center insert, and cover included
What Customers Are Saying
Many customers noted that this propane fire pit was beautiful. In addition to this, many said that it was sturdy, a great value for the money, and easy to assemble. On the other hand, unhappy customers pointed out that it wasn’t well-packaged, as the parts sometimes arrived scuffed or not at all.
Best Traditional Pit
BALI OUTDOORS Wood-Burning Fire Pit
- $88.99
- $179.99
- 51% off
Prices taken at time of publishing.
Key Features
- Wood fuel source
- Made of metal
- 27 pounds
- Grill, log rack, and poker included
What Customers Are Saying
Customers said that this wood-burning pit was great for camping and backyard activities. Many noted that it was lightweight and easy to assemble and maneuver. Negative reviews pointed out that the metal felt cheap and that pit arrived with missing parts.
Best Multipurpose Pit
YAHEETECH Outdoor Metal Fire Pit
- $79.99
Prices taken at time of publishing.
Key Features
- Wood fuel source
- Made of metal
- 22.8 pounds
- Screen, cover, fire bowl, log rack, and poker included
What Customers Are Saying
Amazon customers praised this outdoor fire pit’s high-quality protective cover. Additionally, reviews brought up that this outdoor fire pit was lightweight, maneuverable, and easy to assemble. Unsatisfied customers criticized this product for not coming with a grill grate, being made from cheap, thin metal, and rusting quickly.
Buyer’s Guide
When purchasing a fire pit, it’s important to consider the factors that impact each model’s performance and user experience. Here are three factors to keep in mind.
Size
When deciding on what size fire pit to purchase, consider how many people are going to use it and what your intended use is. For example, if you plan on having gatherings around your fire pit, consider a larger model that emits enough heat to warm a crowd. If you want a fire pit for grilling food or warming a few people, a small model, such as the UCO Flatpack Portable Stainless Steel Grill and Fire Pit, should do.
Fuel Source
Fuel source determines the amount of maintenance your fire pit requires. A wood-burning fire pit needs regular stoking to keep the wood lit at a constant temperature. However, propane fire pits depend on a tank to fuel its flame and can run at a constant temperature until the tank is empty.
Accessories
Some fire pits come with accessories that help protect the fire pit from the elements or assist in starting or maintaining a flame. Common accessories include rain covers to prevent rusting, fire pokers to move logs, and mesh lids to prevent ash and embers from spitting out of the fire.
Frequently Asked Questions About Fire Pits
How far should a fire pit be from my house?
Keep your fire pit 20 feet away from your house and any surrounding structures.
Should I put sand in the bottom of my fire pit?
If you own a wood-burning fire pit, layering the bottom with sand can be an effective way of preserving the metal bottom and evenly distributing heat.
Can I leave a fire pit burning overnight?
No. A fire pit’s lingering embers, no matter how dull, have the ability to spark the dwindling wood and create an unattended fire. To prevent an accidental fire, let the fire burn out, spread the ashes throughout the pit, and extinguish the embers with water. Once the embers are extinguished, dispose of them in a fireproof ash bucket.
Why Trust The This Old House Team
This Old House has empowered homeowners for more than four decades with top-notch home improvement content in the form of television programs, print media, and digital content on its website and social media platforms. The This Old House Team focuses on creating in-depth product and service review content to help inform your purchasing decision for just about any item or resource that you might need for your home. The This Old House Team has written over 1,000 reviews on products in the home space, from cordless drills to kitchen trash cans, lawn mowers, and dining room decorations.
We recommend products in each review using an intensive research process, spending hours combing through the best available models on Amazon. For a product to make our list of top picks, it must hold a solid sales record on Amazon, have consistently positive customer reviews, and offer unique features, among other factors. After narrowing down our list of recommendations, we conduct additional research and sometimes in-person testing to ensure that the products meet our standards. Once we conclude the research phase, we craft a well-rounded, user-friendly article that includes our recommended products and additional information to help homeowners like you make the right purchase.
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