Coleman Portable Gas Grill Comparison

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If grilling in the big outdoors gets your heart pumping, the Coleman Portable Gas Grill range is well worth a look. These easy to collapse and transport grills offer great features and convenience, backed by a trusted name that’s been in the industry for a long time.

Let’s briefly review the three main Coleman portable gas grills in the Road Trip range to help you choose the one that’s right for you.

First, here is a comparison table to help you easily evaluate the differences between the models. Just below that I’ll discuss the key features and recommend the best grill for you to buy.

Pick the right Coleman portable gas grill for your outdoor cooking needs

	Road Trip LXE	Road Trip LXX	Road Trip LX
Side Tables	2 x Removable	2 x Removable	2 x Removable
Total BTU	20,000	22,000	20,000
Cooking Space	285 Sq. Inches	285 Sq. Inches	285 Sq. Inches
Burners	Stainless steel x 2 (Independent controls)	Stainless steel x 2 (Independent controls)	Stainless steel x 2 (Independent controls)
Lid Thermometer	No	Yes	No
Wheels	Yes	Yes	No
Default Gas Source	Propane: 16.4-ounce cylinder	Propane: 16.4-ounce cylinder	Propane: 16.4-ounce cylinder
Compatible Gas Source	20-pound propane tank (tank hose required)	20-pound propane tank (tank hose required)	20-pound propane tank (tank hose required)
Included Surfaces	2 Grates	2 Grates	1 Grate, 1 Griddle
Drip Tray	Yes (Slide out)	Yes (Slide out)	Yes (Slide out)
Average Online Buyer Rating	4.4 out of 5	4.4 out of 5	4.5 out of 5
Manufacturer RRP	$189 (See Amazon deal)	$229 (See Amazon deals)	$229 (See Amazon deals)

 

Coleman Portable Gas Grill: Key Features

Let’s take a look at the key features that make these grills such great value.

Interchangeable Cooking Surfaces

One of the coolest features of the Coleman Road Trip series of grills is that they support various cooking surfaces, including grates, griddle and stove (great for pots).

Here’s how it works: these grills have 2 independently controlled burners, each with its own cooking surface. If you purchase a griddle surface (included with the LX model) you can use the griddle on one burner and the grates on the other. Barbeque some hamburgers on the grates while frying bacon on the griddle, all at the same time.

All three models support this feature, but the LXE and LXX only ship with grates. The griddle or stove accessories cost around $25 – $30 each. The LX ships with one grate and one griddle, so you immediately have that versatility.

BTU

These are hot little grills. The LXX has a slight heat advantage over the LXE and LX, but in my opinion that’s not such a big deal since the 20,000 BTU models are plenty hot enough already.

Thermometer

The only model with a built-in lid thermometer is the LXX. There are no thermometers on the LX or LXE. Again, on grills like these where you’re really not going to slow roast anything the value this adds is questionable.

Cooking Space

The 285 square inch total cooking space these grills offer you is more than enough for camping and general outdoor purposes. You don’t want these things so big and heavy that they’re a pain to move around, so Coleman has struck a nice balance between cooking space and easy portability here.

User Ratings

Coleman Road Trip grills earn very high user ratings on online shopping sites, averaging well over 4 out of 5 stars. These are well made grills with nice little touches like the interchangeable cooking surfaces. It’s no wonder they’re as popular as they are.

Which Coleman portable gas grill is right for you?

There’s not a lot to choose between these models. As you can see from the table above, they all share very similar features.

The main differences between the LXE and the LXX are the color (red vs black) and the 2,000 extra BTU + thermometer on the LXX. You can decide whether these are worth the $20 or $30 extra. Ultimately it may come down to which color you like best.

The Road Trip LX is the only grill that gives you a griddle and grate combination right out of the box. If you’re happy with that it can save you a $25 purchase for an additional grate or griddle, which brings the price of the LX in line with that of the LXE.

Both the LXE and Road Trip LXX are much easier to collapse and move around than the LX and the wheels are a great help.

Ultimately, I still feel that the Road Trip LXE offers the best bang for your buck, but you now have enough data to make up your own mind about which of these Coleman portable grills are right for you. Also look at my comparison of the best portable gas grills.

You can always count on Amazon for great deals on Coleman portable grills.