FREE Shipping on ALL Orders. 0% CC Fees. Est 2018.
(843) 212-7209
Free Shipping On All Orders. 0% Credit Card Fee.
Best Side Burners and Power Burners (2026)
Best Side Burners and Power Burners for Outdoor Kitchens
Prices verified 30 August 2026. Prices change — check the product page for current pricing.
Most outdoor kitchens do not need a power burner. A 12,000 to 15,000 BTU single side burner handles sauces, sides, warming and sautéing, which is what the overwhelming majority of outdoor cooks actually do beside the grill — and it costs $389 to $700 instead of $1,100 to $2,500. A power burner earns its money only if you genuinely boil stock pots, run seafood boils, fry a turkey or cook in a wok, because those four jobs need output a side burner cannot produce and a base a side burner cannot support. Buy the side burner by default. Buy the power burner when you can name the dish.
The honest test: do you need a power burner?
Here is the distinction nobody selling these puts plainly. A side burner is a range top. A power burner is a jet with a cast iron base under it.
A power burner is the right call if you do any of these. Seafood boils, where a 20 to 30 quart pot of water has to reach a rolling boil and stay there while you keep dropping cold product into it. Turkey frying, where a full pot of oil has to be brought to temperature and held there. Wok cooking, where the whole technique depends on the pan staying hot when food hits it. Large batch stock, sauce or canning work. Crab, crawfish and shrimp are the Lowcountry version of this argument, and it is a real one — a 12,000 BTU side burner will get a big pot warm and then sit there disappointing you for forty minutes.
A side burner is plenty if your list looks like this. Warming barbecue sauce. Sautéing onions and peppers. Simmering beans, boiling corn a few ears at a time, heating a pot of chili, melting butter, keeping a side dish hot while the meat rests. This is genuinely what most side burners get used for, and buying 60,000 BTUs to warm sauce is buying a piece of equipment you will resent the cutout for.
The stockpot stability point matters as much as the BTU. The Coyote 24" power burner ($1,799) uses a cast iron grate specifically as a stable base for the largest cookware. A full 20-quart pot of boiling water on an undersized grate is the safety issue on this page, not the flame.
Single, double or power: what each one is for
Single side burner. One ring, typically 12,000 to 15,000 BTU, in roughly a 12-inch cutout. One pot at a time. The cheapest way to add a cooking position and the smallest bite out of your island run. Start at the Bonfire single side burner CBASSB ($389) at 12,000 BTUs or the RCS Cutlass single side burner RSB1 ($394), also 12,000 BTUs.
Double side burner. Two independently controlled rings, typically 24,000 to 30,000 BTUs total, in roughly a 20-inch cutout. The practical benefit is not the extra output — it is that you can run one ring hard for a boil while the other holds a simmer. If you cook multi-component meals outside, this is the upgrade that actually changes what you can do.
Power burner. One or two high-output rings, 30,000 to 65,000 BTUs, on a cast iron or wok grate, in a cutout of roughly 14 to 24 inches. Built for volume and heat, not for finesse. It is a complement to a side burner, not a replacement for one — a power burner is a poor place to hold a delicate sauce.
Verified comparison: the burners worth shortlisting
Every figure below comes from our own listing for that exact model. Where a manufacturer does not state a figure, the cell says so.
Note that stated BTU figures come from each manufacturer and are not measured on a common basis between brands. Use them to sort within a brand, not to declare a winner across brands.
Named picks
Best side burner for most outdoor kitchens: RCS Cutlass Single Side Burner RSB1, $394
Twelve thousand BTUs is the right number for the sauce-and-sides job, and at $394 it is cheap enough that it does not compete with the grill budget. If you want a wider drop-in footprint instead, the Sunstone drop-in single side burner ($498) gives you 15,000 BTUs in an 11" x 17" unit.
Best double side burner under $1,000: RCS Cutlass Elite Double Side Burner CDB1EL, $799
Two independently controlled 304 stainless rings totalling 24,000 BTUs at $799. This is the sweet spot of the whole category: enough output to boil on one ring, enough control to simmer on the other, in one cutout. The Bonfire CBADSB at $519 does the same job in 304 stainless for less if budget is tight.
Best-value power burner: RCS Premier Pro Power Burner RJCSB3A, $1,119
Sixty thousand BTUs for $1,119 is the lowest price on this page for genuine stock-pot output. If you want the wok ring specifically, the RCS Cutlass Pro RSB3A ($1,449) includes it.
Best power burner for wok cooking: TrueFlame TFPB, $1,799
Sixty thousand BTUs through dual cast stainless ring burners with a wok grate included, ETL listed for outdoor use, into a 14" x 18.75" x 7.75" cutout. That cutout is the reason to like it — the TFPB ($1,799) gives you full power-burner output in a 14-inch opening rather than a 24-inch one, which is often the difference between fitting a power burner into an island run and not.
Highest stated output: Alfresco Versa Power 24" AXEVP, $2,485
Sixty-five thousand BTUs across dual burners. The AXEVP ($2,485) is the pick if the burner is the point of the island rather than an accessory to it. Alfresco products are made and manufactured in the USA.
Best matched pair for an American Made Grills island: Atlas double side burner, $1,458
The ATSSB2 ($1,458) is 24,000 BTUs across two separately controlled 304 stainless burners with a stainless lid and LED panel lighting, built, tested and serviced in the USA, and styled to match the rest of the American Made Grills range.
Best searing side burner: Alfresco Sear Zone AXESZ, $2,019
The AXESZ ($2,019) is a ceramic infrared unit in commercial stainless — a different tool from either a side burner or a power burner, aimed squarely at searing.
Match the burner brand to the grill brand — or accept that you didn't
Nothing stops you putting a $394 RCS burner next to a $4,000 Coyote grill, and functionally it will be fine. What you lose is the front panel. Knob shape, bezel finish, handle profile and panel brushing differ by brand, and in a single island run those differences read as a mistake even to people who cannot say why.
If matching matters, buy within the family: the Coyote C3DB ($1,049) beside a Coyote grill, the Atlas power burner ($2,493) beside an Atlas grill, the RCS Cutlass Elite burner ($799) beside an RCS grill. If the burner is going into a separate leg of an L-shaped island, or behind a door line, the mismatch stops mattering and you should buy on price and output instead.
Burners need their own liner in combustible construction
This is the cost people forget. If your island is framed in wood or another combustible material, the burner needs an insulating liner of its own — the grill's liner does not cover it, and liners are cut to a specific model's opening rather than being generic.
Budget for it as a real line item. The Coyote single side burner jacket is $439, the Coyote double side burner jacket is $489 and the Coyote power burner jacket is $449. On other brands: the Atlas double side burner liner is $445, the TrueFlame TFPB liner is $599, the RCS power burner liner is $639 and the Summerset PB2-PRO liner is $599.
Whether a liner is required for your build, and how it must be installed, is governed by the burner manufacturer's installation manual, your local code and a licensed professional — not by anything a retailer can tell you in general terms. Read do I need an insulating grill liner and the insulating grill liner FAQs, then shop grill liners.
What actually matters
Cutout width, not price, usually decides this. A power burner can want 24 inches of island run. A single side burner wants about 12. Draw the island before you shortlist, and take the cutout for your exact model from its installation manual.
Gas supply and fuel type. Burners are configured for natural gas or propane at the factory and are not interchangeable afterwards. Order the one matching the line run to the island. See the natural gas and propane grills FAQs.
Gas sizing is a licensed professional's job. Adding a 60,000 BTU power burner to a run already feeding a grill changes the load on that line. Sizing, connection and clearances are governed by the manufacturer's installation manual, local code and a licensed installer.
Ventilation, if the burner sits under a roof. A power burner producing steam from a boil under a covered patio is a ventilation question in its own right. See our outdoor kitchen ventilation and hood sizing guide.
A lid, and a wok if you bought the burner for one. Several burners include a stainless lid; check yours. Coyote sells a wok for power burners at $149.
FAQ
How many BTUs does a side burner need?
For sauces, sides, sautéing and warming, 12,000 to 15,000 BTUs is sufficient and is what most single side burners on this page produce. Higher output is only useful if you are boiling or frying in volume.
What is the difference between a side burner and a power burner?
Output and purpose. A side burner is a range top for ordinary pots. A power burner runs 30,000 to 65,000 BTUs on a heavy grate built to support a full stock pot, for boiling, frying and wok cooking.
Can a power burner replace a side burner?
Not well. A power burner is a poor place to hold a delicate simmer. If you have island width for both, that is the ideal arrangement. If you have width for one, buy the side burner unless boiling and frying are a regular part of how you cook.
Do I need a double side burner or will a single do?
A double lets you run one ring hot and one low at the same time. If you cook multi-component meals outdoors, that changes what is possible. If the burner exists to warm one pot, a single is enough.
Do burners come with covers or lids?
Many include a stainless steel lid over the burners. Weather covers are usually separate — see grill covers and the grill cover FAQs.
Are these burners in stock?
Every burner on this page is orderable, with free shipping and no credit card fees. Call for current lead times.
Final recommendation
Most people should buy one double side burner and stop. The RCS Cutlass Elite CDB1EL at $799 is the single best-value decision on this page: two controllable rings, 304 stainless, one cutout, under $800.
Add a power burner only if you named the dish. If seafood boils, turkey frying or wok cooking are on your list, the RCS Premier Pro RJCSB3A at $1,119 is the cheapest route to 60,000 BTUs, and the TrueFlame TFPB at $1,799 is the one to buy if island width is tight, because it needs only a 14-inch cutout.
If you are building a matched single-brand island, buy within the family and accept the premium — that is what you are buying it for.
Browse everything in side burners and power burners, or by budget: side burners under $1,000, side burners $1,000–$2,000 and side burners over $2,000. Related reading: the side burner FAQs, best built-in griddles, built-in griddle FAQs, the outdoor kitchen appliance checklist, the outdoor kitchen cost guide, built-in grills FAQs, RCS built-in grill FAQs, Coyote built-in grill FAQs and American Made Grills built-in grill FAQs. Not sure which way to go? Use help me find my grill, request a quote, or call our family-owned Charleston store at 843-212-7209.
- Choosing a selection results in a full page refresh.