Choosing an indoor grill comes down to the type (a contact grill that cooks both sides at once, an open grill, or a smokeless model), the size and cooking area, whether the plates are removable and dishwasher safe, how it manages grease, and features like even heating and grill marks. Knowing how to choose an indoor grill means matching those to how you cook. This guide walks through each, and for specific picks you can jump to the best indoor grills.
Quick Answer
For most people, a contact grill (the style with a hinged lid that cooks both sides at once) is the easiest, fastest indoor grill choice. Prioritize removable, dishwasher-safe plates for cleaning, a grease tray for drainage, even heating that leaves real grill marks, and a size that fits your household. Smokeless designs help keep the kitchen air clear during use.
Key Takeaways
- Contact grills cook both sides at once and are fast and simple.
- Removable, dishwasher-safe plates make cleanup easy.
- A grease tray keeps fat draining away from your food.
- Smokeless designs help keep kitchen air clear.
- Match the cooking area to how much you cook at once.
Types of Indoor Grills
The first choice is the style. A contact grill has a hinged lid with a cooking surface on both the top and bottom, so it grills both sides of your food at once, which is fast and requires no flipping. An open grill has a single flat or ridged surface you cook on like a griddle, giving you more room but cooking one side at a time. Smokeless grills are designed to minimize the smoke that grilling indoors can produce, often through heat management and drainage. For most everyday indoor grilling, a contact grill is the simplest, quickest option, which is the style I use and recommend starting with.
Size and Cooking Area
Size matters more than people expect. A compact indoor grill is perfect for one or two people and everyday items like burgers, chicken, and sandwiches, but the smaller cooking surface limits how much you can do at once. In my experience, larger batches of vegetables are the main thing a small grill struggles with, since spread-out items like asparagus fit but a big pile of veg does not. If you regularly cook for a family or want to grill sides and mains together, size up. For quick meals and smaller households, a compact grill covers the essentials without hogging counter space.
Removable, Dishwasher-Safe Plates
Cleaning is where an indoor grill either delights or frustrates you, and removable plates are the deciding feature. Grills with plates that pop out and go in the dishwasher are dramatically easier to clean than fixed-surface models you have to scrub in place. My own grill has removable plates that I simply rinse and put in the dishwasher, and after multiple years they have not really scratched. When choosing, strongly favor removable, dishwasher-safe plates, since this single feature is what makes an indoor grill something you actually keep using rather than avoid because cleanup is a chore.
Grease Management
Good grease handling keeps your food better and your cleanup easier. Look for a design that channels fat away from the food into a removable drip or grease tray, which is one of the quiet advantages of grilling indoors versus pan-frying. A sloped surface that drains into a tray means less grease pooling around your food. My grill has a grease tray that works well, and I also keep foil underneath to catch any overflow that misses the tray. When comparing models, a solid drainage system and an easy-to-empty grease tray are worth prioritizing, both for results and for the mess you avoid.
Heating, Grill Marks, and Features
Finally, weigh cooking performance and extras. Even heating across the surface matters, since hot spots leave some food underdone; a good grill cooks uniformly and leaves proper grill marks, which mine does reliably. Adjustable temperature control adds versatility for different foods, and some grills offer features like removable, reversible plates or panini functions. Do not overpay for gimmicks, but even heating, real grill marks, and simple controls are genuinely useful. Focus on the fundamentals of a good cooking surface and easy cleanup, covered alongside other cookware in our guide on choosing the right cookware.
My Setup
For context, here is what I use. My indoor grill is a George Foreman contact grill, the hinged style that cooks both sides at once, and I have had it for multiple years. It has removable plates I run through the dishwasher, a grease tray, and it heats evenly and leaves good grill marks. It is smokeless in practice, durable, and genuinely easy to clean, which is why it has lasted so long and stayed in regular rotation. For most people wanting straightforward indoor grilling, a contact grill with removable dishwasher-safe plates and a grease tray, like mine, is a sensible, lasting choice.
Indoor Grill or Grill Pan?
One more decision worth naming is an electric indoor grill versus a stovetop grill pan. An electric indoor grill is more convenient, often cooks both sides at once, and has built-in grease drainage, while a grill pan is cheaper, stores easily, and uses your existing stovetop and its heat control. If you already have a good stovetop and want the lowest-cost route to grill marks, a grill pan works, and our comparison of grill pans and griddles helps there. If you want hands-off, both-sides-at-once cooking with drainage, an electric contact grill is worth the counter space. Many cooks find the electric grill earns its spot through sheer convenience.
Recommended Reading
- cleaning an indoor grill, the easy routine.
- what to cook on an indoor grill, the food guide.
- whether indoor grills are worth it, the value case.
- the best indoor grills, for picks.
- budget electric grills, under 100 dollars.
How to Choose an Indoor Grill FAQ
What type of indoor grill is best?
For most people, a contact grill with a hinged lid that cooks both sides at once is the easiest and fastest. Open grills give more surface area but cook one side at a time. Choose based on whether speed and simplicity or open cooking space matters more to you.
Are removable plates worth it on an indoor grill?
Absolutely. Removable, dishwasher-safe plates are the single feature that makes an indoor grill easy to clean and keep using. Fixed-surface grills are far more annoying to scrub. If cleanup ease matters to you at all, prioritize removable plates when choosing.
What size indoor grill do I need?
A compact grill suits one or two people and everyday items, while families or batch cooking call for a larger surface. Smaller grills especially limit big batches of vegetables. Match the cooking area to how many people you cook for and how much at once.
Do smokeless indoor grills really work?
Many reduce smoke effectively through heat management and grease drainage, and mine stays smoke-free in normal use. No indoor grill is guaranteed zero smoke with very fatty foods on high heat, but a good smokeless design keeps kitchen air far clearer than pan-searing.
Do indoor grills leave grill marks?
Good ones do. Ridged cooking plates create the seared grill marks people want, and a grill that heats evenly delivers them consistently. Mine leaves proper grill marks reliably. If the look of grilled food matters to you, look for ridged plates and even heating.
Should I get an indoor grill or a grill pan?
An electric indoor grill is more convenient and often cooks both sides at once with built-in grease drainage, while a grill pan is cheaper and uses your stovetop. Our comparison of grill pans and griddles helps if you are weighing stovetop options against an electric grill.
Is a contact grill better than an open grill?
For most people, yes, because it cooks both sides at once and is fast and simple. Open grills give more surface area but cook one side at a time. A contact grill suits everyday quick grilling; an open grill suits those wanting more room.
How much should I spend on an indoor grill?
A solid contact grill does not need to be expensive; dependable models exist at modest prices, and our budget guide covers options under a hundred dollars. Prioritize removable dishwasher-safe plates and a grease tray over premium features, since those drive everyday usefulness and longevity.
See the complete guide: the comprehensive choosing a stand mixer guide.
