For the vast majority of buyers cross-shopping the Yoder Smokers YS640s Pellet Grill against the Traeger Ironwood XL, the Yoder Smokers YS640s Pellet Grill on the standard cart is the one to buy.
At this price tier, the factor that actually determines how a grill cooks over the years isn't the app or the probe count, it's the mass of steel around the fire. The mistake most buyers make is comparing connectivity features while ignoring steel gauge and weight, which is exactly what keeps temperatures steady when you load cold meat or fight a November wind.
Our pick: Yoder Smokers YS640s Pellet Grill — its 1/8-inch thick (10-gauge) steel cooking chamber holds heat like a masonry oven across 1,070 square inches of dual-level space, and it genuinely smokes, roasts, bakes, and sears in one American-made unit built in Kansas, USA.
Runner-up: Yoder Smokers YS640s Pellet Grill on Competition Cart — the better fit if you tailgate, travel, or reposition your grill often, thanks to flat-free pneumatic tires, locking casters, and tie-down rings on the same heavy-gauge cooking chamber.
If steel thickness, heat retention, and made-in-Kansas durability top your list, choose the YS640s standard cart.
If you're cross-shopping the Yoder Smokers YS640s Pellet Grill against the Traeger Ironwood XL, you're already past the entry-level tier and asking the right question: which of these will still be turning out great brisket ten years from now, and which one actually fits how you cook? By the end of this guide, you'll know exactly which buyer profile each grill serves, what specs genuinely separate them, and where your money buys longevity versus convenience. The reason this decision is worth thinking hard about is simple: a pellet grill at this level isn't a seasonal purchase you'll replace in three summers. It's a piece of equipment you cook on hundreds of times, and the build underneath the digital display is what determines whether it stays consistent through cold snaps, long overnight cooks, and years of weekend company.
What to look for when comparing
Once you climb past the budget bracket of pellet grills, a handful of real criteria start to matter far more than the marketing on the box. Here's what actually separates the tiers.
Steel gauge and heat retention. This is the one most buyers overlook and the one that matters most. The thickness of the cooking chamber determines how well a grill holds temperature when the wind kicks up or when you throw a load of cold meat on the grates. The Yoder Smokers YS640s Pellet Grill is built with a 1/8-inch thick (10-gauge) steel cooking chamber, with the hopper and cart made from 14-gauge steel. That heavy-gauge construction is why the whole unit weighs in at 335 pounds. The Traeger Ironwood XL uses 13-gauge steel in a double-walled format to enclose their cooking chamberm making the YS640s' steel 50% thicker where it counts the most. Why this is important: Thinner-walled grills swing more with the weather; thick steel behaves more like a masonry oven, radiating steady heat back into your food.
Real temperature range and searing ability. Don't assume every pellet grill can do everything. All of them use wood pellets for oven-style cooking, but only a select few can genuinely sear a steak or run hot enough to matter. The Yoder Smokers YS640s runs a working range of 150°F to 600°F, and with a simple access door removed over the firebox, you can cook directly over the flame — a grilling experience that pairs the convenience of gas with the flavor of wood or charcoal. Add the GrillGrate Set for Yoder Smokers YS640 Pellet Grill and the grate surface climbs past 650°F for steakhouse-caliber marks. The Ironwood XL features a narrower temperature range of 165°F to 500°F.
Controller intelligence and connectivity. A good controller does more than hold a number. The Yoder Smokers Adaptive Control System is built around a microprocessor that reacts to real-world variables — opening the lid, loading cold meat, weather shifts, even a change in pellet burn rate mid-cook — and adjusts the pellet feed to hold your target within about 5°F. It connects over both Bluetooth and your home Wi-Fi through the FireBoard app, so you can monitor the two included food probes and adjust temperature from your phone. The Ironwood XL is a tech-forward grill that allows similar app connectivity and uses Traeger's proprietary Smart Combustion™ technology to control the grill's temperature. How tight of a temperature band that controller can hold the grill to is a bit squishy, with normal good-weather temperature fluctuations running within ±15°F to ±25°F of the set point.
Cooking capacity that matches your crowd. Total square inches only tell part of the story; how that space is laid out matters just as much. The Yoder Smokers YS640s offers 1,070 square inches across two levels — 640 on the primary grate and 430 on the upper shelf — which lets you sear over the firebox while baking a side dish above. That's room for 8 to 10 racks of ribs, 6 to 8 pork shoulders, or 3 to 4 packer briskets in a single cook. The Ironwood XL, for comparison, has a two-rack base setup offering 924 sq. inches total.
Our picks
Best all-around pick — Yoder Smokers YS640s Pellet Grill. If you want one grill that smokes low and slow, roasts, bakes, and sears without asking you to compromise, this is it — and it's the brand's best seller for good reason. Priced in the premium tier, the Yoder Smokers YS640s Pellet Grill on the standard cart earns the top spot against the Traeger Ironwood XL on the strength of its 1/8-inch thick steel cooking chamber and that 1,070 square inches of dual-level cooking space. The 20-pound hopper runs roughly 10-plus hours at 225°F, which comfortably covers an overnight brisket. This is the grill for the home cook who's done replacing flimsy equipment and wants something to that will last — one owner put it best when he said he fully expects to be passing his down in his will.
Best for the cook on the move — Yoder Smokers YS640s Pellet Grill on Competition Cart. Same cooking chamber and Adaptive Control System, mounted on a cart built for mobility. The Yoder Smokers YS640s Pellet Grill on Competition Cart swaps in 8-inch flat-free pneumatic tires, locking casters, and heavy-duty tie-down rings, and it comes in a range of standard colors with an option to upgrade to stainless steel shelves or 10-inch tires. If you tailgate, travel to family gatherings, or simply want a grill you can reposition around a patio and lock in place, this configuration adds real utility on top of the same heavy-gauge build.
Best for organized cooks who want everything at arm's reach — Yoder Smokers YS640s Pellet Grill on Competition Cart with Storage Drawer. A perennial customer favorite, the Yoder Smokers YS640s Pellet Grill on Competition Cart with Storage Drawer adds a full-width, latching drawer on heavy-duty slides with an interior measuring 21.25" wide by 29.5" long. That's enough room to stash pellets, tools, rubs, and accessories — and the drawer clearance is even tall enough to hold the wood-fired oven insert. For anyone tired of running back to the garage mid-cook, this is the pick.
Best for a built-in outdoor kitchen — Yoder Smokers Built-In YS640s Pellet Grill Island. If your plans involve a real outdoor kitchen, the Yoder Smokers Built-In YS640s Pellet Grill Island delivers the same 1,070 square inches of cooking versatility in a turnkey, ready-to-finish package. It ships fully assembled on a pallet with a 52-inch galvanized steel tube frame and a stainless steel double access door, and you can finish the exterior in stone, tile, brick, or stucco to match your patio. Because the frame arrives plumb, square, and level, the grill and doors drop into place with professional accuracy — a big head start over building an island from scratch.
The accessory that unlocks searing — GrillGrate Set for Yoder Smokers YS640 Pellet Grill. One of the most popular add-ons owners reach for, the GrillGrate Set for Yoder Smokers YS640 Pellet Grill is extruded anodized aluminum cut to drop directly into the standard grate space. It pushes surface temperatures past 650°F, nearly eliminates flare-ups, and delivers the deep grill marks and caramelization that a reverse-seared steak lives and dies by. If direct grilling is high on your list, budget for this.
What most guides get wrong
Most head-to-head comparisons treat pellet grills as interchangeable and reduce the decision to feature checklists — app screens, probe counts, pellet-sensor gimmicks. That framing misses the single factor that determines how a grill actually performs over years: the mass of steel around the fire. A thin-walled chamber loses heat every time the lid opens and struggles to recover when the temperature outside drops, which is exactly when you need it most — that overnight cook in November. The 1/8-inch thick steel chamber on the Yoder Smokers YS640s isn't a spec-sheet flex; it's the reason the grill rides through weather swings and cold-meat loads without dramatic dips, and it's a big part of why owners describe the food as more consistent than anything they cooked on before. When you're comparing against the Traeger Ironwood XL, ask about steel thickness and weight, not just the connectivity features, because that's what you'll still be tasting a decade from now.
The recommendation
For the vast majority of buyers weighing the Yoder Smokers YS640s Pellet Grill against the Traeger Ironwood XL, the Yoder Smokers YS640s Pellet Grill on the standard cart is the grill to buy. For the price-minded buyer, you can think of it this way: if you're prepared to spend the roughly $2,000 on a Traeger Ironwood XL, spending roughly $2,700 for a YS640s that's built to last much longer is the move you'll be thankful you made ten years from now. The YS640s is handcrafted in Kansas, USA from heavy-gauge steel, it genuinely does the work of a grill, an oven, and a smoker in one, and its 1/8-inch thick cooking chamber is what keeps your food consistent season after season. All Things Barbecue is the exclusive online retailer of Yoder Smokers, so you're buying from the most knowledgeable source for these grills if you buy through us.
If you move your grill often or want a bolder look, step up to the Competition Cart version. If you want your tools and pellets stored right at the grill, the Competition Cart with Storage Drawer is your pick. And if you're building a permanent cooking space, the Built-In YS640s Pellet Grill Island drops right in — and if you want a hand mapping out that space, our in-house design team offers free outdoor kitchen design consultations, real people working through your layout with you rather than an impersonal DIY tool. Whichever configuration fits your yard, you're getting the same American-made chamber that turns out the food folks remember.
