If you’re a pizza lover with scheduled weekly pizza nights, a pizza oven is just what you need. They’re quick, easy to use, and give your homemade pizza an authentic wood-fired taste. If you’re impartial to pizza and it only makes the menu occasionally, a portable pizza oven could still be a great accessory to your outdoor space. Not only can you use it for bread, pies, and desserts, but you can take it with you when camping or tailgating, too. Nothing is better than a fresh homemade pizza by the campfire! Before you pick the most authentic-looking pizza oven from the catalog, you have to consider some important details. We’ve picked out some of the leading outdoor pizza ovens in 2025 to help you make your choice.
Cuisinart’s portable outdoor pizza oven is the ideal cooking accessory to jazz up your deck, patio, or balcony. With a manageable size, this unit can be taken camping and used for tailgating. There’s no need to keep hungry guests waiting since the 15,000 BTU burner can cook pizzas in just five minutes. The unit fits a full-size pizza on an included 13-inch cordierite pizza stone and comes with a built-in warming tray. Just because it’s a gas device doesn’t mean you need to skip on the woodfired taste as the unit includes a smoke chip cup to add wood chips while cooking.
Cook pizza, meat, fish, and vegetables in this ultra-portable gas pizza oven from Ooni. The compact design is super convenient for outdoor use at the beach, picnic, camping, and next to the barbecue or to use at home in your kitchen. Since it runs on gas it is also a great backup for power outages. The unit fires up within 15 minutes and is large enough to cook a 13-inch pizza at the turn of a dial. The oven can heat up to 950ºF (500ºC) which means your pizza cooks in just a couple of minutes.
This unit offers the best of both worlds. This small, portable pizza oven incorporates real fire for that authentic wood-fired pizza flavor. The stainless steel unit has a pellet compartment and chimney for easy cleaning and optimal ventilation. With a weight of 25 pounds and folding legs, it is easy to store and carry for various outdoor events. After preheating for 18 minutes, the unit can reach temperatures up to 860°F (460°C) and have your pizza ready within 2 minutes.
Camp Chef has extended its outdoor cooking range by offering a pizza oven compatible with any of its 16-inch cooking system stoves. The pizza oven simply goes on top of your camp chef and operates off the heat of your cooker. Whether you have homemade, artisan, or frozen pizza, you can get the perfect bake. The cordierite ceramic pizza stone pulls out moisture from the dough, offers even heat distribution, and ensures the perfect evenly baked crispy crust.
You can add some extra pizzazz to your barbecues and outdoor celebrations by getting your very own mini pizza oven. Guests will be thrilled with the woodfired taste of your homemade creation. You will want to consider some important features to ensure you get the best outdoor pizza oven to meet your needs. In this guide, we’ll highlight some features you may overlook in the selection process and help you successfully choose your new favorite cooking accessory.
Although most pizza ovens use radiant, convection, and conduction heat exchange as a means of cooking, the heat source will vary. Radiant heat is similar to that of a conventional broiler and is heat that comes from the fire, heated dome, or oven floor (element) itself, depending on the heat source. Conduction heat is the heat that is transferred between items that are in direct contact with one another. For example, heat is transferred to your pizza base when it is placed onto the hot pizza stone.
Convection heat is the heat circulating through air molecules and this passes over and around your dish. If your pizza oven has a door, you can control this heat by opening or closing the door. Since the top of your pizza is not directly in touch with a hot surface, convection heat plays a big role in getting melty cheese and a cooked top surface.
When choosing your pizza oven, you will want to consider the heat source for a number of reasons. Firstly, if you are a purist who believes all pizza should be made in a wood-fired oven, then wood-fired is probably the option that will make you happiest.
However, also consider that some heat sources are more easily portable, less messy, and easier to use than others.
Wood-fired ovens are popular because they are the traditional way of making pizza. They impart a smoky flavor to the dough and make for a fun experience. Some gas ovens have a smoke wood chip cup that allows you to impart that same flavor without having to cook in a wood-fired oven.
The downside to these types of ovens is that they require more cleaning, maintenance, and manual work than gas or propane ovens. Some models house the fire in the cooking compartment while others are designed with separate compartments for the fire and for cooking, which makes cleaning a little easier. Since you control the heat purely by adding wood to the fire to increase the temperature, you don’t need any further external power or heat sources.
If you want to use a portable pizza oven indoors as well as outdoors, a wood fire may not be the best option. A propane-powered model can be connected to a large propane tank on a property or attached to a small outdoor tank making them ideal not only for a backyard barbecue but also to take along when camping or tailgating.
Gas is easy to start up and allows you to maintain a consistent temperature or adjust the temperature easily. This is ideal for catering or parties where you want the oven to run for an extended time without having to control fire and guess whether the temperature is right. Using a specialized pizza stone or smoked wood chips in your gas oven can bring that authentic taste without a wood fire.
Certain companies specialize in pizza oven designs that can sit right on top of your grill. This way you use your barbecue grill as the heat source for creating the perfect pizza. Dual-fuel options are also available which are versatile allowing you to cook with either gas or wood depending on your circumstances
While brick ovens are generally much larger fixed structures, a movable and portable pizza oven is usually made from stainless steel or aluminum. Just like a freestanding grill, a freestanding pizza oven is positioned on a cart giving it some form of mobility and additional storage. Countertop models, on the other hand, are compact and sit directly on the outdoor kitchen counter.
Built-in brick ovens take a lot longer to heat up since the bricks absorb the heat. At the same time, they retain this heat well which makes them ideal for slow cooking. They will take 45 to 90 minutes to reach the ideal cooking temperature and allow you to cook a fair amount of food for a number of hours. They also burn hotter than gas ovens.
Metal designs heat up quickly, often within 15 minutes. On the flip side, they also cool down quickly. If you are using a wood-fire oven with a metal design, it won’t retain heat as well when the fire dies down. Gas or propane is ideal since you can control the temperature over a longer period. Metal designs can be used for all kinds of cooking styles including roasting and baking bread.
It’s important to choose the correct size for your pizza cooking needs, whether you’re making a small pizza for yourself or making pizza to serve the whole neighborhood cookout.
Small ovens are ideal for camping or taking on a picnic with a small gas cylinder. They are great for small families and if you don’t have the additional space for something big in the backyard but still want the option of a pizza oven, this is a good choice. They will most likely only fit one or two medium pizzas.
These are great for families, small parties, and get-togethers. If you have a weekly family pizza night, this one’s for you. Part of the fun of pizza nights is making a few smaller pizzas with different flavor profiles. You should be able to fit a few mini pizzas or 2 larger ones in a medium-size oven. In addition, use it to bake bread or cook vegetables.
If you host a lot of events, this size allows you to cook a few items simultaneously and get your table ready for mealtime without any delay. Large ovens can also be used for roasting and baking all at the same time.
If you’re catering regularly, this is a good option to get all your food out at the same time. Even a small business will do well with an extra-large size. If you’re planning on doing big roasts this may work as well. Keep in mind, if you have a wood-fired pizza oven, the space inside may need to account for both the fire and the pizza.
If you’re planning on using your pizza oven indoors make sure you have enough space in the kitchen or entertainment room to house it. Most models are outdoor pizza ovens and some are even designed to fit on your grill. If you are going for a grill-top option, ensure that the pizza oven size is compatible with your grill size. Some grill manufacturers specifically design pizza ovens to fit their brand models. Wood-fired ovens will need space for venting the oven’s chimney, while gas or propane ovens are fairly simple and more versatile in terms of placement and portability.
If there is no chimney for a wood-burning pizza oven the smoke will exit through the oven door. It will cause your food to taste burnt and look burnt. If you have a wood-burning pizza oven, yes, a chimney is necessary. Gas ovens or those used over a grill don’t need chimneys.
Since wood fire is the traditional way of cooking in a pizza oven, the dome shape evenly absorbs, reflects, and stores the heat from the fire.
Each type has its own benefits. Wood-fired ovens offer the best authentic taste, however, they can be messy. Gas-fired ovens are easy to use and sometimes offer more space since you don’t need to build a fire inside. This also means no ash or soot and therefore an easier clean.