How long to smoke a turkey on a pellet grill

The short answer

Hours: a 14 lb unstuffed turkey at 325 F plans at about 3 hr 33 min. Traeger puts a 14 to 18 lb bird at 325 F at 3.5 to 4.5 hours (Traeger, How Long To Cook a Turkey On a Pellet Grill), and the USDA roasting chart says 3 to 3.75 hours for 12 to 14 lb (USDA FSIS, Let's Talk Turkey: A Consumer Guide to Safely Roasting a Turkey). Pull on the probe, not the clock.

Pellets: on a Traeger Pro 575 with its 18 lb hopper, that cook burns about 5.3 lb in mild weather and leaves about 12.7 lb in the hopper. A full hopper runs about 12 hr 37 min at that heat. A 20 lb bird takes about 4 hr 39 min and 6.9 lb, leaving 11.1 lb.

Cold weather: the clock stays the same in our model and the pellets do not. With the winter toggle (2.1x burn), the 14 lb bird burns about 10.8 lb and leaves 7.2 lb, and a full hopper only runs about 6 hr. The 20 lb bird burns about 14.0 lb and leaves 4.0 lb, which the calculator flags as "you finish close to empty".

What time: for a 6:00 PM dinner with a 20 min rest and a 1 hr cushion, the 14 lb bird goes on at about 1:07 PM, and you light the grill at 12:52 PM, or 12:37 PM in winter because cold weather gets a longer preheat.

Safe: USDA FSIS says the turkey is done at 165 F in the thickest part of the breast and the innermost part of the thigh and wing. Do not stuff a bird you smoke. Keep the pit at 225 F or higher. Sources: USDA FSIS, Turkey: Alternate Routes to the Table, USDA FSIS, Smoking Meat and Poultry.

Why a hotter pit burns fewer pellets on a turkey

On brisket and pork butt a hotter pit buys you hours and costs you pellets. Turkey is different. The calculator times a whole bird with a temp exponent of 2 instead of 0.85, because published turkey times roughly halve between 225 F and 325 F. The fire burns harder at 325 F, but it runs for so much less time that the bag comes out ahead. Same 14 lb bird on the Pro 575, mild weather:

• 225 F: about 7 hr 25 min, 7.0 lb of pellets at 0.90 lb/hr.
• 250 F: about 6 hr 1 min, 6.5 lb of pellets at 1.02 lb/hr.
• 275 F: about 4 hr 58 min, 6.0 lb of pellets at 1.15 lb/hr.
• 300 F: about 4 hr 10 min, 5.7 lb of pellets at 1.27 lb/hr.
• 325 F: about 3 hr 33 min, 5.3 lb of pellets at 1.40 lb/hr.

That is the opposite of the brisket comparison. The trade is less time in the smoke. Traeger lists 325 F as its roasting temperature for turkey, and the USDA roasting chart is written for a 325 F oven, so this is roasting with pellet smoke, not a long smoke. USDA's smoking guidance is a separate thing: a smoker held at 225 to 300 F, 20 to 30 minutes per pound, for an 8 to 12 lb bird (USDA FSIS, Turkey: Alternate Routes to the Table). At 14 lb and 225 F we plan about 7 hr 25 min, which is 32 minutes per pound, a little past that range.

What time to put it on

The planner counts backward from dinner. For a 14 lb bird at 325 F served Saturday at 6:00 PM:

1. FSIS says to let a turkey stand 20 minutes before carving, so the latest pull is Saturday 5:40 PM (USDA FSIS, Let's Talk Turkey: A Consumer Guide to Safely Roasting a Turkey).
2. We add a 1 hr cushion for a slow cook or a late start, which is our default and not a published number. Planned pull: Saturday 4:40 PM.
3. Take away the 3 hr 33 min cook and the bird goes on at Saturday 1:07 PM.
4. Preheat is 15 min in mild weather, so light the grill at 12:52 PM. In winter it is 30 min, so 12:37 PM.

If the bird finishes on time you hold it for the rest plus the cushion, 1 hr 20 min. Keep it covered and at 140 F or above (USDA FSIS, "Danger Zone" (40 F to 140 F)). The 20 lb bird goes on earlier, at 12:01 PM, and you light at 11:46 AM. Change the weight, the serve time, or the grill in the planner: 14 lb, mild, 14 lb, winter, or 20 lb, mild.

Hopper and cold weather

A turkey is a short cook, so the hopper rarely decides it in mild weather. At 1.40 lb/hr the 18 lb hopper has plenty of room. Cold changes that. The winter toggle multiplies burn by 2.1, which is a planning number and not a measurement of your patio. A 20 lb bird in winter wants about 14.0 lb against an 18 lb hopper. That fits on paper with about 4.0 lb to spare, and wind, a cold grill body, or an open lid eat a margin that thin. Start with a full hopper and keep a spare bag by the grill. If the cook uses the whole 1 hr cushion, add about 2.9 lb, which leaves about 1.1 lb. The cold-weather burn and full hopper hours pages cover the rest. Other grills have other hoppers: pick yours in the calculator or look it up in the grill database.

Temperatures and safety

• 165 F is the safe minimum. FSIS says to check the innermost part of the thigh and wing and the thickest part of the breast with a food thermometer (USDA FSIS, Turkey: Alternate Routes to the Table). Higher is a personal preference.
• Do not stuff it. FSIS says smoking cooks at a low temperature, so the stuffing can take too long to reach 165 F. Cook it in a pan instead.
• Pit at 225 F or above. FSIS says to hold a smoker at 225 to 300 F the whole cook (USDA FSIS, Smoking Meat and Poultry). The planner and calculator time any bird set below 225 F as if it were at 225 F and show a warning.

Our hours are for planning fuel and a start time. They are not doneness. The food-safety page lists the other USDA minimums.

Questions people ask

Can I smoke a 20 lb turkey at 225 F?

The calculator will give you a number: about 9 hr 42 min and 9.1 lb of pellets on the Pro 575. But FSIS's smoking guidance covers birds up to 12 lb, and the planner shows a note on anything bigger at a pit under 275 F. Run the pit hotter instead. At 325 F the same bird is about 4 hr 39 min and 6.9 lb.

How long should a turkey rest?

FSIS says 20 minutes before carving. The planner uses that as the default rest and adds a separate 1 hr cushion. If the bird is done early, keep it covered and at 140 F or above.

Planning the guest count? How much meat per person turns it into raw pounds. The methodology page shows how the turkey line compares with Traeger and USDA times.