Family-sized cooking is what the Traeger Pro 780 is for, and the value holds up. iMore called it 'the best backyard grill you could ever want,' citing the 780 square-inch cooking space and how easy it is to run, and GrillGuru scored it 9.6/10 overall. Wi-Fi connectivity and the companion app get the most attention, letting you control temperature and receive cooking notifications from anywhere. That same reliance on electricity and Wi-Fi will put off anyone who wants traditional, unconnected grilling. Serious home cooks who want professional-grade results without constant monitoring are the fit.
Full review
780 square inches: 34 burgers or six chickens
The Pro 780's headline number is grate area. 780 square inches takes 34 burgers, six rib racks or six whole chickens in a single load, which is the entire reason to choose it over the smaller Pro 575. iMore called it the best backyard grill you could ever want and put most of that on capacity plus how little the grill asks of you once it is lit.
165 to 500 degrees, so searing is not its job
The dial runs from 165F to 500F, which covers low-and-slow smoking comfortably and stops well short of a proper sear. Pellet grills in this class cook by convection rather than radiant flame, and the Pro 780 is no exception, so steak crust is not what it is for. iMore also noted heat-up slows in cold weather, adding as much as 15 minutes to reach a target temperature.
18-pound hopper and the WiFIRE app
The 18-pound hopper is sized for overnight cooks, and the WiFIRE controller is what makes leaving one unattended reasonable: temperature changes, probe readings and done-alerts all arrive on a phone. iMore rated the remote monitoring as the feature that changes how you cook, because you stop standing next to the grill. Initial setup, including getting the app onto the network, runs about 30 minutes.
Porcelain-coated grates on a 146-pound frame
GrillGuru credited the porcelain-coated grates for cleaning easily and holding up over time, and the stainless body rides on all-terrain wheels, which is what makes a 146-pound grill movable across a patio. It measures 29.5 by 28.5 by 52.5 inches, so it wants a real footprint, and the finish is happier under a cover if it lives outdoors year-round. Traeger backs it with a 3-year limited warranty.
No power, no cook
The auger, igniter and controller all run on mains electricity, so the Pro 780 is unusable at a campsite, on a tailgate or through an outage, which a charcoal or propane grill is not. The app also needs Wi-Fi that actually reaches the yard; without it you are back to the panel controls. Neither is a defect so much as the standing cost of a connected pellet grill, but both are worth checking before buying.
GrillGuru's verdict
GrillGuru placed it among the top three pellet grills of 2023, and PelletGrillLife rates it 4.4 out of 5. At $599.99 it sits at the upper end of the under-$1,000 bracket, and the honest comparison is against Traeger's own Pro 575: the extra money buys grate area and little else, so a smaller household is better served by the cheaper model.
Strengths
- +Roomy 780 square-inch cook space allows for large batch cooking including 34 burgers, six rib racks, and six chickens at once
- +Wi-Fi connected companion app enables precise temperature and timer control with notification alerts when cooking is complete
- +Easy at-home setup with most components pre-assembled and included must-have accessories
- +Electric pellet grill with 18-pound hopper capacity and temperature range up to 500 degrees provides consistent wood-smoke flavor
Watch-outs
- −Requires electricity to operate the auger and heating element, limiting use to areas with power access
- −App connection requires Wi-Fi, which may be problematic in remote outdoor locations without internet
How it compares
The Pro 780 outperforms the Pit Boss models in terms of cooking space (780 vs 482-518 sq in) and hopper capacity (18 lbs vs 5 lbs), making it ideal for large gatherings. However, it requires electricity and Wi-Fi, unlike the portable Pit Boss models, and lacks the direct flame searing capabilities of the PB440FB1 and LG300SL.
Rating sources
Our 4.6 score is the average of these published ratings. More about methodology.
