The best BBQs with a side burner in Australia

Plenty of four-burner BBQs in Australia come with a side burner, even some under $400. Whether it’s worth having depends on how you cook. Here’s how to tell.

Questions to ask before buying a BBQ with a side burner in Australia

• Is it certified for Australian gas? Every gas appliance sold here must be tested and certified (Gas Technical Regulators Committee). Look for the compliance plate and gas compliance mark; overseas marks such as CSA or CE aren’t enough (Energy Safe Victoria). You can look up the number on the national certificate database.
• Does it take an LCC27 cylinder? LCC27 valves replaced the old POL type from 1 April 2021. A new LCC27 BBQ needs an LCC27 cylinder, and adaptors that join it to an old POL cylinder override the safety valve; WA’s regulator has banned them (WA Building and Energy).
• How old is the gas cylinder? Cylinders must be safety tested or replaced every 10 years (SA Government). Look for the test stamp, and swap or re-test one that’s past its date (NSW Government).
• How do I check it for leaks? Spray soapy water on the hose and connections and watch for bubbles. Never use a naked flame (NSW Government). Weber recommends a leak check after assembly and once a year (Weber manual).
• Will it fit where you want it? A side burner widens the BBQ. Weber’s Genesis manual says keep 61 cm from anything combustible at the back and sides (Weber manual), so measure with the side burner shelf out.
• What happens after the warranty ends? Consumer guarantees apply automatically and last a reasonable time for the product, on top of any maker’s warranty (ACCC). Keep the receipt.

What a side burner actually does

It is a single gas ring on one side shelf, with its own control knob and usually a lid that folds down to become a shelf. Power varies a lot: the Weber Genesis SE-SPX-435’s side burner is 12 MJ an hour (Weber’s figure), and the BeefEater 1200’s is a 15 MJ wok burner (BeefEater’s figure). Any of them boils a pot, simmers a sauce, fries onions or heats a pan of garlic prawns. Only a strong one like the BeefEater’s is built for a wok, and none is stable enough for a big stockpot.

When it earns its place

You cook for crowds and want the onions going while the snags are on. You do seafood or anything smelly that you would rather not do indoors. You entertain outdoors often enough that walking back to the kitchen is genuinely annoying. Those people use the side burner every cook.

When it does not

You grill on weeknights and that is it. In that case the money is better spent on heavier plates, a better hood or a cover, all of which affect every single cook rather than the occasional one.

What it costs

A side burner isn’t a premium extra. Bunnings’ Jumbuck Horizon four-burner trolley already has one, plus a cabinet, for $349 (checked 13 Nov 2026). On dearer BBQs you’re paying for plates, hood, warranty and gas use, not for the side burner.

The picks

The Weber Genesis SE-SPX-435 is the premium pick: a 12 MJ side burner, 12 years on the cookbox and lid, the biggest published main grill here at 4,168 cm² and a separate sear zone (Weber’s figures), for $3,099 at Weber Australia (checked 14 Nov 2026). The BeefEater 1200 is for wok cooking, with a 15 MJ cast-iron wok burner on the side, for $997 at The Good Guys (checked 13 Nov 2026). If $669 is your limit, Bunnings’ Matador Spark 4 has a side burner, a cabinet and five years’ warranty; it’s compared below but not picked, because it’s sold only at Bunnings, which doesn’t pay us. Full comparisons in the 4-burner guide and the gas BBQ guide.

All 7 side-burner BBQs we compared

BBQ	Side burner	Price and shop	In or out
Weber Genesis SE-SPX-435	12 MJ (Weber)	$3,099 at Weber (14 Nov); also on Amazon	Pick: best premium
BeefEater 1200 4 burner	15 MJ wok (BeefEater)	$997 at The Good Guys (13 Nov)	Pick: best for wok cooking
Matador Spark 4	Yes	$669 at Bunnings (13 Nov)	Out: Bunnings only
Weber Spirit Smart EX-435	12.7 MJ (Weber)	$1,499 at Weber (14 Nov)	Out: gas certificate not yet matched
Coleman Revolution 4	14.3 MJ (Rick Hart)	Amazon	Out: no AU gas certificate naming it found
Jumbuck Horizon 4 burner	Yes	$349 at Bunnings (13 Nov)	Out: 1-year warranty, smaller cooktop
BeefEater 1600 4 burner	15 MJ (BeefEater)	$1,545 at Bunnings (21 Oct)	Out: same burners as the 1200, dearer

The competition

• Matador Spark 4 ($669 at Bunnings, checked 13 Nov 2026). The best value here on paper: four burners, a side burner, an enclosed cabinet, an 80 x 48 cm cooktop and five years’ warranty (Bunnings’ figures), and it’s certified (GMK10923). It’s sold only at Bunnings, which doesn’t pay us, so it isn’t a pick, but if $669 is your budget it’s the one to look at.
• Weber Spirit Smart EX-435 ($1,499 at Weber Australia, checked 14 Nov 2026). Weber’s cheaper four-burner with a side burner: 12.7 MJ on the side, a 2,761 cm² main grill, a cabinet and a 10-year limited warranty (Weber’s figures). It’s new this season and we haven’t yet matched it to a certificate on the national gas database, so it isn’t a pick yet. We couldn’t find it on Amazon Australia on 14 Nov 2026.
• Jumbuck Horizon 4 burner ($349 at Bunnings, checked 13 Nov 2026). The cheapest way to get a side burner, but it’s sold only at Bunnings, the warranty is one year against the Matador’s five, and the cooktop is smaller (80 x 42 cm against 80 x 48 cm, Bunnings’ figures).
• BeefEater 1600 4 burner ($1,545 at Bunnings, checked 21 Oct 2026). The same four 15 MJ cast-iron burners and 15 MJ side burner as the 1200 (BeefEater’s figures). The extra money buys stainless steel and three more years on the burner box, not more cooking.
• Coleman Revolution 4 (sold on Amazon Australia). A 14.3 MJ side burner and 41.2 MJ across the four main burners (Rick Hart), but we couldn’t find a current Australian gas certificate for it on the national certification database (GTRC, searched 13 Nov 2026 by brand, model and holder; the only Coleman barbecue certificate there was cancelled in 2014). A full read of the current barbecue certificates later that day found one importer’s certificate (AGA 9138 G) that lists Coleman models by factory code, including one with this BBQ’s 55.5 MJ/h total; it doesn’t name the Revolution 4, so we still can’t confirm it. Every gas barbecue sold here must be certified, so check the compliance plate before you buy one.
• Weber Spirit E-425. A good four-burner with a ten-year warranty on the cookbox, but it has no side burner (Weber), so it’s in the 4-burner guide instead.
• Six-burners, such as the Matador Spark 6 and the Jumbuck Horizon Plus 6 burner kitchen. Left out of this guide, which compares four-burners.