Best Outdoor Pizza Oven Under $500: 6 Top-Rated Ovens Perfect For Home Use
A pizza oven is one of the only ways to make pizzeria quality pizza at home—but they don’t necessarily come cheap.
Ranging from $200 for questionable budget models on Amazon, all the way into many thousands of dollars, pizza ovens come in all shapes, sizes, and with wildly varying feature-sets.
This review roundup is focused on the best outdoor pizza ovens that cost under $500 that are actually worth buying. In our experience, the $300-$500 range is the sweet spot where you can find a pizza oven that’s well-designed, built to last, and offers many of the same features as much more expensive models.
Why You Can Trust Our Recommendations
For this review roundup, we’re not simply going to list the cheapest pizza ovens you can find on Amazon and recommend them to you just because they’re under $500. This is not an arbitrary “top 10” or “top 20” list, and we’re happy with that.
Instead, every pizza oven listed here is one our team has tried, tested, and successfully recommended to home-based clients who are happy with their purchase.
This is why our list is relatively short, because each one is an honest recommendation of a pizza oven that’s proven its worth and is offered from a reputable brand.
So, with introductions out of the way, let’s get right into the recommendations.
Best Pizza Ovens Under $500
The following pizza ovens have all been thoroughly tested by our team, as well as vetted by a pizza making community at large.
As you look at these reviews, keep the following questions in mind. These are the questions we ask prospective clients before giving them a formal pizza oven recommendation. The answers you come up with will help guide you to which one of these pizza ovens is best for you beyond just price.
- What size pizza do you want to make? (12 or 16 inches)
- What style of pizza do you plan on making? (Neapolitan, NYC, Detroit)
- What fuel source are you most comfortable using? (wood, charcoal, or gas)
- What’s your budget? ($500, or as low as possible)
| Pizza Oven | Max Pizza Size | Fuel Types Supported | Base Price | Important Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ooni Karu 12G Multi-Fuel Pizza Oven | 12 inches | Wood, Charcoal, Propane (gas burner sold separately) | $429 | Best overall pizza oven under $500 |
| Gozney Roccbox Portable Pizza Oven | 12 inches | Wood, Propane (wood sold separately) | $499 | Best heat retention |
| Ooni Fyra 12 Wood Pellet Pizza Oven | 12 inches | Wood Pellets | $349 | Best wood-fired exclusive |
| Ooni Koda 12 Gas Powered Pizza Oven | 12 inches | Propane | $399 | Best propane exclusive. |
| Bertello Grande 16″ Outdoor Pizza Oven | 16 inches | Propane, Wood (gas, or wood/gas combo; not wood alone) | $549.99 | Best value for a 16 inch oven. |
| Ooni Karu 12 Multi-Fuel Pizza Oven | 12 inches | Wood, Charcoal, Propane (gas burner sold separately) | $299 | Best budget multi-fuel |
#1: Ooni Karu 12G Multi-Fuel Pizza Oven ($429)
The Ooni Karu 12G is the newest addition to the Ooni pizza oven collection, but it’s quickly become one of our top rated favorites.
In our pizza oven consulting business, we most often recommend the Ooni Karu 12G for those looking for the absolute best pizza oven under $500.
The Ooni Karu 12G is actually the smaller version of our current favorite all-around pizza oven (the Ooni Karu 16) with nearly all of the same features. So if you like the idea of owning the only pizza oven officially recognized by the AVPN but can’t afford the $800 price tag, the Karu 12G is the perfect alternative.
The only thing separating the Ooni Karu 12G from the Ooni Karu 16 is baking surface size—it’s only 12 inches instead of 16. But beyond that, the Karu 12G features a brand new design and is up to 30% more fuel-efficient.
The only caveat we have to mention with the Ooni Karu 12G is that the propane burner is sold separately. Propane is the easiest way to cook pizza in a pizza oven, so we do recommend buying one. This brings the price of the entire oven to a little over $500, but if you’re OK only using wood it’s just $429.
Ooni Karu 12G Tech Specs:
- Max Pizza Size: 12 inches
- Max Temperature: 950F
- Preheat Time: 15-25 Minutes
- Notable Features: Insulated glass viewing door, improved fuel-efficiency, built-in thermometer, multi-fuel support
- Price: $429
Pros and Cons (reference table):
| Pros | Cons |
|---|---|
| Great heat retention | Only 12 inches |
| All the bells and whistles of the Ooni Karu 16 | Propane tank sold separately. |
| Multi-Fuel Support (wood, charcoal, propane) | |
| Hinged insulated glass viewing door |
#2: Gozney Roccbox Portable Pizza Oven ($499)
The Gozney Roccbox is a beloved classic in the pizza making community that emphasizes aesthetics and high-performance.
In our business, when clients ask for a reliable yet stylish pizza oven, the Gozney Roccbox often comes to mind. That said, many of its best features have been matched or exceeded by the similarly spec’d Ooni Karu 12G as of 2023.
Where the Roccbox shines is in its unmatched insulation, which provides top-of-class heat retention. Heat retention is particularly important when it comes to minimizing the downtime between pizzas to reheat the baking stone back up to the maximum temperature.
Interestingly, this makes the Roccbox best for scenarios where you need you to make one pizza after another very quickly. This is why we recommend the Roccbox for those planning on using their pizza oven in small-scale commercial environments, like a food truck, food stand, or function hall.
Gozney Roccbox Tech Specs:
- Max Pizza Size: 12 inches
- Max Temperature: 950F
- Preheat Time: 15-25 Minutes
- Notable Features: Silicone outer layer, retractable legs, built-in thermometer, multi-fuel support
- Price: $499
Pros and Cons:
| Pros | Cons |
|---|---|
| Multi-Fuel Support | Optional Wood Burner 2.0 can be awkward |
| Safe-Touch silicone jacket | Pricey side for a 12 inch oven |
| Retractable legs | |
| Top-rated heat retention | |
| Work with propane out of the box |
#3: Ooni Fyra 12 Wood Pellet Pizza Oven ($349)
The Ooni Fyra 12 is a testament to how the essence of traditional wood-fired pizza can be captured in a modern design.
In our experience, the Ooni Fyra 12 is ideal for those looking for an authentic wood-fired pizza oven who want to avoid some of the hassle of dealing with traditional wood burners.
What truly sets the Ooni Fyra 12 apart is the gravity-fed pellet hopper. Wood pellets are much easier to use than traditional wood logs, and great for those who’ve never used a wood-fired oven before.
Just remember that the Fyra 12 uses wood pellets only, so there is no option for using propane when you just want to fire up the oven for a quick pizza.
Ooni Fyra 12 Tech Specs:
- Max Pizza Size: 12 inches
- Max Temperature: 950F
- Preheat Time: 15-25 Minutes
- Notable Features: Gravity-fed pellet hopper, ultra-portable design, easier than wood logs, highly fuel-efficient
- Price: $349
Pros and Cons:
| Pros | Cons |
|---|---|
| Gravity-Fed pellet hopper | No propane support |
| Wood pellets easier to use than logs | |
| Highly fuel-efficient | |
| Authentic wood-fired oven | |
| Very affordable |
#4: Ooni Koda 12 Gas Powered Pizza Oven ($399)
The Ooni Koda 12 is simplicity at its best, designed for those who want to get straight to making pizza without the fuss of dealing with wood or other multi-fuel options.
The Ooni Koda 12 is designed as a propane-exclusive pizza oven, which means there are no extra parts of attachments related to multi-fuel capabilities. This makes the oven extremely compact and lightweight, which is perfect for moving around or taking it on the go with you.
In our pizza oven consulting business, we recommend the Ooni Koda 12 for those who are looking for the easiest to use, best pizza oven possible at the lowest price. This pizza oven is super easy to use for a beginner but performs well enough to impress even a professional. Truly the best of both worlds.
The Ooni Koda 12 is also our go-to recommendation for anyone who lives in an apartment or condo with a small balcony and can’t have wood or charcoal smoke wafting into their neighbors windows.
Just remember that this pizza oven has no option for cooking with wood, even via optional attachments. If you’re OK with that, you can’t go wrong with the Ooni Koda 12 at such a low price.
Ooni Koda 12 Tech Specs:
- Max Pizza Size: 12 inches
- Max Temperature: 950F
- Preheat Time: 15-20 Minutes
- Notable Features: Easy to use propane burner, compact design, lightweight, no assembly required
- Price: $399
Pros and Cons:
| Pros | Cons |
|---|---|
| Simple propane exclusive design | No multi-fuel support |
| No assembly required | Lacks improved burner of Koda 16 |
| Compact, lightweight | |
| Beginner friendly |
#5: Bertello Grande 16″ Outdoor Pizza Oven ($549.99)
The Bertello Grande is the larger, updated version of the Bertello pizza oven that was famously pitched to Kevin O’Leary on the hit TV show Shark Tank. Full disclosure, this pizza oven costs slightly more than $500, but it has some features that simply can’t be found anywhere near this price range.
It’s also worth keeping in mind that (unlike most other pizza ovens), the Bertello Grande includes both wood and propane burners at no extra cost. This makes the $549 price tag much more palatable.
The original Bertello was a great pizza oven, but it certainly had its limitations as well. The Bertello Grande is a major upgrade, and it might just be the best 16 inch multi-fuel pizza oven in this price range.
One of the most unique features of the Bertello Grande is its dual propane burners—one above and one below the baking stone. The benefit of a propane burner below the baking stone is an incredibly fast preheating time and amazing heat retention.
But perhaps the best feature of the Bertello Grande is its massive baking surface—this makes the Grande ideal for making New York and New Haven style pizza.
We recommend the Bertello Grande to those looking specifically for a 16 inch multi-fuel at the lowest price possible. Its quality construction and innovative dual-burner setup makes it one of the best values on the market.
Note: The Bertello Grande is not a true multi-fuel pizza oven in the sense that it can use gas or wood. You can use propane alone, or a combination of wood and propane. There is no way to use the Bertello Grande only with wood (or charcoal). This won’t matter to many people, but if you’re looking to cook exclusively with wood, the Bertello Grande isn’t for you.
Bertello Grande Tech Specs:
- Max Pizza Size: 16 inches
- Max Temperature: 950F
- Preheat Time: 15-25 minutes
- Notable Features: Semi-gloss hammered finish, multi-fuel capability (wood and gas), large cooking surface
- Price: $549.99
Pros and Cons:
| Pros | Cons |
|---|---|
| Multi-Fuel Support | Some don’t like the bolted finish |
| Large 16″ cooking surface | Tends to run extremely hot |
| Durable “hammered” finish | Not as well calibrated as Ooni Karu 16 |
| Includes gas and wood burners with base model | |
| Dual propane burners | |
| Unique “under stone” burner |
#6: Ooni Karu 12 Multi-Fuel Pizza Oven ($299)
The Ooni Karu 12 is one of the older models in Ooni’s pizza oven collection, but it still offers great value for the money.
At only $299, the Ooni Karu 12 is the least expensive multi-fuel oven you’re going to find from a premium pizza oven brand like Ooni. This oven was originally priced at $399, but when the new and improved Ooni Karu 12G was launched, they dropped the price considerably.
That means the Ooni Karu 12 is in the process of being discontinued, so it’s a great opportunity for many people while supplies last.
The Ooni Karu 12 is a great performing pizza oven, but it’s a very barebones pizza oven with limited insulation and very few extra features. That’s why we recommend the Ooni Karu 12 to those looking for a solid, no-frills multi-fuel pizza oven at the lowest price.
Just be aware that, like most Ooni pizza ovens, the propane burner is sold separately. So to use propane with the Ooni Karu 12, the price is actually closer to $399. It’s still an amazing value in any case.
Ooni Karu 12 Tech Specs:
- Max Pizza Size: 12 inches
- Max Temperature: Not specified (but similar models go up to 950F)
- Preheat Time: Not specified (typically around 15 minutes for similar models)
- Notable Features: Multi-fuel options (wood, charcoal, gas with separate burner), ceramic fiber insulation, built-in baffle control, sturdy 13” cooking surface
- Price: $299
Pros and Cons:
| Pros | Cons |
|---|---|
| Multi-fuel support | Gas burner sold separately |
| Compact, lightweight | Less heat retention than other Ooni models |
| Least expensive premium multi-fuel oven | Very basic, no extra features |
| Fuel-efficient |
