Independent comparisons. We may earn from shop links. More info

Best chimney starter UK

Updated: 22 October 2026

Amazon.co.uk checkout is a row of silver tubes. One fits a Go-Anywhere, one is 5.0 from three ratings, and a £59 steel chimney has no ratings here. Best means full kettle or compact, and galvanised or stainless. This page names one top pick and one best value from the [chimney starter comparison](/hub/grill-accessories/chimney-starter). Lighting is on [how to use a chimney starter](/hub/grill-accessories/chimney-starter/sub/chimney-starter-how-to-use). Checks before the badge are on the [buying guide](/hub/grill-accessories/chimney-starter/sub/chimney-starter-buying-guide). Peter F. checked these GBP figures on 19 October 2026. This is not a lab burn. A purchase through our links can earn a commission at no extra cost to you.

Amazon.co.uk checkout is a row of silver tubes. One fits a Go-Anywhere, one is 5.0 from three ratings, and a £59 steel chimney has no ratings here. Best means full kettle or compact, and galvanised or stainless.

Our top picks

Weber Weber Rapidfire compact 7447

Best overall

Weber Weber Rapidfire compact 7447
6.7/10about £19.99
View offer
GFTIME GFTIME Rapidfire-style

Rank 2

GFTIME GFTIME Rapidfire-style
7.6/10about £15.99
View offer
SA Products SA Products SA1294

Best value

SA Products SA Products SA1294
6.3/10about £12.65
View offer
On this page
  1. 1.How we picked in this table
  2. 2.Top pick: GFTIME Rapidfire-style
  3. 3.Best value: SA Products SA1294
  4. 4.Who should look elsewhere

How we picked in this table

Scores from 0 to 100 combine amazon.co.uk stars, the review count on that ASIN, and listing signals: stated capacity versus a 57 cm kettle, a named heat shield, a second handle, empty weight, and whether the metal lines agree. They are not lab burns or a ranking of every chimney in Britain. Weber’s full Rapidfire 7416 on weber.com (about £23.99, about 2.5 kg) is not one of the eleven ASINs. The Weber here is the compact 7447 at about £19.99: right for a small barbecue, and the wrong default for a family 57 cm direct cook. GFTIME claims that 57 cm load at a lower price, which is why the top pick is not simply the highest star average. Close scores are split on melted handles and titles that fight the material field.

Top pick: GFTIME Rapidfire-style

GFTIME GF01027416 (B072PT6W6P) is about £15.99, score 76 out of 100, 4.6 from 1,048 UK reviews. It is a Rapidfire-style tube: about 30 cm tall, 19 cm across, 2 kg empty, powder-coated, not stainless in the bullets. The listing names a heat shield, a folding second handle, and enough briquettes for a 57 cm kettle. UK reviewers describe even coals versus a pile in the bowl, and sturdy riveting for the money. At least one recent UK review reports a melted main grip and calls it dangerous. The top pick assumes gloves for the pour and dry storage. Choose it for a large review pool, two handles, and a 57 cm claim without Weber UK’s £23.99 for the official 7416. Skip it if third-party plastic puts you off, or if you need a Go-Anywhere size. That is the 7447.
Weber Weber Rapidfire compact 7447

Testsieger

Weber Weber Rapidfire compact 7447
6.7/10about £19.99
View offer

Best value: SA Products SA1294

SA1294 (B08CVRQV6Z) is about £12.65, score 63 out of 100, 4.5 from 985 UK reviews. It is 1.13 kg empty, 30.5 × 20 cm, with a second handle, vent holes, and a claim of enough coal for 47 cm grills or larger. Buyers often put lighting in a 10 to 25 minute range, which is review wording, not a timed test. The title says aluminium, the material field says alloy steel, and many UK reviews say galvanised. Melted thermoplastic handles repeat, including one report of heat through heat-resistant gloves. Best value means low cash plus many ratings, not the safest handle. Pick it near a £13 cap when you want hundreds of UK data points. Skip it for a true aluminium body, or if you will not glove up.

Who should look elsewhere

Weber Rapidfire compact 7447 is 4.7 from 25,428 reviews at about £19.99. It is the best-documented small chimney here, not the default for a full 57 cm pour. Reviewers like it on a Smokey Joe and a Go-Anywhere. Briquette counts are on the kettle page. The onlyfire stainless pair, about £32.99 to £34.99, is 4.7 from 33 and 4.9 from 17, with about 2.8 kg and 3 kg of briquettes stated. That is a rust buy on a small sample, not a value pick. Big Smokey BSCH01 at about £9.99 is 5.0 from three ratings and needs assembly. Electoys at about £11.99 is 3.4 from sixteen, with sharp-edge complaints. RIMLUFE at about £59.99 claims a 2 mm shell and has no star line here. LIVIVO’s galvanised rows have hundreds of reviews and repeated hot-handle themes, without the score badges.

Common questions

Which listing is the top pick in this table?
GFTIME B072PT6W6P. It has the highest listing score, 76 out of 100, with a 57 cm claim, two handles, a heat shield, and 1,048 reviews, at about £15.99. The pour still needs gloves, because UK reviews include a melted plastic handle.
Which is best value under £13 with more than a handful of reviews?
SA Products B08CVRQV6Z at about £12.65, with 4.5 from 985 reviews. The title says aluminium, the material field says alloy steel, and many UK reviews say galvanised steel. Melted thermoplastic handles are a repeated theme.
Should I buy the Weber compact instead of a full tube?
Buy the compact 7447 if the barbecue is small or the session is short. For 57 cm direct family cooks, start from a full-size row such as GFTIME, Amazon Basics with a 3 kg claim, or LIVIVO Deluxe, not from the 7447 alone.
Are the onlyfire stainless chimneys worth double the galvanised price?
If you barbecue often, store the gear outside, and accept review samples in the tens, they can be. If you are unsure, a mid-price galvanised row plus gloves costs about half as much.
Why is RIMLUFE in the table with no stars?
The heavy steel listing stays for buyers who want a thick-gauge claim. The score treats a missing review line as a penalty, so it does not take a badge.
Can I trust Big Smokey at 5.0 from three ratings?
As a cheap first chimney, if you will assemble it, yes. Three ratings are not evidence that it beats rows with a thousand reviews.
Who should skip the GFTIME top pick?
Anyone put off third-party plastic by melted-handle reports, cooks who only need a compact tube, and buyers who want the official Weber 7416 from weber.com instead of a third-party shape.

Related pages

Stainless or galvanised chimney starter

Chimney starter

Charcoal chimney starter buying guide for UK kettles

How to use a chimney starter safely on a UK kettle

Chimney starter for a 47 cm or 57 cm kettle in the UK

Sources

Public UK sources used for this comparison. Listing prices, stars and review counts are the amazon.co.uk figures for these ASINs. Retrieved 19 October 2026.

  1. Weber UK: lighting your barbecue (retrieved 19 October 2026)
  2. Weber UK: briquettes (retrieved 19 October 2026)
  3. Weber UK: Rapidfire chimney starter 7416 (retrieved 19 October 2026)
  4. Weber UK: how to control charcoal barbecue temperature (retrieved 19 October 2026)
  5. Weber: how to use a chimney starter (retrieved 19 October 2026)
  6. GOV.UK: fire safety outdoors (retrieved 19 October 2026)
  7. GOV.UK: smoke control area rules (retrieved 19 October 2026)
  8. Weber kettle manual 69101 (retrieved 19 October 2026)