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47cm vs 57cm kettle

Updated: 23 October 2026

You cook for about four people, mostly burgers and chicken pieces, and the shop offers a 47 cm kettle and a 57 cm kettle, sometimes both called compact. This page puts Weber’s areas first, then the lid, then the two 47 cm Webers in our [mini kettle barbecue comparison](/hub/grills-and-barbecues/mini-kettle-barbecue). A 38 cm tabletop is a different band: use the [buying guide](/hub/grills-and-barbecues/mini-kettle-barbecue/sub/mini-kettle-barbecue-buying-guide) unless you are choosing between these Weber sizes. Peter F. used Weber’s UK pages and a Riverside Garden Centre note. Riverside is a dealer, not a lab. This category stops at about 47 cm. A purchase through our links may earn a commission. Updated 23 October 2026.

You cook for about four people, mostly burgers and chicken pieces, and the shop offers a 47 cm kettle and a 57 cm kettle, sometimes both called compact.

Our top picks

House of Home House of Home kettle

Best overall

House of Home House of Home kettle
8.4/10about £33.99
View offer
Weber Weber Compact kettle 47 cm

Rank 2

Weber Weber Compact kettle 47 cm
8.8/10about £49.49
View offer
Weber Weber Original kettle 47 cm

Alternative

Weber Weber Original kettle 47 cm
8.1/10about £111.24
View offer
On this page
  1. 1.The areas Weber publishes
  2. 2.What the shallower bowl changes
  3. 3.The two 47 cm Webers in this set
  4. 4.When to leave for 57 cm

The areas Weber publishes

Weber’s Original Kettle range states 1,548 cm² for 47 cm and 2,342 cm² for 57 cm. The same pages use nine burgers at 47 cm and 13 at 57 cm. Those counts are Weber’s illustrations for Weber grates. They do not transfer to a HOMION or a House of Home. The gap is 794 cm². Weber says 47 cm suits couples, and 57 cm suits average families and indirect grilling. The Original 47 cm page, model 1502192, also says there is room for 4–6 people. Both sentences are Weber’s. Four to six does not erase couples. If the question is which grate holds more food, 57 cm wins. Two people grilling directly do not need the extra metal. A 57 cm Compact at £139.99 on Weber’s index is outside this category.

What the shallower bowl changes

Riverside Garden Centre says a shallow compact lid suits ordinary barbecue food, about four people at 47 cm, and that the deeper 57 cm kettles are for indirect roasts and a rotisserie. That is a dealer’s note. It points the same way as Weber’s range page. It is not a timed roast, and not a result for a budget trolley. You still cook with the lid on at 47 cm. The shallow bowl lacks headroom for a tall joint, a rotisserie, or a cool zone beside a full bed of coals. On 1,548 cm² that unused patch is small. A usual roast is the 57 cm case. Clearance stays at least 60 cm from fences or walls, at either diameter. Lighting and vents are on the how to light a kettle barbecue page.
House of Home House of Home kettle

Testsieger

House of Home House of Home kettle
8.4/10about £33.99
View offer

The two 47 cm Webers in this set

This folder has two 47 cm Webers and no 57 cm product. They share a diameter and not a lid gauge. The Compact, model 1502054, ASIN B0FTZN1YYZ, is £49.49 on Amazon and £94.99 on weber.com/GB. Weber’s page does not list a lid thermometer. UK reviews say one was promised and was not on the lid. The Original, model 1502192, ASIN B0FTZML2QD, is £111.24 on Amazon and £124.99 on Weber’s shop, with 1,548 cm², a lid thermometer and 8.9 kg. The gauge reads kettle air, not the meat. Stay at 47 cm for burgers, sausages and chicken pieces for about four. Take the Compact if you can cook without a gauge. Take the Original if the gauge is why you are paying. Scores against the rest of the set are on the best mini kettle barbecue page.

When to leave for 57 cm

Move to a 57 cm kettle, which means leaving this category, if indirect roasting or a rotisserie is the usual meal, or if Weber’s 13-burger example is closer to your table than nine. The word compact will not settle that. Weber also sells a Compact shape at 57 cm, captured at £139.99 on the index. Compact describes the shallower lid. The centimetres describe the grate.

Common questions

Is 47 cm enough for four?
For direct grilling, Weber’s Original 47 cm page says there is room for 4–6 people, and the range page still calls 47 cm the couples’ kettle. Riverside puts ordinary barbecue food for about four on the shallow 47 cm lid. Four is a fair plan for burgers and chicken on 1,548 cm². It is a shaky plan for six seats, and it does not move onto a 17 inch trolley. A roast with a cool side of the grate is the 57 cm case.
What does 1,548 cm² mean next to 2,342 cm²?
They are Weber’s published cooking areas for the Original 47 cm and the Original 57 cm. The gap is 794 cm², illustrated as nine burgers against 13. The 1,548 cm² figure belongs to that Weber grate, including model 1502192. It is not every round kettle with 47 cm in the title. A field that says 47 cm² is a broken unit, not this area.
Can I cook indirect on 47 cm?
You can bank the coals to one side, and little unused grate will be left. Weber points indirect grilling at 57 cm, 2,342 cm². Riverside says the deeper 57 cm kettles are for indirect roasts and a rotisserie, and the shallow 47 cm lid is for ordinary barbecue food. Indirect on 47 cm is a compromise for an occasional joint.
Is the Compact 57 cm a mini kettle?
No. Mini here means about 37–47 cm. Weber’s index also lists a Compact Kettle at 57 cm, captured at £139.99. The shared name is the shallower lid, not the diameter. There is no 57 cm ASIN in this folder, so that model is not scored here.
Will a 47 cm kettle need less clearance than a 57 cm one?
Weber’s charcoal page asks for at least 60 cm from fences or walls, and that gap does not shrink with the bowl. Clearance is a patio rule. It does not allow a balcony or a tent. If 60 cm will not fit, the kettle needs another spot at the same clearance.
Which of the two Webers here has the thermometer?
The Original, model 1502192, ASIN B0FTZML2QD. Weber’s UK page lists a lid thermometer and 1,548 cm², at £124.99 on the shop and £111.24 on Amazon. The Compact, model 1502054, is £49.49 on Amazon and £94.99 on the shop, and the captured feature list does not include a thermometer. UK reviews say the Amazon text promised one anyway. Either choice is still a 47 cm kettle.

Related pages

BBQ on a balcony in the UK

Mini kettle barbecue

Best mini kettle barbecue in this amazon.co.uk set

Mini kettle barbecue: check the bowl diameter first

How to light a kettle barbecue outdoors, then stop

Sources

Public UK sources on carbon monoxide, smoke control, outdoor fire safety and solid-fuel barbecue construction, plus Weber UK pages for the 47 cm Compact and Original and for charcoal temperature. Prices, stars and review counts are the amazon.co.uk lines saved with this comparison. Scores are not a laboratory cook. Retrieved 23 October 2026.

  1. Weber UK Compact Kettle 47 cm, model 1502054 (retrieved 23.10.2026)
  2. Weber UK Original Kettle 47 cm, model 1502192 (retrieved 23.10.2026)
  3. Weber UK — how to control charcoal temperature (retrieved 23.10.2026)
  4. NHS carbon monoxide poisoning (retrieved 23.10.2026)
  5. GOV.UK smoke control area rules (retrieved 23.10.2026)
  6. London Fire Brigade carbon monoxide safety (retrieved 23.10.2026)
  7. Fire England outdoor fire safety (retrieved 23.10.2026)
  8. BSI BS EN 1860-1:2024 solid-fuel barbecues (retrieved 23.10.2026)