Smoking Times & Temperatures Chart
A free, printable BBQ cheat sheet: cook times, smoker and pull temperatures, rest, and cooked-yield loss for the cuts you smoke most, plus the USDA safe minimums. Print it for the smoker, or run the exact numbers in our free calculators.
| Cut | Size modeled | 225°F | 250°F | 275°F | 300°F | Pull temp | Rest | Yield loss |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Brisket (Sliced) | 12 lb | 12.4 h | 8.9 h | 7.1 h | 5.9 h | 200°F | 90 min | ~40% |
| Brisket (Pulled) | 12 lb | 13.8 h | 9.5 h | 7.5 h | 6.2 h | 205°F | 90 min | ~40% |
| Pork Butt/Shoulder (Sliced) | 8 lb | 8.6 h | 6.6 h | 5.4 h | 4.6 h | 185°F | 45 min | ~50% |
| Pork Butt/Shoulder (Pulled) | 8 lb | 12.0 h | 8.4 h | 6.7 h | 5.6 h | 203°F | 60 min | ~50% |
| Pork Loin | 4 lb | 3.1 h | 2.5 h | 2.2 h | 1.9 h | 145°F | 15 min | ~20% |
| Baby Back Ribs | Any racks | 5.5 h | 4.7 h | 4.1 h | 3.6 h | 195°F | 20 min | ~25% |
| Competition Ribs | Any racks | 5.0 h | 4.3 h | 3.8 h | 3.3 h | 190°F | 20 min | ~25% |
| Spare Ribs | Any racks | 6.5 h | 5.5 h | 4.9 h | 4.2 h | 198°F | 20 min | ~30% |
| Beef Ribs | 8 lb | 7.2 h | 5.1 h | 4.0 h | 3.4 h | 203°F | 45 min | ~30% |
| Prime Rib Roast (smoke, then sear) | 8 lb | 4.6 h | 3.9 h | — | — | 130°F | 25 min | ~15% |
| Tri-Tip (smoke, then sear) | 2.5 lb | 1.9 h | 1.6 h | — | — | 130°F | 10 min | ~15% |
| Whole Chicken | 4.5 lb | 3.7 h | 3.0 h | 2.5 h | 2.2 h | 165°F | 15 min | ~25% |
| Whole Chicken (Spatchcocked) | One bird | 2.8 h | 2.3 h | 2.1 h | 1.8 h | 165°F | 15 min | ~25% |
| Chicken Breast (smoke, then sear) | Any amount | 1.3 h | 1.1 h | — | — | 165°F | 5 min | ~20% |
| Chicken Thighs | Any amount | 1.8 h | 1.5 h | 1.3 h | 1.1 h | 175°F | 10 min | ~20% |
| Chicken Quarters | Any amount | 2.5 h | 2.1 h | 1.9 h | 1.6 h | 175°F | 10 min | ~22% |
| Chicken Wings (smoke, then sear) | Any amount | 1.3 h | 1.1 h | — | — | 165°F | 5 min | ~20% |
| Whole Turkey | 12 lb | 7.8 h | 6.2 h | 5.2 h | 4.5 h | 165°F | 35 min | ~25% |
| Whole Turkey (Spatchcocked) | 12 lb | 5.7 h | 4.6 h | 3.9 h | 3.3 h | 165°F | 25 min | ~25% |
| Turkey Breast | 6 lb | 4.0 h | 3.2 h | 2.7 h | 2.3 h | 165°F | 20 min | ~20% |
| Turkey Leg | Any amount | 2.3 h | 1.9 h | 1.7 h | 1.5 h | 175°F | 15 min | ~20% |
| Turkey Thighs | Any amount | 2.5 h | 2.1 h | 1.9 h | 1.6 h | 175°F | 15 min | ~20% |
| Turkey Wings | Any amount | 1.8 h | 1.5 h | 1.4 h | 1.2 h | 165°F | 10 min | ~20% |
| Lamb Shoulder | 5 lb | 5.7 h | 4.3 h | 3.5 h | 2.9 h | 190°F | 45 min | ~35% |
| Lamb Chops (smoke, then sear) | Any amount | 0.8 h | 0.6 h | — | — | 130°F | 5 min | ~15% |
| Lamb Loin (smoke, then sear) | Any amount | 1.0 h | 0.8 h | — | — | 130°F | 8 min | ~15% |
| Pork Belly | 6 lb | 9.3 h | 6.7 h | 5.3 h | 4.5 h | 200°F | 30 min | ~40% |
| Beef Chuck Roast | 4 lb | 8.0 h | 5.6 h | 4.4 h | 3.7 h | 203°F | 45 min | ~35% |
Times are planning estimates at the listed smoker temp: cook to internal temperature and feel, not the clock, and build in a rest/buffer. Higher pit temps (275–300°F) cut the times noticeably.
Cooking one of these today? Calculate your exact rib timeline or calculate your pork shoulder start time from your rack count or roast weight instead of the averages above.
USDA safe minimum internal temperatures
- Poultry (all): 165°F.
- Whole cuts of beef, pork, veal and lamb: 145°F with a 3-minute rest.
- Ground meats: 160°F.
BBQ cuts like brisket and pork butt are taken far past these minimums (about 200–205°F) so collagen renders and they pull or slice tender. The safe minimum is the floor, not the target.
Frequently asked questions
What temperature do you smoke meat at?
Most low-and-slow BBQ runs at 225–250°F. Brisket and pork butt do well at 225–250°F, ribs at around 225°F, and turkey is smoked hotter at 250°F or above so the skin renders and the bird clears the food-safety danger zone quickly.
How long does it take to smoke a brisket?
Plan about 0.9–1.2 hours per pound at 225°F. A 12-pound packer brisket takes roughly 12.4 hours wrapped in foil, or about 15.7 hours unwrapped, then 90 minutes to 4 hours of rest. Cook to temperature and feel, not the clock: always build in a buffer. Our brisket calculator works the start time back from when you want to serve.
What internal temperature should I pull smoked meat at?
Brisket: about 200°F for sliced (then probe for tenderness), 205°F for pulled or very tender. Pork butt: 203–205°F for pulled pork. Ribs: roughly 195–198°F, but judge by the bend test. Whole turkey: 165°F in the thickest part of the breast, the innermost thigh and the innermost wing. These BBQ targets are well above the USDA safe minimums because collagen needs the extra heat to break down.
What is the safe internal temperature for smoked meat?
USDA safe minimums are 165°F for all poultry and 145°F with a 3-minute rest for whole cuts of beef, pork, veal and lamb. Low-and-slow BBQ cuts like brisket and pork butt are intentionally cooked far past safe, to about 200–205°F, so the connective tissue renders and they pull or slice tender.
Method, assumptions & sources
How this chart gets its numbers
Method. Every hour figure in the chart is generated from the same model our meat smoking calculator runs, at its default settings (pellet smoker, boneless, wrapped in foil, meat starting at fridge temperature), for the size shown. Cuts without a size take about the same time at any amount, so they show one figure; a dash means the calculator does not plan that cut at that pit temperature. Pull temperatures are quality targets (e.g. brisket 200°F sliced / 205°F pulled); yield-loss percentages reflect typical cooked shrinkage for each cut.
Sources. Safe minimums come from the USDA safe temperature chart and are listed separately above - they are floors, not BBQ targets. Cook rates, pull temps, and rests are established pitmaster consensus, and the same numbers seed our calculators; we collect reader-submitted cook logs to check their physics model against real cooks.
Reviewed by James "Monty" Montgomery. Last reviewed: August 5, 2026. Ranges, not promises - pit stability, wind, humidity, and meat shape all move real times. How we source and correct numbers: editorial policy.
Want exact numbers for your cook? Try the brisket, pork shoulder, rib, and turkey calculators, or browse all BBQ tools.