How long does it take to smoke meat per pound?

Collagen-heavy cuts scale with weight: brisket runs about 1.25–1.5 hours per pound at 225°F and 1–1.25 at 250°F; pork butt 1.5–2 hours per pound at 225°F and about 1 hour per pound at 275°F; whole turkey 30–40 minutes per pound at 225°F and 12–15 at 350°F. Ribs, chicken pieces, tri-tip, pork tenderloin and salmon are thickness-driven and take roughly the same total time regardless of weight.

What internal temperature is meat done when smoking?

USDA safe minimums are 145°F with a 3-minute rest for whole cuts of beef and pork, 160°F for ground meat and 165°F for poultry. Pitmasters cook collagen cuts far past that so the connective tissue melts: brisket and pork butt to about 203°F (195–205°F, probe-tender), ribs to roughly 195–203°F or until the rack bends and cracks.

What is the stall and how long does it last?

The stall is when a large cut's internal temperature stops rising around 150–170°F, sometimes for hours, because moisture evaporating from the surface cools it as fast as the smoker heats it. Wrapping in foil (the Texas crutch) or butcher paper stops the evaporation; foil can cut about two hours off a brisket, paper about one. Hotter smokers stall less; near 300°F there may be no stall at all.

Should I go by time or temperature?

Temperature. Time estimates tell you when to light the fire and when to start checking; a thermometer tells you when it's done. Weather, wind, how often the lid opens, the shape of the cut and the smoker itself all change the clock.

Smoking Time Calculator — How Long to Smoke Brisket, Pork Butt, Ribs, Chicken, Turkey and More

Smoking times and temperatures chart

The table below is the same data the calculator uses, for the temperature most people run. Collagen cuts (brisket, butt, beef ribs) scale with weight; everything else is driven by thickness and runs about the same total time whether you cook one piece or six.

"Done" is the pitmaster pull temperature; the USDA column is the FSIS safe minimum. Collagen cuts are cooked far past the safe minimum on purpose — that's what turns tough into tender.

How the estimate works

For brisket, pork butt and prime rib the rule is hours (or minutes) per pound at a given smoker temperature, taken from the ranges published by AmazingRibs, ThermoWorks, Hey Grill Hey, Traeger and Destination BBQ, then multiplied by your weight. Ribs, chicken, tri-tip, tenderloin, belly and salmon get a fixed range at each temperature because their thickness, not their weight, sets the time. Temperatures between the published points are interpolated. Wrapping subtracts a credit (foil about 2 hours on a brisket, paper about 1), capped at a quarter of the cook so the number never gets silly.

The "meat on" time works backward from when you want to eat: the high end of the cook estimate, plus the full rest, plus a half-hour cushion. It's far better to finish early and hold the meat wrapped in a cooler (a brisket holds for 2–4 hours that way and gets better) than to have thirty hungry people staring at a stalled pork butt.

The stall, and whether to wrap

Somewhere around 150–170°F the internal temperature of a big cut stops climbing, often for two to four hours. It isn't the fat "rendering" or collagen "breaking"; it's evaporative cooling, the same thing that makes sweat work. Moisture wicking out of the meat evaporates and pulls heat off the surface as fast as the smoker puts it in. Wrapping in foil stops the evaporation and pushes straight through; butcher paper breathes a little, so it saves less time but keeps more bark. Running the smoker at 275–300°F shortens or skips the stall entirely, which is why hot-and-fast brisket has become mainstream.

Wrap when the bark is set and the color is where you want it, usually 150–165°F for brisket and around 160°F for pork butt. Ribs get no more than an hour in foil or they turn to mush.

Rest matters

Brisket and pork butt want at least an hour of rest, and a long hold (two to four hours in a dry cooler wrapped in towels) makes them noticeably better. Poultry needs 15–30 minutes. Tri-tip and prime rib rest, then get seared, not the other way around. Carryover cooking adds about 5°F to large roasts, which is why turkey breast is pulled at 160°F and prime rib at 120–125°F for medium-rare.

Planning a brisket? Use the dedicated brisket planner →

Frequently asked questions

How long per pound does smoking take?

Brisket about 1.25–1.5 h/lb at 225°F, 1–1.25 at 250°F, 45–60 min at 275°F. Pork butt 1.5–2 h/lb at 225°F, about 1 h/lb at 275°F. Turkey 30–40 min/lb at 225°F, 12–15 at 350°F. Ribs and chicken pieces don't scale with weight.

What temperature is meat done?

USDA: 145°F + 3-minute rest for whole beef and pork, 160°F ground, 165°F poultry, 145°F fish. Pitmaster pull temps for collagen cuts are ~203°F.

What is the stall?

A plateau at 150–170°F caused by evaporative cooling. Wrap or run hotter to shorten it.

Is 225 or 250 better?

Both work. 250–275°F gives nearly identical results in less time and a shorter stall; 225°F is tradition. Chicken skin needs 275°F or more to crisp.

Does a bigger cut take longer?

Brisket, butt and whole birds do. Ribs, thighs, tri-tip and salmon depend on thickness, so two racks take about the same time as one.

How early should I start?

Plan on the high estimate plus rest plus a cushion. Finished meat holds beautifully in a cooler; the calculator builds this in.

Smoking Time Calculator

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