Kamado Joe Joe Jr 13.5-inch
Real ceramic, small enough for a balcony — Kamado Joe's 13.5-inch ceramic (KJ13RH) on a cast-iron stand with heat deflectors, 150 sq in, at about $430 on Amazon against a $499.99 list — 4.6★ on 789 owners, the deepest record of any small ceramic kamado we read.
Contender — The Best Kamado Grills (2026): The Egg Is Not Cheaper, and the Warranty Depends on Who Sold It
Contender — The Best Portable Charcoal Grills (2026): Jumbo Joe vs Rambler, and the Tested Winners You Can't Buy
Sold and shipped by Amazon · read 2026-10-18
Specs
| Model | KJ13RH |
| Body | Ceramic |
| Cooking area | 150 sq in (13.5 in) |
| Weight | 75.6 lb (Amazon detail table) |
| Included | Cast-iron stand, heat deflectors, stainless grate, ash tool |
| Warranty | Ceramic lifetime; metal and cast iron 5 yr; deflectors, stones and electronics 3 yr; thermometer and GASKETS 2 yr |
| Rating basis | Global — model-specific |
| Owner rating | 4.6★ / 789 |
| Area per pound | 2.0 sq in (150 ÷ 75.6) |
| Lid locks for carry | None stated |
Pros
- Genuine ceramic in a 76 lb package, with the stand and heat deflectors in the box
- 789 owner ratings — far deeper than any other small ceramic kamado on Amazon
- Sold and shipped by Amazon.com on the listing we link
- The same lifetime-ceramic warranty table as the full-size Kamado Joes
Cons
- It is slow to heat and hard to take to a real sear, and one owner could not reach low-and-slow temperature with the deflector in without propping the lid
- Shipping damage is the dominant complaint — cracked fireboxes and chipped ceramic on arrival, with warranty replacements that took owners weeks or months
- It tips if the lid is opened before the grill is seated in its stand
- Buy it only where Amazon.com is the seller: an owner whose Joe Jr was shipped and sold by a marketplace seller was refused a warranty claim because that seller was not an authorised dealer
Arrival damage and slow warranty. Owners describe fireboxes cracked in the crate and chips in the ceramic, a replacement firebox that took two months of emails, and a 2026 chip Kamado Joe called cosmetic while Amazon sent the owner back to the maker. A 2024 buyer whose unit was sold by a marketplace seller was refused warranty because that seller was not an authorised Kamado Joe dealer. In use: slow to heat, reluctant to sear, and it can topple if the lid is opened off the stand.
5 percent of 789 owner ratings are one star as of 2026-10-18 (45 written critical reviews) · critical reviews read 2026-09-12
Pro review “The bonus of this smaller version is that it’s also super quick to heat up: In our tests, it hit close to 700°F in 20 minutes.”Hands-on test of 14 portable charcoal grills; slot "The Best Portable Charcoal Kamado Grill"; buy link B00IJ74RBO, the listing we link. Quote matched 2026-10-18 (raw HTML).— Grace Kelly, Serious Eats
FAQ
Who is the Kamado Joe Joe Jr 13.5-inch for?
You cook for one to three people, want true ceramic heat retention in a grill you can lift, and accept a slow heat-up and a small grate.
What do owners say about the Kamado Joe Joe Jr 13.5-inch?
4.6★ across 789 owner ratings (Amazon, read 2026-10-18 · global base). What owners complain about: Arrival damage and slow warranty. Owners describe fireboxes cracked in the crate and chips in the ceramic, a replacement firebox that took two months of emails, and a 2026 chip Kamado Joe called cosmetic while Amazon sent the owner back to the maker. A 2024 buyer whose unit was sold by a marketplace seller was refused warranty because that seller was not an authorised Kamado Joe dealer. In use: slow to heat, reluctant to sear, and it can topple if the lid is opened off the stand.
Who sells the Kamado Joe Joe Jr 13.5-inch on Amazon, and can it be returned?
Sold and shipped by Amazon, when we read the listing on 2026-10-18. Sellers and return terms can change, so check both on the listing before you buy.
What is the warranty on the Kamado Joe Joe Jr 13.5-inch?
Ceramic lifetime; metal and cast iron 5 yr; deflectors, stones and electronics 3 yr; thermometer and GASKETS 2 yr
Record
- — Re-read for the portable charcoal showdown: 4.6 across 789, $429.00 from Amazon.com (the stored $429.31 rounds to the same figure, so it stays). Serious Eats’ portable test of this listing found and linked.
- — Added as the compact kamado pick. Kamado Joe sells it at $499.99; Amazon.com had it at $429.31 on 786 ratings, the deepest base of any small ceramic kamado on Amazon.
Warranty — and what changes if you buy it on Amazon
Ceramic lifetime; metal and cast iron 5 yr; deflectors, stones and electronics 3 yr; thermometer and GASKETS 2 yr · you are buying this on Amazon
Read it yourself: Kamado Joe warranty document · we read it . Terms change without announcement, so treat this as a dated snapshot. How warranty works by buy path →
✓ Safety: no active recall — No CPSC recall found (saferproducts.gov Recall API, 2026-09-12: ProductName=kamado, RecallTitle=kamado and ProductName=Kamado Joe returned zero records; positive control ProductName=heater returned 181). Category caution, not a recall: flashover on a hot lid, and no lighter fluid in porous ceramic.
Size your pool first → ·All pool gear →
Data last verified: 2026-10-18. Ratings are real, dated reads — never scraped or invented. Full methodology and monetization disclosure: how we test.