Grilling a whole chicken on a gas grill is easier than it looks. This simple indirect-heat method gives you juicy meat and crispy, golden skin while keeping the chicken intact.
Season it your way—from classic salt and pepper to BBQ—and let the grill do most of the work. You get an impressive dinner without fussy prep or hovering over the flames.
⏱️ Quick Answer: How Long to Grill a Whole Chicken on a Gas Grill
Grill over indirect heat at 350°–400°F until the thickest part of the breast reaches 165°F and the thighs reach about 185°F.
- A 5-pound whole chicken usually takes 80–90 minutes.
- Smaller chickens will cook a little faster, while larger chickens will take longer.
- Rest for 5–10 minutes before carving.
Jump To (scroll for more)
- 🤔 TL;DR — Recipe Summary
- 🐓 Ingredients
- 👨🍳 Quick Overview: Grilling a Whole Chicken on a Gas Grill
- ⏲️ How Long to Grill a Whole Chicken
- 🧂 Seasoning: Classic, BBQ, and More
- 🔥 Gas Grill Setup for Indirect Cooking
- 🍴 How to Serve Grilled Whole Chicken
- ❄️ How to Store Leftovers
- 🍗 More Whole Chicken Recipes
- ⚕️ Food Safety
- 📖The Recipe Card
Featured Comment by Janice :
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
"Best. Ever. Why would you ever BBQ a whole chicken any other way? No changes to the recipe. Perfect the way it is. Thanks!!"
🤔 TL;DR — Recipe Summary
- What: A whole chicken grilled intact on a gas grill and seasoned your way—from simple salt and pepper to BBQ.
- Why: Indirect heat cooks the chicken evenly without spatchcocking, flipping, or constant attention.
- How: Grill at 350°–400°F over indirect heat, rotate once, and cook until the breast reaches 165°F and the thighs reach about 185°F.
🐓 Ingredients
- Whole chicken: A 4–6-pound chicken cooks most evenly with this method. Larger birds may overbrown before the center is done.
- Butter: Helps the skin brown and become crisp.
- Seasoning: Use coarse salt and black pepper, with optional garlic powder.
- Optional variations: Add rosemary, thyme, or lemon-garlic seasoning, or use a BBQ dry rub.
👨🍳 Quick Overview: Grilling a Whole Chicken on a Gas Grill
1. Set up the grill for indirect cooking, with a surface temperature of 350°–400°F in the indirect zone.
2. Prepare the chicken: Pat the chicken dry, truss the legs, and tuck the wings under. Brush with melted butter and season with kosher salt and pepper.
✅ Pro Tip: Trussing pulls the legs toward the center so the chicken cooks more evenly. Use kitchen twine.
3. Start grilling: Place the chicken in the indirect zone with one thigh angled toward the direct heat. Close the lid and grill for 40 minutes.
4. Rotate and finish: Turn the chicken so the other thigh faces the direct heat. Brush with more butter, close the lid, and continue grilling until the breast reaches 165°F and the thighs reach about 185°F.
5. Rest: Let the chicken rest for 5–10 minutes before carving.
👇 For complete step-by-step instructions, scroll down to the printable recipe card, or keep reading for helpful tips and flavor options.
⏲️ How Long to Grill a Whole Chicken
A 5-pound whole chicken usually takes 80–90 minutes over indirect heat at 350°–400°F. Start checking the internal temperature at about 75 minutes. Smaller chickens may finish sooner, while larger chickens will take longer.
Cooking time varies with the chicken’s size and shape, the actual grill-surface temperature, and how often you open the lid. Use the clock to estimate when to check—not to determine doneness.
✅ Pro Tip: The chicken is done when the thickest part of the breast reaches 165°F and the thighs reach about 185°F.
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🧂 Seasoning: Classic, BBQ, and More
Brush the chicken with melted butter, then choose your seasoning:
- Classic: Coarse salt, black pepper, and optional garlic powder.
- Herb: Rosemary, thyme, lemon-garlic seasoning, or your favorite poultry blend.
♨️ BBQ Whole Chicken
Replace the salt and pepper with your favorite BBQ dry rub. During the final 10–15 minutes, brush the chicken lightly with BBQ sauce; repeat once if desired. Add sauce only near the end because its sugar can burn.
🔥 Gas Grill Setup for Indirect Cooking
Turn on the burner or burners on one side of the grill and leave the area beneath the chicken unlit. Adjust the active burners to maintain a surface temperature of 350°–400°F in the indirect zone where the chicken will sit.
Gas grills vary, so use a grill-surface thermometer rather than relying only on the thermometer in the lid. Use an instant-read thermometer to check the chicken near the end of cooking.
For more help, see A Beginners Guide to Grill Temperature on a Gas Grill and How To Set Up Your Gas Grill for Smoking and Low and Slow Cooking.
Optional Wood Smoke
For a light smoky flavor, place wood chips in a smoker box or foil pouch over the active burner. Keep the lid closed and use a mild wood such as apple or hickory.
🍴 How to Serve Grilled Whole Chicken
Serve with Grilled Baby Potatoes, a simple salad, or Grilled Pineapple Slices for something sweet. For two, enjoy part of the chicken for dinner and save the remaining meat for another meal.
❄️ How to Store Leftovers
Store leftover chicken in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 4 days or freeze for up to 3 months.
Use the leftovers in salads, sandwiches, basic chicken salad or Waldorf Chicken Salad.
🍗 More Whole Chicken Recipes
- Grilled Spatchcock Chicken: A faster grilling method that also works well for half a chicken.
- Oven Baked Whole Chicken: An easy indoor option when grilling is not practical.
⚕️ Food Safety
- Do not rinse raw chicken. It can spread bacteria around your sink and counters. See Why You Should Not Rinse Raw Chicken for more.
- Cook chicken safely. The USDA recommends 165°F in the thickest parts. For better texture, cook the thighs and legs to about 185°F.
- Do not stuff the cavity with food you intend to eat. The stuffing must also reach 165°F, which may overcook the chicken.
- Prevent cross-contamination. Wash your hands before and after handling raw chicken, and refrigerate it below 40°F, away from ready-to-eat foods.
📖The Recipe Card
Grilled Whole Chicken on a Gas Grill
Ingredients
- 5 pounds whole chicken - 4-6 pound range. Bigger will take longer.
- 2 tablespoons butter
- Kosher salt and pepper to taste - or seasoning of your choice.
Step-by-Step Instructions
- Set up the grill for indirect cooking. Clean and oil the grates. Heat the active burners and adjust them to maintain a surface temperature of 350°–400°F in the indirect zone.
- Remove any giblets, trim excess fat, and pat the chicken dry—do not rinse. Truss the legs and tuck the wings under.
- Melt the butter and brush it over the chicken, reserving some for later. Season with kosher salt and black pepper, or use your preferred seasoning or BBQ dry rub.
- Place the chicken in the indirect zone with one thigh angled toward the direct heat. Close the lid and grill for 40 minutes.
- Rotate the chicken so the other thigh faces the direct heat. Brush with the remaining butter and continue grilling until the breast reaches 165°F and the thighs reach about 185°F.
- Rest for 5–10 minutes before carving.
Recipe Notes
Pro Tips
- A 5-pound chicken usually takes 80–90 minutes. Smaller chickens may cook faster, while larger chickens will take longer.
- Chicken size and shape, grill temperature, and opening the lid can affect cooking time. Use internal temperature—not the clock alone—to determine doneness.
- Monitor the grill-surface temperature with a grill thermometer; the thermometer in the hood may not reflect the temperature beside the chicken.
- For BBQ chicken, season with dry rub before grilling. Brush lightly with BBQ sauce during the final 10–15 minutes, repeating once if desired.
- Chicken is safe when the thickest part of the breast reaches 165°F. Thighs and legs have better texture at about 185°F.
Your Own Private Notes
To adjust the recipe size:
You can adjust the number of servings above; however, only the amount in the ingredient list is adjusted, not the instructions.
Nutrition Estimate (may vary)
Originally Published June 11, 2017. Updated with expanded options, refreshed photos, and improved organization.
John Kennedy says
Breast up or down?
Dan Mikesell AKA DrDan says
Hi John,
Welcome to the blog.
Breast up positioned with one leg and thigh towards the heat, then halfway though cooking, rotate to the other thigh/leg pointing to the heat still with the breast up.
Dan
Dale says
Glad I found this recipe. My wife usually cooks whole chicken in her Japanese steam oven. I wanted to grill today so I loosely followed instructions and it came out perfect.
Janice says
Best. Ever.
Why would you ever bbq a whole chicken any other way. No changes to the recipe. Perfect the way it is.
Thanks!!
Arletha Collins says
I like whole chickens and I like to Barbecue I don’t fry good chicken so grilling is best for me,Thanks.
mark jaffe says
I tried this one but the bottom/thighs did not cook. The legs and breast were done and the thighs almost raw. Any ideas about why?
Thank
MJ
Dan Mikesell AKA DrDan says
Hi Mark,
Welcome to the blog.
This would be a temperature issue. Be sure you are measuring the grill surface temperature in that area and not someplace else. I have had a few grill surface thermometers that were just wrong. So a new surface thermometer may be needed.
Also, be sure you have the thigh angled to the hot side. You may need to angle it more that way.
Dan
Robert says
Thank you so much for this...I had a whole chicken to cook and really didn't want to heat up my kitchen on a 94 degree day. This was perfect and easily within my skill set.
I used my 3-burner Ducane propane grill and it worked out so well. I heated the grill on all 3 burners, then turned off the center one and dropped the chicken on the grill over that area. I turned the other 2 burners to a more moderate setting and spread out the wings and legs away from the chicken body.
Came back in 40 minutes (as instructed), brushed on the rest of the melted butter and let it go another 10 minutes. Checked the temperature and it was perfect. Pulled it off the grill, let it rest a bit, and voila! a perfect bird.
Again, can't thank you enough!