Get the best grilling times for cooking burgers on the grill, right here. Today you’ll learn exactly how to grill a burger on a gas grill. Along with tips for adding cheese. Let’s go!
See the video
How do you know when grilled burgers are done cooking?
Exactly how long to grill burgers depends on how well you want them cooked. The burgers in the Sip Bite Go recipe demo were cooked to a perfect medium grilled burger temperature of almost 140 degrees F, as measured with an internal read thermometer. See the recipe details to learn what temperature to move burgers to indirect heat on the grill and when to add the cheese.
How do you toast hamburger buns with burgers on the grill?
Hamburger buns need a little prep, with a brush of olive oil on the inside. Pop th
em on the grill after the burgers are done cooking, over indirect heat (try a higher up grate). While burgers cool, the buns can toast for a couple of minutes. 
Ingredients
Here’s what you need to make this recipe for burgers on the grill.
Also see how to make smoked burgers.
For beef burgers
- Ground beef (wagyu or 80/20 ground chuck blend preferred)
- Salt and pepper
To grill burger buns
- Burger buns
- Olive oil
To add cheese to make grilled cheeseburgers
- Cheese (Swiss, American, cheddar, etc.)
Beef burger grilling times for medium done temperature
How many minutes per side burgers take to grill will depend on the weight and size of the burgers.
So this is just a brief overview…
Plan for about ⅔ of the time to be on the first side, before flipping burgers over to grill the second side and adding cheese.
½ lb burger cook time
Plan to grill ½ pound burgers for 10-12 minutes for medium.
⅓ lb burger grill time
Plan for 8-10 minutes of grilling time for ⅓ pound burgers cooked medium.
¼ lb burger grilling time
Plan for 7-8 minutes of grill time for small burgers grilled to medium that are ¼ pound in size.
Always check that your burgers are cooked to your desired level of doneness. For medium burgers, of about 140 degrees F, here are the cook times that will give you a ballpark idea of how long it will take to grill them with high heat.
Always use an internal read thermometer to check the burger temp.
What’s the best size for grilling burgers?
In my opinion, most people like ½ pound burgers grilled to a perfect medium. This size burger is going to give you super plump, meaty burgers that are quite impressive to look at.
You can divide up the ground beef to make ¼ pound and ⅓ pound burgers that will be a bit flatter.
The recipe below uses 1 lb of beef to make two half pound burger patties of 8 oz each (half pound burgers).
How long to grill burgers and recipe overview
It takes about 10-12 minutes to grill burgers on a gas grill with melted cheese and grilled buns.
How to form patties for grilled burgers (substitute premade)
- Grilled burger seasoning – option A: Put the ground beef and seasonings in a large bowl with the salt and pepper, and season it all together before forming the patties. Then divide pound of ground beef in half to form two 8 oz grilled burger patties.
- Grilled burger seasoning – option B: Form the beef patties (without seasonings in them), then season top and bottom with salt and pepper.
- How to form grilled burger patties. Separate the burger meat into two 8-ounce patties. First, loosely form a ball with your hands. Then shape the ball into flatter discs, a little bit larger than the size of your burger buns. To prevent them from puffing up while grilling, push a hole about ⅓ of the way down the center of the burger patties with your thumb.
- Chill burgers in the refrigerator for 15 minutes to a couple of hours before grilling burgers.
STEP-BY-STEP How to grill burgers on a gas grill
- Preheat gas grill to high, about 500 degrees F.
- Prep grilled burger buns, if desired, at this time. Brush burger buns on the inside with olive oil and set aside.
- Remove the burgers from the fridge immediately before grilling them.
- Season burgers with salt and pepper on both sides, if you did not season the ground beef meat before. (though you can always sprinkle a little extra salt and pepper on the outside even if you did season the inside of the grilled burgers – you know, just for good, flavor-rich luck)
- Add burgers to grill, directly over the flame (aka direct heat source), once the grill reaches 500 degrees F. Close the grill lid and grill burgers on the first side for 5 minutes.
- Spin burgers 90 degrees on the grill. That’s right, don’t flip the grilled burgers yet, but to get beautiful grill marks, slide a spatula under each burger patty and rotate it 90 degrees. Grill burgers for an additional 2 minutes with the grill lid closed.
- Flip grilled burgers. (read this step carefully in advance) Flip and grill burgers on the second side, with the lid closed for an additional 3 minutes, or until the burgers are within 1-2 degrees of your desired grilled burger temperature. (use a thermometer to check temperature).
- Move burgers to indirect heat in the grill and add cheese at this time. To do this, move burgers to a top rack in the grill, or to an area where they receive indirect heat (not directly over a flame) to finish to desired temperature – WITH CHEESE ON TOP IF DESIRED. This will take about 1-2 minutes. (EXAMPLE: For the medium grilled burgers in the Sip Bite Go demonstration, the burgers were cooked on the second side, over direct flame, until they reached a temperature of 133 degrees F. Then they were transferred to a top rack, away from the flame, so they still cooked, but with indirect heat. Once moved to indirect heat, a piece of cheese was added to the burger to melt while cooking. The burgers were removed around 137 degrees F and came close to a medium temperature of 140 degrees F once rested.)
- Remove grilled burgers and rest for about 5-10 minutes on a cutting board.
- Grill burger buns while burger meats rests. Add buns to indirect heat, like the top rack of the grill, with olive oil-brushed insides facing down. Grill buns for about 1-3 minutes until grill marks appear to your desired level. I prefer to only grill the inside of the buns.
- Finish assembling burgers with your favorite burger toppings and enjoy.
Top grilled burgers with something tasty
Here are a few favorite grilled burger topping ideas:
Gourmet burger recipes from Sip Bite Go to check out…
- Smoked burgers
- Viral taco smash burgers
- Breakfast burgers
- Onion smash burgers
- Philly cheesesteak smash burgers
- Blackstone burgers
- Burger sliders
- See how to make hamburger patties step by step
- GUIDE: how long to grill burgers
- Sous vide burgers
- Mayo seared sous vide burgers
- Sous vide lamb burgers
- Smoked bacon wrapped burgers
- Bacon wrapped burgers
- Cheeseburger pizza
- See more Blackstone griddle recipes
- Learn how to toast buns on griddle
- See the best burger recipes…
Upgrade Your BBQ Game
The wrong meat thermometer will ruin your food… see the BBQ meat thermometers I credit for getting delicious results.
Get better at backyard BBQ…
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How to Grill Burgers
Video
Ingredients
For beef burgers
- 1 lbs ground beef wagyu / 80/20 blend preferred
- ½ tsp salt
- ½ tsp pepper
To grill burger buns
- 2 burger buns
- 1 tsp olive oil
To add cheese to make grilled cheeseburgers
- 2 slices cheese Swiss, American, cheddar, etc.
Instructions
How to form patties for grilled burgers (or use premade)
- Grilled burger seasoning – option A: Put the ground beef and seasonings in a large bowl with the salt and pepper, and season it all together before forming the patties. Then divide pound of ground beef in half to form two 8 oz grilled burger patties.
- Grilled burger seasoning – option B: Form the beef patties (without seasonings in them), then season top and bottom with salt and pepper.
- How to form grilled burger patties. Separate the burger meat into two 8-ounce patties. First, loosely form a ball with your hands. Then shape the ball into flatter discs, a little bit larger than the size of your burger buns. To prevent them from puffing up while grilling, push a hole about ⅓ of the way down the center of the burger patties with your thumb.
- Chill burgers in the refrigerator for 15 minutes to a couple of hours before grilling burgers.
How to grill burgers on a gas grill in about 12 minutes (with cheese and grilled buns)
- Preheat gas grill to high, about 500 degrees F.
- Prep grilled burger buns, if desired, at this time. Brush burger buns on the inside with olive oil and set aside.
- Remove the burgers from the fridge immediately before grilling them.
- Season burgers with salt and pepper on both sides, if you did not season the ground beef meat before. (though you can always sprinkle a little extra salt and pepper on the outside even if you did season the inside of the grilled burgers – you know, just for good, flavor-rich luck)
- Add burgers to grill, directly over the flame (aka direct heat source), once the grill reaches 500 degrees F. Close the grill lid and grill burgers on the first side for 5 minutes.
- Spin burgers 90 degrees on the grill. That’s right, don’t flip the grilled burgers yet, but to get beautiful grill marks, slide a spatula under each burger patty and rotate it 90 degrees. Grill burgers for an additional 2 minutes with the grill lid closed.
- Flip grilled burgers. (read this step carefully in advance) Flip and grill burgers on the second side, with the lid closed for an additional 3 minutes, or until the burgers are within 1-2 degrees of your desired grilled burger temperature. (use a thermometer to check temperature).
- Move burgers to indirect heat in the grill and add cheese at this time. To do this, move burgers to a top rack in the grill, or to an area where they receive indirect heat (not directly over a flame) to finish to desired temperature – WITH CHEESE ON TOP IF DESIRED. This will take about 1-2 minutes. EXAMPLE: For the medium grilled burgers in the Sip Bite Go demonstration, the burgers were cooked on the second side, over direct flame, until they reached a temperature of 133 degrees F. Then they were transferred to a top rack, away from the flame, so they still cooked, but with indirect heat. Once moved to indirect heat, a piece of cheese was added to the burger to melt while cooking. The burgers were removed around 137 degrees F and came close to a medium temperature of 140 degrees F once rested.
- Remove grilled burgers and rest for about 5-10 minutes on a cutting board.
- Grill burger buns while burger meats rests. Add buns to indirect heat, like the top rack of the grill, with olive oil-brushed insides facing down. Grill buns for about 1-3 minutes until grill marks appear to your desired level. I prefer to only grill the inside of the buns.
- Finish assembling burgers with your favorite burger toppings and enjoy.
JT says
Right on point! Thanks