Out of all the recipes in this list, we think you’re most likely to actually use a good BBQ rub recipe.
Some of the BBQ rubs that make our list have been around since the late 1800’s and are still in use today. Other recipes are more modern but have proven to be excellent enhancers of flavors. All of them will add unique flavor to your BBQ.
These are the 7 best bbq rubs that you’ll be able to purchase online. I’ve included some other essential ingredients you’ll need to really make use of these recipes.
| Name | Category | Product |
|---|---|---|
| Bad Byron's Butt Rub Barbecue Seasoning | Best Overall |  |
| Bad Byron's | Budget Pick |  |
| Szeged Rib Rub | Upgrade Pick |  |
1. Bad Byron's Butt Rub Barbecue Seasoning
Pros:
- Made in the USA
- Contains dried mustard, black pepper, granulated garlic and granulated onion.
- Packed with a powerful amount of flavor
- Can be used to season beef, pork, chicken, fish or just about anything else
Cons:
- Bad Byron’s Butt Rub is flavored with a little bit of “heat,” but this is below the top tier.
- There are times when a little bit of “heat” is good, but people may prefer something a little hotter.
In our opinion, this is an awesome barbecue rub. It reduces the time it takes to get some delicious barbecue ready to eat. It also does a fine job of making the meat tender and juicy.
This is a great product for people who like to enjoy barbecue without having to spend hours getting everything ready. It’s even easy to scoop the rub out of the package and spread it around on the meat.
Once the meat is fully prepared, it can be grilled, smoked, or slow cooked. It’s also easy to mix the rub with other spices or with grill sauce … in fact it’s quite versatile.
2. Lawry's Perfect Blend Chicken Rub And Seasoning
Pros:
- High-quality, multigrain blend
- Can be used for more meals than just chicken
- Convenient packaging
- Great for tenderizing and adding great flavor to meat
Cons:
- The packing is leakage-prone
- You will be using a lot of it for chicken recipes!
(Pack of 4)
When preparing a delicious meal with chicken, you want to start with the best ingredients. Lawry's provides exactly that. This chicken rub and season is a multigrained blend of herbs and spices.
Containing white pepper, which has a sharp spicy flavor, Lawry's is an excellent way to flavor your chicken with just the right amount of kick. If you're not sure how much to use for one chicken breast, 1/4 teaspoon is a good place to start.
3. Szeged Rib Rub
Pros:
- Perfect all-around rub for barbecue and grilling food
- Tasty multi-purpose seasoning
- You will need to buy a second box of 6 given the product is so great
Cons:
- Pricey given some other similar rubs are cheaper
- Kind of spice heavy, so your kids should stay away
Just by the name of the product, the Szeged Rib Rub by Toso tells you that it's the perfect rub for ribs. And It's the only name that should matter once you use this product. It's the best rub for ribs that we could find on the market.
What we really like about it is that it works well with beef, pork, lamb, and chicken, so it's large enough to cover a lot of territory as a rub.
We also like the ingredients used, which includes garlic, paprika, rosemary, salt, pepper, some vegetable oil, and a mix of other herbs and spices to make it a well-rounded rub.
4. BBQ BROS RUBS {Western Style}
Pros:
- The barbecue rubs set contains five rub flavors: Western Style, Classic Barbecue, Jerk, Smoky, and Hot & Spicy
- Recommended by celebrity chefs and food critics
- The seasoning set comes with free recipe book
- Award winning rubs for different types of meat
- Premium grade spices
Interesting facts:
- The BBQ Bros rubs were developed by a certified barbecue judge and chef
- In 2014, the rubs won a national award for the best barbecue rub
- It’s made in the USA
Cooking barbecue is exciting. However, it will not work if your seasoning is not just right. The BBQ Bros rubs are made for superior results. You can use them on all types of meat. The rubs come in several flavors, including Hot & Spicy, Jerk, and Western Style. The set also includes a recipe book that features some interesting recipes. If you are looking for the perfect barbecue marinade mix, then consider the BBQ Bros rubs.
5. Plowboys Yardbird Rub 14 oz
Pros:
- Fantastic rubbing for both meat and fish
- Versatile
- Delicious
- It has a subtle flavor that enhances taste
Cons:
- It has a bit strong smell if you don’t like peppery flavor; otherwise, none.
Plowboys yardbird rub is a great addition to your arsenal of comfort roots. Plowboys rub was specially designed for grilled meat dishes that are cooked over coals or wood. Expand your comfort-food horizons with Plowboys signature rub.
Yardbird rub has a peppery flavor with a bit of smoky taste that enhances the taste of your meat. It makes meat taste great, and use it for the best smoked ribs.
This rub can be used on both meat and fish. The other feature that makes the Plowboys Yardbird rub special is its versatility. If you like a specific recipe, just add the Plowboys Yardbird Rub to intensify the taste for an upgraded version of the original recipe.
6. Bad Byron's Butt Rub Barbecue Seasoning
Pros:
- No artificial ingredients
- Gluten free
- Natural lump charcoal/woodchips recommended
- Designed for pork.
Cons:
- 3-4 ingredients missing
- Too salty for some salts
The Bad Byron’s Butt Rub is a serious enough BBQ rub that will allow you to prepare full cuts of serious meat with a minimum of effort. It’s a rub that’s great for poultry and pork. The rub is seasoned with garlic, oregano, and black pepper. The rub itself is relatively thin so it’s easy to spread on the entire piece of meat.
It features no artificial ingredients. It’s all-natural. It’s also gluten-free which makes it safe for people with gluten sensitivity. When it comes to seasoning, it’s best done over wood.
It’s a serious rub that will not let you down. It’s designed perfectly for warm, glowing charcoal or smoking wood from the grill.
7. The Salt Lick BBQ Original Dry Rub 12 Oz
Pros:
- All-natural and preservative free
- Great as a spice rub and finishing salt
- Locally made in Texas
- Product of the U.S.A.
Award-winning and all-natural BBQ rub from the Salt Lick. The Salt Lick BBQ Original Dry Rub is a blend of course ground Texas Chili peppers and spicy mustard. It contains no salt, no liquid smoke, and no MSG.
It’s a favorite dry rub among chefs and home cooks alike. You can use it to create your own signature rub recipes or apply directly to meat for some extra zing in the BBQ process.
There are no artificial colors or preservatives in this product, so the color of the dry rub may vary from batch to batch. It’s flavor, however is the same in each batch.
8. Bad Byron's
Pros:
- Quality rub
- Long-lasting
- Organic
- Tastes great
- Meat tastes delicious
Cons:
- The price may be too high for some
- Available in 4.5 oz only
- Available for limited areas only
If you want to add some flair to your pork butt or other barbecue, then you should try Bad Bryon’s Butt Rub Seasoning. This rub was made to be spicy enough to get you those smoky, outside BBQ flavors, but also with a subtle smokey flavor that will really bring out the best of your meat.
With Bad Bryon’s Butt Rub, you can forget all about those boring rubs that usually come with your meat. From the first time you taste this, you’ll know that there is no more room for other rubs. You’ll be hooked from the start.
Made with some of the best ingredients available, Butt Rub has a mixture of garlic, lemon, salt, pepper, season, and sugar, just some of the mix that makes it an impressive rub.
9. Diamond Grip Latex Gloves 100/Box
Pros:
- Thin but very durable gloves
- Good price
- Easy to put on
Let's face it: BBQ is messy. Between the messy cuts of meat (pork, chicken, beef, etc.), the fatty and marbled parts, and the tasty sauces, you're going to need a great pair of BBQ gloves.
Different brands will have different designs. Some will be more heat resistant than others. And some will be completely waterproof. If you are looking for a great pair of BBQ gloves for your next cookout, here are the 7 best BBQ gloves you can buy.
If you are searching for a solid pair of nitrile coated gloves that will protect your skin from grease and spills, these are the 8 best BBQ gloves in the market that you can choose from.
10. Elizabeth Karmel’s Adjustable Dry Rub Shaker
Pros:
- Tilt-back lid makes it easy to pour
- Airtight lid helps to keep the spice fresh
- Wide mouth for easy filling
- It’s dishwasher safe
- It’s easy to rinse
- The thumb tabs make it easy to open the canister
Cons:
- The holes are too big for some ingredients
- The holes are too big so the spice can go through
- Small amount per canister
Filling your own canisters is so much more cost-efficient, but it’s a pain sometimes. This set has a smart-looking, space-saving design that is easy to use.
It’s got a tall, ergonomic design that makes it easy to sprinkle in just the right amount of salt. It’s very compact and easy to store.
We enjoy the comfortable grip and the fact that it’s got a toggle latch to keep the lid tightly shut. It’s also stunningly beautiful and looks so much better than the standard one that comes with the jar of spices.
11. Plowboys BBQ Bovine Bold 12 Oz
Pros:
- Enhances the flavor of meat
- Easy to use
- BBQ rub tastes great
- The taste of this rub lingers on meat even after grilling it
- You don’t have to use a lot to get results
- This is a rich tasting BBQ rub
You want the best experience with grilling meat? You will have to experiment with different types of BBQ rubs and come up with the best of them all.
For you to make the most out of this, you have to remember that if you want that BBQ rub to stick to meat, you must take care of its seasoning.
To show you the best rub that you can try, we’ve picked this Plowboys BBQ Bold 12 oz. BBQ Rub.
12. Plowboys BBQ Fin and Feather Seafood & Poultry Rub
Pros:
- Great color and fantastic smell
- Easy to use
- Quality ingredients
- Nice heat and flavor
- Superb rub to add to your foods. Your meats will have a great taste
- The flavor is not too overpowering
The Plowboys BBQ Fin and Feather Seafood and Poultry Rub has a great taste. It has been compared to other great rubs out there but stands out with a great set of flavors. The great BBQ flavors from the Plowboys sauce are added to this rub to bring you fantastic flavor and a yummy aroma that will have your mouth watering.
This is the perfect rub to add to your next chicken or turkey dishes. You will love the way the flavors go together and taste when using Plowboys BBQ.
A quality rub can add that great flavor to your BBQ meals and this is one of the favorites in that category. You will not have to worry about having a strong rub flavor when using this rub.
13. Bone Suckin' Sauce Original Seasoning & Rub
Pros:
- Available in a 3 pack
- Aromatic, smokey and peppery
- Not too spicy
Cons:
- Not suitable for those who prefer no-salt and sugar-free seasoning
- May not be suitable for those who prefer mild spices
If you're looking for a BBQ rub that delivers big flavor without being too hot, the Bone Suckin' Original is perfect. The smoky and peppery flavor is really what we like.
The blend includes the top ingredients like salt and cracked black pepper that will really add flavor to your bbq meat.
Great for chicken, pork, beef, or even shrimp…you name it, this rub will make it sure to be tasty.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)
What is the best store bought rib rub?
What are the best BBQ rubs?
There are many brands of rubs available, but it’s important to find one made from high-quality ingredients. It will also be more flavorful. So what exactly are the best BBQ rubs available right now?
What is the best steak seasoning you can buy?
A steak is best cooked without seasoning. The main reason for this is that it is better to leave the natural flavors of the beef intact. However, for those who insist on using seasoning (or to add some flavor to an otherwise bland piece), cookbooks usually recommend a salt and pepper mix as the best solution.
You can also experiment with rubs or marinades. Rubs, which usually include ingredients like lemon, garlic, and black pepper can add boldness to a piece of steak. The downside of this is that a generous amount of rubs can lead to over-seasoning and thus, a ruined dish.
A steak should only be seasoned lightly, enough to complement its taste. The key to seasoning is knowing the meat that is about to be eaten. This way you can decide to put more or less depending on the quality of the meat.
What is the best rub?
There are many bbq rubs out there and you might be wondering what the best one really is. To help with your decision we put together a rundown of the 7 best bbq rubs that you can buy online.
Conclusion
Some ribs require a heavy-handed approach, while others need a light hand. We'll let you in on our testing, and recommend which bbq rubs are best for each style.
We know that everyone has different tastes, so we look at all the available commercial brands as well as some homemade recipes. All of our tests are conducted using the same cooking temperature, so that we can give a true comparison to one another. We hope that if you are a barbecue enthusiast, you'll find our recommendations helpful.
Our Recommendation
| Name | Category | Product |
|---|---|---|
| Bad Byron's Butt Rub Barbecue Seasoning | Best Overall | |
| Bad Byron's | Budget Pick | |
| Szeged Rib Rub | Upgrade Pick | |