Quick Answer: Bertello vs Solo Stove comes down to fuel flexibility versus simplicity, at a close price. The Bertello Outdoor Pizza Oven (~$250-$329) burns gas, wood, charcoal, or gas-and-wood together via its patented SimulFIRE system and hits over 930°F; the Solo Stove Pi Prime ($349.99) is propane-only, tops 950°F, and backs it with a lifetime warranty. Both bake a Neapolitan pizza in under two minutes and both max out around a 12-inch pie. Buy Bertello if you want wood-fired flavor without paying extra for it; buy the Pi Prime if you want the simplest possible gas oven and Solo Stove’s lifetime warranty.
Bertello and Solo Stove Pi Prime sit in the same budget-to-mid tier of gas pizza ovens, and buyers cross-shopping the two are usually torn between “the oven that also does wood” and “the oven that’s easiest to just turn on.” Here’s how they actually compare.
Bertello vs Solo Stove by the numbers
- $250-$329 vs $349.99: Bertello’s standard price versus the Solo Stove Pi Prime’s list price — Bertello undercuts it by roughly $20-$100 depending on sale timing.
- 930°F+ vs 950°F+: each oven’s rated max temperature — both clear the ~905°F the AVPN specifies for authentic Neapolitan pizza, per each brand’s own specs.
- 4 fuels vs 1: Bertello runs on gas, wood, charcoal, or pellets (including gas and wood simultaneously via SimulFIRE); the Pi Prime is propane only.
- Standard warranty vs lifetime: Solo Stove backs the Pi Prime with a lifetime warranty; Bertello’s standard coverage is shorter, a real tradeoff against its lower price.
- 12.5” vs 13”: the cooking-floor width of the Bertello versus the Pi Prime’s wide panoramic mouth — both land a roughly 12-inch pizza.
Bertello vs Solo Stove Pi Prime at a glance
| Bertello Outdoor | Solo Stove Pi Prime | |
|---|---|---|
| Price | ~$250-$329 | $349.99 (sale $249-$299) |
| Fuel | Gas, wood, charcoal, pellets — SimulFIRE (gas + wood at once) | Propane only |
| Max temperature | 930°F+ (500°C) | 950°F+ |
| Cook time (pizza) | Under 2 minutes | As little as 90 seconds |
| Cooking surface | 12.5" × 13.5" | 13" panoramic mouth |
| Max pizza size | ~12 inches | 12 inches |
| Construction | Steel body, refractory stone | 304 stainless steel + cordierite stone |
| Warranty | Standard (brand warranty) | Lifetime |
| Notable | Shark Tank S11 ($120k/25% w/ Kevin O'Leary); $10M+ sales | 30 lb, wide 13" viewing mouth |
The ovens in one line each
Bertello made its name on Shark Tank Season 11, closing a $120,000 deal with Kevin O’Leary for 25% equity, then grew past $10 million in cumulative sales. Its standout feature is SimulFIRE — burning gas and wood at the same time so you get hands-off propane convenience plus real wood-fired flavor from one oven, something neither the Pi Prime nor most ovens in this price range can do. Read the full Bertello pizza oven review for the breakdown.
Solo Stove brought its smokeless fire-pit design to pizza with the Pi Prime, a propane-only demi-dome built around a 13-inch panoramic mouth and a 304-stainless-steel body. The pitch is deliberately narrow: one obvious gas choice, backed by a lifetime warranty, with no fire to tend. See the full Solo Stove pizza oven review for details.
Bertello Outdoor Pizza Oven (SimulFIRE)
- Over 930°F ceiling bakes a Neapolitan pizza in under two minutes, per Bertello.
- SimulFIRE burns gas and wood at once — convenience plus real smoky flavor.
- Cheapest of the two, with the "As Seen on Shark Tank" track record behind it.
Whichever oven you land on, it’ll show up faster than your local pizzeria delivers — start a free 30-day trial of Amazon Prime and get it there in two days.
Solo Stove Pi Prime (Gas)
- Over 950°F ceiling bakes a Neapolitan pizza in as little as 90 seconds, per Solo Stove.
- 304 stainless steel + cordierite stone, backed by a lifetime warranty.
- 13-inch panoramic mouth makes launching and turning a 12-inch pizza easy.
Fuel: the real reason to pick one over the other
This is the whole comparison in one section. The Pi Prime is propane-only — point the rear gas flame at the chamber, preheat about 15 minutes, and launch. It’s the easiest gas oven to live with in this price range, with nothing to light beyond a propane tank.
Bertello does everything the Pi Prime does on gas alone, but its SimulFIRE design also lets you drop wood chunks in alongside the running gas burner, so you get real smoke and char without babysitting a wood-only fire. You can also run it pure gas on a weeknight or full wood/charcoal on a weekend — one oven, three ways to cook. If wood-fired flavor matters to you at all, this is Bertello’s decisive edge, and it’s rare to get it at this price point; the closest gas-plus-wood rival, the Gozney Roccbox, costs roughly $150-$250 more (see our Gozney vs Solo Stove comparison for that matchup).
Heat and bake speed: both clear the Neapolitan bar
Neither oven loses this fight. Bertello rates its oven at over 930°F (500°C); Solo Stove rates the Pi Prime at over 950°F. Both comfortably clear the ~905°F the AVPN associates with true Neapolitan pizza, and both bake a pie in under two minutes at full heat, per each brand’s own specs — Bertello quotes “under two minutes,” Solo Stove quotes “as little as 90 seconds.” For context, a typical home kitchen oven tops out around 550°F, per the U.S. Department of Energy, so either choice is a dramatic upgrade over indoor baking. The 20°F gap between the two brands’ rated ceilings isn’t something you’ll taste in the finished crust.
Price and warranty
At list price, Bertello wins on cost: ~$250-$329 against the Pi Prime’s $349.99, a gap of roughly $20-$100. Solo Stove frequently discounts the Pi Prime to $249-$299 during sale events, which can close or even flip that gap — check current pricing before you buy.
Warranty cuts the other way. Solo Stove backs the Pi Prime with a lifetime warranty, one of the strongest guarantees in the category. Bertello’s standard warranty coverage is shorter — a real tradeoff for the lower price and extra fuel flexibility, and worth weighing if you plan to keep the oven for many years.
Etekcity Lasergrip Infrared Thermometer
- Confirms your stone is at ~750°F+ before you launch — the #1 fix for pale crust.
- Brand-agnostic: use it on a Bertello, a Solo Stove, a grill, or cast iron.
So which should you buy?
- Buy Bertello if you want wood-fired flavor without paying a premium for it, like the flexibility of gas, wood, and charcoal in one oven, or want the lowest entry price in this comparison.
- Buy the Solo Stove Pi Prime if you want the simplest possible gas-only decision, value a lifetime warranty above all else, or prefer the widest viewing mouth for launching and turning.
Both clear true Neapolitan heat and will outperform anything baked in a kitchen oven — there’s no bad pick here, only the one that matches how you want to cook. Still comparing the wider field? Our best outdoor pizza oven roundup ranks both alongside Ooni and Gozney, and the Bertello vs Ooni and Ooni vs Solo Stove comparisons cover the other two sides of this triangle.