Make restaurant-quality pies in your backyard any day! Read our tested review of the Solo Stove Pi Prime pizza oven.
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Solo Stove Pi Prime Review: Our Expert Gives This Budget-Friendly Pizza Oven Her Stamp of Approval
Updated on Apr. 30, 2025
Homemade pizza is the ideal dinner. Whether you have friends over or you need an easy weeknight meal, pizza is a universal crowd-pleaser. And thanks to the number of pizza ovens on the market, it’s become even easier to fire a pie with your favorite pizza sauce and go-to toppings and have it on the table in less than two minutes.
I’ve tested multiple outdoor pizza ovens, including the Ooni Koda 16, Ooni Volt, Blackstone pizza oven and the original Solo Stove Pi pizza oven. However, none of them are as budget-friendly as the Solo Stove Pi Prime, which retails for just $349. To see how it stacks up to other options, I put this pizza oven to the test.
VIA MERCHANT
We Tried It
Solo Stove Pi Prime Pizza Oven
What is the Solo Stove Pi Prime pizza oven?
The Solo Stove Pi Prime is an outdoor pizza oven powered by gas. It hooks up to a propane tank, just as you would hook up a barbecue grill. The front dial lets you easily turn the oven on and adjust to the ideal temperature, whether cooking pizzas or making roasted vegetables or burgers.
The oven is sleek with its stainless steel exterior and partial black coating at the bottom. It weighs about 30 pounds and measures 15.5 inches tall by 20.5 inches wide. The opening is 13 inches—making it ideal for pizzas that are 12 inches or smaller. In the box, you’ll find the pizza oven, gas hose and pizza stone to get started. Essential pizza-making tools, such as a pizza peel and turner, are sold separately.
Solo Stove Pi Prime Product Features
Solo Stove is known for its clever smokeless backyard fire pits, which utilize a signature design to promote airflow. (One of our editors is smitten with the Solo Stove Bonfire.) The same technology is apparent in their pizza ovens; the circular dome design of this pizza oven allows the heat produced by the gas flame to radiate within the oven, creating an ambient temperature of 800 to 900 degrees.
The stainless steel construction provides great heat retention, while still being durable and long-lasting under Solo Stove’s lifetime warranty. The front dial is easy to turn and control, and its placement makes it much more convenient to turn the pizza oven on and adjust temperatures as necessary.
How We Tested the Solo Stove Pi Prime Pizza Oven
I set the Solo Stove Pi Prime up straight out of the box and tested it by making multiple pizzas. It’s been a staple in my backyard for over six months.
Set-Up
The pizza oven comes in a large box with the oven intact all in one piece. Pulling the oven out of the box and placing it on a heat-safe surface is simple. The pizza stone was wrapped separately, so I placed it in the oven. Once set up, I connected the hose to a propane tank.
Lighting the Pizza Oven
The front dial on the pizza oven serves as the lighting and temperature control. To turn on the pizza oven, I opened the gas tank and then turned the dial to the ignition symbol for it to light. It’s quick and easy to light the pizza oven, and once it’s lit, it takes 15 to 20 minutes to heat up to the proper cooking temperature on high.
The insulation of this oven is incredible, and even with it at 900 degrees, you can’t feel the heat on the exterior. This design helps to alleviate heat transfer on the bottom of the oven, which makes it much easier to put on just about any surface, including wood, marble and stainless steel tabletops.
Cooking
While Solo Stove’s original pizza oven had the option for cooking with wood, the Pi Prime is gas-only. This update provides much more control over temperature and the live flame. After the oven preheats, I like to turn the dial down to medium, which reduces the height of the flame for more control.
The pizza oven has a wide enough opening to fit a 12-inch pizza easily. Once I slid my prepped pizza off the pizza peel, I allowed the base of the crust to set for about 30 seconds before turning. The stone’s heat cooks the pie’s base quickly, while the flame’s ambient heat helps the crust rise and the toppings cook. Keeping a consistent eye on the pizza while it’s in the oven and turning frequently is crucial to cooking a crust with even browning. Once the pizza is cooked, all that’s left to do is retrieve it with the pizza peel, allow it to rest for a few minutes, slice it up with a pizza cutter and dig in!
I found that my pizzas cooked within 90 seconds to two minutes each, depending on the toppings and cheese choice. The crust around each pizza was fluffy with just a touch of char. And while I always choose to use homemade dough and my favorite pizza toppings, you can also choose to order pizzas online to cook in this oven. Just be sure to defrost your pies before placing them on the hot pizza stone!
6-Month Update
If you’re new to cooking pizza in an outdoor oven, time and time again, I’ll recommend the Solo Stove Pi Prime. Based on my comparisons of testing multiple pizza ovens, it’s still the best value thanks to its great performance, lower price point and included lifetime warranty. After more than six months of use, I’ve found I can get creative in the Pi Prime, using it to make excellent pizzas and much more.
Because of its domed design and great heat retention, I can use the flame and residual heat to bake scones, biscuits for strawberry shortcakes, stuffed bell peppers, and more. The front dial is still one of my favorite features, with convenient placement and the ability to have extra control over the flame height. That definitely comes in handy to avoid charring a pizza or baking in the oven. I haven’t noticed much of a patina developing on this oven, and the wear and tear on the pizza stone has been minimal. Like the original Pi pizza oven, you can easily remove the split stone and flip it over, which helps to cook off any burnt-on flour, even while you’re busy making pizza on the upright, clean side. It makes cleaning a breeze!
While it is best to put it inside a garage or shed over winter, I left this pizza oven outside on my deck over a snowy winter, with the cover on. I’ve fired it up multiple times without any problems since then.
Pros
- Budget-friendly price point
- Simple to set up
- Front temperature dial for easy adjustments
- Cooks pizza in 90 seconds to two minutes
- Sleek stainless steel design
Cons
- Can only accommodate 12-inch pizzas
- Accessories sold separately
Product Comparison
Solo Stove Pi Prime or Solo Stove Pi?
The Solo Stove Pi Prime is the second gas pizza oven in the Solo Stove line-up. I have thoroughly tested the Solo Stove Pi pizza oven for over a year and a half and love using it. However, the Pi Prime offers some significant improvements.
While the original Solo Stove pizza oven had a detachable gas burner, the Pi Prime has a built-in single gas burner in the bottom of the oven, making the setup much simpler. The location of the front dial is easier to turn on and control, rather than reaching toward the back of the original oven. The two pizza ovens are very similar in size, but the new Pi Prime is slightly more compact, making it more portable and offering a much more stylish, modern look. The base construction also helps prevent heat transfer, making it easier to set on various surfaces.
Another major difference is the price point. The new Pi Prime retails for $349, whereas the original Solo Stove Pi pizza oven retails for $399 for wood only or $499 for the option to use wood and gas. While you can score great deals through pizza oven sales, the Pi Prime’s price point makes it possible to order a well-constructed oven anytime without waiting for a discount.
Solo Stove Pi Prime or Gozney Arc?
Similar to the Pi Prime, the Gozney Arc is a gas-fueled pizza oven. It has a lower max temperature than the Pi Prime—900 degrees rather than 1,000—and it takes longer to heat up, about 40 minutes compared to 15 minutes. If you’re willing to put up with the longer heating time, the Gozney Arc does have better heat retention than the Pi Prime, which means you can cook more pizzas back-to-back without having to worry about the oven not being hot enough to produce a crispy crust.
The Gozney Arc is significantly more expensive, with a price tag of close to $700 rather than the more reasonable $349 cost of the Pi Prime. That being said, if you’re a serious home chef who is passionate about making great pizzas at home, the Gozney is a worthwhile investment. If you’re a beginner who doesn’t expect to make more than a few pies a year, the Pi Prime is a better choice.
Solo Stove Pi Prime or Ooni Koda 12?
If portability is what you’re looking for in a pizza oven, the Ooni Koda 12 fits the bill. It weighs about 20 pounds—10 pounds less than the Pi Prime—so it’s much easier to take along on camping trips or just move to different spots around a backyard. Both pizza ovens are propane-fueled and 12-inches, so neither one poses an advantage in the size or dual-fuel departments. As far as the price, the Pi Prime is marginally less expensive at $349 to the Ooni Koda 12’s $399, but overall the pizza ovens have similar features.
Solo Stove Pi Prime or Gozney Roccbox?
The biggest difference between these two popular pizza ovens is that the Solo Stove Pi Prime is entirely gas-fueled, while the Gozney Roccbox offers dual-fuel capability with the addition of a separate optional wood burner. As with other Gozney ovens, the Roccbox takes more time than the Pi Prime to reach temperature, but once it’s hot it retains the heat longer thanks to its unique shape and thick stone material. If you love making pizzas at home and want to refine your technique—and have the option to add that smoky, wood-fired flavor—the Gozney Roccbox is a worthwhile purchase.
Final Verdict
Solo Stove’s new Pi Prime pizza oven makes it much more approachable for people to enjoy cooking homemade pizzas. With a price point of $349, it’s one of the most affordable pizza ovens on the market. And it comes from a line of high-quality products from Solo Stove, along with the brand’s lifetime warranty. The pizza oven is easy to set up and fun to use, and it has an improved design from the original Solo Stove pizza oven. This is definitely worth the investment for those looking to make pizza night a regular occurrence at home.
Where to Buy the Solo Stove Pi Prime Pizza Oven
VIA MERCHANT
We Tried It
Solo Stove Pi Prime Pizza Oven
Ready to whip up pizzas at home? Purchase the Solo Stove Pi Prime on Solo Stove’s website, Amazon, and The Home Depot for $349. Enjoy restaurant-quality pies without breaking your budget!
FAQ
Which pizza oven is better: Pi Prime or Ooni?
A lot depends on your specific needs and preferences. The Pi Prime runs exclusively on propane gas, and it has a single knob for ignition and temperature control, making it ideal for beginners. Ooni offers models that support gas, wood or even multi-fuel setups, so if you’re looking for a pizza oven that will deliver wood-fired flavor, the Ooni is a better choice.
Pricing is another thing to consider when selecting between the Pi Prime or an Ooni pizza oven. The Pi Prime retails for about $350, while the Ooni Karu 12—the most basic model—costs just $299.
How long does it take to cook pizza in the Solo Stove pizza oven?
While the Pi Prime takes about 15 to 20 minutest to heat up, once it’s at temperature we found that pizzas cooked within 90 seconds to two minutes, depending on the toppings and cheese choice.
What is the difference between the Pi Prime and the Pi?
The ovens are similar in size and design, but the Pi Prime is a propane-only oven, whereas the Pi offers duel-fuel capability. Overall, the Pi Prime is easier to use, especially for beginners, because it has a flame control knob on the front that makes it simple to adjust the temperature. However, if you want the option to cook pizzas with a wood-fired flavor—and also have the convenience of propane—the Pi offers more flexibility.
What can you cook in a Pi Prime pizza oven?
Aside from making delicious homemade pizza pies, the Pi Prime is a versatile oven that you can use to cook a variety of dishes. The high temperature of the Pi Prime makes it ideal for cooking meat, and you can also use it to roast vegetables and bake bread. Want to really expand your culinary horizons? Use the Pi Prime to make homemade naan—the 900-degree temperature is perfect for a blistered crust and soft inside.
Why You Should Trust Us
Here at Taste Recipes, we’re no strangers to pizza ovens—and what tools yield wow-worthy pies. I’ve personally tested 10 ovens, from the trendy Gozney Roccbox to indoor pizza ovens like the Breville Pizzaiolo. I have a decade of recipe development and product testing experience. And I’m an outdoor cooking enthusiast, to boot! On the Test Kitchen side, Executive Culinary Producer Sarah Farmer lent her expertise to the Cuisinart 3-in-1 pizza oven review, while Culinary Producer Josh Rink tested the Ninja Woodfire pizza oven. All in, we bring several years of culinary experience and pizza prowess to reviews for our readers.
