How Long Does It Take To Smoke Ribs?

I often get asked how long it takes to smoke ribs or when my ribs will get done? The short answer is 4-7 hours. The long answer is – it depends. There is no single answer for how long it will take. From the temperature your smoker is set, the thickness of the meat, the external factors such as humidity and airflow, and much more, we can’t know precisely how long this will take. However, experience shows us that it will vary between 4-7 hours in most cases. 

Let’s calculate how long it will take to smoke your ribs to the perfect doneness. 

Calculation Variables 

To come up with the best estimated time it will take to smoke your ribs, here are the calculations you need to follow. I’ve created an illustration of these variables in a way that might make more sense to a visual learner. I’ve created a flow chart showing you the effects each variable can have on the time it takes to smoke your rack of ribs. 

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The Cut 

I’ll be going over the many variables you’ll use to calculate how long it will take to smoke your ribs. St. Louis style and spares will take much longer than baby back ribs. Baby back, also known as pork loin back ribs, are smaller with less meat, so they will take less time to cook. The larger, meatier St. Louis and spares will often take around 50% more cooking time. 

With that percentage in mind and knowing the baby back ribs take less time to cook overall, I will differentiate between these types of ribs in each section below.  

Cooking Temperature 

Smoke/cook your ribs at 225°F. We recommend you cook your ribs low and slow for a better taste and texture. 225°F is hot enough to form a nice bark on the outside while melting the fat and collagens. 

At this temp, it will take about 4-5 hours to cook baby back ribs or 6-7 hours for St. Louis cut or spare ribs. 

If you decide to increase the temp to 325°F, baby back ribs will take about 90 minutes and about 2.5 hours on the St. Louis ribs or spares. I don’t recommend cooking at this higher temperature since there will be shrinkage, and you’ll have tougher meat.

Elevation 

If you cook near sea level, you don’t need to make any adjustments here. However, if you are well above sea level, you’ll need to add time to your cook. Cooking at a higher altitude, you’ll need to add at least 20% more to your smoking time. 

Smoking your ribs at 225°F in Denver, for example, your baby back ribs will take approx. 5-6 hours. The St. Louis cut or spare ribs will take about 7.5 – 9 hours. 

Thickness of the Ribs

As you know, the thicker the meat, the longer it will take you to get it to the ideal internal temperature. If your meat is on the thicker side, plan on the total time of your cook landing near the upper range of the estimated time frame. 

This means your baby back ribs will take closer to 5 hours to cook at 225°F while St. Louis and spares will take closer to 7 hours. 

When choosing your ribs, it can be difficult to notice if your specific rack is thicker than average, so compare it with others at the supermarket. To do this, line up a few of them side by side to ensure they are the same length. Once you have a few very close in length, compare their weights listed on the labels. If you see a slight difference, this could show you which are meatier and which are leaner.  

Rib Holders

If you are cooking a lot of ribs and have to use rib holders, you will need to add more time to your cook. I estimate you’ll need to add about another hour to your cooking time. 

Only use rib holders if you absolutely have to. This happens when your smoker doesn’t have enough cooking area to smoke the number of racks you need. 

Saucing

This is a big part of your calculations, so don’t skip this factor. If you decide to mob sauce on your ribs, you’ll want to do so when they are nearing completion. This can mean cutting down your cooking time by about 30 minutes. 

To do this, remove your ribs from the tin foil you had them in if you did that step and mob sauce all over your ribs. Now cook them for about 5 minutes per side. You could also leave them rib-side down for about 10 minutes. Keep a close eye on them, so they don’t burn. 

If you don’t add sauce, keep cooking the ribs at 225°F for about another 30 minutes. However, I highly recommend saucing your ribs. This not only adds great flavor but an excellent caramelized look that will impress your guests. 

Conclusion 

Now you have a method worth following that will help you make an educated guess of how long it will take to cook your ribs to a tender and juicy 203°F+! 

Learn more by reading “When Are Your Ribs Done and How Do You Know?” Also, read “How to Smoke Spare Ribs On A Pellet Grill” for more great rib smoking information!

Below is a Pinterest friendly photo…. so you can pin it to your Smoking Food Board!!