FREE BBQ COOK TOOL
Pork Butt Cook-Time Planner
Enter the pork shoulder weight and serving time to get a smoker start, meat-on time, bark and wrap checks, tenderness window, rest, and pull time.
SHORT ANSWER
How long does pork butt take to smoke?
At 250°F, this planner starts around 1 hour 37 minutes per pound before wrap and cut adjustments. An 8-pound shoulder starts near 13 hours. Leave room for the stall, the rest, and a safe hold.
Use the tool
Enter serving time, shoulder weight, pit temperature, bone-in or boneless, wrap choice, and planned rest.
The calculator and printable result load on this page. No account is required.
Plan for the stall
The shoulder may hold nearly steady while moisture evaporates from the surface. Wrapping can shorten that part of the cook, but wrap only after the bark looks right.
Check more than one spot
Near the finish, probe several areas. The shoulder should feel soft throughout and a bone should release easily. Use the clock to plan and the meat to decide.
How the starting estimate is calculated
- 225°F: 1 hour 57 minutes per pound
- 250°F: 1 hour 37 minutes per pound
- 275°F: 1 hour 19 minutes per pound
- Cook range: 16% under to 20% over the starting estimate
- Finish buffer: 10% of estimated cook time, with a 75-minute minimum
These are scheduling assumptions. Use your own smoker history when you have it.
Keep the plan with the cook
Save this cook plan, receive reminders and track temperatures with Smokin' Log.
Save and track on the web