Smoked pork loin is lean, quick, and easy to slice – the trick is pulling it before it dries out. A short smoke to a safe 145 F gives you a juicy, faintly pink center and a light bark. Set your dinner time below and we will plan every step backward to the minute.
How to smoke smoked pork loin – time and temp
Smoke a whole pork loin (not to be confused with the smaller tenderloin) at 225 to 250 F until it reaches 145 F internal, usually 2 to 3 hours. Because it is so lean, a wet brine or dry brine the night before is the single best thing you can do for moisture. Rest 10 minutes, then slice across the grain.
Tips
- Pull at 145 F, per USDA. A little pink is normal and safe.
- Brine or dry-brine overnight; loin has almost no fat to protect it.
- Do not confuse loin (large roast) with tenderloin (small, cooks faster).
- A quick high-heat sear at the end adds color without overcooking.
Frequently asked
What temperature is smoked pork loin done? 145 F internal with a 3-minute rest, per USDA. Pull it right at temp; it climbs fast.
How long does it take? About 2 to 3 hours at 225 to 250 F, but weight drives it – the calculator sizes it exactly. Other lean roasts follow the same math; see the lamb smoker times by cut for minutes-per-pound on leg, rack, loin, and chops.
Loin or tenderloin? This guide is the large loin roast. Tenderloin is smaller and cooks in under an hour.
How Much Pork Loin Do I Need to Buy and Cook?
Fine-tune trim & cook loss
Lost to trim: - · lost to the cook: -
How Much Pork Loin Per Person (Serving Size Chart)
| Guests | Raw Pork loin to buy | Trimmed (on the smoker) | Cooked (served) | Good pick |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1-5 | 2.7 lb | 2.5 lb | 2.0 lb | one whole pork loin |
| 6-10 | 5.4 lb | 5.0 lb | 4.0 lb | 2 whole pork loins |
| 11-15 | 8.2 lb | 7.5 lb | 6.0 lb | 2 whole pork loins |
| 16-20 | 11 lb | 10 lb | 8.0 lb | 3 whole pork loins |
| 21-30 | 16 lb | 15 lb | 12 lb | 4 whole pork loins |
| 31-40 | 22 lb | 20 lb | 16 lb | 5 whole pork loins |
| 41-50 | 27 lb | 25 lb | 20 lb | 6 whole pork loins |
Raw weight to comfortably feed the top of each range at an average appetite (~0.40 lb cooked per person), no leftovers. Bump up a size for hearty eaters, light sides, or leftovers.
Pork loin prices: retail vs wholesale
Pork Loin costs about $2.28 a pound at the grocery store this week and $1.23 a pound wholesale. The lowest advertised price is in the Midwest at $1.99 (844 stores). USDA data: grocery ads running Oct 10-16, wholesale trades through Oct 16.
$2.28/lb national grocery ad average for Loin Roast, Boneless (ads running Oct 10-16, 3,983 stores)
$1.23/lb wholesale, Pork loin, boneless center-cut – USDA boxed-cut trades, Oct 12-Oct 16, 2,263,883 lb traded. The shelf price also covers cutting, packaging, labor, shrink and the store’s margin, and a supplier quotes above this for their margin, spec and delivery.
Dashed line: national average $2.28
See prices for every cut → · How much should you buy? · Cooking for money? Price the whole job
Source: USDA Agricultural Marketing Service (Market News + LMPRS mandatory reporting), tracked daily by MeatSmokingCalculator. Retail = advertised grocery feature prices; wholesale = national boxed primal values. Not a quote – your store and supplier will vary.
Where pork loin finishes. Pull temperature on one thermometer, against the safety floors; the faint ticks are every other cut on the chart.
Times & temperatures
| Style | Method | Pit temp | Approx time | Pull / done temp |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Classic | Slow and Low | 225°F / 107°C | ~40 min/lb | 145°F / 63°C |
| Classic | Hot and Fast | 300°F / 149°C | ~22 min/lb | 145°F / 63°C |
| Poor Man's Pork Burnt Ends | Slow and Low | 250°F / 121°C | ~1.8 hr + ~60 min finish | 150°F / 66°C |
📊 See the full smoking times & temps chart for every cut →
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Written by John Kirker, who built the first meat smoking calculator in 2011. Times come from cooks we have actually run and logged; temperature and feel decide the finish, never the clock alone.
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