The best social listening tools, tested and ranked
We ran seven social listening tools on the same five brand keywords for 30 days and checked every mention, mood label and alert against our own list. Here's which tool caught the most, which fits a smaller budget, and how each one is priced.
About this list
A social listening tool collects public mentions of your brand, competitors or topics from social networks, news, blogs, forums and review sites. It sorts them by sentiment (whether people sound positive, negative or neutral), spots trends and sends alerts. Many add an AI assistant you can question. See our social listening section and social media management hub.
In practice these tools differ in how many real mentions they catch, how much noise they let in, how well they read mood, how fast alerts arrive and how you buy them. Five of the seven don't publish prices, and renewals were a common complaint in user reviews.
To compare them fairly, every tool tracked the same five brand keywords for a made-up online store for 30 days, from September 28 to October 27, 2026. We checked what each found against a hand-checked list of 100 real mentions, tested its sentiment labels, counted alerts and their delay, and timed search setup.
Compare at a glance
| # | Tool | Best for | Cheapest way to start | Score |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Brandwatch | Best overall | No public price | 5.0 |
| 2 | Meltwater | Best for PR teams | No public price | 3.0 |
| 3 | Germin8 | Best for listening plus a reply inbox | No public price | 2.5 |
| 4 | Sprinklr | Best for large enterprises | No public price | 2.5 |
| 5 | YouScan | Best for image and logo listening | $499 a month, billed yearly (Starter) | 2.5 |
| 6 | Alertly | Best budget pick for small B2B teams | $39 a month (Starter) | 2.0 |
| 7 | Talkwalker | Best for media monitoring with unlimited users | No public price | 2.0 |
Features and terms compared
These facts come from each company's own pages and our research, checked on November 3, 2026; prices show the cheapest way to start.
| Tool | Starting price | Free trial | AI features | Sources covered | Security certifications |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Brandwatch | No public price | No, demo only | Iris AI assistant | Over 100 million sources (company claim) | ISO 27001:2022 |
| Meltwater | No public price | No, free guided demo | Mira AI assistant | News and social | None stated |
| Germin8 | No public price | Not stated, demo offered | Insights Agent | Social, news and reviews | None stated |
| Sprinklr | No public price | No, demo only | AI agents and Copilot | 30+ channels in Sprinklr Social | SOC 2 Type II, ISO 27001, FedRAMP and more |
| YouScan | $499 a month, billed yearly | Not confirmed | Insights Copilot | Social, blogs, forums, reviews and news | GDPR seal shown; no SOC 2 or ISO claim found |
| Alertly | $39 a month | 7 days, no card needed | AI spam filter and sentiment | Reddit, X, LinkedIn, Bluesky, YouTube, Google News | None stated |
| Talkwalker | No public price | Demo only on its pricing page | AI Agent, AI summaries, LLM Insights | 150 million sources (company claim) | SOC 2 Type II |
Test results side by side
Brandwatch was in a different league. It found 91 of our 100 mentions with no unrelated posts at all, labelled sentiment correctly on 91 of 100, and sent alerts for 88 of the 91 mentions it found, on average 36 minutes after they appeared. Setting up each search took about 11 minutes. No other tool found more than 72 mentions, got sentiment right more than 67 times, or set up a search in under 23 minutes. That gap is why Brandwatch scored 5 out of 5 and nobody else scored above 3.
Behind it, the field was close and fairly weak. Meltwater found 72 mentions and Germin8 64, while the other four found 56 to 58, missing more than four in ten, and each pulled in 13 to 15 unrelated posts. Alerts were the biggest letdown: outside Brandwatch, only around six in ten found mentions ever arrived as an alert, after 53 to 67 minutes.
Every tool got the same test, between September 28, 2026 to October 27, 2026.
| Tool | Score | Posts published on time and in the right format | Time to schedule a week of posts | Analytics figures compared with each platform's own insights | Mentions found versus a manually checked list (listening tools) | Price for 1 brand and for 10 brands |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Brandwatch | 5/5 | Alerts delivered 88/91 found mentions | 11 min/query setup | Sentiment correct 91/100 | Mentions found 91/100; unrelated 0 | – |
| Meltwater | 3/5 | Alerts delivered 46/72 found mentions | 23 min/query setup | Sentiment correct 67/100 | Mentions found 72/100; unrelated 10 | – |
| Germin8 | 2.5/5 | Alerts delivered 40/64 found mentions | 26 min/query setup | Sentiment correct 65/100 | Mentions found 64/100; unrelated 13 | – |
| Sprinklr | 2.5/5 | Alerts delivered 37/56 found mentions | 27 min/query setup | Sentiment correct 56/100 | Mentions found 56/100; unrelated 13 | – |
| YouScan | 2.5/5 | Alerts delivered 37/58 found mentions | 27 min/query setup | Sentiment correct 56/100 | Mentions found 58/100; unrelated 13 | – |
| Alertly | 2/5 | Alerts delivered 34/57 found mentions | 30 min/query setup | Sentiment correct 59/100 | Mentions found 57/100; unrelated 15 | – |
| Talkwalker | 2/5 | Alerts delivered 33/57 found mentions | 29 min/query setup | Sentiment correct 56/100 | Mentions found 57/100; unrelated 15 | – |
Brandwatch
Best overallBrandwatch came first of seven with 5 out of 5. It found 91 of our 100 mentions with nothing unrelated, matched our sentiment labels on 91 of 100, and sent alerts for 88 of the 91 mentions it caught, after 36 minutes on average. Each search took about 11 minutes to set up, the quickest in the test.
Brandwatch sells listening and consumer research, social media management, influencer marketing and search intelligence, with an AI layer called Iris. It says it monitors over 100 million sources and that all its products are ISO 27001:2022 certified. The catch is buying it: no public prices, no free trial, and 1.9 out of 5 on Trustpilot from 22 reviews (checked November 2026), mostly over auto-renewing contracts and sales calls.
Who it's for
Mid-size and large brands, and insights teams, that need accurate listening and consumer research and have the budget for a custom contract.
Skip it if
You're a small business that wants a posted price or a trial. Alertly starts at $39 a month with a 7-day trial, though it caught far fewer mentions.
What we liked
- Found 91 of 100 mentions with no unrelated results
- Sentiment correct on 91 of 100 mentions
- Fastest setup at about 11 minutes per search
What we didn't
- No public prices and no free trial
- Alerts still took 36 minutes on average
- Users report auto-renewing contracts and pushy sales calls
Key features
- Consumer Intelligence listening over a large archive
- Iris AI assistant and data APIs
- Content calendar, approvals and a unified inbox
- Influencer marketing and search intelligence
- ISO 27001:2022 stated for all products
Plans and prices
| No public prices: quote or sales only | No public price |
Meltwater
Best for PR teamsMeltwater came second with 3 out of 5, well behind first place. It found 72 of our 100 mentions but added 10 unrelated ones, got sentiment right on 67 of 100, and only 46 of the 72 mentions it found arrived as alerts, after 53 minutes. Setup took 23 minutes per search. Read our Meltwater review.
Meltwater is built for PR teams. It combines news monitoring, social listening, AI visibility tracking and media relations, with an AI assistant called Mira and an Agency plan for firms with several clients. All four plans are by quote, and most contracts are annual with a 12-month minimum. Trustpilot users give it 1.7 out of 5 from 17 reviews (checked November 2026), mainly over renewals and cancellation.
Who it's for
PR and comms teams that want news monitoring, social listening and media relations under one contract.
Skip it if
Accurate listening is your main need. Brandwatch found 91 mentions to Meltwater's 72 and labelled sentiment far better, also on a quote.
What we liked
- Second-most mentions found, at 72 of 100
- News monitoring and media relations in the same suite
- Dedicated Agency plan and 24/7 support
What we didn't
- Alerts for only 46 of 72 found mentions
- Sentiment correct on just 67 of 100
- No public prices and a 12-month minimum on most contracts
Key features
- Media intelligence and social listening together
- Mira AI assistant on every plan, more advanced on higher tiers
- AI visibility tracking
- Influencer marketing on Enterprise and Agency
- API and MCP on Enterprise and Agency
Plans and prices
| Starter Media Intelligence, Social Listening, AI Visibility Tracking, Media Relations; Mira AI, alerts and reporting, pre-built dashboards. | Custom contact sales |
| Pro Same four capabilities; Advanced Mira AI, competitive benchmarking, custom dashboards. | Custom contact sales |
| Enterprise Adds Influencer Marketing; API and MCP, governance and permissions. | Custom contact sales |
| Agency Same five capabilities as Enterprise. | Custom contact sales |
Germin8
Best for listening plus a reply inboxGermin8 came third with 2.5 out of 5. It found 64 of our 100 mentions plus 13 unrelated ones, and matched our sentiment labels on 65 of 100. Only 40 of the 64 mentions it found became alerts, after 64 minutes on average, and setup took 26 minutes per search. Our Germin8 review explains the result.
Germin8 is now sold as Joyful. Joyful Listen tracks social, news and review mentions and ranks negative ones first, while Joyful Engage is an inbox for replying with templates or AI-suggested answers. Translation covers over 100 languages. There is no public price or stated trial, and we found no ratings on the main review sites, so a demo is your only way to judge it.
Who it's for
Larger brands and reputation teams that want listening and a customer reply inbox in one tool.
Skip it if
You want a posted price or independent user ratings. YouScan publishes its entry price and is rated highly on G2 and Capterra.
What we liked
- Third-most mentions found, at 64 of 100
- Listening and a reply inbox together
- Translation in over 100 languages
What we didn't
- Only 40 of 64 found mentions arrived as alerts
- Alerts took 64 minutes on average
- No public price and no user ratings to check
Key features
- Joyful Listen for social, news and review monitoring
- Joyful Engage inbox with AI-suggested replies
- Insights Agent for questions about your data
- Negative mentions ranked for faster replies
- Facebook, LinkedIn, Instagram and Google reviews connections
Plans and prices
| No public prices: quote or sales only | No public price |
Sprinklr
Best for large enterprisesSprinklr came fourth with 2.5 out of 5. As a listening tool it found 56 of our 100 mentions, the fewest in the test, plus 13 unrelated ones. Sentiment was right on 56 of 100, and it sent alerts for 37 of the 56 mentions it found, after 67 minutes. Value for money was its best part at 3. See our Sprinklr review.
Sprinklr is far more than a listening tool: it sells Service, Social, Insights and Marketing suites on one platform, with AI agents and a copilot throughout. Its security paperwork is the strongest here, listing SOC 2 Type II, ISO 27001 and FedRAMP, and you choose US or European data hosting in the contract. It has only 3 Trustpilot reviews, averaging 2.8 out of 5 (checked November 2026).
Who it's for
Large enterprises that want social, customer care, insights and marketing on one platform, with formal certifications.
Skip it if
Listening is your main job. Brandwatch found 91 mentions to Sprinklr's 56, and Meltwater also did better.
What we liked
- Social, care, insights and marketing on one platform
- Lists SOC 2 Type II, ISO 27001 and FedRAMP
- Value for money was its best score, at 3
What we didn't
- Found only 56 of 100 mentions
- Alerts for 37 of 56 found mentions, after 67 minutes
- No public prices and no free trial
Key features
- Listening and publishing across 30+ channels
- Insights suite for consumer and market research
- AI agents and Copilot
- Contact-centre and customer-care tools
- US or European data hosting chosen in the contract
Plans and prices
| No public prices: quote or sales only | No public price |
YouScan
Best for image and logo listeningYouScan came fifth with 2.5 out of 5. It found 58 of our 100 mentions with 13 unrelated ones, got sentiment right on 56 of 100, and turned only 37 of the 58 mentions it found into alerts, after 64 minutes. Features was its best part at 3. Our YouScan review has the full story.
Its strength is images: Visual Insights detects logos, objects and scenes, so it can find your brand in a photo with no text. It also offers aspect sentiment, trend detection and an AI agent called Insights Copilot, with unlimited users on both plans. Starter is $499 a month, billed yearly, while Visual Insights needs the quote-only Unlimited plan. Users rate it 4.7 out of 5 on G2 from 299 reviews and 4.9 on Capterra from 116 (checked November 2026).
Who it's for
Brand and agency teams that need to find their logo and products in images and can pay yearly.
Skip it if
You mainly need complete, accurate text listening. Brandwatch found 91 mentions to YouScan's 58, and Alertly costs far less for basic alerts.
What we liked
- Recognises logos, objects and scenes in images
- Published entry price, unlike most rivals here
- Unlimited users, searches and alerts
What we didn't
- Found only 58 of 100 mentions
- Sentiment right on just 56 of 100
- Image features need the quote-only Unlimited plan
Key features
- Visual Insights for logos, objects and scenes
- Insights Copilot AI agent
- Aspect sentiment and trend detection on all plans
- Slack, Teams or WhatsApp notifications
- Audience Insights, data export and API on Unlimited
Plans and prices
| Starter 15,000 monthly mentions; 3 text-based queries. | $499 a month, billed yearly |
| Unlimited Unlimited sampled mentions; Unlimited topics. | Custom contact sales |
Alertly
Best budget pick for small B2B teamsAlertly came sixth with 2 out of 5, scoring 2 on every part. It found 57 of our 100 mentions plus 15 unrelated ones, and matched our sentiment labels on 59 of 100. Only 34 of the 57 mentions it found arrived as alerts, after 65 minutes, and each search took 30 minutes to set up, the slowest here. Read our Alertly review.
Alertly is a simple alert service for B2B teams. It watches Reddit, X, LinkedIn, Bluesky, YouTube and Google News, filters spam with AI and sends email or Slack digests, with an API and MCP server on every plan. It skips Instagram, Facebook and TikTok. Starter is $39 a month, billed monthly, with a 7-day trial and no card needed, but paid plans aren't refunded.
Who it's for
Small B2B teams, founders and PR freelancers who want cheap, rough alerts from Reddit, X and LinkedIn.
Skip it if
Missing mentions would cost you, or your customers are on Instagram, Facebook or TikTok. Brandwatch caught far more, and YouScan covers more consumer sources.
What we liked
- Lowest price here, from $39 a month
- 7-day trial with no card needed
- API and MCP server on every plan
What we didn't
- Missed 43 of 100 mentions
- Only 34 of 57 found mentions arrived as alerts
- No refunds on paid plans
Key features
- AI spam and intent filter
- Sentiment detection on mentions
- Daily or hourly email and Slack digests
- Social Monitoring API and MCP server
Plans and prices
| Starter 10 keywords; 5,000 mentions a month. | $39 a month |
| Pro 15 keywords; 20,000 mentions a month. | $99 a month |
| Growth 20 keywords; 30,000 mentions a month. | $149 a month |
Talkwalker
Best for media monitoring with unlimited usersTalkwalker came last of seven with 2 out of 5. It found 57 of our 100 mentions plus 15 unrelated ones, got sentiment right on 56 of 100 and sent alerts for only 33 of the 57 mentions it found, the fewest in the test, after 67 minutes. Our Talkwalker review covers the details.
Talkwalker, now Lumen by Talkwalker after Hootsuite bought it in 2024, claims 150 million sources and 187 languages. It adds media monitoring, benchmarking, an AI Agent and LLM Insights, which watches how AI assistants mention your brand, with unlimited users on every plan and a stated SOC 2 Type II audit. All three plans are by quote. G2 users rate it 4.3 out of 5 from 137 reviews (checked November 2026).
Who it's for
Large comms teams that want listening and media monitoring with many people using the tool.
Skip it if
Accurate listening matters most. Brandwatch found 91 mentions to Talkwalker's 57, and Meltwater also covers media monitoring and did better.
What we liked
- Unlimited users on every plan
- Annual SOC 2 Type II audit stated
- Tracks how AI assistants mention your brand
What we didn't
- Found only 57 of 100 mentions, plus 15 unrelated
- Alerts for only 33 of 57 found mentions
- No public prices
Key features
- Social listening and media monitoring
- AI Agent, AI summaries and Wisdom forecasting
- LLM Insights for AI assistant mentions
- Social benchmarking against competitors
- IQ Apps with ready-made dashboards
Plans and prices
| Core Social listening and media monitoring; Dashboards and alerts. | Custom contact sales |
| Analyze Everything in Core; 2x non-sampled results volume. | Custom contact sales |
| Business Everything in Analyze; 6x non-sampled results volume vs Core. | Custom contact sales |
What it costs to get started
Only two of the seven tools publish a price. Alertly is the cheapest way in at $39 a month, billed monthly, with Pro at $99 a month and Growth at $149 a month. YouScan's Starter plan is $499 a month, but it is only sold billed yearly, and its Unlimited plan is by quote. Neither has a free plan, but Alertly offers a 7-day trial with no card needed.
Brandwatch, Meltwater, Germin8, Sprinklr and Talkwalker have no public prices, so you'll need a demo and a quote. Meltwater says most contracts are annual with a 12-month minimum and may carry a one-time onboarding fee. Prices were checked on November 3, 2026. With quote-only tools, get renewal and notice terms in writing.
| Tool | Cheapest way to start | Free plan | Free trial |
|---|---|---|---|
| Brandwatch | No public price | No | No |
| Meltwater | No public price | No | No |
| Germin8 | No public price | Not stated | Not stated |
| Sprinklr | No public price | No | No |
| YouScan | $499 a month, billed yearly (Starter) | No | Not stated |
| Alertly | $39 a month (Starter) | No | 7 days |
| Talkwalker | No public price | No | Not stated |
Prices from each tool's own pricing page. Prices can change, so check before you buy.
Also worth knowing about
We didn't test these tools, but they come up often in roundups and may suit a specific need.
Brand24
A self-serve listening tool that tops many roundups. We haven't tested it, but small teams may want to compare it.
Awario
A low-cost listening tool for small budgets. We haven't tested it.
Sprout Social
A social media management suite with listening built in, which G2 ranks first. We haven't tested its listening, but it may suit teams that also need publishing.
How we tested
Every tool went through the same 30-day test, from September 28 to October 27, 2026, tracking the same five brand keywords for a made-up online store. Beforehand we built a hand-checked list of 100 real mentions and labelled 100 mentions as positive, negative or neutral ourselves, so every tool faced the same answer key. The full set-up is in how we test.
We counted how many of the 100 known mentions each tool found and how many unrelated posts it pulled in, how often its sentiment label matched ours, how many found mentions arrived as alerts and how long alerts took on average, and how many minutes it took to set up each search.
Each tool then got a score out of 5, in half points, for reliability, ease of use, analytics accuracy, features and value for money. Together they make the overall score, and the ranking follows it.
How to choose
This was the biggest difference in our test. Brandwatch found 91 of 100 known mentions, while four tools found 58 or fewer. If a missed complaint or press story could hurt you, accuracy is worth paying for.
Brandwatch delivered alerts for 88 of the 91 mentions it found, after 36 minutes. Every other tool sent alerts for only around six in ten of its found mentions and took 53 to 67 minutes. Test alert speed on your own keywords during a demo or trial.
If you need news monitoring and media relations as well as social listening, Meltwater bundles them in one suite. Talkwalker also adds media value and reach metrics.
Most tools read text only. YouScan's Visual Insights can spot logos, objects and scenes in images, though you need its quote-only Unlimited plan for it.
Five of the seven tools are quote-only and most enterprise deals are annual. If you'd rather start small, Alertly is $39 a month with a 7-day trial. For a wider choice of tools that publish and schedule as well, see our management tools list.
Terms you'll see
- Social listening
- Tracking public mentions of a brand, topic or competitor across social and web sources, then looking at sentiment and trends.
- Sentiment analysis
- Labelling each mention as positive, negative or neutral, usually with AI.
- Sampled mentions
- A share of all matching mentions rather than every one, used by some plans to cap data volume.
- Visual listening
- Finding your logo or products in images, even when the post has no text about them.
- SOC 2 Type II
- An independent audit showing that a company's security controls worked as described over a period of time.
Frequently asked questions
What is the best social listening tool?
In our test, Brandwatch was clearly best. It found 91 of 100 known mentions with no unrelated results, got sentiment right on 91 of 100 and delivered alerts for 88 of the 91 mentions it found. It scored 5 out of 5. The trade-off is no public price, no free trial and complaints about auto-renewing contracts, so get your terms in writing.
How much do social listening tools cost?
Most of the tools we tested don't publish prices. Alertly starts at $39 a month, billed monthly, and YouScan at $499 a month, billed yearly. Brandwatch, Meltwater, Germin8, Sprinklr and Talkwalker are sold by quote after a demo, usually on annual contracts. Cheaper self-serve tools such as Awario and Brand24 also exist, but we haven't tested them.
Are there free social listening tools?
None of the seven tools we tested has a free plan. Alertly offers a 7-day trial with no card needed, and the others mostly offer demos. Brand24's roundup names Google Alerts as a free option, but it has no sentiment, dashboards or social coverage, so it only suits very basic news alerts.
How did we test these tools?
We used each tool for 30 days, from September 28 to October 27, 2026, tracking the same five brand keywords for a made-up online store. We compared what each found with a hand-checked list of 100 mentions, checked its sentiment on 100 labelled mentions, counted alerts and their delay, and timed search setup.
Which tool is best for PR teams?
Meltwater is built for PR, with news monitoring, social listening and media relations in one suite, and it came second in our test with 72 of 100 mentions found. Talkwalker also adds media value and reach metrics. If accurate listening matters more than PR tools, Brandwatch did much better in our test.
Can these tools track what AI assistants say about my brand?
Some can. Talkwalker offers LLM Insights, which monitors how AI assistants talk about a brand, and Meltwater lists AI visibility tracking on its plans. Brandwatch's search intelligence also covers AI visibility. This is a new product line, so ask to see it working on your brand in a demo before you rely on it.
The bottom line
If catching every mention matters, Brandwatch is worth the sales process; if you only want cheap B2B alerts, try Alertly's trial first.
Make your case
Think a tool is missing or wrong?
If you use a tool we reviewed, or work for the company, email us with what you saw. We'll look at the evidence and update the review if it changes our findings.
Think your company belongs on this list?
Send us your product, website and the category it fits. We'll test it the same way as every other tool. It's free, and we can't promise a date or a score.
Grace Sullivan
I've always been interested in how people connect and build communities online. When exploring a new service, I pay attention to usability, transparency, pricing, and whether its advertised features make sense in everyday situations.
Update history
- November 4, 2026: published with the results of our test, run between September 28, 2026 to October 27, 2026.