BuzzSumo vs Exploding Topics (2026): which should you pick?
As of Oct 23, 2026, BuzzSumo and Exploding Topics share a 2.2 GPA, and only Exploding Topics has a free plan.
Checked Oct 23, 2026 · graded Oct 23, 2026 by ToolGPA
BuzzSumo grades higher on ease of use. Exploding Topics grades higher on value for money. They get the same grade on the free plan, features and platforms.
Price, platforms and features side by side. The table says where each price was read and when.
BuzzSumo
Content research, media monitoring and journalist outreach
Exploding Topics
Database of rising topics, products and startups, by search growth
Which one is for you
Pick BuzzSumo if
- Fits if you look for topics and formats that already earn shares and links
- Works for digital PR teams finding journalists and tracking their coverage
Look elsewhere if
- Pricey if you're one person, at $159 a month on yearly billing for one user
- Skip it if you want articles written or scored, as it does research only
- Tight if you need the journalist database or the API: one starts at PR & Comms for $239, the other is priced on request
- Watch out: cancelling isn't refunded, and plans run to the end of the paid term
- Not for you if you want a free plan, gone since February 2023; the trial is 50 searches
Pick Exploding Topics if
- Fits if you pick content topics and want ones whose searches are still climbing
- Works for sellers and investors looking for products, markets and startups that are starting to rise
Look elsewhere if
- Pricey if you want forecasts, trending startups or CSV export, which start at $99 a month
- Skip it if you need keyword volumes and difficulty for pages you're writing now
- Not for you if you'd rather not have a Semrush account, as Pro runs through one
- Watch out: the pricing page doesn't say how prices are billed, and a vendor blog says $39 is the yearly rate
- Watch out: TikTok Insights is a separate add-on with no price shown
How we grade them
| 2.2GPABuzzSumoFair | 2.2GPAExploding TopicsFair | |
|---|---|---|
| Value for money | DContent Creation is $159 a month on yearly billing, $199 monthly, for one user, well past where this category's dearest tenth starts ($99). The journalist database needs PR & Comms at $239, and the API is priced on request. | CEntrepreneur is $39 a month for 100 tracked trends, at the dearer end of this category, and the page doesn't say how it's billed. Forecasts, trending startups and CSV export need Investor at $99. Treendly's Pro is $99 a year. |
| Free plan and trial | CNo free plan since February 2023. New users get a trial of Suite limited to 50 searches, and nothing on record says it needs a card. | CYou can browse trending topics, startups and websites on the public site with part of each trend's data, no account needed. Every Pro plan has a 7-day trial, and the listing doesn't say whether a card is needed. |
| Features | CThe Content Analyzer, idea, topic and question tools, a brief generator, keyword and backlink tools, alerts and a Chrome extension. It does content research, but that's only part of this category's job: it writes, scores and publishes nothing. | CA database it puts at 1.1 million+ topics with growth over up to 15 years, tracking with alerts, deep-dive analyses and Meta Trends. It does trend spotting fully, but that's a smaller job than keyword research, and forecasting starts at $99. |
| Ease of use | BNo rating on record, but there's nothing to set up to start: type a topic, URL or domain and it lists the most shared content. | CNo rating on record. Pro runs as an app inside Semrush, so signing in and starting a trial go through a Semrush account before you see the full data. |
| Platforms and integrations | BWeb plus a Chrome extension, with no desktop or phone app. It sends alerts to Slack, has an RSS feed for Zapier or IFTTT on Enterprise, and offers Account and Search APIs priced separately. | BWeb only, with no desktop or phone app. There's an API, a Zapier integration with six actions, and routes through n8n and Make. |
| Best for | finding content that already earns shares and links | spotting rising topics before they get crowded |
The GPA is the average of the five grades: an A is 4 points, an F is none. The full reasons are on each tool's page: BuzzSumo and Exploding Topics. How we grade
Where they differ
- BuzzSumo also covers research, reports, backlink analysis and link outreach.
At a glance
| BuzzSumo | Exploding Topics | |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing | Free trial | Free plan |
| Starts at | $159 per month, billed annually ($199 billed monthly) | $39 per month for 100 tracked trends (billing basis not shown) |
| Free plan | None | Trending topics, startups and websites can be browsed on the site without an account, with part of each trend's data; the full data needs Pro. |
| Free trial | Free trial of the Suite plan, limited to 50 searches | 7-day free trial of every Pro plan |
| Web | ||
| Browser extension | ||
| Made by | BuzzSumo Ltd | Semrush Inc. |
| Price read from | buzzsumo.com | explodingtopics.com |
| Checked | Oct 23, 2026 | Oct 23, 2026 |
Worth knowing
BuzzSumo
- There has been no free plan since February 2023; new users get a trial of Suite limited to 50 searches.
- Cancelling stops renewal but is not refunded: annual and monthly plans run to the end of the paid term.
- The journalist database starts at PR & Comms, and the API is priced on request.
- Invoicing is only for Enterprise plans paid yearly; all other plans are paid by card.
Exploding Topics
- The pricing page shows monthly figures without saying how they are billed; a vendor blog post says $39 is the annual-billing rate.
- Trend forecasting, trending startups and CSV export start at the $99 Investor plan.
- Pro runs as an app inside Semrush: signing in and starting a trial go through a Semrush account.
- TikTok Insights is a separate add-on, and its price is not shown on the pricing page.
Key features
BuzzSumo
- Content Analyzer
- Search any topic, URL or domain to see its most shared and linked content, with up to five years of engagement history depending on plan.
- Content ideas and briefs
- The Content Ideas Generator, Topic Explorer and Question Analyzer surface topics, headlines and forum questions, and the Brief Generator turns them into briefs.
- Keyword and backlink tools
- A keyword tool with search volume and cost per click, and a Backlink Analyzer that follows new links to a domain or URL over time.
- Journalist database
- From PR & Comms up, find journalists writing on a topic, build media lists of 20 to 600 journalists by plan, and draft pitches with an AI tool.
- Monitoring alerts
- Alerts for brand, keyword, content, backlink, competitor and journalist mentions by email, and into Slack from PR & Comms up.
- Chrome extension and API
- A Chrome extension shows engagement and backlinks for any article while you browse, and Account and Search APIs are priced separately.
Exploding Topics
- Trends database
- Pro opens a database the vendor puts at 1.1 million+ markets, products and topics, each with search volume and growth over windows of 3 months to 15 years.
- Trend tracking and analyses
- Track 100, 500 or 2,000 trends by plan and get alerts, and run 10 to 500 deep-dive analyses with search metrics and channel-level data.
- Meta Trends
- Groups related topics into larger shifts in areas such as tech, DTC, marketing, SaaS, healthcare, fitness and fashion.
- Trend forecasting
- Investor and Business plans show a machine-learning forecast of where a trend's interest is likely to go over the next year.
- Trending products and startups
- Lists consumer products on the rise on every Pro plan, and fast-growing startups from Investor up. A TikTok Insights add-on tracks products gaining views on TikTok.
- API and automations
- An Exploding Topics API feeds trend data into other tools, with a Zapier integration offering six actions and an n8n workflow route.
Plans
BuzzSumo
Content Creation$159
per month, billed annually ($199 billed monthly)
1 user, unlimited searches, 2 alerts, Content Analyzer, trending feeds, Question Analyzer and 2 years of history.
PR & Comms$239
per month, billed annually ($299 billed monthly)
5 users and 5 alerts, plus the journalist database and outreach, coverage reports, Slack alerts and 3 years of history.
Suite$399
per month, billed annually ($499 billed monthly)
10 users and 10 alerts, plus the YouTube Analyzer, the advanced Chrome extension, article uploads and 5 years of history.
Enterprise$999
per month, billed annually only
30 users, 50 alerts, an RSS feed for Zapier or IFTTT, journalist search by state and early access to new features.
Exploding Topics
Free$0
Browse trending topics, startups and top websites on the public site, plus a set of free SEO tools.
Entrepreneur$39
per month for 100 tracked trends, billing basis not shown
10 trend analyses, the trends database, trending products, Meta Trends and channel breakdowns.
Investor$99
per month for 500 tracked trends, billing basis not shown
100 trend analyses, plus trending startups, trend forecasting and CSV export.
Business$249
per month for 2,000 tracked trends, billing basis not shown
500 trend analyses, everything in Investor, and trend reports.
Ways to pay less
BuzzSumo
- Annual discount
Save 20% with annual billing
BuzzSumo's pricing page lists a 20% saving for paying annually: Content Creation is $159 a month billed yearly against $199 billed monthly.
- Nonprofit
Discounts for NGOs and charities
BuzzSumo's pricing FAQ says it offers discounts to NGOs and registered charitable non-profits; buyers are asked to contact the team.
- Education
Discounts for classroom use
The same FAQ offers discounts to educational institutions that use BuzzSumo in the classroom, arranged by contacting BuzzSumo.
Exploding Topics
No public discounts listed.
Common questions
Which is cheaper, BuzzSumo or Exploding Topics?
As of Oct 23, 2026, Exploding Topics is cheaper to start with: $39 a month, against $159 a month for BuzzSumo. BuzzSumo starts at $159 per month, billed annually ($199 billed monthly), and Exploding Topics starts at $39 per month for 100 tracked trends (billing basis not shown).
Which has a free plan, BuzzSumo or Exploding Topics?
As of Oct 23, 2026, only Exploding Topics has a free plan. BuzzSumo does not, though it has a free trial.
Which platforms do BuzzSumo and Exploding Topics run on?
As of Oct 23, 2026, only BuzzSumo lists a browser extension. Both list a web app. A platform missing from a listing is one its maker's pages did not mention.
More comparisons
How this page was made
- The verdict at the top follows a fixed rule. When both tools are in the same category and either is in our top three for it, the verdict follows that ranking: the higher-placed tool is our pick. The top three weigh who each tool suits as well as its grades, so a pick can go against the GPA. Otherwise the page does not pick one and says which grades higher: the higher GPA first; on a tie, the one with a free plan, then the one that starts cheaper in dollars a month, counted the same way for both; if they are still level, what the choice depends on.
- The grades are our own, from each tool’s review or report card. The GPA is their average.
- Prices, plans and platforms come from each tool’s listing. The table above says where each price was read and when.
- The differences and the answers to the questions are worked out from those listings.