Juicer vs Smash Balloon (2026): which should you pick?
As of Nov 13, 2026, Juicer grades higher than Smash Balloon: 2.2 against 2.0 out of 4.0.
Checked Nov 13, 2026 · graded Nov 13, 2026 by ToolGPA
Juicer grades higher on the free plan. Smash Balloon grades higher on features. They get the same grade on value for money, ease of use and platforms.
Price, platforms and features side by side. The table says where each price was read and when.
Juicer
Social media wall and feed aggregator with a free plan
Smash Balloon
WordPress social feed plugins for Instagram, Facebook and more
Which one is for you
Pick Juicer if
- Fits if you want a social wall and will start with one source
- Works for sites that can live with a daily refresh
Look elsewhere if
- Tight if you stay free: 300 views a month, 1 source and a daily refresh
- Pricey if you add sources or views: add-ons are charged on top, such as $12 a month
- Watch out: Juicer branding stays until Lite, and automatic moderation needs Starter at $25
- Watch out: an event plan is $299 a year for 7 days of real-time updates
Pick Smash Balloon if
- Fits if you run WordPress and want your Instagram or Facebook feed on a page
- Makes sense if you want several networks and will buy the bundle
Look elsewhere if
- Pricey if you want more than one network: each plugin is licensed separately, and the bundle is $598 a year
- Not for you if you want a free try, as there is no free plan or trial, only 14 days to get a refund
- Watch out: the 50% off prices are introductory and renewals are at full price
- Skip it if your site isn't WordPress, as there is no hosted embed
How we grade them
| 2.2GPAJuicerFair | 2.0GPASmash BalloonFair | |
|---|---|---|
| Value for money | CLite is $15 a month billed annually ($19 monthly), about the category's $14.92 middle. Starter is $25 and Pro $89. | CA single Pro plugin is $98 to $298 a year at regular price (up to $398 for Facebook), and the All Access Bundle is $598, near the category's dearest tenth at $55 a month. |
| Free plan and trial | CA free plan with 1 source, 1 feed, 300 views a month and 24-hour refresh, with no card. The cap is easy to reach. | FNothing is free: no plan or trial is shown, only a 14-day refund. |
| Features | CAggregation, moderation by plan, hosted pages and scheduling. The listing's gaps: custom design, CSS and CTA buttons depend on plan. | BFeeds for Instagram, Facebook, X, YouTube, TikTok and reviews, plus Social Wall, analytics, caching and moderation, with no gap shown in the listing for displaying feeds. |
| Ease of use | CNo store rating on record. You connect each source and set up the wall. | CNo store rating on record. A WordPress plugin per network, with each feed connected to an account. |
| Platforms and integrations | BWeb embed or hosted page with Instagram, Facebook, LinkedIn, TikTok, YouTube, X, Reddit and Bluesky, and an API for sale. | BWordPress only, connecting to Instagram, Facebook, X, YouTube, TikTok, Google Reviews, Yelp and TripAdvisor. |
| Best for | a social wall from 15+ networks | social media feeds on a WordPress site |
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: Juicer and Smash Balloon. How we grade
Price against what you get
Juicer starts at $15 a month and scores 2.3 out of 4 on features, ease of use and platforms. Smash Balloon starts at $8.17 a month when paid by the year and scores 2.7.
Smash Balloon scores higher and starts $6.83 a month lower. Of the other popup and widget tools on the chart, 4 score higher than Juicer for less, and none scores higher than Smash Balloon for less.
Features, ease of use and platforms, averaged
What paid plans start at, a month (each step along is roughly double) →
- The best score at each price
- Has a free plan
- No free plan
Where they differ
- Juicer also covers popups.
- Smash Balloon also covers reports and review collection.
At a glance
| Juicer | Smash Balloon | |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing | Free plan | Paid |
| Starts at | $15 per month, billed annually ($19 billed monthly) | $98 per year for a single Pro plugin, regular price |
| Free plan | 1 source, 1 feed, 24-hour refresh and unlimited website embeds, no credit card needed. | None |
| Free trial | None listed | None listed |
| Web | ||
| Made by | Juicer | Smash Balloon |
| Price read from | juicer.io | smashballoon.com |
| Checked | Nov 13, 2026 | Nov 13, 2026 |
Worth knowing
Juicer
- Prices rise with sources and feed views, and add-ons for sources, feeds and views are charged on top.
- Custom design and CSS, and call-to-action buttons, appear in the plan table; check which plans include them before buying.
- The free plan caps feed views at 300 a month and refreshes once a day.
- An event plan costs $299 per year, with 7 days of real-time updates across 5 sources.
Smash Balloon
- The pricing page marks the 50%-off prices as introductory, with renewals at full price.
- It runs only on WordPress; there is no hosted embed for other site builders.
- Each plugin is licensed separately unless you buy the All Access Bundle.
- The page promises a full refund within 14 days if a plugin is not a fit.
Key features
Juicer
- Aggregation from 15+ platforms
- Pulls posts into one feed; X, LinkedIn, hashtags and Bluesky sources get a one-week free trial on the free plan.
- Moderation by plan
- Manual on Free and Lite, automatic on Starter and Pro, with AI moderation on Pro.
- Juicer Pages
- A hosted social page with its own URL, 1 included on every plan.
- Brand Listening
- Reports on mentions of a brand, refreshed every 14 days on Lite and more often on higher plans.
- Social scheduling
- Publishing to social channels: 8 channels on Starter and above, a $12 per month add-on on Free and Lite.
- Add-ons
- Extra sources are $10 each, extra feeds $8 each and extra views $5 per 10,000.
Smash Balloon
- Instagram and Facebook feeds
- Show profile, hashtag, tagged, photo, album, video and event feeds, with a lightbox and moderation.
- X, YouTube and TikTok feeds
- Timelines, channels, playlists, live streams and TikTok videos, in grid, carousel and wall layouts.
- Reviews Feed
- Display reviews from Google, Yelp, Facebook and TripAdvisor, filtered by star rating.
- Social Wall
- Combines feeds from several networks into one wall; included in the All Access Bundle.
- Feed Analytics
- An analytics add-on for the feeds, bundled with All Access.
- Caching and moderation
- Background caching and hide or show controls for posts in each feed.
Plans
Juicer
Free$0
forever
1 source, 1 feed, 300 feed views, 24-hour refresh and unlimited website embeds.
Lite$15
per month, billed annually ($19 billed monthly)
3 sources, 5,000 views a month, 60-minute refresh, no Juicer branding, manual moderation.
Starter$25
per month, billed annually ($29 billed monthly)
5 sources, 20,000 views, 60-minute refresh, automatic moderation, 8 scheduling channels.
Pro$89
per month, billed annually ($99 billed monthly)
More sources, 100,000 views, 10-minute refresh, automatic and AI moderation.
EnterpriseCustom
Unlimited views and refresh down to 1 minute; contact sales.
Smash Balloon
Single Pro plugin$98
per year and up, by number of sites
One feed plugin (Instagram, Facebook, X, YouTube, TikTok or Reviews); the page shows $98 to $298 regular, up to $398 for Facebook.
All Access Bundle$598
per year for unlimited sites
All Pro feed plugins, Social Wall, Feed Analytics, priority support and future products. Introductory $299 first year.
Ways to pay less
Juicer
- Annual discount
Save up to 20% with yearly billing
The pricing page has a Yearly toggle and says up to 20% off; Lite is $15 a month paid yearly against $19 monthly.
Smash Balloon
- Other savings
50% off the first year
The pricing page lists All Access at $299 against a normal $598 and single plugins at half price, as introductory pricing with renewals at full price.
Common questions
Which is cheaper, Juicer or Smash Balloon?
As of Nov 13, 2026, Smash Balloon is cheaper to start with: $8.17 a month when paid by the year, against $15 a month for Juicer. Juicer starts at $15 per month, billed annually ($19 billed monthly), and Smash Balloon starts at $98 per year for a single Pro plugin, regular price.
Which has a free plan, Juicer or Smash Balloon?
As of Nov 13, 2026, only Juicer has a free plan. Smash Balloon does not.
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.