Sprout Social vs Vista Social
We give Sprout Social a 2.2 GPA and Vista Social a 2.6, out of 4.0. Vista Social grades higher on value for money and platforms. They get the same grade on the free plan, features and ease of use.
Price, platforms and features side by side. The table says where each price was read and when.
Sprout Social
Social media management with a shared inbox, listening and reports
Vista Social
Social media management with inbox, DM automations and reviews
How we grade them
| 2.2GPASprout SocialFair | 2.6GPAVista SocialGood | |
|---|---|---|
| Value for money | DEssentials is $79 a seat a month billed yearly and covers 5 profiles, so two people pay $158 a month and three $237. That's in this category's dearest tenth, from $99. And that plan has no inbox: Standard, which does, is $199 a seat. | CProfessional is $950 a year, about $79 a month, for 15 profiles and 2 users, which covers a team of two. That's above this category's $58 dearer quarter but under the $99 where the dearest tenth starts. X is another $29 a month. |
| Free plan and trial | CNo free plan, but a 30-day trial with no card needed, twice the usual 14 days here. That's time to run a whole month of posts through it. | CNo free plan, but a 14-day trial with no card needed. |
| Features | BPublishing to 11 networks including Reddit and Snapchat, an inbox that pulls in messages, reviews and WhatsApp, approvals, competitor and paid reports, and an API. Nothing in the listing shows a gap in the core job; listening is an add-on. | BPublishing to 9 networks, an inbox with notes and assignment, DM automations, review management for Yelp, TripAdvisor and the app stores, and competitor reports on every plan. Nothing in the listing shows a gap in the core job. |
| Ease of use | CIts iPhone and iPad app averages 4.2 from about 1,300 ratings, and the full suite takes some setting up across profiles, inbox rules and reports. | CThere's no App Store rating on record for us to go by, and there's a lot to switch on: profiles, inbox, automations and review sites. So it gets the ordinary grade. |
| Platforms and integrations | BWeb, iPhone and Android, with Salesforce, Zendesk, HubSpot, Canva, Slack, Shopify and Tableau, and the Sprout API on Advanced. No desktop app, which an A needs. | AWeb, a Mac app, iPhone, Android and a browser extension, with Canva, Google Drive, Dropbox, OneDrive, Zendesk, Slack, Zapier, Looker Studio and an MCP connector. That's the full spread. |
| Best for | customer care on social for bigger teams | agencies that also answer reviews |
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: Sprout Social and Vista Social. How we grade
Price against what you get
Sprout Social starts at $79 a month for each person and scores 2.7 out of 4 on features, ease of use and platforms. Vista Social starts at $99 a month and scores 3.0.
Vista Social scores higher, and starts $20 a month higher: the question is whether the extra is worth that to you. Of the other social media schedulers on the chart, 3 score higher than Sprout Social for less, and none scores higher than Vista Social 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
- Sprout Social starts at $79 per seat / month, billed annually ($99 billed monthly). Vista Social starts at $99 per month for up to 15 social profiles, billed monthly ($950 yearly).
- Only Vista Social lists a macOS app.
- Only Vista Social lists a browser extension.
At a glance
| Sprout Social | Vista Social | |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing | Free trial | Free trial |
| Starts at | $79 per seat / month, billed annually ($99 billed monthly) | $99 per month for up to 15 social profiles, billed monthly ($950 yearly) |
| Free plan | None | None |
| Free trial | 30-day free trial, no credit card required | 14-day free trial, no credit card needed |
| Web | ||
| macOS | ||
| iOS | ||
| Android | ||
| Browser extension | ||
| Made by | Sprout Social, Inc. | Vista Social LLC |
| Price read from | sproutsocial.com | vistasocial.com |
| Checked | Oct 17, 2026 | Oct 17, 2026 |
Who each one suits
Sprout Social
- Marketing teams that handle social customer care in the same tool
- Brands that want competitor and paid reporting beside publishing
- Companies connecting social to Salesforce, Zendesk or HubSpot
Vista Social
- Agencies managing many client profiles with a small team
- Local and multi-location businesses that also answer online reviews
- Brands using DM automations to collect leads from comments
Worth knowing
Sprout Social
- There is no free plan, and every seat is charged at the plan's full rate, from $79 a month on Essentials to $399 on Advanced, billed annually.
- Essentials and Standard stop at 5 social profiles; unlimited profiles start at Professional.
- The Sprout API and help desk integrations need Advanced at $399 per seat / month, billed annually.
- Listening and Premium Analytics are paid add-ons on top of the plan price, available from Standard.
Vista Social
- There is no free plan, only a 14-day trial.
- Users are capped at 2 on Professional, 3 on Advanced and 4 on Scale; more users and profiles cost extra.
- X (Twitter) is a $29 a month add-on on every plan.
- Listening across social, web and news starts at $75 a month, and employee advocacy at $199 a month for 25 employees.
Key features
Sprout Social
- Publishing calendar
- Posts for Facebook, Instagram, X, LinkedIn, TikTok, YouTube, Threads, Pinterest, Bluesky, Reddit and Snapchat are planned on one calendar, with optimal send times.
- Smart Inbox
- Messages, comments, Messenger and WhatsApp conversations and reviews arrive in one inbox, with tagging from Professional and sentiment on Advanced.
- Approvals and collaboration
- Message approval workflows, calendar notes and a shared asset library, with calendars that can be shared with people outside the account for sign-off.
- Reports and competitor insights
- Profile and post reports on every plan; competitor, tag and paid reports from Professional; team productivity and customer care reports on Advanced.
- Trellis AI agent
- Each seat gets 100 Trellis credits a month for questions about social data. Trellis Plus costs $28 per user a month billed annually ($35 monthly).
- Add-ons
- Listening, Premium Analytics and Employee Advocacy are sold separately on Standard and up, and influencer marketing is a separate product.
Vista Social
- Publishing and calendar
- Posts for Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, TikTok, X, Threads, YouTube, Reddit and Snapchat are planned on a calendar, with bulk scheduling and optimal-time suggestions.
- Shared inbox
- Comments and messages arrive in one inbox with internal notes, labels, saved replies and task assignment, so messages can be handed to a teammate and tracked.
- DM automations
- Automated direct-message flows collect leads from comments and messages; Advanced and up add the advanced automations, with contact limits from 10,000.
- Review management
- Reviews from sites such as Yelp, TripAdvisor, OpenTable, Trustpilot and the app stores are monitored and answered from the same dashboard, with review reports.
- Reports
- Profile, post, web analytics, review and competitor reports on every plan, with scheduled and downloadable reports.
- AI credits and MCP
- Monthly AI credits draft posts and replies (1,000 on Professional to 3,500 on Scale), and an MCP connector links AI assistants to the account.
Plans
Sprout Social
Essentials$79
per seat / month, billed annually ($99 billed monthly)
Publishing for up to 5 social profiles, optimal send times, profile and post reports, and 100 Trellis AI credits a month.
Standard$199
per seat / month, billed annually ($249 billed monthly)
5 social profiles, the consolidated inbox, collaboration tools, keyword and location monitoring, and review management.
Professional$299
per seat / month, billed annually ($399 billed monthly)
Unlimited social profiles, message tagging, competitor, tag and paid insights, and AI post enhancement.
Advanced$399
per seat / month, billed annually ($499 billed monthly)
AI reply help, inbox sentiment, the Sprout API, help desk integrations, team productivity and customer care reports, and spike alerts.
EnterpriseCustom
A tailored plan with white-glove onboarding, single sign-on setup and priority support.
Vista Social
Professional$99
per month for up to 15 social profiles, billed monthly ($950 yearly)
2 users, unlimited scheduling, 1,000 AI credits a month, 10 shared calendars, the social inbox and standard reports.
Advanced$199
per month for up to 30 social profiles, billed monthly ($1,910 yearly)
3 users, custom fields, smart scheduling, multi-stage approvals, advanced reporting, DM automations and 2,000 AI credits a month.
Scale$449
per month for up to 70 social profiles, billed monthly ($4,310 yearly)
4 users, client profile connection, 3,500 AI credits a month, and extra profiles sold in packs of 10.
EnterpriseCustom
Unlimited profiles, 8 or more users, single sign-on, 1-on-1 training and a dedicated account manager.
Ways to pay less
Sprout Social
- Annual discount
About 20% off with annual billing
Paying for a year up front brings Standard to $199 a seat a month from $249, Professional to $299 from $399 and Advanced to $399 from $499.
- Nonprofit
Nonprofit pricing on Professional and Advanced
US nonprofits that commit to at least two seats on an annual plan pay $239 a seat a month for Professional and $299 for Advanced.
Vista Social
- Annual discount
20% off with yearly billing
Yearly billing costs $950 for Professional, $1,910 for Advanced and $4,310 for Scale, against $99, $199 and $449 a month billed monthly.
- Nonprofit
Up to 50% off for nonprofits
Registered nonprofits get up to 50% off the Professional and Advanced plans after sending proof of status, such as a 501(c)(3) letter.
