TubeBuddy vs Tubegrow (2026): which should you pick?
As of Oct 23, 2026, TubeBuddy grades higher than Tubegrow: 2.0 against 1.2 out of 4.0.
Checked Oct 23, 2026 · graded Oct 23, 2026 by ToolGPA
TubeBuddy grades higher on value for money, the free plan, features and platforms. Tubegrow grades higher on ease of use.
Price, platforms and features side by side. The table says where each price was read and when.
TubeBuddy
YouTube browser extension for keyword research, SEO and A/B tests
Free plan
Tubegrow
YouTube keyword, competitor and trending-video research tools
From $199/mo
Which one is for you
Pick TubeBuddy if
- Fits if you want title and tag scores while you upload in YouTube Studio on Chrome or Edge
- Works for creators testing two thumbnails or titles against each other on the same live video
Look elsewhere if
- Watch out: no US price could be read, as the pricing page fills it in by script and showed regional prices
- Skip it if you use Firefox or Safari, as the extension no longer supports Firefox and never supported Safari
- Not for you if you have 50k+ subscribers, several channels or 3+ managers, which TubeBuddy steers to Enterprise
- Tight if you share the work, since Pro has one user and Legend two seats, on one channel each
- Tight if you're staying free, as Starter opens a limited set of tools and bulk editing waits on Legend
Pick Tubegrow if
- Fits if you're an agency or brand keeping watch on rivals' YouTube channels
- Works for advertisers picking specific channels and videos to place YouTube ads on
Look elsewhere if
- Pricey if you're one creator, as the only priced plan is $199 a month
- Not for you if you want to try it first, as there's no free plan or trial
- Tight if you study more than a few rivals, at 3 competitor channels and 3 optimizations a month
- Watch out: the homepage puts Lite's keyword tool at 5 keywords a month, the pricing page at unlimited
- Watch out: anything bigger than Lite is quoted on request, and refunds cover the first order only
How we grade them
| 2.0GPATubeBuddyFair | 1.2GPATubegrowWeak | |
|---|---|---|
| Value for money | CNo US price is on record. The pricing page fills its prices in by script, and the copy served to us showed regional prices, so it can't be placed against this category's $19 middle. A license covers one channel. | FLite is $199 a month, more than ten times this category's $19 middle and almost four times where its dearest tenth starts ($49.99). For that you get 1 channel report, 3 competitor channels and 3 video optimizations a month. |
| Free plan and trial | CEvery channel added gets a free Starter license, but it opens a limited set of tools, and the rest wait on Pro or Legend. No trial is listed. | FNothing free: no free plan and no trial. A 30-day refund covers the first order only, asked for by email, and that isn't a trial. |
| Features | BKeyword Explorer with search volume, SEO Studio scoring as you write, thumbnail and title A/B tests on live videos, channel analytics with competitor scorecards, bulk editing and next-video ideas. That covers the whole job, though bulk editing sits on Legend. | CKeyword search, title and tag suggestions, channel and competitor reports, trending videos and an ads tool. The basics are there, but Lite caps reports at 1 channel and 3 competitors a month. |
| Ease of use | F2.9 from 434 App Store ratings for its phone app, under the 3.0 line. Most of the work happens in the extension, which you install and link to your channel first. | CNo rating on record. It's a web app of several separate tools with monthly caps to work within. |
| Platforms and integrations | BWeb, an extension for Chrome, Edge and Opera, iPhone and Android. It connects to YouTube and YouTube Studio only, with no desktop app or API on record. | CWeb only, with no app, extension, API or integrations on record. |
| Best for | SEO help inside YouTube Studio | watching rivals' YouTube channels |
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: TubeBuddy and Tubegrow. How we grade
Where they differ
- TubeBuddy also covers a/B testing.
- Tubegrow also covers reports.
In commonWebKeyword researchYouTube SEO
At a glance
| TubeBuddy | Tubegrow | |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing | Free plan | Paid |
| Starts at | Not published | $199 per month |
| Free plan | Every channel added gets a free Starter license with a limited set of tools; paid Pro and Legend licenses unlock the rest. | None |
| Free trial | None listed | None listed |
| Web | ||
| iOS | ||
| Android | ||
| Browser extension | ||
| Made by | TubeBuddy (GameSquare) | TubeGrow |
| Price read from | Not confirmed | tubegrow.com |
| Checked | Oct 23, 2026 | Oct 23, 2026 |
Worth knowing
TubeBuddy
- Prices are filled in by a script that could not be read for US visitors, and the page shown in India lists regional prices, so none are given here.
- Pro and Legend are for individual creators; channels with 50k+ subscribers, several channels, 3+ managers or 50+ staff are steered to Enterprise.
- A license covers one YouTube channel. Pro has one user and Legend two seats; more needs Enterprise.
- The extension supports Chrome, Edge and Opera; the help center says it no longer supports Firefox and never supported Safari.
Tubegrow
- No free plan or trial is listed; the only priced plan is Lite at $199 a month, and anything larger is quoted.
- Lite caps channel insights at 1 channel, competitor analysis at 3 channels and video optimization at 3 videos a month.
- The homepage lists Lite's keyword tool at 5 keywords a month, while the pricing page says it is unlimited.
- Refunds within 30 days apply to the first order only and are requested by email.
Key features
TubeBuddy
- Keyword Explorer
- Researches YouTube search terms with search volume data and suggests related keywords to target in a title and tags.
- SEO Studio
- Scores a video's title, tags and description as you write them and lists what to change, with a tag generator and Insta-Suggest.
- Thumbnail and title A/B tests
- Rotates thumbnail or title variants on a live video, measures click-through rate and picks the winner.
- Channel analytics
- Channelytics, a channel health report, competitor scorecards and upload alerts, and a niche leaderboard.
- Bulk editing
- Bulk processing tools for end screens, cards, descriptions and thumbnail overlays, listed as part of the Legend license.
- Next Video Ideas
- Suggests topics for the next upload; Pro has limited access, Legend more, and Enterprise unlimited.
Tubegrow
- Keyword search tool
- Enter a keyword to get related keywords, see how videos rank for it, and find the keywords competitors put in their titles and descriptions.
- Video optimization for SEO
- Suggests keywords for a video's title, description and tags and advises on description length; Lite covers 3 videos a month.
- Channel insights
- Reports on your channel's subscriber growth, views growth and how views are spread across its videos; 1 channel a month on Lite.
- Competitor channel analyzer
- Views, subscriber counts and channel history for rival channels from a database Tubegrow updates daily; 3 channels a month on Lite.
- Trending videos
- Shows YouTube's trending videos from around the world on one screen, filtered by country and category, such as Entertainment in Canada.
- YouTube ads tool
- Helps advertisers pick specific channels and videos to place YouTube ads on, rather than broad audience targeting.
Plans
TubeBuddy
Pricing could not be confirmed. See tubebuddy.com.
Tubegrow
Lite$199
per month
Unlimited keyword, trending, inspiration and ads tools; 1 channel insights report, 3 competitor channels and 3 video optimizations a month.
CustomCustom
The same set of tools, with the price given on request through Contact Us.
Ways to pay less
TubeBuddy
- Annual discount
Save 20% with yearly billing
TubeBuddy's pricing page offers a per-year option on Pro and Legend marked as saving 20% against monthly billing.
- Nonprofit
Special discount for US nonprofits
The pricing page says 501(c)(3) nonprofits qualify for a special discount; the amount is not stated.
Tubegrow
No public discounts listed.
Common questions
Which is cheaper, TubeBuddy or Tubegrow?
As of Oct 23, 2026, TubeBuddy has no price we could confirm, and Tubegrow starts at $199 per month.
Which has a free plan, TubeBuddy or Tubegrow?
As of Oct 23, 2026, only TubeBuddy has a free plan. Tubegrow does not.
Which platforms do TubeBuddy and Tubegrow run on?
As of Oct 23, 2026, only TubeBuddy lists iOS and Android apps and 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.