Tubular Labs vs vidIQ (2026): which should you pick?
As of Nov 13, 2026, we pick vidIQ: it is first in our ranking of YouTube SEO tools, and it grades higher too, 2.8 against 1.8.
Checked Oct 23, 2026 and Nov 13, 2026 · graded Oct 23, 2026 and Nov 13, 2026 by ToolGPA
vidIQ grades higher on the free plan, features and ease of use. They get the same grade on value for money and platforms.
Price, platforms and features side by side. The table says where each price was read and when.
Tubular Labs
Social video analytics for media companies, brands and agencies
vidIQ
YouTube keyword research, video ideas and AI coaching for creators
Which one is for you
Pick Tubular Labs if
- Fits if you're a media company benchmarking social video audiences
- Works for brand teams vetting creators for sponsorships
Look elsewhere if
- Skip it if you're an individual creator, as it's built for teams
- Watch out: no prices are published and the page lists Flex plans without prices or limits
- Watch out: it's sold by the seat on a quote
- Watch out: nothing is free and no trial is mentioned
Pick vidIQ if
- Fits if you want keyword scores and upload suggestions for one channel at under $20 a month
- Works for creators who turn the same ideas into YouTube videos and Instagram Reels
Look elsewhere if
- Tight if you lean on the AI tools, since Free has 150 credits a month and every thumbnail, clip and MCP call spends them
- Watch out: bigger credit allowances on Boost and MAX, and the Chat Coaching plan, are offered with no price shown
- Skip it if you run more than 3 channels or share it with a team, as that means the custom-priced Enterprise plan
- Pricey if you want a coach: VIP Coaching is $3,830 a year, paid upfront, non-refundable and for one English-speaking channel
How we grade them
| 1.8GPATubular LabsWeak | 2.8GPAvidIQGood | |
|---|---|---|
| Value for money | CSeat-based and quoted on request. No price is published, so it can't be set against the category's $24 middle. | CBoost is $16.58 a month on yearly billing ($19 monthly) for one channel, just above the $15 that marks this category's cheaper quarter, so it sits in the ordinary middle. MAX is $39 a month yearly ($49 monthly). |
| Free plan and trial | FNothing free on record: no free plan and no trial. | CFree for good, with niche trends, content ideas, AI Coach tips and MCP. But the main tools are only partly open, and 150 AI credits a month won't go far once thumbnails, clips and MCP calls start spending them. |
| Features | CA social video database, influencer search, dashboards and an API. It does a wide research job, but it isn't built for an individual creator optimising videos. | BKeyword research with volume and competition scores, daily ideas and outliers, title, tag and description suggestions inside the upload page, AI thumbnails, Shorts clipping, an AI Coach and Instagram tools. Nothing in the listing shows a gap in the core job. |
| Ease of use | CNo store rating on record. It's a team platform with dashboards to set up around your own accounts. | A4.8 from about 20,000 App Store ratings for its phone app. The extension puts its scores straight onto YouTube's own pages. |
| Platforms and integrations | BWeb only, but it has an API and Viewpoint dashboards for wider teams. | BWeb, a browser extension, iPhone and Android, with MCP for Claude, ChatGPT and Cursor, plus Slack and Perplexity. There's no desktop app, which keeps it off an A. |
| Best for | social video audience research for media teams | YouTube keyword research and video ideas |
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: Tubular Labs and vidIQ. How we grade
Where they differ
- Tubular Labs also covers reports and dashboards.
- vidIQ also covers keyword research, image generation and youTube SEO.
At a glance
| Tubular Labs | vidIQ | |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing | Paid | Free plan |
| Starts at | Not published | $16.58 per month for 1 channel, billed annually ($19 billed monthly) |
| Free plan | None | 150 AI credits a month, niche trends, data-backed content ideas, growth tips from the AI Coach and vidIQ MCP, with limited access to the main tools. |
| Free trial | None listed | None listed |
| Web | ||
| iOS | ||
| Android | ||
| Browser extension | ||
| Made by | Chartbeat, Inc. | vidIQ |
| Price read from | Not confirmed | vidiq.com |
| Checked | Nov 13, 2026 | Oct 23, 2026 |
Worth knowing
Tubular Labs
- Pricing is seat-based and quoted on request; no prices are published.
- Built for media, brand and agency teams, not for individual creators optimizing videos.
- The pricing page names Flex plans but lists no plan prices or limits.
vidIQ
- Prices are for one channel; more than 3 channels or several team members need the custom-priced Enterprise plan.
- AI tools and MCP calls spend credits: 150 a month on Free. Larger credit allowances can be chosen on Boost and MAX, but the page shows no price for them.
- Coaching covers one English-speaking channel, and annual coaching plans are paid upfront and non-refundable.
- The Chat Coaching plan's price is not shown in the coaching page's text; only VIP Coaching's is.
Key features
Tubular Labs
- Social video database
- A searchable database of videos and creators across YouTube, Instagram, Facebook, Twitch and other platforms, organized by categories and topics.
- Content strategy research
- Used to follow content trends, find whitespace opportunities and track competitors' social video performance.
- Influencer identification
- Helps sponsorship and partnership teams discover creators and check them before a campaign.
- Tubular Viewpoint dashboards
- Dashboards for views, engagement and uploads across platforms, for a team's own channels and competitors'.
- Tubular API
- The site lists a Tubular API among its services for pulling the data into other systems.
vidIQ
- Keyword research
- Look up YouTube keywords with search volume and competition scores, alongside AI-suggested keywords for a channel.
- Video ideas and outliers
- Daily ideas tuned to a channel and niche, trend alerts, and outlier videos that are doing far better than their channel's usual.
- Upload optimization
- Suggested titles, descriptions and tags, a video score, and a best time to post, shown inside the YouTube upload flow by the extension.
- Thumbnails and clipping
- An AI thumbnail maker, and a clipping tool that cuts long videos into Shorts and TikToks. Both draw on the plan's AI credits.
- AI Coach and vidIQ MCP
- An AI Coach reads a channel and suggests a growth plan; vidIQ MCP brings vidIQ data into Claude, ChatGPT or Cursor on every plan, Free included.
- Instagram tools
- The same subscription covers Reel ideas, hook and hashtag analysis on any public Reel, and clips cut for Reels.
Plans
Tubular Labs
Pricing could not be confirmed. See tubularlabs.com.
vidIQ
Free$0
150 AI credits a month, niche trends, content ideas, AI Coach tips and vidIQ MCP for Claude or ChatGPT.
Boost$16.58
per month for 1 channel, billed annually ($19 billed monthly)
2,000 AI credits a month (2,500 or 3,000 can be chosen), AI thumbnails, unlimited trends research and subscriber insights, and masterclasses.
MAX$39
per month for 1 channel, billed annually ($49 billed monthly)
Everything in Boost with 6,000 AI credits a month (up to 10,000), up to 3x the AI Coach conversations and up to 11 hours of clipping.
VIP Coaching$319
per month, billed annually ($3,830 a year)
A dedicated 1-on-1 coach with recurring live calls and unlimited messaging, plus vidIQ Max and 6,000 AI credits a month, for one channel.
EnterpriseCustom
For brands, agencies and networks: every channel, roles and permissions, cross-channel reporting and priority onboarding. Sold after a demo.
Ways to pay less
Tubular Labs
No public discounts listed.
vidIQ
- Annual discount
Save up to 20% with yearly billing
vidIQ lists Boost at $199 a year instead of $19 a month ($228), and MAX at $468 a year instead of $49 a month ($588).
Common questions
Which is cheaper, Tubular Labs or vidIQ?
As of Nov 13, 2026, Tubular Labs has no price we could confirm, and vidIQ starts at $16.58 per month for 1 channel, billed annually ($19 billed monthly).
Which has a free plan, Tubular Labs or vidIQ?
As of Nov 13, 2026, only vidIQ has a free plan. Tubular Labs does not.
Which platforms do Tubular Labs and vidIQ run on?
As of Nov 13, 2026, only vidIQ 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.