Sprout Social
Social media management with a shared inbox, listening and reports
Sprout Social report card
Fair · out of 4.0 · graded Oct 17, 2026
Best for customer care on social for bigger teams
Sprout Social is the polished end of the market: a Smart Inbox that takes reviews and WhatsApp, competitor and paid reports, and links to Salesforce and Zendesk. But it's priced per seat, and the inbox starts on Standard at $199 a seat a month billed yearly. Most small teams will struggle to justify that.
Who Sprout Social is for
- Great if your social team handles customer questions as much as posts
- Good for companies tying social to Salesforce, Zendesk or HubSpot
- Handy when you want competitor and paid reports in the same place
Who Sprout Social is not for
- Pricey if you're a small business, at $79 a seat before you even get the inbox
- Tight if you have more than 5 profiles, since unlimited starts at Professional, $299 a seat
- Not for you if you want listening included, as it's a paid add-on
Why Sprout Social gets a 2.2
Five grades, each with its reason. The GPA is their average: an A is 4 points, an F is none.
- DValue for moneyEssentials 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.
- CFree plan and trialNo 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.
- BFeaturesPublishing 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.
- CEase of useIts 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.
- BPlatforms and integrationsWeb, 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.
What these grades rest on. Graded from this listing, whose facts were read from Sprout Social's own pages on 17 October 2026, and its App Store rating. Not based on using the product, and shorter than our full reviews. How we review and grade.
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<a href="https://toolgpa.com/tools/sprout-social#review"><img src="https://toolgpa.com/badge/sprout-social.svg" alt="Sprout Social: 2.2 GPA on ToolGPA" width="196" height="56"></a>Where Sprout Social stands among social media schedulers
Sprout Social's GPA of 2.2 is higher than 2 of the 19 other social media schedulers we grade, and level with 7.
It stands best on features (B, above 11 of 19) and worst on value for money (D, above 0).
Its paid plans start at $79 a month for each person, against a middle price of $27.25 for the category: 16 of the 19 others that charge start lower.
On features, ease of use and platforms it scores 2.7 out of 4. 3 tools score higher and cost less.
Each grade against the category
Every bar is all 20 social media schedulers we grade, cut by the letter each got. Sprout Social’s own letter is outlined.
- DValue for moneyAbove 0 of 19, level with 3
- CFree plan and trialAbove 1 of 19, level with 17
- BFeaturesAbove 11 of 19, level with 8
- CEase of useAbove 0 of 19, level with 14
- BPlatforms and integrationsAbove 1 of 19, level with 17
Price against what you get
Each dot is one of 20 social media schedulers. Further left costs less, and higher up scores better on features, ease of use and platforms. Point at a dot to see which tool it is.
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
Keep Sprout Social, or make your own?
Keep it
To replace Sprout Social you would be making one mailbox that several people work at once. That is not a weekend's work, with an AI app builder or without one.
That makes this kind of software worth paying for, not this one in particular: 10 of the 19 other social media schedulers grade higher. It costs $948 a year.
What you could make
- Calendar and reports: an app builder makes these well.
What you could not
- One mailbox that several people work at once.
- A real app for iOS and Android. Something home-made would be a web page.
- It is priced for each person, which means accounts and billing for a team.
- It plugs into other products, Salesforce, Zendesk and HubSpot among them, and has an API.
- AI features, unless you pay a model provider for each request yourself.
- The depth: we grade its features B, which means it covers the whole job.
What this rests on. Sprout Social’s listing: what it does, where it runs, what it plugs into and what it costs. It is a judgement about the kind of software this is. We have not built a replacement for it, and making your own means looking after it too. How we decide, and every tool’s verdict.
What is Sprout Social?
Sprout Social is a social media management platform sold per seat. It schedules posts to a dozen networks from a shared calendar, gathers messages, comments and reviews into one Smart Inbox, and reports on profiles, posts and competitors. Its AI agent, Trellis, comes with every plan, and listening, premium analytics and employee advocacy are sold as add-ons.
Sprout Social is a paid product with a free trial, starting at $79 per seat / month, billed annually ($99 billed monthly). See every plan
Good for
- 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
Worth knowing
- 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.
Key features
- 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.
Sprout Social pricing
- Starts at
- $79 per seat / month, billed annually ($99 billed monthly)
- Free plan
- None
- Free trial
- 30-day free trial, no credit card required
| Plan | Price | What you get |
|---|---|---|
| Essentials | $79per 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 | $199per seat / month, billed annually ($249 billed monthly) | 5 social profiles, the consolidated inbox, collaboration tools, keyword and location monitoring, and review management. |
| Professional | $299per seat / month, billed annually ($399 billed monthly) | Unlimited social profiles, message tagging, competitor, tag and paid insights, and AI post enhancement. |
| Advanced | $399per 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. |
| Enterprise | Custom | A tailored plan with white-glove onboarding, single sign-on setup and priority support. |
Read from sproutsocial.com on Oct 17, 2026. Prices change, so confirm with Sprout Social before you buy.
Ways to pay less
- Annual discountAbout 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.
Stated on sproutsocial.com - NonprofitNonprofit 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.
Stated on sproutsocial.com
How people rate the Sprout Social app
4.2
out of 5 for the iPhone and iPad app
1,284 ratings on the App Store in the United States, read Oct 17, 2026. It rates the app, not everything the product does. See the listing
Works with
Sprout Social alternatives
- Sprout Social vs Hootsuite
Free trial · from $99/mo
- Sprout Social vs Agorapulse
Free trial · from $79/mo
- Sprout Social vs Sendible
Free trial · from $29.75/mo
- Sprout Social vs Vista Social
Free trial · from $99/mo
- Sprout Social vs SocialPilot
Free trial · from $25.50/mo
Common questions
Is Sprout Social free?
No, Sprout Social is a paid product, but you can try it first. 30-day free trial, no credit card required.
How much does Sprout Social cost?
Sprout Social lists 5 plans. Essentials: $79 per seat / month, billed annually ($99 billed monthly). Standard: $199 per seat / month, billed annually ($249 billed monthly). Professional: $299 per seat / month, billed annually ($399 billed monthly). Advanced: $399 per seat / month, billed annually ($499 billed monthly). Enterprise: custom pricing. Prices were read from sproutsocial.com on Oct 17, 2026.
What platforms does Sprout Social work on?
Sprout Social is available on Web, iOS and Android.
Does Sprout Social offer any discounts?
Sprout Social publicly lists the following: About 20% off with annual billing; Nonprofit pricing on Professional and Advanced.
How is Sprout Social rated?
Sprout Social's iPhone and iPad app averages 4.2 out of 5 from 1,284 ratings on the App Store in the United States, as read on Oct 17, 2026. That is the store's rating of the app, not a score from us.
Does Sprout Social have a Windows app?
No Windows app was listed when its pages were read on Oct 17, 2026. Sprout Social is listed for Web, iOS and Android.
Does Sprout Social have a macOS app?
No macOS app was listed when its pages were read on Oct 17, 2026. Sprout Social is listed for Web, iOS and Android.
Is Sprout Social open source?
Sprout Social is not described as open source on its own site, as read on Oct 17, 2026.
Does Sprout Social have an API?
Yes. Sprout Social offers a public API, according to its own site.
What does Sprout Social integrate with?
Sprout Social's listing names Salesforce, Zendesk, HubSpot, Canva, Slack, Shopify, Tableau and Google Drive. A listing names up to eight integrations, so it may connect to more.
Who makes Sprout Social?
Sprout Social is made by Sprout Social, Inc. It dates from 2010.
What are the alternatives to Sprout Social?
The closest alternatives to Sprout Social in our directory are Hootsuite, Agorapulse, Sendible, Vista Social and SocialPilot. Each one has a side-by-side comparison with Sprout Social.
How does Sprout Social compare with other social media schedulers?
Sprout Social's GPA of 2.2 is higher than 2 of the 19 other social media schedulers we grade, and level with 7. It stands best on features (B, above 11 of 19) and worst on value for money (D, above 0).
Is Sprout Social good value for money?
ToolGPA grades Sprout Social D for value for money. Its paid plans start at $79 a month for each person, against a middle price of $27.25 for the category: 16 of the 19 others that charge start lower. On features, ease of use and platforms it scores 2.7 out of 4. 3 tools score higher and cost less.
Could I make my own version of Sprout Social?
To replace Sprout Social you would be making one mailbox that several people work at once. That is not a weekend's work, with an AI app builder or without one. That makes this kind of software worth paying for, not this one in particular: 10 of the 19 other social media schedulers grade higher. It costs $948 a year. What you could not make: One mailbox that several people work at once. A real app for iOS and Android. Something home-made would be a web page. It is priced for each person, which means accounts and billing for a team. It plugs into other products, Salesforce, Zendesk and HubSpot among them, and has an API. This is a judgement from its listing. We have not built one.
Sources for this page
The prices, plans, platforms and features above were read from these pages on Oct 17, 2026. What people say is linked where it appears.