Brandwatch Alternatives for 2026: 14 Best Social Listening Tools Compared
Author :
Luke Bae
Jan 21, 2026
The Social Listening Landscape in 2026: Beyond Text
The way we communicate online has fundamentally changed. The internet has stopped reading and started watching. With the meteoric rise of video-first platforms like TikTok, Instagram Reels, and YouTube Shorts, the most valuable consumer insights are no longer found in text-based tweets or status updates—they are locked inside video and audio content. This seismic shift has created a significant blind spot for brands relying on traditional social listening tools, including industry stalwart Brandwatch. While powerful in its own right, Brandwatch was built for a text-centric web, leaving a wealth of conversational data untapped.
As a result, a growing number of businesses are seeking Brandwatch alternatives that can navigate this new, multimodal landscape. They need tools that can not only monitor text but also “watch” and “listen” to video content, analyze images, and understand the nuances of spoken conversation. The future of social listening is powered by sophisticated AI that can transcribe audio, recognize logos and objects in videos, and even analyze the sentiment and demographics of creators.
This guide provides a comprehensive overview of the 14 best Brandwatch alternatives for 2026. We will delve into the key criteria for evaluating these modern social listening tools and provide a detailed comparison of each platform’s features, strengths, weaknesses, and pricing. Whether you are a small business looking for an affordable entry point or a large enterprise in need of a comprehensive consumer intelligence solution, this guide will help you find the right tool to stay ahead in the video era.
How to Evaluate Social Listening Tools in 2026
Choosing the right social listening tool in 2026 requires a forward-thinking approach. It’s no longer enough to simply count mentions and track keywords. Today’s top-tier platforms must offer a sophisticated suite of features to capture the full spectrum of online conversation. Here are the ten key criteria to consider when evaluating Brandwatch alternatives:
Criteria | Description |
Source Coverage | A tool's ability to monitor a wide range of sources is paramount. This includes not only major social networks but also blogs, forums, news sites, and, increasingly, video platforms like TikTok and YouTube. Comprehensive coverage ensures you don’t miss critical conversations happening in niche communities or on emerging platforms. |
AI & Analytics | Modern social listening is driven by artificial intelligence. Look for tools that offer advanced analytics, including sentiment analysis, trend detection, and theme clustering. The ability to automatically surface insights from vast amounts of unstructured data is a significant competitive advantage. |
Video/Visual Listening | In the video-first era, the ability to analyze visual content is non-negotiable. This includes logo recognition, object detection, and, most importantly, the transcription and analysis of spoken words within videos. Tools that can “watch” and “listen” to video content provide a much richer understanding of consumer behavior. |
Functionality & Usability | A powerful tool is only effective if it’s usable. Look for an intuitive interface, flexible query building (including Boolean search), and a smooth user experience. The platform should empower your team, not create a new layer of complexity. |
Integration Capabilities | Your social listening tool should not exist in a silo. Look for platforms that offer robust API access and seamless integration with other marketing tools, such as your CRM, analytics platforms, and workflow automation software. |
Pricing & Value | Pricing for social listening tools can vary dramatically. Look for transparent pricing models and a clear return on investment. Consider not only the monthly subscription fee but also any additional costs for add-ons, extra users, or data overages. |
Support & Training | Excellent customer support and comprehensive training resources are essential, especially for complex enterprise-level platforms. Look for vendors that offer responsive support, detailed documentation, and a smooth onboarding process. |
Data Quality | The quality of the data is the foundation of any social listening strategy. Ensure the tool provides accurate, real-time data without sampling. Firehose access to major platforms like X (formerly Twitter) and Reddit is a significant advantage. |
Reporting | The ability to create clear, customizable, and shareable reports is crucial for demonstrating the value of your social listening efforts. Look for tools with flexible dashboards, automated reporting, and various export options. |
Compliance & Security | Data privacy and security are more important than ever. Ensure the tool is compliant with regulations like GDPR and offers robust security features, including access controls and data encryption. |
The 14 Best Brandwatch Alternatives for 2026
1. Syncly Social
Positioning: Social listening for the video era.
Syncly Social represents the next generation of social listening, built from the ground up for the video-first web. While many legacy platforms are still struggling to adapt to the dominance of TikTok and Reels, Syncly Social was designed to thrive in this new environment. Its core innovation is a shift from “visual listening” (simply identifying logos) to “conversational video intelligence,” which focuses on understanding the actual conversations happening inside video content.
This is made possible by an AI engine that transcribes and analyzes spoken words, providing a level of insight that text-based tools simply cannot match. For example, Syncly Social can capture a product review mentioned in a TikTok video, even if the brand is not tagged in the caption or hashtags. This allows brands to uncover a vast amount of previously hidden feedback and sentiment.
Beyond audio transcription, Syncly Social offers a unique Creator Demographics Analysis feature. By analyzing a creator’s face, the platform can estimate their age, gender, and race, providing invaluable data for auditing audience diversity and ensuring inclusive influencer marketing campaigns. The platform also excels at Topic Clustering, automatically grouping spoken feedback into themes like “packaging issues” or “product texture,” enabling teams to spot trends and potential crises early.
Strengths:
Pioneer in Video Social Listening: Purpose-built for the video era, providing deep insights into platforms like TikTok and Reels.
Fast and Easy Setup: Case studies have shown a 90% faster setup time compared to competitors, allowing teams to get up and running quickly.
Affordable and Accessible: With a starting price of $199/month, Syncly Social offers enterprise-grade features at a mid-market price point.
Actionable Insights: The focus on conversational intelligence provides granular, SKU-level insights that can directly inform product development and marketing strategy.
Limitations:
Steep Learning Curve: Some users have reported that the platform’s advanced features can have a steep learning curve.
Export and Filtering Issues: There have been occasional reports of limitations in data export and dashboard filtering.
Text-Heavy Platform Coverage: While excellent for video, its coverage of traditional text-heavy platforms may be less comprehensive than some all-in-one competitors.
Best For: Mid-to-enterprise brands in the beauty, food & beverage, and fashion industries that need deep, AI-driven intelligence from video content.
Pricing: Starting at $199/month.
Platform Coverage: TikTok, Instagram Reels, YouTube, and 10+ other social platforms.
2. Sprout Social
Positioning: The all-in-one social media management platform built to scale and prove social ROI.
Sprout Social is a comprehensive, unified platform that combines social listening with publishing, engagement, and analytics. Its listening tool is powered by AI Assist, which processes up to 600 million messages daily to surface key themes and sentiment shifts. Sprout Social also offers advanced visual listening, with AI that can analyze objects, scenes, and text within images and videos.
Strengths: The platform’s all-in-one nature is its biggest strength, providing a seamless workflow for social media teams. It is highly scalable and known for its user-friendly interface.
Weaknesses: The high cost is a significant drawback, with social listening being an expensive add-on to an already premium-priced platform.
Best For: Mid-to-large enterprises and agencies that need a unified platform for social media management.
Pricing: Starts at $199 per user/month, with the Social Listening module costing an additional $2,000 to $8,000 per year.
3. Talkwalker
Positioning: The AI-powered consumer intelligence platform for deep social listening and media monitoring.
Talkwalker is a pioneer in visual and audio recognition, allowing it to detect brand logos and product placements in images, videos, and audio content. It offers unparalleled data coverage, indexing over 150 million sources and 30 social networks. Its advanced AI-powered analytics and real-time dashboards are highly valued by large teams for deep consumer intelligence and crisis management.
Strengths: Talkwalker’s visual and video recognition technology is a significant competitive advantage. Its comprehensive data coverage provides a truly holistic view of the market.
Weaknesses: The platform has a steep learning curve and a complex user interface. Its high-end enterprise pricing makes it inaccessible for smaller businesses.
Best For: Large enterprises and agencies that require deep, complex consumer intelligence and advanced analytics.
Pricing: Enterprise pricing, with custom quotes required.
4. Meltwater
Positioning: The leading media and social intelligence platform, empowering PR and marketing teams with AI-driven insights from billions of conversations.
Meltwater excels at media monitoring, tracking mentions across traditional news, print, broadcast, and a vast array of web sources. It monitors over 200 billion social conversations and 300 million social profiles in real-time. The Mira Studio AI assistant facilitates automated analysis and trend detection.
Strengths: Meltwater’s media monitoring coverage makes it the top choice for PR and communications teams. Its AI-powered insights and enterprise-grade infrastructure are well-suited for global brands.
Weaknesses: The lack of transparent pricing is a major drawback. Users also report a steep learning curve and a laggy interface.
Best For: PR teams and enterprise communications departments that require comprehensive, 360-degree media and social monitoring.
Pricing: Custom pricing only
5. Brand24
Positioning: Affordable social listening for SMBs.
Brand24 is a cost-effective social listening tool that offers real-time monitoring, sentiment analysis, and influencer identification. It is known for its user-friendly interface and good coverage for its price point, making it an excellent entry-level option for small to mid-sized businesses.
Strengths: Brand24’s affordability and ease of use are its main selling points. It provides a solid set of features for a very competitive price.
Weaknesses: The platform’s analytics are less sophisticated than those of premium competitors, and its reporting features are relatively basic.
Best For: Small to mid-sized businesses and agencies looking for a budget-friendly social listening solution.
Pricing: Starting at $79/month.
6. Mention
Positioning: Comprehensive media monitoring without the guessing game.
Mention offers real-time tracking of keywords and brand mentions across over 1 billion sources. It provides in-depth analytics, including sentiment analysis and competitive benchmarking. It is known for its user-friendly interface and good value for its price.
Strengths: Mention’s extensive source coverage and real-time alerts are major advantages. It is also very easy to use, making it accessible for users of all skill levels.
Weaknesses: The platform’s native “Publish” and “Respond” features have been deprecated, requiring users to use a separate tool for engagement. Its visual listening capabilities are also limited.
Best For: Businesses and agencies of all sizes that need a comprehensive media monitoring and social listening solution.
Pricing: Starts at $599/month for the Company plan.
7. Hootsuite
Positioning: The all-in-one social media management platform that integrates powerful social listening for unified insights and action.
Hootsuite’s social listening capabilities are powered by Talkwalker, providing real-time monitoring across over 30 social networks and 150 million websites. The platform seamlessly integrates listening with publishing, engagement, and analytics, creating a unified workflow for social media teams.
Strengths: Hootsuite’s all-in-one approach is highly efficient. Its listening component, powered by Talkwalker, offers broad data coverage and up to 13 months of historical data.
Weaknesses: Social listening is an add-on feature rather than the core product. The high price point for the tiers that include listening can be a barrier for smaller businesses.
Best For: Mid-to-large enterprises and agencies that require a unified platform for social media management and integrated social listening.
Pricing: The Advanced tier, which includes social listening, starts at around $249 per user/month.
8. YouScan
Positioning: AI-powered social listening platform for deep consumer insights and best-in-class visual analytics.
YouScan is a specialized tool that excels at visual listening. Its Visual Insights feature uses advanced AI to detect logos, objects, scenes, and demographics within images and videos. The Insights Copilot, a conversational AI agent, allows users to query their social data directly.
Strengths: YouScan’s market-leading visual listening capabilities are a key differentiator. The platform is also known for its user-friendly interface and exceptional customer support.
Weaknesses: The platform does not offer transparent pricing for its higher-tier plans. Its coverage of traditional media is less comprehensive than that of some larger competitors.
Best For: Brands and agencies that require best-in-class visual listening capabilities and advanced AI-driven consumer insights.
Pricing: Custom pricing for enterprise and agency plans.
9. Audiense
Positioning: The leading audience intelligence platform that helps brands understand and activate consumer segments for growth.
Audiense is a platform that focuses on deep audience segmentation and persona development. It uses machine learning to analyze psychographics, demographics, and personality traits of an audience. It is a powerful tool for strategic planning and media buying.
Strengths: Audiense’s unique approach to audience intelligence provides a strategic advantage over tools focused solely on mention tracking. It is highly valued by agencies for its ability to create rich, data-driven personas.
Weaknesses: Audiense is not a comprehensive social listening tool and often needs to be complemented by another platform. Its cost can be prohibitive for smaller businesses.
Best For: Market research, consultants, and marketing teams seeking deep audience segmentation and persona development.
Pricing: Report bundles are available, such as the 60-report bundle for $8,352 per year.
10. Sprinklr
Positioning: The Unified-CXM platform that leverages AI to transform unstructured customer data from 30+ channels into actionable, real-time insights.
Sprinklr is a massive, enterprise-grade platform that integrates social listening with customer service, marketing, and social media management. It offers industry-leading data coverage, including firehose access to major platforms, and can process petabytes of data without sampling.
Strengths: Sprinklr’s Unified-CXM architecture provides a single source of truth for customer experience data. Its AI-native and enterprise-grade scalability are unmatched.
Weaknesses: The platform is extremely complex and has a very steep learning curve. Its cost is prohibitive for all but the largest global enterprises.
Best For: Fortune 500 companies that require a unified platform for social listening, customer service, and marketing across numerous channels.
Pricing: Custom, with a self-serve solution starting at $359 per month per seat.
11. BuzzSumo
Positioning: Content research and influencer discovery.
BuzzSumo is a powerful tool for content marketers and strategists. It excels at content discovery, trend spotting, and influencer identification. It allows users to analyze what content performs best for any topic or competitor.
Strengths: BuzzSumo is excellent for content strategy and ideation. It provides a wealth of data on content performance and trends.
Weaknesses: The platform’s social listening depth is limited, as it is primarily focused on content performance, not brand monitoring.
Best For: Content marketers and strategists who need to research and analyze content trends.
Pricing: Starting at $199/month.
12. Awario
Positioning: Real-time social listening and brand monitoring for businesses of all sizes, offering comprehensive web coverage at an accessible price point.
Awario is one of the most affordable comprehensive social listening tools on the market. It offers real-time monitoring across a vast array of sources and includes a unique social selling tool called Awario Leads.
Strengths: Awario’s exceptional value for money is its main selling point. It offers broad web coverage and an intuitive user interface.
Weaknesses: The platform has limitations on historical data storage, and its analytics are less sophisticated than those of premium competitors.
Best For: Small to mid-sized businesses and agencies seeking a cost-effective and comprehensive real-time brand monitoring solution.
Pricing: Starts at $29/month (billed annually).
13. Onclusive
Positioning: Monitor, analyze, and report on your brand across all major social networks.
Onclusive offers a unified platform that integrates earned, owned, and social media monitoring. It provides a holistic view of a brand’s presence and includes 24 months of historical data for deep trend analysis.
Strengths: Onclusive’s unified platform is a significant advantage for communications and marketing teams. Its extensive data coverage, including print and broadcast media, is another key differentiator.
Weaknesses: Users have reported occasional missed mentions and technical issues. The platform’s enterprise-level pricing may be a drawback for smaller businesses.
Best For: Enterprise-level marketing, PR, and communications teams that require a unified solution for media monitoring and social listening.
Pricing: Starting at $499/month.
14. Signal AI
Positioning: Mitigate Risk, Strengthen Reputation.
Signal AI is a reputation and risk intelligence platform that focuses on monitoring influential voices and high-impact media. Its AIQ engine analyzes millions of daily content pieces to identify emerging narratives and reputational risks.
Strengths: Signal AI’s focused approach is highly effective for strategic reputation and risk management at the enterprise level. Its proprietary AIQ engine offers more relevant, business-focused insights than generalist social listening tools.
Weaknesses: The platform has difficulty filtering out irrelevant international coverage and cannot access content behind paywalls. The setup and AI training process can be complex.
Best For: Enterprise-level PR, communications, and risk management teams in large corporations.
Pricing: Enterprise plans range from approximately $9,000 to $38,000 per year.
Comparison of the Best Brandwatch Alternatives
Tool | Best For | Starting Price | Video Capabilities | Key Differentiator |
Syncly Social | Video-First Brands | $199/month | Excellent | Conversational Video Intelligence |
Sprout Social | Unified Social Management | $199/user/month | Good | All-in-One Platform |
Talkwalker | Deep Consumer Intelligence | ~$500/month | Excellent | Visual & Audio Recognition |
Meltwater | PR & Media Monitoring | ~$25,000/year | Good | Unparalleled Media Coverage |
Brand24 | Small Businesses | $79/month | Limited | Affordability |
Mention | Reputation Tracking | $599/month | Limited | Extensive Source Coverage |
Hootsuite | Unified Social Management | $249/user/month | Good | Integrated Talkwalker Listening |
YouScan | Visual-First Brands | Custom | Excellent | Best-in-Class Visual Analytics |
Audiense | Audience Intelligence | ~$8,352/year | None | Deep Audience Segmentation |
Sprinklr | Global Enterprises | $359/seat/month | Good | Unified-CXM Platform |
BuzzSumo | Content Marketers | $199/month | Limited | Content Performance Analysis |
Awario | Budget-Conscious | $29/month | Limited | Social Selling (Awario Leads) |
Onclusive | Enterprise PR & Comms | $499/month | Good | Unified Media Monitoring |
Signal AI | Risk & Reputation | ~$9,000/year | Limited | Focus on Influential Sources |
How to Choose the Right Tool for Your Needs
With so many excellent Brandwatch alternatives on the market, choosing the right one can be a daunting task. To simplify the process, consider your specific needs based on your business size, primary use case, and platform priorities.
By Business Size
Small Businesses: If you are a small business or just starting with social listening, look for affordable and user-friendly tools like Brand24 and Awario. These platforms offer a solid set of features at a very accessible price point.
Mid-Market: For mid-sized businesses and growing teams, consider more advanced platforms like Syncly Social, YouScan, and Hootsuite. These tools offer a good balance of powerful features and reasonable pricing.
Enterprise: Large, global enterprises with complex needs and large budgets should look at top-tier platforms like Syncly Social, Sprinklr, Meltwater, and Talkwalker. These tools offer unmatched data coverage, scalability, and advanced analytics.
By Primary Use Case
Video-First Brands: If your brand is heavily focused on video content, Syncly Social is the clear winner. Its conversational video intelligence is unmatched. YouScan and Talkwalker are also good choices for their visual listening capabilities.
PR & Media Monitoring: For PR and communications teams, Meltwater, Onclusive, and Signal AI are the top contenders. These platforms offer comprehensive media monitoring across a wide range of sources.
Unified Social Management: If you are looking for an all-in-one solution that combines listening, publishing, and engagement, Sprout Social and Hootsuite are the best options.
Audience Intelligence: For deep audience segmentation and persona development, Audiense is in a class of its own.
Content Strategy: If your primary goal is to research and analyze content trends, BuzzSumo is the perfect tool.
Budget-Conscious: If you are on a tight budget, Awario and Brand24 offer the best value for your money.
Conclusion: The Future is Multimodal
The shift to a video-first social media landscape is undeniable, and the social listening tools of the future must be able to keep up. Traditional text-based platforms are increasingly missing out on the most valuable consumer conversations, which are now happening inside video and audio content. As we’ve seen, a new generation of tools, led by innovators like Syncly Social, is rising to the challenge.
When choosing a Brandwatch alternative, it is crucial to look beyond simple mention counting and keyword tracking. The best tools in 2026 will offer a multimodal approach, combining text, visual, audio, and video analysis to provide a truly holistic view of the consumer. Before making a final decision, take advantage of free trials and demos to find the platform that best fits your team and specific needs. The right social listening tool can be a game-changer, providing the insights you need to build a stronger brand, create better products, and deliver exceptional customer experiences.
The Social Listening Landscape in 2026: Beyond Text
The way we communicate online has fundamentally changed. The internet has stopped reading and started watching. With the meteoric rise of video-first platforms like TikTok, Instagram Reels, and YouTube Shorts, the most valuable consumer insights are no longer found in text-based tweets or status updates—they are locked inside video and audio content. This seismic shift has created a significant blind spot for brands relying on traditional social listening tools, including industry stalwart Brandwatch. While powerful in its own right, Brandwatch was built for a text-centric web, leaving a wealth of conversational data untapped.
As a result, a growing number of businesses are seeking Brandwatch alternatives that can navigate this new, multimodal landscape. They need tools that can not only monitor text but also “watch” and “listen” to video content, analyze images, and understand the nuances of spoken conversation. The future of social listening is powered by sophisticated AI that can transcribe audio, recognize logos and objects in videos, and even analyze the sentiment and demographics of creators.
This guide provides a comprehensive overview of the 14 best Brandwatch alternatives for 2026. We will delve into the key criteria for evaluating these modern social listening tools and provide a detailed comparison of each platform’s features, strengths, weaknesses, and pricing. Whether you are a small business looking for an affordable entry point or a large enterprise in need of a comprehensive consumer intelligence solution, this guide will help you find the right tool to stay ahead in the video era.
How to Evaluate Social Listening Tools in 2026
Choosing the right social listening tool in 2026 requires a forward-thinking approach. It’s no longer enough to simply count mentions and track keywords. Today’s top-tier platforms must offer a sophisticated suite of features to capture the full spectrum of online conversation. Here are the ten key criteria to consider when evaluating Brandwatch alternatives:
Criteria | Description |
Source Coverage | A tool's ability to monitor a wide range of sources is paramount. This includes not only major social networks but also blogs, forums, news sites, and, increasingly, video platforms like TikTok and YouTube. Comprehensive coverage ensures you don’t miss critical conversations happening in niche communities or on emerging platforms. |
AI & Analytics | Modern social listening is driven by artificial intelligence. Look for tools that offer advanced analytics, including sentiment analysis, trend detection, and theme clustering. The ability to automatically surface insights from vast amounts of unstructured data is a significant competitive advantage. |
Video/Visual Listening | In the video-first era, the ability to analyze visual content is non-negotiable. This includes logo recognition, object detection, and, most importantly, the transcription and analysis of spoken words within videos. Tools that can “watch” and “listen” to video content provide a much richer understanding of consumer behavior. |
Functionality & Usability | A powerful tool is only effective if it’s usable. Look for an intuitive interface, flexible query building (including Boolean search), and a smooth user experience. The platform should empower your team, not create a new layer of complexity. |
Integration Capabilities | Your social listening tool should not exist in a silo. Look for platforms that offer robust API access and seamless integration with other marketing tools, such as your CRM, analytics platforms, and workflow automation software. |
Pricing & Value | Pricing for social listening tools can vary dramatically. Look for transparent pricing models and a clear return on investment. Consider not only the monthly subscription fee but also any additional costs for add-ons, extra users, or data overages. |
Support & Training | Excellent customer support and comprehensive training resources are essential, especially for complex enterprise-level platforms. Look for vendors that offer responsive support, detailed documentation, and a smooth onboarding process. |
Data Quality | The quality of the data is the foundation of any social listening strategy. Ensure the tool provides accurate, real-time data without sampling. Firehose access to major platforms like X (formerly Twitter) and Reddit is a significant advantage. |
Reporting | The ability to create clear, customizable, and shareable reports is crucial for demonstrating the value of your social listening efforts. Look for tools with flexible dashboards, automated reporting, and various export options. |
Compliance & Security | Data privacy and security are more important than ever. Ensure the tool is compliant with regulations like GDPR and offers robust security features, including access controls and data encryption. |
The 14 Best Brandwatch Alternatives for 2026
1. Syncly Social
Positioning: Social listening for the video era.
Syncly Social represents the next generation of social listening, built from the ground up for the video-first web. While many legacy platforms are still struggling to adapt to the dominance of TikTok and Reels, Syncly Social was designed to thrive in this new environment. Its core innovation is a shift from “visual listening” (simply identifying logos) to “conversational video intelligence,” which focuses on understanding the actual conversations happening inside video content.
This is made possible by an AI engine that transcribes and analyzes spoken words, providing a level of insight that text-based tools simply cannot match. For example, Syncly Social can capture a product review mentioned in a TikTok video, even if the brand is not tagged in the caption or hashtags. This allows brands to uncover a vast amount of previously hidden feedback and sentiment.
Beyond audio transcription, Syncly Social offers a unique Creator Demographics Analysis feature. By analyzing a creator’s face, the platform can estimate their age, gender, and race, providing invaluable data for auditing audience diversity and ensuring inclusive influencer marketing campaigns. The platform also excels at Topic Clustering, automatically grouping spoken feedback into themes like “packaging issues” or “product texture,” enabling teams to spot trends and potential crises early.
Strengths:
Pioneer in Video Social Listening: Purpose-built for the video era, providing deep insights into platforms like TikTok and Reels.
Fast and Easy Setup: Case studies have shown a 90% faster setup time compared to competitors, allowing teams to get up and running quickly.
Affordable and Accessible: With a starting price of $199/month, Syncly Social offers enterprise-grade features at a mid-market price point.
Actionable Insights: The focus on conversational intelligence provides granular, SKU-level insights that can directly inform product development and marketing strategy.
Limitations:
Steep Learning Curve: Some users have reported that the platform’s advanced features can have a steep learning curve.
Export and Filtering Issues: There have been occasional reports of limitations in data export and dashboard filtering.
Text-Heavy Platform Coverage: While excellent for video, its coverage of traditional text-heavy platforms may be less comprehensive than some all-in-one competitors.
Best For: Mid-to-enterprise brands in the beauty, food & beverage, and fashion industries that need deep, AI-driven intelligence from video content.
Pricing: Starting at $199/month.
Platform Coverage: TikTok, Instagram Reels, YouTube, and 10+ other social platforms.
2. Sprout Social
Positioning: The all-in-one social media management platform built to scale and prove social ROI.
Sprout Social is a comprehensive, unified platform that combines social listening with publishing, engagement, and analytics. Its listening tool is powered by AI Assist, which processes up to 600 million messages daily to surface key themes and sentiment shifts. Sprout Social also offers advanced visual listening, with AI that can analyze objects, scenes, and text within images and videos.
Strengths: The platform’s all-in-one nature is its biggest strength, providing a seamless workflow for social media teams. It is highly scalable and known for its user-friendly interface.
Weaknesses: The high cost is a significant drawback, with social listening being an expensive add-on to an already premium-priced platform.
Best For: Mid-to-large enterprises and agencies that need a unified platform for social media management.
Pricing: Starts at $199 per user/month, with the Social Listening module costing an additional $2,000 to $8,000 per year.
3. Talkwalker
Positioning: The AI-powered consumer intelligence platform for deep social listening and media monitoring.
Talkwalker is a pioneer in visual and audio recognition, allowing it to detect brand logos and product placements in images, videos, and audio content. It offers unparalleled data coverage, indexing over 150 million sources and 30 social networks. Its advanced AI-powered analytics and real-time dashboards are highly valued by large teams for deep consumer intelligence and crisis management.
Strengths: Talkwalker’s visual and video recognition technology is a significant competitive advantage. Its comprehensive data coverage provides a truly holistic view of the market.
Weaknesses: The platform has a steep learning curve and a complex user interface. Its high-end enterprise pricing makes it inaccessible for smaller businesses.
Best For: Large enterprises and agencies that require deep, complex consumer intelligence and advanced analytics.
Pricing: Enterprise pricing, with custom quotes required.
4. Meltwater
Positioning: The leading media and social intelligence platform, empowering PR and marketing teams with AI-driven insights from billions of conversations.
Meltwater excels at media monitoring, tracking mentions across traditional news, print, broadcast, and a vast array of web sources. It monitors over 200 billion social conversations and 300 million social profiles in real-time. The Mira Studio AI assistant facilitates automated analysis and trend detection.
Strengths: Meltwater’s media monitoring coverage makes it the top choice for PR and communications teams. Its AI-powered insights and enterprise-grade infrastructure are well-suited for global brands.
Weaknesses: The lack of transparent pricing is a major drawback. Users also report a steep learning curve and a laggy interface.
Best For: PR teams and enterprise communications departments that require comprehensive, 360-degree media and social monitoring.
Pricing: Custom pricing only
5. Brand24
Positioning: Affordable social listening for SMBs.
Brand24 is a cost-effective social listening tool that offers real-time monitoring, sentiment analysis, and influencer identification. It is known for its user-friendly interface and good coverage for its price point, making it an excellent entry-level option for small to mid-sized businesses.
Strengths: Brand24’s affordability and ease of use are its main selling points. It provides a solid set of features for a very competitive price.
Weaknesses: The platform’s analytics are less sophisticated than those of premium competitors, and its reporting features are relatively basic.
Best For: Small to mid-sized businesses and agencies looking for a budget-friendly social listening solution.
Pricing: Starting at $79/month.
6. Mention
Positioning: Comprehensive media monitoring without the guessing game.
Mention offers real-time tracking of keywords and brand mentions across over 1 billion sources. It provides in-depth analytics, including sentiment analysis and competitive benchmarking. It is known for its user-friendly interface and good value for its price.
Strengths: Mention’s extensive source coverage and real-time alerts are major advantages. It is also very easy to use, making it accessible for users of all skill levels.
Weaknesses: The platform’s native “Publish” and “Respond” features have been deprecated, requiring users to use a separate tool for engagement. Its visual listening capabilities are also limited.
Best For: Businesses and agencies of all sizes that need a comprehensive media monitoring and social listening solution.
Pricing: Starts at $599/month for the Company plan.
7. Hootsuite
Positioning: The all-in-one social media management platform that integrates powerful social listening for unified insights and action.
Hootsuite’s social listening capabilities are powered by Talkwalker, providing real-time monitoring across over 30 social networks and 150 million websites. The platform seamlessly integrates listening with publishing, engagement, and analytics, creating a unified workflow for social media teams.
Strengths: Hootsuite’s all-in-one approach is highly efficient. Its listening component, powered by Talkwalker, offers broad data coverage and up to 13 months of historical data.
Weaknesses: Social listening is an add-on feature rather than the core product. The high price point for the tiers that include listening can be a barrier for smaller businesses.
Best For: Mid-to-large enterprises and agencies that require a unified platform for social media management and integrated social listening.
Pricing: The Advanced tier, which includes social listening, starts at around $249 per user/month.
8. YouScan
Positioning: AI-powered social listening platform for deep consumer insights and best-in-class visual analytics.
YouScan is a specialized tool that excels at visual listening. Its Visual Insights feature uses advanced AI to detect logos, objects, scenes, and demographics within images and videos. The Insights Copilot, a conversational AI agent, allows users to query their social data directly.
Strengths: YouScan’s market-leading visual listening capabilities are a key differentiator. The platform is also known for its user-friendly interface and exceptional customer support.
Weaknesses: The platform does not offer transparent pricing for its higher-tier plans. Its coverage of traditional media is less comprehensive than that of some larger competitors.
Best For: Brands and agencies that require best-in-class visual listening capabilities and advanced AI-driven consumer insights.
Pricing: Custom pricing for enterprise and agency plans.
9. Audiense
Positioning: The leading audience intelligence platform that helps brands understand and activate consumer segments for growth.
Audiense is a platform that focuses on deep audience segmentation and persona development. It uses machine learning to analyze psychographics, demographics, and personality traits of an audience. It is a powerful tool for strategic planning and media buying.
Strengths: Audiense’s unique approach to audience intelligence provides a strategic advantage over tools focused solely on mention tracking. It is highly valued by agencies for its ability to create rich, data-driven personas.
Weaknesses: Audiense is not a comprehensive social listening tool and often needs to be complemented by another platform. Its cost can be prohibitive for smaller businesses.
Best For: Market research, consultants, and marketing teams seeking deep audience segmentation and persona development.
Pricing: Report bundles are available, such as the 60-report bundle for $8,352 per year.
10. Sprinklr
Positioning: The Unified-CXM platform that leverages AI to transform unstructured customer data from 30+ channels into actionable, real-time insights.
Sprinklr is a massive, enterprise-grade platform that integrates social listening with customer service, marketing, and social media management. It offers industry-leading data coverage, including firehose access to major platforms, and can process petabytes of data without sampling.
Strengths: Sprinklr’s Unified-CXM architecture provides a single source of truth for customer experience data. Its AI-native and enterprise-grade scalability are unmatched.
Weaknesses: The platform is extremely complex and has a very steep learning curve. Its cost is prohibitive for all but the largest global enterprises.
Best For: Fortune 500 companies that require a unified platform for social listening, customer service, and marketing across numerous channels.
Pricing: Custom, with a self-serve solution starting at $359 per month per seat.
11. BuzzSumo
Positioning: Content research and influencer discovery.
BuzzSumo is a powerful tool for content marketers and strategists. It excels at content discovery, trend spotting, and influencer identification. It allows users to analyze what content performs best for any topic or competitor.
Strengths: BuzzSumo is excellent for content strategy and ideation. It provides a wealth of data on content performance and trends.
Weaknesses: The platform’s social listening depth is limited, as it is primarily focused on content performance, not brand monitoring.
Best For: Content marketers and strategists who need to research and analyze content trends.
Pricing: Starting at $199/month.
12. Awario
Positioning: Real-time social listening and brand monitoring for businesses of all sizes, offering comprehensive web coverage at an accessible price point.
Awario is one of the most affordable comprehensive social listening tools on the market. It offers real-time monitoring across a vast array of sources and includes a unique social selling tool called Awario Leads.
Strengths: Awario’s exceptional value for money is its main selling point. It offers broad web coverage and an intuitive user interface.
Weaknesses: The platform has limitations on historical data storage, and its analytics are less sophisticated than those of premium competitors.
Best For: Small to mid-sized businesses and agencies seeking a cost-effective and comprehensive real-time brand monitoring solution.
Pricing: Starts at $29/month (billed annually).
13. Onclusive
Positioning: Monitor, analyze, and report on your brand across all major social networks.
Onclusive offers a unified platform that integrates earned, owned, and social media monitoring. It provides a holistic view of a brand’s presence and includes 24 months of historical data for deep trend analysis.
Strengths: Onclusive’s unified platform is a significant advantage for communications and marketing teams. Its extensive data coverage, including print and broadcast media, is another key differentiator.
Weaknesses: Users have reported occasional missed mentions and technical issues. The platform’s enterprise-level pricing may be a drawback for smaller businesses.
Best For: Enterprise-level marketing, PR, and communications teams that require a unified solution for media monitoring and social listening.
Pricing: Starting at $499/month.
14. Signal AI
Positioning: Mitigate Risk, Strengthen Reputation.
Signal AI is a reputation and risk intelligence platform that focuses on monitoring influential voices and high-impact media. Its AIQ engine analyzes millions of daily content pieces to identify emerging narratives and reputational risks.
Strengths: Signal AI’s focused approach is highly effective for strategic reputation and risk management at the enterprise level. Its proprietary AIQ engine offers more relevant, business-focused insights than generalist social listening tools.
Weaknesses: The platform has difficulty filtering out irrelevant international coverage and cannot access content behind paywalls. The setup and AI training process can be complex.
Best For: Enterprise-level PR, communications, and risk management teams in large corporations.
Pricing: Enterprise plans range from approximately $9,000 to $38,000 per year.
Comparison of the Best Brandwatch Alternatives
Tool | Best For | Starting Price | Video Capabilities | Key Differentiator |
Syncly Social | Video-First Brands | $199/month | Excellent | Conversational Video Intelligence |
Sprout Social | Unified Social Management | $199/user/month | Good | All-in-One Platform |
Talkwalker | Deep Consumer Intelligence | ~$500/month | Excellent | Visual & Audio Recognition |
Meltwater | PR & Media Monitoring | ~$25,000/year | Good | Unparalleled Media Coverage |
Brand24 | Small Businesses | $79/month | Limited | Affordability |
Mention | Reputation Tracking | $599/month | Limited | Extensive Source Coverage |
Hootsuite | Unified Social Management | $249/user/month | Good | Integrated Talkwalker Listening |
YouScan | Visual-First Brands | Custom | Excellent | Best-in-Class Visual Analytics |
Audiense | Audience Intelligence | ~$8,352/year | None | Deep Audience Segmentation |
Sprinklr | Global Enterprises | $359/seat/month | Good | Unified-CXM Platform |
BuzzSumo | Content Marketers | $199/month | Limited | Content Performance Analysis |
Awario | Budget-Conscious | $29/month | Limited | Social Selling (Awario Leads) |
Onclusive | Enterprise PR & Comms | $499/month | Good | Unified Media Monitoring |
Signal AI | Risk & Reputation | ~$9,000/year | Limited | Focus on Influential Sources |
How to Choose the Right Tool for Your Needs
With so many excellent Brandwatch alternatives on the market, choosing the right one can be a daunting task. To simplify the process, consider your specific needs based on your business size, primary use case, and platform priorities.
By Business Size
Small Businesses: If you are a small business or just starting with social listening, look for affordable and user-friendly tools like Brand24 and Awario. These platforms offer a solid set of features at a very accessible price point.
Mid-Market: For mid-sized businesses and growing teams, consider more advanced platforms like Syncly Social, YouScan, and Hootsuite. These tools offer a good balance of powerful features and reasonable pricing.
Enterprise: Large, global enterprises with complex needs and large budgets should look at top-tier platforms like Syncly Social, Sprinklr, Meltwater, and Talkwalker. These tools offer unmatched data coverage, scalability, and advanced analytics.
By Primary Use Case
Video-First Brands: If your brand is heavily focused on video content, Syncly Social is the clear winner. Its conversational video intelligence is unmatched. YouScan and Talkwalker are also good choices for their visual listening capabilities.
PR & Media Monitoring: For PR and communications teams, Meltwater, Onclusive, and Signal AI are the top contenders. These platforms offer comprehensive media monitoring across a wide range of sources.
Unified Social Management: If you are looking for an all-in-one solution that combines listening, publishing, and engagement, Sprout Social and Hootsuite are the best options.
Audience Intelligence: For deep audience segmentation and persona development, Audiense is in a class of its own.
Content Strategy: If your primary goal is to research and analyze content trends, BuzzSumo is the perfect tool.
Budget-Conscious: If you are on a tight budget, Awario and Brand24 offer the best value for your money.
Conclusion: The Future is Multimodal
The shift to a video-first social media landscape is undeniable, and the social listening tools of the future must be able to keep up. Traditional text-based platforms are increasingly missing out on the most valuable consumer conversations, which are now happening inside video and audio content. As we’ve seen, a new generation of tools, led by innovators like Syncly Social, is rising to the challenge.
When choosing a Brandwatch alternative, it is crucial to look beyond simple mention counting and keyword tracking. The best tools in 2026 will offer a multimodal approach, combining text, visual, audio, and video analysis to provide a truly holistic view of the consumer. Before making a final decision, take advantage of free trials and demos to find the platform that best fits your team and specific needs. The right social listening tool can be a game-changer, providing the insights you need to build a stronger brand, create better products, and deliver exceptional customer experiences.
The Social Listening Landscape in 2026: Beyond Text
The way we communicate online has fundamentally changed. The internet has stopped reading and started watching. With the meteoric rise of video-first platforms like TikTok, Instagram Reels, and YouTube Shorts, the most valuable consumer insights are no longer found in text-based tweets or status updates—they are locked inside video and audio content. This seismic shift has created a significant blind spot for brands relying on traditional social listening tools, including industry stalwart Brandwatch. While powerful in its own right, Brandwatch was built for a text-centric web, leaving a wealth of conversational data untapped.
As a result, a growing number of businesses are seeking Brandwatch alternatives that can navigate this new, multimodal landscape. They need tools that can not only monitor text but also “watch” and “listen” to video content, analyze images, and understand the nuances of spoken conversation. The future of social listening is powered by sophisticated AI that can transcribe audio, recognize logos and objects in videos, and even analyze the sentiment and demographics of creators.
This guide provides a comprehensive overview of the 14 best Brandwatch alternatives for 2026. We will delve into the key criteria for evaluating these modern social listening tools and provide a detailed comparison of each platform’s features, strengths, weaknesses, and pricing. Whether you are a small business looking for an affordable entry point or a large enterprise in need of a comprehensive consumer intelligence solution, this guide will help you find the right tool to stay ahead in the video era.
How to Evaluate Social Listening Tools in 2026
Choosing the right social listening tool in 2026 requires a forward-thinking approach. It’s no longer enough to simply count mentions and track keywords. Today’s top-tier platforms must offer a sophisticated suite of features to capture the full spectrum of online conversation. Here are the ten key criteria to consider when evaluating Brandwatch alternatives:
Criteria | Description |
Source Coverage | A tool's ability to monitor a wide range of sources is paramount. This includes not only major social networks but also blogs, forums, news sites, and, increasingly, video platforms like TikTok and YouTube. Comprehensive coverage ensures you don’t miss critical conversations happening in niche communities or on emerging platforms. |
AI & Analytics | Modern social listening is driven by artificial intelligence. Look for tools that offer advanced analytics, including sentiment analysis, trend detection, and theme clustering. The ability to automatically surface insights from vast amounts of unstructured data is a significant competitive advantage. |
Video/Visual Listening | In the video-first era, the ability to analyze visual content is non-negotiable. This includes logo recognition, object detection, and, most importantly, the transcription and analysis of spoken words within videos. Tools that can “watch” and “listen” to video content provide a much richer understanding of consumer behavior. |
Functionality & Usability | A powerful tool is only effective if it’s usable. Look for an intuitive interface, flexible query building (including Boolean search), and a smooth user experience. The platform should empower your team, not create a new layer of complexity. |
Integration Capabilities | Your social listening tool should not exist in a silo. Look for platforms that offer robust API access and seamless integration with other marketing tools, such as your CRM, analytics platforms, and workflow automation software. |
Pricing & Value | Pricing for social listening tools can vary dramatically. Look for transparent pricing models and a clear return on investment. Consider not only the monthly subscription fee but also any additional costs for add-ons, extra users, or data overages. |
Support & Training | Excellent customer support and comprehensive training resources are essential, especially for complex enterprise-level platforms. Look for vendors that offer responsive support, detailed documentation, and a smooth onboarding process. |
Data Quality | The quality of the data is the foundation of any social listening strategy. Ensure the tool provides accurate, real-time data without sampling. Firehose access to major platforms like X (formerly Twitter) and Reddit is a significant advantage. |
Reporting | The ability to create clear, customizable, and shareable reports is crucial for demonstrating the value of your social listening efforts. Look for tools with flexible dashboards, automated reporting, and various export options. |
Compliance & Security | Data privacy and security are more important than ever. Ensure the tool is compliant with regulations like GDPR and offers robust security features, including access controls and data encryption. |
The 14 Best Brandwatch Alternatives for 2026
1. Syncly Social
Positioning: Social listening for the video era.
Syncly Social represents the next generation of social listening, built from the ground up for the video-first web. While many legacy platforms are still struggling to adapt to the dominance of TikTok and Reels, Syncly Social was designed to thrive in this new environment. Its core innovation is a shift from “visual listening” (simply identifying logos) to “conversational video intelligence,” which focuses on understanding the actual conversations happening inside video content.
This is made possible by an AI engine that transcribes and analyzes spoken words, providing a level of insight that text-based tools simply cannot match. For example, Syncly Social can capture a product review mentioned in a TikTok video, even if the brand is not tagged in the caption or hashtags. This allows brands to uncover a vast amount of previously hidden feedback and sentiment.
Beyond audio transcription, Syncly Social offers a unique Creator Demographics Analysis feature. By analyzing a creator’s face, the platform can estimate their age, gender, and race, providing invaluable data for auditing audience diversity and ensuring inclusive influencer marketing campaigns. The platform also excels at Topic Clustering, automatically grouping spoken feedback into themes like “packaging issues” or “product texture,” enabling teams to spot trends and potential crises early.
Strengths:
Pioneer in Video Social Listening: Purpose-built for the video era, providing deep insights into platforms like TikTok and Reels.
Fast and Easy Setup: Case studies have shown a 90% faster setup time compared to competitors, allowing teams to get up and running quickly.
Affordable and Accessible: With a starting price of $199/month, Syncly Social offers enterprise-grade features at a mid-market price point.
Actionable Insights: The focus on conversational intelligence provides granular, SKU-level insights that can directly inform product development and marketing strategy.
Limitations:
Steep Learning Curve: Some users have reported that the platform’s advanced features can have a steep learning curve.
Export and Filtering Issues: There have been occasional reports of limitations in data export and dashboard filtering.
Text-Heavy Platform Coverage: While excellent for video, its coverage of traditional text-heavy platforms may be less comprehensive than some all-in-one competitors.
Best For: Mid-to-enterprise brands in the beauty, food & beverage, and fashion industries that need deep, AI-driven intelligence from video content.
Pricing: Starting at $199/month.
Platform Coverage: TikTok, Instagram Reels, YouTube, and 10+ other social platforms.
2. Sprout Social
Positioning: The all-in-one social media management platform built to scale and prove social ROI.
Sprout Social is a comprehensive, unified platform that combines social listening with publishing, engagement, and analytics. Its listening tool is powered by AI Assist, which processes up to 600 million messages daily to surface key themes and sentiment shifts. Sprout Social also offers advanced visual listening, with AI that can analyze objects, scenes, and text within images and videos.
Strengths: The platform’s all-in-one nature is its biggest strength, providing a seamless workflow for social media teams. It is highly scalable and known for its user-friendly interface.
Weaknesses: The high cost is a significant drawback, with social listening being an expensive add-on to an already premium-priced platform.
Best For: Mid-to-large enterprises and agencies that need a unified platform for social media management.
Pricing: Starts at $199 per user/month, with the Social Listening module costing an additional $2,000 to $8,000 per year.
3. Talkwalker
Positioning: The AI-powered consumer intelligence platform for deep social listening and media monitoring.
Talkwalker is a pioneer in visual and audio recognition, allowing it to detect brand logos and product placements in images, videos, and audio content. It offers unparalleled data coverage, indexing over 150 million sources and 30 social networks. Its advanced AI-powered analytics and real-time dashboards are highly valued by large teams for deep consumer intelligence and crisis management.
Strengths: Talkwalker’s visual and video recognition technology is a significant competitive advantage. Its comprehensive data coverage provides a truly holistic view of the market.
Weaknesses: The platform has a steep learning curve and a complex user interface. Its high-end enterprise pricing makes it inaccessible for smaller businesses.
Best For: Large enterprises and agencies that require deep, complex consumer intelligence and advanced analytics.
Pricing: Enterprise pricing, with custom quotes required.
4. Meltwater
Positioning: The leading media and social intelligence platform, empowering PR and marketing teams with AI-driven insights from billions of conversations.
Meltwater excels at media monitoring, tracking mentions across traditional news, print, broadcast, and a vast array of web sources. It monitors over 200 billion social conversations and 300 million social profiles in real-time. The Mira Studio AI assistant facilitates automated analysis and trend detection.
Strengths: Meltwater’s media monitoring coverage makes it the top choice for PR and communications teams. Its AI-powered insights and enterprise-grade infrastructure are well-suited for global brands.
Weaknesses: The lack of transparent pricing is a major drawback. Users also report a steep learning curve and a laggy interface.
Best For: PR teams and enterprise communications departments that require comprehensive, 360-degree media and social monitoring.
Pricing: Custom pricing only
5. Brand24
Positioning: Affordable social listening for SMBs.
Brand24 is a cost-effective social listening tool that offers real-time monitoring, sentiment analysis, and influencer identification. It is known for its user-friendly interface and good coverage for its price point, making it an excellent entry-level option for small to mid-sized businesses.
Strengths: Brand24’s affordability and ease of use are its main selling points. It provides a solid set of features for a very competitive price.
Weaknesses: The platform’s analytics are less sophisticated than those of premium competitors, and its reporting features are relatively basic.
Best For: Small to mid-sized businesses and agencies looking for a budget-friendly social listening solution.
Pricing: Starting at $79/month.
6. Mention
Positioning: Comprehensive media monitoring without the guessing game.
Mention offers real-time tracking of keywords and brand mentions across over 1 billion sources. It provides in-depth analytics, including sentiment analysis and competitive benchmarking. It is known for its user-friendly interface and good value for its price.
Strengths: Mention’s extensive source coverage and real-time alerts are major advantages. It is also very easy to use, making it accessible for users of all skill levels.
Weaknesses: The platform’s native “Publish” and “Respond” features have been deprecated, requiring users to use a separate tool for engagement. Its visual listening capabilities are also limited.
Best For: Businesses and agencies of all sizes that need a comprehensive media monitoring and social listening solution.
Pricing: Starts at $599/month for the Company plan.
7. Hootsuite
Positioning: The all-in-one social media management platform that integrates powerful social listening for unified insights and action.
Hootsuite’s social listening capabilities are powered by Talkwalker, providing real-time monitoring across over 30 social networks and 150 million websites. The platform seamlessly integrates listening with publishing, engagement, and analytics, creating a unified workflow for social media teams.
Strengths: Hootsuite’s all-in-one approach is highly efficient. Its listening component, powered by Talkwalker, offers broad data coverage and up to 13 months of historical data.
Weaknesses: Social listening is an add-on feature rather than the core product. The high price point for the tiers that include listening can be a barrier for smaller businesses.
Best For: Mid-to-large enterprises and agencies that require a unified platform for social media management and integrated social listening.
Pricing: The Advanced tier, which includes social listening, starts at around $249 per user/month.
8. YouScan
Positioning: AI-powered social listening platform for deep consumer insights and best-in-class visual analytics.
YouScan is a specialized tool that excels at visual listening. Its Visual Insights feature uses advanced AI to detect logos, objects, scenes, and demographics within images and videos. The Insights Copilot, a conversational AI agent, allows users to query their social data directly.
Strengths: YouScan’s market-leading visual listening capabilities are a key differentiator. The platform is also known for its user-friendly interface and exceptional customer support.
Weaknesses: The platform does not offer transparent pricing for its higher-tier plans. Its coverage of traditional media is less comprehensive than that of some larger competitors.
Best For: Brands and agencies that require best-in-class visual listening capabilities and advanced AI-driven consumer insights.
Pricing: Custom pricing for enterprise and agency plans.
9. Audiense
Positioning: The leading audience intelligence platform that helps brands understand and activate consumer segments for growth.
Audiense is a platform that focuses on deep audience segmentation and persona development. It uses machine learning to analyze psychographics, demographics, and personality traits of an audience. It is a powerful tool for strategic planning and media buying.
Strengths: Audiense’s unique approach to audience intelligence provides a strategic advantage over tools focused solely on mention tracking. It is highly valued by agencies for its ability to create rich, data-driven personas.
Weaknesses: Audiense is not a comprehensive social listening tool and often needs to be complemented by another platform. Its cost can be prohibitive for smaller businesses.
Best For: Market research, consultants, and marketing teams seeking deep audience segmentation and persona development.
Pricing: Report bundles are available, such as the 60-report bundle for $8,352 per year.
10. Sprinklr
Positioning: The Unified-CXM platform that leverages AI to transform unstructured customer data from 30+ channels into actionable, real-time insights.
Sprinklr is a massive, enterprise-grade platform that integrates social listening with customer service, marketing, and social media management. It offers industry-leading data coverage, including firehose access to major platforms, and can process petabytes of data without sampling.
Strengths: Sprinklr’s Unified-CXM architecture provides a single source of truth for customer experience data. Its AI-native and enterprise-grade scalability are unmatched.
Weaknesses: The platform is extremely complex and has a very steep learning curve. Its cost is prohibitive for all but the largest global enterprises.
Best For: Fortune 500 companies that require a unified platform for social listening, customer service, and marketing across numerous channels.
Pricing: Custom, with a self-serve solution starting at $359 per month per seat.
11. BuzzSumo
Positioning: Content research and influencer discovery.
BuzzSumo is a powerful tool for content marketers and strategists. It excels at content discovery, trend spotting, and influencer identification. It allows users to analyze what content performs best for any topic or competitor.
Strengths: BuzzSumo is excellent for content strategy and ideation. It provides a wealth of data on content performance and trends.
Weaknesses: The platform’s social listening depth is limited, as it is primarily focused on content performance, not brand monitoring.
Best For: Content marketers and strategists who need to research and analyze content trends.
Pricing: Starting at $199/month.
12. Awario
Positioning: Real-time social listening and brand monitoring for businesses of all sizes, offering comprehensive web coverage at an accessible price point.
Awario is one of the most affordable comprehensive social listening tools on the market. It offers real-time monitoring across a vast array of sources and includes a unique social selling tool called Awario Leads.
Strengths: Awario’s exceptional value for money is its main selling point. It offers broad web coverage and an intuitive user interface.
Weaknesses: The platform has limitations on historical data storage, and its analytics are less sophisticated than those of premium competitors.
Best For: Small to mid-sized businesses and agencies seeking a cost-effective and comprehensive real-time brand monitoring solution.
Pricing: Starts at $29/month (billed annually).
13. Onclusive
Positioning: Monitor, analyze, and report on your brand across all major social networks.
Onclusive offers a unified platform that integrates earned, owned, and social media monitoring. It provides a holistic view of a brand’s presence and includes 24 months of historical data for deep trend analysis.
Strengths: Onclusive’s unified platform is a significant advantage for communications and marketing teams. Its extensive data coverage, including print and broadcast media, is another key differentiator.
Weaknesses: Users have reported occasional missed mentions and technical issues. The platform’s enterprise-level pricing may be a drawback for smaller businesses.
Best For: Enterprise-level marketing, PR, and communications teams that require a unified solution for media monitoring and social listening.
Pricing: Starting at $499/month.
14. Signal AI
Positioning: Mitigate Risk, Strengthen Reputation.
Signal AI is a reputation and risk intelligence platform that focuses on monitoring influential voices and high-impact media. Its AIQ engine analyzes millions of daily content pieces to identify emerging narratives and reputational risks.
Strengths: Signal AI’s focused approach is highly effective for strategic reputation and risk management at the enterprise level. Its proprietary AIQ engine offers more relevant, business-focused insights than generalist social listening tools.
Weaknesses: The platform has difficulty filtering out irrelevant international coverage and cannot access content behind paywalls. The setup and AI training process can be complex.
Best For: Enterprise-level PR, communications, and risk management teams in large corporations.
Pricing: Enterprise plans range from approximately $9,000 to $38,000 per year.
Comparison of the Best Brandwatch Alternatives
Tool | Best For | Starting Price | Video Capabilities | Key Differentiator |
Syncly Social | Video-First Brands | $199/month | Excellent | Conversational Video Intelligence |
Sprout Social | Unified Social Management | $199/user/month | Good | All-in-One Platform |
Talkwalker | Deep Consumer Intelligence | ~$500/month | Excellent | Visual & Audio Recognition |
Meltwater | PR & Media Monitoring | ~$25,000/year | Good | Unparalleled Media Coverage |
Brand24 | Small Businesses | $79/month | Limited | Affordability |
Mention | Reputation Tracking | $599/month | Limited | Extensive Source Coverage |
Hootsuite | Unified Social Management | $249/user/month | Good | Integrated Talkwalker Listening |
YouScan | Visual-First Brands | Custom | Excellent | Best-in-Class Visual Analytics |
Audiense | Audience Intelligence | ~$8,352/year | None | Deep Audience Segmentation |
Sprinklr | Global Enterprises | $359/seat/month | Good | Unified-CXM Platform |
BuzzSumo | Content Marketers | $199/month | Limited | Content Performance Analysis |
Awario | Budget-Conscious | $29/month | Limited | Social Selling (Awario Leads) |
Onclusive | Enterprise PR & Comms | $499/month | Good | Unified Media Monitoring |
Signal AI | Risk & Reputation | ~$9,000/year | Limited | Focus on Influential Sources |
How to Choose the Right Tool for Your Needs
With so many excellent Brandwatch alternatives on the market, choosing the right one can be a daunting task. To simplify the process, consider your specific needs based on your business size, primary use case, and platform priorities.
By Business Size
Small Businesses: If you are a small business or just starting with social listening, look for affordable and user-friendly tools like Brand24 and Awario. These platforms offer a solid set of features at a very accessible price point.
Mid-Market: For mid-sized businesses and growing teams, consider more advanced platforms like Syncly Social, YouScan, and Hootsuite. These tools offer a good balance of powerful features and reasonable pricing.
Enterprise: Large, global enterprises with complex needs and large budgets should look at top-tier platforms like Syncly Social, Sprinklr, Meltwater, and Talkwalker. These tools offer unmatched data coverage, scalability, and advanced analytics.
By Primary Use Case
Video-First Brands: If your brand is heavily focused on video content, Syncly Social is the clear winner. Its conversational video intelligence is unmatched. YouScan and Talkwalker are also good choices for their visual listening capabilities.
PR & Media Monitoring: For PR and communications teams, Meltwater, Onclusive, and Signal AI are the top contenders. These platforms offer comprehensive media monitoring across a wide range of sources.
Unified Social Management: If you are looking for an all-in-one solution that combines listening, publishing, and engagement, Sprout Social and Hootsuite are the best options.
Audience Intelligence: For deep audience segmentation and persona development, Audiense is in a class of its own.
Content Strategy: If your primary goal is to research and analyze content trends, BuzzSumo is the perfect tool.
Budget-Conscious: If you are on a tight budget, Awario and Brand24 offer the best value for your money.
Conclusion: The Future is Multimodal
The shift to a video-first social media landscape is undeniable, and the social listening tools of the future must be able to keep up. Traditional text-based platforms are increasingly missing out on the most valuable consumer conversations, which are now happening inside video and audio content. As we’ve seen, a new generation of tools, led by innovators like Syncly Social, is rising to the challenge.
When choosing a Brandwatch alternative, it is crucial to look beyond simple mention counting and keyword tracking. The best tools in 2026 will offer a multimodal approach, combining text, visual, audio, and video analysis to provide a truly holistic view of the consumer. Before making a final decision, take advantage of free trials and demos to find the platform that best fits your team and specific needs. The right social listening tool can be a game-changer, providing the insights you need to build a stronger brand, create better products, and deliver exceptional customer experiences.
Build a brand customers love with Syncly
Build a brand customers love with Syncly