Head to head
Metricool vs Sprout Social
Last updated 13 October 2026
Metricool combines publishing and reporting in Brands. Free allows one Brand and 20 actual publications per calendar month; Starter begins at $25 monthly for five Brands, while Advanced adds team members and client approvals from $67 monthly.
- From
- Free
- Free scheduling
- Yes
Sprout Social is the high-end suite: publishing, a shared inbox, listening, and reporting that goes deep, sold by the seat and priced for businesses with a budget. There's no free plan; the cut-down Essentials tier is $79 a seat each month on annual billing, and the main plans start at $199.
- From
- $79per user a month, billed yearly
- Free scheduling
- No
Bottom line
Metricool is the pick for analytics-led marketers who want organic and paid in one report, and it's the only one of the two with a free scheduling plan. Sprout Social fits businesses running social as a core function better, and it reaches Snapchat and Reddit, which Metricool doesn't.
Metricool has a free plan and paid plans from $20 a month, billed yearly, and Sprout Social starts at $79 per user a month, billed yearly. They bill on different units, so the real gap depends on how much you run. Sprout Social adds social listening and employee advocacy that Metricool leaves out.
Key differences
Where the two actually diverge, before the full tables.
- Metricool has a free scheduling plan; Sprout Social doesn't, though it offers a 30-day trial.
- Paid plans start at $20 a month, billed yearly on Metricool and $79 per user a month, billed yearly on Sprout Social.
- Metricool posts to 10 networks, Sprout Social to 12.
- Only Sprout Social reaches Reddit and Snapchat.
- Metricool has a browser extension; Sprout Social doesn't.
- Sprout Social has social listening; Metricool doesn't.
- Sprout Social has employee advocacy; Metricool doesn't.
Features compared
| Feature | Metricool | Sprout Social |
|---|---|---|
| AI captions | Yes | Yes |
| Basic analytics | Yes | Yes |
| Advanced reports | Yes | Yes |
| Bulk upload | Yes | Yes |
| Evergreen recycling | Partial | No |
| Team roles | Yes | Yes |
| Approvals | Yes | Yes |
| Link in bio | Yes | Yes |
Platforms compared
| Network | Metricool | Sprout Social |
|---|---|---|
| Auto | Auto | |
| Auto | Auto | |
| X (Twitter) | Auto | Auto |
| Auto | Auto | |
| TikTok | Auto | Auto |
| Auto | Auto | |
| YouTube | Auto | Auto |
| Threads | Auto | Auto |
| Bluesky | Auto | Auto |
| Google Business | Auto | Auto |
| No | Auto | |
| Snapchat | No | Auto |
| Twitch | No | Not assessed |
| WordPress | No | Not assessed |
Pricing
Prices use each tool’s billing unit. Annual equivalents are labeled as billed yearly; scaling rows show monthly costs and available annual rates.
No free plan; 30-day trial.
- 1 seat · Essentials
- $99/mo~$79/mo annual
- 3 seats · EssentialsTypical
- $297/mo~$237/mo annual
Lowest priced plan at each shown workload. Check the plan's included features before choosing it.
Metricool
Free
- Scheduled posts
- 20
- 1 brand; 20 actually published posts per calendar month across the planner
- All networks except LinkedIn and X
- 5 competitor profiles, 30 days of analytics, AI assistant
Starter
Popular$20 a month billed annually
- Scheduled posts
- Unlimited
- From $25/mo ($20 annual) for up to 5 brands
- Up to 10 brands for $45/mo ($36 annual)
- Unlimited publishing, LinkedIn, 100 competitor analyses
- Reporting tools, PDF and PPT exports, SmartLinks, Canva and Drive
- X is a +$5 per-account add-on
Advanced
$53 a month billed annually
- Seats
- Unlimited
- Scheduled posts
- Unlimited
- From $67/mo ($53 annual) for up to 15 brands
- 25 brands $107/mo ($85 annual); 50 brands $210/mo ($159 annual)
- Team and client management, role management, post approvals
- Full X analytics, custom report templates, Looker Studio connector, API
Custom
- Quote-only for more than 50 brands
- White label, dedicated account manager, custom AI credits
- Business integration
- Plans are chosen by how many 'brands' you connect rather than multiplied per brand: you land in a brand-count band and pay that band's price. A brand is a group of profiles, roughly one account per network.
- Starter covers up to 10 brands ($25 a month for 5, $45 for 10; $20 / $36 on annual). Advanced covers up to 50 ($67 / $107 / $210 a month for 15 / 25 / 50 brands; $53 / $85 / $159 on annual). Past 50 brands it's the quote-only Custom plan.
- Annual billing saves up to 24% depending on the band.
- X is a separately charged add-on on eligible paid plans. Free excludes X and LinkedIn; LinkedIn begins on Starter.
- Listed prices exclude VAT, which is added before checkout.
- Current public pricing exposes USD and EUR tariffs for monthly and annual brand bands. Confirm the selected configuration and billing term.
- The Free plan is genuine: 1 brand, 20 actual publications a month, 5 competitor profiles, and 30 days of analytics, but no LinkedIn or X.
Sprout Social
Essentials
$79 per user a month billed annually
- Seats
- 1
- Accounts
- 5
- Scheduled posts
- Unlimited
- $79 per seat/mo on annual, $99 monthly
- Up to 5 social profiles
- Publishing, calendar, and the Smart Inbox
- Profile and post-level reporting
Standard
Billed annually
- Seats
- 1
- Accounts
- 5
- Scheduled posts
- Unlimited
- USD199/seat/month with annual billing; confirm monthly tariff
- $199 per seat/mo on annual, $249 monthly
- Up to 5 social profiles
- Smart Inbox, review management, and tasks
- Unlocks paid add-ons: Listening, Premium Analytics, Advocacy
Professional
PopularBilled annually
- Seats
- 1
- Accounts
- Unlimited
- Scheduled posts
- Unlimited
- USD299/seat/month with annual billing; confirm monthly tariff
- $299 per seat/mo on annual, $399 monthly
- Unlimited social profiles
- Competitor, tag, and paid reporting
- Message tagging and scheduling for optimal send times
Advanced
Billed annually
- Seats
- 1
- Accounts
- Unlimited
- Scheduled posts
- Unlimited
- USD399/seat/month with annual billing; confirm monthly tariff
- $399 per seat/mo on annual, $499 monthly
- Unlimited social profiles
- Chatbots, automated workflows, and helpdesk integrations
- AI-enhanced replies, message spike alerts, and the Sprout API
Enterprise
- Accounts
- Unlimited
- Custom pricing
- SSO and advanced security
- Premium Listening, Advocacy, and Influencer Marketing add-ons
- Dedicated support and professional services
- List pricing is per seat. Obtain a quote for larger or customized deployments; no-volume-discount guarantees are not established by the current public evidence.
- Annual advertised rates per seat: Essentials USD79, Standard USD199, Professional USD299 and Advanced USD399. Essentials USD99 monthly is verified; other monthly rates need confirmation.
- No free plan. There's a 30-day trial with no card required.
- USD advertised list pricing. Check the applicable billing offer and paid add-ons before purchase.
- Premium Analytics, Listening, and Employee Advocacy are paid add-ons on Standard and up, quoted on request, so the real bill runs higher than the seat price.
What it really costs
Monthly cost by seat count. Per-unit tiers grow with usage; flat tiers keep their whole-plan price within the published allowance, with the 3-seat row marked as a realistic setup.
| seats | Essentials |
|---|---|
| 1 | $99/mo |
| 3Typical | $297/mo |
| 5 | $495/mo |
| 10 | $990/mo |
| 25 | $2,475/mo |
| 50 | $4,950/mo |
Monthly billing.
Pros and cons
Metricool
- Deepest analytics for the price, with paid ads alongside organic
- Unusually generous free plan
- Wide network list, including Twitch analytics and Google Business
- Strong agency value with brand-band pricing and white-label reports
- Brand-band pricing takes a minute to work out
- X is a paid add-on and LinkedIn is paid-only
- Listed prices exclude VAT
- No category-based evergreen recycling and no broad listening
Sprout Social
- Publishing and social-care workflows
- Plan-based reporting and add-on listening
- Documented Reddit, Bluesky and Snapchat capabilities
- Internal and external review workflows
- Seat fees and add-ons increase the total
- Essentials and Standard have five-profile limits
- External MCP scope is narrower than the main product
- Network and mobile format coverage varies
Metricool vs Sprout Social: FAQ
- Is Metricool or Sprout Social cheaper?
- Metricool has a free entry plan. Sprout Social starts at $79 per user a month, billed yearly. The plans may cover different workloads, so check the required accounts and features.
- Does Metricool or Sprout Social have a free plan?
- Metricool has a free plan; Sprout Social does not, though it offers a 30-day trial.
- Which is better, Metricool or Sprout Social?
- Metricool is the stronger pick for analytics-led marketers who want organic and paid in one report, while Sprout Social is the better fit for businesses running social as a core function. We don't score them; the right call comes down to how you post.