What is the difference between Hootsuite and Sprout Social?

Hootsuite is best for Teams managing multiple social media accounts at scale, while Sprout Social is best for Enterprise teams needing social media management and intelligence. Hootsuite starts at $99/mo and Sprout Social starts at $249/mo.

Hootsuite vs Sprout Social

Hootsuite is social media management platform for scheduling, monitoring, and analytics across networks, while Sprout Social is enterprise social media platform with publishing, engagement, analytics, and social listening. Hootsuite comes in cheaper, but price alone does not tell the full story. Hootsuite is built for teams managing multiple social media accounts at scale, whereas Sprout Social targets enterprise teams needing social media management and intelligence.

At a glance

	Hootsuite	Sprout Social
Best for	Teams managing multiple social media accounts at scale	Enterprise teams needing social media management and intelligence
Starting price	$99/mo	$249/mo
Free tier	—	—
Open source	—	—
Free tier available	—	—
Open source	—	—
Advocacy	—	✓
Analytics	✓	✓
Listening	—	✓
Publishing	—	✓
Scheduling	✓	—
Social Listening	✓	—
Team Collab	✓	—

Hootsuite

Strengths

Includes Scheduling as a core feature, purpose-built for social media management workflows
Includes Social Listening as a core feature, purpose-built for social media management workflows
Pricing starts at $99/mo, which includes the full social media management feature set
Established product with 18+ years on the market and a mature ecosystem

Weaknesses

Starts at $99/mo — on the expensive side, especially for small teams or solo users
Fewer built-in features means you may need additional tools to cover gaps
Ecosystem of third-party integrations is smaller than the market leaders in social media management
Per-user pricing at $99/mo makes it hard to justify for large teams

Try Hootsuite → Full review

Sprout Social

Strengths

Includes Publishing as a core feature, purpose-built for social media management workflows
Includes Listening as a core feature, purpose-built for social media management workflows
Pricing starts at $249/mo, which includes the full social media management feature set
Established product with 16+ years on the market and a mature ecosystem

Weaknesses

Starts at $249/mo — on the expensive side, especially for small teams or solo users
Enterprise-focused design means the interface can feel heavy for smaller teams
Ecosystem of third-party integrations is smaller than the market leaders in social media management
Overkill for freelancers or small teams who need something lightweight

Try Sprout Social → Full review

The bottom line

Pricing: Hootsuite starts at $99/mo. Sprout Social starts at $249/mo. Hootsuite is the more affordable option.

Feature gaps: Hootsuite offers Scheduling, Social Listening and Team Collab that Sprout Social lacks. Sprout Social brings Advocacy, Listening and Publishing that Hootsuite does not have. Both share Analytics.

Team fit: Hootsuite is geared toward mid-size teams teams, while Sprout Social is aimed at enterprise teams. Pick the one that matches where your team is today and where it is headed — migrating tools later is always painful.

Where each tool shines: Hootsuite's biggest strengths are: includes scheduling as a core feature, purpose-built for social media management workflows. includes social listening as a core feature, purpose-built for social media management workflows. Sprout Social's biggest strengths are: includes publishing as a core feature, purpose-built for social media management workflows. includes listening as a core feature, purpose-built for social media management workflows.

Watch out for: With Hootsuite, users commonly note that starts at $99/mo — on the expensive side, especially for small teams or solo users. With Sprout Social, the main complaint is that starts at $249/mo — on the expensive side, especially for small teams or solo users.

Choose Hootsuite if...

Your profile matches its sweet spot: teams managing multiple social media accounts at scale
You want to save on per-user costs — Hootsuite is $150.00/user/mo cheaper
You specifically need Scheduling and Social Listening
You care about includes social listening as a core feature, purpose-built for social media management workflows
Your team size fits the mid-size teams profile Hootsuite is designed for

Choose Sprout Social if...

You need a tool built for enterprise teams needing social media management and intelligence
You specifically need Advocacy and Listening
You care about includes listening as a core feature, purpose-built for social media management workflows
Your team size fits the enterprise profile Sprout Social is designed for