Managing multiple ソーシャルメディア platforms is time-consuming & challenging.
Juggling posts, engagement, and analytics can feel overwhelming. Choosing the best social media management tool is crucial for success.
This article compares Buffer vs Sprout Social to help you make an informed decision.
We’ll break down their key features, pricing, and user experience for a clear comparison.
概要
We’ve spent countless hours immersed in both Buffer and Sprout Social, scheduling posts, analyzing データ, and engaging with audiences across various platforms.
This hands-on experience has given us unique insights into their strengths and weaknesses, forming the basis for this comprehensive comparison.
Ready to streamline your ソーシャルメディア management and boost your online presence? Start your free trial of Sprout Social today and experience the difference!
価格: It has a free plan. Paid plan Starts at $249/month
主な特徴:
- Social listening
- Advanced analytics
- Team collaboration tools
Ready to save time on social media? Buffer can help you reclaim up to 6 hours per week. Check out for 14 days free trial
価格: It has a free plan. Paid plan starts at $5/month
主な特徴:
- Intuitive Scheduling
- Engagement Tools
- Analytics & Reporting
What is Buffer?
Buffer is your friendly social media sidekick, making scheduling, posting, and analyzing a breeze.
Perfect if you’re starting or want something simple yet powerful.
また、私たちのお気に入りを探索してください Buffer alternatives…
主なメリット
- Manages up to 300 social profiles.
- White-label options for agencies.
- Get 12% more engagement with analytics.
- Assign tasks to 80+ team members.
- Automate content with Smart Queues.
価格
- Free: $0/month.
- Essentials: $5/month per channel
- Team: $10/month per channel
長所
短所
What is Sprout Social?
Sprout Social is a social media powerhouse packed with advanced features for serious marketers and agencies.
If you want in-depth analytics, social listening, and team collaboration, this is your tool.
また、私たちのお気に入りを探索してください Sprout Social alternatives…
主なメリット
- Features: It’s a comprehensive platform with tools for publishing, engagement, and analytics. It also includes social listening and influencer marketing features.
- Supported social networks: It connects with over 20 networks, including Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and LinkedIn, as well as Google Business Profile and TikTok.
- Ease of use: The interface is clean and user-friendly, making it easy to navigate.
- Customer support: Sprout Social offers 24/5 customer support via phone, email, and live chat, along with a robust knowledge base.
- Integrations: It integrates with many other popular tools, such as Canva, Zendesk, and Salesforce.
- スケーラビリティ: It offers different plans to fit the needs of small businesses and large enterprises.
- Warranty: Sprout Social’s terms of service outline its liability limitations, but it doesn’t offer a specific product warranty.
価格
- 標準: $199/month
- Professional: $299/month
- Advanced: $399/month
- 企業: Custom pricing.
長所
短所
機能比較
When you compare Sprout Social and Buffer, you’re essentially choosing between a comprehensive enterprise solution and a 簡略化された, affordable tool.
Let’s break down the features to see which social media management tool is the better fit for you.
1. Pricing and Scalability
- Buffer: Buffer offers a very accessible free plan for up to three channels, making it a great tool for a small business or an individual just starting out. Paid plans are also very budget-friendly and are priced per channel, not per user, with an “unlimited users” option on some plans.
- Sprout Social: Sprout Social is an expensive platform with a per-user social pricing model. A sprout social review often notes this as a key drawback for small businesses. While it offers unlimited social profiles on its professional plan and other top-tier plans, the cost for additional users can be a “bit annoying”.
2. User Interface
- Buffer: Buffer’s user interface is widely praised in a buffer review for its simplicity and clean design. It’s a very straightforward social media scheduling tool that is easy to use, even for beginners.
- Sprout Social: Sprout Social has a polished and powerful user interface. While it’s generally well-regarded, the sheer number of features and depth can create a steeper learning curve for new users.
3. Publishing and Scheduling
- Buffer: Buffer Publish is a core part of its platform. You can schedule content to multiple social media channels using a simple queue system. A buffer review often highlights this as a key feature, as it makes it easy to maintain a consistent posting schedule for a social media account. Buffer also lets you schedule content to Google Business Profiles and Pinterest boards, unlike Sprout Social.
- Sprout Social: Sprout Social offers robust publishing tools with a visual social media calendar. It includes features like Optimal Send Times and the ability to boost Facebook posts directly from the platform, providing a more data-driven approach to publishing content.
4. Social Inbox and Engagement
- Buffer: Buffer’s engagement tools are more basic. It offers a social inbox that lets you respond to social conversations on platforms like Facebook and Instagram, but it lacks the advanced features of a social CRM tool.
- Sprout Social: その Smart Inbox is a standout feature. It’s an intelligent social inbox that consolidates all messages, comments, and reviews into one place. This is a great tool for managing reviews, direct messages, and comments across all social channels.
5. Analytics and Reporting
- Buffer: Buffer Analyze provides analytics tools that offer a good performance overview of your social media posts. You get individual post analytics and can see key metrics, but it lacks the deep, customizable reporting that Sprout Social offers.
- Sprout Social: Sprout Social excels at analytics. It offers competitive reporting, trend analysis, and custom views. You get detailed reports that can provide deep insights into your social media performance, making it a great tool for proving social media ROI.
6. Social Listening
- Buffer: Buffer has no dedicated social listening tool. It focuses on owned media and does not have the ability to monitor profiles for mentions or track twitter keywords.
- Sprout Social: Sprout Social is a powerful social listening tool that allows you to monitor profiles, track keywords, and perform sentiment analysis. This feature is a crucial component of a comprehensive social media strategy, but it is often an additional feature or only available on top-tier plans.
7. Collaboration and Team Features
- Buffer: Buffer’s team features are straightforward and effective for a small business or mid stage startup teams. You can set a posting schedule, contribute content, and get approval on posts.
- Sprout Social: Sprout Social offers much more robust team collaboration features, including custom workflows, message routing, and the ability to assign tasks. It’s built for large marketing agencies and teams.
8. Integrations and Extra Features
- Buffer: Buffer integrates with a variety of other tools and offers extra features like a free landing page builder and a biolink tool. It also allows you to schedule content to Google Business Profiles and Pinterest boards, which Sprout Social may not support as a basic feature.
- Sprout Social: Sprout Social offers a wide range of integrations, including social CRM tools, and provides a comprehensive asset library. It also includes automated link tracking and other tools to streamline workflows for your social media account.
9. Customer Support
- Buffer: A buffer review often notes that buffer support is reliable, with a helpful support team, but it doesn’t offer a dedicated account manager like some of Sprout Social’s plans.
- Sprout Social: Sprout Social is known for its excellent customer care and responsive support tickets, which is a major selling point for an enterprise-level business.
10. AI and Content Ideas
- Buffer: Buffer offers an AI Assistant to help you generate ideas and write social posts. This can be a very useful tool for a content creator.
- Sprout Social: Sprout Social uses AI to provide “Optimal Send Times” and other data-driven insights, but it does not focus on content generation in the same way.
11. Mobile App
- Buffer: The Buffer mobile app is a great tool for scheduling content and engaging with your audience on the go. An android apps review often gives it high marks for its ease of use.
- Sprout Social: The Sprout Social mobile app is equally powerful and offers a robust feature set, including the ability to manage your Smart Inbox from your phone.
What should you look for when choosing a social media management tool?
- Pricing & Cost: Don’t just look at the starting price. Compare social pricing models, which may be billed annually, per user, or per social profile. A Sprout Social review often notes that it is an expensive platform, especially for additional users. In contrast, many social alternatives like Buffer offer a free plan for basic publishing tools and a more affordable pricing structure. Look for a paid plan that offers the right number of social profiles for your business accounts.
- Core Features: Ensure the platform offers basic features for publishing content, including a content library, social media calendars, and the ability to schedule posts. Also, look for additional features that are pretty handy, like automated link tracking, and the ability to schedule posts to less common platforms like LinkedIn pages and Instagram. A good social media management tool helps a social media manager streamline their workflow.
- Analytics and Reporting: A great tool provides insights into your social media performance. While many offer basic reporting on post performance, others, like Sprout Social, have powerful paid social reporting, competitive reporting, and the ability to create a custom view for a specific date range.
- ユーザーインターフェース: The user interface is key. If you are a social media manager, you will be on the platform daily, so it should be intuitive and easy to use. A good social review will often comment on the user experience. A clean dashboard, like Buffer’s, can be a major productivity boost, especially for new users.
- スケーラビリティ: Consider how the tool will grow with your business. Does the standard plan allow for multiple accounts? Will you need to upgrade to top-tier plans for unlimited social profiles or more features? A Buffer account, for example, offers additional channels and a monthly or annual basis pricing, while Sprout Social is usually billed annually, which can be a bigger commitment.
- Engagement Tools: A great tool should help you engage with your audience. Look for a social inbox that consolidates all your messages and comments, making it easy to manage reviews and respond to your audience from one platform.
- Collaboration: For teams and agencies, collaboration tools are essential. Look for features that allow you to approve posts, assign tasks, and manage a channel team. Custom workflows and custom access can make working with other users and clients much more efficient.
- Unique Features: Some tools specialize in a particular area. Later, for instance, focuses on visual content, while others may have features for lead generation or an RSS feed to easily find new content. Look for features like custom video thumbnails or Instagram Stories analytics if those are important to your social media strategy.
最終評決
In the battle of Buffer vs Sprout Social, the winner depends on your needs.
If you’re looking for an affordable, user-friendly tool to streamline your basic social media management, Buffer is a fantastic choice.
However, suppose you’re ready to invest in a more robust platform with advanced features like in-depth analytics, social listening, and team collaboration.
In that case, Sprout Social takes the crown despite its steeper learning curve and higher price point.
The Sprout Social interface might take some getting used to, but the power and insights it offers can be a game-changer for serious social media marketers.
We’ve spent countless hours testing and comparing these tools so that you can trust our recommendations.
Choose the platform that best aligns with your goals and budget, and watch your social media presence soar!
More of Buffer
- Buffer vs Sprout Social: It is a comprehensive platform with advanced social CRM and detailed analytics and reporting.
- Buffer vs Metricool: Buffer – easy scheduling. Metricool – stronger analytics, competitor info.
- Buffer vs Socialpilot: Buffer – basic scheduling. Socialpilot – more features for the price.
- Buffer vs Sendible: Buffer – simple, clean design. Sendible – wider features (listening, analytics).
- Buffer vs Content Studio: Buffer – simple scheduling. Content Studio – content discovery, AI.
- Buffer vs Heropost: Buffer – straightforward scheduling. Heropost – AI content, competitor intel.
- Buffer vs Agorapulse: Buffer – simple scheduling. Agorapulse – unified inbox, listening.
- Buffer vs Zoho Social: Buffer offers simple scheduling. Zoho Social offers more features and is cost-effective (Zoho).
- Buffer vs Sprinklr: Buffer – basic scheduling (small biz). Sprinklr – enterprise-level.
- Buffer vs Later: Buffer – scheduling for many platforms. Later – visual content (Instagram).
- Buffer vs Loomly: Buffer – simple scheduling calendar. Loomly – content calendar, teamwork.
- Buffer vs Blaze: (Info limited – Buffer’s strength is simplicity for scheduling).
- Buffer vs Hootsuite: It is a long-standing tool known for its comprehensive, multi-platform dashboard view.
- Buffer vs Planable: It is a collaboration-first tool with a focus on visual content approval and client feedback.
More of Sprout Social
- Sprout Social vs Metricool: Metricool is for e-commerce with a focus on conversions. Sprout Social is geared towards larger teams and offers more in-depth corporate analytics.
- Sprout Social vs Socialpilot: SocialPilot is a great value for content scheduling. A Sprout Social review will show it excels in advanced analytics and social listening, making it better for deep insights.
- Sprout Social vs Sendible: Sendible is known for its user-friendly interface. Sprout Social focuses more on detailed reporting and sentiment analysis.
- Sprout Social vs Content Studio: Content Studio is more focused on content discovery for small businesses. Sprout Social is a powerhouse for advanced analytics and team collaboration.
- Sprout Social vs Heropost: Heropost has strong competitor analysis. A Sprout Social review highlights its more advanced social listening and reporting.
- Sprout Social vs Agorapulse: Agorapulse is a more affordable alternative with a great inbox. Sprout Social provides more in-depth reporting and is better for enterprise-level paid social reporting.
- Sprout Social vs Zoho Social: Zoho Social is an affordable option with an easy-to-use interface. Sprout Social offers a more robust and comprehensive set of features, though with a higher price.
- Sprout Social vs Buffer: Buffer is famous for its simplicity. Sprout Social offers a more extensive set of features for large teams and more in-depth analytics.
- Sprout Social vs Sprinklr: Sprinklr is for large enterprises. Sprout Social is often rated as having a more intuitive user interface and better support for its complex features.
- Sprout Social vs Later: Later is a visual-first platform, especially for Instagram. Sprout Social is a broader social media management tool that supports more social alternatives and offers more advanced social listening.
- Sprout Social vs Loomly: Loomly focuses on team collaboration. Sprout Social provides more advanced social listening and detailed analytics.
- Sprout Social vs Blaze: One version of Blaze is a social media tool. Another, more common version, is a cannabis software suite and not a direct competitor.
- Sprout Social vs Hootsuite: Hootsuite is a long-standing competitor. Sprout Social is often praised for its superior social reporting and customer support.
よくある質問
Can I try Buffer and Sprout Social before committing to a paid plan?
Yes, both Buffer and Sprout Social offer free trials, allowing you to explore their features & functionalities before making a purchase decision.
Is Sprout Social worth the higher price compared to Buffer?
If you need advanced features like social listening, detailed analytics, and team collaboration, Sprout Social’s robust capabilities justify its higher price point. However, Buffer is an excellent value for those seeking a simpler, more affordable solution.
Can I schedule Instagram Reels and Stories with these tools?
Yes, both Buffer and Sprout Social support scheduling and publishing Instagram Reels and Stories, helping you maintain a consistent presence on this visual platform.
Which tool is better for social media analytics?
Sprout Social offers more in-depth analytics and reporting capabilities than Buffer, including customizable reports, competitor analysis, and sentiment tracking.
Can I manage multiple social media profiles with these tools?
Absolutely! Both Buffer and Sprout Social allow you to connect & manage multiple social media profiles from a single dashboard, streamlining your workflow & saving you time.