Suggestions appear as you type. Use the up and down arrows to choose one and Enter to open it.

This page's audience our own tag's counts — open to see them
–Visits
–Page views
–Clicks to vendors
–Time on page
–Reading now
Clicks to vendors, by tool
  • –
Top countries
  • –
Devices
  • –

– · visits, page views and clicks counted by our own tag, which counts more than our checked analytics; every figure rounded down · how we count

Head-to-head · Social Media Listening Software

Cision vs Pulsar

  • Updated Oct 2026
  • Both researched from official sources
  • 3 checks side by side
Higher score Cision #5 in Social Media Listening Software 8.9/10 Pricing on request ✓ 3 of 3 features Visit Cision
Pulsar #7 in Social Media Listening Software 7.9/10 Pricing on request ✓ 3 of 3 features Visit Pulsar

Cision leads on 0 checks, Pulsar on 0, and 3 are even. Who comes out ahead on the 3 yes/no, price and count checks where we have data for both products. The editor score weighs everything else too.

Our verdict

  • Highest scoreCision · 8.9/10

Cision scores higher on our rubric for social media listening software: 8.9 against 7.9 out of 10; our editors rank them #5 and #7.

Cision is the better fit for mature teams combining social and traditional media. Pulsar is the better fit for research teams needing deep audience analysis.

  • Cision fits best

    Mature teams combining social and traditional media

  • Pulsar fits best

    Research teams needing deep audience analysis

Advertiser disclosure: iTechGuides is reader-supported. Vendors can pay for top positions in our rankings and for a place on other products' pages, and we may earn a commission when you click some links. Bought places stand at the number bought; this page and our disclosure say so. Paying vendors may get a fuller, more detailed review from our editors, and that review can change their score. How we rank.

Side by side

Feature Cision 8.9/10 Visit ↗ Pulsar 7.9/10 Visit ↗
At a glance
Editor score 8.9 7.9
Ranking #5 in Social Media Listening Software #7 in Social Media Listening Software
Best for Mature teams combining social and traditional media Research teams needing deep audience analysis
Pricing model Paid Paid
Starting price Pricing on request —
Free plan Not checked yet Not checked yet
Free trial — —
Deployment Cloud, Mobile Cloud
Platforms Web, iOS Web
Integrations 4 integrations 5 integrations
Features Cision 3/3 · Pulsar 3/3
Web monitoring ✓ ✓
Sentiment analysis ✓ ✓
News monitoring ✓ ✓
Specs
Social network coverage Facebook, Instagram, X (Twitter), YouTube, Reddit, Bluesky X, Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, YouTube, LinkedIn, Threads, Pinterest, Discord, Twitch, Weibo, WeChat, Xiaohongshu, Douyin, Bilibili, Naver, VK
Historical data Not checked yet Not checked yet
Tracked query limit Not checked yet Not checked yet
Alert channels mobile, email, Slack, Microsoft Teams email, in-app, mobile push
Our review
Pros
  • Monitors major social networks, blogs, forums, and online news
  • Combines sentiment, competitor benchmarking, dashboards, and alerts
  • Adds publishing, reporting, and traditional media analysis
  • Monitors social, news, forums, reviews, broadcast, search, and web sources
  • Combines audience segmentation with sentiment, emotion, and narrative tracking
  • Offers alerts, custom reports, multiple export formats, and API access
Cons
  • Pricing requires a sales consultation
  • Historical-data availability varies by media type and package
  • Social publishing may be unnecessary for monitoring-only teams
  • Enterprise pricing is configured through sales
  • No published tier list makes plan comparisons difficult
  • Its breadth may exceed the needs of teams seeking basic social monitoring
Our verdict

CisionOne combines social listening with traditional media monitoring for public relations, communications, and marketing teams. It tracks conversations across Facebook, Instagram, X, YouTube, Reddit, Bluesky, blogs, forums, and online…

Read the review →

Pulsar’s TRAC is an enterprise social listening and audience intelligence product for brands, agencies, and government communications teams. It is suited to research groups that need to analyze public conversation across more than social…

Read the review →
  1. CisionSocial Media Listening Software 8.9Pricing on request
  2. PulsarSocial Media Listening Software 7.9Pricing on request

Strengths and trade-offs

  • Cision — where it wins

    • Monitors major social networks, blogs, forums, and online news
    • Combines sentiment, competitor benchmarking, dashboards, and alerts
    • Adds publishing, reporting, and traditional media analysis

    Where it doesn't

    • Pricing requires a sales consultation
    • Historical-data availability varies by media type and package
    • Social publishing may be unnecessary for monitoring-only teams
  • Pulsar — where it wins

    • Monitors social, news, forums, reviews, broadcast, search, and web sources
    • Combines audience segmentation with sentiment, emotion, and narrative tracking
    • Offers alerts, custom reports, multiple export formats, and API access

    Where it doesn't

    • Enterprise pricing is configured through sales
    • No published tier list makes plan comparisons difficult
    • Its breadth may exceed the needs of teams seeking basic social monitoring
  • Cision8.9/10 · Pricing on request

    CisionOne brings social and traditional media monitoring into one workflow.

    Visit CisionFull verdict →
  • Pulsar7.9/10 · Pricing on request

    Broad-source listening pairs audience analysis with enterprise pricing by configuration.

    Visit PulsarFull verdict →

More comparisons

Reviewed by iTechGuides Editors · Editorial team · Updated Oct 2026

Last updated · How we research and update