Head-to-head · Social Media Listening Software
Meltwater Social Listening vs Brandwatch Listen
Meltwater Social Listening leads on 0 checks, Brandwatch Listen on 0, and 4 are even. Who comes out ahead on the 4 yes/no, price and count checks where we have data for both products. The editor score weighs everything else too.
Our verdict
- Highest scoreMeltwater Social Listening · 9.4/10
Meltwater Social Listening scores higher on our rubric for social media listening software: 9.4 against 9.0 out of 10; our editors rank them #1 and #4.
Meltwater Social Listening is the better fit for large teams needing broad, mature listening. Brandwatch Listen is the better fit for teams wanting straightforward search-based listening.
- Meltwater Social Listening fits best
Large teams needing broad, mature listening
- Brandwatch Listen fits best
Teams wanting straightforward search-based listening
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Side by side
| Feature | Meltwater Social Listening 9.4/10 Visit ↗ | Brandwatch Listen 9.0/10 Visit ↗ |
|---|---|---|
| At a glance | ||
| Editor score | 9.4 | 9.0 |
| Ranking | #1 in Social Media Listening Software | #4 in Social Media Listening Software |
| Best for | Large teams needing broad, mature listening | Teams wanting straightforward search-based listening |
| Pricing model | Paid | Paid |
| Starting price | — | Pricing on request |
| Free plan | — | Not checked yet |
| Free trial | — | — |
| Deployment | Cloud | Cloud |
| Platforms | Web | Web |
| Integrations | 7 integrations | 1 integrations |
| Features Meltwater Social Listening 3/3 · Brandwatch Listen 3/3 | ||
| Web monitoring | ✓ | ✓ |
| Sentiment analysis | ✓ | ✓ |
| News monitoring | ✓ | ✓ |
| Specs | ||
| Social network coverage | X, Meta (Facebook and Instagram), YouTube, TikTok, LinkedIn, Reddit, Pinterest, Snapchat, Twitch, Discord, Threads, Bluesky, WeChat, Weibo, RED (Xiaohongshu), Douyin, Toutiao, QQ, Bilibili, Youku, Naver, Kakao Talk, LINE | X (Twitter), Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, TikTok, Tumblr, YouTube, Reddit, Bluesky, QQ |
| Historical data | Not checked yet | Not checked yet |
| Tracked query limit | Not checked yet | Not checked yet |
| Alert channels | Slack, Microsoft Teams, email, mobile app push alerts, SMS | |
| Our review | ||
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| Our verdict | Meltwater Social Listening is a web-based social intelligence product for marketing, communications, and PR teams that need to track conversations across social networks, news, forums, and other digital sources. It covers platforms ranging… Read the review → |
Brandwatch Listen is a web-based social listening product from Cision for brands, agencies, and social media teams that need to find and analyze online mentions. Boolean search supports monitoring phrases, hashtags, products, and… Read the review → |
Strengths and trade-offs
Meltwater Social Listening — where it wins
- Monitors social networks, news, forums, and Reddit across channels
- Combines sentiment, trends, competitor analysis, alerts, and reporting
- Offers APIs and integrations including Slack, Teams, and Power BI
Where it doesn't
- Pricing requires contacting sales
- No free plan is available
- Enterprise API and governance features are confined to the Enterprise plan
Brandwatch Listen — where it wins
- Boolean searches monitor mentions across social networks and the wider web
- Saved searches provide one year of historical analysis
- AI volume alerts, email notifications, tagging, and visualizations aid monitoring
Where it doesn't
- Pricing is handled through contact-sales or demo flows
- Two years of historical data is described as a premium add-on
- The listed integration is limited to Brandwatch Engage
- Meltwater Social Listening9.4/10 · Pricing on request
Broad listening and analysis for teams that need more than social-network monitoring.
Visit MeltwaterFull verdict → - Brandwatch Listen9.0/10 · Pricing on request
A focused listening tool for tracking mentions, sentiment, and changes in conversation volume.
Visit BrandwatchFull verdict →
More comparisons
- Meltwater Social Listening vs Sprinklr Social Listening
- Meltwater Social Listening vs Talkwalker
- Meltwater Social Listening vs Cision
- Meltwater Social Listening vs Nexis Newsdesk
- Meltwater Social Listening vs Pulsar
- Sprinklr Social Listening vs Brandwatch Listen
- Talkwalker vs Brandwatch Listen
- Brandwatch Listen vs Cision
All social media listening software comparisons → · Full ranking →
Reviewed by iTechGuides Editors · Editorial team · Updated Oct 2026
Last updated · How we research and update






