· Reviewed by Sergio Verdugo, co-founder of Quetzal
Hootsuite and Sprout Social are the two classic suites for social media teams: both charge per user, and both bundle publishing, an inbox, listening and reporting. This page puts their published facts side by side, says which one fits most teams, and then looks at the job neither of them does for you.
Sprout Social is the easier start for most teams. Its entry plan costs $99 a month per user against Hootsuite's $149 a month, its trial runs 30 days without a card, and its app is available in English, Spanish, French, Italian and Portuguese.
Hootsuite wins when you need its breadth: mature scheduling and team workflow, listening and reporting, a wide set of integrations, and an approval step on its plans page. Its annual price per user starts at $99.
Both suites organise the work around content your team already makes. If making it is the problem, see the third option below. See the third option
| Hootsuite | Sprout Social | |
|---|---|---|
| What it is | One of the original social media management suites: scheduling, inbox, listening and reporting for teams, priced per user. | A social media management platform for teams, priced per seat, with publishing, a shared inbox, listening and reporting. |
| Best for | Teams that want listening and many integrations | Teams that want a shared inbox, reporting and governance |
| Starts at | Standard: $149 a month per user ($99 a month billed yearly) | Essentials: $99 a month per user ($79 a month billed yearly) |
| Pricing basis | Per user (seat), per month; in the eurozone the same figures are shown in euros. | Per seat (user), per month. |
| Free plan and trial | 14-day trial, no card | 30-day trial, no card |
| Refunds | If you cancel or downgrade, you pay the rest of the plan term and get no refund. | No refunds or credits for prepaid, unused fees; after cancelling, access runs to the next payment date. |
| AI for the content | Helps you write when you ask | Helps you write when you ask |
| AI video | Not listed on their pricing page | No AI video |
| Approvals | Yes | Not listed |
| Inbox | Yes | Yes |
| Networks | Not listed on their pricing page | 7 networks: Instagram, Facebook, LinkedIn, TikTok, X, Threads, Pinterest |
| App languages | Not listed on their pricing page | English, Spanish, French, Italian, Portuguese |
What it is
Best for
Starts at
Pricing basis
Free plan and trial
Refunds
AI for the content
AI video
Approvals
Inbox
Networks
App languages
Prices in the currency each vendor publishes, as shown on their own page. Mind the unit: paying per channel is not the same as paying per user.
Per user (seat), per month; in the eurozone the same figures are shown in euros.
Unit: per user. Their pricing page
Per seat (user), per month.
Unit: per user. Their pricing page
Both suites charge per user to manage content. The question here is who produces it. Ticks come from each vendor's own pages; where a vendor does not say, we write "not listed".
| Hootsuite | Sprout Social | Quetzal | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Writes post text with AI | Yes (when you ask) | Yes (when you ask) | Yes |
| Plans and makes the week's posts on its own | No | No | Yes (from Growth) |
| Makes video with AI | Not listed | No | Yes (from Pro) |
| Approval step before anything posts | Yes | Not listed | Yes |
| Publishes to Instagram, Facebook, LinkedIn, TikTok, X and YouTube | Not listed | Partly (5 of 6) | Yes |
| App available in Spanish | Not listed | Yes | Yes |
| Changes the next posts from each post's results | Not listed | Not listed | Yes |
| Start without a card (free plan or card-free trial) | Yes | Yes | No (14 days free, card required) |
Writes post text with AI
Plans and makes the week's posts on its own
Makes video with AI
Approval step before anything posts
Publishes to Instagram, Facebook, LinkedIn, TikTok, X and YouTube
App available in Spanish
Changes the next posts from each post's results
Start without a card (free plan or card-free trial)
A suite pays off when a team of creators feeds it. A small business without that team pays per seat for a calendar nobody fills. Quetzal is priced per brand, not per user: it plans the week from your brand and website, writes and designs the posts, publishes them to Instagram, Facebook, LinkedIn, TikTok, X and YouTube after your approval, and changes the next week from what each post did.
Quetzal (quetzaltech.app) is an AI social media manager. It reads your website and brand, plans the week, writes and designs every post, makes AI reels from the Pro plan, and publishes to Instagram, Facebook, LinkedIn, TikTok, X and YouTube. You can approve each piece before it goes out, or let it run on full autopilot.
Price: the Starter plan is $116 a month per brand ($89 a month billed yearly), before tax.
14 days free. Card required, nothing charged today.
At the entry level, yes. Sprout Social's Essentials plan costs $99 a month per user, and Hootsuite's Standard plan costs $149 a month per user. Both charge per user; Hootsuite's highest listed plan costs $499 and Sprout Social's $499 per user a month.
Sprout Social offers 30 days and Hootsuite 14 days, both without a card.
Neither refunds a paid period. Hootsuite's terms say that if you cancel or downgrade you pay the rest of the term. Sprout Social gives no refunds or credits for prepaid, unused fees, and access runs to the next payment date.
Sprout Social's help centre lists English, Spanish, French, Italian and Portuguese. Hootsuite does not list its app languages on the pages we read.
Both have AI features that help write when you ask. Neither plans and makes a week of posts on its own, and Sprout Social lists no AI video.
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