Software: Sprout Social

Category: Social Media Management Platform

Primary Use: Social publishing, engagement, analytics, and team collaboration

Developer: Sprout Social, Inc.

Starting Price: From approximately $249 per user/month

Free Trial/Plan: Free trial available

Platform: Web-based (cloud), iOS and Android apps available

Official Website: sproutsocial.com

Sprout Social is a cloud-based social media management platform designed to help organizations manage publishing, engagement, analytics, and reporting across multiple social networks. The platform supports workflows for brands, agencies, and enterprises seeking to centralize social media operations.

What Is Sprout Social?

Sprout Social is a SaaS platform that provides tools for managing social media accounts from a unified dashboard. Founded in 2010, the company focuses on delivering publishing, monitoring, analytics, and collaboration tools for marketing teams.

The software enables users to schedule posts, respond to messages, monitor brand mentions, and generate performance reports. Sprout Social integrates with major social networks and provides analytics to help organizations measure engagement and audience growth.

Sprout Social operates entirely online and does not require local installation. Users access features through a browser-based interface or mobile app.

Who Uses Sprout Social?

Common User Groups

Sprout Social is used by:

  • Digital marketing teams
  • Social media managers
  • Marketing agencies
  • Enterprise brands
  • Ecommerce companies
  • Customer support teams

The platform supports both single-user accounts and multi-user teams requiring collaboration tools.

Typical Use Cases

Social media publishing

Users schedule and publish posts across multiple social networks.

Community management

Teams monitor incoming messages and comments from a centralized inbox.

Performance analytics

Organizations analyze engagement metrics and audience growth.

Brand monitoring

Users track mentions, keywords, and hashtags across platforms.

Client reporting

Agencies generate reports for clients and stakeholders.

Core Features

Publishing & Scheduling

What it does:

Sprout Social allows users to plan and schedule social media content.

How users typically use it:

Teams create posts, assign publishing dates, and distribute content across platforms from one interface.

Key capabilities:

  • Multi-platform publishing
  • Content calendar
  • Post scheduling
  • Draft management
  • Approval workflows

The publishing system supports coordinated social media campaigns.

Smart Inbox

What it does:

The Smart Inbox consolidates messages from multiple social networks into a single stream.

How users typically use it:

Teams respond to comments, direct messages, and mentions from one dashboard.

Key capabilities:

  • Unified message management
  • Message tagging and filtering
  • Task assignment
  • Conversation history
  • Response tracking

This feature supports team collaboration in community management.

Social Analytics & Reporting

What it does:

Sprout Social provides analytics dashboards and custom reporting tools.

How users typically use it:

Users monitor metrics such as engagement, impressions, clicks, and follower growth.

Key capabilities:

  • Platform-specific analytics
  • Cross-network reporting
  • Engagement tracking
  • Audience growth analysis
  • Exportable PDF and CSV reports

Reporting tools are designed to support performance evaluation and stakeholder communication.

Social Listening

What it does:

The listening feature monitors brand mentions, keywords, and trends across social platforms.

How users typically use it:

Organizations track conversations relevant to their brand, competitors, or industry topics.

Key capabilities:

  • Keyword tracking
  • Trend analysis
  • Sentiment analysis
  • Competitive monitoring
  • Custom listening queries

Listening tools support market research and brand monitoring activities.

Team Collaboration Tools

What it does:

Sprout Social includes features for team-based workflows.

How users typically use it:

Teams assign tasks, manage approvals, and collaborate on content creation.

Key capabilities:

  • Role-based permissions
  • Message assignment
  • Content approval workflows
  • Internal notes
  • Activity tracking

These features support structured collaboration across departments.

CRM & Customer Care Integration

What it does:

Sprout Social provides CRM-style tools and integrations for customer engagement.

How users typically use it:

Users view conversation history and manage customer interactions within the platform.

Key capabilities:

  • Contact profiles
  • Conversation history tracking
  • Integration with CRM systems
  • Customer tagging
  • Case management tools

These features support customer service and relationship management workflows.

Integrations and Compatibility

Supported Social Networks

Sprout Social integrates with major social platforms, including:

  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • Twitter (X)
  • LinkedIn
  • Pinterest
  • TikTok
  • YouTube

Feature availability may vary by platform and subscription tier.

Third-Party Integrations

Sprout Social integrates with tools such as:

  • Salesforce
  • HubSpot
  • Google Analytics
  • Zendesk
  • Shopify

These integrations allow social data to connect with broader marketing and customer management systems.

Platform Availability

  • Web-based SaaS platform
  • iOS and Android mobile applications
  • Accessible via modern browsers
  • No desktop installation required

Pricing Structure

(Pricing may change — verify on the official site.)

Sprout Social uses per-user pricing with tiered feature access.

Standard Plan — from approximately $249 per user/month

Includes:

  • Social publishing tools
  • Smart Inbox
  • Basic reporting
  • Up to 5 social profiles per user
  • Review management tools

Professional Plan — from approximately $399 per user/month

Includes everything in Standard, plus:

  • Competitive reports
  • Message tagging
  • Custom workflows
  • Expanded reporting capabilities
  • Increased profile limits

Advanced Plan — from approximately $499 per user/month

Includes everything in Professional, plus:

  • Advanced social listening
  • Team productivity reporting
  • Message spike alerts
  • Helpdesk integrations
  • Custom bot builder

Enterprise Plan

Custom pricing available for organizations requiring:

  • Advanced security controls
  • Premium onboarding
  • Large team management
  • Custom integrations

Free Trial

Sprout Social typically offers a limited free trial period for new users.

Billing Options

  • Monthly billing
  • Annual billing discounts
  • Pricing scales based on number of users and selected plan

Advantages and Limitations

Notable Advantages

  • Multi-network publishing support
  • Unified inbox for engagement
  • Advanced analytics and reporting
  • Team collaboration tools
  • Social listening capabilities

Potential Limitations

  • Per-user pricing model
  • Higher pricing compared to entry-level tools
  • Advanced features limited to higher tiers
  • Social listening not included in lowest tier

Alternatives to Sprout Social

Several platforms provide similar social media management functionality.

Hootsuite

Offers publishing, monitoring, and reporting tools.

Buffer

Focuses on social scheduling and engagement.

Later

Provides visual scheduling tools for social content.

Agorapulse

Combines publishing, inbox management, and analytics features.

These platforms support overlapping social media management workflows.

Frequently Asked Questions

What does Sprout Social do?

Sprout Social is a social media management platform that provides tools for publishing, engagement, analytics, and listening.

Is Sprout Social cloud-based?

Yes. It operates as a web-based SaaS platform with mobile apps.

Does Sprout Social offer a free plan?

No permanent free plan is available, but a limited free trial is typically offered.

Which social networks does Sprout Social support?

It supports platforms such as Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, Twitter (X), TikTok, Pinterest, and YouTube.

Who typically uses Sprout Social?

Marketing teams, agencies, enterprise brands, and social media managers commonly use the platform.

Key Takeaways

Sprout Social is a cloud-based social media management platform designed to centralize publishing, engagement, analytics, and collaboration workflows. The software integrates with major social networks and third-party tools, offering team-based features and reporting capabilities. Pricing begins at approximately $249 per user per month, with expanded functionality available in higher subscription tiers.