Brandwatch review

Brandwatch Consumer Research is the research-grade option here. Its product page describes an archive of more than 1.4 trillion posts going back to 2008, with 496 million new posts added each day from over 100 million online sources. That depth matters when a brand needs to compare a crisis with one from years ago or size a market conversation before a launch. Iris, the built-in AI assistant, writes summaries of what the data shows, image analysis picks up logos in photos, and custom classifiers let analysts sort mentions into their own categories. Teams can also upload first-party data, such as survey answers or support tickets, and analyze it next to social posts. Brandwatch is now part of Cision, and it sells separate social media management and influencer products that connect to the research tool. The trade-off is cost and complexity: prices are quoted only, and the query building and dashboards are aimed at trained analysts rather than casual users.

Who it is for

Large brands and insights teams that need deep historical data, custom classifiers and research across many markets.

Price

See vendor pricing (USD check pending).

US price check pending. See the vendor pricing page.

Key features

• Archive of 1.4+ trillion posts from 2008 to today, with 496 million new posts a day
• Iris, a generative AI assistant that turns data into written insights
• Image analysis trained on billions of images to find logos and visual mentions
• Custom classifiers that let you train the system to categorize data your way
• Upload of first-party data to analyze alongside online conversations

Strengths and weaknesses

• Strength: Deepest historical archive on this list
• Strength: Strong custom categorization for research teams
• Strength: Connects to Brandwatch social media management and influencer products
• Weakness: No published prices; plans are quoted
• Weakness: Built for analysts, so new users face a learning curve
• Weakness: Publishing and engagement sit in a separate product

Key facts

• Data archive: 1.4+ trillion posts back to 2008
• New posts: 496 million a day
• Sources: Over 100 million online sources

Where it ranks

Brandwatch is No. 2 in our Best Social Listening Tools verdict.