Buffer vs Sprout Social

Buffer and Sprout Social both serve the social-media space, but they target different segments of the market and solve fundamentally different problems. Buffer positions as a growth-tier solution, while Sprout Social aims at the enterprise segment.

Buffer: Schedule and create social content across channels — Buffer's AI assists with drafting and timing so small teams publish consistently without a dedicated social manager.

Sprout Social: Manage enterprise social with AI-powered scheduling and analytics — Sprout Social handles publishing, listening, and reporting without cobbling together point solutions.

In our 9-dimension evaluation, Buffer scores 74/100 and Sprout Social scores 76/100. The scores are close, reflecting that both tools deliver genuine value — the right choice depends on your specific use case and team context.

Buffer's key advantage: Schedule and create social content across channels — Buffer's AI assists with drafting and timing so

Sprout Social's key advantage: Manage enterprise social with AI-powered scheduling and analytics — Sprout Social handles publishing

Our take on Buffer: Our social scheduler. Simple, reliable, and the AI assistant genuinely helps with writer's block. Best value in the category.

Our take on Sprout Social: The enterprise standard. Expensive but comprehensive. The AI features are incremental improvements on an already strong platform.

Choose Buffer if your team focuses on growth teams, social media workflows. Choose Sprout Social if you prioritize enterprise teams, social media workflows.

Watch out: Buffer — Newer entry — full review in progress. Sprout Social — Newer entry — full review in progress.