Brandwave

Social media management platforms:Which brands are most popular in search?

In August 2026, Buffer was the most searched among social media management platforms worldwide, with an estimated 562K branded searches and 64.4% estimated Share of Search within this set. These are worldwide searches for English-language branded terms.

Share of Search, August 2026
  1. Buffer64.4%
  2. Hootsuite14.3%
  3. Sprout Social11%
  4. Sprinklr8.5%
  5. Later1.8%

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Share of SearchLeaderboard

Compare the platforms teams schedule and manage social posts in. Branded searches tell you how often people look for a brand by name or related terms. Comparing these searches across competitors helps you see how popular each brand is over time.

Share of Search among social media management platforms worldwide, by month

Share of Search by month for Buffer, Hootsuite, Sprout Social, Sprinklr. The figures are in the table below the chart.

View monthly share of search table
MonthBufferHootsuiteSprout SocialSprinklrLater
Oct 202555.2%21%13.3%8.5%1.9%
Nov 202557.4%22%11.5%7.3%1.8%
Dec 202556.8%21.5%11.2%8.7%1.8%
Jan 202655.5%24.9%10.8%6.9%1.8%
Feb 202655.1%24.5%10.4%8%2%
Mar 202657.4%21.3%11%8.5%2%
Apr 202661.4%18.5%9.4%8.8%1.8%
May 202663.6%17.3%9.8%7.5%1.8%
Jun 202659.8%18.9%10.9%8.3%2.1%
Jul 202665.8%13.8%10.5%8.1%1.8%
Aug 202664.4%14.3%11%8.5%1.8%
Sep 2026—————

This month’s ranking, August 2026

  1. 1.Buffer

    64.4%

    Held 1st. 562K estimated branded searches, -6.9% vs prior month. Share -1.4 points.

  2. 2.Hootsuite

    14.3%

    Held 2nd. 125K estimated branded searches, -1.1% vs prior month. Share +0.6 points.

  3. Held 3rd. 95.6K estimated branded searches, -0.85% vs prior month. Share +0.5 points.

  4. 4.Sprinklr

    8.5%

    Held 4th. 74K estimated branded searches, 0% vs prior month. Share +0.4 points.

  5. 5.Later

    1.8%

    Held 5th. 15.6K estimated branded searches, -8% vs prior month. Share -0.1 points.

Compare search popularity between leading brands

Which brand is most popular in search among social media management platforms worldwide?

In August 2026, Buffer was the most searched among social media management platforms worldwide, with an estimated 562K branded searches and 64.4% estimated Share of Search within this set. Hootsuite is in 2nd place, 50.1 percentage points behind at 14.3% Share of Search.

Global social media management platforms, last 12 months ending September 2026
BrandShare of SearchPeakLowRank
Buffer55.2% → 64.4%65.8%Jul 202655.1%Feb 20261st
Hootsuite21% → 14.3%24.9%Jan 202613.8%Jul 20262nd
Sprout Social13.3% → 11%13.3%Oct 20259.4%Apr 20263rd
Sprinklr8.5%8.8%Apr 20266.9%Jan 20264th
Later1.9% → 1.8%2.1%Jun 20261.8%May 20265th

Each finding as a sentence

  • Across the 11 months ending August 2026, Buffer’s estimated Share of Search among social media management platforms worldwide increased from 55.2% to 64.4%.
  • Across the 11 months ending August 2026, Hootsuite’s estimated Share of Search among social media management platforms worldwide decreased from 21% to 14.3%.
  • Across the 11 months ending August 2026, Sprout Social’s estimated Share of Search among social media management platforms worldwide decreased from 13.3% to 11%.
  • Across the 11 months ending August 2026, Buffer’s estimated Share of Search among social media management platforms worldwide peaked at 65.8% in July 2026 and was lowest at 55.1% in February 2026.
  • Across the 11 months ending August 2026, Hootsuite’s estimated Share of Search among social media management platforms worldwide peaked at 24.9% in January 2026 and was lowest at 13.8% in July 2026.
  • Across the 11 months ending August 2026, Sprout Social’s estimated Share of Search among social media management platforms worldwide peaked at 13.3% in October 2025 and was lowest at 9.4% in April 2026.
  • Across the 11 months ending August 2026, Sprinklr’s estimated Share of Search among social media management platforms worldwide peaked at 8.8% in April 2026 and was lowest at 6.9% in January 2026.
  • Across the 11 months ending August 2026, Sprinklr and Later held steady: their estimated Share of Search among social media management platforms worldwide each moved less than 0.5 percentage points.

How did search popularity change for social media management platforms worldwide in August 2026?

  1. In August 2026, Hootsuite gained estimated Share of Search among social media management platforms worldwide, from 13.8% to 14.3%.

  2. In August 2026, Buffer lost estimated Share of Search among social media management platforms worldwide, from 65.8% to 64.4%.

  3. Estimated monthly branded searches for Sprout Social worldwide fell 32.5% over 11 measured months, from 142K to 95.6K in August 2026.

  4. Estimated monthly branded searches for Later worldwide fell 23.7% over 11 measured months, from 20.4K to 15.6K in August 2026.

  5. Estimated monthly branded searches for Sprinklr worldwide fell 18.2% over 11 measured months, from 90.5K to 74K in August 2026.

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