Sprout Social vs Inbeat vs Influencer Hero: Features, Pricing and Key Differences
The main difference between Sprout Social vs Inbeat vs Influencer Hero is that Sprout Social focuses on social media management and listening, Inbeat specializes in micro-influencer discovery, while Influencer Hero provides an all-in-one influencer marketing workflow with discovery, outreach automation, affiliate tracking, coupon codes, and detailed analytics.
Pricing also separates these three platforms. Sprout Social is the most expensive and best suited for teams prioritizing publishing and monitoring. Inbeat offers affordable discovery but lacks end-to-end campaign tools. Influencer Hero delivers the broadest feature set at a lower cost, making it easier for growing brands and agencies to manage creators, run outreach, and track revenue in one place.
In this article, we’ll break down Sprout Social vs Inbeat vs Influencer Hero across features, pricing, pros, and cons to help you choose the right platform for your brand.
Sprout Social vs Inbeat vs Influencer Hero Comparison
Features
Sprout Social
Inbeat
Influencer Hero
Influencer Discovery / Database
No influencer database
100M+ creators (focus on micro-influencers)
450M+ creator database with filters across all platforms
Limited influencer tools; mainly social scheduling
Basic campaign tools; no CRM automation
Full CRM, automated outreach, tracking, affiliate dashboards
Customer Support
Standard support; priority support on higher plans
Email support
Dedicated support, onboarding, strategy calls (based on sales data)
Pricing
High; add-ons for listening & analytics
Affordable, database-only model
Lower cost for full suite; replaces multiple tools (based on demo data)
Influencer Discovery
Sprout Social doesn’t offer an influencer database, while Inbeat provides micro-influencer search tools. Influencer Hero stands out with a 450M+ creator database, giving brands far more reach and platform coverage.
Core Focus
Sprout Social is built for social media publishing, scheduling, and listening. Inbeat focuses primarily on creator discovery, while Influencer Hero delivers a full end-to-end influencer marketing workflow.
Best For
Sprout Social fits teams that prioritize content publishing and social analytics. Inbeat works well for smaller brands needing simple influencer search, whereas Influencer Hero is designed for D2C brands, Shopify stores, agencies, and enterprise teams running full campaigns.
Campaign Management & CRM
Sprout Social offers minimal creator campaign tools, and Inbeat lacks CRM depth. Influencer Hero includes full campaign CRM, automated outreach, tracking, and affiliate dashboards, making it better suited for scaling programs.
Customer Support
Sprout Social offers standard support tiers, and Inbeat provides basic email support. Influencer Hero gives brands hands-on onboarding, strategy calls, and fast support.
Pricing
Sprout Social is the highest-cost solution, starting at $1,599 per user/month with required annual contracts and add-ons . InBeat offers lower-cost, discovery-only access with custom pricing . Influencer Hero provides the broadest feature set at a lower overall cost, with all-inclusive plans beginning at $649/month, often replacing 2–3 separate tools .
Which Tool Is Best for You? Why Brands Choose Influencer Hero Over Sprout Social and Inbeat
Brands typically choose Influencer Hero because it offers a complete, end-to-end influencer marketing system, combining discovery, automated outreach, CRM, gifting, content collection, affiliate tracking, and revenue reporting in one platform. Inbeat lacks these workflow and tracking tools since it focuses mainly on discovery, and Sprout Social is built primarily for social media management rather than performance-driven creator programs.
As a result, Influencer Hero delivers far more functionality in a single package, replacing multiple tools and giving teams full visibility from first contact to sales attribution.
Sprout Social Overview
Sprout Social is a unified platform designed to manage social media publishing, performance analytics, and audience engagement. It helps brands plan and schedule posts, interact with their communities, and monitor results across various networks. The platform recently expanded with new influencer marketing capabilities, offering creator discovery, campaign execution, and in-depth analytics, all within its existing social media suite.
Sprout Social Standout Features
AI-Powered Topic Discovery: Uses AI to identify creators who are active in the same conversations and themes your target audience follows, rather than relying solely on audience size.
Brand Fit & Safety Scoring: Automated checks evaluate creators for tone, values, and overall safety, assigning each an alignment score.
Custom Landing Pages & Portals: Create branded application pages to streamline influencer recruitment, vetting, and onboarding.
Advanced Reporting & Insights: Access consolidated reports that blend influencer metrics with broader social performance, keyword data, and competitor benchmarks.
Best For: Brands and agencies already using Sprout for social media management who want to incorporate influencer marketing without switching platforms.
Pricing & Contract Length
Base Plan: Around $1,600 per month per user, plus roughly $600 per month for each additional user.
Contract Terms: Monthly and annual billing options, though annual commitments are generally required.
Estimated Annual Cost: Approximately $19,200 for one user or $25,200 for two users.
Pros
AI-powered Brand Fit scoring ensures strong alignment between creators and brand values.
Shopify integration simplifies affiliate programs and product gifting.
Built-in approvals and workflow tools improve internal collaboration.
Robust analytics and EMV tracking support clear ROI measurement.
Competitive benchmarking adds valuable industry and cross-platform context.
Cons
High starting price ($1,600 per user/month) can be prohibitive for smaller teams.
Annual contracts reduce flexibility.
Lacks bulk outreach capabilities found in specialized influencer CRMs.
No AI tools for outreach or content production.
Missing native features for managing UGC usage rights.
Free Tools
Social Media ROI Calculator: Quickly estimates performance impact from your social content.
Landscape (Image Resizer): Resizes images to fit the specs of different platforms and placements.
Social Media Templates: A free collection of templates and graphics for teams without in-house design.
Inbeat Overview
inBeat is an influencer marketing tool designed for startups, small brands, and lean marketing teams that need an affordable, easy-to-use solution for creator discovery and basic campaign management.
The platform focuses mainly on Instagram and TikTok, helping brands quickly find high-performing micro and nano influencers who deliver strong engagement. Its lightweight approach makes it ideal for teams launching their first influencer programs or managing smaller campaigns.
Inbeat Standout Features
Influencer Search & Discovery: Search Instagram and TikTok creators using filters like audience size, engagement rate, location, and demographics.
Automated Similar Profile Search: Enter a top influencer’s username to instantly uncover similar creators, enabling quick scaling of successful collaborations.
Campaign Management Dashboard: Track outreach, collaborations, and performance metrics in one streamlined interface.
Bulk Contact Export: Easily export influencer emails and details for outreach using your own email tools or CRM, great for small agencies or Shopify brands.
Free Marketing Toolkit: Includes calculators for ROAS, CPM, and CPA, mockup generators for TikTok/Snap ads, and engagement rate auditing tools.
Best For: Startups, small D2C brands, and marketing teams seeking a budget-friendly way to find and work with micro and nano influencers on TikTok and Instagram.
Pricing & Contract Length
inBeat uses a custom pricing model that requires scheduling a demo. Based on public sales information:
Free access is available for basic discovery tools and calculators.
Paid tiers are offered on monthly or yearly plans depending on needs.
Pros
Extremely simple, beginner-friendly interface.
Affordable option for smaller brands.
Strong database of vetted micro and nano creators.
Fast, supportive customer service.
Helpful free tools for planning and performance analysis.
Cons
Only supports Instagram and TikTok (no YouTube or multi-platform discovery).
No AI features or advanced CRM capabilities.
No Shopify/eCommerce integrations yet.
Analytics are more limited than enterprise platforms.
Outreach must be done manually (no built-in automation).
Free Tools
Influencer Search Tool: Filter creators by niche, platform, or audience size.
ROAS, CPM & CPA Calculators: Forecast campaign outcomes and efficiency.
TikTok & Snapchat Ad Mockup Generators: Create quick ad previews for planning.
Influencer Hero Overview
Influencer Hero is a comprehensive influencer marketing platform designed for eCommerce and D2C brands that want to manage creator discovery, outreach, campaign execution, and affiliate tracking all in one place.
With built-in automation, a native CRM, and direct integrations with Shopify and WooCommerce, the platform helps teams scale operations, measure ROI accurately, and build long-term partnerships with creators. It’s especially valuable for fast-growing brands that need a unified system to coordinate high volumes of influencer activity.
Influencer Hero Standout Features
Advanced CRM & Automation: Offers a full influencer CRM with bulk outreach, automated follow-ups, and customizable workflows, reducing manual tasks and simplifying multi-campaign management.
Shopify & WooCommerce Integrations: Real-time native connections enable brands to track affiliate revenue, manage gifting, and accurately attribute sales through their eCommerce backend.
Support for All Major Platforms: Run influencer programs across Instagram, TikTok, YouTube, Facebook, Pinterest, Twitch, Snapchat, and X for broad multichannel reach.
AI-Based Creator Recommendations: AI tools surface creators who best match campaign objectives, speeding up discovery and vetting.
Live Performance Dashboards:Real-time reporting provides visibility into engagement, conversions, and revenue so teams can optimize continuously.
Best For: Shopify and WooCommerce brands looking to scale influencer and affiliate programs. Ideal for teams that need a single hub for outreach, gifting, tracking, and analytics.
Pricing & Contract Length
Standard: $649/month (up to 1,000 creators)
Pro: $1,049/month (up to 5,000 creators)
Business: $2,490/month (up to 10,000 creators)
Custom & Agency: Tailored plans available
Both monthly and annual billing options are offered.
Pros
Strong automation capabilities for scaling programs
Direct Shopify and WooCommerce integrations
Supports all major social platforms
AI-driven creator suggestions
Real-time analytics and reporting
Cons
Some automation features require initial setup
Outreach templates have limited flexibility
Free Tools
Influencer Finder (available to customers and subscribers)
Final Thoughts on Sprout Social vs Inbeat vs Influencer Hero
Sprout Social and Inbeat each serve a specific purpose, Sprout Social excels in social publishing and listening, while Inbeat offers a simple micro-influencer discovery tool. But neither provides the full workflow D2C brands, Shopify stores, or agencies need to actually manage creators, automate outreach, track sales, or scale performance-driven campaigns.
Influencer Hero stands out because it brings everything into one platform: a 450M+ creator database, automated outreach, CRM, affiliate tracking, coupon codes, and creator storefronts. It’s the most complete, cost-efficient solution for teams who want to run influencer marketing from start to finish without stitching together multiple tools.
Ready to see how Influencer Hero can streamline your entire influencer program? Book a free demo today.
FAQs
What’s the main difference between Influencer Hero, Sprout Social, and Inbeat?
Sprout Social focuses on social media management, Inbeat on micro-influencer discovery, and Influencer Hero offers a full end-to-end influencer marketing suite with discovery, outreach, CRM, and affiliate tracking.
Which platform has the largest influencer database?
Influencer Hero has the largest database with 450M+ creators, far bigger than Inbeat’s micro-influencer database and Sprout Social, which has no influencer database.
Which tool is best for D2C and Shopify brands?
Influencer Hero is the strongest option because it offers automated outreach, tracking, coupon codes, affiliate dashboards, and Shopify-friendly workflows.
Is Sprout Social good for influencer marketing?
Sprout Social isn’t built for influencer campaigns—it’s mainly for publishing, engagement, and social listening.
Does Inbeat offer full campaign management tools?
No. Inbeat provides discovery only; it doesn’t include CRM, automated outreach, affiliate tracking, or performance dashboards like Influencer Hero does.