You finally decided to start a YouTube channel and you’ve already spent hours learning how to create and edit good videos so you can share engaging and valuable content. You’re happy with everything you’ve done but now you’re wondering how do I get more people to see it?
Well, I’m here to talk about two great tools that can help you find an answer to that question: VidIQ and Socialblade.
Truth be told, growing on YouTube is really hard for most of us but, luckily, any of these two tools will make you grow faster and get the best out of your videos. They analyze how visible your content is and show you many cool stats that you need to understand to gain more views.
Both of them have great features and free plans that you can benefit from, but of course, there are some differences. So… which one is better?
Let’s get started!
Disclaimer: This post contains affiliate links
Get to know VidIQ
VidIQ is a Chrome extension that will completely change your YouTube experience. It is also one of the most popular tools for content creators, and you’ll see why.
Once you’ve installed the extension in your Chrome browser and linked your account, you’ll notice some extra stuff in your desktop YouTube interface.
This extension adds new sections with very useful data to see why some videos are so trendy. You can research the best topics and hashtags for your videos, manage your channel, and even track competitors.
It’s a pretty complete marketing tool for YouTube.
Main features
Scorecard
This is a panel divided into different sections with a lot of data that quickly shows you how your videos are performing, as well as other people’s videos. It also gives you an overall score that measures how good a specific video is, in terms of SEO and digital marketing.
It gathers information like views per hour, top devices, average view time, how a video is performing on platforms like Facebook and Reddit, SEO feedback, video optimization checklist, controversial keywords, channel analytics, video tags, and more.
It even has a Tweets section so you can see who has shared a video on Twitter (which is incredibly useful if you’re an influencer and you’d like to thank those people that are talking about you but are not mentioning you directly).
Keywords tools
vidIQ is good to determine the best keywords for your videos. This is perfect to make your content more visible given that YouTube is the second largest search engine after Google (which, btw, owns YouTube).
One of the most useful features is the Keyword Score, which shows you the search volume and competition of a keyword.
Tracking competitors
No matter what your channel is about, you will always have competitors. And this is not necessarily a bad thing; you can always learn from them! VidIQ gives you the possibility to track some of your competitors to see what strategies are working for them that you can use to grow your channel.
Trend alerts
This is a more advanced version of the trending page on YouTube because it will show you relevant content about the topics you’re interested in. And you will get these alerts in your email at the frequency you decide.
You can configure trend alerts about a specific keyword and even about your competitors.
Channel audit
This is a great tool that instantly shows you all the relevant data about your channel such as how much you’ve grown, how well your content is performing, your competitors’ activity, which ones are your most successful videos, and what things you can improve.
These are just some of the useful features that VidIQ has. It also has other cool stuff such as a thumbnail generator, productivity tools, Facebook syndication, and much more.
However, not all of them are available for free, so you might want to take a look at the plans they offer.
(Yes, I know, not everything in life can be that easy…)
Plans
Basic – Free:
You can link 1 channel, set 1 trend alert and you have access to the vidIQ scorecard, live stats bar, and basic video analytics. It’s a good deal if you are new to YouTube and want to try this service.
Pro – Starting at $7.50/mo
With this plan, you have access to almost all of the amazing features. You have everything that the basic plan plus:
- You can track 6 competitors
- You get keyword tools
- Top Tweets
- Top Trending Videos
- Historical analysis
- Much more, click to see all features.
It’s a good deal for individuals who really want to improve their channels.
Boost – Starting at $39/mo:
- Includes all the features of the Pro plan plus:
- You can link 1, 3, or 5 channels
- Track 20 competitors
- Set 5, 10, or 15 trend alerts.
- Even more analytics
- Facebook Syndication
- VidIQ Keyword Engine
- SEO optimization
- Video archival
- More, click to see all features.
This is the best deal for small businesses. Also great if you manage multiple channels and need more detailed data.
Boost+ – Starting at $415/mo:
It includes all of the Boost plan features plus personalized coaching for dedicated creators and agencies.
Both VidIQ and Socialblade are YouTube certified, so they are 100% trustworthy tools, but let’s talk about what Socialblade has to offer:
Get to know Socialblade
Socialblade is a website that gathers a lot of statistics and gives you access to their public database so you can see the performance and growth of any content creator, including other platforms besides YouTube– such as Instagram, Twitch, Facebook, Twitter and more.
This is the right tool to see the magic happening behind every YouTuber or influencer.
It also offers a browser extension that’s available for Chrome and Firefox as well as a mobile app for iOS and Android users.
Main features
Detailed statistics across the most famous social media platforms
You can see views, subscribers (or followers), estimated earnings, and more interesting information about any content creator with a single click.
Rankings
You can see how well ranked a content creator is according to different factors. For example, you can search for your YouTube channel and see your position in the global ranking according to the number of subscribers, number of views, country, and the genre of the channel.
Socialblade also offers a special ranking inside their database that shows how influential a user is, giving a more accurate score that’s not only based on the number of subscribers a YouTuber has but how engaging its content is and how much it has been growing.
Projections
Socialblade analyzes the growth of a content creator and it shows you projections based on that data. This way you can have a global idea of how much you can achieve in the future and work to improve that.
Comparisons
When you search for a channel or user you get the chance to compare its performance against a competitor. Just like VidIQ, this is a great tool to learn from what other people are doing to reach the same target you’re pointing to.
Besides all the cool stuff you can see, you have the possibility to add “favorites” in your Socialblade account so you can keep track of your accounts’ progress.
Also, if you’re interested in knowing how to get the best out of YouTube, Socialblade offers a consulting service, so you can get help and guidance from experts to grow fast and organically on YouTube.
Plans
What’s great about Socialblade is that anyone has access to transparent information about any content creator. It’s a free database that will help you understand the audience and progress of YouTubers, streamers, and more.
Nevertheless, you have the option to get a Premium Membership that will give you other benefits. You can choose among these options:
Bronze – $3.99/mo
You get one YT Report Card per month, which is a quick report with all your statistics that you can send to a brand you’re interested in working with. It also gives you 15 favorite slots per platform.
Silver – $9.99/mo
You get:
- 25 favorite slots per platform
- 10 YT Report cards per month
- 60-day table data
- Premium data charts.
Gold – $39.99/mo
You get:
- 100 favorite slots per platform
- 50 YT Report cards per month
- 120-day table data
- Premium charts
- Add/remove tags.
Platinum – $99.99/mo
This is a great option for large companies. You get:
- 500 favorite slots per platform
- 100 YT Report cards per month
- 365-day table data
- Premium charts
- Add/remove tags.
VidIQ vs. Socialblade: a quick comparison
Now that we have talked about the main features and plans of each tool we can compare them to see which one is the best choice to grow your YouTube channel.
First of all, you need to remember that both VidIQ and Socialblade are YouTube certified and are very similar in some aspects but they offer different services. Therefore, they might not be useful for the same purposes.
What we like about VidIQ
VidIQ is specifically designed to improve your YouTube experience, so it has a lot of great features that Socialblade doesn’t.
Let’s refresh some of the best features:
- Keyword tools that will help you make your videos more visible
- It clearly shows you what things should be improved and how
- It has SEO optimization
- It has a thumbnail generator and other useful tools for YouTube videos
- You can track your competitors
- It has an easy-to-understand interface
- It has Trend alerts so you can always be updated with popular content related to your interests
What we don’t like about VidIQ
- Its free version is very limited. It lacks the majority of the tools
- You need to pay to get the best out of VidIQ and it might be a little bit pricey for new YouTubers
- It’s only available as a Chrome extension
What we like about Socialblade
As I mentioned before, Socialblade is a free database of content creators that’s useful to track progress of yourself and other people. It’s awesome to study your growth and see projections so you recognize what’s working in your video marketing strategy and what you should improve.
Let’s recap what’s good:
- It gathers statistics of many different platforms, so you can also see your evolution outside YouTube
- It includes future projections
- It’s a very extensive report with great and useful information you can use to understand your audience and your competitors
- You can compare YouTube channels easily
- It offers Chrome and Firefox extensions as well as mobile apps for Android and IOS
- It has a consulting service for YouTubers
What we don’t like about Socialblade
- Although it’s good to see your growth, it doesn’t have tools to get the best out of your YouTube channel
- Might be slow to update statistics
Conclusion: what’s the best tool?
Before we jump into any conclusion, I just want to say that the best tool is what works for you. I know it may sound silly but it’s true.
What I mean with this is that you should go with the choice that fits your needs and your wallet. This is a basic rule that applies to anything that will help you become a better content creator.
Having left that clear, I must say that, after looking closely at all the features and benefits, VidIQ seems like the best option for YouTubers because it’s made for them. It includes a lot of interesting tools and sections that are actually designed to help you grow your channel.
However, it favors experienced YouTubers and those who have a larger budget because the free version lacks most of the cool features. But it’s worth trying it anyway! Especially for the useful free things like suggested tags.
On the other hand, Socialblade is better for reports and projections about your performance in social media, but if you’re focused on YouTube, I think VidIQ will give you more options.
If you’re starting, you can always try both for free and see which one gives you more benefits according to your needs. The best part is that any of the two will help you understand how well you’re doing and compare yourself to your competitors. You’ll end up learning a lot!
Now, I’d like to know more about your experience… Have you tried any of these tools?
Share your thoughts on the comments below!
Will has been a full-time content creator since 2014. He’s an audio, video, and tech hobbyist dedicated to reviewing products and giving you the best tips he knows to grow your audience.