News & Media · head to head
Ground News vs Meltwater
Meltwater
News & Media
Media intelligence and social listening platform
- From
- $15000/year
- Rated
- -
The short version
- Only Ground News has a free tier, so it costs nothing to try first.
- Each has a real cost: Ground News blindspot analysis, the global coverage map, full coverage comparison, ownership and funding transparency, bias and factuality ratings and the My News Bias dashboard are all Vantage subscriber features; Meltwater real-time accuracy issues reported, particularly for niche industries or non-English content
- They diverge on capability: Ground News covers News comparison, Meltwater covers Media monitoring.
Where they differ
Only the attributes on which Ground News and Meltwater actually diverge.
| Attribute | Ground News | Meltwater |
|---|---|---|
| Starting price | Free | $15000/year |
| Pricing model | freemium | Unknown |
| Free tier | Yes | No |
| Platforms | Ios, Android, Web | Web, iOS, Android |
| Founded | 2018 | 2001 |
Identical on both: user rating (Not yet rated), category (News & Media).
What each one covers
Drawn from each product's published feature list. An absence here means we hold no record of it - not that the product lacks it.
Only in Ground News
- News comparison
- Bias ratings
- Source transparency
- Blindspot analysis
- Ownership data
- Browser extension
- Ios support
- Android support
Only in Meltwater
- Media monitoring
- Social listening
- Influencer discovery
- Sentiment analysis
- Competitive intelligence
- PR analytics
- Report automation
- Crisis monitoring
Both cover
- Web support
What people use each for
The jobs each tool is most often brought in to do.
Ground News
- News consumptionnot Meltwater
- Media literacynot Meltwater
- Researchnot Meltwater
- Fact checkingnot Meltwater
Meltwater
- Media monitoringnot Ground News
- Influencer researchnot Ground News
- Brand trackingnot Ground News
- Crisis managementnot Ground News
Where each one falls short
Documented limitations, not opinions. Every one is a constraint you would hit in normal use.
Ground News
- Blindspot analysis, the global coverage map, full coverage comparison, ownership and funding transparency, bias and factuality ratings and the My News Bias dashboard are all Vantage subscriber features
- Saved stories are unlimited only on Vantage
- The advertised $8.33 a month price is the annual rate, so paying monthly costs more
Meltwater
- Real-time accuracy issues reported, particularly for niche industries or non-English content
- Limited media contact database at 380,000-400,000 contacts compared to competitors like Cision
- Cumbersome dashboard navigation and reporting interface requiring multi-step menu access for data exports
- Annual contracts with limited ability to scale down; risky for businesses with fluctuating needs
Pricing, plan by plan
Ground News
Free- FreeFree
- Basic news comparison
- Bias ratings
- Limited stories
- Pro$9.99/month
- Unlimited stories
- Blindspot feed
- Ownership data
- Vanguard$19.99/month
- Everything in Pro
- Support journalism
- Early features
Meltwater
$15000/year- Essentials$15000/year
- Core media monitoring
- Brand mention tracking
- Industry trend monitoring
- Suite$25000/year
- Media monitoring
- Social listening
- Cross-department analytics
Which should you pick?
Choose Ground News if
- You need news comparison.
- You want to start without paying.
- You work on Ios, Android, Web.
- You also want bias ratings.
Choose Meltwater if
- You need media monitoring.
- You work on Web, iOS, Android.
- You also want social listening.
Questions people ask
- Is Ground News or Meltwater better?
- Neither clearly leads. Ground News starts at Free and Meltwater at $15000/year, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
- Which is cheaper, Ground News or Meltwater?
- Ground News has a free tier; the other does not. Paid plans start at Free for Ground News and $15000/year for Meltwater.
- Does Ground News or Meltwater run on more platforms?
- Ground News runs on Ios, Android, Web. Meltwater runs on Web, iOS, Android.
- Can I use Ground News for free?
- Yes. Ground News has a free tier, so you can try it without paying. Meltwater starts at $15000/year.
- What is Ground News best used for?
- Ground News is most often used for news consumption, media literacy, research, fact checking. Of those, news consumption and media literacy are not what Meltwater is typically brought in for.
- What can Ground News do that Meltwater cannot?
- Ground News covers News comparison, Bias ratings, Source transparency, Blindspot analysis. Meltwater covers Media monitoring, Social listening, Influencer discovery, Sentiment analysis. Both handle Web support.
Answered from the vendors’ own pages
Meltwater: How much does Meltwater cost?
Meltwater does not publish pricing; all quotes require a sales call and annual contract. Median annual cost is approximately $25,000, with mid-market PR teams typically paying $15,000-$40,000 depending on users, coverage volume, and features.
SourceMeltwater: What sources does Meltwater monitor?
Meltwater monitors 200M+ online publications, 400,000+ traditional media sources, 20,000+ podcasts, TV/radio across all 210 US DMAs, and social platforms including Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, Reddit, YouTube, WeChat, and Weibo.
SourceMeltwater: What languages does Meltwater support?
Meltwater provides global multilingual support with consistent accuracy across 100+ languages for sentiment analysis and content classification.
SourceMeltwater: Does Meltwater include journalist/media contact information?
Meltwater's media database includes approximately 380,000-400,000 contacts, smaller than competitors like Cision (1.1M). Media database and GenAI Lens are separate paid add-ons.
SourceMeltwater: Can I export Meltwater reports?
Yes, Meltwater generates custom dashboards and reports tailored to stakeholders. Mira AI assistant can generate summaries and insights from monitoring data.
SourceRelated pages
More on Ground News
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