Softwr

News · head to head

Meltwater vs SAP BusinessObjects

Meltwater logo

Meltwater

News

Media intelligence and social listening platform

From
$15000/year
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
SAP BusinessObjects logo

SAP BusinessObjects

Business Intelligence

Enterprise business intelligence suite

From
$400/month
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Each has a real cost: Meltwater real-time accuracy issues reported, particularly for niche industries or non-English content; SAP BusinessObjects sAP BusinessObjects Private Cloud Edition is listed on UK G-Cloud 14 as a Cloud software service by SAP (UK) Limited titled 'SAP Business Objects Private Cloud Edition', alongside a reseller listing from NTT DATA Business Solutions; the G-Cloud search results describe it as subscription-based but show no per-user or per-month figure in the listing summary
  • They diverge on capability: Meltwater covers Media monitoring, SAP BusinessObjects covers Crystal Reports.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 30 August 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Meltwater and SAP BusinessObjects actually diverge.

Attributes where Meltwater and SAP BusinessObjects differ
AttributeMeltwaterSAP BusinessObjects
Starting price$15000/year$400/month
Pricing modelUnknownsubscription
PlatformsWeb, iOS, AndroidWeb, Desktop, Mobile
CategoryNewsBusiness Intelligence
Founded20011972

Identical on both: free tier (No), user rating (Not yet rated).

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 Meltwater

  • Media monitoring
  • Social listening
  • Influencer discovery
  • Sentiment analysis
  • Competitive intelligence
  • PR analytics
  • Report automation
  • Crisis monitoring

Only in SAP BusinessObjects

  • Crystal Reports
  • Web Intelligence
  • Lumira
  • Analysis for Office
  • Live Office
  • SAP HANA
  • SAP ERP
  • Oracle

Both cover

  • Web support
  • Mobile support

What people use each for

The jobs each tool is most often brought in to do.

Meltwater

  • Media monitoringnot SAP BusinessObjects
  • Influencer researchnot SAP BusinessObjects
  • Brand trackingnot SAP BusinessObjects
  • Crisis managementnot SAP BusinessObjects

SAP BusinessObjects

  • Enterprise reportingnot Meltwater
  • Executive dashboardsnot Meltwater
  • Regulatory compliancenot Meltwater
  • Strategic planningnot Meltwater
  • Operational analyticsnot Meltwater

Where each one falls short

Documented limitations, not opinions. Every one is a constraint you would hit in normal use.

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

SAP BusinessObjects

  • SAP BusinessObjects Private Cloud Edition is listed on UK G-Cloud 14 as a Cloud software service by SAP (UK) Limited titled 'SAP Business Objects Private Cloud Edition', alongside a reseller listing from NTT DATA Business Solutions; the G-Cloud search results describe it as subscription-based but show no per-user or per-month figure in the listing summary

Pricing, plan by plan

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

SAP BusinessObjects

$400/month
  • Standard$400/month
    • Core BI Tools
    • Web Intelligence
    • Crystal Reports
  • EnterpriseFree
    • Full Suite
    • Advanced Features
    • Premium Support

Which should you pick?

Choose Meltwater if

  • You need media monitoring.
  • You work on Web, iOS, Android.
  • You also want social listening.
Meltwater review

Choose SAP BusinessObjects if

  • You need crystal reports.
  • You work on Web, Desktop, Mobile.
  • You also want web intelligence.
SAP BusinessObjects review

Questions people ask

Is Meltwater or SAP BusinessObjects better?
Neither clearly leads. Meltwater starts at $15000/year and SAP BusinessObjects at $400/month, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Meltwater or SAP BusinessObjects?
Meltwater starts at $15000/year and SAP BusinessObjects at $400/month.
Does Meltwater or SAP BusinessObjects run on more platforms?
Meltwater runs on Web, iOS, Android. SAP BusinessObjects runs on Web, Desktop, Mobile.
What is Meltwater best used for?
Meltwater is most often used for media monitoring, influencer research, brand tracking, crisis management. Of those, media monitoring and influencer research are not what SAP BusinessObjects is typically brought in for.
What can Meltwater do that SAP BusinessObjects cannot?
Meltwater covers Media monitoring, Social listening, Influencer discovery, Sentiment analysis. SAP BusinessObjects covers Crystal Reports, Web Intelligence, Lumira, Analysis for Office. Both handle Web support, Mobile 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.

Source
Meltwater: 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.

Source
Meltwater: What languages does Meltwater support?

Meltwater provides global multilingual support with consistent accuracy across 100+ languages for sentiment analysis and content classification.

Source
Meltwater: 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.

Source
Meltwater: 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.

Source
Share

Related pages

More on Meltwater

More on SAP BusinessObjects

Keep looking

Other head to heads