Muck Rack vs Meltwater: Which is Better? [2025 Guide]

Muck Rack shines in media outreach, offering a robust database and tools for managing journalist relationships. Meltwater, on the other hand, excels in media monitoring and analytics, helping PR teams track brand mentions across news outlets, social media, and blogs.

Then there's Prezly – a versatile PR platform that combines media contact management, email pitching, and newsroom creation into one simple, integrated solution.

Choosing the right platform depends on your team’s goals, workflow, and budget. Let’s look at the key differences to help you make an informed decision.

• Media database – Includes over 250,000 contacts. As with all databases, some contact details may not always be up-to-date, but Muck Rack continuously works to keep their lists updated
• Press release creator – Muck Rack does not offer a press release creation tool. Its primary focus is on media outreach and relationship management
• Outreach – Allows you to create and send personalized pitches directly from the platform, simplifying the outreach process for PR teams
• Media monitoring and analytics – Tracks news and online mentions with basic engagement analytics, though it may not provide the depth of insights offered by more specialized analytics tools

• Global media monitoring – Tracks news and social media coverage worldwide to help assess brand visibility and media exposure
• Sentiment analysis – Measures brand perception based on online discussions
• Benchmarking – Compares media performance against competitors
• Custom media analysis – Provides in-depth reporting to evaluate PR impact

• Media CRM – Instead of selling media databases, Prezly helps you build meaningful journalist relationships with a dedicated PR CRM
• Press release creator – Includes a no-code newsroom builder, making it easy to publish multimedia press releases
• PR outreach – Integrated outreach tool lets you send personalized pitches with embedded press releases
• Media monitoring – Tracks brand mentions across online news and major social media channels, with integrations for other tracking tools
• PR analytics – Built-in, privacy-first reports powered by Plausible offer straightforward insights into PR performance

Muck Rack offers a large, real-time updated database with detailed journalist profiles, making it a solid choice for teams focused on outreach.

• Access to 250,000+ journalist profiles
• View contact details, beats, and recent articles
• Track journalist preferences and past interactions for better outreach
• Helps you target the right journalists for your stories

Meltwater’s PR database is more basic and doesn’t focus on relationship management, so it’s better suited for media monitoring than outreach.

• Database of media contacts, but less detailed than Muck Rack
• No CRM for managing journalist relationships
• Primarily designed for media monitoring, not outreach

Prezly focuses on managing the media contacts you already have, rather than selling lists. It’s ideal for teams looking to build ongoing relationships.

• Store and segment contacts in an intuitive CRM
• Automatic updates to keep contact details accurate
• Tracks all interactions for easy follow-ups and personalized pitches
• Great for teams with existing media lists

Image credit: Muck Rack.

Muck Rack offers basic media monitoring to track brand mentions in online news, but lacks deeper analytics and social media coverage.

• Track mentions in online news sources
• Limited tracking for social media, blogs, and digital outlets
• Basic analytics that don’t offer in-depth PR impact insights

Meltwater provides robust media monitoring, social listening, and AI-powered analytics, making it a top choice for teams who need detailed insights into brand sentiment and media performance.

• Tracks online news, social media mentions, and podcasts
• Uses AI to analyze sentiment and identify trends
• Generates reports with visual analytics on media reach and PR performance
• Offers social listening to stay on top of online conversations

Prezly offers built-in media monitoring and integrates with third-party tools. It’s great for syncing coverage with your CRM and tracking engagement.

• Syncs media mentions with your CRM for easy outreach
• Real-time analytics on newsroom and pitch performance
• Embed coverage in Prezly email campaigns for easy client reporting

Pitching screenshot not shown on Muck Rack's site.

Muck Rack offers an email pitching tool designed for outreach directly from the platform. It's a solid choice for PR teams looking for a simple way to manage pitching within the same tool.

• Send outreach emails directly from the platform
• Track open and response rates for better campaign insights
• Personalize pitches based on journalist interests and past interactions
• Use performance data to adjust future strategies

Meltwater doesn't offer email pitching tools. It's better suited for media monitoring and analytics, so if outreach is your focus, you may need an additional tool.

• Lacks an integrated email pitching tool
• Primarily focuses on media monitoring and analytics
• Requires external email tools for outreach

Prezly streamlines email pitching with its integrated tool, making it a good choice for teams looking for an all-in-one solution for outreach and tracking.

• Integrated email pitching tool with real-time tracking
• Includes personalized, multimedia-rich pitches with images, videos, and links to newsrooms
• Automatically logs interactions and responses in the CRM for easy follow-ups

Muck Rack doesn’t offer a built-in newsroom or a press release builder. You'll need a third-party platform to publish newsrooms and media kits.

• No built-in newsroom or press release distribution
• Relies on external tools for publishing press releases or creating media kits

Meltwater has some press release builder features, these are limited in terms of content options and hosting. It does have an AI assistant to help with writing press releases. Meltwater does not have newsroom building features.

• No built-in newsroom
• Limited press release builder with AI assistant
• Content hosting is limited compared to a dedicated press release platform

Prezly provides a complete newsroom and press release distribution solution, making it easier to manage and share press materials with journalists.

• Full newsroom functionality for publishing press releases, media kits, and multimedia
• Journalists can access a branded newsroom with all materials in one place
• Supports multiple languages for global media outreach, plus AI translation
• Easily update content to keep press materials current

Muck Rack pricing →

Muck Rack is generally more affordable than Meltwater, but pricing isn’t transparent and requires users to request a quote based on their needs. See our guide to Muck Rack pricing →

• Pricing depends on team size and required features, making it hard to budget
• User-friendly design tailored for media relations teams
• No transparent pricing – you need to contact them for a quote

Source: https://www.meltwater.com/en/pricing.

Meltwater’s pricing is higher than Muck Rack’s, based on features and usage scale. The platform has a steeper learning curve due to its advanced analytics and monitoring tools.

• More expensive than Muck Rack, with pricing based on features and usage scale
• Steeper learning curve due to complex analytics and monitoring
• Additional onboarding and training may be necessary

Prezly also offers plans for small, medium, and large PR agencies.

Prezly offers transparent pricing with flexible plans starting at $90/month. It combines multiple PR tools in one platform, making it a cost-effective option.

• Transparent pricing starting at $90/month
• All-in-one platform reduces the need for multiple tools
• 20% discount for NGOs and a dedicated plan for PR agencies

A full PR toolkit at a fraction of the cost

Prezly’s PR CRM, Outreach, Newsroom Creator, Media Monitoring and Analytics earn you authentic media coverage by putting journalist relationships first. Starting at $90/month.

Start free trial

Screenshot of Capterra ratings comparison.

Before you commit to a new tool, it's a good idea to take a look at what existing users have to say about their experience. We recommend looking on sites like Capterra, G2, Trustradius, and Reddit for unbiased and up-to-date commentary.

The above table was taken from Capterra, and independent review and ratings site, and below is a selection of reviews to give you an idea of the sorts of criticisms real users raise.

The best public relations tool for your team depends on your specific needs and priorities.

Muck Rack excels for PR teams focused on building and managing media relationships.

• Extensive media database with detailed journalist profiles
• Tracks engagement and preferences for more targeted pitching

Meltwater is ideal for teams that need in-depth media monitoring and trend analysis.

• Monitors social media, blogs, and news sites for real-time brand insights
• Provides sentiment analysis and competitive benchmarking

Prezly integrates media contact management, pitching, and newsroom creation into a single platform.

• Combines CRM, outreach, and newsroom in one tool
• Streamlines workflows by reducing the need for separate tools

Prezly offers transparent pricing, starting at $90/month, with a free two-week trial.

• More affordable than using multiple PR tools
• Integrated workflow at a lower cost

While some teams may opt to combine Muck Rack for outreach and Meltwater for monitoring, this approach can be costly and complicated. Prezly offers a simpler, more affordable alternative with an all-in-one solution that streamlines PR workflows.

Start your two-week free trial with Prezly today and see how an all-in-one PR platform can simplify your workflow. Unlike other tools that require multiple subscriptions and add-ons, Prezly combines essential PR features in one intuitive platform.

Why choose Prezly?

• Simplifies your workflow – No need for separate tools; everything you need for media outreach, contact management, and newsrooms is integrated
• Cost-effective – One affordable plan covers all your PR needs, helping you save on multiple subscriptions
• User-friendly – Easy to use, with minimal training required, making it perfect for teams of any size
• Customizable newsrooms – Build visually striking, multimedia newsrooms that make press materials accessible to journalists with ease
• Flexible and scalable – Whether you're a startup, agency, or large enterprise, Prezly grows with your needs

Take the first step towards streamlining your PR efforts. Try Prezly free for 2 weeks and see how it can fit into your PR strategy.