# The best social listening sources find what people say by keyword.

> Reddit, X, LinkedIn post search, TikTok, Instagram hashtags and YouTube comments ranked for social listening in 2026: public posts found by keyword.

Canonical: https://apiforagents.dev/best/best-social-listening-data-sources · Updated 2026-10-21

The best social listening sources are Reddit search and X post search, because both find posts by keyword across all authors, which is what listening needs. LinkedIn post search covers professional talk, TikTok finds videos by keyword, hashtag or sound, and Instagram hashtags and YouTube comments fill in the rest.

- Sources ranked: 6
- Reddit search: $0.0045 per record
- X post search: $0.000225 per record
- Free trial: $0.10

## The ranking

| # | Source | What you get | Best for | Price |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Reddit search | Posts with score, upvote ratio, comment count, permalink | Long, honest discussion | $0.0045 per record |
| 2 | X post search | Posts with likes, replies, reposts, quotes, views | Fast-moving reactions | $0.000225 per record |
| 3 | LinkedIn post search | Post text, kind, date, likes, comments, reposts, permalink | Professional and B2B talk | $0.002 per record |
| 4 | TikTok post search | Posts with views, likes, comments, shares, saves, sound, hashtags | Trends and products on video | $0.0018 per record |
| 5 | Instagram hashtags | Posts tagged with a hashtag, top or newest | Brand and campaign tags | $0.00045 per record |
| 6 | YouTube comments | Top comments on videos by URL or id | Reactions to specific videos | $0.00045 per record |

List prices are per record and some calls carry a minimum. Quote any call first with "estimateOnly": true: the quote is free and is the most the call can cost.

## Each source, in order

- **[1. Reddit search](https://apiforagents.dev/platforms/reddit/search-api).** Posts across all of Reddit matching a keyword, sorted by relevance, hot, top, newest or most commented. The posted-within filter applies to top only. Follow up with the comments operation to read the threads that matter.
- **[2. X post search](https://apiforagents.dev/platforms/x_twitter/post-search-api).** Posts by keyword across all authors, newest-relevant first. It takes a query and a limit and nothing else, so narrow with the words you search.
- **[3. LinkedIn post search](https://apiforagents.dev/platforms/linkedin/post-search-api).** Posts by keyword, narrowed by who is tagged, content type and how recent, sorted by relevance or date. A query is always needed, even when you filter by mentions. Comments and reactions on the posts you find have their own operations.
- **[4. TikTok post search](https://apiforagents.dev/platforms/tiktok/video-search-api).** Posts by keyword, by hashtag or by sound URL, exactly one per call. Each row carries the engagement and the sound used. Top-level comments on the posts you find are one call away.
- **[5. Instagram hashtags](https://apiforagents.dev/platforms/instagram/hashtag-api).** Posts tagged with a hashtag, ranked or chronological. Instagram's search here finds accounts, not posts, so you listen through hashtags.
- **[6. YouTube comments](https://apiforagents.dev/platforms/youtube/comments-api).** Top comments on up to ten videos per call. There is no video search here, so pick the videos first, for example a channel's recent uploads or a review of your product.

## How to choose

- Brand and product mentions: Reddit search and X post search on the name.
- B2B topics: LinkedIn post search.
- Consumer trends: TikTok post search by hashtag or sound, Instagram hashtags.
- Reactions to one piece of content: comments on that post or video.
- Rows are posts and comments with engagement, not sentiment scores; let your model judge the tone.

## The operations on this list

- [Reddit Search API](https://apiforagents.dev/platforms/reddit/search-api): Long, honest discussion
- [X Post Search API](https://apiforagents.dev/platforms/x_twitter/post-search-api): Fast-moving reactions
- [LinkedIn Post Search API](https://apiforagents.dev/platforms/linkedin/post-search-api): Professional and B2B talk
- [TikTok Video Search API](https://apiforagents.dev/platforms/tiktok/video-search-api): Trends and products on video
- [Instagram Hashtag API](https://apiforagents.dev/platforms/instagram/hashtag-api): Brand and campaign tags
- [YouTube Comments API](https://apiforagents.dev/platforms/youtube/comments-api): Reactions to specific videos

## Questions

### Can I monitor brand mentions on Reddit and X?

Yes. Search Reddit and X posts by your brand's name. Each row carries engagement, and each says when it was measured.

### Can I filter by date?

Reddit's posted-within filter applies to the top sort; LinkedIn post search takes posted-within with every sort; Instagram hashtags can sort newest. X post search takes no date filter.

### Does it include sentiment?

No. You get the post or comment text with its engagement. Sentiment is for your model to judge.

### How is listening priced?

Per record: Reddit search $0.0045 per record, X post search $0.000225 per record, LinkedIn post search $0.002 per record. Quote first with "estimateOnly": true.

## Why API for Agents

- One key for 26 platforms: social, commerce, jobs, places, search and contacts, with one request shape and one response shape.
- A free quote before any spend: add "estimateOnly": true to any call and see the most it can cost.
- Pay per record in US dollars. No subscription, nothing expires, top-ups from $5.
- $0.10 free to try, no card. An AI agent can sign itself up in one request; a person claims it later.
- Measured, not estimated: every answer says when each row was measured, whether it was fresh or a recent capture, and how sure to be of each field.
- Partial success is success: anything that could not be fetched is named with a reason, and the charge settles to what came back, never above the quote.
- Typed fields that keep their names whichever source answered, and a details object last with everything else the source sent, under our own field names.
- Try any endpoint in the playground and download the answer as CSV or JSON.

## Start

The playground runs any endpoint by hand: pick a platform and what you want from it, fill a short form named in plain words (or press Use sample input), see the free quote on the Run button, run it, then read the answer as a table or JSON and download it as CSV or JSON. The same call is written out as cURL, Python and Node while you type. Open it at https://apiforagents.dev/dashboard/run (sign in first).

Agents register at https://apiforagents.dev/auth.md (one POST, $0.10 free). People: https://apiforagents.dev/docs#start. Prices: https://apiforagents.dev/pricing.md