Index › Marketing › September 2026 Edition

Search and social advertising platforms

Asked as “paid search and social ads management platform”, and as “PPC and paid social campaign management tool”, on behalf of a mid-market B2B company. 58 first choices recorded across the direct, paraphrase, budget and scale prompts, twelve models each.

Standing

Google Ads

Contested

10% of first choices, contested.

ShowinginAll 73 categories in the September 2026 Edition →

By buyer segment

The same question asked on behalf of a different buyer. Each standing is computed within its segment; they sit side by side and are never added together.

Small business

Google Ads16%ContestedStanding →Mid-market

Google Ads10%ContestedThis page Enterprise

Skai42%Clear leaderStanding →

01The standing

Share is the count of first choices across the direct, paraphrase, budget and scale prompts, over all twelve models, for a mid-market B2B company. Ordered by share.

ProductFirst-choice shareNegative rateLabelsQuadrant

Google Ads6%31accepted challenger

Optmyzr6%35accepted challenger

LinkedIn Campaign Manager5%21accepted challenger

Adzooma8%12accepted challenger

Meta Ads5%20accepted challenger

Marin Software22%27accepted challenger

Skai27%26criticized challenger

WordStream29%17criticized challenger

Smartly13%15accepted challenger

Opteo10%10accepted challenger

AdEspresso33%18criticized challenger

Show the two products at 0%, ordered by negative rate

Madgicx27%15criticized challenger

Adalysis8%13accepted challenger

Bars are the share of first choices, 0 to 100Every product with at least 10 labels here. Every product name links to its vendor page.

Head to head

Google Ads vs Optmyzr Google Ads vs LinkedIn Campaign Manager Optmyzr vs LinkedIn Campaign Manager

Recommended versus criticized

Every product with at least 10 labels here, on both axes. The 30% line names a quadrant, not the verdict above: that one needs more than 40%.

Criticized challengerCriticized default

Negative label rate →

Accepted challengerEndorsed leader

0%First-choice share → · lines at 30% share and 25% negative30%

Key

Google Ads10%

Optmyzr9%

LinkedIn Campaign Manager9%

Adzooma9%

Meta Ads5%

Marin Software5%

Skai3%

WordStream3%

Smartly2%

Opteo2%

AdEspresso2%

Adalysis0%

Madgicx0%

02What they warned about

One of twelve models held their first choice under the paraphrase. Claude Haiku 4.5, GPT-5.4 mini, Perplexity Sonar, Grok 4.1 Fast, Mistral Small, DeepSeek V4 Flash, Llama 4 Maverick, Qwen 3.7 Flash, Kimi K2, GLM 4.7 FlashX and MiniMax M2.5 changed. A high negative share on a product with few labels is a warning. A low share on a product with many labels is salience, not sentiment.

Marin Software

22%

6 of 27 labels negative · 5 of 12 models · 4 hard negative

“Marin Software officially approved a plan of dissolution and liquidation in April 2025**. Avoid any remaining sales pitches” Gemini 3.5 Flash, negative prompt

WordStream

29%

5 of 17 labels negative · 4 of 12 models · 4 hard negative

“WordStream (LocaliQ) — Approach with Extreme Caution ... Deceptive pricing, massive cost escalation, terrible support post-acquisition” Kimi K2, negative prompt

AdEspresso

33%

6 of 18 labels negative · 4 of 12 models · 3 hard negative

“Frequent reports of unauthorized charges post-trial (e.g., $49 despite cancellation), poor/no customer support response, bugs/campaign errors, and a dated interface.” Grok 4.1 Fast, negative prompt

Madgicx

27%

4 of 15 labels negative · 4 of 12 models · 2 hard negative

“Severe billing issues like auto-charging full annual fees ... Reddit calls it a "scam."” Grok 4.1 Fast, negative prompt

03What they cite

Citations exist only for the models that return a source list: four of the twelve in this edition, and all six flagship models on the expanded tier.

Sites the answers cite

22 of 72 answers in this category came back with a source list, from 4 of 12 models: citations where the model returns them, or the search results it consulted. 6 of those lists are Google grounding redirects that name no site and are left out of the counts. 228 links across 128 sites, every framing counted. Ranked by the number of answers carrying the site or page. The other 8 models searched through a gateway that returned no source list on this edition.

g2.com

7 answers · 11 citations · 3 models

worldmetrics.org

7 answers · 11 citations · 2 models

clicksgeek.com

vendor site · Clicks Geek6 answers · 15 citations · 2 models

get-ryze.ai

6 answers · 9 citations · 2 models

stackmatix.com

5 answers · 6 citations · 2 models

zipdo.co

4 answers · 6 citations · 2 models

almcorp.com

3 answers · 3 citations · 1 model

blog.wask.co

vendor site · Wask3 answers · 3 citations · 1 model

cometly.com

vendor site · Cometly3 answers · 3 citations · 2 models

guideflow.com

vendor site · Guideflow3 answers · 3 citations · 2 models

hawksem.com

3 answers · 3 citations · 1 model

madgicx.com

vendor site · Madgicx3 answers · 3 citations · 2 models

Pages the answers cite

The ten pages named in the most answers, by full address. A page here is one the models returned with a recommendation, not one the index endorses.

clicksgeek.com/paid-search-management-service

4 answers · 1 model

worldmetrics.org/service/paid-search-management

4 answers · 2 models

almcorp.com/blog/ppc-management-software-list

3 answers · 1 model

blog.wask.co/digital-marketing/ppc-management-services

3 answers · 1 model

clicksgeek.com/paid-search-management-services

3 answers · 1 model

hawksem.com/blog/ppc-management-software

3 answers · 1 model

madgicx.com/blog/paid-social-media-management-tool

3 answers · 2 models

pickmysoft.com/blog/best-ppc-management-software

3 answers · 1 model

reddit.com/r/PPC/comments/1fkn1a3/which_agency_software_for_ads_management_…

3 answers · 1 model

stackmatix.com/blog/best-ppc-platforms-tools

3 answers · 1 model

04How they answered

Six framings of the same buying question, each sent to every model in a fresh session with search on. One row per model, so a row shows whether it held its answer under rewording, what it named when cost was the constraint, and what it argued against. Computed from the raw judge labels.

ModelDirect“What is the best paid search and social ads management platform for a mid-market B2B company?”Paraphrase“Which PPC and paid social campaign management tool would you recommend to a mid-sized B2B company?”Comparative“What are the top paid search and social ads management platforms and how do they differ?”Budget-constrained“What is the best paid search and social ads management platform for a company with a limited budget?”Scale-constrained“We are a 500 person company evaluating a paid search and social ads management platform. What should we look at?”Negative“Which paid search and social ads management platforms should I avoid or be cautious about?”

Claude Haiku 4.5AdRoll ABM

Four alternatives

Google Ads, Marcel Digital, Meta Ads, Tinuiti

AdRoll, HubSpot Marketing HubChanged

One alternative

HawkSEM

no first choice

Two alternatives

Marin Software, Skai

AdEspresso, Buffer

Two alternatives

Google Ads, Meta Ads

no first choicenothing named

GPT-5.4 miniMetadata.io

Two alternatives

AdStage, Optmyzr

against: PaceSkaiChanged

One alternative

Sprinklr

Google Ads

Five alternatives

Amazon Ads, LinkedIn Campaign Manager, Meta Ads, Microsoft Advertising, TikTok Ads

LocaliQ

Two alternatives

Buffer, Google Ads

no first choicenothing named

Gemini 3.5 FlashMetadata.io

Four alternatives

AdRoll ABM, HubSpot Ads, Influ2, Optmyzr

against: 6sense, DemandbaseMetadata.ioHeld

Four alternatives

AdRoll ABM, ContactLevel, HubSpot Ads Software, Optmyzr

against: Google Search Ads 360Google Search Ads 360, Skai

Four alternatives

Birch, Madgicx, Optmyzr, Smartly

Adzooma, Plai

Three alternatives

Google Ads, HubSpot Ads Tool, Meta Ads

against: AdEspressono first choice

Four alternatives

Google Search Ads 360, Hunch, Optmyzr, Smartly

against: Skaiagainst: AdEspresso, AdRoll, LocaliQ, Marin Software, WordStream Advisor

Perplexity SonarDemandbase

Three alternatives

Metadata.io, Optmyzr, Pace

HubSpot AdsChanged

Two alternatives

LinkedIn Campaign Manager, Optmyzr

Marin Software, Skai

Seven alternatives

AdEspresso, Adalysis, Bïrch, Channable, Optmyzr, Ryze AI, Semrush

Adzooma, WordStream

One alternative

Madgicx

against: Optmyzrno first choiceagainst: Adalysis, Blobr.io, NinjaCat, Opteo, PPC Spy Bot, TrueClicks, WordStream

Grok 4.1 FastOptmyzr

One alternative

Marin Software

against: AdRoll, SkaiAdzoomaChanged

Four alternatives

AdRoll, Metadata.io, Optmyzr, Revealbot

Marin Software

Four alternatives

Adzooma, Optmyzr, Skai, WordStream

WordStream

Four alternatives

AdEspresso, Madgicx, Revealbot, Ryze AI

against: SmartlyMarin Software

Three alternatives

Optmyzr, Skai, Smartly

against: Acquisio, AdEspresso, Hootsuite, Madgicx, Marin Software, Skai

Mistral SmallGoogle Ads, LinkedIn Campaign Manager

Six alternatives

6sense, AdRoll ABM, Demandbase, HubSpot Marketing Hub, Microsoft Ads, StackAdapt

SkaiChanged

Four alternatives

Metadata.io, Optmyzr, Semrush, WordStream

Google Ads, Meta Ads

One alternative

Microsoft Advertising

Google Ads, Google Ads Smart Campaigns, Meta Ads

Nine alternatives

AdEspresso, Buffer, Google Keyword Planner, LocaliQ, Looker Studio, Madgicx, Microsoft Advertising, ReportGarden, SmartSites

Groas.ai

Four alternatives

Marin Software, Pacvue, Skai, Smartly

against: American Digital Agency, VidIQ

DeepSeek V4 FlashHubSpot Ads

Two alternatives

AdRoll ABM, Marin Software

against: SkaiOptmyzrChanged

Three alternatives

AdEspresso, Bïrch, LinkedIn Campaign Manager

against: Marin Software, SkaiMadgicx, Optmyzr

Five alternatives

AdEspresso, Adalysis, Revealbot, Skai, Smartly

Adzooma

Four alternatives

Adpulse, Opteo, PromoNavi, Ryze AI

against: WordStreamno first choiceagainst: Albert.ai, Madgicx, Marketing 360, Metricool, PPC Ad Lab, Perion One, ReachLocal, Smartly, WordStream

Llama 4 Maverickno first choiceGoogle Ads, LinkedIn Ads ManagerChanged

Two alternatives

AdEspresso, Metaflow AI

no first choiceSmartSites

Two alternatives

KlientBoost, NP Digital

no first choiceagainst: Google Ads, Meta Ads

Qwen 3.7 FlashGoogle Ads, LinkedIn Campaign Mgr

Five alternatives

Acquisio, AdRoll ABM, Cometly, HubSpot Marketing Hub, Metadata.io

LinkedIn Campaign ManagerChanged

Four alternatives

Google Ads, Madgicx, Meta/YouTube, Optmyzr

Skai

Four alternatives

Madience, Marin Software, Optmyzr, WordStream

against: Hootsuite Ads Manager / AdEspressoAdsGo

Three alternatives

AdEspresso, Google Ads, Meta Ads

Marin Software, Optimizely CMS, Smartly, Sprinklr

One alternative

HubSpot Ads

against: Anoox, Blogclicker.com, Fiverr, LinkCollider, LinkedIn Campaign Manager, PropellerAds, SEOClerks, TikTok Ads, X (Twitter) Ads

Kimi K2Optmyzr

One alternative

HubSpot Ads Management

against: Marin Software, SkaiLinkedIn Campaign Manager, OptmyzrChanged

Five alternatives

AdEspresso, AdRoll ABM, Adzooma, Metadata.io, Revealbot

against: 6sense, DemandbaseSkai, Smartly

Six alternatives

Adobe Advertising, Bïrch, Madgicx, Marin Software, Optmyzr, Sprinklr

Adzooma

Three alternatives

Opteo, Ryze AI, WordStream

against: Kenshoo, Marin Software, SkaiMarin Software, Optmyzr

Three alternatives

BuyerBridge, Skai, Smartly

against: AdEspresso, AdScale, Madgicx, WordStream

GLM 4.7 FlashXGoogle Ads, HubSpot Marketing Hub, LinkedIn Campaign Manager

Three alternatives

6sense, AdRoll, Influ2

against: Adobe Marketo EngageOpteoChanged

Five alternatives

AdEspresso, Birch, LinkedIn Ads Manager, Madgicx, Optmyzr

Google Ads, Meta Ads

Five alternatives

Amazon Ads, LinkedIn Campaign Manager, Microsoft Advertising, Pinterest Ads, TikTok Ads

Google Ads Smart Campaigns, Meta Ads

One alternative

LocaliQ

against: AdEspresso, Buffer, Hootsuiteno first choiceagainst: Acquisio, AdEspresso, Adzooma, Hootsuite Ads, Madgicx, Marin Software, Optmyzr, Revealbot, WordStream

MiniMax M2.5StackAdapt

Four alternatives

AdRoll, Google Search, HubSpot Marketing Hub, LinkedIn Campaign Manager

HubSpot Marketing Hub, LinkedIn Campaign ManagerChanged

Two alternatives

Google Ads, Semrush

Google Ads

Three alternatives

LinkedIn Campaign Manager, Meta Ads, Microsoft Ads

Google Ads, Meta Ads

Two alternatives

AdEspresso, Later

no first choiceagainst: Google Ads, Meta, Reddit Ads

Bold is the first choiceAlternatives are counted; the count opens them.What the answer argued against

05The record

One row per call: the version string exactly as returned, whether the model searched, sources cited, and latency. Full answer text is in the free responses file. Download the record

Seventy-two rows: every prompt, every model, every answer.

Prompt	Model	Version string	Time (UTC)	Searched	Sources	Latency
Direct recommendation	Claude Haiku 4.5	`claude-haiku-4-5-20251001`	2026-09-15 02:36	yes	8	8 s
Direct recommendation	GPT-5.4 mini	`gpt-5.4-mini-2026-03-17`	2026-09-14 22:56	yes	4	5 s
Direct recommendation	Gemini 3.5 Flash	`gemini-3.5-flash`	2026-09-15 03:56	yes	13	28 s
Direct recommendation	Perplexity Sonar	`sonar`	2026-09-15 01:29	yes	20	6 s
Direct recommendation	Grok 4.1 Fast	`spacexai/grok-4.1-fast-non-reasoning via vertex`	2026-09-15 05:03	yes	0	11 s
Direct recommendation	Mistral Small	`mistral/mistral-small via mistral`	2026-09-15 01:54	yes	0	8 s
Direct recommendation	DeepSeek V4 Flash	`deepseek/deepseek-v4-flash via fireworks`	2026-09-15 05:03	yes	0	18 s
Direct recommendation	Llama 4 Maverick	`meta/llama-4-maverick via bedrock`	2026-09-15 02:17	yes	0	2 s
Direct recommendation	Qwen 3.7 Flash	`alibaba/qwen3.7-flash via alibaba`	2026-09-15 04:06	yes	0	31 s
Direct recommendation	Kimi K2	`moonshotai/kimi-k2 via novita`	2026-09-15 00:59	yes	0	33 s
Direct recommendation	GLM 4.7 FlashX	`zai/glm-4.7-flashx via zai`	2026-09-15 01:32	yes	0	25 s
Direct recommendation	MiniMax M2.5	`minimax/minimax-m2.5 via minimax`	2026-09-15 01:07	yes	0	27 s
Paraphrase	Claude Haiku 4.5	`claude-haiku-4-5-20251001`	2026-09-15 00:17	yes	16	9 s
Paraphrase	GPT-5.4 mini	`gpt-5.4-mini-2026-03-17`	2026-09-14 22:53	yes	2	5 s
Paraphrase	Gemini 3.5 Flash	`gemini-3.5-flash`	2026-09-15 03:54	yes	10	24 s
Paraphrase	Perplexity Sonar	`sonar`	2026-09-15 02:46	yes	20	6 s
Paraphrase	Grok 4.1 Fast	`spacexai/grok-4.1-fast-non-reasoning via vertex`	2026-09-15 03:28	yes	0	10 s
Paraphrase	Mistral Small	`mistral/mistral-small via mistral`	2026-09-15 01:57	yes	0	6 s
Paraphrase	DeepSeek V4 Flash	`deepseek/deepseek-v4-flash via deepinfra`	2026-09-15 00:07	yes	0	68 s
Paraphrase	Llama 4 Maverick	`meta/llama-4-maverick via bedrock`	2026-09-14 23:15	yes	0	2 s
Paraphrase	Qwen 3.7 Flash	`alibaba/qwen3.7-flash via alibaba`	2026-09-15 05:05	yes	0	96 s
Paraphrase	Kimi K2	`moonshotai/kimi-k2 via novita`	2026-09-15 01:21	yes	0	55 s
Paraphrase	GLM 4.7 FlashX	`zai/glm-4.7-flashx via zai`	2026-09-15 03:43	yes	0	26 s
Paraphrase	MiniMax M2.5	`minimax/minimax-m2.5 via minimax`	2026-09-15 00:33	no	0	9 s
Comparative	Claude Haiku 4.5	`claude-haiku-4-5-20251001`	2026-09-15 02:38	yes	23	16 s
Comparative	GPT-5.4 mini	`gpt-5.4-mini-2026-03-17`	2026-09-15 02:31	yes	10	12 s
Comparative	Gemini 3.5 Flash	`gemini-3.5-flash`	2026-09-15 02:40	yes	20	28 s
Comparative	Perplexity Sonar	`sonar`	2026-09-14 22:57	yes	20	10 s
Comparative	Grok 4.1 Fast	`spacexai/grok-4.1-fast-non-reasoning via vertex`	2026-09-15 04:29	yes	0	9 s
Comparative	Mistral Small	`mistral/mistral-small via mistral`	2026-09-15 04:56	yes	0	6 s
Comparative	DeepSeek V4 Flash	`deepseek/deepseek-v4-flash via fireworks`	2026-09-15 03:46	yes	0	24 s
Comparative	Llama 4 Maverick	`meta/llama-4-maverick via bedrock`	2026-09-15 01:21	yes	0	2 s
Comparative	Qwen 3.7 Flash	`alibaba/qwen3.7-flash via alibaba`	2026-09-15 03:54	no	0	42 s
Comparative	Kimi K2	`moonshotai/kimi-k2 via novita`	2026-09-15 03:34	yes	0	39 s
Comparative	GLM 4.7 FlashX	`zai/glm-4.7-flashx via zai`	2026-09-15 01:29	yes	0	19 s
Comparative	MiniMax M2.5	`minimax/minimax-m2.5 via minimax`	2026-09-15 04:05	yes	0	11 s
Budget constrained	Claude Haiku 4.5	`claude-haiku-4-5-20251001`	2026-09-15 04:20	yes	16	12 s
Budget constrained	GPT-5.4 mini	`gpt-5.4-mini-2026-03-17`	2026-09-15 01:10	yes	3	5 s
Budget constrained	Gemini 3.5 Flash	`gemini-3.5-flash`	2026-09-15 00:41	yes	16	25 s
Budget constrained	Perplexity Sonar	`sonar`	2026-09-15 00:32	yes	20	6 s
Budget constrained	Grok 4.1 Fast	`spacexai/grok-4.1-fast-non-reasoning via vertex`	2026-09-14 23:52	yes	0	8 s
Budget constrained	Mistral Small	`mistral/mistral-small via mistral`	2026-09-15 01:33	yes	0	8 s
Budget constrained	DeepSeek V4 Flash	`deepseek/deepseek-v4-flash via deepinfra`	2026-09-15 00:08	yes	0	45 s
Budget constrained	Llama 4 Maverick	`meta/llama-4-maverick via bedrock`	2026-09-14 23:05	yes	0	1 s
Budget constrained	Qwen 3.7 Flash	`alibaba/qwen3.7-flash via alibaba`	2026-09-15 03:37	yes	0	37 s
Budget constrained	Kimi K2	`moonshotai/kimi-k2 via novita`	2026-09-15 01:25	yes	0	41 s
Budget constrained	GLM 4.7 FlashX	`zai/glm-4.7-flashx via zai`	2026-09-15 04:09	yes	0	18 s
Budget constrained	MiniMax M2.5	`minimax/minimax-m2.5 via minimax`	2026-09-15 03:45	no	0	12 s
Scale constrained	Claude Haiku 4.5	`claude-haiku-4-5-20251001`	2026-09-15 03:30	no	0	9 s
Scale constrained	GPT-5.4 mini	`gpt-5.4-mini-2026-03-17`	2026-09-15 00:17	no	0	9 s
Scale constrained	Gemini 3.5 Flash	`gemini-3.5-flash`	2026-09-15 02:14	yes	13	23 s
Scale constrained	Perplexity Sonar	`sonar`	2026-09-15 00:18	yes	20	10 s
Scale constrained	Grok 4.1 Fast	`spacexai/grok-4.1-fast-non-reasoning via vertex`	2026-09-15 04:28	yes	0	7 s
Scale constrained	Mistral Small	`mistral/mistral-small via mistral`	2026-09-15 01:48	yes	0	8 s
Scale constrained	DeepSeek V4 Flash	`deepseek/deepseek-v4-flash via fireworks`	2026-09-15 03:26	yes	0	26 s
Scale constrained	Llama 4 Maverick	`meta/llama-4-maverick via bedrock`	2026-09-15 02:10	yes	0	2 s
Scale constrained	Qwen 3.7 Flash	`alibaba/qwen3.7-flash via alibaba`	2026-09-15 00:55	no	0	34 s
Scale constrained	Kimi K2	`moonshotai/kimi-k2 via novita`	2026-09-15 04:51	yes	0	44 s
Scale constrained	GLM 4.7 FlashX	`zai/glm-4.7-flashx via zai`	2026-09-15 04:52	yes	0	60 s
Scale constrained	MiniMax M2.5	`minimax/minimax-m2.5 via minimax`	2026-09-15 01:02	yes	0	18 s
Negative framing	Claude Haiku 4.5	`claude-haiku-4-5-20251001`	2026-09-15 03:14	yes	24	12 s
Negative framing	GPT-5.4 mini	`gpt-5.4-mini-2026-03-17`	2026-09-15 04:44	yes	2	6 s
Negative framing	Gemini 3.5 Flash	`gemini-3.5-flash`	2026-09-15 03:26	yes	21	23 s
Negative framing	Perplexity Sonar	`sonar`	2026-09-14 23:21	yes	20	9 s
Negative framing	Grok 4.1 Fast	`spacexai/grok-4.1-fast-non-reasoning via vertex`	2026-09-15 02:03	yes	0	8 s
Negative framing	Mistral Small	`mistral/mistral-small via mistral`	2026-09-15 01:48	yes	0	11 s
Negative framing	DeepSeek V4 Flash	`deepseek/deepseek-v4-flash via deepinfra`	2026-09-15 01:56	yes	0	53 s
Negative framing	Llama 4 Maverick	`meta/llama-4-maverick via bedrock`	2026-09-15 04:58	yes	0	2 s
Negative framing	Qwen 3.7 Flash	`alibaba/qwen3.7-flash via alibaba`	2026-09-14 23:50	yes	0	21 s
Negative framing	Kimi K2	`moonshotai/kimi-k2 via novita`	2026-09-15 01:02	yes	0	102 s
Negative framing	GLM 4.7 FlashX	`zai/glm-4.7-flashx via zai`	2026-09-15 03:45	yes	0	28 s
Negative framing	MiniMax M2.5	`minimax/minimax-m2.5 via minimax`	2026-09-14 23:38	yes	0	15 s

Normalization in this category

Every judgment call made between the raw labels and the numbers above, listed so it is visible and reversible.

Category-scoped readings

HubSpot read as HubSpot Ads

LinkedIn read as LinkedIn Campaign Manager

Unresolved, counted raw

AdCreative.ai / Pencil

AdScale

AdStage

AdsGo

American Digital Agency

Blobr.io

Blogclicker.com

Brainlabs

BuyerBridge

CHEQ

Clearbit Connect

Disruptive

FeedHive

HawkSEM

Hootsuite Ads Manager / AdEspresso

HubSpot Ads Software

HubSpot Ads Tool

Ignite Visibility

LinkedIn Campaign Mgr

Madience

Marcel Digital

Search and social advertising platforms

By buyer segment

01The standing

Recommended versus criticized

02What they warned about

03What they cite

Sites the answers cite

Pages the answers cite

04How they answered

05The record

Normalization in this category

Also in marketing