ShortsIntel vs Dig: Detailed Comparison (2026)
ShortsIntel and Dig both offer sophisticated video-first social listening, but they serve very different goals: ShortsIntel is built for DTC brands and agencies to scale UGC marketing and rights management, while Dig is an enterprise-grade intelligence platform focused on brand reputation and narrative detection. If you need to turn creator content into ad assets, ShortsIntel is the clear choice, whereas Dig excels in high-level reputation monitoring for the Fortune 500. For a broader look at the market, you can browse all alternatives or see how we stack up against others in our ShortsIntel comparisons hub.
| Feature | ShortsIntel Recommended | Dig |
|---|---|---|
| Content Discovery | ||
UGC Discovery | 5/5 | 3/5 |
Brand Mention Detection | 5/5 | 5/5 |
Untagged Content Detection | 5/5 | 4/5 |
| Video Tracking | ||
Short-Form Video Tracking | 5/5 | 5/5 |
| Creator Management | ||
Creator Analytics | 4/5 | 3/5 |
Rights Management | 5/5 | 1/5 |
| Intelligence & AI | ||
Competitor Intelligence | 4/5 | 4/5 |
AI Content Tagging | 5/5 | 5/5 |
| Platform & Integrations | ||
Multi-Platform Support | 4/5 | 3/5 |
Integrations | 3/5 | 1/5 |
| Reporting & Collaboration | ||
Reporting Dashboards | 4/5 | 3/5 |
Team Collaboration | 3/5 | 2/5 |
API Access | 3/5 | 1/5 |
| Usability & Support | ||
Ease of Use | 4/5 | 2/5 |
Customer Support | 4/5 | 3/5 |
Feature Deep Dive
Content Discovery & Untagged Content
When it comes to finding content, both tools move beyond basic keyword matching. ShortsIntel specializes in finding user-generated content (UGC) that frequently goes unnoticed—specifically, untagged mentions where a creator might use a product but forget to @-mention the brand. ShortsIntel claims to detect 30% more content than general social listening tools through its frame-by-frame AI analysis. Dig also offers high-accuracy detection (93%) but focuses more on brand mentions and broad narratives across large datasets. For brands heavily reliant on influencer content, the ability to catch those missing tags is a significant advantage for ShortsIntel. If you are comparing discovery features, you might also find our Archive alternative guide helpful.
Video Tracking & AI Analysis
Both platforms are purpose-built for the "video-first" era, tracking TikTok, Instagram Reels, and YouTube Shorts. Dig uses a proprietary LLM stack to identify emerging "narrative clusters," which is excellent for brand safety and market research. ShortsIntel, however, focuses its AI on the visual elements that matter to performance marketers: format, trends, and visual hooks. ShortsIntel’s real-time trend detection helps teams identify which video themes are actually converting, making it more actionable for creative teams. While Dig provides deep intelligence, ShortsIntel provides a roadmap for content production. Those looking for similar deep-video analysis often compare these tools in our Dig vs Brandwatch analysis.
Creator & Rights Management
This is where the two tools diverge most sharply. ShortsIntel includes a robust, automated rights management system featuring a "magic-link" consent workflow. This allows brands to request usage rights and maintain an audit trail directly within the platform—essential for turning UGC into paid ads. Dig, being a reputation and intelligence tool, lacks these features entirely. It does not offer a creator CRM, outreach tools, or licensing capabilities. If your goal is to build a library of ad-ready assets, ShortsIntel is far superior. For those specifically looking for creator management, check out our Dig vs CreatorIQ comparison.
Platform Usability & Integrations
ShortsIntel is designed for agility, offering a self-serve platform that teams can set up in minutes. Dig is an enterprise-level deployment that typically requires a sales demo, custom calibration, and dedicated onboarding. While Dig offers deep-fake detection and 100x cost efficiency on its LLMs, the lack of a public API or documented integrations can be a hurdle for tech-forward teams. ShortsIntel provides a more intuitive interface and documented API access (at higher tiers), making it easier to integrate into a modern marketing stack. You can explore more about integration-heavy tools in our Dig alternatives section.
| Plan Details | ShortsIntel Recommended | Dig |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing Model | Flat Rate | Custom |
| Free Tier | ||
| Free Trial | 7 days | |
| Pricing Tiers | ||
| Entry Tier | Starter$99/mo | EnterpriseCustom |
| Mid Tier | Pro$249/mo | — |
| Top Tier | Business & AgencyCustom | — |
| Annual Cost (5-Person Team)* | $1,188 | Contact Sales |
| Hidden Costs | None listed |
|
* Annual cost calculated using entry tier pricing. Per-seat pricing multiplied by 5 users. Actual costs may vary based on specific plan and usage.
The pricing strategies of ShortsIntel and Dig represent the classic divide between accessible SaaS and enterprise-only software.
ShortsIntel uses a transparent, flat-rate pricing model. The Starter plan at $99/mo is ideal for small DTC brands, while the Pro plan at $249/mo supports scaling teams. For a mid-sized marketing team of 5 people using the Pro plan, the total cost of ownership is $2,988 per year. There are no hidden setup fees, and a 7-day trial allows for immediate testing. This makes it highly competitive against other mid-market tools, as seen in our ShortsIntel vs Brandwatch comparison.
Dig, conversely, operates an enterprise-only model with no public pricing. Industry estimates for enterprise-grade social intelligence tools like Dig typically start at $2,000/month ($24,000/year) and can scale significantly higher based on volume and customization. Dig does not offer a free trial, and the sales process involves demos and custom quotes.
While Dig’s proprietary LLM stack offers efficiency for Fortune 500 companies monitoring millions of videos, for the average brand or agency, the value-per-dollar tilts heavily toward ShortsIntel. ShortsIntel provides specialized UGC tools at a fraction of the cost. For those looking for other budget-friendly options, the Collabstr alternative page provides further insights into the affordable creator space. More pricing context can be found in our ShortsIntel vs Archive breakdown.
Who Is Each Product Best For?
Track and analyze UGC creator videos across TikTok, Instagram Reels, and YouTube Shorts with AI-powered insights and automated rights management
Best For
- DTC/B2C brands running UGC creator campaigns
- Marketing teams drowning in content but starving for insights
- Brands needing to track creators who forget hashtags or tags
- Teams wanting to build a library of ad creatives from UGC
- Companies needing automated usage rights management
- Early-stage teams wanting affordable video social listening
Not Ideal For
- Brands needing general social listening across all content types
- Companies requiring Instagram Stories tracking
- Enterprise teams needing extensive third-party integrations
- Agencies needing long-form video analysis
- Teams focused on platforms beyond TikTok, Instagram, YouTube
Video-first social intelligence platform for brand reputation monitoring, narrative detection, and influencer evaluation across social video
Best For
- Enterprise brands needing deep social video intelligence and monitoring
- Fortune 500 companies in luxury, CPG, and fashion verticals
- Brand safety teams monitoring for deepfakes and disinformation
- Market research teams analyzing video-first consumer narratives
- Organizations requiring reputation intelligence across social video platforms
Not Ideal For
- Small businesses and startups (enterprise-only, no accessible pricing)
- Content creators needing UGC tracking and rights management
- Teams needing text-based social listening across all social platforms
- Companies wanting self-serve onboarding without sales process
- Brands needing public API access or third-party integrations
- Budget-conscious teams without enterprise-level budgets ($2K+/mo)
Choose ShortsIntel if...
You are a DTC/B2C brand or a performance marketing agency that needs to track, analyze, and license UGC. ShortsIntel is built for teams that need to turn social video into high-performing ad creatives. It is the best choice if you need affordable access to video-first listening, automated rights management, and the ability to find untagged content that other tools miss. If you find tools like Hypefy too limited for video, ShortsIntel is your next step.
Choose Dig if...
You are a Fortune 500 company (specifically in luxury, CPG, or tech) focused on brand reputation, disinformation monitoring, and market research. Dig is the right choice for enterprise brand safety teams that need to detect deepfakes or complex narrative shifts across the social landscape and have the budget for a high-touch, custom enterprise solution. You can see how Dig stacks up against other enterprise giants in our Dig vs CreatorIQ guide.
The Verdict
For 90% of marketing teams running creator campaigns, ShortsIntel is the winner. It provides actionable insights, a lower barrier to entry, and the rights management tools necessary to execute a modern marketing strategy. Dig remains a powerful, niche pioneer for reputation intelligence, but its lack of creator management features makes it less practical for those focused on UGC growth. To explore more options, visit our Dig alternative page.
Switching from Dig to ShortsIntel
Migration Difficulty
Estimated Time
Data Export Method
- Research questions and briefs (can be recreated)
- Narrative analysis methodology and frameworks
- Alert configurations and monitoring logic
- Exported reports and insights documents
- Historical video analysis data and archives
- Custom brand calibration models
- Narrative cluster models and theme baselines
- Impact scoring baselines and benchmarks
Switching from Dig to ShortsIntel is considered a moderate difficulty transition. Because Dig is a high-level intelligence platform and ShortsIntel is an actionable UGC tool, the migration is less about moving historical data and more about shifting your workflow toward content acquisition and creator management.
What Transfers:
- Research Briefs: Your existing monitoring questions and brand briefs can be used to set up 'Scopes' in ShortsIntel.
- Competitor Lists: The accounts and brands you monitor in Dig can be immediately plugged into ShortsIntel for tracking.
- Report Frameworks: While the data format differs, the logic of your reputation reporting can often be adapted into ShortsIntel’s visual dashboards.
What Doesn't Transfer:
- Historical Video Archives: Dig’s proprietary narrative clusters and historical video analysis are generally not exportable in a format that can be ingested by other tools.
- Brand Calibration Models: Any custom AI training done specifically for your brand within Dig’s LLM will need to be recreated through ShortsIntel’s AI tagging system.
Estimated Timeline: For a small team, setup takes 1-2 weeks. For enterprise transitions, expect 1-2 months to fully align your rights management workflows. For more details on making a switch, browse our all ShortsIntel comparisons page to see how we handle different data types.
What Our Customers Say
“After comparing both tools, ShortsIntel's UGC discovery capabilities were exactly what we needed. The switch was seamless.”
Michael T.
Digital Marketing Lead
Switched from: Dig
Frequently Asked Questions
Ready to try ShortsIntel?
Track UGC, discover creators, and monitor brand mentions across TikTok, Instagram, and YouTube Shorts.
Related Comparisons
More About Dig
Similar Tools in Social Listening
Popular Comparisons
Last updated: January 30, 2026