TubeBuddy
YouTube channel toolkit built around thumbnail and title A/B tests
Overview
TubeBuddy is a browser extension and web toolkit for YouTube channels, covering keyword research, bulk editing, scheduling, thumbnail and title A/B testing, and AI title and thumbnail-scoring tools. BEN bought it in 2020 and GameSquare Holdings acquired it in February 2026.
Pricing
Pricing shown for reference only. These figures reflect RECATOOLS research as of 14 Oct 2026 and may be out of date or incomplete. This is not financial or purchasing advice — always confirm the current price on the provider’s official website before making any decision.
- Limited access to Next Video Ideas
- Basic video, thumbnail, title and tag tools
- Content strategy and audience understanding tools
- Topical Analysis
- Retention Analyzer
- Thumbnail Analyzer (10 thumbnails per video)
- Everything in Pro
- A/B Testing
- Title Generator
- Full search and SEO access
- Bulk processing and editing tools
- Competitor Scorecard (up to 10 competitors)
- Unlimited Next Video Ideas
- 1:1 training sessions
- Dedicated expert support
- Automated channel reviews
- Advanced AI analytics
What you can produce with TubeBuddy
- A/B tests of thumbnails and titles on live videos
- AI-generated title ideas from a video topic
- AI scores and suggestions for uploaded thumbnails
- Keyword Explorer, tag rankings and SEO Studio research
- Bulk edits to end screens, cards, descriptions and thumbnails
- Scheduled publishing and channel backups
- Competitor scorecards and retention analysis
TubeBuddy's reason to exist is A/B testing thumbnails and titles inside your own channel, backed by a long list of SEO, bulk-editing and scheduling tools. The AI layer, a title generator and an AI thumbnail score, is useful but secondary. The catch is that A/B Testing and Title Generator both need Legend, at $32.99 a month or $26.39 billed yearly; Pro, at $15 or $12, is a cheaper research and productivity plan.
Ownership moved to GameSquare in February 2026, with prices and licences unchanged so far. Buy Legend if you will actually run packaging tests; otherwise Pro or the free fallback plan covers the basics.
What we found
TubeBuddy is a browser extension and web toolkit for running a YouTube channel: keyword and tag research, bulk editing, end-screen and card templates, scheduled publishing, and A/B tests that serve different thumbnails or titles and report which did better. Tubefilter described it as six years old when Branded Entertainment Network (BEN) bought it in October 2020, with co-founders Phil Starkovich, Eric Hogan, Jim Starkovich and Chuck Starkovich staying on as advisers.
Ownership changed again this year, and earlier versions of this page missed it. On 20 February 2026 GameSquare Holdings, the Nasdaq-listed media and esports company based in Frisco, Texas, announced an asset purchase of TubeBuddy from BENlabs, paid with 5 million shares of preferred stock. TubeBuddy's site now carries a banner saying it is part of GameSquare, and its letter to users says licences and prices are not changing. GameSquare says TubeBuddy has helped more than 10 million creators; TubeBuddy's own footer says 4 million. Neither figure is audited.
The AI tools are modest and specific. Title Generator writes title ideas from a topic, Thumbnail Analyzer gives each uploaded thumbnail an AI-generated score with suggestions, and a Shorts tool picks moments from long videos. A/B Testing and Title Generator need Legend; Thumbnail Analyzer is capped at 10 thumbnails per video on Pro and 20 on Legend. Earlier versions put Retention Analyzer on Legend only, but the comparison table ticks it on Pro as well.
Pro costs $15 a month or $12 billed yearly, and Legend $32.99 or $26.39, charged in US dollars. Those are creator licences; the fine print excludes channels with 50,000 or more subscribers or three or more managers, who go to custom-priced Enterprise. Cancelled licences fall back to a free plan the pricing page does not itemise. On Trustpilot TubeBuddy held 2.8 out of 5 from 25 reviews, read 14 October 2026. It earns its place when testing thumbnails and titles is the bottleneck.
Compiled by RECATOOLS from public sources: vendor documentation and pricing, code repositories and published reporting.
About this listing
This entry was compiled from publicly available data including TubeBuddy's official website, press releases, documentation, and reputable third-party publications. RECATOOLS is not affiliated with TubeBuddy unless explicitly stated.
Third-party AI tools update their pricing, features, availability, and policies frequently. Information here may be outdated by the time you read this — we make reasonable efforts to keep listings current, but cannot guarantee absolute accuracy.
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