Looking for a Buffer alternative that doesn't cost hundreds (or thousands) of dollars every month?
Buffer is one of the biggest social media management apps in the market.
But it’s not for everyone...
Users often complain that:
- It's not helpful for finding trending content ideas
- Pricing increases with each social channel you add (which gets expensive)
I spent 13+ hours signing up for trials and researching the best Buffer alternatives. I segmented the alternatives below by what they're best at.
Feel free to skip to the section you're most interested in:
- 1. Best for content curation & scheduling: Post Planner
- 2. Good choice for community engagement: Hootsuite
- 3. Good choice for agencies: Sendible
- 4. Good for multi-location businesses: Eclincher
- 5. Simple tool for scheduling: Heyorca
- 6. Budget all-in-one social media management: Loomly
- 7. Good for scaling agencies: Planable
- 8. Good choice for enterprises: SocialPilot
- 9. Good choice for all-in-one social media management: Agorapulse
- 10. Best for advanced analytics & team workflows: Sprout Social
- 11. Best for visual planning and Instagram marketing: Later
- Buffer alternative evaluation checklist
- Frequently asked questions
1. Best for content curation & scheduling: Post Planner
Post Planner is perfect for small businesses that need an affordable way to create, curate, and schedule social media posts.
How much more affordable are we talking?
Buffer's lowest paid plan is $15/month for 3 channels, while Post Planner's is just $7/month for 3 social media accounts (both tools offer comparable free plans).
Post Planner offers the most sought-after features and functions that Buffer offers — but at more than half the cost.
Unlike Buffer, which offers features that might go unused by small businesses, Post Planner focuses on the essentials. This means Post Planner's bread and butter is:
- Helping you find VIRAL post ideas
- Helping you create VIRAL content
- Scheduling and automating your posts across networks
Post Planner does not currently have features for social listening, DM & comment management, and employee advocacy, so if those are important to your company, consider the other (much) more expensive options below.
Here's a demo video that shows you just how simple it is to use (the video will open in a new tab):
Pros:
- Personal and quick customer support
- Affordable for small businesses
- The interface is simple and easy to use
- Easily schedule weeks of content in an afternoon
- Identify trending content for sharing
- You can recycle top-performing posts
- Bulk post scheduling
- Great for tracking competitors' content across platforms
- Content creation tools that help you never run out of ideas
- AI-powered writing assistant to help generate and enhance post ideas
Cons:
- Although Post Planner helps you track your engagement, its reporting features are more simple compared to other tools on this list
- No social listening tools
- No inbox to manage comments and DMs
Key features
- Discover - Curate content from around the web to share.
- Design - Create your own visual posts with our content studio.
- Categorize - Organize your content into bucket categories.
- Create - Tailor each of your posts to be optimized for each social media platform.
- Analyze - Evaluate your historical posts' engagement and performance.
- AI tool - Generate post ideas, content, captions, hashtags, and more with AI.
- Mobile app - Create and schedule content from your mobile device with the IOS or Android app.
- Schedule - Automate your content to be posted at the perfect time with bulk scheduling and post-recycling.
- Connect - All of your social media accounts in one place (Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, X, TikTok, YouTube, Pinterest, and Google Business).
Pricing
Post Planner offers 4 main plans:
- Free - 1 user and account with 15 posts/month
- Starter - $7/month, paid annually for 1 user and 3 accounts
- Growth - $37/month, paid annually for 2 users and 12 accounts
- Business - $57/month, paid annually for 5 users and 25 accounts
Check out our pricing page for more details.
Customer reviews
Post Planner mostly receives 4-5 stars across online review platforms. Customers love the time they save scheduling their posts with Post Planner's easy-to-navigate UI. Some more critical reviews mention that they wish there were more advanced reporting features.
Here's what Aubrey C. has to say about using Post Planner:
“This program is an absolute LIFE SAVER. As a person who runs multiple clients, I needed something that saved me time because I work a full-time day job in addition to my freelance services. I was looking for something affordable, user-friendly, and quick to learn on my own.
I got all of those things but learning on my own wasn't necessary. The team is extremely responsive via text chat and they have plenty of training. Aside from that, this program helped me optimize my work and the post batching is potentially my favorite part.
I love that there's an app for me to use in addition to my desktop. It makes it very easy for me to use no matter where I'm at.
On a personal note, the customer service was better than most places these days. They were responsive, supportive, and encouraging, not to mention extremely helpful and kind. A business like theirs will always get my advocacy and money going forward.
Many thanks for everything, Post Planner!”
2. Good app for community interaction: Hootsuite
If you’ve outgrown Buffer’s simplicity and need more power for engagement, Hootsuite is a strong step up.
It’s built for teams that manage multiple brands or large audiences, with tools for social listening, ad management, and real-time community engagement — all from one dashboard.
While Hootsuite is pricier than Buffer, it delivers far more depth. You can manage paid ads, reply to messages, monitor trends, and generate detailed performance reports — things Buffer doesn’t offer even on higher tiers.
Pros:
- Strong analytics and reporting
- Paid ads management
- DM and comment management features that are great for customer service
- Plenty of integrations
- Great for social listening to manage your online reputation
Cons:
- More expensive than Buffer
- The free plan is only for 30 days
- You get a stock photo library, but you can't curate various types of content from around the web
Key features
- Scheduler – Plan and auto-publish content across Instagram, TikTok, LinkedIn, Facebook, YouTube, Pinterest, Threads, and X
- OwlyGPT – Get real-time trend insights, strategy tips, audience targeting advice, and generate brand-safe captions, videos, and scripts
- Inbox – Centralize all comments, messages, and reviews with auto-replies, sentiment detection, language routing, and CSAT surveys
- Streams – Monitor mentions, keywords, competitors, and industry chatter in real time via customizable social feeds
- Engagement Tools – Automate DMs, track engagement rates, measure response times, and use smart replies to manage community at scale
- Listening – Track brand mentions, hashtags, and sentiment across 150M websites and 30+ platforms using Talkwalker-powered insights
- Analytics – Monitor hundreds of metrics across organic, paid, and earned content; benchmark competitors; and export branded reports
- Social Ads – Launch, schedule, and optimize paid social campaigns across Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, and X with smart triggers and AI copy tools
- Amplify – Equip employees with pre-approved content they can share on their own networks via Microsoft Teams, Slack, or mobile app
- Workflow & Approvals – Create collaborative workflows for post creation, editing, and multi-stage approval with access controls
- Link in Bio – Build a branded link-in-bio landing page to drive traffic from Instagram and other platforms to external content
Pricing
Hootsuite has 3 main pricing plans available:
- Standard - $99/month per channel/user, paid annually for 5 accounts
- Advanced - $249/month per channel/user, paid annually for unlimited accounts
- Enterprise - 5+ users and unlimited accounts (contact Hootsuite for pricing)
Customer reviews
Most Hootsuite customers rate it 4 or 5 stars across review sites. Customers value its social media management and team collaboration features. One of the most common complaints is its higher pricing.
Here's what Taylor has to say about using Hootsuite:
"I am excited about using Hootsuite because of the social media benchmarking and social listening. One thing that I've noticed since using the product is that customer service doesn't respond to chats, the social media platform analytics are not accurate (I have to go to Meta or Linkedin directly for accurate numbers on impressions and likes), and Hootsuite doesn't seem to see when I check the inbox (I got a message recently saying that if I didn't use the inbox within 5 days, the function would be taken away. I use this function every single work day so this is confusing)."
3. Good choice for agencies: Sendible
Sendible is a scalable social media management software that's full of features that'd be a great fit for agencies.
After signing up for their free trial, I was very pleased with how easy their dashboard was to navigate. I could easily figure out how to use each feature.
If I were a social media marketing agency, I'd strongly consider using Sendible because of its collaboration and white labeling features, which can help you better manage clients.
When I was scouring online reviews, I struggled to find many cons about using Sendible that weren't inherent to most social media management platforms. It's not the most cost-friendly tool on the list, but I'd still consider it a high-value option for its agency-focused features.
The main drawback I noticed was the lack of content curation features, which is nice to have if you often struggle to come up with post ideas.
Pros
- Allows team collaboration
- Unlimited post scheduling for every pricing plan
- Known for quick customer support
- White-label features
- Content optimization for each network
- Manage DMs and comments from one platform
Cons
- Some limitations with Instagram integrations and location tagging
- Costs more than Post Planner
- Limited content curation, although you can add your own content to a library and view RSS feeds.
Key features
- Smart Compose Box – Customize, repurpose, and preview posts for each platform from one central dashboard
- AI Assist – Instantly generate captions, content ideas, and hashtags aligned to your brand voice
- Smart Queues – Recycle evergreen content like testimonials, holidays, and quotes using automated reposting queues
- Bulk Importing – Upload and schedule multiple posts at once via CSV or Compose Box to save time
- Priority Inbox – Manage all social comments, DMs, and mentions in one place; assign to team members and filter by profile or date
- Campaign Management – Organize posts into campaigns, color-code them, and track performance over time
- Collaboration – Assign tasks, request approvals, manage roles, and invite clients without giving admin access
- Content Library – Store and categorize reusable content (text, images, hashtags) by type, campaign, or client
- Media Integrations – Design in Canva, pull visuals from GIPHY and Pexels, and import directly from Google Drive or Dropbox
- Social Media Reporting – Use drag-and-drop dashboards to build custom branded reports and schedule them to send automatically
- UTM & Custom Tags – Add custom URLs, campaign parameters, and brand info to posts directly in Compose Box
- Platform Coverage – Supports Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, TikTok, Google Business, YouTube, Threads, Bluesky, and X (Twitter)
Pricing
Sendible offers a 14-day free trial with no credit card required.
They offer 5 main plans:
- Creator – $25/month paid annually for 1 user, 6 profiles, 100 daily sends
- Traction – $76/month paid annually for 4 users, 24 profiles, 200 daily sends
- Scale – $170/month paid annually for 7 users, 49 profiles, 300 daily sends
- Advanced – $255/month paid annually for 20 users, 100 profiles, 500 daily sends
- Enterprise – $638/month paid annually for 80 users and 400 profiles.
I recommend checking out Sendible's pricing page for more details.
Customer reviews
Customers mostly rate Sendible 4-5 stars across online reviews. Customers value the amount of features you get for the price. Some reviews mention struggling with bugs when it comes to scheduling different types of Instagram posts.
Here’s what Freya R. has to say:
“What do you like best about Sendible?
It is one of the most cost-effective ways to schedule posts to multiple platforms. Much more reasonably priced than some competitors.
I use it daily at my current workplace, because I used Sendible at my last role too. Over-all, a reliable, efficient platform. The customer service has always been very quick to get back to me too.
What do you dislike about Sendible?
There are some odd quirks and things that you learn to work your way around.”
4. Good for multi-location businesses: Eclincher
Eclincher is a social media and online reputation management software that was made for multi-location businesses like healthcare clinics.
I recommend trying Eclincher's free trial if you're a business with multiple locations and are looking for more advanced features like inbox management, social listening, and business listing management.
After trying their Standard plan, I was more pleased with the user interface than some of the other reviewers who mentioned it was un-aesthetic. If you don't need more advanced features, and you're just looking for a tool that helps with social media content and scheduling, I'd recommend other options because the amount of features won't be necessary.
I also found the Standard plan to be limiting for the price tag. For example, it doesn't have access to the media library and reporting, which I think should be standard.
Pros
- Feature-rich with tools that help you manage your online presence.
- Comes with tools for social listening and managing your DMs
- You can get a local SEO tool (for additional cost)
- Attentive customer support
- Optimize content for each social network
- Can easily review posts from your team before scheduling
- Comes with a link in bio tool
Cons
- Less intuitive with the overload of features
- Can't schedule stories
- More expensive than Post Planner
- Limited content curation and reporting tools for their entry-level plan
Key features
- AI Content Creation – Generate on-brand posts with adjustable tone, keyword suggestions, and multiple content variations
- Social Media Scheduler – Automate posting for peak times using drag-and-drop rescheduling, visual calendar, and queue logic
- Social Media Calendar – Visualize all posts in one calendar view; filter by profile, type, or campaign; manage weekly and monthly schedules
- Social Media Inbox – Centralize DMs, mentions, comments, and reviews with tagging, AI-powered auto-reply, sentiment detection, and team assignments
- Social Media Analytics – Track audience insights, content performance, sentiment, and engagement trends with drag-and-drop reporting dashboards
- Listings Management – Manage and sync business listings across platforms (Google, Bing, etc.) in real time, update hours and promotions, and reply to reviews
- Link in Bio – Create branded Instagram-style landing pages with visual grids, CTAs, product highlights, and event promotions
- Employee Advocacy – Let employees share approved posts via a centralized content hub; track performance with leaderboards and recognition badges
- Brand Monitoring & Social Listening – Monitor conversations and sentiment across social and web to manage brand health
- Listings Management – Update and sync your business info (hours, descriptions, keywords, promos) across Google, Bing, and other platforms in real time from one dashboard
Pricing
Eclincher's entry-level plan costs more than Buffer's.
Eclincher offers a 14-day free trial and 3 plans:
- Standard – $134.08/month paid annually for 1 brand, 1 user (max 2), 10 social profiles (max 20)
- Professional – $314.08/month paid annually for unlimited brands, 5 users (max 10), 25 social profiles (max 40)
- Enterprise – Custom pricing for everything in Professional, plus unlimited brands, users, profiles, brand monitoring, listings management, SSO, and API access
I recommend checking our Eclincher's pricing page for more details.
Customer reviews
Eclincher mostly receives 5-star reviews across online review sites like G2 and Capterra. Users value the quality customer support and loads of features for local businesses. More critical reviewers, which there are few, sometimes mention glitches and there being a learning curve for all of the features.
Here’s what Carlos F. has to say:
“What do you like best about Eclincher?
For us it has been an amazing tool, helping us save time, be organized and to get the reporting needed to keep us and our clients informed. Very easy to use, but their main asset in my opinion is the quick customer service via chat and the ease with which they solve my concerns. Haven't seen a company run like this in a long time. Good for them!
What do you dislike about Eclincher?
At the beginning it can be a little intimidating, but if you get one or two live sessions with them, not only you will understand how to take advantage of it better plus learn about the many tools available that you might not even know you had access to. We are at the agency level now an
5. Simple tool for scheduling: HeyOrca
HeyOrca customers seem to love HeyOrca for 2 main reasons: It's simple to use AND they have fast customer support.
They make it super easy to switch to different calendars, which is useful if you're an agency that manages multiple clients' social media.
After signing up for the free trial, I can confirm that they do have one of the most straightforward social calendars.
It might lack tools that its competitors have (like better content curation), but I do like how they keep their features limited so users don't get overwhelmed.
Now, you won’t find every feature Buffer has (like advanced analytics). But that’s the trade-off.
Pros
- Quick customer service (a lot of customer reviews rave about this)
- Simple social media scheduler
- Helpful community of users
- Can manage comments and DMs from their social inbox
- Comes with a post approval system for managing clients
Cons
- Not as affordable as Post Planner
- Limited Basic plan
- You'll need the Pro plan for features like Notes, Reports, and Inbox, which makes it less affordable if you need those features.
- Very limited content curation features (probably the weakest of the tools on this list)
Key features
- Scheduling - Plan and schedule posts across Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, TikTok, and Threads
- Collaboration - Work together with teammates and clients to create, approve, and leave feedback on content.
- Reporting - Create automatic reports that track reactions, comments, shares, clicks, page actions, and more.
- Community management - Manage comments, DMs, and brand mentions from one social inbox.
- Mobile app - Manage posts via the iOS or Android app
- Bio link - Create a landing page with links for your Instagram bio
Pricing
All of HeyOrca's pricing plans come with unlimited users and unlimited post scheduling. However, you'll have to pay more for additional content calendars.
HeyOrca has a free plan for 1 user and 10 scheduled posts. They have 2 main pricing plans:
- Basic - $50/month paid annually per calendar
- Pro - $126/month paid annually per calendar
Bulk discounts are available if you get 5+ calendars.
I recommend checking out HeyOrca's pricing page for more details.
Customer reviews
HeyOrca mostly receives 5 stars across review sites. Many reviews mention HeyOrca's simplicity and speedy customer service as their most-liked attributes. Of the very few critiques that users have, the price is one of the most common.
Here's what Sara K. has to say about using HeyOrca:
"What do you like best about HeyOrca?
I was looking for a simple social media scheduler to work with, pretty to look at and fit all of my clients' accounts on one page. I wanted a month-view calendar and HeyOrca had exactly what I was looking for. The customer service is quick and has always helped me figure out any issues I've come up against. I use this platform every day and recoommend it to other social media managers on a regular basis. Connecting HeyOrca to social media channels is simple. LOVE!
What do you dislike about HeyOrca?
The only reason I might not have chosen HeyOrca is the price, but I've learned over the years that you get what you pay for! It is worth the investment, in my opinion.
What problems is HeyOrca solving and how is that benefiting you?
HeyOrca keeps my posts organized and keeps me on track. Whenever I have a question with my account, the customer service team is SO helpful and so quick to answer questions."
6. Budget all-in-one social media management: Loomly
Loomly is a great option if you're looking for a more feature-heavy Buffer alternative that can be used across a large team and is a lot more affordable.
Its user interface is a little old-school-looking. However, I found it pretty easy to navigate, and its onboarding process is easy to follow.
One standout feature that Loomly has that most other alternatives don't is that it supports Snapchat.
It’s designed for teams and agencies that want to plan, approve, and publish social content together, with built-in workflows, comment threads, and client review options. Loomly even gives you post idea suggestions based on trending topics and holidays — a small but powerful edge over Buffer’s static scheduler.
Pros
- Intuitive to use
- The approval feature makes managing client content easier
- Can manage comments and DMs from one place
- Responsive customer support
- Recommends posts based on holidays
Cons
- Increased pricing recently (lowest plan is $49/month paid annually)
- Older-looking user interface
- Although it has some content curation features, it doesn't help you find viral content like Post Planner
- Can't schedule recurring posts
Key features
- Post Planning & Scheduling – Plan, schedule, and auto-publish content across multiple platforms using a visual content calendar
- Approval Workflows – Customize multi-step content approval processes with mockups, commenting, and role-based permissions
- Campaign Management – Organize campaigns with labels, track post performance, and view upcoming posts in calendar or list mode
- Post Optimization Tips – Get channel-specific recommendations to improve post engagement before publishing
- Hashtag Manager – Save and reuse hashtag sets and get recommendations for trending hashtags by platform
- Post Ideas – Discover daily post suggestions and trending content ideas from within the platform
- Community Management – Respond to DMs, mentions, and comments across platforms with a shared inbox and saved replies
- Analytics & Reporting – Track post and campaign performance, view audience insights, and export reports in PDF or CSV
- Link Shortener – Use Loom.ly to track post clicks and campaign-level UTM performance
- Canva, Giphy, Unsplash, and Google Drive – Create or import assets directly into Loomly's media library for post design and publishing
- Platform Coverage – Supports Facebook, Instagram (including Reels, Stories, Carousels), LinkedIn, X, TikTok, YouTube, Threads, Google Business, Pinterest, and Snapchat
Pricing
Loomly offers 4 main pricing plans:
- Free - 1 user, 3 accounts, and 5 posts
- Starter - $49/month paid annually for 3 users and 12 accounts
- Beyond - $249/month paid annually for unlimited users and 60 accounts
- Enterprise - Unlimited users and 61+ accounts (contact for a quote)
Check out Loomly's pricing page for more details.
Customer reviews
Loomly mostly receives 4-5 star reviews across review sites. One of the most common pros users mention is how easy it is to use. Meanwhile, one of the few common complaints is that the user interface appears a bit outdated.
Here's what Karen B. has to say about using Loomly:
What do you like best about Loomly?
“We investigated at least 5 different choices and we selected Loomly because we can set up different business units on it but still segregate posts. It is easy to schedule and customize by platform.”
7. Good for scaling agencies: Planable
Planable is another Buffer alternative that's a good fit for agencies that manage many clients.
They offer content collaboration features that allow you to communicate with your team internally to manage your social posts.
My personal favorite feature — that's also a common theme across Planable's user experience — is its ability to generate AI captions in one click based on an image.
I'd say that they have one of the better user experiences out of most alternatives because of how quickly you can get to any feature in 1-2 clicks.
They also offer features to plan your blog posts and newsletters in the same place as your social posts, although I think most companies won't use those features because they'll already have software for those use cases.
One thing I'd note that it's lacking is a feature for curating content. They do offer GIFs, but I couldn't find any other form of media that comes with the platform.
Pros
- Visual content previews for every platform
- Real-time commenting and collaboration
- Fast, intuitive interface for teams and clients
- Multi-step approval workflows
- AI tools for writing and editing captions
Cons
- No built-in stock media or content discovery library
- Limited analytics on lower-tier plans
- Doesn’t offer automated post recycling
- Can't publish to X on lower plans
Key features
- Post Composer – Create grouped posts across multiple platforms, edit visuals, and customize for each channel from one place
- Visual Calendar – Plan, drag-and-drop, and organize content with color-coded labels and campaign filters
- Approval Workflows – Assign roles, manage permissions, and build multi-step approval flows with shareable links for stakeholders
- Internal Collaboration – Leave comments, annotations, and suggested edits with full version history and resolution tracking
- Universal Content – Draft, format, and collaborate on non-social content like blog posts, newsletters, and creative briefs
- AI Tools – Generate captions, rewrite posts, suggest hashtags, and repurpose content using built-in AI tools
- Scheduling Tools – Schedule posts, Stories, Reels, Carousels, and recurring content with support for first comments, location, alt text, and tags
- Grid Preview – Drag and drop posts to visually plan and align your Instagram feed layout
- Media Library – Centralize all visuals, reuse posts, and integrate directly with Canva for asset design
- Social Inbox – Monitor and respond to comments and messages across platforms; organize by status and sentiment
- Analytics & Reporting – Track engagement, audience demographics, and top-performing content with shareable PDF or link-based reports
- Mobile App – Review, approve, schedule, and get notified on the go with iOS and Android app
Pricing
Planable offers 4 main pricing plans that scale based on the number of workspaces and users you need.
- Free - Create and schedule 50 total posts (no X publishing or analytics)
- Basic - $33/month per workspace paid annually (60 posts/workspace/month)
- Pro - $49/month per workspace paid annually (150 posts/workspace/month)
- Custom - Contact Planable for custom pricing
I recommend checking out Planable's pricing page for more details.
Customer reviews
Planable mostly receives 4-5 stars across customer reviews online. Users commonly praise its collaboration abilities and its simplicity. Meanwhile, one common thing reviewers criticize is its lack of reporting abilities.
Here's what Andrea has to say about using Planable:
"Planable has truly changed how we manage our content and social media strategy execution.
For me, it’s an all-in-one social media management platform that makes planning and scheduling both visual and intuitive. I can see our content calendar, drag and drop posts, and collaborate in real time.
I would say that the value of Planable is its efficiency and ease of use. Everything happens in one place. It helps our small team work like a big one: structured, aligned, and fast.
I can’t recommend it enough."
8. Good choice for enterprises: SocialPilot
SocialPilot is an all-in-one social media management app that's made for social media marketing agencies.
You can schedule to all the most important social media platforms, like X, Facebook, Instagram, YouTube, Pinterest, TikTok, LinkedIn, and Google Business.
Plus, you get unique white-label features to manage, collaborate, and share analytics with clients.
If you manage a lot of social media accounts, SocialPilot's pricing is reasonable. However, if you manage only a few accounts, there are more affordable options (like Post Planner).
Pros:
- Supports all of the most popular social media platforms
- Great if you have a lot of social media accounts to manage
- Easy to optimize your posts for each platform
- White-label customization features
- Team collaboration features
- Manage your social media inboxes from a single place
Cons:
- More complex user experience compared to alternatives
- You can only add 1 social account of each platform for each brand
- Less integrations than Buffer
- No free plan
Key features
- Scheduler – Plan and publish content across Instagram, Facebook, TikTok, LinkedIn, YouTube, Threads, X, Pinterest, Google Business, and Bluesky from one dashboard
- AI Pilot – Generate ideas, repurpose content, rewrite captions, and bulk schedule directly from ChatGPT with SocialPilot’s AI Scheduler
- Calendar – Visualize and manage campaigns with a drag-and-drop planner, tags, drafts, approval stages, and shareable views for clients
- Bulk Scheduling – Upload up to 500 posts via CSV and assign them to accounts, time slots, and campaigns in one step
- Content Library – Save and organize hashtags, evergreen content, branded visuals, and campaign templates for reuse
- Inbox – Respond to all social DMs, mentions, and comments from a single inbox, with tags, notes, account grouping, and AI reply refinement
- Collaboration – Assign roles (Admin, Manager, Content Scheduler), collaborate on drafts, tag teammates, and get post approvals with comment threads
- Analytics – View post, account, and campaign performance across platforms with custom dashboards and local time zone tracking
- Advanced Reports – Drag and drop custom reports, add text/images for context, and schedule automated delivery with secure links
- White Label – Customize platform UI, login pages, domains, and email reports with your branding for client-facing deliverables
Pricing
SocialPilot offers 4 main pricing plans:
- Professional - $25.50/month, billed annually for 1 user and 7 accounts
- Standard - $42.50/month, billed annually for 3 users and 15 accounts
- Premium - $85/month, billed annually for 6 users and 25 accounts
- Ultimate - $170/month, billed annually for unlimited users and 50 accounts
I recommend checking out SocialPilot's pricing page for more details.
Customer reviews
SocialPilot mostly receives 4-5 stars across online reviews. Customers love the value you get for the price, especially if they manage a lot of accounts. Finding many complaints was a struggle, although some mentioned occasional scheduling errors.
Here's what Nyika S. has to say about using SocialPilot:
“I'm happy with it. The pricing is better than Hootsuite which is what I used before; and it's almost as easy to use.
Pros:
I liked how easy it was to 1. add my team members 2. on-board them (platform is easy to learn) and 3. post and schedule content. I can also easily repost content previously scheduled.
Cons:
Pricing packages are slightly rigid- I am in between packages but I have to go with the more expensive one so I don't miss out on features. There is an inability to add a channel the same way you add a team member. I am optimistic this will be added soon.”
9. Good choice for all-in-one social media management: Agorapulse
Agorapulse is another all-in-one social media management platform that comes with advanced features that other social media schedulers don't usually have.
In addition to being able to schedule posts on Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, X, Pinterest, LinkedIn, YouTube, and Google Business — you get tools to manage your inboxes and track brand mentions.
Agorapulse got rid of their free plan, but they do offer a 30-day free trial instead.
Because of its advanced features, its pricing is less affordable for small businesses. But it's still reasonably priced for what you get compared to other alternatives with similar features.
I also found the user experience to be pretty easy to navigate, given the number of advanced features Agorapulse has.
Pros:
- Unlimited post scheduling on all plans
- Helpful customer support
- Makes social listening easy
- Can respond to comments from the platform
- Offers an employee advocacy feature that helps boost your reach
- Advanced reporting that tracks social analytics & your team's engagement
Cons:
- No free plan beyond 30-day trial
- You can't curate high-performing content from around the web
- The paid plans start at $79/month paid annually, which is high compared to Post Planner
- Charges per user (can get expensive fast for teams)
- You'll have to buy one of the higher-tier paid plans for more advanced features like bulk scheduling
Key features
- Publishing – Schedule and auto-publish content across Instagram, Facebook, TikTok, LinkedIn, YouTube, Threads, Blusky, Google Business, TikTok, Pinterest, and X
- Shared Calendars – View and manage scheduled, published, pending, and rejected posts with clients or teammates
- Writing Assistant – Rewrite captions, apply tone/style filters, and generate AI-enhanced copy directly in the post composer
- Inbox Assistant – Consolidate messages, comments, mentions, and reviews from all platforms with saved replies, auto-labels, and assignments
- Monitoring – Track brand mentions, hashtags, and keywords across social, news, blogs, and forums with real-time alerts and sentiment analysis
- Advocacy – Launch employee or influencer campaigns with pre-approved copy, segments, and multi-version content sharing
- ROI Reporting – Attribute traffic, leads, and revenue to posts and conversations without needing to touch Google Analytics
- Reporting – Analyze post and team performance, track replies and moderation metrics, and export customizable reports
- Link in Bio – Build branded link pages with clickable grids to drive traffic from Instagram and other platforms
Pricing
Agorapulse has 4 main pricing plans and a 30-day free trial:
- Standard - $79 per user/month billed annually
- Professional - $119 per user/month billed annually
- Advanced - $149 per user/month billed annually
- Custom - Contact Agorapulse for pricing
I recommend checking out Agorapulse's pricing page for more details.
Customer reviews
Most customers rate Agorapulse 4-5 stars across online reviews. Customers like being able to manage all of their social media DMs in one place and the ability to track brand mentions across social platforms. One of the most common criticisms is the high price point for smaller businesses.
Here's what Bianka B. has to say about using Agorapulse:
“Agorapulse is an essential tool for social media management. We use it daily at Effet B and particularly appreciate its intuitive interface, comprehensive features (scheduling, moderation, reporting), and the clarity of the reports. The calendar is very well designed, the unified inbox tool saves us valuable time, and the customer service is always quick and efficient. It is a reliable platform that allows us to better collaborate as a team and optimize our social strategies.
I highly recommend Agorapulse to any agency or SME looking to structure and simplify their social media management.”
10. Best for advanced analytics & team workflows: Sprout Social
If your agency has outgrown Buffer’s analytics and scheduling, Sprout Social offers everything you’ve been missing — though at a higher price point.
I recommend Sprout Social for teams that need advanced reporting, collaboration tools, and a unified inbox for managing engagement at scale.
It’s packed with automation features and AI insights that help you optimize campaigns, track ROI, and prove the value of social media to clients.
Pros
- Enterprise-grade analytics and customizable reports
- Unified social inbox for messages, mentions, and comments
- Team collaboration and approval workflows
- AI tools for caption writing and performance analysis
- Integrates with CRM and helpdesk tools
Cons
- More expensive than most Buffer alternatives
- Steeper learning curve for new users
Key features
- Publishing – Schedule and optimize posts across platforms (Instagram, Facebook, LinkedIn, Bluesky, Pinterest, Threads, TikTok, X, and YouTube) using a central calendar, with support for Stories, Reels, Carousels, and more
- AI Content Suggestions – Generate alt text, rewrite captions, and get post ideas using Sprout’s AI Assist tools
- Optimal Send Times – Automatically select the best time to publish based on 16 weeks of audience engagement data
- Link in Bio (SproutLink) – Build a visual landing page to turn your Instagram bio into a traffic driver with clickable content grids
- Social Listening – Track billions of conversations in real time, including sentiment, influencer mentions, and share of voice
- Engagement Tools – Use smart inboxes, spike alerts, and AI-recommended replies to manage customer messages and brand reputation
- Review Management – Respond to and analyze reviews from Google, Yelp, Apple App Store, and more in one place
- Analytics & Reports – Build custom dashboards with filters, comparison views, tag reports, and network-level insights
- Premium Analytics – Add advanced filtering, AI-powered insights, and dynamic stakeholder reporting with shareable links
- Employee Advocacy – Let staff share brand-approved content, track earned media value, and expand reach through personal networks
- Influencer Marketing – Discover creators by topic, vet for brand safety, and manage contracts, content, and reporting in one hub
Pricing
Sprout Social has 4 main pricing plans:
- Standard - $199/month per seat paid annually
- Professional - $299/month per seat paid annually
- Advanced - $399/month per seat paid annually
- Enterprise - Contact Sprout Social for pricing
Check out Sprout Social's pricing page for more details
Customer reviews
Since Sprout Social was one of the first social media management tools, it has collected thousands of online reviews, mostly between 4-5 stars. Customers love that it's loaded with plenty of advanced features like the Smart Inbox and reports. The high cost is one of the few dislikes some customers mention.
Here's what one verified user has to say about using Sprout Social:
"As a smaller company with a solo social marketer, Sprout enables us to scale our social presence with purpose and ease. The unified inbox is a game-changer - I'm able to see all mentions, comments, and messages across all of our platforms and it saves hours. Implementation was easy, reporting is professional grade and the interface is intuitive.
The biggest drawback of Sprout Social is the price. The base cost is already on the higher end, and then crucial features like social listening are locked behind an even more expensive add-on. This is frustrating, because listening is essential for proactive strategy, but it feels like it’s priced for enterprise budgets only.
For a tool that does so much right, it’s disappointing that such a core feature isn’t included or available at a more accessible tier. So we have to maintain a separate, more affordable tool to fill that gap."
11. Best for visual planning and Instagram marketing: Later
If your team focuses heavily on Instagram, Later is one of the most IG-focused Buffer alternatives available.
Later gives you a visual content calendar, drag-and-drop grid planner, and hashtag optimization tools — everything you need to perfect your clients’ aesthetic.
It’s especially great for brands in lifestyle, fashion, and eCommerce that rely on visuals. And while its higher-tier plans can get pricey, Later’s core plans still come in under Buffer’s per-channel model, making it a solid value for creatives and small agencies.
Pros
- Beautiful visual planner for Instagram and TikTok
- Smart scheduling and hashtag suggestions
- Drag-and-drop calendar for faster campaign planning
- Link in bio builder included
- Built-in media library and content editing tools
Cons
- Most advanced features are limited to Instagram
- Reporting isn’t as in-depth as some alternatives
Key features
- Scheduler – Plan and auto-publish Instagram, TikTok, LinkedIn, Snapchat, Facebook, Pinterest, X, YouTube, and Threads content from one calendar view
- Best Time to Post – Automatically find the highest-engagement time slots for each account based on 6 months of follower data
- Visual Feed Planner – Drag and drop images to design your Instagram grid and preview your feed before publishing
- Hashtag Suggestions – Get AI-powered hashtag recommendations and track performance with Instagram hashtag analytics
- First Comment Scheduling – Schedule the first comment along with your post to keep captions clean and boost discoverability
Caption Writer – Use AI to generate on-brand, ready-to-post Instagram captions in seconds - Content Creation Tools – Source UGC, import from Canva or Unsplash, and edit photos and videos with cropping, filters, and text overlays
- Media Library – Upload and organize all media assets across your team using folders, labels, and cloud integrations
- Social Listening – Track mentions, sentiment, trends, and influencer conversations across platforms to guide content strategy
- Link in Bio – Build a clickable landing page that replicates your feed layout and links each post to external URLs
- Analytics – Track engagement, reach, saves, best-performing content, and more across all major social platforms
Pricing
Later offers 3 pricing plans:
- Starter - $18.75/month, paid annually for 1 user and 8 accounts
- Growth - $37.50/month, paid annually for 2 users and 16 accounts
- Scale - $82.50/month, paid annually for 4 users and 48 accounts
Check out Later's pricing page for more details.
Customer reviews
Later mostly receives 4-5 stars across online reviews. Users love saving hours by scheduling posts months in advance. Some users mention the price being higher than they'd like and the UI feeling a bit clunky.
Here's what Fiona M. has to say about using Later:
“Overall experience is 99/100 for Later. I’ve tried other scheduling programs but this is by far the best.
Pros:
Later is so easy to use and the visual grid is excellent - it’s also super easy to manage multiple profiles and multiple client social accounts. There are so many features from drafts to analytics to the linkin bio
Cons:
It’s missing LinkedIn analytics which would make it perfect and I’d love to be able to auto post stories on Instagram but otherwise all good.”
Buffer alternative evaluation checklist
Your next step is to choose which Buffer alternative will be best for your business.
Here's a checklist to make your decision easier.
Don't forget: Take advantage of free trials
Most alternatives on this list are going to offer free trials without the need of your credit card.
Take advantage of that!
Create a shortlist of the tools you're interested in and start trying them out.
DON'T just sign up and look around.
Connect your social media accounts and try using the features that interest you most.
Consideration #1: What social media platforms are you using?
What social media platforms do you and your clients use?
There are over 100 social media sites (and that number is constantly growing).
In most cases, these platforms are a MUST:
Make a list of which social media platforms you and your clients use.
Then, rule out the tools that don’t support your favorites.
Consideration #2: How many users & accounts do you manage?
Consider how many users are on your team and how many accounts you’ll be managing.
SMM tools price their products in tiers. And the price increases after a certain number of users.
Think of your client roster and your goals.
You can always upgrade later when your team grows.
But make sure the plans offered make sense for your team and clients.
Consideration #3: Features & capabilities
What features and capabilities will work best for you and your clients?
What do you need your social media management and scheduling tool to do to make your life easier?
For example, do you want to add industry-specific content to a bucket and automatically distribute it at certain times of day?
Do you need your management platform to have a built-in analytics feature?
Consideration #4: Ease of use & user experience
At some point, we’ve all had a bad user experience with a tool or product.
Friction in user experience leads to frustration. Afterall, there’s a reason why 70% of customers abandon a purchase because of poor user experience.
While some tools have a beautiful and intuitive interface, others are harder to learn and maintain.
Consider which ones are easiest to use.
Some platforms have features that focus on larger teams. Those platforms might prove to be too much to maintain for smaller teams as you don’t need all those specific features.
Spoiler alert: The more features a tool has, the larger the learning curve.
Consideration #5: Customer support
Does the platform have an educational library of learning materials?
Does it have video tutorials?
Does it have information that’s easy to search and understand?
Does it have a support team that’s easy to reach?
Having access to good customer support can remove many of the typical roadblocks to implementing your new social media management tool.
Consideration #6: Customization
Can you customize features the way you need them?
Can you create custom streams of shareable content for your industry?
Can you create custom posting plans?
It might take signing up for a free trial to see whether the platform has the customization you need.
Consideration #7: Pricing & value
It's GREAT when you find a product that fits your budget AND gives you amazing value, right?
In the world of social media scheduling and content curation tools, you’ll find options anywhere from $548/month up to $1000s per month.
And a higher price doesn’t necessarily mean better value.
Frequently asked questions about Buffer alternatives
Is Buffer free?
Buffer currently offers a free plan that's limited to 3 social channels and up to 10 scheduled posts per channel.
Why might someone want a Buffer alternative?
Many users switch from Buffer to an alternative because of their pricing, which gets more expensive the more social channels you connect, while others might want an alternative with different features (like content curation tools).
What is the best free Buffer alternative?
I recommend trying Post Planner's free plan. It allows up to 15 scheduled posts at a time.
Get started with Post Planner for just $7/month
Post Planner offers great value to solopreneurs and SMBs — at an affordable price.
With Post Planner, you’ll have everything necessary to increase engagement, grow your accounts, curate content, post consistently, and report to clients.
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