Looking for a Planoly alternative that has better support and is more affordable?
Planoly is a fairly affordable social media scheduler.
But it’s not for everyone...
Users sometimes complain that Planoly:
- Has spotty customer support
- Doesn't offer a free plan
I spent 12+ hours signing up for trials and researching the best Planoly alternatives. I segmented the alternatives below by what they're best at. I'll also order these alternatives based on how affordable their pricing is.
Feel free to skip to the section you're most interested in:
- 1. Best for content curation & scheduling: Post Planner
- 2. Good for scaling agencies: Planable
- 3. Good alternative for engagement management: Buffer
- 4. Good choice for agencies: Sendible
- 5. Good choice for enterprises: SocialPilot
- 6. Budget all-in-one social media management: Loomly
- 7. Good for all-in-one social media management: Agorapulse
- 8. Simple tool for scheduling: Heyorca
- 9. Good for multi-location businesses: Eclincher
- 10. Good choice for community engagement: Hootsuite
- 11. Best for support: Vista Social
- Planoly 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?
Planoly's lowest paid plan is $14/month for 60 "uploads", while Post Planner's is just $7/month for 150 scheduled posts.
Post Planner offers the most sought-after features and functions that Planoly offers — but at an even more affordable cost for small businesses.
Planoly and Post Planner offer very similar features. 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 a "link in bio" tool, so if that feature is 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
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 for scaling agencies: Planable
Planable is a Planoly 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."
3. Good alternative for engagement management: Buffer
Buffer's simple design and UX make scheduling, posting, and collaborating an intuitive process.
Buffer can connect to Instagram, Facebook, X, LinkedIn, Pinterest, TikTok, YouTube, Google Business, and even Mastodon.
Even though Buffer can connect to all these platforms, Instagram is where it really shines.
Since Instagram only allows users to share one link in their bio, Buffer allows you to make a landing page that allows you to share various links and calls-to-action. This is a stand-out feature that'll help you turn your Instagram traffic into sales and signups.
Buffer's suite of tools is excellent for planning and scheduling, but it doesn’t allow the user to quickly and efficiently find the top posts in their niche.
Buffer is heavily focused on teams and analytics. If you’re just looking for something to help you provide better content for your followers, it may not be for you.
Pros:
- Team collaboration features
- Supports the social media Mastodon, unlike other tools on this list.
- In-depth analytics & dashboard
- Great for converting your social traffic into sales with its link shortener and landing page tools
Cons:
- Pricing can get expensive because they charge for each social media platform you use
- No features to find the top content in your industry
Key features
- Scheduler – Plan and publish platform-specific content to Instagram, TikTok, LinkedIn, Facebook, Pinterest, YouTube, Threads, X, and Bluesky from one dashboard
- AI Assistant – Repurpose posts, rewrite drafts, and generate new ideas instantly with built-in AI that adapts to your tone
- Collaboration – Assign roles, manage approval workflows, and leave internal comments on drafts with real-time updates
- Shared Calendar – Track all scheduled posts in a visual team calendar with role-based permissions and scheduling control
- Engagement Dashboard – View all comments across platforms, prioritize replies, and use sentiment labels to respond faster
- Analytics & Reports – Track audience growth, post performance, and engagement trends across channels with exportable reports
- Audience Insights – Get a deeper look at your followers’ behavior, content preferences, and best times to post for each channel
- Content Workspace – Store content ideas, tag and categorize drafts, and track progress from creation to publication
- 30+ Integrations – Import and manage media from Google Drive, Dropbox, Canva, RSS feeds, and browser extensions
- Link in Bio (Start Page) – Build a customizable link-in-bio landing page with themes, media, product links, and performance tracking
Pricing
Unlike some of the other schedulers on this list, Buffer charges you per channel that you use.
Buffer offers 3 main pricing plans:
- Free forever - 1 user and 3 accounts with 10/posts/account/month
- Essentials - $5/month per channel, paid annually for 1 user
- Team - $10/month per channel, paid annually for unlimited users
I recommend checking out Buffer's pricing page for more details.
Customer reviews
Most Buffer customers rate the software between 4-5 stars across thousands of online reviews. Most users value its scheduling, social media management, and analytics features. On the other hand, sometimes users comment on the UI being a bit funky and dislike the pricing structure being based on channels.
Here's what Void D. has to say about using Buffer:
"Overall my experience with buffer was really great. I ended up moving to another post scheduler due to the necessity of multiple post queues, but really miss the overall ease of use with buffer.
Pros:
Buffer has a very easy to use interface, and auto-scheduling and reorganizing scheduled posts is extremely easy. The workflow feels intuitive and I never had to pull out the FAQ to figure out how to do what I wanted.
Cons:
The lack of ability to have multiple post scheduling queues for a single social media account. One queue works fine if you only post a single type of content, but having to manually schedule or re-organize the schedule if you have multiple post types (images, video, text, etc) gets really tedious."
4. 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
- 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.”
5. 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
- No free plan
Key features
- Scheduler – 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
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 money, especially if they're managing a lot of accounts. It was a struggle to find many complaints, 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.”
6. Budget all-in-one social media management: Loomly
Loomly is a great option if you're looking for a more feature-heavy Planoly alternative that can be used across a large team.
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.
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 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.”
8. 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.
Another note to keep in mind when comparing HeyOrca to Planoly: Although HeyOrca has scalable pricing, it is more pricey than Planoly. However, they do give you unlimited users and scheduled posts, unlike other tools on this list.
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."
9. 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 Planoly'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
10. Good app for community interaction: Hootsuite
If you’re managing multiple clients or larger teams that need to stay on top of social conversations, Hootsuite is one of the most powerful Planoly alternatives available.
While Planoly focuses on aesthetic content planning, Hootsuite takes care of the entire social workflow — from publishing to monitoring, replying, and analyzing engagement across every major platform.
It’s a perfect fit for agencies or enterprises that want to go beyond visuals and focus on audience interaction, reputation management, and team coordination.
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)."
11. Best for support: Vista Social
Vista Social is one of the most versatile social media management tools you can switch to if you’ve outgrown Planoly. It combines scheduling, engagement, analytics, and reputation management into one clean interface — with AI and automation built into many workflows.
It’s ideal for teams managing multiple brands or clients. The unified inbox, post-level approvals, and customizable reports make it easy to collaborate without losing control of content quality. Features like DM automation, social listening, and Vista Page (its built-in link-in-bio tool) help users go beyond the visual-first focus of Planoly.
Vista Social stands out for its clean interface, flexible pricing, and support for emerging platforms like Threads and YouTube Shorts, making it a future-proof choice for growing teams.
Pros
- Social listening tools with filters for keywords, platforms, location, and language (available as an add-on)
- Ability to post to multiple profiles at once with platform-specific customizations
- Affordable pricing compared to other all-in-one tools
- Ideal for managing multiple brands, clients, or teams in one place
- Support team is highly rated — fast to respond and proactive with onboarding help
Cons
- Occasional issues connecting Meta profiles (Facebook/Instagram), though support resolves quickly
- Some features, like Social Listening, come as an add-on with a steep price
- Some users report that the mobile app lacks full feature parity with the desktop version
- A few analytics features are less advanced than premium competitors like Sprout
- Real-time syncing delays may occur on non-Meta platforms (e.g., TikTok), depending on permissions
- Manual competitor tracking is limited — users wish they could add custom competitors
Key features
- AI-Powered Publishing – Generate posts using Vista’s built-in AI assistant, powered by ChatGPT, with caption prompts, content repurposing, and tone matching
- Multi-platform scheduling – Post to Instagram, Facebook, TikTok, LinkedIn, Pinterest, X, YouTube, Threads, Bluesky, Reddit, Snapchat & Google Business
- Automated DMs & comment replies – Set triggers to auto-respond to keywords, mentions, or comments with personalized messages, links, or offers
- Smart Inbox – Respond to all comments, messages, mentions, and reviews from one unified dashboard
- Social Listening – Track keywords across social networks, review sites, blogs, and news sources, with sentiment analysis and influencer recognition
- Advanced Reporting – Customizable, exportable reports with cross-platform insights, post performance, sentiment, team productivity, and competitor benchmarks
- Employee Advocacy – Let teammates like, share, and comment using pre-approved content to boost reach organically and save on paid ads
- Vista Page (link in bio tool) – Build landing pages and mini-sites with lead gen tools, scheduling, payments, video embeds, and custom domains
- Review Management – Monitor and respond to reviews across Google, Facebook, Yelp, TrustPilot, OpenTable, and TripAdvisor
- Bulk scheduling & approval workflows – Collaborate with teammates or clients, draft content, assign approvers, and schedule across all profiles
- Media integrations – Use Canva, Dropbox, GIPHY, Pexels, Unsplash, and more directly within Vista’s content library
- Mobile app + browser extension – Create and schedule content on the go or from any webpage
Pricing
Vista Social offers 3 flexible plans, and you can access every plan with a 14-day free trial (no cc required):
- Professional – $64/month paid annually for 15 social profiles and 5 users
- Advanced – $120/month paid annually for 30 social profiles and 10 users
- Enterprise – Custom pricing for large teams needing 80+ profiles and 25+ users
Add-ons:
- Employee Advocacy – Free to try, then $199/month for up to 25 employees
- Social Listening – $75/month per listener to monitor social, web, news, and reviews outside your own profiles
Check out Vista Social's pricing page for more details.
Customer reviews
Vista Social has a 4.8/5 average from over 1,000 reviews on G2. Users praise its fast UI, unified inbox, content scheduling, and time-saving automations. Many reviewers highlight how it combines social listening, publishing, analytics, and DM automation into one intuitive platform.
Here’s what Abigail V. has to say:
“What do you like best about Vista Social?
It was easy to set up all my accounts 5 instagrams, 1 tik tok, 1 canva, 1 linkedin, everything was easy and done in less than 3 minutes, no complications when connecting, I love how they show all messages on all of my accounts, as you can see I handle multiple accounts at once, and having all chats integrated there was amazing, the saved responses was a really good feature and I loved it because as a medspa we have multiple scripts for each service and I was able to list different scenarios to save time, it also had an AI option which for us is not needed, however is nice to have when handling difficult scenarios. DM automations are well think and strategically created to turn leads into clients
What do you dislike about Vista Social?
I would love the platform to be updated on messages, I need a catalog of services there, just the same way I can save auto replies I need to save auto pictures.”
Planoly alternative evaluation checklist
Your next step is to choose which Planoly 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 $1,000s per month.
And a higher price doesn’t necessarily mean better value.
Frequently asked questions about Planoly alternatives
Is Planoly free?
Planoly used to offer a "Personal" plan, but as of June 2024, it appears they're no longer offering it. They do currently offer a 14-day free trial.
Why might someone want a Planoly alternative?
Planoly has all of the basic features you'd need for social media scheduling. However, they did stop offering their free plan and recent reviews on Capterra show customers complaining about underwhelming customer support.
What is the best free Planoly 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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