What is the best social media scheduler?

It depends on the workload. For one person or brand publishing to most of the major networks, Postify (from €9.99 per month for 1 brand, 1 user and 15 posts per month) and Buffer (free for 3 channels, then priced per channel) are the simplest starts. Metricool is strong on reporting across several brands, Later on visual Instagram planning, Planable on approvals, Agorapulse on inbox volume, and Hootsuite and Sprout Social on enterprise suites. We build Postify, so judge it against these criteria rather than taking our word for it.

What is the cheapest social media scheduler?

Buffer, Metricool and Planable have free plans: Buffer for up to 3 channels, Metricool for 1 brand and 20 posts per month, and Planable for 50 posts in total. Among paid plans, the lowest list prices here are Buffer at $5 to $6 per channel per month, Postify at €8.33 per month billed yearly (€9.99 monthly), Later at $18.75 and Metricool at $20 per month billed yearly. They buy different things: Postify's entry plan covers 1 brand, 1 user and 15 posts per month with no inbox, Later Starter allows 30 posts per profile per month, and Metricool Starter covers 5 brands. Postify bills in euros and the others list US dollars, so compare at your own exchange rate.

Which social media schedulers work with AI assistants like Claude and ChatGPT?

Most of them now do. Buffer, Metricool and Planable offer MCP servers or official connectors on every plan, Free included; Hootsuite has MCP connectors for Claude, ChatGPT, Gemini and Copilot; Agorapulse has an MCP server in beta; and Postify has a first-party MCP server on every plan that lets your assistant draft, schedule and analyze posts. Sprout Social's ChatGPT integration is read-only and limited to TikTok data, and we found no MCP integration for Later. Before you choose, check what the assistant can actually do in each tool: publish, read analytics, or reply in the inbox.

Which social media schedulers support Bluesky and Google Business Profile?

Buffer, Hootsuite, Sprout Social, Metricool and Agorapulse publish to Bluesky. Buffer, Sprout Social, Metricool, Planable and Agorapulse publish to Google Business Profile, while Hootsuite covers it in the inbox only. Postify, Later and Planable do not publish to Bluesky, and Postify and Later do not support Google Business Profile.

Do social media schedulers post automatically?

Yes, for most formats. Every tool here can publish automatically at the time you set. Some formats still rely on a phone notification in some tools, for example Instagram Stories with stickers in Agorapulse, Metricool, Planable and Sprout Social, or TikTok sounds in Sprout Social. Postify has no reminder-based publishing: Instagram, Facebook and Plative Stories go out directly. Check per-format support for your networks before committing to a tool.

Buying guide

The 8 best social media schedulers in 2026

Every scheduler on this list can queue a post. The differences that decide a purchase are which networks you can publish to, what the entry plan really includes, how the bill grows with channels, users or brands, and whether your AI assistant can work with it. Here is how eight tools compare on those points.

Choose your plan See plans and pricing

Last updated: 2026-10-07

TL;DR: Postify suits creators and small teams publishing to Instagram, Facebook, Threads, LinkedIn, X, TikTok, YouTube and Pinterest from one calendar, from €9.99 per month for one brand. Buffer and Metricool have free plans, Later is built for visual Instagram planning, Planable for approvals, Agorapulse for inbox volume, and Hootsuite and Sprout Social are full enterprise suites.

How this list was made: in October 2026 we read each vendor's pricing page and help center and compared networks, plan limits, inbox, approvals, analytics and AI assistant access. We build Postify, so it is listed first; the other seven follow in order of the lowest paid list price each vendor publishes. Competitor prices are in US dollars as the vendors list them, before tax. Postify bills in euros, so convert at your own rate before comparing, and confirm current pricing with each vendor before you buy.

Tool	Best for	Pricing
1. Postify	Creators and small teams publishing to the major networks from one calendar	From €9.99 per month (€8.33 billed yearly) for 1 brand, 1 user and 15 posts per month; inbox from the Plus plan
2. Buffer	Solo creators and small teams that want a free or low-cost start	Free for up to 3 channels; Essentials $6 per channel per month ($5 billed yearly); Team $12 per channel ($10 billed yearly)
3. Later	Instagram-first creators and consumer brands that plan visually	Starter $25 per month ($18.75 billed yearly) for 1 social set of up to 8 profiles; Growth $50; Scale $110
4. Metricool	Freelancers and small agencies reporting on several brands, organic and paid	Free for 1 brand; Starter $25 per month ($20 billed yearly) for 5 brands; X is an add-on at $10 per account per month
5. Planable	Agencies and multi-location brands whose bottleneck is approval	Free for 50 posts in total; Basic $39 per workspace per month ($32.50 billed yearly); Pro $59 ($49.17 billed yearly); unlimited users
6. Agorapulse	Teams that handle a high volume of comments and DMs	Standard $99 per user per month ($79 billed yearly), same figures in euros; X is an add-on from $29 per X profile per month
7. Sprout Social	Mid-size and enterprise brands running customer care, reviews and listening	Essentials $99 per seat per month ($79 billed yearly); Standard $249 ($199); Professional $399 ($299); Advanced $499 ($399)
8. Hootsuite	Organizations that want publishing, inbox, listening, ads and advocacy from one vendor	Standard $99 per user per month, billed yearly; Professional $199; Advanced $399; monthly-billed prices are not published

1. Postify

Creators and small teams publishing to the major networks from one calendar

Postify publishes directly to Instagram, Facebook, Threads, LinkedIn, X, TikTok, YouTube and Pinterest, plus Plative, our own social network, from one composer and calendar. Instagram and Facebook Stories go out directly with no phone reminder, each network can get its own caption inside one post, and a feed grid preview shows how Instagram and TikTok posts will sit on your profile. Every plan includes analytics, Postify Link (a link-in-bio page with click analytics) and access to our first-party MCP server, so your own AI assistant, such as Claude or ChatGPT, can draft, schedule and analyze posts. The unified inbox, comment-to-DM automations and first comments start at the Plus plan, and per-post client approval links at Pro.

Pros

Direct publishing to Instagram, Facebook, Threads, LinkedIn, X, TikTok, YouTube and Pinterest, including Instagram and Facebook Stories, with no reminder step
Analytics, Postify Link and MCP server access on every plan, including the entry plan
Per-network captions in one post, and a feed grid preview for Instagram and TikTok
Comment-to-DM automations for Instagram and Facebook from the Plus plan
App available in 39 languages

Cons

The entry plan is tight: 1 brand, 1 user and 15 posts per month, with no inbox and no first comments
No free plan
No public API, Zapier or Make, and no built-in AI writing assistant; automation runs through the MCP server
No Bluesky, Google Business Profile or Mastodon, and YouTube uploads are capped at 3 minutes
Inbox has no TikTok, X or Pinterest coverage, and no social listening or competitor benchmarks

Verdict: A good fit if you publish to most of the major networks for one or a few brands and want Stories, a link-in-bio page and AI assistant access without add-ons. Look elsewhere if you need a free plan, Bluesky or Google Business Profile, long YouTube videos, social listening, or an API and Zapier stack.

Pricing: From €9.99 per month (€8.33 billed yearly) for 1 brand, 1 user and 15 posts per month; inbox from the Plus plan

2. Buffer

Solo creators and small teams that want a free or low-cost start

Buffer prices per connected channel, so one or two accounts cost little and the bill grows with each channel you add, with lower rates above 10 channels. It publishes to Bluesky, Mastodon, Google Business Profile and Substack Notes as well as the major networks, and to both LinkedIn pages and profiles. Every plan, Free included, comes with an AI Assistant, a comment inbox, a GraphQL API and a remote MCP server. The Team plan adds approval workflows and unlimited users.

Pros

Free plan for 3 channels, and a 14-day trial of paid plans with no card required
Publishes to Bluesky, Mastodon, Google Business Profile and Substack Notes
API and MCP server on every plan, including Free
Unlimited users on the Team plan with no per-seat fee

Cons

Cost rises with every channel you connect
Approvals and access levels need the Team plan
The inbox covers comments, not DMs, and advanced analytics cover only Facebook Pages, Instagram, LinkedIn Pages and X
Web app and iOS app are English only, and support is by email only

Verdict: Pick Buffer if you post to a handful of channels, want to start free, or need Bluesky, Mastodon or an API. It is a weaker fit if your team needs a DM inbox or localized software.

Pricing: Free for up to 3 channels; Essentials $6 per channel per month ($5 billed yearly); Team $12 per channel ($10 billed yearly)

3. Later

Instagram-first creators and consumer brands that plan visually

Later is built around visual planning for Instagram, TikTok and Pinterest: a visual planner, Instagram first comments, Stories that auto-publish for Business profiles, and Link in Bio on every plan with affiliate links and email capture. It also publishes to Facebook, LinkedIn, Threads, YouTube Shorts and Snapchat, and connects to Later's influencer marketing and Mavely affiliate products. X has not been supported since August 2025, YouTube is Shorts only, and no public API or MCP integration was found.

Pros

Visual planner plus Link in Bio with affiliate links and email capture
Publishes Snapchat Spotlight and Stories
Influencer and creator affiliate products from the same company
Starter covers up to 8 profiles, one per network

Cons

No X since August 2025, and no Bluesky or Google Business Profile
Starter allows 30 posts per profile per month, 1 user and 3 months of analytics
Social inbox and approvals start at Growth ($50 per month)
Plans are non-refundable, and the trial needs a card and converts automatically

Verdict: A strong pick for visual Instagram, TikTok and Pinterest accounts, especially if you also run creator or affiliate campaigns. Not the tool for X, Bluesky or long-form YouTube.

Pricing: Starter $25 per month ($18.75 billed yearly) for 1 social set of up to 8 profiles; Growth $50; Scale $110

4. Metricool

Freelancers and small agencies reporting on several brands, organic and paid

Metricool is analytics-first. It reports on social profiles, your website or blog, and Facebook, Google and TikTok Ads in one place, and tracks competitors even on the Free plan. Plans are priced per bundle of brands rather than per user, with prices shown in both US dollars and euros. Advanced adds approvals, unlimited team members, a Looker Studio connector and API access, and official Claude and ChatGPT connectors are available on every plan, Free included.

Pros

Organic, website and paid ads analytics (Facebook, Google and TikTok Ads) in one tool
Free plan with no card, and 5 brands on Starter
Prices in US dollars and euros, and an app in nine languages
Unlimited team members on Advanced plans

Cons

X costs extra on every paid plan and is not available on Free
LinkedIn is paid-only, and one brand can hold a LinkedIn profile or a page, not both
Approvals and roles need Advanced (from $53 per month billed yearly)
Some Instagram formats, such as Stories with links or stickers, still need notification publishing

Verdict: A strong value pick when reports for several brands are half your deliverable, especially if you also manage ad spend. Heavy X users should price in the add-on.

Pricing: Free for 1 brand; Starter $25 per month ($20 billed yearly) for 5 brands; X is an add-on at $10 per account per month

5. Planable

Agencies and multi-location brands whose bottleneck is approval

Planable is built around review. Posts appear in Feed and Calendar views (plus Grid on Pro) where stakeholders check and approve them, with optional approval on Basic, required approval on Pro and multi-level approval on Enterprise. Every plan has unlimited users, an AI writer and an MCP connector for ChatGPT, Claude and Gemini. Analytics and the social inbox are paid add-ons on Basic and Pro, and both have a monthly post cap.

Pros

Approval workflows from optional to multi-level, with bulk approval on Pro
Unlimited users on every plan, priced per workspace
MCP connector on every plan, including Free
Publishes to Google Business Profile and to LinkedIn profiles and pages

Cons

Monthly post caps: 60 per workspace on Basic, 150 on Pro
Analytics ($14) and Social Inbox ($9) are add-ons, per workspace per month
X is limited to 1 post per 24 hours on Basic, and there is no Bluesky
Published posts are archived after a year and deleted 30 days later on self-serve plans

Verdict: Ideal when getting sign-off from clients or several stakeholders is the hardest part of your week and your volume fits the post caps.

Pricing: Free for 50 posts in total; Basic $39 per workspace per month ($32.50 billed yearly); Pro $59 ($49.17 billed yearly); unlimited users

6. Agorapulse

Teams that handle a high volume of comments and DMs

Agorapulse is strongest in the inbox: moderation rules and ad comment moderation (from Professional), with bulk inbox actions, saved replies and labels from the Advanced plan. Reporting is deep too, with white-label report exports on every plan and ads and ROI reports from Advanced. It publishes to Bluesky, Google Business Profile and LinkedIn profiles alongside the major networks, and offers an MCP server for ChatGPT and Claude, currently in beta. X publishing needs a paid add-on.

Pros

Inbox moderation depth: rules and ad comment moderation (from Professional), plus bulk actions, saved replies and labels on Advanced
White-label report exports on every plan
30-day trial with no card required
Publishes LinkedIn documents and polls, Bluesky and Google Business Profile

Cons

Per-user pricing, so the cost scales with team size
X costs extra: $29 or $69 per X profile per month
Bulk CSV scheduling, ads reports and competitor benchmarking need Advanced ($149 per user per month billed yearly)
Monthly payments are non-refundable, and the classic free plan ended in July 2026

Verdict: The pick when engagement volume, not publishing volume, defines the job and per-user pricing fits your team size.

Pricing: Standard $99 per user per month ($79 billed yearly), same figures in euros; X is an add-on from $29 per X profile per month

7. Sprout Social

Mid-size and enterprise brands running customer care, reviews and listening

Sprout Social combines publishing with Smart Inbox, review management for sites such as Google, Yelp, Glassdoor and the app stores, WhatsApp and Trustpilot, listening and premium analytics (both paid add-ons), backed by 24/5 live chat and phone support. It publishes to Bluesky, Threads, Google Business Profile, Reddit and Snapchat alongside the major networks. The new Essentials plan covers publishing and reporting only (5 profiles, no inbox or approvals), and the ChatGPT integration reads TikTok data only.

Pros

Inbox, reviews and listening in one place
Publishes to Reddit, Snapchat, Bluesky and Google Business Profile
30-day trial without a card, plus 24/5 live chat and phone support
CRM integrations (HubSpot, Marketo, Microsoft Dynamics) from Advanced

Cons

Every user is a paid seat, from $79 to $399 per month billed yearly
Essentials has no inbox or approvals, and Essentials and Standard cap you at 5 profiles
Bulk scheduling needs Professional and the API needs Advanced
The AI assistant integration is ChatGPT only, read-only and limited to TikTok data

Verdict: Choose Sprout when customer care and reporting are the deliverable and the budget covers per-seat pricing. Small teams that mainly need posts to go out will pay for depth they do not use.

Pricing: Essentials $99 per seat per month ($79 billed yearly); Standard $249 ($199); Professional $399 ($299); Advanced $499 ($399)

8. Hootsuite

Organizations that want publishing, inbox, listening, ads and advocacy from one vendor

Hootsuite is a broad all-in-one suite, now organized as Social OS: publishing, an inbox with saved replies on every plan, ads management for Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn and X, competitive benchmarking, listening and the Wisdom AI assistant. It publishes to Bluesky, Threads, TikTok, YouTube and Pinterest, and MCP connectors let Claude and ChatGPT schedule posts, pull analytics and work the inbox (Gemini and Copilot can connect by URL). Enterprise adds SSO, Salesforce and employee advocacy.

Pros

Organic and paid in one tool: ads publishing and management for Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn and X on every plan
Inbox with saved replies on every plan, and DM automations from Professional
MCP connectors for Claude, ChatGPT, Gemini and Copilot
Enterprise options: SSO, Salesforce, ROI reporting and employee advocacy

Cons

Highest starting list price on this list ($99 per user per month, billed yearly), and no free plan
Approval workflows need Advanced ($399 per user per month, billed yearly)
Cancelling or downgrading does not refund the rest of the term
Pinterest publishing is web-only, and Google Business Profile is inbox-only

Verdict: The safe choice when one vendor has to cover publishing, care, listening, ads and advocacy. Small teams that mainly publish will pay for modules they rarely open.

Pricing: Standard $99 per user per month, billed yearly; Professional $199; Advanced $399; monthly-billed prices are not published

Frequently asked questions

What is the best social media scheduler?: It depends on the workload. For one person or brand publishing to most of the major networks, Postify (from €9.99 per month for 1 brand, 1 user and 15 posts per month) and Buffer (free for 3 channels, then priced per channel) are the simplest starts. Metricool is strong on reporting across several brands, Later on visual Instagram planning, Planable on approvals, Agorapulse on inbox volume, and Hootsuite and Sprout Social on enterprise suites. We build Postify, so judge it against these criteria rather than taking our word for it.
What is the cheapest social media scheduler?: Buffer, Metricool and Planable have free plans: Buffer for up to 3 channels, Metricool for 1 brand and 20 posts per month, and Planable for 50 posts in total. Among paid plans, the lowest list prices here are Buffer at $5 to $6 per channel per month, Postify at €8.33 per month billed yearly (€9.99 monthly), Later at $18.75 and Metricool at $20 per month billed yearly. They buy different things: Postify's entry plan covers 1 brand, 1 user and 15 posts per month with no inbox, Later Starter allows 30 posts per profile per month, and Metricool Starter covers 5 brands. Postify bills in euros and the others list US dollars, so compare at your own exchange rate.
Which social media schedulers work with AI assistants like Claude and ChatGPT?: Most of them now do. Buffer, Metricool and Planable offer MCP servers or official connectors on every plan, Free included; Hootsuite has MCP connectors for Claude, ChatGPT, Gemini and Copilot; Agorapulse has an MCP server in beta; and Postify has a first-party MCP server on every plan that lets your assistant draft, schedule and analyze posts. Sprout Social's ChatGPT integration is read-only and limited to TikTok data, and we found no MCP integration for Later. Before you choose, check what the assistant can actually do in each tool: publish, read analytics, or reply in the inbox.
Which social media schedulers support Bluesky and Google Business Profile?: Buffer, Hootsuite, Sprout Social, Metricool and Agorapulse publish to Bluesky. Buffer, Sprout Social, Metricool, Planable and Agorapulse publish to Google Business Profile, while Hootsuite covers it in the inbox only. Postify, Later and Planable do not publish to Bluesky, and Postify and Later do not support Google Business Profile.
Do social media schedulers post automatically?: Yes, for most formats. Every tool here can publish automatically at the time you set. Some formats still rely on a phone notification in some tools, for example Instagram Stories with stickers in Agorapulse, Metricool, Planable and Sprout Social, or TikTok sounds in Sprout Social. Postify has no reminder-based publishing: Instagram, Facebook and Plative Stories go out directly. Check per-format support for your networks before committing to a tool.

Compare tools head-to-head

Want the detailed matchup for a specific tool? Read the full comparison library or jump straight to Buffer vs Postify and Hootsuite vs Postify.

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Postify supports nine platforms in one workflow: plan, schedule, and publish without juggling five different tools.

Choose your plan See pricing

Buying guide

The 8 best social media schedulers in 2026

Choose your plan See plans and pricing

Last updated: 2026-10-07

Tool	Best for	Pricing
1. Postify	Creators and small teams publishing to the major networks from one calendar	From €9.99 per month (€8.33 billed yearly) for 1 brand, 1 user and 15 posts per month; inbox from the Plus plan
2. Buffer	Solo creators and small teams that want a free or low-cost start	Free for up to 3 channels; Essentials $6 per channel per month ($5 billed yearly); Team $12 per channel ($10 billed yearly)
3. Later	Instagram-first creators and consumer brands that plan visually	Starter $25 per month ($18.75 billed yearly) for 1 social set of up to 8 profiles; Growth $50; Scale $110
4. Metricool	Freelancers and small agencies reporting on several brands, organic and paid	Free for 1 brand; Starter $25 per month ($20 billed yearly) for 5 brands; X is an add-on at $10 per account per month
5. Planable	Agencies and multi-location brands whose bottleneck is approval	Free for 50 posts in total; Basic $39 per workspace per month ($32.50 billed yearly); Pro $59 ($49.17 billed yearly); unlimited users
6. Agorapulse	Teams that handle a high volume of comments and DMs	Standard $99 per user per month ($79 billed yearly), same figures in euros; X is an add-on from $29 per X profile per month
7. Sprout Social	Mid-size and enterprise brands running customer care, reviews and listening	Essentials $99 per seat per month ($79 billed yearly); Standard $249 ($199); Professional $399 ($299); Advanced $499 ($399)
8. Hootsuite	Organizations that want publishing, inbox, listening, ads and advocacy from one vendor	Standard $99 per user per month, billed yearly; Professional $199; Advanced $399; monthly-billed prices are not published

1. Postify

Creators and small teams publishing to the major networks from one calendar

Pros

Direct publishing to Instagram, Facebook, Threads, LinkedIn, X, TikTok, YouTube and Pinterest, including Instagram and Facebook Stories, with no reminder step
Analytics, Postify Link and MCP server access on every plan, including the entry plan
Per-network captions in one post, and a feed grid preview for Instagram and TikTok
Comment-to-DM automations for Instagram and Facebook from the Plus plan
App available in 39 languages

Cons

The entry plan is tight: 1 brand, 1 user and 15 posts per month, with no inbox and no first comments
No free plan
No public API, Zapier or Make, and no built-in AI writing assistant; automation runs through the MCP server
No Bluesky, Google Business Profile or Mastodon, and YouTube uploads are capped at 3 minutes
Inbox has no TikTok, X or Pinterest coverage, and no social listening or competitor benchmarks

Pricing: From €9.99 per month (€8.33 billed yearly) for 1 brand, 1 user and 15 posts per month; inbox from the Plus plan

2. Buffer

Solo creators and small teams that want a free or low-cost start

Pros

Free plan for 3 channels, and a 14-day trial of paid plans with no card required
Publishes to Bluesky, Mastodon, Google Business Profile and Substack Notes
API and MCP server on every plan, including Free
Unlimited users on the Team plan with no per-seat fee

Cons

Cost rises with every channel you connect
Approvals and access levels need the Team plan
The inbox covers comments, not DMs, and advanced analytics cover only Facebook Pages, Instagram, LinkedIn Pages and X
Web app and iOS app are English only, and support is by email only

Verdict: Pick Buffer if you post to a handful of channels, want to start free, or need Bluesky, Mastodon or an API. It is a weaker fit if your team needs a DM inbox or localized software.

Pricing: Free for up to 3 channels; Essentials $6 per channel per month ($5 billed yearly); Team $12 per channel ($10 billed yearly)

3. Later

Instagram-first creators and consumer brands that plan visually

Pros

Visual planner plus Link in Bio with affiliate links and email capture
Publishes Snapchat Spotlight and Stories
Influencer and creator affiliate products from the same company
Starter covers up to 8 profiles, one per network

Cons

No X since August 2025, and no Bluesky or Google Business Profile
Starter allows 30 posts per profile per month, 1 user and 3 months of analytics
Social inbox and approvals start at Growth ($50 per month)
Plans are non-refundable, and the trial needs a card and converts automatically

Verdict: A strong pick for visual Instagram, TikTok and Pinterest accounts, especially if you also run creator or affiliate campaigns. Not the tool for X, Bluesky or long-form YouTube.

Pricing: Starter $25 per month ($18.75 billed yearly) for 1 social set of up to 8 profiles; Growth $50; Scale $110

4. Metricool

Freelancers and small agencies reporting on several brands, organic and paid

Pros

Organic, website and paid ads analytics (Facebook, Google and TikTok Ads) in one tool
Free plan with no card, and 5 brands on Starter
Prices in US dollars and euros, and an app in nine languages
Unlimited team members on Advanced plans

Cons

X costs extra on every paid plan and is not available on Free
LinkedIn is paid-only, and one brand can hold a LinkedIn profile or a page, not both
Approvals and roles need Advanced (from $53 per month billed yearly)
Some Instagram formats, such as Stories with links or stickers, still need notification publishing

Verdict: A strong value pick when reports for several brands are half your deliverable, especially if you also manage ad spend. Heavy X users should price in the add-on.

Pricing: Free for 1 brand; Starter $25 per month ($20 billed yearly) for 5 brands; X is an add-on at $10 per account per month

5. Planable

Agencies and multi-location brands whose bottleneck is approval

Pros

Approval workflows from optional to multi-level, with bulk approval on Pro
Unlimited users on every plan, priced per workspace
MCP connector on every plan, including Free
Publishes to Google Business Profile and to LinkedIn profiles and pages

Cons

Monthly post caps: 60 per workspace on Basic, 150 on Pro
Analytics ($14) and Social Inbox ($9) are add-ons, per workspace per month
X is limited to 1 post per 24 hours on Basic, and there is no Bluesky
Published posts are archived after a year and deleted 30 days later on self-serve plans

Verdict: Ideal when getting sign-off from clients or several stakeholders is the hardest part of your week and your volume fits the post caps.

Pricing: Free for 50 posts in total; Basic $39 per workspace per month ($32.50 billed yearly); Pro $59 ($49.17 billed yearly); unlimited users

6. Agorapulse

Teams that handle a high volume of comments and DMs

Pros

Inbox moderation depth: rules and ad comment moderation (from Professional), plus bulk actions, saved replies and labels on Advanced
White-label report exports on every plan
30-day trial with no card required
Publishes LinkedIn documents and polls, Bluesky and Google Business Profile

Cons

Per-user pricing, so the cost scales with team size
X costs extra: $29 or $69 per X profile per month
Bulk CSV scheduling, ads reports and competitor benchmarking need Advanced ($149 per user per month billed yearly)
Monthly payments are non-refundable, and the classic free plan ended in July 2026

Verdict: The pick when engagement volume, not publishing volume, defines the job and per-user pricing fits your team size.

Pricing: Standard $99 per user per month ($79 billed yearly), same figures in euros; X is an add-on from $29 per X profile per month

7. Sprout Social

Mid-size and enterprise brands running customer care, reviews and listening

Pros

Inbox, reviews and listening in one place
Publishes to Reddit, Snapchat, Bluesky and Google Business Profile
30-day trial without a card, plus 24/5 live chat and phone support
CRM integrations (HubSpot, Marketo, Microsoft Dynamics) from Advanced

Cons

Every user is a paid seat, from $79 to $399 per month billed yearly
Essentials has no inbox or approvals, and Essentials and Standard cap you at 5 profiles
Bulk scheduling needs Professional and the API needs Advanced
The AI assistant integration is ChatGPT only, read-only and limited to TikTok data

Verdict: Choose Sprout when customer care and reporting are the deliverable and the budget covers per-seat pricing. Small teams that mainly need posts to go out will pay for depth they do not use.

Pricing: Essentials $99 per seat per month ($79 billed yearly); Standard $249 ($199); Professional $399 ($299); Advanced $499 ($399)

8. Hootsuite

Organizations that want publishing, inbox, listening, ads and advocacy from one vendor

Pros

Organic and paid in one tool: ads publishing and management for Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn and X on every plan
Inbox with saved replies on every plan, and DM automations from Professional
MCP connectors for Claude, ChatGPT, Gemini and Copilot
Enterprise options: SSO, Salesforce, ROI reporting and employee advocacy

Cons

Highest starting list price on this list ($99 per user per month, billed yearly), and no free plan
Approval workflows need Advanced ($399 per user per month, billed yearly)
Cancelling or downgrading does not refund the rest of the term
Pinterest publishing is web-only, and Google Business Profile is inbox-only

Verdict: The safe choice when one vendor has to cover publishing, care, listening, ads and advocacy. Small teams that mainly publish will pay for modules they rarely open.

Pricing: Standard $99 per user per month, billed yearly; Professional $199; Advanced $399; monthly-billed prices are not published

Frequently asked questions

What is the best social media scheduler?: It depends on the workload. For one person or brand publishing to most of the major networks, Postify (from €9.99 per month for 1 brand, 1 user and 15 posts per month) and Buffer (free for 3 channels, then priced per channel) are the simplest starts. Metricool is strong on reporting across several brands, Later on visual Instagram planning, Planable on approvals, Agorapulse on inbox volume, and Hootsuite and Sprout Social on enterprise suites. We build Postify, so judge it against these criteria rather than taking our word for it.
What is the cheapest social media scheduler?: Buffer, Metricool and Planable have free plans: Buffer for up to 3 channels, Metricool for 1 brand and 20 posts per month, and Planable for 50 posts in total. Among paid plans, the lowest list prices here are Buffer at $5 to $6 per channel per month, Postify at €8.33 per month billed yearly (€9.99 monthly), Later at $18.75 and Metricool at $20 per month billed yearly. They buy different things: Postify's entry plan covers 1 brand, 1 user and 15 posts per month with no inbox, Later Starter allows 30 posts per profile per month, and Metricool Starter covers 5 brands. Postify bills in euros and the others list US dollars, so compare at your own exchange rate.
Which social media schedulers work with AI assistants like Claude and ChatGPT?: Most of them now do. Buffer, Metricool and Planable offer MCP servers or official connectors on every plan, Free included; Hootsuite has MCP connectors for Claude, ChatGPT, Gemini and Copilot; Agorapulse has an MCP server in beta; and Postify has a first-party MCP server on every plan that lets your assistant draft, schedule and analyze posts. Sprout Social's ChatGPT integration is read-only and limited to TikTok data, and we found no MCP integration for Later. Before you choose, check what the assistant can actually do in each tool: publish, read analytics, or reply in the inbox.
Which social media schedulers support Bluesky and Google Business Profile?: Buffer, Hootsuite, Sprout Social, Metricool and Agorapulse publish to Bluesky. Buffer, Sprout Social, Metricool, Planable and Agorapulse publish to Google Business Profile, while Hootsuite covers it in the inbox only. Postify, Later and Planable do not publish to Bluesky, and Postify and Later do not support Google Business Profile.
Do social media schedulers post automatically?: Yes, for most formats. Every tool here can publish automatically at the time you set. Some formats still rely on a phone notification in some tools, for example Instagram Stories with stickers in Agorapulse, Metricool, Planable and Sprout Social, or TikTok sounds in Sprout Social. Postify has no reminder-based publishing: Instagram, Facebook and Plative Stories go out directly. Check per-format support for your networks before committing to a tool.

Compare tools head-to-head

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Postify supports nine platforms in one workflow: plan, schedule, and publish without juggling five different tools.

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