BufferBest overall
Publishes to 12 channel types incl. Threads, Bluesky and Mastodon, with a free plan and per-channel pricing: $30/mo for 5 channels, unlimited users on Team.
Social media tools
A social media management tool is software that plans, schedules and publishes posts to several networks from one calendar, then reports how they did. Our social media tools reviews price nine schedulers for a solo creator with five profiles and a three-person team with 15, using prices listed in October 2026.
MetricoolBest for analytics on a budget
Unlimited history, up to 100 competitors and ads reporting from $20/mo billed annually; X costs $10/mo per account.
Vista SocialBest all-in-one for small teams
15 profiles, an inbox, review management, approvals and 1,000 AI credits for $99/mo; no free plan and a $29 X add-on.
PublerBest value per account
13 networks incl. Mastodon, Telegram and WordPress from $4 per account, X included on paid plans; no unified inbox.
Sprout SocialBest premium suite for brands
The deepest inbox, approvals and reports we found, at $299 per seat a month billed annually for the plan most teams need.
HootsuiteBest for built-in social listening
Listening, competitor benchmarks and a DM inbox on every plan from $99 per user a month billed annually; approvals only on Advanced.
SocialBeeBest for evergreen content
Category-based weekly schedules that re-share evergreen posts, unlimited AI and X included, from $29/mo for 5 profiles.
AgorapulseBest inbox for community managers
A strong inbox with moderation rules and ROI reports from $79 per user a month billed annually; X needs a $29 to $69 add-on.
LaterBest for Instagram and TikTok planning
A visual planner with Link in Bio included from $18.75/mo billed yearly; no X, Bluesky or Google Business Profile.
Compare side by side
Every score and price in one table. Select a column to sort. Prices are US list prices; hover a price for the full terms.
| Buffer | 8.1 | 9.2 | 6.8 | 6.5 | 7.5 | 9.5 | $5 per channel a month | Yes | 7 days |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Metricool | 8.0 | 8.0 | 7.5 | 8.8 | 6.0 | 9.0 | $20/mo | Yes | 15 days |
| Vista Social | 7.8 | 8.5 | 8.5 | 8.0 | 7.8 | 6.5 | $79.17/mo | – | None |
| Publer | 7.6 | 9.0 | 4.2 | 7.0 | 7.0 | 9.0 | $5/mo | Yes | At Publer's discretion |
| Sprout Social | 7.5 | 8.5 | 9.0 | 9.5 | 9.0 | 3.2 | $79 per seat a month | – | None |
| Hootsuite | 7.3 | 8.5 | 8.8 | 8.5 | 7.0 | 4.5 | $99 per user a month | – | None |
| SocialBee | 7.2 | 8.0 | 7.0 | 5.8 | 6.5 | 8.0 | $290/yr | – | 30-day money-back guarantee |
| Agorapulse | 7.1 | 7.0 | 9.0 | 7.5 | 7.5 | 5.5 | $79 per user a month | Yes | No refunds |
| Later | 6.6 | 6.0 | 5.2 | 6.5 | 7.0 | 8.0 | $18.75/mo | – | Case by case |
What does a social media tool do?
It replaces logging in to each network. You write once, schedule to Instagram, TikTok, LinkedIn, Threads and the rest, and read the results in one place.
The better tools add a unified inbox, so comments and messages land in a single queue, plus approval workflows for teams and AI help with captions. A few go further. Hootsuite and Sprout Social offer social listening, which tracks what people say about your brand beyond your own posts, and that is where prices jump from tens of dollars a month to hundreds per seat.
Which social media tool fits you?
Match the pricing model to how you grow. Per channel, per account, per brand and per user all look similar on a pricing page, but in practice a three-person team pays $48 to $70 a month at Publer, Metricool or SocialBee and $597 to $897 at Hootsuite or Sprout Social.
- If you post to many networks and want to start free: Buffer. It reaches 12 channel types, including Threads, Bluesky and Mastodon, and charges $5 per channel on annual billing.
- If you report on results: Metricool, with unlimited history and up to 100 competitors from $20 billed annually.
- If a small team answers messages and reviews: Vista Social. Professional covers 15 profiles, an inbox and approvals for $99 a month.
- If you want the most networks for the least money: Publer, from $4 per account.
- If you run customer care for a brand: Sprout Social. Its inbox is the deepest we found, at $299 per seat a month for the plan most teams need.
- If you want evergreen posts recycled: SocialBee, which sorts posts into categories that re-share on a weekly schedule, from $29 monthly for five profiles with X included.
- If you plan an Instagram grid: Later. Don’t pick it for X; it dropped X support in August 2025.
| Tool | Pricing unit | X access |
|---|---|---|
| Buffer | Per channel | Included |
| Metricool | Per brand | $10/mo per X account |
| Vista Social | Per plan (15 profiles) | $29/mo add-on |
| Later | Per social set | Not supported |
When should you not pay for a social media tool?
Skip the subscription if you post to one company’s apps. Meta Business Suite schedules posts, stories and ads for Facebook and Instagram, and it is free, while Buffer’s free plan covers three channels and Publer’s covers three accounts, so you can try both schedulers on real posts before you spend anything.
Pay when you post to four or more networks, share the work with other people or owe someone a monthly report, because before that point a scheduler mostly saves you a few logins, and the free plans from Buffer and Publer already do that. Don’t bother upgrading just for AI captions. Buffer puts its AI Assistant on the free plan.
What catches social media tool buyers out?
Pricing units first. X fees second. Refunds third.
- Per-user pricing. Do the maths. A $99 plan billed per user costs $297 for three people. When you add a second person, per-user tools double in price while per-channel tools don’t move. Profiles count differently, too. Buffer, for one, counts its own link-in-bio page as a channel.
- X add-ons. X moved its API to pay-per-use pricing in 2026: creating a post costs $0.015, and a post with a link costs $0.20. Three X accounts on Metricool add $30 a month, more than the Starter plan itself.
- No refunds. Hootsuite, Sprout Social and Vista Social give none once you pay, and Metricool refunds only a first purchase within 15 days. Use the 7- to 30-day trials.
Most people miss how fast this market changes. Agorapulse ended its free plan on July 6, 2026, Metricool doubled its X add-on the same month, and Sprout Social added an Essentials tier without an inbox. Don’t trust a review written before mid-2026 on prices or features.
How we build our social media tools reviews
Our social media tools reviews are research scores. We read each vendor’s pricing page, help center and network documentation, check refund and trial terms, and compare our findings with independent roundups such as Zapier’s guide. We don’t run trial accounts or posting tests.
Price and network reach carry half the weight. That is why Buffer, with no competitor tracking, still ranks first, and why Sprout Social sits fifth despite the best inbox. If you’ve got a support team, its rank understates its fit. Related categories: link-in-bio and funnels and marketing and SEO.
How we score social media tools
Every product here is scored 0 to 10 on the same criteria, using published evidence. The overall score is the weighted average.
Publishing & networksSupported networks incl. Threads, Bluesky, TikTok, YouTube, LinkedIn pages, Google Business Profile and Mastodon; X access and add-on fees; scheduling, bulk and queue tools; AI caption features; post caps.weight25%
Engagement inboxUnified inbox coverage by network, comments vs DMs, the plan it starts on, saved replies, assignment, moderation rules and AI reply help.weight15%
Analytics & reportingHistory length, competitor benchmarking, custom, branded and white-label reports, ads reporting, listening and plan gating.weight20%
Team & approvalsUsers included, extra-seat cost, approval workflows (internal and client), roles and permissions, workspaces for clients.weight15%
Price & valueCost for a solo creator with 5 profiles and a team of 3 with 15 profiles, monthly and annual; free plan limits; trial length; refund terms; add-on costs.weight25%
Questions people ask
Is there a free social media scheduler?
Yes. Buffer's free plan publishes to three channels and includes its comment inbox and AI Assistant. Publer's free plan covers three accounts but leaves out X. Metricool also has a free plan. Meta's own suite is free too. Agorapulse ended its free plan on July 6, 2026, so skip the older roundups that still list it.
How much do social media management tools cost?
For a solo creator with five profiles, from about $20 to $30 a month: Buffer costs $30 and Metricool $20 billed annually. A three-person team with 15 profiles pays $48 to $70 at Publer, Metricool or SocialBee, $140 at Buffer and $597 to $897 at Hootsuite or Sprout Social on annual billing.
Why do social media tools charge extra for X?
Because X now bills them. Its developer API moved to pay-per-use in 2026, so every scheduled post costs the tool $0.015, or $0.20 if it contains a link. Metricool charges $10 a month per X account, Vista Social $29 and Agorapulse $29 or $69. Buffer, Hootsuite, Sprout Social and SocialBee include X at no extra cost, so if you've got several X accounts, start there.
Which social media tools support Threads, Bluesky and Mastodon?
Every tool in our ranking now supports Threads, and all but Later support Bluesky. Mastodon divides them. Only Buffer and Publer publish to it directly, and if long-form YouTube matters to you, skip Buffer, which schedules YouTube Shorts only. Later also lacks Google Business Profile, and Publer reaches Telegram and WordPress.
Do I need social listening?
Only if people talk about your brand in places you don't post. Listening tracks mentions beyond your own accounts, and it is expensive: Hootsuite includes it from $99 per user a month billed annually. Don't bother with it as a small business. In practice you get more from a good inbox and competitor tracking, which Metricool offers from $20 monthly on annual billing.