How we compared them
We make Smartplannr, so we aren’t neutral. To keep this fair, every fact about another tool comes from that tool’s own pricing page, checked on 22 October 2026, in the currency it uses, and each one says where it’s the better choice. Prices change, so check the linked page before you decide.
At a glance
| Tool | Free plan | Lowest paid plan | A good fit if |
|---|---|---|---|
| Smartplannr | Yes: 3 social accounts, 30 published posts a month | Plus, £7 a month | You’re a small UK business or agency and want approvals, reports and team seats on a flat monthly price in pounds. |
| Buffer | Yes: up to 3 channels, 10 scheduled posts per channel, 1 user | Essentials, $5 per channel a month | You post to Pinterest, Bluesky, Mastodon, Google Business Profile or Substack. Buffer supports them; Smartplannr doesn’t. |
| Hootsuite | No; a 14-day free trial | Standard, from $99 per user a month, billed annually | You need social listening. Hootsuite lists brand and competitor monitoring from Standard; Smartplannr has none. |
| Later | No; a 14-day free trial | Starter, $18.75 a month, billed yearly: 1 user, 1 social set of up to 8 profiles, 30 posts per profile a month | You want a link-in-bio page. Later includes one on every plan. |
| Sprout Social | No; a 30-day free trial | Essentials, $79 per seat a month billed annually, or $99 billed monthly; 5 social profiles | You need social listening. Sprout Social offers it as an add-on from Standard. |
| Planable | No; a trial of 50 posts in total, with no time limit and no card | Basic, $33 per workspace a month | You need approval in several stages, such as team lead, then client, then legal. Planable lists multi-level approvals on Enterprise. |
| Metricool | Yes: 1 brand, 20 posts a month, 30 days of analytics | Starter, from $20 a month billed annually, or from $25 billed monthly (from €16 or €20) | You post to Pinterest, Bluesky, Twitch or Google Business Profile, which Smartplannr doesn’t support. |
| SocialPilot | No; a 14-day free trial | Essentials, £16.20 a month, or £13.77 a month billed annually: 5 accounts, 1 user | You post to Pinterest, Google Business or Bluesky, which Smartplannr doesn’t support. |
From each tool’s own pricing page, checked on 22 October 2026, in the currency it uses. Each tool name links to its page; prices change, so check there before you decide.
Which one to choose
- You post to many networks, including Pinterest, Bluesky or Mastodon, and run only a few channels: look at Buffer.
- You need social listening and custom contracts for a large team: look at Hootsuite or Sprout Social.
- You’re Instagram-first and want a link-in-bio page: look at Later.
- You need approval in several stages: look at Planable.
- You want competitor tracking and ad accounts alongside scheduling: look at Metricool.
- You want a free plan, client approvals on every plan and flat pricing in pounds: try Smartplannr.
Questions to ask any scheduler
- How is it priced: per channel, per user, per workspace or per plan? Work out the price for your real account count.
- Are approvals and reports included, or on a higher tier?
- Does it show only the numbers each network reports, or does it estimate?
- What happens when a post fails: does it tell you why?
- Is there a free plan, or only a trial?