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Alternatives

Best Buffer alternatives in 2026

Buffer charges per channel, so the bill grows with every account, and approvals cost double. Here are eight schedulers that price differently, with dated prices and an honest drawback for each.

By Kumar Gaurav, founder of OctoqueUpdated Facts checked

The short answer

If per-channel pricing is the problem, look at tools that include accounts in the plan: Octoque ($29 for 8 accounts), SocialPilot ($30 for 7) or Metricool ($25 for 5 brands). If you want Buffer’s low entry price with more networks, Publer starts at $5 per account. If you mainly write for X and LinkedIn, Typefully is built for that. Buffer is still hard to beat for one or two accounts.

Why people look for a Buffer alternative

These come up most in Buffer’s own documentation and in recent public reviews. Each links to where we saw it.

  1. Per-channel pricing adds up as you add accounts, and channels you had on Free are billed once you upgrade. (Buffer pricing)
  2. Approvals and more than one user need the Team plan, at twice the Essentials rate per channel. (Buffer pricing)
  3. Some recent one- and two-star reviews mention posts failing to publish or accounts needing reconnecting. (Trustpilot reviews of Buffer)
  4. Some posts fall back to a phone notification instead of auto-publishing: personal Instagram accounts, TikToks with music or polls, Shorts over 3 minutes. (Buffer help: YouTube Shorts)
“Post failures occur far too often for this to be a reliable tool.”
Trustpilot reviewer, February 2026, Trustpilot

Buffer also does things well, and it may still be the right tool for you: a usable free plan with 3 channels, a community inbox and API access; networks Octoque doesn’t post to, including Mastodon and Substack.

At a glance

Checked 14 October 2026, USD, monthly billing unless stated
ToolBest forStarts atFree plan
Octoque (ours)One short video to many platforms, each at its own hour$15/mo for 3 accountsReminders only (you post), 3 accounts, 10 posts a month
MetricoolA free plan with best times and an inbox, plus deep analytics$25/mo for 5 brands1 brand, 20 posts a month
PublerThe lowest per-account price, with even more networks than BufferFrom $5/mo per account3 accounts, 10 queued each
SocialPilot7 accounts for about the price of 5 Buffer channels$30/mo for 7 accountsNo
LaterInstagram-first creators who want link in bio (no X)$25/mo, 1 social setLimited, not on pricing page
SocialBeeRecycling evergreen posts by category$29/mo for 5 profilesNo
PlanableTeams that live on approvals and feedback$39/mo per workspace50 posts in total
TypefullyWriters on X, LinkedIn, Threads and Bluesky$99/year10 posts a month
Buffer (for reference)People who want a simple, well-known scheduler with a free plan, an inbox and many networks.$6/mo per channel3 channels, 10 queued each

The alternatives

Octoque (made by us)

Best for: Creators who post one short video to Instagram, TikTok, YouTube, LinkedIn, X and more, each at that platform’s own hour.

Price
Free: reminders only, you post (3 accounts, 10 posts a month); Starter $15 a month for 3 accounts, posting for you; Creator $29 for 8. Pricing
Why pick it
  • Golden hour on every plan: each platform at its own time, in your audience’s time zone.
  • Accounts included in the plan, not billed one by one; approvals from Creator.
  • 14-day trial with no card that posts for you (3 accounts, 30 posts), and a full refund within 14 days of any payment, renewals included.
  • API and MCP server on every paid plan.
Watch out for
New, with no third-party reviews yet. Lighter listening than Brandwatch-class tools (Mentions, on Studio: no web, news or forums); boosts live posts but has no full ads manager; no X comments or DMs in the inbox, and no routing or assignment for teams. The Free plan doesn’t post for you, and there’s no native phone app.

Compared with Buffer: at 5 accounts, Octoque Creator ($29) and Buffer Essentials ($30) cost about the same; at 10 accounts with approvals, Octoque is $35 for two people (Creator plus 2 extra accounts) or $99 for up to five (Studio), vs Buffer Team’s $120 (monthly billing). Buffer has a free plan that posts for you, phone apps, and Mastodon and Substack. Both have an inbox. Full breakdown: Octoque vs Buffer.

Metricool

Best for: A free plan with best times and an inbox, plus deep analytics

Price
Starter $25 a month ($20 paid yearly) for up to 5 brands, unlimited posting, link-in-bio, Canva. No team members, approvals or API. sourceFree plan: 1 brand, 20 posts a month
Why pick it
  • A free plan that includes auto-publishing, best times and an MCP server. source
  • Deep analytics: up to 100 competitors, PDF reports, ad analytics for Meta, Google and TikTok. source
  • An inbox for Instagram, Facebook, TikTok, YouTube and Google Business, even on Free. source
  • Native iOS and Android apps. source
Watch out for
X costs $10 a month per account on every plan, and team members, approvals and the API need Advanced, sold in 15-brand bundles. source

Publer

Best for: The lowest per-account price, with even more networks than Buffer

Price
Professional $5 a month for 1 account ($4 paid yearly); per Publer’s calculator, each further account is about $4 and each extra member $2. sourceFree plan: 3 accounts, 10 queued each
Why pick it
  • A real free plan and a very low per-account starting price. source
  • The widest network list here, including Facebook Groups, Google Business, Bluesky, Mastodon, Telegram and WordPress. source
  • Link in bio, a feed preview, bulk scheduling and Canva on Professional. source
  • A 14-day refund on every payment, and a strong Trustpilot score (4.9 from 1,046 reviews). source
Watch out for
Approvals, best-time scheduling, analytics, the API and MCP all need Business, at about 1.75 times the Professional price per account; no unified inbox. source

SocialPilot

Best for: 7 accounts for about the price of 5 Buffer channels

Price
Essentials $30 a month ($25.50 paid yearly): 7 accounts, 1 user, MCP server, phone app; no inbox, analytics or approvals. sourceFree plan: No
Why pick it
  • Low per-account cost at agency size: 50 accounts and unlimited users for $200 a month. source
  • Client management, client approvals and white-label reports from Premium. source
  • An MCP server on every paid plan, for Claude, ChatGPT and Cursor. source
  • A social inbox and review management from Standard, also in the phone app. source
Watch out for
The entry plan has no inbox, analytics or approvals, bulk scheduling needs Premium ($100), and the public API is Enterprise only. source

Later

Best for: Instagram-first creators who want link in bio (no X)

Price
Starter $25 a month ($18.75 paid yearly): 1 user, 1 social set (one profile on each of 8 networks), 30 posts per profile a month. sourceFree plan: Limited, not on pricing page
Why pick it
  • A visual planner with an Instagram grid preview and a strong Instagram focus. source
  • Built-in Link in Bio pages with analytics. source
  • Personalised best times from your own data for Instagram, Facebook and TikTok. source
  • Pinterest and Snapchat publishing, native phone apps, and a social inbox from Growth. source
Watch out for
A card is needed for the trial, it turns into a paid plan automatically, and plans are non-refundable. source

SocialBee

Best for: Recycling evergreen posts by category

Price
Bootstrap $29 a month ($24 paid yearly): 5 profiles, 1 user, 1 workspace, 3 months of analytics history. No approvals or bulk upload. sourceFree plan: No
Why pick it
  • Category-based queues that recycle evergreen posts, with RSS sources, and best-time scheduling on every plan. source
  • An engagement inbox for comments, mentions and DMs across six networks. source
  • Pinterest, Google Business Profile and Bluesky, plus reminder-based posting to WhatsApp, Telegram and Facebook Groups. source
  • A 30-day money-back window on your first purchase, longer than most. source
Watch out for
No free plan and no public API, and the $29 Bootstrap plan has no approvals or bulk upload. source

Planable

Best for: Teams that live on approvals and feedback

Price
Basic $39 per workspace a month ($390 a year, shown as $33 a month): 60 posts a month, 4 social pages, unlimited users. sourceFree plan: 50 posts in total
Why pick it
  • The strongest approval and feedback workflow here, up to multi-level approvals on Enterprise. source
  • Unlimited users in every workspace, even on Free. source
  • Grouped posts with per-page edits, approved and scheduled together. source
  • Phone apps for reviewing and approving, and an MCP connector on every plan. source
Watch out for
Tight post caps (60 a month on Basic, and a post to 4 networks counts as 4), with analytics and inbox as paid add-ons per workspace. source

Typefully

Best for: Writers on X, LinkedIn, Threads and Bluesky

Price
Creator $99 a year (yearly only): 1 social set, AI writing, X analytics. sourceFree plan: 10 posts a month
Why pick it
  • A writing editor built for threads and long posts. source
  • API and MCP even on the free plan, and a 14-day refund window like ours. source
Watch out for
Text networks only: no Instagram, TikTok, YouTube or Facebook. source

How to choose

Start from the reason you’re leaving:

  • The bill grows with each account: pick a plan with accounts included (Octoque, SocialPilot, SocialBee, Metricool, Later).
  • Approvals cost too much: Octoque (from Creator), SocialPilot Standard and Planable include approvals without per-channel doubling.
  • Posts falling back to phone notifications: check each tool’s video row on our comparison table; personal Instagram accounts get notifications almost everywhere.
  • You only post 1–2 accounts: stay on Buffer. It’s the cheapest option at that size.
How we compared

We read each tool’s own pricing page, help centre and terms on 14 October 2026, and linked every price and drawback to its source. Reasons for leaving come from Buffer’s own documentation and recent public reviews, which skew negative by nature. We did not run a long hands-on test of each tool, so this compares published plans and documentation, not day-to-day reliability. We picked tools that solve the problems above, not every scheduler on the market. Corrections to hello@octoque.com.

Questions people ask

What is the cheapest Buffer alternative?

Publer starts at $5 a month per account and has a free plan. For 5 or more accounts, flat plans such as Metricool Starter ($25 for 5 brands), Octoque Creator ($29 for 8 accounts) and SocialPilot Essentials ($30 for 7) are cheaper than paying per channel.

Is there a free Buffer alternative?

Yes. Metricool, Publer and Typefully have free plans that post for you; Metricool’s leaves out LinkedIn and X. Octoque’s Free plan doesn’t post: it reminds you to post yourself, for 3 accounts and 10 posts a month.

Which Buffer alternative is best for video?

For one short video to many platforms, Octoque schedules each platform at its own hour. Metricool, Later and Buffer itself also auto-publish Reels, TikTok and Shorts.

Will I lose my scheduled posts if I leave Buffer?

Most tools don’t import another tool’s queue. Run both for a week and move upcoming posts by hand, or into Octoque from a spreadsheet (CSV, up to 200 rows), then cancel. Buffer refunds within 7 days of starting a monthly plan or 30 days for yearly.

Keep reading

Octoque vs BufferHead to head, with pricing maths.Later alternativesIf you’re weighing Later too.All comparisonsEvery scheduler in one dated table.Octoque for creatorsOne video, every app.

More comparisons

Octoque head to head

Alternatives to

Sources

All links checked on 14 October 2026.

  1. Buffer pricing
  2. Trustpilot reviews of Buffer
  3. Buffer help: YouTube Shorts
  4. Buffer pricing
  5. Metricool pricing
  6. Metricool: source for “watch out for”
  7. Publer pricing
  8. Publer: source for “watch out for”
  9. SocialPilot pricing
  10. SocialPilot: source for “watch out for”
  11. Later pricing
  12. Later: source for “watch out for”
  13. SocialBee pricing
  14. SocialBee: source for “watch out for”
  15. Planable pricing
  16. Planable: source for “watch out for”
  17. Typefully pricing

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