The best Hootsuite alternatives in 2026
The best Hootsuite alternatives in 2026 are Buffer, OmniSocials, Zoho Social, Agorapulse, Metricool, Vista Social and Refract. Hootsuite's paid plans start at $99 per user a month, billed annually, so most of these picks cost less for a small team. Buffer suits small teams that want a simple scheduler priced per channel, with unlimited team members on its Team plan. OmniSocials suits teams that want an inbox and approvals in one flat plan at $10 per seat a month, billed annually. Zoho Social suits businesses that already use Zoho, priced per brand rather than per user. Agorapulse suits teams that want the closest match to Hootsuite, with an inbox for comments, DMs and reviews at a lower price per user. Metricool suits marketers who want planning plus analytics, priced by brands instead of users. Vista Social suits teams and agencies that want a full suite with users included in each plan. Refract suits people who write their own posts and want each network's version written for them, across 10 networks today.
| Tool | Best for | Starting price | Approvals | Social inbox | Free plan or trial |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Buffer | Small teams on a budget | $5 per channel a month, billed yearly | Team plan | Comments, every plan | Free plan; 14-day trial |
| OmniSocials | Flat per-seat pricing | $10 per seat a month, billed yearly | Included | Comments, DMs, mentions on 7 of 13 networks | 14-day trial |
| Zoho Social | Zoho users, one brand | $10 a month, billed yearly | Premium plan | Premium plan | Free plan; 15-day trial |
| Agorapulse | A like-for-like suite | $79 per user a month, billed yearly | Professional and up | Comments, DMs, reviews | Free plan; 30-day trial |
| Metricool | Planning plus analytics | $20 a month for 5 brands, billed yearly | Advanced plan | Inbox (plan not stated) | Free plan |
| Vista Social | Agencies and client work | $80 a month for 2 users, billed yearly | Professional and up | Comments, messages, reviews | 14-day trial |
| Refract | Writing native posts per network | $10 a month, billed yearly | Business plan and up | No | 14-day free trial |
1. Buffer
A simple social media scheduler with analytics, a comment inbox and an AI writing assistant, priced per connected channel. Buffer describes it as "simpler social media tools for busy people".
Best for
Small teams and solo marketers who mostly schedule posts and want to pay for the channels they use, not for each person.
Not ideal for
- Teams that need direct messages in the inbox: Buffer's community inbox is described for comments.
- Approvals on a budget plan: content approval workflows are on the Team plan only.
- Long YouTube videos: YouTube publishing is Shorts only.
Networks
Bluesky, Facebook pages, Google Business Profiles, Instagram business and creator accounts, LinkedIn pages and profiles, Mastodon, Pinterest, Threads, TikTok business profiles, YouTube Shorts and X.
Pricing
Free plan with up to 3 channels and 10 scheduled posts per channel. Essentials from $6 per channel a month, or $5 billed yearly. Team from $12 per channel a month, or $10 billed yearly, with unlimited team members and approvals. 14-day free trial on paid plans.
2. OmniSocials
A social media scheduler with one per-seat plan that posts to 13 networks and includes an inbox for 7 of them (Instagram, Facebook, LinkedIn, TikTok, YouTube, X and Threads), analytics, a public API and an MCP server. It says every feature is included, with no feature gates.
Best for
Small teams and agencies that want Hootsuite's core pieces (calendar, inbox, approvals) without plan tiers.
Not ideal for
- Several accounts on one network for one brand: each workspace connects one account per platform.
- Heavy X posting with links: an X post with a link costs credits.
- Long YouTube videos: YouTube is Shorts only.
Networks
Instagram, Facebook, LinkedIn profiles and pages, YouTube Shorts, TikTok, X, Pinterest, Threads, Bluesky, Mastodon, Google Business, Telegram and Discord.
Pricing
One plan: $10 per seat a month billed annually, or $12 billed monthly. Each extra workspace, team member or client seat costs the same. Unlimited scheduled posts. 14-day free trial that needs a credit card; no free plan.
3. Zoho Social
Zoho's social media app for scheduling, publishing, monitoring and reporting, priced per brand (a set of channels) and linked to Zoho CRM and Zoho Desk.
Best for
Businesses on Zoho CRM or Zoho Desk, and teams with one brand that want to post to many networks at a low price.
Not ideal for
- Approvals or the inbox on the cheaper plans: both are on Premium.
- Several accounts on one network: a brand holds one profile per network.
- Large teams: team members are capped per plan and sold as add-ons.
Networks
On Standard and up: X, Instagram, Facebook, LinkedIn profile and company page, Google Business Profile, YouTube, Pinterest, TikTok, Mastodon, Threads, Bluesky, Snapchat and Arattai. The free plan covers six channels.
Pricing
Free plan with 1 brand and 6 channels. Standard $15 a month, or $10 billed yearly. Professional $40, or $30 yearly. Premium $65, or $40 yearly, with 3 team members, approvals and the inbox. 15-day free trial. USD figures come from Zoho's own price file; the page showed EUR to us.
4. Agorapulse
A social media management suite for teams and agencies: scheduling, a shared inbox for comments and DMs, listening, reporting and ROI tracking, priced per user.
Best for
Teams that answer a lot of messages and want a full suite that feels close to Hootsuite.
Not ideal for
- Growing teams on a tight budget: it is still priced per user.
- Many profiles: each paid plan includes 10, and extra profiles cost $10 or $15 a month each.
- Mastodon: it is not on the integrations list.
Networks
Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn company pages and personal profiles, TikTok, X, YouTube, Threads, Pinterest, Bluesky and Google Business, plus Reddit for listening only.
Pricing
Standard $99 per user a month, or $79 billed annually. Professional $149, or $119 annually. Advanced $199, or $149 annually. Free plan with 1 user, 3 profiles and 10 scheduled posts. 30-day free trial, no card required.
5. Metricool
A social media planner and analytics tool organized by brands, with one account per network per brand and a forever-free plan.
Best for
Freelancers and small agencies that report on several brands and want long analytics history.
Not ideal for
- Approvals on the cheaper plan: the post approval system is on Advanced.
- X on a budget: X is a paid add-on at $10 a month per connected account.
- Mastodon: it is not in the connections list.
Networks
Facebook Page, Instagram Business or Creator, Threads, X (paid add-on), Bluesky (.bsky.social handles only), LinkedIn (paid plans), Pinterest, TikTok, Google Business Profile, YouTube and Twitch.
Pricing
Free plan with 1 brand and 20 scheduled posts a month. Starter from $20 a month billed yearly for 5 brands, or $25 monthly. Advanced from $53 a month billed yearly for 15 brands, or $67 monthly, with approvals and the API.
6. Vista Social
A social media management suite for teams and agencies: scheduling, a unified inbox, reports, review management, listening, DM automations and a link-in-bio page.
Best for
Agencies and multi-location brands that need approvals for clients, an inbox and room for many profiles.
Not ideal for
- Posting to X on the base price: X is a $29 a month add-on.
- Mastodon: it is not on the integrations page.
- Solo users on a small budget: the lowest plan is $99 a month billed monthly.
Networks
Bluesky, Facebook, Google Business, Instagram, LinkedIn, Pinterest, Threads, TikTok, Tumblr, X (paid add-on), YouTube and Snapchat, plus Reddit for analysis.
Pricing
Professional $99 a month, or $80 a month billed yearly, with 15 profiles and 2 users. Advanced $199, or $160 yearly, with 30 profiles and 3 users. Scale $449, or $360 yearly. 14-day free trial, no card required; no free plan.
7. Refract
A social media scheduler where you write one note and an AI agent for each network writes a version that fits it. You approve each version and Refract schedules it. Per-network voice rules learn from your edits, and Studio makes images and video in each network's shape.
Best for
Writers, founders and small teams who start from one idea and publish native versions to the networks Refract supports, with approvals and an API.
Not ideal for
- Teams that answer comments and DMs: Refract has no social inbox.
- Teams that report on performance: it is a scheduler, not an analytics or listening suite.
- Anyone who needs a free plan: there is only the 14-day free trial.
- People who just want to queue the same post everywhere: the AI-first workflow may be more than you need.
- Instagram, Facebook, Threads, TikTok, YouTube, LinkedIn, X and Google Business aren't available yet.
Networks
Posts to 10 networks today: Pinterest, Bluesky, Mastodon, Telegram, WordPress, Discord, Tumblr, Slack, Pixelfed and DEV. Coming soon: Instagram, Facebook, Threads, TikTok, YouTube, LinkedIn, X and Google Business.
Pricing
Creator $12 a month ($10 a month billed yearly); Business $29 a month ($24 a month billed yearly); Agency $59 a month ($49 a month billed yearly); Agency Plus $119 a month ($99 a month billed yearly). Unlimited scheduled posts on every plan, a 14-day free trial, and the API, MCP server and webhooks on every plan.
How we evaluated.
We looked at the tools Hootsuite users most often compare, using only each tool's own pricing, help and integrations pages, checked on October 27, 2026. We scored five things: how the price grows with the team (per user, per channel, per brand or per seat), how many accounts a plan includes, whether approvals are available and on which plan, whether there is a social inbox and what it covers, and which networks it posts to. As a baseline, Hootsuite's plans start at $99 per user a month for Standard with 10 social accounts, $199 for Professional and $399 for Advanced, all billed annually. Its approval workflows sit on Advanced. From our location the plans page showed prices in EUR; the USD figures come from the same page, in its FAQ and its price data. The page does not show a monthly-billed price.
The order reflects the brief of this page: cheaper and simpler for a small team. Buffer comes first because it is the simplest to start with and its Team plan adds approvals and unlimited team members while still charging per channel. OmniSocials and Zoho Social follow because they are not priced per user: OmniSocials includes an inbox and approvals in one flat per-seat plan, and Zoho Social is priced per brand, with its inbox and approvals on Premium. Agorapulse is the closest like-for-like replacement and still costs less per user than Hootsuite, but it is per user, so it ranks below the flat options. Metricool and Vista Social follow: Metricool's approvals sit on its Advanced plan, and Vista Social charges extra for X.
Refract is last on this list on purpose. It has approvals on the Business plan and up, unlimited scheduled posts, and the API, MCP server and webhooks on every plan, but it has no social inbox, no free plan, and we make no claims about analytics depth. Several networks Hootsuite users rely on are still coming soon: Instagram, Facebook, Threads, TikTok, YouTube, LinkedIn, X and Google Business. They are added to Refract automatically as they go live. If your work is writing posts rather than answering messages, Refract may still fit; if your team lives in the inbox, pick one of the tools above.
No tool paid to be on this list, and we did not use reviews or ratings. Prices are in USD as each site states them; check the linked pages before you buy, because plans change.
Questions and answers.
What is the cheapest Hootsuite alternative?
Among the tools here, Buffer, Zoho Social, Agorapulse and Metricool have free plans. For paid plans, Buffer starts at $5 per channel a month and Zoho Social at $10 a month, both billed yearly. Free plans have limits on channels or scheduled posts, so check them against your accounts.
Which Hootsuite alternative has a social inbox?
Agorapulse and Vista Social describe inboxes that cover comments and messages, and OmniSocials covers comments, DMs and mentions on 7 of its 13 networks (not Bluesky or Mastodon). Buffer's inbox is for comments, and Zoho Social puts its inbox on Premium. Refract has no social inbox.
Which Hootsuite alternative has content approvals on a cheap plan?
OmniSocials includes approval workflows in its single plan, and Vista Social has a post workflow on its Professional plan. Buffer has approvals on its Team plan. Refract has approvals on its Business plan and up; see pricing.
Is there a Hootsuite alternative that is not priced per user?
Yes. Buffer charges per channel, Zoho Social and Metricool per brand, and Vista Social per plan with a set number of users. Agorapulse is priced per user, like Hootsuite.
Which alternatives post to Bluesky and Mastodon?
Buffer, OmniSocials and Zoho Social (on its paid plans) post to both. Agorapulse, Metricool and Vista Social post to Bluesky but not Mastodon. For Refract, Bluesky: Yes; Mastodon: Yes, on any server you enter. See the Bluesky page and the Bluesky character counter.
Sources
- Hootsuite plans and FAQ
- Hootsuite help: connect social accounts
- Buffer pricing
- OmniSocials pricing
- OmniSocials pricing (machine-readable)
- OmniSocials home page FAQ (inbox, trial)
- Zoho Social pricing
- Zoho Social price data
- Zoho Social help: publishing on Mastodon
- Zoho Social help: connecting social channels
- Agorapulse pricing
- Agorapulse integrations
- Agorapulse home page FAQ (free plan)
- Metricool pricing
- Metricool help: connecting networks
- Metricool help: connecting Bluesky
- Metricool help: Free vs paid plans
- Metricool help: Inbox Manager
- Buffer: Mastodon help
- Vista Social pricing
- Vista Social integrations