Updated 14 Nov 2026 · prices read on vendor pages

13 best Buffer alternatives in 2027

Reviewed by Mehmet Elmicenni, founder of Zekai•Prices checked 14 Nov 2026•How we check

The short answer

The best Buffer alternatives in 2027 are Hootsuite (best overall, $99/user/mo billed yearly), Metricool (best free plan) and Postiz (best open source, AGPL-3.0). Buffer itself starts at $5/channel/mo billed yearly. Zekai checked these prices on vendor pages on 14 Nov 2026; 10 more are compared below, including 1 with a free plan and 4 open source.

Open the Zekai Cost Finder Get price alerts

Best overallSee in table →

Hootsuite

$99/user/mo billed yearly

8.8

Best free planSee in table →

Metricool

$20/mo billed yearly · free plan

9.3

Best open sourceSee in table →

Postiz

Free to self-host · AGPL-3.0

7.9

13alternatives compared

2with a free plan

5open source

$4/account/mo billed yearlycheapest paid · Publer

$5/channel/mo billed yearlyBuffer starts at

01 · Zekai Price Ledger

Which Buffer alternatives are worth it in 2027?

Buffer alternatives worth a look in 2027 are Publer for a cheaper per-account rate, Metricool for scheduling with ads analytics, SocialPilot for flat plans, Hootsuite for team inbox work, and Postiz if you want to self-host. Each was priced on its own page on 14 November 2026.

Zekai Cost Finder · team1 person

Tool	Type	Starting price	Free plan limit	Best for	Cost for your team	Checked
BufferThe tool you are replacing	You are here	$5/channel/mo billed yearlyEssentials, per channel, billed yearly ($6 billed monthly)	3 channels, 10 scheduled posts each	Solo creators paying per channel	—	14 Nov 2026	Pricing ↗
Hootsuite Zekai score 8.8Best overall	Paid	$99/user/mo billed yearlyStandard, billed annually (page shows annual-basis prices only; no monthly figure)	No free plan	Teams needing inbox and listening	—	14 Nov 2026	Pricing ↗
Later Zekai score 8.8	Paid	$18.75/mo billed yearlyStarter, 1 social set, 1 user, billed yearly ($25 billed monthly)	No free plan	Visual-first Instagram planning	—	14 Nov 2026	Pricing ↗
Metricool Zekai score 9.3Best free plan	Free plan + paid	$20/mo billed yearlyStarter, up to 5 brands, billed yearly ($25 billed monthly)	1 brand, 20 posts a month, 30 days of analytics, 5 competitors	Scheduling plus analytics and ads	—	14 Nov 2026	Pricing ↗
Publer Zekai score 7.9Cheapest paid	Free plan + paid	$4/account/mo billed yearlyProfessional, per social account, billed yearly ($5 billed monthly)	3 social accounts (no X), 10 scheduled posts per account, 25 drafts, 24-hour post history	Low per-account pricing	—	14 Nov 2026	Pricing ↗
SocialPilot Not yet reviewed by Zekai	Paid	$17/mo billed yearlyEssentials, 5 accounts, 1 user, billed yearly ($20 billed monthly)	No free plan	Flat pricing for 5+ accounts	—	14 Nov 2026	Pricing ↗
Agorapulse Zekai score 7.8	Paid	$79/user/mo billed yearlyStandard, billed annually ($99 billed monthly)	No free plan	Inbox-led community management	—	14 Nov 2026	Pricing ↗
ContentStudio Zekai score 8.8	Paid	$19/mo billed yearlyStandard, 5 accounts, 1 user, billed yearly ($29 billed monthly)	No free plan	Bundled AI content creation	—	14 Nov 2026	Pricing ↗
FeedHive Zekai score 7.2	Paid	$15/mo billed yearlyCreator, 4 social accounts, billed yearly ($19 billed monthly)	No free plan	Automation-minded creators	—	14 Nov 2026	Pricing ↗
Postiz Zekai score 7.9Best open source	Open source	$29/mo (hosted)Hosted Standard, 5 channels, billed monthly ($23/mo billed yearly)	No limit, self-hosted (AGPL-3.0)	Self-hosted scheduling with agents	—	14 Nov 2026	Pricing ↗
Mixpost Zekai score 6.3	Open source	$299 one-time (hosted)Pro licence, one-time, 1 domain, 1 year of updates	No limit, self-hosted (MIT (Lite edition))	One-time licence, self-hosted	$0	14 Nov 2026	Pricing ↗
TryPost Zekai score 7.0	Open source	Free (self-hosted)	No limit, self-hosted (AGPL-3.0)	Agent-friendly self-hosted scheduler	$0	14 Nov 2026	Code ↗
OpenPost Zekai score 7.3	Open source	Free (self-hosted)	No limit, self-hosted (AGPL-3.0)	Lightweight Docker scheduler	$0	14 Nov 2026	Code ↗
Socioboard Zekai score 6.0	Open source	Free (self-hosted)	No limit, self-hosted (GPL-3.0-or-later)	Analytics-heavy self-hosted suite	$0	14 Nov 2026	Code ↗

Every price was read on the vendor's own pricing page on the date shown. The Cost Finder assumes one entry plan per person, so it multiplies by your team size; yearly prices are shown per month, and team or business plans can cost more per seat. "Not checked" means we could not confirm a public price.

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02 · Free plan

Is there a free version of Buffer?

Yes. Buffer's free plan connects 3 channels with 10 scheduled posts per channel, 1 user, 100 ideas and the AI assistant. Paid plans start at $5 per channel a month billed yearly ($6 monthly) and remove the scheduled-post cap, add first-comment scheduling and a hashtag manager, and raise API limits.

Source: Buffer pricing page, read 14 Nov 2026.

Free$0

3 channels, 10 scheduled posts each

Paid from$5/channel/mo billed yearly

Essentials, per channel, billed yearly ($6 billed monthly)

03 · Free alternatives

What are the best free Buffer alternatives?

The best free Buffer alternatives are Publer (3 social accounts, 10 scheduled posts per account, no X) and Metricool (1 brand, 20 posts a month, 30 days of analytics). Planoly offers a 10-upload free plan on mobile. Postiz and Mixpost Lite are free if you host them yourself.

Metricool

Best free planFree plan + paid

1 brand, 20 posts a month, 30 days of analytics, 5 competitors

Paid from $20/mo billed yearly

vs Buffer →Zekai review

Publer

Cheapest paidFree plan + paid

3 social accounts (no X), 10 scheduled posts per account, 25 drafts, 24-hour post history

Paid from $4/account/mo billed yearly

vs Buffer →Zekai review

04 · Open source

What are the best open-source Buffer alternatives?

Open-source Buffer alternatives are Postiz (AGPL-3.0, Postgres and Redis), Mixpost Lite (MIT, paid Pro for all networks), TryPost and OpenPost (both AGPL-3.0) and Socioboard (GPL-3.0, heavy setup). You host them yourself, pay for the server, and register a developer app with each social network before posting works.

Postiz

AGPL-3.0★ 41.6k GitHub stars · 14 Nov 2026

To self-host: Deploy with Docker, Coolify, Railway or any VPS; needs Postgres, Redis, media storage and environment variables, plus a developer app for each social network you connect.

Commercial use: Yes; AGPL-3.0 means sharing changes if you run it as a service.
Runs on: Docker host with Postgres, Redis and media storage.
Setup: Moderate · Docker plus a developer app and keys for each network.
Last commit: 14 Nov 2026

Last release 13 Nov 2026

Zekai open-source page Source code ↗Managed hosting slot

Mixpost

MIT (Lite edition)★ 3.9k GitHub stars · 14 Nov 2026

To self-host: Self-host the Laravel app with Docker or a PHP server and a public domain; Lite is free, Pro adds all networks and an inbox for a one-time licence.

Commercial use: Yes for Lite (MIT); Pro and Enterprise need paid licences.
Runs on: A PHP or Docker server with a public domain.
Setup: Moderate · Laravel app needing a web server, database and domain.
Last commit: 16 Mar 2026

Last release 16 Mar 2026

Zekai open-source page Source code ↗Managed hosting slot

TryPost

AGPL-3.0★ 863 GitHub stars · 14 Nov 2026

To self-host: Run the Laravel application on a PHP 8.2 or newer server with a database and queue worker; an MCP server and REST API let AI agents draft posts.

Commercial use: Yes; AGPL-3.0 means sharing changes if you run it as a service.
Runs on: A web server running PHP 8.2 or newer with Laravel.
Setup: Moderate · Laravel app with queue workers and per-network developer keys.
Last commit: 13 Nov 2026

Last release 1 Nov 2026

Zekai open-source page Source code ↗Managed hosting slot

OpenPost

AGPL-3.0★ 913 GitHub stars · 14 Nov 2026

To self-host: Start with Docker Compose in a single container backed by SQLite, then add developer app credentials for each network; built-in image, carousel and video editors are included.

Commercial use: Yes; AGPL-3.0 means sharing changes if you run it as a service.
Runs on: Docker Compose; the default setup is one container with SQLite.
Setup: Moderate · One Docker container, but each network needs its own developer app.
Last commit: 14 Nov 2026

Last release 13 Nov 2026

Zekai open-source page Source code ↗Managed hosting slot

Socioboard

GPL-3.0-or-later★ 1.5k GitHub stars · 14 Nov 2026

To self-host: Install the Node.js microservices, PHP front end, MongoDB and MySQL, and keep them alive with PM2; developer keys are needed for every network you connect.

Commercial use: Yes; GPL-3.0 means sharing source if you distribute modified versions.
Runs on: Server with Node.js, PHP front end, MongoDB, MySQL and PM2.
Setup: Hard · Several services (Node, PHP, MongoDB, MySQL) to install and keep running.
Last commit: 17 Aug 2026

Last release 16 Jan 2024

Zekai open-source page Source code ↗Managed hosting slot

05 · Side by side

How does Buffer compare with each alternative?

Buffer charges per channel: $5 billed yearly or $6 monthly on Essentials. Rivals charge per account (Publer $4), per user (Hootsuite $99, Agorapulse $79) or flat for 5 accounts (SocialPilot $17, ContentStudio $19). Open-source options remove the licence fee but add server work.

Buffer vs Hootsuite

Best overallPaid$99/user/mo billed yearly · checked 14 Nov 20268.8

The differenceCharges per user, not per channel: Standard is $99 per user a month billed annually for 10 accounts, where Buffer Essentials is $5 per channel with one user included.

Switch to Hootsuite ifyou need a shared inbox, listening and approvals across ten or more profiles under one vendor

Stay with Buffer ifyou add or drop single channels month to month and only one person publishes

Pros

14-day free trial available without entering a credit card
Connects with over 100 third-party integrations

Cons

Bulk scheduling is not supported during the 14-day trial
Trial accounts face daily posting caps of 10 to 20 posts

Pros and cons from the Zekai review of Hootsuite · Verdict: All-in-one social suite

Visit Hootsuite Read the Zekai review Price alert

Buffer vs Later

Paid$18.75/mo billed yearly · checked 14 Nov 20268.8

The differencePrices by social set, one profile of each network: Starter is $18.75 a month billed yearly for 8 profiles and 30 posts per profile, with no free tier on the pricing page.

Switch to Later ifyour calendar is Instagram, TikTok and Pinterest led and you want visual planning with best-time suggestions

Stay with Buffer ifyou publish to more than a handful of profiles and want unlimited scheduled posts per channel

Pros

14-day free trial offered for paid plans
Visual calendar allows simple drag-and-drop scheduling across platforms

Cons

AI credits are capped each month, ranging from 5 to 100 depending on your plan
Starter plan caps scheduling at 30 posts per profile per month

Pros and cons from the Zekai review of Later · Verdict: Clear visual scheduler.

Visit Later Read the Zekai review Price alert

Buffer vs Metricool

Best free planFree plan + paid$20/mo billed yearly · checked 14 Nov 20269.3

The differenceFree plan covers 1 brand with 20 scheduled posts a month, 5 competitor profiles and 30 days of analytics; Metricool also reports Facebook, Google and TikTok ads inside the same dashboard.

Switch to Metricool ifyou want paid-ads reporting and competitor tracking alongside scheduling, and manage several brands

Stay with Buffer ifyou want first-comment scheduling, a hashtag manager and a queue with unlimited scheduled posts per channel

Pros

Combines planning, analytics, inbox, and ads in one dashboard
Free plan available with permanent access for single-brand management

Cons

Free plan limits analytics history to 30 days
Team management and post approval systems require the Advanced plan

Pros and cons from the Zekai review of Metricool · Verdict: Solid social manager

Visit Metricool Read the Zekai review Price alert

Buffer vs Publer

Cheapest paidFree plan + paid$4/account/mo billed yearly · checked 14 Nov 20267.9

The differenceProfessional costs $4 per social account a month billed yearly, below Buffer's $5 per channel, and adds RSS automations and unlimited workspaces; the free plan blocks X accounts.

Switch to Publer ifyou want a lower per-account rate with RSS automation and a free tier for three accounts

Stay with Buffer ifyou need X posting on the free plan and prefer Buffer's flat 3-channel free allowance

Pros

Saves 5+ hours weekly with bulk and auto-scheduling features.
Affordable pricing with a functional free plan available.

Cons

Analytics are more focused on performance than deep competitor analysis.
Core strength is scheduling, with fewer features for social listening or inbox management.

Pros and cons from the Zekai review of Publer · Verdict: Efficient Social Scheduling

Visit Publer Read the Zekai review Price alert

Buffer vs SocialPilot

Paid$17/mo billed yearly · checked 14 Nov 2026

The differenceFlat plans instead of per-channel billing: Essentials is $17 a month billed yearly for 5 accounts and 1 user, with Standard adding 3 users and a social inbox at $34.

Switch to SocialPilot ifyou run 5 to 10 profiles and want one flat bill with bulk scheduling and a client approval tier

Stay with Buffer ifyou pay for only the channels you use and need no more than two or three accounts

Visit SocialPilot Price alert

Buffer vs Agorapulse

Paid$79/user/mo billed yearly · checked 14 Nov 20267.8

The differencePer-user plans from $79 billed yearly with 10 social profiles, an all-in-one social inbox with review moderation and a 30-day no-card trial; Buffer's inbox is limited to community comments.

Switch to Agorapulse ifyour priority is replying to comments, messages and Google reviews from one inbox with assignment rules

Stay with Buffer ifyour work is publishing and analytics, not moderation, and you want to avoid per-seat charges

Pros

30-day free trial with no credit card needed
Standard plan lists unlimited post scheduling and a unified inbox for 10 social profiles

Cons

Priced per user from $79 per month billed annually, higher than account-based schedulers
No free plan, only the 30-day trial

Pros and cons from the Zekai review of Agorapulse · Verdict: Inbox-first social suite

Visit Agorapulse Read the Zekai review Price alert

Buffer vs ContentStudio

Paid$19/mo billed yearly · checked 14 Nov 20268.8

The differenceStandard is $19 a month billed yearly for 5 accounts and includes 25,000 AI text credits, AI image and video credits, MCP access and X threads or LinkedIn carousels.

Switch to ContentStudio ifyou want AI text, image and video generation plus an MCP connection bundled with scheduling

Stay with Buffer ifyou want unlimited scheduled posts per channel with unmetered AI assistant use at $5 per channel

Pros

Comprehensive toolset unifies publishing, analytics, and engagement.
Strong agency features like white-labeling, workspaces, and client approvals.

Cons

Interface can be complex for beginners due to the vast number of features.
The free trial is short at only 7 days.

Pros and cons from the Zekai review of ContentStudio · Verdict: Powerful Agency-First SMM Suite

Visit ContentStudio Read the Zekai review Price alert

Buffer vs FeedHive

Paid$15/mo billed yearly · checked 14 Nov 20267.2

The differenceCreator is $15 a month billed yearly for 4 accounts but caps scheduled posts at 30 and future scheduling at 14 days; it adds automation runs and AI performance prediction.

Switch to FeedHive ifyou want rule-based automations and AI-predicted post performance and post only a few times a week

Stay with Buffer ifyou queue weeks of content ahead and need no cap on scheduled posts or scheduling window

Pros

Supports all major social platforms including X, LinkedIn, and TikTok
Powerful AI for generating post ideas, copy, and hashtags

Cons

7-day free trial is short for evaluating advanced features
AI credits and automation runs are limited on lower-tier plans

Pros and cons from the Zekai review of FeedHive · Verdict: AI Social Media Engine

Visit FeedHive Read the Zekai review Price alert

Buffer vs Postiz

Best open sourceOpen source$29/mo (hosted) · checked 14 Nov 20267.9

The differenceSame job from an AGPL codebase: unlimited posts, an API, webhooks and AI agent integrations; self-hosting needs Postgres, Redis and a developer app for each network.

Switch to Postiz ifyou want to own scheduling data, avoid per-channel fees and can run Docker with Postgres and Redis

Stay with Buffer ifyou do not want to register developer apps per network or maintain a server

Visit Postiz Read the Zekai review Price alert

Buffer vs Mixpost

Open source$299 one-time (hosted) · checked 14 Nov 20266.3

The differenceLite edition is MIT and free, but publishes only to Facebook Pages, Mastodon and X; all networks, inbox and approvals need the $299 one-time Pro licence on your own server.

Switch to Mixpost ifyou want a one-time licence instead of per-channel subscriptions and can host a PHP or Docker app

Stay with Buffer ifyou need Instagram, LinkedIn and TikTok scheduling without paying for a licence or running a server

Visit Mixpost Read the Zekai review Price alert

Buffer vs TryPost

Open sourceFree (self-hosted)7.0

The differenceLaravel AGPL-3.0 scheduler that exposes an MCP server and REST API so AI agents can draft and schedule posts; the project has only about 860 stars and a young codebase.

Switch to TryPost ifyou want agent-driven drafting through MCP on infrastructure you control and accept a young project

Stay with Buffer ifyou need a stable vendor, support and many integrations out of the box

Visit TryPost Read the Zekai review Price alert

Buffer vs OpenPost

Open sourceFree (self-hosted)7.3

The differenceShips built-in image, carousel and video editors and runs as one Docker container with SQLite by default, so the starting footprint is far smaller than Postiz's Postgres and Redis stack.

Switch to OpenPost ifyou want the lightest self-hosted setup with built-in editors and an approval workflow

Stay with Buffer ifyou want a hosted service with support and a mobile app

Visit OpenPost Read the Zekai review Price alert

Buffer vs Socioboard

Open sourceFree (self-hosted)6.0

The differenceOlder GPL-3.0 platform with analytics and reporting for nine networks; its last release dates from January 2024 and it needs Node.js, PHP, MongoDB and MySQL.

Switch to Socioboard ifyou want a reporting-heavy self-hosted suite and have the skills to run several services

Stay with Buffer ifyou want a maintained product with frequent releases and a simple install

Visit Socioboard Read the Zekai review Price alert

06 · What changed

Why do people leave Buffer?

14 Nov 2026
Buffer's help centre states a lifetime channel connection limit of 8 channels per social network on the Free plan, which counts channels you have since disconnected. (source)
14 Nov 2026
Pricing page lists the Free plan at 10 scheduled posts per channel and 1 user; unlimited scheduled posts and first-comment scheduling start on Essentials at $6 per channel monthly. (source)

08 · FAQ

Questions people ask about Buffer alternatives

What is the best alternative to Buffer in 2027?

Hootsuite is the best overall Buffer alternative on this page ($99/user/mo billed yearly). For no cost, Metricool has a free plan (1 brand, 20 posts a month, 30 days of analytics, 5 competitors). To self-host, Postiz is open source (AGPL-3.0).

Is there a free version of Buffer?

Yes. Buffer has a free plan: 3 channels, 10 scheduled posts each. Paid plans start at $5/channel/mo billed yearly, checked on 14 Nov 2026.

Is there a 100% free alternative to Buffer?

Yes. Postiz, Mixpost, TryPost, OpenPost, Socioboard are open source and free to self-host. Metricool, Publer have a free plan with limits, shown in the table.

What is cheaper than Buffer?

Publer starts at $4/account/mo billed yearly, against $5/channel/mo billed yearly for Buffer, as listed on each vendor's pricing page on 14 Nov 2026.

How much do Buffer alternatives cost for a team of 5?

If each of 5 people buys the entry paid plan, at the prices Zekai checked on 14 Nov 2026, the monthly cost is Publer $20/mo, FeedHive $75/mo, SocialPilot $85/mo, against Buffer $25/mo for Buffer. Team and business plans can cost more per seat. The Zekai Cost Finder on this page recalculates for any team size.

Which is better, Hootsuite or Buffer?

Charges per user, not per channel: Standard is $99 per user a month billed annually for 10 accounts, where Buffer Essentials is $5 per channel with one user included. Choose Hootsuite if you need a shared inbox, listening and approvals across ten or more profiles under one vendor. Stay with Buffer if you add or drop single channels month to month and only one person publishes.

Why are people leaving Buffer?

The documented reasons are: Buffer's help centre states a lifetime channel connection limit of 8 channels per social network on the Free plan, which counts channels you have since disconnected (14 Nov 2026); Pricing page lists the Free plan at 10 scheduled posts per channel and 1 user; unlimited scheduled posts and first-comment scheduling start on Essentials at $6 per channel monthly (14 Nov 2026). Each is sourced in the section above.

What is the best Buffer alternative?

It depends on the job: Publer for cheaper per-account pricing, Metricool for analytics and ads reports, Hootsuite for team inbox work, and Postiz if you want to host the tool yourself.

09 · Method

How did Zekai check this page?

Zekai independently reviews AI tools. For this page we read each vendor's own pricing and product pages and recorded the starting price, the free-plan limit and the date of the check. Only tools that do the same job as Buffer are listed, and sponsors never change the order or the scores.

Mehmet Elmicenni

Founder of Zekai. Reviews the alternatives pages and the price checks behind them.

About the founder · How Zekai scores tools

JSON copy Markdown copy

1 · Same job onlyEvery alternative does the same task as Buffer; tools for other jobs are left out.

2 · Vendor pages onlyPrices and free limits come from each vendor's own pricing page, never from blogs.

Zekai score0–10, from four published weights: ease 25%, output quality 30%, value 20%, time saved 25%. How we score

3 · Re-checkedA price older than 35 days is re-read or the page falls back to an older version.

Change log

14 Nov 2026
Page rebuilt on v6; all prices re-read on vendor pages.
14 Nov 2026
Open-source options expanded and each one given licence, commercial-use, hardware and setup details.

13 best Buffer alternatives in 2027

Hootsuite

Metricool

Postiz

Which Buffer alternatives are worth it in 2027?

Know first when Buffer or an alternative changes price

Your tool here

Is one of these tools yours?

Is there a free version of Buffer?

What are the best free Buffer alternatives?

Metricool

Publer

What are the best open-source Buffer alternatives?

Postiz

Mixpost

TryPost

OpenPost

Socioboard

How does Buffer compare with each alternative?

Buffer vs Hootsuite

Buffer vs Later

Buffer vs Metricool

Buffer vs Publer

Buffer vs SocialPilot

Buffer vs Agorapulse

Buffer vs ContentStudio

Buffer vs FeedHive

Buffer vs Postiz

Buffer vs Mixpost

Buffer vs TryPost

Buffer vs OpenPost

Buffer vs Socioboard

Why do people leave Buffer?

More comparisons for Social media scheduler / manager

Questions people ask about Buffer alternatives

What is the best alternative to Buffer in 2027?

Is there a free version of Buffer?

Is there a 100% free alternative to Buffer?

What is cheaper than Buffer?

How much do Buffer alternatives cost for a team of 5?

Which is better, Hootsuite or Buffer?

Why are people leaving Buffer?

What is the best Buffer alternative?

How did Zekai check this page?