Buffer vs Later
Buffer vs Later: Buffer charges per channel, from $6 a month, with a free plan and unlimited posts on paid plans. Later charges per social set, from $18.75 a month billed yearly, and costs less at larger sizes but caps posts per profile. Weekbird costs $24, $49 or $149 a month. Prices checked 10 October 2026.
Buffer plans
| Plan | Price | Brands / seats | Channels | Users | Limits |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Free | Free | 1 account | Up to 3 channels | 1 | Posts: 10 scheduled posts per channel, 1 threaded post; AI: AI Assistant included; Approvals: No; Inbox: Community inbox included, AI replies 5/week; Analytics: Basic analytics, 30-day history; API: 1 API key, 3,000 requests/30 days |
| Essentials | $6 per channel / month $5 per channel / monthbilled annually | n/a | Per channel purchased | 1 user | Posts: Unlimited scheduled posts; AI: AI Assistant, unlimited AI replies; Approvals: No; Inbox: Community inbox, unlimited saved replies; Analytics: Unlimited (advanced analytics); API: 3 API keys, 7,500 requests/30 days |
| Team | $12 per channel / month $10 per channel / monthbilled annually | n/a | Per channel purchased | Unlimited | Posts: Unlimited scheduled posts; AI: AI Assistant; Approvals: Content approval workflows and access levels; Inbox: Community inbox; Analytics: Unlimited (advanced analytics); API: 5 API keys, 15,000 requests/30 days |
| Plan | Price | Brands / seats | Channels | Users | Limits |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Free | Free | 1 account | Up to 3 channels | 1 | Posts: 10 scheduled posts per channel, 1 threaded post; AI: AI Assistant included; Approvals: No; Inbox: Community inbox included, AI replies 5/week; Analytics: Basic analytics, 30-day history; API: 1 API key, 3,000 requests/30 days |
| Essentials | $6 per channel / month | n/a | Per channel purchased | 1 user | Posts: Unlimited scheduled posts; AI: AI Assistant, unlimited AI replies; Approvals: No; Inbox: Community inbox, unlimited saved replies; Analytics: Unlimited (advanced analytics); API: 3 API keys, 7,500 requests/30 days |
| Team | $12 per channel / month | n/a | Per channel purchased | Unlimited | Posts: Unlimited scheduled posts; AI: AI Assistant; Approvals: Content approval workflows and access levels; Inbox: Community inbox; Analytics: Unlimited (advanced analytics); API: 5 API keys, 15,000 requests/30 days |
| Plan | Price | Brands / seats | Channels | Users | Limits |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Free | Free | 1 account | Up to 3 channels | 1 | Posts: 10 scheduled posts per channel, 1 threaded post; AI: AI Assistant included; Approvals: No; Inbox: Community inbox included, AI replies 5/week; Analytics: Basic analytics, 30-day history; API: 1 API key, 3,000 requests/30 days |
| Essentials | $5 per channel / monthbilled annually | n/a | Per channel purchased | 1 user | Posts: Unlimited scheduled posts; AI: AI Assistant, unlimited AI replies; Approvals: No; Inbox: Community inbox, unlimited saved replies; Analytics: Unlimited (advanced analytics); API: 3 API keys, 7,500 requests/30 days |
| Team | $10 per channel / monthbilled annually | n/a | Per channel purchased | Unlimited | Posts: Unlimited scheduled posts; AI: AI Assistant; Approvals: Content approval workflows and access levels; Inbox: Community inbox; Analytics: Unlimited (advanced analytics); API: 5 API keys, 15,000 requests/30 days |
Prices from buffer.com/pricing, checked 10 Oct 2026
- Free plan covers 3 channels with AI Assistant and community inbox.
- Pricing is per channel, so a single channel costs $5/month annual.
- Publishes to Bluesky, Mastodon, Threads, Google Business Profile, Pinterest and YouTube Shorts with community engagement on most of them.
- Includes a public API on every plan, including Free.
- API or MCP (Free): 1 API key, 3,000 requests/30 days
Later plans
| Plan | Price | Brands / seats | Channels | Users | Limits |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Starter | $18.75 / monthbilled annually | 1 social set | 8 profiles (1 of each network) | 1 | Posts: 30 posts per profile; AI: 5 AI credits/month; Approvals: No; Inbox: No; Analytics: Up to 3 months; Extra sets, users, AI credits not available |
| Growth | $37.5 / monthbilled annually | 2 social sets | 16 profiles | 2 | Posts: 180 posts per profile; AI: 50 credits/month, +100 credits $3.75/month; Approvals: Yes, internal and external, custom roles; Inbox: Social inbox; Analytics: Up to 1 year; Extra social set $11.25/month, extra user $3.75/month |
| Scale | $82.5 / monthbilled annually | 6 social sets | 48 profiles | 4 | Approvals: Yes; Inbox: Yes; Analytics: Up to 2 years; Meta Ads analytics, competitive benchmarking, brand mentions, 20 competitors tracked |
| Plan | Price | Brands / seats | Channels | Users | Limits |
|---|
| Plan | Price | Brands / seats | Channels | Users | Limits |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Starter | $18.75 / monthbilled annually | 1 social set | 8 profiles (1 of each network) | 1 | Posts: 30 posts per profile; AI: 5 AI credits/month; Approvals: No; Inbox: No; Analytics: Up to 3 months; Extra sets, users, AI credits not available |
| Growth | $37.5 / monthbilled annually | 2 social sets | 16 profiles | 2 | Posts: 180 posts per profile; AI: 50 credits/month, +100 credits $3.75/month; Approvals: Yes, internal and external, custom roles; Inbox: Social inbox; Analytics: Up to 1 year; Extra social set $11.25/month, extra user $3.75/month |
| Scale | $82.5 / monthbilled annually | 6 social sets | 48 profiles | 4 | Approvals: Yes; Inbox: Yes; Analytics: Up to 2 years; Meta Ads analytics, competitive benchmarking, brand mentions, 20 competitors tracked |
Prices from later.com/pricing, checked 10 Oct 2026
- Link in Bio pages included on every plan.
- Instagram Reels audio and best-time-to-post per network.
Cost examples
| Plan | Users | Brands | Channels | Monthly cost | Compared monthly cost |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Essentials | 1 | 1 | 5 | $25 / month, billed annually | $18.75 / month, billed annually |
| Team | 3 | 3 | 15 | $150 / month, billed annually | $37.5 / month, billed annually |
| Team | 5 | 10 | 50 | $500 / month, billed annually | $37.5 / month, billed annually |
Feature comparison
| Feature | Buffer | Later |
|---|---|---|
| Inbox for comments, replies and reviews | Inbox (Free): Community inbox included; AI replies 5/week | Inbox (Growth): Social inbox |
| Analytics per channel | Analytics (Free): Basic analytics, 30-day history | Analytics (Starter): Up to 3 months |
| Approvals from a link | Approvals (Team): Content approval workflows and access levels | Approvals (Growth): Yes, internal and external, custom roles |
Which fits your team
Approvals and teams
Buffer includes approval workflows and unlimited users on Team, priced per channel. Later includes internal and external approvals from Growth, with 2 users and $3.75 a month for each extra user, billed yearly. For 3 people on 15 channels, that comes to $150 a month on Buffer and $52.50 on Later, both billed yearly.
Where Weekbird fits
Weekbird costs $24, $49 or $149 a month ($228, $468 or $1,428 a year) with unlimited posts on every plan. Team and Agency add approval links that reviewers open without an account, and an Inbox for comments, replies and reviews. Weekbird has no free plan, no direct messages and no Link in Bio page. Compare it in Weekbird vs Buffer and Weekbird vs Later, or see all comparisons.