--- title: "Buffer vs Later: which fits your team?" canonical: "https://weekbird.app/compare/buffer-vs-later" language: "en" type: "comparison" updated: "2026-10-11T16:46:16.106Z" --- # 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. ## 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](/compare/weekbird-vs-buffer) and Weekbird vs Later, or see all comparisons. ## Questions ### Is Buffer or Later cheaper? Later, at every size we priced. One person on 5 channels pays $18.75 a month on Later Starter and $25 on Buffer Essentials, both billed yearly. Later caps posts per profile; Buffer's paid plans do not. ### Which has better approvals, Buffer or Later? Both have approvals. Buffer includes them on Team with unlimited users. Later includes internal and external approvals from Growth, with 2 users and extra users at $3.75 a month. ### Which is better for agencies? Later costs less for Instagram- and TikTok-led clients within its post caps. Buffer suits agencies that post often or publish to Bluesky, Mastodon or Google Business Profile. ### Is there a free plan on either? Buffer has one: 3 channels, 10 scheduled posts per channel, one user. Later has no free plan; it offers a 14-day trial. ### Does either have an inbox? Both do. Buffer's community inbox comes with every plan, including Free. Later's inbox covers Instagram, Facebook and TikTok DMs and comments from Growth. ## Plan next week in one sitting [See Weekbird plans](https://weekbird.app/) ## Buffer Last verified: 2026-10-10 ## Buffer: plans | Plan | Monthly price | Price per month (billed annually) | Currency | Billing unit | Seats or brands | Channels | Users | Limits | Source | Observed | | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | | Free | 0 | 0 | USD | per-channel | 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 | [Source](https://buffer.com/pricing) | 2026-10-10 | | Essentials | 6 | 5 | USD | per-channel | 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 | [Source](https://buffer.com/pricing) | 2026-10-10 | | Team | 12 | 10 | USD | per-channel | 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 | [Source](https://buffer.com/pricing) | 2026-10-10 | ## Buffer: strengths | Claim | Source | | --- | --- | | Free plan covers 3 channels with AI Assistant and community inbox. | [Source](https://buffer.com/pricing) | | Pricing is per channel, so a single channel costs $5/month annual. | [Source](https://buffer.com/pricing) | | Publishes to Bluesky, Mastodon, Threads, Google Business Profile, Pinterest and YouTube Shorts with community engagement on most of them. | [Source](https://buffer.com/pricing) | | Includes a public API on every plan, including Free. | [Source](https://buffer.com/pricing) | | Inbox (Free): Community inbox included; AI replies 5/week | [Source](https://buffer.com/pricing) | | API or MCP (Free): 1 API key, 3,000 requests/30 days | [Source](https://buffer.com/pricing) | | Analytics (Free): Basic analytics, 30-day history | [Source](https://buffer.com/pricing) | | Approvals (Team): Content approval workflows and access levels | [Source](https://buffer.com/pricing) | ## Later Last verified: 2026-10-10 ## Later: plans | Plan | Monthly price | Price per month (billed annually) | Currency | Billing unit | Seats or brands | Channels | Users | Limits | Source | Observed | | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | | Starter | — | 18.75 | USD | flat | 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 | [Source](https://later.com/pricing/) | 2026-10-10 | | Growth | — | 37.5 | USD | flat | 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 | [Source](https://later.com/pricing/) | 2026-10-10 | | Scale | — | 82.5 | USD | flat | 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 | [Source](https://later.com/pricing/) | 2026-10-10 | ## Later: strengths | Claim | Source | | --- | --- | | Link in Bio pages included on every plan. | [Source](https://later.com/pricing/) | | Instagram Reels audio and best-time-to-post per network. | [Source](https://later.com/pricing/) | | Analytics (Starter): Up to 3 months | [Source](https://later.com/pricing/) | | Approvals (Growth): Yes, internal and external, custom roles | [Source](https://later.com/pricing/) | | Inbox (Growth): Social inbox | [Source](https://later.com/pricing/) | ## Feature comparison | Feature | Weekbird | Buffer | Later | Sources | | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | | Inbox for comments, replies and reviews | Comments and replies from Facebook Pages, Instagram, YouTube, Threads, Bluesky and X, and Google Business Profile reviews, in one list. | Inbox (Free): Community inbox included; AI replies 5/week | Inbox (Growth): Social inbox | [Source 1](https://buffer.com/pricing), [Source 2](https://later.com/pricing/) | | Analytics per channel | Account and post metrics per connected network, exported as CSV or HTML. | Analytics (Free): Basic analytics, 30-day history | Analytics (Starter): Up to 3 months | [Source 1](https://buffer.com/pricing), [Source 2](https://later.com/pricing/) | | Approvals from a link | Send a reviewer a link to approve or request changes. Reviewers need no account. Links last 30 days and can be revoked. | Approvals (Team): Content approval workflows and access levels | Approvals (Growth): Yes, internal and external, custom roles | [Source 1](https://buffer.com/pricing), [Source 2](https://later.com/pricing/) | ## Base plan examples | Users | Brands | Channels | Plan | Monthly equivalent | Currency | Billing period | Other monthly equivalent | Other currency | Other billing period | Source | Other source | | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | | 1 | 1 | 5 | Essentials | 25 | USD | Billed annually | 18.75 | USD | Billed annually | [Source](https://buffer.com/pricing) | [Source](https://later.com/pricing/) | | 3 | 3 | 15 | Team | 150 | USD | Billed annually | 37.5 | USD | Billed annually | [Source](https://buffer.com/pricing) | [Source](https://later.com/pricing/) | | 5 | 10 | 50 | Team | 500 | USD | Billed annually | 37.5 | USD | Billed annually | [Source](https://buffer.com/pricing) | [Source](https://later.com/pricing/) | ## Verdicts | Use case | Verdict | | --- | --- | | One to three channels, no budget | Buffer Free. Later has no free plan. | | Instagram and TikTok first | Later: a DM and comment inbox, Link in Bio pages and Reels audio. | | Several brands on a budget | Later Growth with extra sets costs less than Buffer Team at every size we priced, within 180 posts per profile. | | High posting volume | Buffer: unlimited scheduled posts on paid plans. Later caps posts per profile. | | Bluesky, Mastodon or Google Business Profile | Buffer. Later's plans page lists none of them. |