Metricool Alternatives: 8 Tools Compared (2026)
Metricool alternatives with current prices, free plans and what each gives up: Publer, SociaHive, Later, Pallyy, Buffer, Planable, Hootsuite, SocialBee.
Published October 18, 2026
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The best Metricool alternatives are Publer if you want analytics and competitor tracking at a similar price, Later for visual planning, and Buffer for the simplest queue. Metricool starts free with one brand and 20 posts a month, so most people leave over a specific gap, not over price.
Check which gap it is before you switch: analytics history, approvals, LinkedIn and X access, or per-brand billing.
What you get with Metricool
Metricool's pitch is analytics and competitor tracking next to scheduling. The Free plan covers one brand, 20 scheduled posts a month, 5 competitor profiles and 30 days of analytics. Starter is $20 a month on annual billing ($25 monthly) for up to 5 brands, or $36 for up to 10, and gives 100 competitors, unlimited analytics history and PDF and PPT reports.
Three plan gates send people looking elsewhere, all stated on Metricool's pricing page. LinkedIn is not on the Free plan, X is a paid add-on, and the post approval system starts on Advanced, from $67 a month on monthly billing (annual billing shows from $53). Pricing is also per brand, so each client or business counts as one.
Metricool alternatives compared
Prices are from each tool's pricing page, as of October 2026, in US dollars.
| Tool | Free plan | Entry price | Competitor tracking | Approvals |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Publer | 3 accounts | $4 per month, billed yearly | Business, $8 | Paid plans, extra members |
| SociaHive | 3 accounts, 30 posts a month | $29 per month | None | Pro and up |
| Later | None, 14-day trial | $18.75 per month, billed yearly | Scale, $82.50 | Growth, $37.50 |
| Pallyy | 15 posts a month | $25 per month | Instagram, 10 on paid | Pro and up |
| Buffer | 3 channels | $5 per channel per month, billed yearly | None | Team, $10 per channel |
| Planable | First 50 posts free | $33 per workspace per month | Analytics add-on | Every plan |
| Hootsuite | None, 14-day trial | $99 per user per month, billed yearly | Monitoring included | Advanced, $399 |
| SocialBee | None, 14-day trial | $29 per month, billed monthly | None | Accelerate, $49 |
1. Publer
Publer is the closest match on analytics for less money. Business is $8 a month billed yearly and adds analytics reports, competitor analysis, best times to post, hashtag analytics and API access.
It also schedules to Facebook Groups, LinkedIn Pages, Google Business Profiles, Telegram and WordPress. On the free plan you can connect 3 accounts, but X needs a paid plan and published posts are stored for only 24 hours.
2. SociaHive
SociaHive is the pick if your real work is Instagram conversations. It schedules to nine networks from one calendar, suggests a posting time per account from its own data for Instagram and TikTok, and automates Instagram DMs from comments on paid plans, from $29 a month.
It has no competitor analytics, no social listening and no report builder, so it does not replace Metricool's analytics side. It also skips Instagram Stories and Reels scheduling.
3. Later
Later is the visual choice for Instagram, TikTok and Facebook. Starter is $18.75 a month billed yearly for one social set of up to 8 profiles, limited to 30 posts per profile.
Competitive benchmarking arrives on Scale at $82.50 a month, which tracks up to 20 competitors. The Growth plan at $37.50 adds a social inbox and approvals. See is Later worth it for the full picture.
4. Pallyy
Pallyy prices by client, which fits when each client is one brand. Pro is $25 a month for one social set, Agency is $99 for 10 sets, and extra sets cost $10 each.
Posts are unlimited on paid plans, and analytics history is 5 years. The free plan tracks one Instagram competitor and publishes images only, so video scheduling needs Pro.
5. Buffer
Buffer drops the analytics focus and keeps the queue. Essentials is $5 per channel per month billed yearly with unlimited scheduled posts and advanced analytics, and Team at $10 adds approvals.
It lists Instagram, Facebook, LinkedIn, Threads, Bluesky, Mastodon, Pinterest, YouTube, TikTok, X and Google Business Profile. There is no competitor tracking. Budget carefully, because each channel is billed separately.
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6. Planable
Planable fixes Metricool's weakest area. Approvals are on every plan, and Basic is $33 per workspace per month with unlimited users and 60 posts per workspace.
The Pro plan has three approval types and 150 posts per workspace. Analytics and the social inbox are paid add-ons, and on Basic X posting is limited to one post every 24 hours.
7. Hootsuite
Hootsuite makes sense when Metricool's reports are not enough. Standard is $99 per user per month billed yearly and covers 10 accounts, with an inbox and brand and competitor monitoring.
Approvals start on Advanced at $399. If you only chose Metricool to save money, this is the wrong direction. More on it in Hootsuite alternatives.
8. SocialBee
SocialBee suits recurring content. Bootstrap is $29 a month billed monthly for 5 profiles, Accelerate $49 for 10, all with unlimited AI content generation and content categories.
Post approval starts on Accelerate and historical analytics run to 2 years. There is no competitor tracking, and cheaper plans allow one user.
Free Metricool alternatives
The free Metricool alternatives with real scheduling are Buffer, Publer and Pallyy. Buffer gives 3 channels with 10 scheduled posts each, Publer gives 3 accounts with 10 scheduled posts each, and Pallyy allows 15 posts a month, images only. None matches Metricool's free competitor tracking, which is 5 profiles. If that matters, stay on Metricool Free and move only the posting.
Which Metricool alternative should you pick?
Pick Publer if analytics and competitors still matter. Pick Planable if approvals were the gap. Pick Later if you plan Instagram and TikTok visually. Pick Buffer if you want the cheapest simple queue.
Frequently Asked Questions
What are the key differences between Metricool and Publer?
Metricool prices by brand and includes analytics, competitor tracking and an inbox; Publer prices by social account. Publer's Business plan is $8 a month billed yearly and also includes competitor analysis and API access. Publer's free plan excludes X, while Metricool's free plan excludes LinkedIn and X.
What is the best tool to automate social media?
For scheduled posts, any scheduler here works. Metricool Starter includes Flows for automation, Publer has RSS auto-posting, and SocialBee recycles content from categories. Automatically replying to Instagram comments and DMs is a different category that schedulers like Buffer do not cover.
Is there a free Metricool alternative for agencies?
Pallyy is the nearest free option for agencies, with one social set and 15 posts a month, though images only. Paid, Pallyy's Agency plan covers 10 clients for $99 a month. Publer's free plan suits one brand with 3 accounts. For many clients, expect to pay.
What are the top 5 social media schedulers?
There is no authoritative ranking, so pick on price and networks. Among tools with public pricing, Buffer and Publer are the cheapest, Later is built for visual Instagram and TikTok planning, Pallyy bills per client, and SocialBee recycles evergreen posts. Check that the tool covers every network you post to.
Sources
- Metricool, Plans and pricing
- Publer, Pricing
- Later, Pricing
- Pallyy, Pricing
- Buffer, Pricing
- Planable, Pricing
- Hootsuite, Pricing and plans
- SocialBee, Pricing
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