Insights

Rella, Buffer, Later, Sprout Social, HeyOrca, Metricool, and Planable can all schedule posts. The real differences are in how they charge, how many people can collaborate, and whether clients can approve content. Here's the short answer, then a closer look at each tool.

Prices as of October 2026. Always confirm on each tool's pricing page.

The quick verdict

• Buffer: best for solo users and small businesses posting to a few channels on a budget.

• Later: best for brands focused on Instagram and visual planning.

• Sprout Social: best for large companies that need social listening and deep analytics.

• HeyOrca: best for agencies that want a client-friendly approval calendar and don't mind paying per client.

• Metricool: best for analytics-focused marketers who want scheduling, reporting and ads data in one place.

• Planable: best for teams who like reviewing and approving posts like a shared document.

• Rella: best for social media managers and agencies running content for multiple brands, with client approvals and project management built in.

Pricing at a glance

• Buffer: free for up to 3 channels; Essentials $5 and Team $10 per channel a month

• Later: no free plan; Starter $18.75, Growth $37.50 and Scale $82.50 a month, billed yearly

• Sprout Social: from $79 per seat a month billed yearly ($99 monthly); higher plans $199 to $399 per seat a month

• HeyOrca: free plan for 1 user (15 posts a month); Basic $59 and Pro $149 per client calendar a month, with 15% off yearly and unlimited users

• Metricool: free plan for 1 brand; Starter from $20 and Advanced from $53 a month billed yearly ($25 and $67 monthly), priced by number of brands

• Planable: 50 free posts to start; Basic $33 and Pro $49 per workspace a month billed yearly ($39 and $59 monthly), with unlimited users

• Rella: $24, $48 or $64 per seat a month billed yearly ($30, $59 or $79 monthly), with unlimited social profiles on every plan

The pricing model matters as much as the price. Buffer charges per channel, Later per social set, HeyOrca per client calendar, Planable per workspace and Metricool by number of brands, so costs rise as you add clients. Sprout Social and Rella charge per seat, so costs rise as you add people. With Rella, adding a new client or brand doesn't change your price.

Buffer

Buffer is a simple, affordable scheduler that's been around for years.

Pricing: Free for up to 3 channels (10 scheduled posts each). Essentials is $5 per channel a month for one user. Team is $10 per channel a month and adds unlimited users, approval workflows and branded reports.

Pros

• Clean, simple interface

• Low cost if you only manage a few channels

• Useful free plan to get started

Cons

• Paying per channel adds up quickly as you take on clients

• Approvals and extra users are only on the Team plan

• No project management for planning, tasks or deadlines

Bottom line: Buffer is a great starting point for basic scheduling. Teams that manage several clients often outgrow it.

Later

Later is known for visual planning, especially for Instagram, and for its influencer marketing tools.

Pricing: No free plan, but a 14-day trial. Starter is $18.75 a month (1 social set, 1 user), Growth is $37.50 (2 social sets, 2 users) and Scale is $82.50 (6 social sets, 4 users), all billed yearly. Approvals start on Growth.

Pros

• Strong visual calendar and Instagram feed planning

• Influencer marketing options for brands

Cons

• Each plan caps social sets and users, so agencies hit limits fast

• No built-in space for brainstorming or task management

Bottom line: Later is excellent for Instagram-first brands. It's a harder fit for teams managing many clients across many platforms.

Sprout Social

Sprout Social is an enterprise platform with deep analytics, social listening and customer care tools.

Pricing: Essentials starts at $79 per seat a month billed yearly ($99 monthly) for 5 social profiles. Standard, Professional and Advanced range from $199 to $399 per seat a month. Social listening is a paid add-on. There's a 30-day free trial.

Pros

• In-depth reporting and competitor insights

• Social listening and customer care features for large teams

Cons

• Expensive for small teams and agencies

• Key features like listening cost extra

Bottom line: Sprout Social is powerful, but its price makes it best suited to large companies with complex needs.

HeyOrca

HeyOrca is a social media calendar built for agencies, with a strong focus on client approvals and an easy review experience for clients.

Pricing: A free plan for 1 user, with 2 social profiles and 15 posts a month. Paid plans are priced per calendar (one per client or brand): Basic is $59 and Pro is $149 per calendar a month, with 15% off for paying yearly and a bigger discount for 5 or more calendars. Paid plans include unlimited users, up to 10 social profiles per calendar and a 14-day free trial. On Basic, reporting ($59), the social inbox ($39) and social listening ($39) are paid add-ons per calendar. Agencies with more than 10 clients get custom pricing.

Pros

• Built around agency client approvals

• Unlimited users on paid plans

• Simple for clients to review and approve content

Cons

• The price goes up with every client calendar you add

• Reporting and the inbox cost extra on lower plans

• Lighter on task management and project planning

Bottom line: HeyOrca is a solid choice for agencies that care most about client approvals. Costs grow quickly as your client list grows.

Metricool

Metricool combines scheduling with strong analytics, competitor tracking and ads reporting, and has a popular free plan.

Pricing: A free plan for 1 brand with up to 20 posts a month (no LinkedIn or X). Paid plans are priced by how many brands you manage: Starter starts at $20 a month billed yearly ($25 monthly) for up to 5 brands, and Advanced starts at $53 a month billed yearly ($67 monthly) for up to 15 brands. Team management and approvals are only on Advanced, and connecting X costs an extra $10 a month per account. There's no free trial of paid plans.

Pros

• Strong analytics and competitor tracking

• Useful free plan for one brand

• Ads reporting alongside organic posts

Cons

• Approvals and team features require the Advanced plan

• Some platform connections cost extra

• Built around analytics more than planning and task management

Bottom line: Metricool is great if reporting is your top priority. Teams that need client approvals and project management will need its higher plan or another tool.

Planable

Planable is a collaboration-first tool that lets teams and clients review posts like a shared document, with comments and approvals in one place.

Pricing: Every account starts with 50 free posts, with no time limit. Paid plans are priced per workspace (one per client or brand): Basic is $33 and Pro is $49 per workspace a month billed yearly ($39 and $59 monthly), with unlimited users. Basic allows 60 posts and 4 social pages per workspace a month, and Pro allows 150 posts and 10 pages. Required approvals start on Pro, and multi-level approvals are on Enterprise. Analytics and the social inbox are paid add-ons on Basic and Pro.

Pros

• Flexible approvals, with multi-level approvals on Enterprise

• Easy, document-style review for clients

• Unlimited users

Cons

• The price grows with each workspace you add

• Monthly post limits on Basic and Pro

• Analytics costs extra

Bottom line: Planable is a strong pick for teams that want document-style reviews and approvals. Agencies with many clients will feel the per-workspace pricing and post limits.

Rella

Rella is project management built for social media. It combines planning, client approvals and scheduling in one place, with Ella, an AI strategist, on Premium plans.

Pricing: Pro is $24, Premium $48 and Premium Plus $64 per seat a month billed yearly ($30, $59 and $79 monthly). Every plan includes unlimited social profiles and a free trial, and clients can review and approve content for free from a shared link.

Pros

• Unlimited brands and social profiles, so adding a client doesn't raise your price

• Clients approve content from one link, with no login and no paid seat

• Content calendar, Kanban boards and tasks built in

• Auto-posting to 9 platforms

Cons

• No social listening

• The social inbox covers Instagram only

• Ella (AI) is on Premium and Premium Plus, not Pro

Bottom line: Rella is the best fit for social media managers and agencies who juggle multiple clients and need approvals and planning in the same tool as scheduling.

How to choose

1. Posting for one brand on a small budget? Start with Buffer.

2. Planning mostly for Instagram? Look at Later.

3. A large company that needs listening and advanced reports? Sprout Social is built for you.

4. Reporting and competitor analysis come first? Consider Metricool.

5. Need simple client approvals and don't mind paying per client? HeyOrca and Planable are both worth a look.

6. Managing several clients or brands, with approvals and a team? Rella gives you planning, approvals and scheduling in one place without paying more per brand.

For a full breakdown of Rella's plans, see Rella Pricing Explained.

Frequently asked questions

Which social media scheduler is cheapest?

Buffer is cheapest for one or two channels, with a free plan and paid plans from $5 per channel a month. Metricool also has a free plan for one brand. For teams managing many brands, Rella is often cheaper because every plan includes unlimited social profiles and Social Spaces, while HeyOrca, Planable, Later and Metricool charge more as you add brands.

Which tool is best for agencies with multiple clients?

Rella is built for this. Each client gets its own Social Space, the number of brands never changes your price, and clients approve content from a link without a paid seat. HeyOrca and Planable are also popular with agencies, but they charge per client calendar or workspace, so the price rises with every new client.

Which tools let clients approve content?

All seven do in some form. Buffer includes approvals on its Team plan, Later from its Growth plan and Metricool on its Advanced plan. HeyOrca includes approvals on every plan. Planable has optional approvals on Basic, required approvals on Pro and multi-level approvals on Enterprise. Rella includes share links with approval status changes on every plan, with the full approvals flow on Premium and Premium Plus.

Does Rella have social listening?

No. If social listening is a must, Sprout Social offers it as an add-on.

Which tools offer a free trial?

Later and HeyOrca offer 14 days, Sprout Social 30 days, and Rella offers a free trial on every plan. Buffer, HeyOrca and Metricool also have free plans, and Planable gives you 50 free posts to start.

Try Rella for free

If you manage social media for multiple brands, start a free Rella trial or book a demo to see how planning, approvals and scheduling work together.