Buffer vs Hootsuite Pricing (2026)
How do these two stack up on price? Here's what each one costs, what you get, and where the value sits.
| Buffer pricing | Hootsuite pricing | |
|---|---|---|
| Starts at | $5/mo | $99/mo |
| Number of plans | 3 | 4 |
| Free plan | — | |
| Free trial | ||
| Pricing model | per-seat | per-seat |
Price is one row. To weigh the features too, use our feature comparison template →
Free
- 10 scheduled posts per channel - refill anytime
- 100 ideas
- 1 user account
- AI Assistant
- Insights
- API access
- Community inbox
- World-class customer support
Essentials
Popular- Unlimited scheduled posts per channel
- Unlimited ideas
- 1 user account
- AI Assistant
- Advanced analytics
- API access
- Community inbox
- Hashtag manager
- First comment scheduling
- World-class customer support
Team
- Unlimited scheduled posts per channel
- Unlimited ideas
- Unlimited team members
- AI Assistant
- Advanced analytics
- API access
- Community inbox
- Hashtag manager
- First comment scheduling
- Access levels
- Content approval workflows
- World-class customer support
Standard
- Schedule unlimited social posts*
- Generate posts and images with AI
- Respond to messages from one inbox
- Monitor your brand and competitors
- Purchase as many user seats as you need
Professional
Popular- Manage unlimited social accounts
- Automate inbox replies and workflows
- Forecast social trends up to 90 days ahead
- Build custom performance reports
Advanced
- Review and approve content with your team
- Assign and auto-route messages to the right team members
- Coordinate content and customer care
- Measure team performance and efficiency
Enterprise
- Prove the impact of social with advanced analytics
- Uncover trends across social, digital, and AI with advanced listening
- Secure access with single sign-on (SSO)
- Stay compliant with custom compliance solutions
Buffer vs Hootsuite FAQ
- Which one is cheaper?
- Buffer starts lower at $5/mo, compared to $99/mo for Hootsuite.
- Can I use either one for free?
- Buffer has a free plan. Hootsuite doesn't — though they do offer a free trial.
- How do they charge?
- Both use a per-seat model, so the comparison is straightforward — it comes down to features and limits at each price point.
- Which one is a better deal?
- Depends on what you need. Buffer: At $5/channel, Buffer is clearly the budget play in social scheduling, undercutting Hootsuite and Sprout Social by a wide margin. The target is small businesses, creators, and lean marketing teams who find the enterprise suites bloated and overpriced. Hootsuite: Hootsuite sits firmly at the premium end of social media management, well above Buffer and Later, and closer to Sprout Social in price range. It's chasing teams that want an all-in-one platform with a long feature list, not scrappy creators comparing cost per profile.
Still deciding? See the best Buffer alternatives or the best Hootsuite alternatives, ranked with verified pricing.
Stop checking your competitors manually.
Outmano watches your competitors' prices and features for you. See how competitor pricing monitoring works.
Try Outmano free »
14-day free trial