Buffer vs Later Pricing (2026)
How do these two stack up on price? Here's what each one costs, what you get, and where the value sits.
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
Starter
- 1 social set (8 profiles total)
- 1 user
- Instagram Reels Audio (New)
- Instagram, Facebook, & TikTok Best Time to Post (New)
- Schedule up to 30 posts per profile
- AI content tools (5 AI credits /month)
- Platform analytics (Up to 3 months)
- Link in Bio
- Basic customer support
Growth
Popular- 2 social sets (16 profiles total)
- 2 users
- Multi-profile Best Times to Post (New)
- Smart Scheduling with Future Trends
- Internal & External collaboration and approvals
- Social inbox
- Schedule up to 180 posts per profile
- AI content tools (50 AI credits /month)
- Platform analytics (up to 1 year)
- UGC collection
- Custom roles and permissions
Scale
- 6 social sets (48 profiles total)
- 4 users
- Meta Ads Analytics (New)
- Custom analytics
- Competitive benchmarking
- Future industry insights
- Brand Health
- Brand Mentions
- Unlimited posts
- AI content tools (100 AI credits /month)
- Platform analytics (up to 2 years)
- Priority support
Buffer vs Later FAQ
- Which one is cheaper?
- Buffer starts lower at $5/mo, compared to $18/mo for Later.
- Can I use either one for free?
- Buffer has a free plan. Later doesn't — though they do offer a free trial.
- How do they charge?
- Different approach here. Buffer uses per-seat pricing, while Later goes with hybrid. That changes the math depending on your team size and usage.
- Which one is a better deal?
- Depends on what you need. Buffer: This is the budget-friendly, self-serve end of the social media management category — cheap enough for solopreneurs to swipe a card without a sales call, unlike Sprout Social or Hootsuite which chase mid-market and enterprise budgets. Buffer's clearly optimizing for volume over ACV. Later: Later sits in the low-to-mid range of the social media management category — cheaper than heavyweights like Sprout Social or Hootsuite's higher tiers, but not dirt cheap given the add-on costs stack up fast. They're clearly courting small businesses and solo marketers who want an affordable entry point but will pay more as they scale accounts and team members.
Still deciding? See the best Buffer alternatives or the best Later alternatives, ranked with verified pricing.
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