Best Social Media Tools
Short answer
The best social media tools are Sprout Social, Metricool, Later. Sprout Social is our top pick at 8.3/10. If budget is tight, Metricool has the best free plan.
Our top picks
Sprout Social
8.3/10
Tops our social media tools rankings at 8.3/10 — best for Agencies that prioritize delivering polished analytics reports to clients.
- ✓Best-in-class social analytics — reports you can send directly to clients
- ✓Clean, polished UI compared to Hootsuite
Metricool
8.3/10
The strongest capability-per-dollar in the category — value score 9/10.
- ✓One of the most generous free plans in social media management
- ✓Covers organic social and paid ads (Google, Meta, TikTok) in one dashboard
Later
8.2/10
The best social media tools option you can start on for $0 and upgrade when you grow.
- ✓Best visual grid planner for Instagram — see your feed before posting
- ✓Linkin.bio turns your profile link into a landing page
All 6 social media tools, ranked
Sprout Social
Top pickAll-in-one social media management with best-in-class analytics
Sprout Social is the premium social media management platform known for its best-in-class analytics and reporting. Where Buffer wins on simplicity and Hootsuite on breadth, Sprout Social wins on data quality — its reports are polished enough to send directly to clients without rework. The platform covers publishing, a unified social inbox, employee advocacy, influencer management, and social listening. Positioned above Hootsuite on analytics quality and below it on raw features.
Strengths
- ✓Best-in-class social analytics — reports you can send directly to clients
- ✓Clean, polished UI compared to Hootsuite
- ✓Unified smart inbox with sentiment analysis
Watch-outs
- ✗Among the most expensive social tools — significant per-seat cost
- ✗No free plan
- ✗Feature depth may exceed what most small agencies need
Metricool
Social media scheduling and analytics across every major platform
Metricool is a social media management tool covering scheduling, analytics, competitor analysis, and ad account reporting across Instagram, TikTok, YouTube, X (Twitter), LinkedIn, Facebook, Pinterest, Twitch, and Google Business Profile. Its free plan is one of the most generous in the category — 1 brand, unlimited scheduled posts, and access to basic analytics. Metricool differentiates with its competitor benchmarking feature and built-in Google, Meta, and TikTok Ads reporting alongside organic social.
Strengths
- ✓One of the most generous free plans in social media management
- ✓Covers organic social and paid ads (Google, Meta, TikTok) in one dashboard
- ✓Competitor analysis shows benchmarks against rival accounts
Watch-outs
- ✗Brand awareness lower than Buffer or Hootsuite among marketing teams
- ✗Reporting depth on paid plan still below Sprout Social
- ✗Multi-brand management requires paid plan
Later
Visual social media planner built for Instagram and TikTok creators
Later started as an Instagram-first visual grid planner and has expanded to cover TikTok, Pinterest, X, Facebook, and LinkedIn. Its signature feature is a drag-and-drop visual calendar that shows exactly how your Instagram grid will look before publishing. Linkin.bio (Later's link-in-bio tool) turns your Instagram profile into a shoppable page. Used heavily by e-commerce brands, food creators, travel creators, and anyone for whom the visual appearance of their grid matters.
Strengths
- ✓Best visual grid planner for Instagram — see your feed before posting
- ✓Linkin.bio turns your profile link into a landing page
- ✓Strong Instagram and TikTok-specific features
Watch-outs
- ✗Less useful for platforms beyond Instagram and TikTok
- ✗Free plan limited to 30 posts/month per profile
- ✗Analytics less comprehensive than Sprout Social
Buffer
Simple, clean social media scheduling for creators and small teams
Buffer is the most straightforward social media scheduling tool — write posts, pick your times, and Buffer publishes them across platforms. It covers Instagram, Facebook, X (Twitter), LinkedIn, TikTok, Pinterest, and Mastodon. The free plan supports 3 channels and 10 scheduled posts per channel — enough for solo creators. Paid plans add more channels, analytics, team collaboration, and an AI writing assistant. Buffer is intentionally simple; it wins on ease of use rather than depth.
Strengths
- ✓Easiest social scheduling tool to get started with
- ✓Clean, focused UI — nothing confusing or buried
- ✓Covers all major platforms including TikTok and Mastodon
Watch-outs
- ✗Less analytics depth than Hootsuite or Sprout Social
- ✗No social inbox (can't reply to comments inside Buffer on free plan)
- ✗Not designed for agencies managing many client accounts at scale
SocialBee
Category-based social media scheduling for consistent posting
SocialBee takes a category-based approach to social media scheduling — you create content categories (educational, promotional, curated, evergreen) and assign a posting schedule to each. This structure ensures a healthy content mix rather than an ad hoc queue. Content can be recycled on a schedule so evergreen posts continue working long after creation. SocialBee also includes a built-in AI assistant for content generation and a lightweight RSS feed importer for curated content.
Strengths
- ✓Category-based scheduling ensures consistent, balanced content mix
- ✓Evergreen content recycling keeps top posts working indefinitely
- ✓AI assistant helps generate post variants and captions
Watch-outs
- ✗No free plan — requires a subscription from day one
- ✗Category system has a learning curve compared to simple queue-based tools
- ✗Analytics less powerful than Sprout Social or Metricool
Hootsuite
Enterprise social media management for agencies and teams
Hootsuite is one of the oldest and most comprehensive social media management platforms, built for teams managing multiple brands across multiple networks. It covers scheduling, inbox management (respond to comments and DMs across platforms in one place), social listening (monitor mentions and keywords), and detailed analytics. Hootsuite's strength is depth — it's the go-to for agencies running complex social programs for multiple clients. Its pricing reflects this enterprise positioning.
Strengths
- ✓Unified social inbox — manage comments and DMs across all platforms
- ✓Social listening to monitor brand mentions and competitor activity
- ✓Deep analytics and custom reporting for client presentations
Watch-outs
- ✗One of the most expensive social tools on the market
- ✗No meaningful free plan — 30-day trial only
- ✗UI has become cluttered as features have accumulated
Social Media Tools compared
Frequently asked questions
What is the best social media tools?
Sprout Social is our top-rated pick, scoring 8.3/10. Tops our social media tools rankings at 8.3/10 — best for Agencies that prioritize delivering polished analytics reports to clients.
What is the best free social media tools option?
Metricool offers the best free plan among the social media tools we reviewed — a genuine way to start at $0 before upgrading.