Hootsuite alternatives: 6 tools for small businesses, priced on yearly billing

Hootsuite alternatives: the short answer

The Hootsuite alternatives worth pricing for a small business are SocialBee, Sendible, Buffer, Loomly, SocialPilot and Vista Social. Hootsuite Standard is $99 per user a month, billed annually, as read on 7 October 2026. Hootsuite publishes no monthly-billing price, so every figure here is on yearly billing.

Pick SocialBee Pro for 25 profiles and 3 users per workspace, Sendible when unlimited users matter more than profile count, and Buffer for a free plan or for approvals on Team.

What Hootsuite costs and includes

Hootsuite sells by the user: Standard is $99, Professional $199 and Advanced $399 per user a month, billed annually, and Enterprise is custom. Standard manages up to 10 social accounts, Professional has unlimited social accounts, and approvals start on Advanced. Hootsuite has no free plan.

Because Hootsuite counts each user as a seat, its price is per person. SocialBee Pro, Loomly and SocialPilot price the plan, Sendible includes unlimited users, and Buffer prices each channel, so the table names the unit in every row.

Hootsuite's 14-day trial needs no credit card, and its FAQ says nothing is charged automatically when the trial ends. Trial accounts are limited to 10 to 20 posts a day per organization, depending on plan, and bulk scheduling is not available during the trial. SocialBee's trial also lasts 14 days; SocialBee vs Hootsuite compares the two plan by plan.

SocialBee and Sendible for small teams

SocialBee Pro includes 25 social profiles, 3 users per workspace and 5 workspaces. A workspace is a separate space for one brand or client, with its own profiles, content and schedule. SocialBee's post approval system starts one plan lower, on Accelerate.

On yearly plans SocialBee sells an extra user or an extra workspace at $100 a year each, and a set of 5 more profiles at $150 a year. SocialBee sells no free plan. Its pricing page offers a 14-day free trial of Pro and says no credit card is needed; its pricing FAQ says posting stops automatically once the trial expires.

Sendible Core has 1 workspace and 6 social profiles, and every Sendible plan includes unlimited users. Approval workflows start on Plus, which has 3 workspaces and 18 profiles. Sendible's trial is 14 days with no card, and its FAQ says you are asked to add a card when the trial ends. A freelancer who runs several client brands can start from best social media management software for agencies.

Buffer and Loomly for approvals

Buffer charges per channel rather than per user, and the Team figure in the table is for 1 channel. Team adds unlimited team members, access levels and approval workflows, which neither Free nor Essentials has. Both paid Buffer plans come with a 14-day trial.

Loomly Starter includes approval workflows and roles. Loomly Beyond, at $249 a month billed yearly ($2,988 a year), raises the limit to 60 accounts and unlimited users. Buffer alternatives goes deeper on Buffer's own free plan and the tools that recycle posts.

SocialPilot and Vista Social for more accounts

SocialPilot lists content approval workflows from Standard and client approval workflows from Premium, which is $85 a month billed annually for 20 accounts and 6 users. Vista Social Professional includes approval stages; Advanced is $160 a month, billed yearly ($1,910 a year), for 30 profiles and 3 users.

SocialPilot and Vista Social both offer a 14-day trial with no credit card.

Free Hootsuite alternatives

Hootsuite has no free plan. Buffer Free connects up to 3 channels, Publer Free 3 social accounts (except X) and Metricool Free 1 brand with 20 scheduled posts a month. Publer's paid plans on yearly billing start at $4 a month for Professional and $8 for Business, each for 1 account. Best free social media scheduling software lists more.