Metricool vs Buffer
Metricool and Buffer side by side: what each one is, what it costs to start, and whether you can try it free. Everything below comes from the vendors' own sites and other public sources, not from hands-on testing.
At a glance
| Metricool | Buffer | |
|---|---|---|
| Category | Marketing & SEO | Marketing & SEO |
| Starting price | Free; paid plans from $20/mo (checked October 2026) | Free; paid plans from $5/mo (checked October 2026) |
| Free tier | Yes | Yes |
| Profile | Read profile | Read profile |
Prices are in US dollars unless shown otherwise. Confirm the current price on the vendor's site before you buy.
Key differences
Both list a free tier, so you can try each before paying.
Buffer has the lower starting price ($5/mo against $20/mo for Metricool). The cheapest plan rarely has the same limits or features, so compare plans before choosing on price.
Both are in our Marketing & SEO category.
About each tool
Metricool
Social media scheduling, analytics and reporting tool with a Free plan for 1 brand; paid plans start at $20 a month billed annually ($25 monthly).
Who it is for
Metricool's plans scale from a single brand on the Free plan to agencies, with team and client management, roles and post approval on Advanced and Custom. Its pricing page does not list team members on Free or Starter.
Strengths
- Metricool's pricing page lists a Free plan with $0 pricing: 1 brand, 20 scheduled posts a month, 5 competitor profiles, 30 days of analytics, the AI assistant and the Metricool MCP.
- Metricool lists Starter (up to 10 brands) with unlimited publishing under its Fair Use Policy, 100 competitor profiles, LinkedIn, PDF and PPT reports, unlimited analytics history, Flows, and Google Drive and Canva integrations.
- Metricool lists Advanced and Custom with unlimited team members, team and client management, role management, a post approval system, custom report templates, a Data Studio connector and the Metricool API (Zapier, Make).
- Metricool lists AI assistant credits per brand each month: 5 on Free, 20 on Starter and 35 on Advanced, with custom credits on Custom.
- Metricool says it can be canceled anytime, with paid access continuing to the end of the billing cycle and the account then becoming free. Upgrades credit the unused part of the old plan.
- Metricool's privacy policy says it stores all data on servers within the European Union and does not carry out international data transfers.
Limitations
- Free is limited to 1 brand, 20 scheduled posts a month, 30 days of analytics and 5 AI credits per brand a month, with no LinkedIn or X/Twitter connection and no Flows, Smartlinks, Google Drive or Canva integration.
- X/Twitter is an add-on on Starter and above: Metricool's help center lists $10 a month or $120 a year per connected X account. Advanced Analytics is a separate add-on, listed from $12 a month on Starter and $36 a month on Advanced.
- Metricool's pages are not fully consistent: its premium-vs-free article describes Starter as up to 10 brands at $20 billed annually, while the pricing page prices up to 5 brands at $20 and up to 10 at $36. The same article says annual billing gives two months free, while the listed prices imply about 20% off.
- The pricing page does not state a refund policy. Metricool's privacy policy, as read, does not mention AI features or whether data is used to train AI models, and says data may be shared within the team.blue group.
Buffer
Social media scheduling tool priced per channel, with a free plan for 3 channels and an AI Assistant for drafting and repurposing post text.
Who it is for
The vendor describes Essentials as for solo creators and small businesses. The Team plan adds unlimited users, approval workflows and access levels for groups that work together.
Strengths
- A free plan with up to 3 channels, 10 scheduled posts per channel, 100 ideas and 1 user
- Paid plans are priced per connected channel, and the per-channel price falls as the channel count grows
- The AI Assistant is listed on Free, Essentials and Team
- Paid plans have a 14-day free trial, and nonprofits and charities get 50% off paid plans
- Team has unlimited users, access levels and approval workflows
Limitations
- Free allows 3 connected channels at once, 1 user and 30 days of insights
- Free caps lifetime channel connections at 8 unique channels, counting ones you disconnect later
- AI reply suggestions in the community inbox are limited to 5 a week on Free
