Later is a popular social media scheduling tool, but many users now feel it’s becoming too expensive. Managing content as a creator is already a big job and paying too much for your scheduler shouldn’t make it harder. Many people love Later because it’s easy to use and visually appealing, but the truth is that its pricing can feel steep for creators working with tight budgets.
For example, the Starter Plan costs $25 per month, yet it leaves out several key features that most creators actually need. If you want access to better tools, you’ll have to upgrade to the Growth Plan at $50 per month, and even then you can only connect 8 social profiles which is a major limitation for growing brands.
Create your own free link in bio page
Ready to simplify your online presence?
With Pushbio, you can;
- Link all your social media profiles together effortlessly.
- Showcase all your content, products, and services in one space.
- Share everything through a single link.
Create your own free link in bio page
Ready to simplify your online presence?
With Pushbio, you can;
- Link all your social media profiles together effortlessly.
- Showcase all your content, products, and services in one space.
- Share everything through a single link.
That said, you don’t have to stick with high pricing when there are plenty of cheaper alternatives to Later. In this guide, we’ll share some of the best social media scheduling tools on a budget that give you scheduling, analytics, and more without draining your wallet. These less expensive alternatives to Later are designed to help creators save money while still getting powerful features.
Why creators are looking for cheaper alternatives to Later
For many creators, Later has become harder to justify because of its pricing. While it remains a well-known social media scheduler, the cost structure often feels too high compared to what it offers.
Later has three main paid plans which include the:
- Starter Plan at $25/month. This plan is meant for individuals and gives you just one social set with up to 8 profiles (Instagram, Facebook, Threads, Pinterest, TikTok, LinkedIn, YouTube, and Snapchat).
- Growth Plan at $50/month. This is Later’s most popular plan, designed for small teams. It gives you 2 social sets which equals 16 profiles in total.
- Scale Plan at $110/month. This is aimed at larger brands and agencies, it includes 6 social sets of 48 profiles in total.
On top of these costs, there are add-ons for more features.
- Extra social sets cost $10/month each
- Additional users cost $3.33/month each
- AI credits cost another $3.33 for 100 credits.
In the end, the real cost of Later can quickly grow beyond the base plan biting more into your budget. This pricing structure leaves many creators paying for higher plans just to unlock basic features like more users or analytics. Creators are now actively searching for cheaper tools than Later that offer better value without piling on extra costs.
Cheaper alternative to Later: Affordable Tools That Do the Job
Make no mistake, Later is a great option for scheduling and managing your social media. However, if you need more, you must pay more. While Later is packed with useful features, many creators are turning to plenty of cheaper alternatives to Later that can help them manage, schedule, and grow their content without breaking the bank.
Pushbio
If you’re searching for a cheaper alternative to Later, Pushbio is a smart option for creators and small businesses. Unlike Later, Pushbio goes beyond basic scheduling as it lets you plan, publish, and stay consistent across multiple platforms with ease. Its visual content calendar allows you to schedule posts individually or in bulk, while its smart scheduler ensures your content flows smoothly without gaps.
Beyond scheduling, it includes an AI assistant for captions, a media library to manage content, and real-time collaboration for teams. Depending on your plan, you can connect from 10 up to 100 profiles and get as much as 45GB of media storage.
What makes Pushbio stand out compared to other Later pricing alternatives is its focus on helping creators monetize. You can sell digital products, services, or courses, offer paid bookings, or even run memberships. It also comes with direct marketing features like newsletters, promos, and updates with no third-party tools required.
On top of that, Pushbio’s smart extras include branded QR codes, a link shortener with tracking, and digital business cards to unify your online presence. Pushbio isn’t just one of the many social media scheduling tools on a budget, it’s a complete toolkit designed to help creators grow, earn, and stay visible online without overspending.
Pricing
Pushbio offers a 7-day free plan with its paid plan starting from:
- Mini Plan – $19/month
- Pro Plan – $45/month
- Max Plan – $89/month
Planoly
Planoly is a favorite among influencers because it combines scheduling, auto-publishing, content creation, and analytics in one place. It’s especially strong for visual planning, making it easier to design your feed before posts go live.
With features like customizable templates, captions, hashtags, and a social inbox, it’s a great pick for individuals, influencers, and businesses who want to grow their Instagram presence. One standout feature is its ability to auto-post TikTok and Reels, helping creators save time.
Pricing
Planoly offers a 14-day free trial, and paid plans starts
- Starter – $16/month
- Growth – $28/month
- Pro – $43/month
Buffer
Buffer is a simple yet powerful platform that helps creators and businesses manage all their social media in one place. It covers scheduling, publishing, analytics, and team collaboration while supporting major platforms like Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, LinkedIn, Pinterest, Twitter, Mastodon, and Google Business Profile.
Compared to Later, Buffer gives you stronger analytics across more networks and extra teamwork tools, making it a cheaper alternative to Later for those who want flexibility and value.
One thing to note is how Buffer’s pricing works: you pay based on the number of channels you connect, so the cost can rise if you manage many accounts. Still, for individual creators and small businesses, it’s one of the best social media scheduling tools on a budget.
Pricing
- Free Plan – Manage up to 3 channels.
- Essentials – $6/month for 1 channel.
- Team – $12/month for 1 channel.
- Extra channels – Pay the same rate as your chosen plan.
Post Planner
If you’re looking for cheap scheduling tools built for small businesses, Post Planner is worth a look. Instead of overloading you with features you may never use, it focuses on the essentials: finding viral post ideas, creating engaging content, and scheduling across multiple platforms.
You can recycle top-performing posts, bulk schedule content, and even keep an eye on what your competitors are posting. While its analytics are more basic and it doesn’t include social listening, it shines when it comes to consistent content creation and automation which are two things every business needs.
Pricing
Post Planner is one of the most less expensive alternatives to Later, with four simple plans:
- Free
- Starter – $7/month
- Growth – $37/month
- Business – $57/month
Social Champ
Social Champ is designed to simplify social media management with smart scheduling, performance tracking, and team collaboration tools. It integrates with 13 platforms, including Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, YouTube, LinkedIn, Pinterest, Threads, Google Analytics 4, and even WhatsApp Business.
The tool makes it easy to track engagement, monitor brand mentions, and stay ahead of competitors, all from one dashboard. While it seems affordable at first, the price increases with every new channel you add, since costs are charged per account. Still, it’s one of the most cheap scheduling tools for teams who want flexibility without a large upfront cost.
Pricing
- Free Plan: 3 accounts with basic features.
- Starter – $4/month per channel.
- Growth – $8/month per channel.
- Enterprise – Custom pricing.
Zoho Social
Zoho Social is a less expensive alternative to Later that works well for businesses wanting affordable social media management. It provides scheduling, analytics, monitoring, and collaboration, plus smooth integration with other Zoho apps.
With Zoho Social, you can schedule posts across leading platforms, generate detailed performance reports, and track brand mentions or hashtags to protect your reputation.
Pricing
- Free Plan – Manage up to 6 accounts (1 brand).
- Standard – $10/month.
- Professional – $30/month.
- Premium – $40/month.
Tailwind
Tailwind is a specialist tool for creators who focus heavily on Pinterest and Instagram. It offers advanced scheduling, post discovery, and detailed performance insights. Tailwind helps you find fresh, engaging content while giving you analytics to refine your social strategy. If Pinterest and Instagram are your main channels, Tailwind is a focused and cheap scheduling tool that can deliver strong results.
Pricing
- Free Plan – Manage 1 account.
- Pro – $24.99/month.
- Advanced – $49.99/month.
- Max – $99.99/month.
Metricool
Metricool is quickly becoming a favorite for creators, freelancers, and agencies who need an all-in-one solution. It supports Instagram, Facebook, TikTok, Pinterest, LinkedIn, X, and Google Business Profile, while also offering ad campaign tracking for Google and Facebook.
What makes Metricool stand out among Later pricing alternatives is its ability to create branded reports with just one click and give you both social and ad insights in one place.
Pricing
- Free Plan – Limited features included.
- Starter – $22/month.
- Advanced – $54/month.
- Enterprise – Custom pricing.
FAQ
Is Pushbio better than Later?
For solo creators, teams, businesses of all sizes and agencies, Pushbio is a better Later alternative not just in terms of price and features but because it combines scheduling, link-in-bio, analytics, and monetization tools in one platform. It’s more budget-friendly and provides features that Later often locks behind highly priced plans.
How do I choose the best Later alternative for me?
Start by listing your needs: Do you want basic scheduling, deep analytics, or monetization features? Then compare pricing and supported platforms. For creators, Pushbio is great for all-in-one use; for simplicity, Buffer is ideal; and for teams, Zoho Social works well.
What makes Pushbio unique compared to other cheap scheduling tools?
Pushbio doesn’t just schedule posts. It also lets creators sell digital products, memberships, and services, send newsletters, and use smart tools like branded QR codes and link shorteners. All of these can be done within the same platform completely eliminating the need for multiple tools and subscriptions. Also, Pushbio brings these features to you at a fraction of the cost being charged by most of the tools out there. Therefore, not only is it helping you make more money, it’s also offering you more for less.
In the end
Later is a powerful social media scheduler, but its pricing structure doesn’t work for everyone. The truth is, you don’t have to overspend to stay consistent online. There are plenty of affordable alternatives to Later that deliver the same results, sometimes with even more flexibility.
By exploring social media scheduling tools on a budget, you can save money while still managing, publishing, and analyzing your content effectively. The best part? Many of these tools also come with extra features like AI support, link-in-bio options, and monetization tools.
