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    Overview
    ProductRatingMost Used ByProduct SummaryStarting Price

    Buffer

    Score8.4 out of 10
    Small Businesses (1-50 employees)
    Buffer is a social sharing tool. When browsing content, clicking on the Buffer icon automatically stores the content and schedules posts to social media channels throughout the day.

    $6

    per month per channel

    Later Social

    Score6.6 out of 10
    N/ALater (formerly Latergramme) in Vancouver offers an Instagram focused social media marketing platform, which supports the planning and scheduling of content to Instagram, as well as Twitter, Facebook, and Pinterest.

    $25

    per month

    Pricing
    BufferLater Social
    Editions & Modules
    Free
    $0
    Essentials
    $6
    per month per channel
    Team
    $12
    per month per channel
    Starter
    $25
    per month
    Growth
    $45
    per month
    Advanced
    $80
    per month
    Agency
    $200
    per month
    Enterprise
    Contact Sales
    Offerings
    Pricing Offerings
    BufferLater Social
    Free Trial
    YesYes
    Free/Freemium Version
    YesNo
    Premium Consulting/Integration Services
    NoNo
    Entry-level Setup FeeNo setup feeNo setup fee
    Additional DetailsA discount is offered for annual billing.33% discount available for annual subscription.
    More Pricing Information
    Community Pulse
    BufferLater Social
    Considered Both Products
    Buffer
    Chose Buffer
    Buffer has a clear, easy to use interface and a reliable scheduling calendar.
    Incentivized
    Chose Buffer
    Buffer is much more affordable than some of the other apps we have tried! It also is more user-friendly, the support was quick to help and respond, and we had more success with posts.
    Incentivized
    Chose Buffer
    • More enterprise experience
    • Better onboarding
    • We liked the process
    Incentivized
    Chose Buffer
    Buffer keeps things simple. It took a highly sought after feature (social scheduling) and unbundled it from the more complex social tools out there.
    Chose Buffer
    Buffer keeps it simple. It was great for when I worked at smaller companies and also for when I have done freelance social media work. Put it this way, Buffer is an accessible tool. The functionality is basic and intuitive so anyone can learn to use it. They also have a free …
    Incentivized
    Later
    Chose Later Social
    As a social media manager I find that Buffer, Hootsuite and Sproutsocial are superior to all features available on Later.
    Incentivized
    Key User Insights
    Would buy again
    90%
    Would buy again
    27 Answers
    93%
    Would buy again
    13 Answers
    Delivers good value for the price
    93%
    Delivers good value for the price
    25 Answers
    93%
    Delivers good value for the price
    13 Answers
    Happy with the feature set
    83%
    Happy with the feature set
    25 Answers
    100%
    Happy with the feature set
    14 Answers
    Lived up to sales and marketing promises
    96%
    Lived up to sales and marketing promises
    23 Answers
    92%
    Lived up to sales and marketing promises
    11 Answers
    Implementation went as expected
    100%
    Implementation went as expected
    26 Answers
    100%
    Implementation went as expected
    12 Answers
    Features
    BufferLater Social
    Publishing
    Comparison of Publishing features of Buffer and Later Social
    Feature
    Buffer
    8.6
    68 Ratings
    7% above category average
    Later Social
    9.0
    1 Ratings
    11% above category average
    Content planning and scheduling9.068 Ratings10.01 Ratings
    Content optimization8.061 Ratings9.01 Ratings
    Workflow management8.857 Ratings8.01 Ratings
    Reporting/analytics
    Comparison of Reporting/analytics features of Buffer and Later Social
    Feature
    Buffer
    8.3
    63 Ratings
    5% above category average
    Later Social
    4.0
    1 Ratings
    66% below category average
    Campaign success analytics8.363 Ratings4.01 Ratings
    Account management
    Comparison of Account management features of Buffer and Later Social
    Feature
    Buffer
    9.0
    65 Ratings
    12% above category average
    Later Social
    10.0
    1 Ratings
    22% above category average
    Role-based user permissions & privileges9.052 Ratings00 Ratings
    Mobile access9.062 Ratings10.01 Ratings
    Channel coverage/integration
    Comparison of Channel coverage/integration features of Buffer and Later Social
    Feature
    Buffer
    -
    Ratings
    Later Social
    7.2
    1 Ratings
    16% below category average
    Twitter00 Ratings7.01 Ratings
    Facebook00 Ratings7.01 Ratings
    LinkedIn00 Ratings5.01 Ratings
    Instagram00 Ratings10.01 Ratings
    Pinterest00 Ratings10.01 Ratings
    YouTube00 Ratings4.01 Ratings
    User Ratings
    BufferLater Social
    Likelihood to Recommend
    8.8
    (88 ratings)
    10.0
    (16 ratings)
    Likelihood to Renew
    8.0
    (14 ratings)
    -
    (0 ratings)
    Usability
    9.0
    (24 ratings)
    9.4
    (3 ratings)
    Availability
    8.2
    (2 ratings)
    -
    (0 ratings)
    Performance
    8.0
    (2 ratings)
    -
    (0 ratings)
    Support Rating
    6.1
    (23 ratings)
    9.0
    (9 ratings)
    Implementation Rating
    8.0
    (2 ratings)
    -
    (0 ratings)
    Configurability
    10.0
    (1 ratings)
    -
    (0 ratings)
    Product Scalability
    8.6
    (2 ratings)
    -
    (0 ratings)
    User Testimonials
    BufferLater Social
    Likelihood to Recommend
    Buffer
    It helps me save hours by devoting only half an hour in a month's worth of posting, in addition to that it is quite simple to use. Buffer for scheduling social posts well in advance, but I have begun using it instead of posting natively on the social apps themselves because it makes it super easy to post the same messages to more than one platform.
    Read full review
    Later
    The free version is more than enough for personal use. But if you have a small business or if you're trying to grow your brand, it's better to use one of the premium plans. It's worth it. Later is especially useful if you manage multiple accounts for multiple brands/companies because you'll be managing everything with just one tool
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Pros
    Buffer
    • I can plan and publish content on social channels.
    • Buffer's interface is quite tidy and generates the necessary facilities to save us time in publishing consistent content.
    • It has a special price; it is pretty affordable.
    • It has the possibility of integrating with other tools to improve its functions.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Later
    • Later's easy upload feature (drag and drop) is incredibly helpful, especially for multiple images and videos.
    • The drag and drop option for scheduling content is easy, and images and videos load rather quickly depending on size.
    • Captions can be saved if there are posts or common phrases that repeated and shared out from the content.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Cons
    Buffer
    • Expensive Analytics: The upgrade you need to access your analytics is quite expensive, and I have come across other tools that provide the same or even more for a lesser priced plan.
    • No Media Library: The one feature I have found on another social media planning tool that I wish Buffer had is a media library. This allows you to upload photos you aren't using right away to have them readily available when you do decide to use them. This is not a feature in Buffer.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Later
    • I wish I could edit the look and feel of my pictures within Later a little easier. There are standard filters, but for brand sake, I need everything to be consistent.
    • I wish there was a direct integration with things like Canva and Lightroom to make uploading and editing my images seamless.
    • The biggest thing I wish Later did was allowing a better threshold for the free accounts. All of the helpful and useful features are for paid only (video posts, multi-image posts, analytics, etc). I can't justify the cost for just a few posts a month. I end up doing all of the video and multi-image posts manually, which lately has me questioning the benefit of Later's free version as a small business.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Likelihood to Renew
    Buffer
    I am giving buffer this rating because of a couple issues that it has compared to other platforms. It does not always post to instagram and you will need to go in an manually post. Also, one of the biggest qualms that we have with buffer is the price it costs to have robust analytics
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Later
    No answers on this topic
    Usability
    Buffer
    No answers on this topic
    Later
    No answers on this topic
    Reliability and Availability
    Buffer
    Buffer is always on hand and very reliable, their software suite rarely has outages
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Later
    No answers on this topic
    Performance
    Buffer
    Buffer performs well on both desktop and mobile platforms. The one area as I have stated before is that it does not always want to automatically push to Instagram and the user will have to go do it manually. Buffer works very well pushing to other platforms. The instagram issue is the only reason buffer does not get a 10 on this section
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Later
    No answers on this topic
    Support Rating
    Buffer
    No answers on this topic
    Later
    Later are not just a software tool, they also provide marketing advice, tips, and tutorials via their blog. I’ve only had to reach out to them for help a few times and have found them to respond much faster than other tools in their category. I receive weekly emails with updates, marketing tips and invites to online events. I look forward to their emails as I’ve learned a lot of things that I’ve been able to actually implement.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Implementation Rating
    Buffer
    We were very satisfied with the implementation of Buffer. We had no issues switching from the platform that we were using over to buffer. Our staff did not even miss a beat when it came to posting content. It was an easy transition and I feel that is something that buffer has really done well. They have an "out of the box" usability platform
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Later
    No answers on this topic
    Alternatives Considered
    Buffer
    I also used Combin which is easy and free to use. However, Combin only posts when the computer is active and connected to the internet. So, posting while you are not actively using your computer at that moment is not possible, therefore Buffer is much more efficient as you can even post while being on vacation without working.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Later
    I went with Later for the lower cost subscription. The Hootsuite copy features is missed, but Later has hashtag suggestions which is nice. I really need something to post across multiple platforms. I also needed the ability to schedule more than the 5 free scheduled posts offered by Hootsuite. Later has been working great for what I need it to do to support my small event promotion business.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Scalability
    Buffer
    Buffer does what it say on tin as they say! you can always count on Buffer. Buffer can be scale to 25 social account with 2,000 scheduled post which is enough for most agencies or businesses
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Later
    No answers on this topic
    Return on Investment
    Buffer
    • It has saved money by allowing us to automate our social using one person
    • It allows us to connect one channel at a time instead of wasting money on larger account management tools
    • We are making money, because it has already delivered several clients
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Later
    No answers on this topic
    ScreenShots

    Buffer Screenshots

    Screenshot of The Buffer dashboardScreenshot of Customizable posting scheduleScreenshot of Tailored PostsScreenshot of List or calendar view of scheduled postsScreenshot of Browser extensionScreenshot of Social media analytics