Are you one of those people who have a wild amount of social media presence? An influencer? A content creator? A social media manager for your company? Just an avid poster? Sometimes it can be a challenge to keep all the profiles up to date and running smoothly while still growing your following. This is where using a social media manager program can be a lifesaver! These kinds of programs can help in so many ways: scheduling posts, monitoring trends, creating content, etc. Let’s face it, social media is part of everyday life for everyone at this point, so why not embrace it and grow? There are several options out there on the market, each with their own unique capabilities, but today we will be looking at two of the best: Hootsuite and Buffer. Let’s go!
Hootsuite vs Buffer: Main Differences
While designed to handle pretty much the same tasks, Hootsuite and Buffer do have their differences. The primary difference, according to the comparison reviewer sites, is
A side-by-side look at what reviewers are saying:
| Hootsuite | Buffer | |
| Main Purpose | Full social media management | Best for scheduling social media posts |
| Number of Features | Way more! | A decent amount |
| Analytics | Generalized reports for social media channels | Post-specific reports |
| Ease of use | Okay, but more complex due to more features | Simpler modern dashboard for easier use |
| Advertising/Paid Promotions | Available (at an extra cost) | Not available |
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Hootsuite vs Buffer: Features & Capabilities
These two social media managers function quite similarly. Below, we’ll show you the main features of each.
Hootsuite Features
- Schedule unlimited posts for all user levels
- Access all messages in a single inbox for all user levels
- Schedule posts in advance for all user levels
- Schedule multiple posts at once for all user levels
- Manage team access and roles
- Assign certain posts/comments to certain team members
- Review before posting
- Extended functionality with premium apps on the Business or Enterprise level (like Zendesk, Slack, etc.)
- 24/7 priority support when using Business or Enterprise level
- Quarterly business review with Enterprise level
- Hootsuite advertising with Enterprise
- Promote unlimited posts with Enterprise
- Receive team performance reports with Enterprise
- Get custom solutions with Enterprise
Buffer Features
- Scheduled posts (10/channel on free level, 2,000 for the others)
- Invite additional users on Team and Agency Levels
- Post scheduling
- Drafts saved
- Tailored posts for each channel
- Calendar view for all channels
- Link shortener for all paid levels
- Multi-channel campaigns for paid levels
- IG hashtag manager for paid levels
- Performance overview with paid levels
- Post analytics for paid levels
- Campaign analysis for paid levels
- Machine learning insights for paid levels
- Custom access/permissions with Team and Agency levels
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Hootsuite vs Buffer: Pricing
Hootsuite and Buffer have slightly different set-ups when it comes to their package pricing. Hootsuite is on the more expensive side, but they seem to have more features included to justify that. Prices start at $49/month for the Professional package, which includes 1 user and up to 10 social accounts. Next is Team, which is $129/month and comes with 3 users and 20 social accounts. Following that option is Business, coming in at $739/month and includes 5 users and 35 accounts. They also offer one that’s called Enterprise, which is a custom solutions kind of deal for anything larger. Professional and Team come with a 30-day free trial (unknown for Business and Enterprise)! Buffer is more complicated. They have a free option for 1 user with 3 channels. After that is their Essentials package at $5/month/social channel, which is for 1 user. Next comes Team at $10/month/channel and is for an unlimited number of users. Lastly is Agency, coming in at $100/month/10 channels and an unlimited number of users. All Buffer packages come with a 14-day free trial.
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Why to Choose Hootsuite over Buffer?
Hootsuite is by far the more feature-rich option of these two social media managers. It is better for larger teams with more complex social media strategies, as it offers more functionality. Hootsuite provides paid promotions, which are central to many media campaigns. They even have online courses and training resources available to help improve you and your team, while Buffer only has blogs, guides, and tutorials. Hootsuite has more integrations available so that you can essentially do everything you need across all the social media platforms you need. The gist: if you are working on a larger goal with your social media presence or are a large company, Hootsuite will be the better choice for you!
Why to Choose Buffer over Hootsuite?
Buffer is a solid choice, especially for individuals or small teams who mainly need to keep their posting schedule on track. Buffer provides its users with a much easier-to-use interface, so it feels more friendly. Its minimalistic design is more streamlined to make it easier to handle your posting needs. It is also the less expensive option of these two choices, with more flexibility in how they price. Buffer allows its users to get post-specific analytics which makes it easier to see which types of posts their viewers are responding to, which helps them grow in their process. The gist: if you’re mainly looking for a tool to help manage your time and help with scheduling and publishing, then Buffer is about to be your best friend.
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Similarities Between Hootsuite & Buffer
Both Hootsuite and Buffer run neck-and-neck with several of their categories of features. Both are excellent for content curation and scheduling posts. They each have great systems in place for team management and collaboration. They each also have great security features to protect you and your work from unauthorized access. Hootsuite and Buffer provide good customer support to their clients and have positive reviews of said support. There are other similarities, of course, but these are the most important ones.
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Hootsuite & Buffer Alternatives
If Hootsuite and Buffer don’t seem like they’ll work for your needs, here are some other options to research!
Alternatives for either:
- Sprout Social
- Zoho Social
Alternatives for Hootsuite:
- Agorapulse
- eClincher
Alternatives for Buffer:
- HubSpot Marketing
- Loomly
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Hootsuite vs Buffer: Final Verdict
As always with choosing things to help you manage tasks, it comes down to needs. Both Hootsuite and Buffer are top performers in the realm of social media management tools. Hootsuite will be better if you are a larger company with a more complicated social media goal. Buffer will be the one for you if what you need is a better way to schedule and publish posts across your social channels. You will need to take a look at what you or your company needs in terms of function, what kind of pricing you are willing to pay, and make your decision from there. Rest assured that whichever of these two you pick, you will be in good virtual hands!
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FAQs
Best time to post on social media?
You want to try to schedule posts for when people are most likely to be scrolling, so (generally) between 9 am and noon. It’ll differ between platforms.
Why should I use social media management tools?
Are you a human with life but also a responsibility to post on social media? These tools help manage your time so that you can have a life.
What is a social media management platform?
A social media management platform is a way to run all your social channels from one dashboard. This is useful for people who run social media campaigns or have multiple social channels to maintain.
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Sources
- https://www.hootsuite.com/
- https://buffer.com/
- https://thedigitalmerchant.com/content-marketing/social-media/buffer-vs-hootsuite-compared/
- https://www.adamenfroy.com/hootsuite-vs-buffer