Published by the Zolyp team ·
Hootsuite vs Later at a glance
Figures from each vendor's own pricing and FAQ pages, checked on 14 October 2026:
| Hootsuite | Later | |
|---|---|---|
| How you pay | Per user (seat) | Per plan, with users and social sets included |
| Free plan | No | No |
| Cheapest plan | Standard, $99 per user a month billed yearly | Starter, $18.75 a month billed yearly |
| Accounts on entry plan | Up to 10 | 8 (one per supported platform) |
| Platforms | Facebook, Instagram, X, LinkedIn, TikTok, YouTube, Threads, WhatsApp, Pinterest | Instagram, Facebook, TikTok, Threads, YouTube, Pinterest, LinkedIn, Snapchat |
| Inbox | On every plan | From Growth ($37.50 a month billed yearly) |
| Approvals | Advanced ($399 per user a month billed yearly) | Growth ($37.50 a month billed yearly) |
| Monitoring and listening | Brand and competitor monitoring on every plan | Brand Mentions and Brand Health on Scale ($82.50 a month billed yearly) |
| AI | Wisdom AI on every plan: generates posts and images | 5, 50 or 100 AI credits a month by plan |
| Free trial | 14 days, no card; 10 to 20 posts a day | 14 days |
Sources: Hootsuite plans, checked 14 October 2026; Hootsuite FAQ (supported networks), checked 14 October 2026; Later pricing, checked 14 October 2026
Which is cheaper, Hootsuite or Later?
Later, in nearly every small-business case, because its plans include users and Hootsuite charges for each one. At yearly billing:
Hootsuite also offers monthly billing at a higher per-user rate, which its plans page doesn't show. Later says yearly billing saves 25% against monthly.
- 1 person, 1 brand: Later Starter $18.75 a month; Hootsuite Standard $99 a month.
- 2 people with approvals: Later Growth $37.50 a month; Hootsuite Advanced $798 a month.
- 4 people, with competitor benchmarking: Later Scale $82.50 a month (up to 20 competitors); Hootsuite Standard $396 a month (5 competitors) or Professional $796 a month (20 competitors).
Sources: Hootsuite plans, checked 14 October 2026; Later pricing, checked 14 October 2026
What do you get on each entry plan?
Hootsuite Standard ($99 per user a month billed yearly) covers up to 10 social accounts with unlimited scheduled posts, AI post and image generation, one inbox for messages, brand and competitor monitoring, analytics and benchmarking against 5 competitors. You buy a seat for each person.
Later Starter ($18.75 a month billed yearly) covers one social set of 8 profiles and 1 user, with up to 30 scheduled posts per profile a month, 5 AI credits a month, 3 months of platform analytics, the visual planner, best times to post for Instagram, Facebook and TikTok, and Link in Bio. Extra users and social sets aren't available on Starter; the inbox and approvals start on Growth.
Sources: Hootsuite plans, checked 14 October 2026; Later pricing, checked 14 October 2026
How do the inbox and approvals compare?
Hootsuite is built around its inbox. Every plan lets you respond to messages from one inbox; Professional adds automated replies, DM workflows and AI smart replies, and Advanced adds message assignment, skill-based routing and team productivity reporting. Content approvals are on Advanced.
Later's social inbox starts on Growth and covers Instagram DMs, comments, mentions and tags, Facebook messages and comments, and TikTok comments. Growth also includes content approvals, post comments and an external comment workflow for reviewers without a Later account.
Sources: Hootsuite plans, checked 14 October 2026; Later pricing, checked 14 October 2026
How do monitoring and analytics compare?
Hootsuite goes deeper into listening and reporting; Later scales analytics history by plan:
- Hootsuite Standard: analytics and reporting, brand and competitor monitoring, and benchmarking against 5 competitors.
- Hootsuite Professional: custom and scheduled reports, benchmarking against 20 competitors, 30-day Quick Search and trend forecasting up to 90 days ahead.
- Hootsuite Enterprise: advanced listening with 13 months of history, social attribution and ROI reporting.
- Later Starter and Growth: platform analytics for up to 3 months and 1 year.
- Later Scale: up to 2 years of history, custom analytics, Meta ads analytics, competitive benchmarking for up to 20 competitors, Brand Mentions and Brand Health.
Sources: Hootsuite plans, checked 14 October 2026; Later pricing, checked 14 October 2026
Where Hootsuite is stronger
- An inbox and brand monitoring on every plan, with automation and routing higher up.
- X and WhatsApp in its supported networks, which Later doesn't list.
- Unlimited social accounts from Professional.
- Enterprise options such as single sign-on, advanced listening and employee advocacy.
- A 14-day trial with no credit card, and no automatic charge when it ends.
Sources: Hootsuite plans, checked 14 October 2026; Hootsuite FAQ (supported networks), checked 14 October 2026
Where Later is stronger
- Much lower prices, with users included: 2 on Growth and 4 on Scale.
- Approvals on Growth at $37.50 a month, against $399 per user on Hootsuite Advanced.
- Instagram-focused tools on every plan: a visual planner, Instagram best time to post, first comment and Reels audio.
- Link in Bio on every plan, with linked posts and email collection.
- Snapchat publishing, and notification publishing for Instagram and TikTok when you want to add music or stickers in the app.
Source: Later pricing, checked 14 October 2026
Choose Hootsuite or Later?
- Choose Later if you're a small brand led by Instagram, TikTok or other visual platforms and want low, predictable pricing.
- Choose Later if a small team needs approvals without paying per seat.
- Choose Hootsuite if your team answers a high volume of messages and needs routing and automation.
- Choose Hootsuite if you post to X or need brand and competitor monitoring from the first plan.
- Not sure? Both offer 14-day trials, so run them side by side with the same week of posts.
Where Zolyp fits (disclosed: it's our product)
Hootsuite and Later both publish posts you've already made; Hootsuite also helps you answer and monitor. Zolyp, which we make, makes the posts: it plans the week, writes and designs each one against your Brand Brain, and publishes to Instagram, Facebook, LinkedIn, Google Business, X, TikTok, YouTube, Pinterest, and Threads after you approve. It has no social inbox or listening, so Hootsuite or Later Growth is the better fit if replying to messages is the main job. Lite is $9 a month per brand for scheduling posts you make yourself; the plans that create the posts start at $29 a month, with team members included and a 3-day free trial, no card required.
Common questions
Is Later cheaper than Hootsuite?
Yes, by a wide margin. Later Starter is $18.75 a month billed yearly for 8 profiles; Hootsuite Standard is $99 per user a month billed yearly for up to 10 accounts.
Do Hootsuite or Later have a free plan?
Neither has a free plan. Both offer a 14-day free trial; Hootsuite's needs no credit card and limits trial accounts to 10 to 20 posts a day.
Which has a better social inbox, Hootsuite or Later?
Hootsuite's is deeper: it's on every plan, with automation from Professional and routing on Advanced. Later's inbox, from Growth, covers Instagram, Facebook and TikTok conversations.
Can Later post to X like Hootsuite?
X isn't among the platforms on Later's pricing page. Hootsuite's FAQ lists X along with Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, TikTok, YouTube, Threads, WhatsApp and Pinterest.
How many users do Hootsuite and Later include?
Hootsuite sells each user as a seat, so every person adds a full plan price. Later includes 1 user on Starter, 2 on Growth and 4 on Scale, with extra users at $3.75 a month each billed yearly on Growth and Scale.
Which has content approvals, Hootsuite or Later?
Both. Later includes approvals on Growth ($37.50 a month billed yearly, 2 users). Hootsuite includes them on Advanced ($399 per user a month billed yearly).