PostWireThe best Buffer alternatives for a small business
Every other tool's price was read on its own pricing page on Nov 1, 2026, without promo codes (links in the table and at the bottom). "3 networks" means the cheapest plan that covers 3 connected accounts for one business, per month.
Updated . Written from PostWire's own code; vendor prices read on Nov 1, 2026. Live networks: TikTok, Instagram, YouTube, LinkedIn (personal profiles), Facebook Pages, Bluesky, Mastodon, Telegram, Discord, and X on paid plans.
9 Buffer alternatives for a small business
PostWire is ours, so it comes first; the box below the table says where it is ahead. The others are ordered by the lowest monthly price we could read for 3 networks.
PostWire — one price per business, whatever the number of networks
- Free plan
- Yes — 1 business, 10 posts a month, 3 scheduled at a time, 2 networks per post, no card
- Cheapest paid plan
- Starter $19 a month ($15.20 billed yearly) — 3 businesses, 1,000 posts a month, an unlimited queue and 25 recurring posts
- Networks
- TikTok, Instagram, YouTube, LinkedIn (personal profile), Facebook Pages, Bluesky, Mastodon, Telegram, Discord, and X on paid plans
A business in PostWire is one brand with all its accounts, so the seventh network costs what the first did. Write one idea, press Write the posts and each network gets its own draft; then publish, or Add to queue. REST API, MCP server and n8n node are on every plan.
Watch out: The free plan sends each post to 2 networks; every network at once is Starter.
Social Champ — per-account pricing with a free plan
- Free plan
- Yes — 15 scheduled posts, 3 social accounts, 1 user
- Cheapest paid plan
- Starter $5 per account a month ($4 billed yearly)
Accounts 1 to 10 cost the same each, and scheduled posts on paid plans are unlimited under its Fair Use policy.
Watch out: Per account: 3 networks are $12 billed yearly, 9 are $36.
Hopper HQ — per-account pricing with unlimited posts
- Free plan
- No — 14-day trial
- Cheapest paid plan
- Grow $6 per account a month ($5 billed yearly)
Posts are unlimited; you pay for each connected account. Its page says the prices were last updated on Oct 27, 2026.
Watch out: Per account: 3 networks are $15 billed yearly, 9 are $45.
OneUp — a flat plan with API and MCP
- Free plan
- No — 7-day trial
- Cheapest paid plan
- Basic $25 a month ($15 billed yearly) — 5 accounts, 300 scheduled posts
Five accounts are in the plan, with API and MCP listed on it.
Watch out: Each account past 5 is $5 a month, and scheduled posts stop at 300.
Later — one social set of 8 profiles
- Free plan
- No — 14-day trial
- Cheapest paid plan
- Starter $18.75 a month billed yearly — 1 social set (8 profiles, 1 of each), 1 user
A social set holds one profile per network, and the plan is sold by set rather than by channel.
Watch out: Up to 30 posts per profile and 5 AI credits on Starter; the monthly-billed price is not listed.
SocialBee — a plan with unlimited AI generation
- Free plan
- No — 14-day trial, 30-day money-back
- Cheapest paid plan
- Bootstrap $29 a month ($24 on annual billing) — up to 5 profiles
The plan lists unlimited AI generation for up to 5 profiles.
Watch out: $290 a year up front on annual billing.
SocialPilot — 7 accounts in the entry plan
- Free plan
- No — 14-day trial, no card
- Cheapest paid plan
- Essentials $30 a month ($25.50 billed yearly) — 7 accounts, 1 user
Seven accounts on the entry plan, with more at $4 each.
Watch out: 1 user on Essentials.
Postiz — MCP, CLI and API on every plan
- Free plan
- No — 7-day trial
- Cheapest paid plan
- Standard $29 a month — 5 channels, unlimited posts
Every plan lists MCP, a CLI and the API, with unlimited posts on Standard.
Watch out: Team is $39, Pro $49 and Ultimate $99 a month.
Hootsuite — the enterprise-sized plan
- Free plan
- No — 14-day trial
- Cheapest paid plan
- Standard from $99 per user a month, billed annually — up to 10 accounts
Standard covers up to 10 accounts; Professional starts at $199.
Watch out: Priced per user, so a second person doubles it.
Three tools a small business often asks about are out because no price could be read on Nov 1, 2026: Metricool (its site did not load that day), Publer and Zoho Social (the amounts are not in the page text). Prices change: each one here is dated, and the next section shows why the number of channels matters more than the entry price.
How it works in PostWire
- Create a free PostWire account
Open postwire.io/dashboard.html, type your email and press Create my free account. PostWire emails you a link to confirm the address; connecting accounts and publishing unlock once it is confirmed. No password and no card (free plan: 1 business, 10 posts a month, 5 AI drafts a day (about 20 a month), 2 networks per post, 3 scheduled posts at a time — every network connects free, no card).
- Connect each network once
Open Accounts and press Connect on each network. You sign in on the network itself and come back; PostWire never sees your password. On Starter, each of your 3 businesses keeps its own set of accounts.
- Write one idea and get each network's post
In Compose, write in Your idea, tick the networks under Post to and press Write the posts. Edit any draft.
- Publish or queue it
Press Publish now, or Schedule → Add to queue. If you called Buffer's API, the Buffer migration guide converts your requests field by field.
Side by side: what each plan covers, per month
| App | Billed yearly | Billed monthly | Accounts in that price | Free plan |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| PostWire | $15.20 | $19 | All of a business's accounts, 3 businesses | Yes — 10 posts/mo, 2 networks per post |
| Social Champ | $12 | $15 | 3 | Yes — 15 scheduled posts, 3 accounts |
| Buffer | $15 | Not listed | 3 | Yes — 3 channels, 10 scheduled posts per channel |
| Hopper HQ | $15 | $18 | 3 | No — 14-day trial |
| OneUp | $15 | $25 | 5 | No — 7-day trial |
| Later | $18.75 | Not listed | 8 (1 of each network) | No — 14-day trial |
| SocialBee | $24 | $29 | 5 | No — 14-day trial |
| SocialPilot | $25.50 | $30 | 7 | No — 14-day trial |
| Postiz | Not listed | $29 | 5 | No — 7-day trial |
| Hootsuite | $99, per user | Not listed | 10 | No — 14-day trial |
Each vendor's own pricing page, read on Nov 1, 2026, list prices without promo codes. Per-account plans are shown for 3 accounts. Monthly billing in USD unless noted. "Not listed" means we could not find it on their page, not that it is missing.
Where PostWire is ahead
- The lowest price here from 6 networks: $15.20 a month billed yearly. 6 accounts billed yearly: Later $18.75, OneUp $20, Social Champ $24, SocialPilot $25.50, Buffer and Hopper HQ $30.
- The price holds as you add networks: 9 accounts in one business stay at $15.20. Billed yearly, 9 are $36 on Social Champ and $45 on Buffer or Hopper HQ.
- 3 businesses on Starter, each with all its accounts, for the same $19. Later's Starter is 1 social set; per-account tools charge for every extra account.
- Each network's post written for you in one step, 60 AI drafts a day on Starter. Later's Starter lists 5 AI credits.
- Buffer pricing: buffer.com/pricing
- Social Champ pricing: www.socialchamp.com/pricing/
- Hopper HQ pricing: www.hopperhq.com/pricing/
- OneUp pricing: www.oneupapp.io/price
- Later pricing: later.com/pricing/
- SocialBee pricing: socialbee.com/pricing/
- SocialPilot plans: www.socialpilot.co/plans
- Postiz pricing: postiz.com/pricing
- Hootsuite plans: www.hootsuite.com/plans
What a Buffer alternative costs as you add channels
Per-channel pricing looks small on the first line. A small business rarely stops at 3 networks, so the entry price stops being the real price. Here are the per-account plans at 3, 6 and 9 accounts, billed yearly, from the prices read on Nov 1, 2026.
| Per month, billed yearly | 3 accounts | 6 accounts | 9 accounts |
|---|---|---|---|
| PostWire Starter | $15.20 | $15.20 | $15.20 |
| Social Champ | $12 | $24 | $36 |
| Buffer Essentials | $15 | $30 | $45 |
| Hopper HQ Grow | $15 | $30 | $45 |
At 9 accounts that is $15.20 against $45 a month, a difference of $357.60 a year on the same billing. See PostWire's plans for what Starter includes: 3 businesses, 1,000 posts a month, an unlimited queue and 25 recurring posts. Head to head: Buffer alternative, PostWire vs Buffer and PostWire vs Later.
What PostWire does not do
PostWire publishes to TikTok, Instagram, YouTube, LinkedIn (personal profile), Facebook Pages, Bluesky, Mastodon, Telegram, Discord, and X on paid plans. It does not post to Threads, Reddit, Pinterest or Google Business Profile, and LinkedIn means your personal profile, not a company page. If one of those is the network your business depends on, the table above has the prices to compare.
Questions people ask
What is the best Buffer alternative for a small business?
It comes down to how many networks you run. PostWire stays at $15.20 a month billed yearly as you add accounts, because a plan covers a business with all its accounts rather than each channel; read on Nov 1, 2026, 6 accounts billed yearly are $24 on Social Champ and $30 on Buffer.
Is there a cheaper alternative to Buffer?
Yes, and the gap grows with every channel. Buffer's Essentials, read on Nov 1, 2026, is $5 per channel a month billed yearly, so 6 channels are $30 and 9 are $45. PostWire Starter is $15.20 billed yearly for all of a business's accounts.
Is there a free alternative to Buffer?
Yes. PostWire's free plan is 1 business, 10 posts a month and 2 networks per post, with the API, MCP server and n8n node; Social Champ's free plan lists 15 scheduled posts and 3 accounts. The other tools on this page start with a 7- or 14-day trial.
How much does Buffer cost for 3 channels?
$15 a month on Essentials, billed yearly at $60 per channel. Its pricing page, read on Nov 1, 2026, also lists a free plan of up to 3 channels with 10 scheduled posts per channel, and Team at $10 per channel.
What does a business mean on PostWire's plans?
One brand with all its accounts. Starter holds 3 of them, so three small brands with their own TikTok, Instagram and Facebook Pages sit on the same $19 plan. A post counts once per network, up to 1,000 a month.
Can I move from Buffer to PostWire?
Yes. Connect your networks under Accounts and start composing. If you used Buffer's API, the migration guide maps each request to PostWire's.
Why are Metricool, Publer and Zoho Social not on this list?
Because this page only prints prices read that day on the vendor's own page. On Nov 1, 2026 Metricool's site did not load, and the amounts on Publer's and Zoho Social's pricing pages were not in the page text.
Try it on one business, free.
The free plan is 1 business, 10 posts a month, 5 AI drafts a day (about 20 a month) and 2 networks per post — every network connects free, no card, no time limit. Paid plans start at $19 a month and have a 14-day refund; Pro can be tried free for 7 days and Agency for 14, with a card at checkout and nothing charged that day.