Buffer and Metricool court the same creators, small businesses, and agencies — from opposite directions. Buffer is a publishing-first workspace: clean, simple, covering all 11 major platforms with a free-forever plan and per-channel pricing. Metricool is an analytics-first suite: in-depth reporting, competitor tracking, and ads in one dashboard, sold in per-brand EUR tiers — with X as a paid add-on and VAT on top of the sticker price. This page compares the two honestly — platforms, pricing models, and team features as of June 2026 — and shows where a third option, SocialKit, beats them both on flat EUR pricing.
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All three tools side by side, grouped by category. Pricing and feature availability as of June 2026.
| Feature | Buffer | Metricool | SocialKit |
|---|---|---|---|
| Platforms | |||
| Platforms supported | All 11 | 10 of 11Also supports: Twitch | All 11 |
| Bluesky | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Mastodon | Yes | No | Yes |
| Threads | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Google Business | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Yes | Yes | Yes | |
| Pricing & trial | |||
| Entry price | $5/mo per channel (Essentials)Free plan: up to 3 channels | From €16/mo (Starter, 5 brands, billed annually)Listed prices exclude VAT; free plan available (June 2026) | €29/mo flat (€17.40/mo billed annually) |
| Pricing model | Per channel — each connected account billed separately | Per brand — tiers scale by brand countX (Twitter) is a +$5/account add-on on every tier | Flat plans — all 11 platforms included, no per-network pricing |
| Social accounts included | Pay per channelChannels beyond 10 cost less per channel | 5 brands on StarterA brand = one set of connected accounts; 10 brands lists at €29/mo | 15 on Solo · 30 on Team |
| Free trial | 14 days (paid plans) + free plan | Free plan (1 brand, 20 posts/mo)No full-feature trial of paid tiers listed on metricool.com/pricing (June 2026) | 7 days — €0.00 due today |
| Money-back guarantee | NoNone listed on buffer.com/pricing (June 2026) | Not listedNot shown on Metricool’s pricing page (June 2026) | 7 days |
| Publishing & scheduling | |||
| Scheduled posts | Unlimited on paid plans · 10/channel on Free | Unlimited on paid plans (Fair Use Policy) · 20/month on Free | Unlimited on every plan |
| Best-time auto-posting | Via analytics recommendationsAdvanced analytics on paid plans | Not listedNot shown on Metricool’s pricing page (June 2026) | Yes |
| Per-platform customization | Yes | Not listedNot shown on Metricool’s pricing page (June 2026) | Yes |
| First-comment scheduling | Paid plans | Not listedNot shown on Metricool’s pricing page (June 2026) | Yes |
| Calendar view | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Content & AI | |||
| AI assistant | AI Assistant on all plans | AI assistant, incl. on the free plan | Every plan (metered credits) |
| Post templates | Not listedNot shown on the Buffer pricing page (June 2026) | Not listedNot shown on Metricool’s pricing page (June 2026) | Yes |
| Content library | Ideas library (100 on Free, unlimited on paid) | Not listedNot shown on Metricool’s pricing page (June 2026) | Yes |
| Thread posts (X, Threads, Bluesky, Mastodon) | Not listedNot shown on the Buffer pricing page (June 2026) | Not listedNot shown on Metricool’s pricing page (June 2026) | Yes |
| Hashtag manager | Paid plans | Hashtag analyticsPer Metricool’s own comparison pages (June 2026) | Yes |
| Collaboration | |||
| Team seats | Unlimited on Team plan$10/mo per channel | Team & client management on AdvancedFrom €43/mo (15 brands), excl. VAT (June 2026) | 2 on Team · unlimited on Enterprise |
| Approval workflow | Team plan only$10/mo per channel | Advanced planFrom €43/mo, excl. VAT (June 2026) | Team & Enterprise plans |
| Comments on posts | Internal notes on paid plans | Not listedNot shown on Metricool’s pricing page (June 2026) | Team & Enterprise plans |
| Integrations & support | |||
| Analytics | 30-day history on Free · advanced on paid plans | Core strength — in-depth analytics, competitor tracking, custom reports | Included on every plan |
| API + webhooks | API access on all plansFree plan limited to 1 key, 3,000 requests/mo | Metricool API on Advanced planZapier, Make & MCP; the free plan lists MCP access (June 2026) | Every plan, incl. Solo |
| Support | Help center + email | Dedicated account manager on Custom tier | Email · priority on Enterprise |
| Verdict | |||
| Best for | Solo users with 1–3 channels who want a free plan | Analytics-heavy marketers managing several brands | Posting to many platforms on one flat EUR plan |
Pricing as of June 2026. Buffer figures per their public pricing page; Metricool figures per their public pricing page. Both may change. SocialKit facts per our own pricing page.
Entry plans compared. SocialKit prices are in EUR; all 11 platforms included — no per-network pricing.
About $55/month with all 11 networks connected (channels beyond 10 cost less per channel). Team plan: $10/month per channel. As of June 2026.
Listed prices exclude VAT; 10 brands lists at €29/month. X (Twitter) is +$5/month per account on every tier. Approvals, client management, and API require Advanced from €43/month. As of June 2026.
billed annually · €29/month billed monthly
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Pricing as of June 2026. Buffer and Metricool prices are taken from their public pricing pages (linked above) and may change. Full SocialKit plan details on our pricing page.
Each tool genuinely wins somewhere. Here is the honest split.
Bottom line
Pick by what your week looks like. Buffer is the better of the two for broad, simple publishing — it covers all 11 major platforms including Mastodon, and its free plan plus $5-per-channel entry are honest value at small scale. Metricool is the better of the two for reporting-heavy work — its analytics depth is genuinely best-in-class for the price, and per-brand tiers suit multi-client agencies. The squeeze comes when you mostly need to publish widely: Buffer meters every channel, while Metricool bills X as an add-on, excludes VAT from its sticker prices, and keeps approvals and API access at the €43/month Advanced tier (all as of June 2026). That middle case is what SocialKit is built for — all 11 platforms with no add-ons, approvals on a flat €49/month Team plan, API + webhooks on every tier, and a 7-day money-back guarantee on top of the trial.
FAQ
Still weighing it up? These are the answers people look for before they switch.
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Every SocialKit plan includes all 11 platforms, analytics, AI, and API + webhooks — no per-channel meters, no per-seat pricing. Try it free for 7 days.
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