Hootsuite does not have a free plan. It offers a free 14-day trial, and paid plans start at $99 per user per month, billed yearly. If you want a free Hootsuite alternative, the best options in 2026 are ViralFarm, Buffer, Publer, Metricool, Zoho Social, Pallyy, Planable and the open-source Mixpost Lite.
Each one has a real free plan, not just a trial, but the limits differ a lot. Buffer is the simplest free scheduler and supports a long list of networks. ViralFarm is the only one here that also creates the posts with AI and lets Claude or ChatGPT schedule them for you. Metricool is the best free option for analytics. Mixpost Lite is free forever if you are comfortable hosting it yourself.
Below is a side-by-side table of free plans, what Hootsuite actually costs, an honest look at each alternative, and what you give up by staying on a free tier. Pricing and limits were checked on each vendor's site and are current as of October 2026.
Quick comparison: free Hootsuite alternatives
| Tool | Free plan limits | Paid plans from | Best for |
|---|---|---|---|
| ViralFarm | 2 channels, 20 published posts a month, 20 one-time AI credits | $12/month | AI-made posts and AI agent scheduling |
| Buffer | 3 channels, 10 scheduled posts per channel at a time | $5 per channel/month, billed yearly | Simple scheduling on many networks |
| Publer | 3 accounts (no X), 10 scheduled posts per account | $5 per account/month ($4 billed yearly) | Cheap upgrade path |
| Metricool | 1 brand, 20 posts a month, no LinkedIn or X | $20/month billed yearly | Free analytics |
| Zoho Social | 1 brand (6 channels), 1 team member | US$10/month billed yearly | Zoho users |
| Pallyy | 1 social set, 15 posts a month, images only | $25/month | Planning image posts |
| Planable | First 50 posts free, no time limit | $33 per workspace/month | Testing team approvals |
| Mixpost Lite | Free and open source; Facebook Pages, X and Mastodon only | $299 one-time (Pro) | Self-hosting |
Does Hootsuite have a free plan?
No. As of October 2026, Hootsuite's plans are:
- Standard: $99 per user per month, billed yearly, with 10 social accounts.
- Professional: $199 per user per month, billed yearly, with unlimited accounts.
- Advanced: $399 per user per month, billed yearly.
- Enterprise: custom pricing.
The free 14-day trial needs no credit card, but trial accounts have daily posting limits of 10 to 20 posts per organization, and bulk scheduling is off during the trial. Hootsuite earns its price with a shared inbox, AI post and image generation, brand and competitor monitoring, and approvals on the Advanced plan. If you need none of that, you are paying for features you will not use. See our full ViralFarm vs Hootsuite comparison.
The 8 best free Hootsuite alternatives
1. ViralFarm
ViralFarm is an AI social media workspace. It schedules and publishes to TikTok, Instagram, Pinterest, LinkedIn, Threads, Facebook, YouTube and X, and its AI turns a link, a topic or pasted text into slideshows, pins and text posts on templates modeled after posts that went viral. You can also connect it to Claude, ChatGPT or Cursor through its MCP server, and posts your own agent writes use no ViralFarm credits.
- Free plan: 2 connected channels, 20 published posts a month, 20 one-time AI credits, no credit card.
- Paid: Starter $12/month (3 channels, unlimited posts), Pro $29/month (8 channels), Premium $39/month (15 channels). See pricing.
- Not included: no analytics in production yet, no social inbox, no approval workflow, and no Bluesky, Mastodon or Google Business Profile.
2. Buffer
Buffer is the easiest free scheduler to pick up. It supports Instagram, Facebook, TikTok, LinkedIn, X, YouTube, Threads, Pinterest, Google Business Profile, Bluesky, Mastodon and Substack, and includes the AI Assistant.
- Free plan: 3 channels, 10 scheduled posts per channel at a time (the slot refills once a post goes out), 1 user.
- Paid: Essentials $5 and Team $10 per channel per month, billed yearly. See ViralFarm vs Buffer.
3. Publer
Publer's free plan covers the basics, and its paid plans are among the cheapest per account. It includes a Linkie link-in-bio integration even on free.
- Free plan: 1 user, 1 workspace, 3 social accounts (X not included), 10 scheduled posts per account, 25 saved drafts, 24-hour post history.
- Paid: Professional $5 per account per month ($4 billed yearly), Business $10 ($8 billed yearly). See ViralFarm vs Publer.
4. Metricool
If what you liked about Hootsuite was the reporting, Metricool's free plan is the closest match. It includes analytics, competitor tracking for 5 profiles, an AI assistant and Metricool's MCP.
- Free plan: 1 brand, 20 scheduled posts a month, 30 days of analytics. LinkedIn and X are not available on free.
- Paid: Starter from $20/month billed yearly ($25 monthly) for up to 5 brands.
5. Zoho Social
Zoho Social's free plan suits a single brand, and it connects well with Zoho CRM on higher tiers.
- Free plan: 1 brand with 6 channels, 1 team member. Every account also gets a 15-day all-access trial with no card.
- Paid: Standard US$10/month and Professional US$30/month, both billed yearly.
6. Pallyy
Pallyy is a calendar-first scheduler with a social inbox, link-in-bio pages and client approvals on paid plans.
- Free plan: 1 social set, 15 scheduled posts a month, image posts only.
- Paid: Pro $25/month for 1 social set and 1 user. Read our Pallyy alternatives guide for more.
7. Planable
Planable is a collaboration tool for teams that review posts before they go live. Every plan includes unlimited users.
- Free plan: your first 50 posts are free, with no time limit and no card. It is a long trial more than a permanent plan.
- Paid: Basic $33 per workspace per month. See ViralFarm vs Planable.
8. Mixpost Lite
Mixpost is self-hosted social media software. The Lite edition is open source and free forever, but you run it on your own server.
- Free plan: publish to Facebook Pages, X and Mastodon, with a calendar, media library and basic analytics.
- Paid: Pro is a one-time $299 license for one domain, adding Instagram, LinkedIn, TikTok, YouTube and more, plus approvals, an API and MCP. See ViralFarm vs Mixpost.
Which Hootsuite alternatives work with AI agents?
More people now plan posts inside Claude or ChatGPT and want the scheduling to happen there too. That needs an MCP server or an API.
- ViralFarm: MCP server and REST API for Claude (web, desktop and Claude Code), ChatGPT including Codex, Cursor, Windsurf, Cline and any MCP client. Your agent can generate posts and schedule them, and posts it writes itself use no credits. Setup steps are on the MCP page.
- Metricool: lists Metricool MCP on every plan, including free.
- Publer and Pallyy: both promote MCP connections on their sites.
- Mixpost: includes an API and MCP in the paid Pro license.
Check each vendor's documentation for what the connection can actually do, since some only read data while others can publish.
What you give up on a free plan
Free plans are good for one person and a handful of accounts. Expect these gaps:
- Post limits. Most cap monthly or queued posts, from 10 per channel at a time to 20 a month.
- Network gaps. Publer's free plan skips X, and Metricool's skips LinkedIn and X.
- One user. Almost every free plan is single-seat.
- Short history. Some keep only recent analytics or post history.
- No inbox or approvals. These are almost always paid features.
If you hit a limit every week, a low-cost paid plan usually costs less than the time you lose working around it.
How to choose a free Hootsuite alternative
- List the networks you post to and cross off any tool whose free plan misses one.
- Count how many posts you publish a month and compare that to each free limit.
- Decide whether you need help making posts. If yes, start with ViralFarm.
- Decide whether you need analytics. If yes, start with Metricool.
- Run your real posting week through your top two picks before you settle.
Frequently asked questions
Is there a free version of Hootsuite?
No. Hootsuite offers a free 14-day trial without a credit card, but no free plan. Paid plans start at $99 per user per month, billed yearly, as of October 2026.
What is the best free alternative to Hootsuite?
Buffer if you want the simplest free scheduler, ViralFarm if you want AI to create posts and AI agents to schedule them, and Metricool if you want free analytics.
Which free Hootsuite alternative gives you the most channels?
Zoho Social's free plan includes one brand with 6 channels. Buffer gives you 3 channels and supports networks like Bluesky, Mastodon and Substack. Publer gives 3 accounts but excludes X, and ViralFarm gives 2 channels across its 8 networks.
Are there cheaper paid alternatives to Hootsuite?
Yes. Publer and Buffer start at $5 per account or channel per month, Zoho Social at US$10 per month billed yearly, and ViralFarm at $12 per month. All are well below Hootsuite's $99 per user per month.
Is there an open-source Hootsuite alternative?
Mixpost Lite is free and open source, but you host it yourself and it only publishes to Facebook Pages, X and Mastodon. The Pro license adds more networks for a one-time $299.
Can I schedule posts from ChatGPT or Claude instead of a dashboard?
Yes, with a tool that has an MCP server. ViralFarm works with Claude, ChatGPT, Cursor and other MCP clients, so you can ask your assistant to write and schedule a week of posts.
If Hootsuite feels like more than you need, start with a free plan that fits how you work. To create and schedule posts in one place, or straight from your AI assistant, try ViralFarm. Start free with ViralFarm, no credit card required.