Best Metricool alternatives in 2026

· Reviewed by Sergio Verdugo, co-founder of Quetzal

Quick answer

If you use Metricool to schedule and the posts are what you lack, Quetzal makes and publishes them for you. If you want deeper listening and a shared inbox for a larger team, Hootsuite and Sprout Social are the suites, priced per user. If you only need a free queue, Buffer or Publer.

If your team already makes all the content and the job is reporting across many brands, Metricool is still a strong pick at its price.

14 days free. Card required, nothing charged today.

What Metricool does well

  • Detailed reporting, competitor analytics and ads reporting in one tool.
  • Pricing by the number of brands, from $25 a month per account, which agencies find easy to budget.
  • A free plan, an app in seven languages, Spanish among them, and an inbox with approvals.

Why people look beyond Metricool

  • Metricool measures and schedules; its AI helps with text when you ask, and it does not plan or make the week's posts.
  • It lists no AI video on its pricing page.
  • It does not refund the current billing cycle; consumers have 15 days to withdraw from a first purchase only.
  • A business with no content team still has to make every post itself.

How we chose

Ranked first by how much of the posting work the tool does for you (making the posts, then publishing and approving them), then by how much of Metricool's reporting and inbox you keep, then by entry price. We make Quetzal, and it sits first because under this criterion it does the most of the work: it plans, writes, designs and publishes. It does not match Metricool's reporting; judge that against the table below.

At a glance

1. Quetzal

Best for
Businesses that need the posts made, in Spanish or English
From
Starter: $116 a month per brand ($89 a month billed yearly), before tax
Free plan or trial
14-day trial, card required; no free plan
Main trade-off
No free plan, and lighter reporting than Metricool

2. SocialBee

Best for
AI-drafted plans you approve post by post
From
Bootstrap: $29 a month per workspace ($24.17 a month billed yearly)
Free plan or trial
14-day trial, no card
Main trade-off
No AI video on its pricing page

3. Sprout Social

Best for
Large teams that need governance and reporting
From
Essentials: $99 a month per user ($79 a month billed yearly)
Free plan or trial
30-day trial, no card
Main trade-off
Priced per user, from $99 a month

4. Hootsuite

Best for
Teams that need listening and a shared inbox
From
Standard: $149 a month per user ($99 a month billed yearly)
Free plan or trial
14-day trial, no card
Main trade-off
Priced per user, from $149 a month, with no refund on cancelling

5. Buffer

Best for
A simple queue for a few channels
From
Essentials: $6 a month per channel ($5 a month billed yearly)
Free plan or trial
Free plan and 14-day trial, no card
Main trade-off
Its web app is in English only

6. Publer

Best for
Scheduling many accounts on a small budget
From
Not listed on their pricing page
Free plan or trial
Free plan and 7-day trial, no card
Main trade-off
Prices were not listed on the page we read

7. Planable

Best for
Agencies whose slow step is client approval
From
Basic: $39 a month per workspace ($33 a month billed yearly)
Free plan or trial
Free plan, no card
Main trade-off
All sales are final: no refunds

The tools, one by one

  1. 1. Quetzal

    An AI social media autopilot: it plans, writes, designs and publishes your posts, and learns from the results.

    Best for
    Businesses that need the posts made, in Spanish or English
    Price
    Starter: $116 a month per brand ($89 a month billed yearly), before tax
    Trade-off
    No free plan, and lighter reporting than Metricool
    • Plans and makes the week from your website and brand
    • Publishes to Instagram, Facebook, LinkedIn, TikTok, X and YouTube
    • Writes natively in English and Spanish
    • AI reels from the Pro plan

    Quetzal plans the week from your brand and website, writes and designs posts and carousels natively in Spanish or English, and publishes them to Instagram, Facebook, LinkedIn, TikTok, X and YouTube after your approval or on autopilot, measuring each post and changing the next week. AI reels start on Pro. Starter is $116 a month per brand ($89 billed yearly), with a 14-day trial that takes a card.

  2. 2. SocialBee

    A category-based scheduler with an AI copilot that drafts a content plan, captions and images for you to approve.

    Best for
    AI-drafted plans you approve post by post
    Price
    Bootstrap: $29 a month per workspace ($24.17 a month billed yearly)
    Trade-off
    No AI video on its pricing page
    • Evergreen queues organised by content category
    • An AI copilot that drafts a plan, captions and images
    • A 30-day refund on the first purchase

    SocialBee's copilot drafts a content plan, captions and images for your approval, and its evergreen queues recycle posts by category. It has an inbox, starts at $29 a month per workspace, runs a 14-day trial without a card and refunds a first purchase within 30 days.

  3. 3. Sprout Social

    A social media management platform for teams, priced per seat, with publishing, a shared inbox, listening and reporting.

    Best for
    Large teams that need governance and reporting
    Price
    Essentials: $99 a month per user ($79 a month billed yearly)
    Trade-off
    Priced per user, from $99 a month
    • A shared inbox, listening and reporting built for teams
    • Permissions and governance for large organisations
    • A 30-day trial with no card

    Sprout Social offers publishing, a shared inbox, listening and reporting with permissions for large organisations. Its app is available in Spanish and its trial runs 30 days without a card.

  4. 4. Hootsuite

    One of the original social media management suites: scheduling, inbox, listening and reporting for teams, priced per user.

    Best for
    Teams that need listening and a shared inbox
    Price
    Standard: $149 a month per user ($99 a month billed yearly)
    Trade-off
    Priced per user, from $149 a month, with no refund on cancelling
    • Mature scheduling and team workflow
    • Listening and reporting
    • Broad integrations

    Hootsuite adds social listening, an inbox several people work from, approval routing and reporting for managers, with broad integrations. Its trial runs 14 days without a card.

  5. 5. Buffer

    A simple scheduler for individuals and small teams, priced per connected channel, with an AI assistant for post text.

    Best for
    A simple queue for a few channels
    Price
    Essentials: $6 a month per channel ($5 a month billed yearly)
    Trade-off
    Its web app is in English only
    • Simple, clean queue and calendar
    • A free plan for up to 3 channels
    • Low price for a few channels

    Buffer charges per channel from $6 a month, with a free plan for up to three channels and a 14-day trial without a card. It has an inbox, approvals and an AI assistant for text, and refunds monthly plans within 7 days and annual plans within 30.

  6. 6. Publer

    A social media scheduler priced per connected account, with a free plan and an AI assistant for post text and images.

    Best for
    Scheduling many accounts on a small budget
    Price
    Not listed on their pricing page
    Trade-off
    Prices were not listed on the page we read
    • Low price per account and a free plan
    • Wide network coverage, including Bluesky, Mastodon and Telegram
    • Paid features can be tried without a card

    Publer charges per connected account, has a free plan and lets you try paid features for 7 days without a card. It publishes to 13 networks and has approvals and an AI assistant for text and images.

  7. 7. Planable

    A collaboration and approval tool for planning social posts, with unlimited users and an AI writer for captions.

    Best for
    Agencies whose slow step is client approval
    Price
    Basic: $39 a month per workspace ($33 a month billed yearly)
    Trade-off
    All sales are final: no refunds
    • Clear approval flows for clients and managers
    • Unlimited users on every paid workspace
    • A free tier of 50 posts with no time limit

    Planable is built for collaboration and client approval, with unlimited users on every paid workspace from $39 a month per workspace and a free tier of 50 posts with no time limit. Its AI writer helps with captions.

When another tool beats Quetzal

  • Metricool itself, if you already make the content and the job is reporting across many brands.
  • Hootsuite or Sprout Social, if a larger team needs listening, a shared inbox and governance.
  • Buffer or Publer, if you only need a free queue for posts you make yourself.
  • Planable, if your agency writes the posts and the slow part is getting clients to approve them.

How to switch from Metricool

  1. Decide whether you replace Metricool or keep it for reporting: you can keep it for reports and add a tool that makes the posts.
  2. Start the new tool's trial and connect the same accounts.
  3. Move the posts still scheduled, or let the new tool plan the next week.
  4. Cancel before your next Metricool renewal, since the current cycle is not refunded.

Frequently asked questions

What is the best alternative to Metricool?

For a business that needs the posts made, Quetzal plans, writes, designs and publishes them. For a team that needs listening and a shared inbox, Hootsuite or Sprout Social. For a free queue, Buffer or Publer.

Is there a free alternative to Metricool?

Buffer and Publer have free plans, and Planable has a free tier of 50 posts. Metricool has its own free plan too. Quetzal has no free plan; it has a 14-day trial with a card.

Is there a cheaper alternative to Metricool?

For scheduling your own posts on a few channels, Buffer's free plan or Publer can cost less. For many brands, Metricool's brand-count pricing is hard to beat. Quetzal costs more because it plans and makes the week's posts as well as publishing them.

Which Metricool alternative makes the content for you?

Quetzal plans and makes the week's posts on its own, then publishes them after your approval or on autopilot. SocialBee's copilot drafts a plan, captions and images for you to approve. The others help with text when you ask.

Should I replace Metricool or add a tool to it?

If you rely on Metricool's reports, keep it and add a tool that makes the posts. If you only use it to schedule, you can replace it.

Is there a Metricool alternative in Spanish?

Sprout Social's app is available in Spanish, and Quetzal works in Spanish and English and writes the content natively in both. Buffer's web app is English only.

How do I switch from Metricool?

Start the new tool's trial, connect the same accounts, move the posts still scheduled and cancel before your next Metricool renewal, since the current cycle is not refunded.

Try it on your own brand

The quickest way to compare is to see a week of posts made with your brand and put it next to what you use today.

14 days free. Card required, nothing charged today.

Best Metricool alternatives in 2026: 7 tools compared