Best Social Media Management Tools Everyone Can Use in 2024 (Paid & Free)

Whether you’re a freelance social media professional, a small business, or an agency, you need a social media management tool to help you manage your social networks and make your life easier. 

But what is the best platform to manage social media? What are the best social media schedulers or the best social posting tools, and how to manage social media for business? What are some free social media management tools or ones that offer TikTok integration?

Of course, there isn’t a one-size-fits-all when it comes to content management and social media marketing, as with most things in life, but we’ll take a look at distinctive features in this social media management tools comparison so that you can find the right tool for your needs.

Here is the list with the best social media management tools we found for 2024:

Hootsuite – Best for the team management of large businesses
Buffer – Best suited to small and medium-sized businesses
Sprout Social – Best for social media monitoring
Social Pilot – Best for bulk scheduling and content curation
Sendible – Best for collaboration and detailed analytics
MeetEdgar – Best for freelancers, side hustlers, and small businesses
LoomlyBest for TikTok integration
Post Planner – Best for busy people who don’t have time for content creation
Tweetdeck – Best for monitoring Twitter feeds and scheduling tweets
Cyfe – Best for customizable and good-looking dashboards
AgorapulseBest social media management tool for universities
Oktopost – Best for B2B social media management
CoSchedule – Best free marketing calendar

Price Comparison

Social Media Management ToolLowest Price Point
Hootsuite$99/month
Buffer$6/social channel/month
Sprout Social$249/month for 5 social profiles
Social Pilot$25.50/user/month
Sendible$29/month
MeetEdgar$24.91/month
Loomly$26/month
Post Planner$3/month
TweetdeckFree
Cyfe$19/month
Agorapulse$49/user/month
OktopostNot disclosed
CoScheduleFree

Key Differentiating Factors for Choosing the Best Social Media Management Tool

Before moving on to the tools we’ve chosen for this article, we wanted to talk to you about what we consider important when choosing the best social media management tool and what were the factors that we took into consideration when choosing these social media management tools:

Key features: They refer to the essential functionalities that a social media management tool provides to help businesses effectively manage their social media presence and engage with their audience.

Learning curve: In other words, it describes the difficulty or ease of learning to use the tool and its various features. The learning curve can be influenced by factors such as the tool’s user interface, the complexity of features, available documentation, and training resources.

Integrations: This refers to the ability of the tool to connect and work seamlessly with other software or platforms. Social media management tools can integrate with a variety of other tools and platforms, such as customer relationship management (CRM) systems, e-commerce platforms, email marketing software, content creation tools, and more. Integrations allow for a more comprehensive and efficient marketing stack, enabling businesses to streamline their workflows and share data seamlessly between different tools.

Product evolution and updates: This refers to the process of improving and advancing a social media management tool over time by adding new features, fixing bugs, and enhancing existing capabilities. This process involves analyzing updates and releases that aim to improve the user experience, address user feedback and requests, and keep up with the changing needs and trends of social media marketing. Product evolution and updates are essential to ensure that a social media management tool remains relevant, competitive, and effective in helping businesses manage their social media presence.

General user perception: User reviews, ratings, and feedback can help businesses gauge the tool’s strengths and weaknesses, identify any potential issues or limitations, and determine whether it is a good fit for their needs. Additionally, the opinion of most users can also provide social proof, which can help businesses build trust and confidence in the tool and its capabilities. However, it’s important to keep in mind that user opinions may not always be representative of every user’s experience, and it’s important to evaluate the tool based on your own specific needs and goals.

Price: Social media management tools can vary widely in price, from free or low-cost options to more expensive enterprise-level tools. It’s important to carefully consider the cost of the tool and whether it fits within the business’s budget, while also taking into account the features and capabilities provided by the tool. Choosing a tool solely based on its price, without considering its capabilities and fit for the business’s needs, can lead to wasted resources, ineffective social media marketing, and a negative impact on the business’s bottom line.

Top 10+ Best Social Media Management Tools of 2024 

1. Hootsuite – Best for the team management of large businesses

Hootsuite is one of the best social media management tools for medium and large businesses. With Hootsuite, you can monitor multiple social media streams in one place, schedule posts in advance, and easily manage the team that handles your social media channels. 

Key Features: Hootsuite is best known for having a centralized feed of all the brand mentions across the most important social media channels. In practice, this means that you will have a way better experience when you filter and reply to questions or conversations your users or your clients have about your brand.

But many social media management tools have this feature, what sets Hootsuite apart is the “team management” functionality. What does that translate to? If you have a big brand, you will naturally need more people to manage it. For example, you may want to automatically route certain messages to your PR or crisis management team. You can also make sure team members have a balanced workload and each social network has a balanced amount of coverage. This is why I consider Hootsuite ideal for medium and large businesses that need a social media scheduler that allows them to schedule posts for multiple platforms at once.

Hootsuite’s dashboard will make it easier to figure out when to post depending on the platform, as well as discover relevant content that you can share with your audience. You can get a clear overview of your performance and social growth using their analytics reports, and understand what people think about your brand by monitoring social conversations.

Why Not Use: The most important thing users complain about is pricing. If you are an individual or small business, this tool is probably not for you. There is a free plan, but it’s very limited, with only 2 social accounts and 5 scheduled posts per month. Need the Business plan? It will cost you $8,868 upfront (the article linked talks about the previous pricing plans, that’s why the numbers are a little different, but the idea is the same: Hootsuite forces you to pay annual plans, even if the prices mentioned are per month). A lot of Legacy Pro users have also complained Hootsuite is forcing them to upgrade to the new pricing, which can mean up to 550% more. It’s not pleasant to have that experience when you’re already a paying customer, and the only option you’re given is to upgrade or leave. 

Also, while some users like the interface, there are some users who don’t like it and find it rather outdated, confusing, and hard to monitor, so before you decide to pay, check out some screenshots and make sure you like it.

Product Evolution and Updates: There are a lot of social media tools like Hootsuite, but Hootsuite was one of the first social network managers on the market (2008), and it is today’s most used and well-known all-in-one social media software, with 16 million users.

Hootsuite releases frequent updates on its change logs page, typically 2 to 3 times a week, sometimes even more often, and sometimes once a week. For example, from January 1st – September 1st, 2021, Hootsuite released 19 new features and functions, 7 new apps, and 25 improvements, and has fixed 29 issues and bugs. 

Pros:

  • Centralized feed of all brand mentions across social media channels
  • Team management functionality for big brands to manage workload and route messages to specific teams
  • Dashboard helps to discover relevant content to share with your audience and understand social media performance using analytics reports
  • Hootsuite was one of the first social media management tools on the market and has frequent updates and improvements

Cons:

  • Pricing is high, especially for small businesses and individuals, and Hootsuite forces users to pay upfront for annual plans
  • Legacy Pro users have complained about being forced to upgrade to new pricing plans with significant price increases
  • Some users find the interface outdated, confusing, and hard to monitor

2. Buffer – Best suited to small and medium-sized businesses

Buffer is a social media management tool for small and medium-sized businesses. Many people feel like it is one of the easiest ones to use. 

Key Features: One of the most important things that set Buffer apart from the rest of the social media management tools is their pricing model. With Buffer, you pay $5 per month for each social media channel you connect. This means that if you have a small or medium company, you don’t have to throw a load of money upfront just to be able to start. In my experience, you can start with one or two channels, and add more and more as you grow bigger and bigger (and can actually handle them).

This is why I think that Buffer is best suited for small or medium companies, and it might be best suited even for large companies that want to start exploring social media without having to invest in big marketing teams and expensive tools. According to G2, Buffer performs better than Hootsuite in almost all categories when taking into account thousands of reviews made by their users. Most people feel Buffer is easier to use, set up, and administer than Hootsuite. Here is another review where the tools are compared side by side, ranking Buffer slightly higher than Hootsuite and recommending it, especially for small businesses. 

Why Not Use: One of the most frequent things people complain about is posting issues. It looks like these kinds of problems don’t happen very often, but they happen frequently enough to show up in reviews here and there. But these types of problems are something that users can expect to encounter with any social scheduling platform, so I would take them with a grain of salt. However, if I wanted to commit to paying a yearly subscription for Buffer, I would test the monthly plan first and make sure it’s not a problem for me.

Another issue seems to be the dashboard. While most users love the Buffer dashboard and find it easy to use, some complain about having problems connecting accounts and even tagging.

Product Evolution and Updates: When becoming a team of ten in 2013, Buffer decided to articulate its company values. One of the most important ones, which describes the company best, was their “default to transparency” value. As a team, they knew the only way to establish a culture of trust and to help others was through clear communication and transparency. That value was put to the test that exact same year when Buffer was hacked and decided to let their customers know right away and keep them constantly updated before even knowing the source of the breach. They then decided to become even more transparent and shared their salaries and salary calculator, as well as other elements pertaining to their workplace culture and strategy, which Buffer users really appreciated.  

As to the actual product evolution, in 2016, Buffer launched Reply, which extended their services from social media marketing to social customer service. However, it closed it in 2020, mainly due to a lack of need for customer service on social media. In 2019, Buffer launched Buffer Analyze, their social media analytics and reporting tool, and at the beginning of 2021, Buffer Engage. In October 2021, they also launched Start Page, a free feature for people who want to create mobile-friendly landing pages. In 2022, they continued with updates to the new Start Page feature, as well as other improvements or new features like TikTok video scheduling, Instagram Reels auto-publishing, and Google Business profiles. 

They currently have four separate products — Buffer Publish, Buffer Analyze, Buffer Engage, and Buffer Start Page — included in the paid plan. Buffer Publish is a social media planner app that allows you to plan posts, collaborate with your team, and publish engaging content, Buffer Analyze gives you insights into your social media performance with detailed reports that you can use to increase your brand’s reach, Buffer Engage allows you to see all your comments and stay on top of important interactions, while Buffer Start Page allows you to build free landing pages. 

Pros:

  • Flexible pricing model with affordable monthly payments per social media channel connected
  • Easy to use and administer, making it a good option for small and medium-sized businesses
  • Performs better than Hootsuite in many categories according to user reviews
  • Offers transparency and clear communication with customers and users
  • Offers multiple products, including Buffer Publish, Buffer Analyze, Buffer Engage, and Buffer Start Page

Cons:

  • Some users have reported occasional posting issues
  • Some users have experienced difficulties with connecting accounts and tagging on the dashboard
  • Limited customer service options

3. Sprout Social – Best for social media monitoring

Sprout Social is the best social media management tool with a focus on the monitoring part. Social media monitoring actually means extending a brand’s customer support over social media. For example, your brand’s representatives can respond to customer posts and mentions, and even prevent issues from escalating. It has management features as well, but the monitoring part is where Sprout Social shines the most.

Key Features: Sprout Social is one of the few social media management tools that have customer relationship management (CRM) features. This means that you have a complete profile of your customers inside the app, and this can help you build stronger relationships with them. For example, you can have a full history of engagement with specific users. The complete conversation with them is available to your whole team, and everybody in your team can see notes your colleagues added (like the best time to reach them). 

In many areas, Sprout Social is similar to Hootsuite, as it combines several social media tools into one platform (Hootsuite has CRM features as well). They have similar features, but while Hootsuite may be better in terms of the number of features, Sprout Social seems to be better in terms of user support. You can just pick up your phone and call Sprout Social and ask whatever you want. I can’t say the same for Hootsuite. I could not easily find a phone number on their Contact Us page, as you can see in the picture below. 

https://www.hootsuite.com/about/contact-us

There are other means to contact them like on social media or email, but I believe a quick phone call is an important part, considering that there’s a lot of money on the line with these tools and many customers prefer to communicate via phone.

Why Not Use: Some users complain that the interface is less intuitive than other social media management tools. Before committing long-term, you should check how things look inside the app and make sure you are comfortable using it every day. Also, I found users complaining about issues with the LinkedIn integration. I could not test and confirm this in practice, but just to be sure, you can give them a call and ask. Or maybe just test it for yourself before committing long-term.

Product Evolution and Updates: Sprout Social currently releases important product updates every 3 months, sometimes monthly, and sometimes more rarely (there was no product update on their page between December 2018 and November 2019 and then again until June 2021, when they used to release even weekly updates at one point). 

As a brand, Sprout Social has grown a lot since its initial fundraise in 2010. Some noteworthy mentions are: launching Bambu, a social advocacy platform for employees, in 2015, introducing Bot Builder for automated conversations in 2017, opening headquarters in Chicago and Dublin, launching a design refresh in 2020 to modernize the look and feel and increase ease of use, announcing a unique social commerce solution in 2021, and reintroducing Employee Advocacy in 2022. 

Pros:

  • Focus on social media monitoring for customer support
  • Includes customer relationship management (CRM) features for a complete profile of customers and stronger relationships
  • User support is available via phone call
  • Regular product updates and new feature releases

Cons:

  • Some users find the interface less intuitive compared to other social media management tools
  • Reports of issues with LinkedIn integration
  • Higher pricing compared to other social media management tools

4. Social Pilot – Best for bulk scheduling and content curation

Social Pilot is a social media management tool that allows users to schedule and analyze posts across multiple social media platforms. It differentiates itself by offering affordable pricing plans and its focus on features that are most important for small to medium-sized businesses.

Key Features: Social Pilot’s pricing model is very affordable, with the cheapest plan starting at just $25.50 per month for up to 10 social media profiles. This makes it a great option for small to medium-sized businesses that want to manage multiple social media accounts without breaking the bank.

One of the standout features of Social Pilot is the ability to automatically curate content from RSS feeds, allowing users to quickly and easily find and share relevant content with their audience. The platform also offers detailed analytics reports, allowing users to track their social media performance and make data-driven decisions about their social media strategy.

Another feature that sets Social Pilot apart is bulk scheduling. While many social media management tools offer bulk scheduling, Social Pilot differentiates itself by offering a unique feature called “Bulk Schedule with CSV”. This feature allows users to upload a CSV file containing their social media posts, including the text, images, and links, and schedule them all at once. This is particularly useful for users who want to schedule a large number of posts quickly and efficiently without having to manually input each post into the scheduling tool. Additionally, Social Pilot’s CSV template makes it easy to format and upload posts, which can save time and effort for users.

Users generally like Social Pilot’s affordable pricing and user-friendly interface. They appreciate the ability to schedule posts across multiple social media platforms and the variety of features offered. Additionally, users have reported that customer support is responsive and helpful.

Why Not Use: While Social Pilot offers affordable pricing plans, some users may find the feature set to be more limited compared to other social media management tools. Additionally, the platform may not be as suitable for larger businesses or those with more complex social media needs.

Some users have reported occasional glitches and technical issues with the platform, and others have noted that the interface can be somewhat clunky and difficult to navigate at times. 

Some users have also reported that the platform’s analytics reports are not as detailed as they would like.

Product Evolution and Updates: SocialPilot was founded in 2014. Over the years, it has undergone a significant brand evolution to become one of the most popular social media management tools on the market.

In the early days, SocialPilot was primarily focused on social media scheduling and content management. However, as the platform evolved, it began to offer more advanced features, such as social media analytics and reporting, team collaboration, client management, and more.

Social Pilot posts regular updates on their product update page. The latest ones include introducing improved Google Business Profile Analytics, a new Content Library that allows you to create and store content in the form of posts and hashtag groups, and new and improved collaboration features that make inviting clients and team members easier. 

Pros:

  • Affordable pricing plans
  • Ability to automatically curate content from RSS feeds
  • Bulk scheduling with CSV feature for easy scheduling of a large number of posts
  • User-friendly interface
  • Responsive customer support
  • Variety of features offered

Cons:

  • Feature set may be more limited compared to other social media management tools
  • May not be suitable for larger businesses or those with more complex social media needs
  • Occasional glitches and technical issues reported
  • Analytics reports may not be as detailed as desired

5. Sendible – Best for collaboration and detailed analytics

Sendible stands out as a social media management tool tailored for agencies and businesses of all sizes, allowing the management of multiple social media accounts from one central platform and facilitating advanced post-scheduling. While Sendible’s collaboration tools are a notable feature, it’s important to note that these kinds of features are not as comprehensive as those found in standard project management software commonly used by creative teams.

Key Features: While other social media management tools also offer similar features like scheduling, analytics, and content creation, Sendible stands out with its comprehensive and customizable reporting and collaboration features. The platform provides advanced reporting options with the ability to customize report templates, incorporate branding elements, and pull data from multiple social media platforms. It also offers robust collaboration tools for teams, including team workflows, approvals, and a shared content calendar. Additionally, Sendible’s CRM integration allows for social media engagement with leads and prospects, helping businesses drive conversions and improve customer relationships.

Many users praise the platform for its user-friendly interface, comprehensive reporting, and advanced features for team collaboration and social listening. Users also appreciate the range of social media networks and third-party integrations supported by Sendible. 

Why Not Use: Some users have reported that the pricing is higher than other social media management tools, making it less accessible for small businesses or individuals. Others have complained about experiencing technical glitches, such as posts failing to publish or analytics data not being displayed accurately. 

Some users have also mentioned difficulties with customer support, such as slow response times or unhelpful support agents.

Product Evolution and Updates: Sendible was founded by Gavin Hammar in his spare bedroom in London in 2009 for just £45. At that time, social media was a distribution network, and Sendible was built to help customers distribute content such as links, emails, and blogs across different channels. 

However, as social media platforms evolved, Sendible transformed into a comprehensive tool designed for agencies and brands. In February 2021, Sendible became part of ASG and Traject, which is a suite of innovative tools for SMBs, agencies, and marketers. 

Sendible post updates typically once a month, sometimes twice a month, and sometimes every 2-3 months. Their 2022 updates include the release of Instagram carousels, the ability to reply to Instagram comments and to schedule short-form videos across YouTube, Facebook, and Instagram, the addition of Alt text for Facebook images, and the integration with GIPHY and Pexels. 

Pros:

  • Comprehensive and customizable reporting features
  • Advanced collaboration tools for teams
  • CRM integration for social media engagement with leads and prospects
  • User-friendly interface
  • Support for a range of social media networks and third-party integrations
  • White-labeling that allows customization of the platform with your branding
  • Content suggestion engine that analyzes your social media profile to suggest relevant content ideas

Cons:

  • Higher pricing compared to other social media management tools
  • Technical glitches reported by some users
  • Some users have experienced difficulties with customer support

6. MeetEdgar – Best for freelancers, side hustlers, and small businesses

MeetEdgar is a social media management tool for freelancers, side hustlers, and small businesses.

Key Features: There are plenty of social media management tools meant for large businesses that require you to pay thousands of dollars upfront, and it is very hard to find a good quality social media management tool at an affordable price. Even though most of the tools have accounts for small businesses or individuals, the main problem is that they are so badly stripped of features and offer such limited functionality, that you basically can’t do anything. It’s pretty obvious that most of these “basic accounts” are meant to strip money from poor individuals or “side hustlers”, rather than offer some actual value. Here is where Meet Edgar comes into play. Unlike social media scheduling apps like Hootsuite, which cater to gazillion-dollar corporations, MeetEdgar has pricing plans that are specifically designed for freelancers, side hustlers, and small businesses, and that’s why I chose to include it in this list. What’s more, you can try it for free for 7 days and cancel at any time.

Why Not Use: The tool covers a smaller number of social media networks (it works with Facebook pages, Facebook groups, Instagram feed, Instagram stories, Twitter, Pinterest, LinkedIn & LinkedIn Company Pages) and has limited functionality when it’s compared to other mainstream/popular tools. But the good part is that it might be the best for you if you just need the basics. It will help you craft content, schedule posts, and monitor results for one of the smallest monthly fees on the market. Here are a few product comparisons with the most popular tools from which you can easily find out what you get and what you don’t, and what are the main differences between Edgar vs. Hootsuite, Edgar vs. Buffer, and Edgar vs. Sprout Social.

Product Evolution and Updates: MeetEdgar was created in 2014 from founder and CEO Laura Roeder’s own personal need to have a social media tool that would save your updates after posting them or post them more than one time automatically. You can read about their most important updates here. They don’t post very often about their updates and new features, about every 3 to 6 months, sometimes more often, and sometimes more rarely. Over the past three years, for example, they’ve talked about three new features, becoming part of the Pinterest Marketing Partner Program, how to create your perfect home office with Edgar, and how they’ve joined SureSwift Capital. 

Pros:

  • Affordable pricing plans are specifically designed for freelancers, side hustlers, and small businesses.
  • Free trial period of 7 days and the ability to cancel at any time.
  • Helps to schedule posts and monitor results for a low monthly fee.
  • Provides the ability to save updates after posting them or post them multiple times automatically.

Cons:

  • Covers a limited number of social media networks.
  • Has limited functionality compared to other mainstream tools.
  • Updates and new features are not posted very often.

7. Loomly – Best for TikTok integration

Loomy is a social media management tool with TikTok integration. Since its launch in 2016, the TikTok social media platform has exploded in popularity, but despite this, most social media management platforms did not rush to implement it as a platform they can manage. It may be because of programming limitations, legal issues, or other stuff that I don’t know about. Or maybe they did not understand the potential. Due to the high demand though, I had to include at least one tool that specifically states that it can handle automation and management on the TikTok platform. For this I chose Loomly.

Key Features: Loomly helps you schedule videos on your phone or laptop. When it’s time to publish, Loomly will send you push notification reminders on your phone. You can also get these notifications via email, Slack, or Microsoft Teams. This means that you can schedule your posts in advance, and get notifications about when to publish them. 

They also have a comprehensive marketing guide for TikTok. Of course, this social media management tool also supports other popular networks and has all the important features others have, and on top of it, it also has a decent price point. When compared to other popular tools, it generally has better overall user reviews and fewer complaints. And even better, when I researched what other users say about their platform, I was pleasantly surprised to see that they answer each complaint on platforms like G2

And even though I do not use the automatic Facebook story posting feature, when I saw a person complaining about it, I also saw their response and understood that this is a limitation caused by Facebook and not by their platform. In my experience, seeing a company so invested in dealing with customer complaints builds user trust like nothing else, so they get the maximum user feedback and interaction score from me. They also notified users when they asked about new features that were already on their roadmap.

Why Not Use: You should not use Loomly if you need a feature-packed social media management tool. However, you should also know there are many upcoming features. This is a good and a bad thing because they are adding a lot of features constantly, which could increase the cost in the future, or you may end up with a legacy account and still pay a cheap price. This might not be the case if they do something similar to what Hootsuite did regarding legacy accounts, but it is a possibility.

Product Evolution and Updates: Loomly update posts seem to be quite frequent, with new features and integrations mentioned about once a month or even more frequently. They also post regular “how-to” articles on how to use specific features of their tool. Additionally, they have a podcast called Brand Moat, where guests share their marketing and business success tips and stories.  

Pros:

  • Loomly offers TikTok integration, which is not available on many social media management tools.
  • It has a comprehensive marketing guide for TikTok.
  • Users can schedule posts in advance and get push notifications when it’s time to publish.
  • Loomly has a good price point compared to other popular tools.
  • They have better overall user reviews and are responsive to user complaints.
  • Loomly posts frequent updates and adds new features and integrations.

Cons:

  • Loomly may not be suitable for users who need a feature-packed social media management tool.
  • The addition of many new features could increase the cost in the future.

8. Post Planner – Best for busy people who don’t have time for content creation

Post Planner is a social media management tool for busy people who don’t want to spend a lot of time on creating content. 

Key Features: A key feature that differentiates Post Planner from other social media management tools is a massive inventory of “pre-made” social media posts that are “scientifically” designed to make your engagement go through the roof. This pre-made content is split into categories like “Quotes”, “Engaging”, “Interesting”, and “Funny” so that you can easily choose something interesting for your brand. You can discover viral content on topics that are of major importance to your followers.

If you don’t want your social media accounts to be idle and you don’t like the process of content creation, this is the best tool for you. Also, if you have many doubts and insecurities about what to post, this could be something that can easily break the “writer’s block”. In my experience, even if you don’t do much to improve your follower base or significantly grow your social media accounts, this tool has a decent chance of improving a specific aspect of your social media presence: engagement. This is just because it will tell you to auto-recycle your evergreen content (the content that makes people talk).

While many social media content planning tools provide similar features that help you create, find and share content, they also usually come with a host of other social media support tools and features, which increases the cost a lot. By focusing solely on curated content planning, Post Planner manages to offer more affordable prices and is a better alternative for businesses that care more about engagement. 

Why Not Use: There are a lot of users complaining about Post Planner’s customer support, integrations, and analytics. If you don’t rely too much on these, it might be ok for you. And the most important “why not to use”: if you are very picky about what content you post on social media and you need it personalized for you and your brand, then it’s better if you create it yourself.

Product Evolution and Updates: They don’t have a plan for future updates or even a public list with improvements, but here’s a little bit about the brand. Post Planner was launched in 2011 by Josh Parkinson, Julie Benzaquin, and Slav Ivanov and became one of the most popular in-app schedulers within Facebook. In 2014, they launched the browser-based app for Facebook and Twitter publishing, and in 2020 they expanded again as an integrated content management and publishing tool with Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, Pinterest, Reddit, RSS, Google, and Instagram. 

Pros:

  • Massive inventory of pre-made social media posts
  • Scientifically designed to boost engagement
  • Categorized content for easy selection
  • Discover viral content on topics important to followers
  • Good for those who don’t want to create their own content
  • Affordable prices compared to other social media planning tools
  • Focus on engagement

Cons:

  • No public plan for future updates
  • Customer support, integrations, and analytics have received complaints
  • Content is not personalized for individual brands
  • Limited features compared to other social media management tools

9. Tweetdeck – Best for monitoring Twitter feeds and scheduling tweets

Tweetdeck is a social media management platform that enables users to monitor Twitter feeds, schedule tweets, and track results. It was acquired by Twitter in 2011 and has been integrated into the Twitter platform.

Key Features: The most important characteristic that makes Tweetdeck stand apart from other social media management tools is that it is completely free to use. This is the only 100% free tool I could find. Any other tool has some kind of limitation for which it requires money. Tweetdeck has no such hindrance. 

If you end up using Tweetdeck, you won’t have to worry about limitations, payment plans, and subscriptions. However, it comes with a major drawback when compared to other social media management tools: it only works for Twitter accounts. This means that you won’t be able to manage all your social media accounts in one place. You will be able to manage just your Twitter accounts. It works for multiple Twitter accounts, but just for Twitter. 

It has many useful features that will make your life easier, like creating and scheduling tweets, tracking conversations and mentions, and monitoring multiple Twitter timelines simultaneously. Tweetdeck also gives us some insights and analytics about our Twitter activity, such as tweet reach and engagement. This helped me to understand what was happening and optimize my Twitter strategy accordingly.

Why Not Use: Some users feel that the interface of Tweetdeck is overwhelming, especially for new users, as it can display multiple columns with a lot of information at once, making it difficult to navigate. 

Others users have complained that it has a steep learning curve, and it can take some time to learn and get used to, especially if you are not familiar with social media management tools. Users have reported that it can be difficult to figure out how to customize columns, filters, and settings. Some users have also reported experiencing glitches and bugs, such as columns not refreshing, tweets not loading, or the application crashing.

The mobile version of Tweetdeck is limited in features compared to the desktop version, which can be frustrating for users who need to manage their social media accounts on the go.

Tweetdeck does not support Instagram, which can be a drawback for users who manage multiple social media accounts, including Instagram.

Product Evolution and Updates: Tweetdeck was a social media management platform launched in 2009. The platform was acquired by Twitter in 2011 and has since become one of the most popular tools for managing Twitter accounts. After the acquisition, it was integrated into the Twitter platform. However, many users still prefer to use Tweetdeck as a standalone application. 

In recent years, there have been reports that Twitter is planning to phase out Tweetdeck, but so far, no concrete plans have been announced. Some people believe that Tweetdeck is no longer a necessary tool for managing Twitter accounts, while others believe that it is still a valuable tool. It seems that the majority of users believe that Tweetdeck is no longer as useful as it once was, but it still has its place in the Twitter world.

Pros:

  • Completely free to use with no limitations, payment plans, or subscriptions required
  • Useful features such as creating and scheduling tweets, tracking conversations and mentions, and monitoring multiple Twitter timelines simultaneously
  • Provides insights and analytics about Twitter activity, such as tweet reach and engagement

Cons:

  • Only works for Twitter accounts, cannot manage other social media accounts
  • Interface can be overwhelming and have a steep learning curve for new users
  • Glitches and bugs reported by some users, such as columns not refreshing or application crashing
  • Limited mobile app features compared to desktop version
  • No Instagram support

10. Cyfe – Best for customizable and good-looking dashboards

Cyfe is a social media management tool for users who really like dashboards.

Key Features: All the social media management tools have dashboards, but Cyfe brings them to another level. What sets them apart from the rest is the focus on building and customizing each type of dashboard. And the way they actually look.

I saw many dashboards while doing research for this article, and these ones looked way better than the rest. So, if you have 3 to 10 monitors, if you really spend a lot of time monitoring graphs and crunching numbers, Cyfe might be the best social media management tool for you. 

It’s actually more than a social media management tool – it’s a “business intelligence” tool, but it can be easily set up to monitor your social media accounts. They have a lot of customized dashboards, so if you want to check out what monitoring social media accounts is like, you can take a look over here.

Why Not Use: If you are not the visual type of user or if you need specific advanced automation features for many social networks, this is probably not the best tool for you. If you need help with creating content and don’t spend the majority of your time monitoring, one of the other tools mentioned on this list would be a better alternative for you. I can’t recommend a specific one without knowing what you actually need. Also, if you don’t like dark backgrounds with neon bright graph colors, this might not be the tool for you. Check it out in the pictures below and commit to it long-term only if you really like how they look.

Product Evolution and Updates: Cyfe was founded in 2012 by Deven Patel and has been featured in the show Silicon Valley. In 2020, they joined Traject, a newly-launched marketing technology suite with a focus on agencies. They don’t have a clear public roadmap, but they have some updates posted semi-regularly alongside guides. 

Pros:

  • Cyfe has a strong focus on customizable dashboards with visually appealing designs.
  • It’s a business intelligence tool that can be set up to monitor social media accounts.
  • It’s a great option for users who spend a lot of time monitoring graphs and crunching numbers.

Cons:

  • Cyfe may not be suitable for users who require advanced automation features for many social networks or need help with creating content.
  • It may not be suitable for users who prefer a light background or less visually intense graphs.

Social Media Management Tools for Universities

In today’s climate, social media is key to your university’s success. Universities need social media to attract new students by showing what they’re all about, to allow space for student and community connection, to promote events and classes, to showcase achievements, and to organize fundraising campaigns. All of that would be impossible without a social media management tool when it comes to such a big institution. What tool you end up choosing will depend a lot on your school’s needs, budget, and the number of social media accounts and users, so let’s take a look at a few social media management tools that can work for your university:

Agorapulse – Best social media management tool for universities

When I was searching for social media management tools for universities, Agorapulse was one of the ones that kept popping up, not only in random articles that list them among other big-name social media tools, but in articles of their own on social media management and marketing for universities, like this one on how to use social media to keep students engaged, or this one on how universities can use social media as well as students do.

Users love Agorapulse because they can schedule posts, respond, monitor, and get reporting all in the same app. Compared to Hootsuite, which is another popular choice for universities, Agorapulse has a better, more straightforward interface with a less cluttered dashboard that makes it easier to quickly find what you’re looking for. 

University social media managers also prefer Agorapulse to Hootsuite because it offers much more cost-effective plans. According to this case study, Hillsdale College has managed to save $100K per year by switching over to Agorapulse from Hootsuite and another tool they were using. 


Oktopost – Best for B2B social media management

With Oktopost’s social publishing tools, you can boost your brand awareness and connect with different audiences like future students, their parents, and academic communities, and also measure the impact of your social media campaigns. And that’s what university social media managers love most about it, having a unified platform to schedule and publish posts, communicate with students, and measure success. Users also love the drag and drop interface of the editorial calendar, as well as Oktopost suggesting when it’s the best time to post. 

You can connect Oktopost to your CRM, Google Analytics, and hundreds of other platforms to accumulate more data on your prospective students and personalize your marketing communication for more effective results.


CoSchedule – Best free marketing calendar

CoSchedule’s main selling point is its free and comprehensive marketing calendar, which makes it ideal for university teams that need to manage their social media activity and marketing campaigns from the same app. What users love most about CoSchedule is that it allows them to simplify their workflow and get rid of other apps like Asana, email, and Google Docs, since they can see discussions, resources, and task lists associated with each project in the CoSchedule calendar. 

Social media managers love being able to see who is accountable for each project in CoSchedule, so there is no more confusion over who used an outdated football club logo or who is responsible for a certain campaign. CoSchedule also offers analytics, so you can see how your enrollment campaigns are going, check out student engagement, and find ways to improve projects that aren’t as successful.

CoSchedule is used by Lamar University and University MarComm teams.  

There are many other social media management tools that can work for universities, but I wanted to keep the list short and pick only the ones that seem to be more geared toward it. You could also check out TweetDeck (which we’ve talked about at the beginning of the article) for social listening of your Twitter accounts or Juicer for social media marketing. 

Social Media Management Tools With Tiktok Integration

There are a number of social media management tools that offer TikTok integration, allowing you to manage your TikTok presence and content strategy better. Some of the most popular options among those reviewed above include Sprout Social, Hootsuite, Buffer, and Loomly. Each of these tools offers unique features and capabilities that can be tailored to your specific needs.

  • Sprout Social is a comprehensive social media management platform that offers a wide range of features, including TikTok integration. With Sprout, you can post and schedule TikTok content, track analytics and performance, and engage with your audience.
  • Hootsuite is another popular social media management tool that offers TikTok integration. With Hootsuite, you can manage multiple TikTok accounts, schedule and publish content, track performance, and more.
  • Buffer is a simple, streamlined social media management tool offering TikTok integration. With Buffer, you can post and schedule TikTok content, as well as track your analytics.
  • Loomly is actually best known for its TikTok integration. It does not only offer automation and management on the TikTok platform but also a comprehensive marketing guide for TikTok.

Each of these social media management tools can help you better manage your TikTok presence and content strategy. Choose the tool that best meets your needs and start growing your TikTok following today.

How about you, have you found your favorite social media management tool yet? Let us know in the comments below and don’t forget to share this article with your colleagues and other marketers who are still on the lookout for the perfect tool!

See also: How to Create a Powerful Social Media Marketing Strategy?