Hootsuite is one of the oldest social media management tools: one calendar for posts across your social accounts, one inbox for messages and comments, and reports on what worked. It is also priced for teams with a marketing budget. The cheapest plan is $99 per user a month, so a small business should know exactly what it is paying for before the trial ends.
Prices below are from Hootsuite's US pricing page at the time of our last update. Hootsuite shows them in US dollars, based on annual billing, before taxes.
Hootsuite pricing at a glance
| Plan | Price per user a month, billed annually | Social accounts | Who it suits |
|---|---|---|---|
| Standard | $99 | Up to 10 | A business or marketer posting to a handful of networks |
| Professional | $199 | Unlimited | Teams that want automated replies and custom reports |
| Advanced | $399 | Unlimited | Teams that need approvals and message routing |
| Enterprise | Custom | Unlimited | Large organizations with compliance and SSO needs |
Hootsuite says monthly billing is available on Standard, Professional and Advanced, with a lower per-user rate on annual billing. It does not list the monthly prices on the plans page.
Standard: $99 for up to 10 accounts
Standard is $99 per user a month billed annually, or $1,188 a year for one person. It includes:
- Up to 10 social accounts in one calendar.
- Unlimited scheduled posts.
- AI-generated posts and images.
- One inbox for messages.
- Brand and competitor monitoring.
You can buy as many user seats as you need. For a single business with a Facebook page, an Instagram account and a LinkedIn page, 10 accounts is plenty.
Professional and Advanced
Professional, at $199 per user a month, removes the account limit and adds automated inbox replies and workflows, trend forecasts up to 90 days ahead and custom performance reports. It is the plan for an agency or a brand with many profiles.
Advanced, at $399 per user a month, adds content approvals, automatic routing of messages to the right teammate, coordinated content and customer care, and team performance reports.
Enterprise is priced on request and adds advanced analytics and listening, single sign-on and custom compliance tools.
Free trial and discounts
Every paid plan has a free 14-day trial with no credit card. Hootsuite says you won't be charged automatically when it ends: you choose a plan and enter payment details only if you want to continue. During the trial, posting is capped at 10 to 20 posts a day per organization, depending on the plan, and bulk scheduling is not available.
Hootsuite offers a discounted rate for nonprofits on some plans, after you apply.
Cheaper Hootsuite alternatives
Prices are from each vendor's pricing page at the time of our last update.
| Tool | Free plan | Entry price | How it is priced |
|---|---|---|---|
| Buffer | Up to 3 channels, 10 scheduled posts per channel | Essentials: $5 per channel a month billed yearly, $6 monthly | Per social channel |
| Sprout Social | No; 30-day free trial | Essentials: $79 per seat a month billed annually, $99 monthly | Per seat |
| Hootsuite | No; 14-day free trial | Standard: $99 per user a month, annual billing | Per user |
One user, one year: Hootsuite and its alternatives
Show the numbers
| Value | |
|---|---|
| Buffer Essentials, 3 channels | $180 |
| Sprout Social Essentials | $948 |
| Hootsuite Standard | $1,188 |
| Sprout Social Standard | $2,388 |
| Hootsuite Professional | $2,388 |
Buffer is the budget pick. You pay per connected channel instead of per user: Essentials is $5 a channel a month billed yearly ($6 monthly), with unlimited scheduled posts, analytics and a community inbox. Three channels cost $15 a month. Its Team plan, at $10 a channel billed yearly ($12 monthly), adds unlimited team members. The free plan covers 3 channels with 10 scheduled posts per channel at a time.
Sprout Social starts lower but scales higher. Its Essentials plan, at $79 per seat a month billed annually ($99 monthly), is built around publishing and reporting for up to 5 social profiles. Standard, at $199 per seat a month, adds brand keyword monitoring; Professional is $299 and Advanced $399, all on annual billing. It offers a longer free trial, 30 days with no credit card.
Is Hootsuite worth it for a small business?
For one person posting to a few networks, $1,188 a year is a lot: Buffer Essentials covers three channels for $180 a year. Hootsuite earns its price when you also answer messages and comments in one inbox and keep an eye on competitors, or when a team shares the work. Use the 14-day trial to test the inbox, since there is no automatic charge at the end.
If you also send email, some email tools post to social networks too: Constant Contact's plans include social posting (see Constant Contact pricing), and Klaviyo's Marketing plan adds social engagement data and auto-replies (see Klaviyo pricing).