A two tool comparison
Post Planner vs Hootsuite
Two scheduling tools side by side for a small local service business, with every number read from each vendor's own pricing page on 15 September 2026.
The short answer
Post Planner is the cheaper pick for a solo owner who wants a permanent free plan and can live with caps on accounts and scheduled posts.
Hootsuite is the pick for a team that needs unlimited accounts, unlimited scheduled posts, and a built in review step, and is ready to pay per seat on annual billing.
The deciding factors below are where the two actually diverge: price, accounts, scheduling, AI, approval, analytics, support, and the free tier.
The eight things that decide it
Every figure in this table was read from https://www.postplanner.com/plans-signup and https://www.hootsuite.com/plans on 15 September 2026. Prices are monthly, and where a vendor sells annual billing the cell says so.
| Factor | Post Planner | Hootsuite |
|---|---|---|
| Price at one seat | $14 a month billed monthly, or $9 a month billed annually (Starter, one user) | $99 per user a month billed annually (Standard) |
| Social accounts on the entry plan | 3 on Starter | 10 on Standard |
| Scheduling limits | 150 scheduled posts on Starter, unlimited on top tiers | Unlimited on Standard |
| AI writing | AI Post Creator; 15 AI images on Starter | AI drafting and images in every paid plan |
| Approval flow | Not advertised | Review step on Advanced |
| Analytics | Social Analytics on all plans | Custom reports from Professional |
| Support | Email and chat on every plan | Training and success section, no per plan tier |
| Free tier | Permanent free plan | No free plan, 14 day trial |
Source: postplanner.com/plans-signup and hootsuite.com/plans, read 15 September 2026
The deciding factors, one by one
Price at one seat
Both tools look cheap at the bottom and diverge fast. The honest comparison is annual against annual, because that is the only rate Hootsuite publishes.
- Post Planner's Starter plan was $14 a month billed monthly, or $9 a month billed annually, with one user and three social accounts. postplanner.com/plans-signup, read 15 September 2026
- Hootsuite's Standard plan was $99 per user a month billed annually, Professional $199 per user a month billed annually, and Advanced $399 per user a month billed annually; Hootsuite publishes no month-to-month price. hootsuite.com/plans, read 15 September 2026
Number of social accounts
A one person local business usually runs three or four channels, so the entry tier is what matters.
- Post Planner's free plan covered one social account, Starter three, Growth fifteen, Business twenty five, and Agency fifty. postplanner.com/plans-signup, read 15 September 2026
- Hootsuite's Standard plan covered up to ten social accounts, and Professional and above were unlimited. hootsuite.com/plans, read 15 September 2026
Scheduling limits
Both queue posts ahead of time. Post Planner caps how many you can schedule on the cheaper tiers; Hootsuite removes the cap at its entry plan.
- Post Planner capped scheduled posts at ten on the free plan, 150 on Starter, and 1,500 on Growth, with Business and Agency unlimited; it also capped daily posts per profile at three, twelve, and twenty four on the three lowest tiers. postplanner.com/plans-signup, read 15 September 2026
- Hootsuite's Standard plan advertised unlimited scheduled social posts, with a footnote that trial accounts carry daily posting limits of ten to twenty posts per organization. hootsuite.com/plans, read 15 September 2026
AI writing
Both generate captions and images now. Post Planner sells AI image counts per plan; Hootsuite bundles an AI assistant into every paid plan.
- Post Planner listed an AI Post Creator among its features, and its AI image allowance ran from one on the free plan to 500 on Agency. postplanner.com/plans-signup, read 15 September 2026
- Hootsuite's Standard plan included the line 'Generate posts and images with AI', and the page said every plan runs on Wisdom, an AI teammate that drafts, recommends, and analyzes. hootsuite.com/plans, read 15 September 2026
Approval flow
A solo owner approves their own work; a team needs a review step. The two tools put that step at very different price points.
- Post Planner's plan page did not advertise a team approval or review workflow, and its two lowest tiers are single user plans. postplanner.com/plans-signup, read 15 September 2026
- Hootsuite's Advanced plan was the tier that added 'Review and approve content with your team'. hootsuite.com/plans, read 15 September 2026
Analytics
Both report on how posts perform. The depth tracks the price.
- Post Planner listed Social Analytics as a product feature across its plans. postplanner.com/plans-signup, read 15 September 2026
- Hootsuite's Professional plan added custom performance reports, and the plans page lists analytics and reporting across the paid tiers. hootsuite.com/plans, read 15 September 2026
Support
For a small business, support means a human answers when something breaks.
- Post Planner's plan table listed email and chat support on every plan. postplanner.com/plans-signup, read 15 September 2026
- Hootsuite's plans page did not itemize a per plan support tier; its feature comparison lists a training and success section instead. hootsuite.com/plans, read 15 September 2026
Free tier
This is the clearest split. Post Planner has a permanent free plan; Hootsuite has a time boxed trial.
- Post Planner's free plan was $0 with one social account, ten scheduled posts, and three daily posts per profile. postplanner.com/plans-signup, read 15 September 2026
- Hootsuite offered a free 14 day trial on its paid plans and no permanent free plan. hootsuite.com/plans, read 15 September 2026
What changed recently
15 September 2026: We read both pricing pages on this date. Post Planner's plan page shows a free plan and paid tiers from $14 a month billed monthly or $9 a month billed annually.
15 September 2026: Hootsuite's published prices were unchanged from our 9 September read: Standard $99, Professional $199, and Advanced $399, each per user a month billed annually.
Where SpeedRun Social fits
SpeedRun Social is our product, and it is the third option on this page. It generates captions, images, and video from a brand kit you set up once, then schedules and publishes to eleven platforms, with a review step before anything goes out.
Paid plans are $49.99, $99.99, and $199.99 a month, flat per workspace and not per user.
The free plan is 300 credits a month refilled forever, one free campaign a week (3 posts, 1 video, 1 cross-post), no card, watermarked media on free.
We are newer than both tools and have very few customers, so weigh that honestly. If you need a team approval workflow with custom reports today, Hootsuite is the more complete pick; if you want the cheapest permanent free plan, Post Planner has it. The links above exist so you can check all three on their own sites.
Post Planner vs Hootsuite, answered
Post Planner vs Hootsuite: which should a small local business pick?
A solo owner on a tight budget should look at Post Planner first, because it has a permanent free plan and an entry plan at $14 a month billed monthly or $9 a month billed annually. A small team that needs unlimited accounts, unlimited scheduled posts, and a review step should look at Hootsuite, whose Standard plan is $99 per user a month billed annually and publishes no month-to-month price.
Is Post Planner cheaper than Hootsuite?
Yes, at one seat. Post Planner Starter is $14 a month billed monthly or $9 a month billed annually, while Hootsuite Standard is $99 per user a month billed annually. Hootsuite's higher tiers run to $199 and $399 per user a month billed annually.
Does Hootsuite have a free plan?
No. Hootsuite offers a free 14 day trial on its paid plans and no permanent free plan.
Does Post Planner have a free plan?
Yes. Its free plan is $0 with one social account, ten scheduled posts, and three daily posts per profile, which is enough to try it but not to run a full schedule.
Which one lets me schedule unlimited posts?
Hootsuite does, on its Standard plan and up. Post Planner caps scheduled posts on its free, Starter, and Growth tiers, then removes the cap on Business and Agency.
Do both use AI to write posts?
Yes. Post Planner lists an AI Post Creator, and Hootsuite bundles an AI assistant called Wisdom into every paid plan, which drafts, recommends, and analyzes.
Which is better for a team that needs approvals?
Hootsuite. Its Advanced plan adds a review and approve step for teams, and it is the tier a multi person team would actually use. Post Planner does not advertise a team approval workflow on its plan page.
Can I try both before paying?
Yes. Post Planner has a permanent free plan and a seven day free trial on its paid plans, and Hootsuite offers a free 14 day trial. Both give you a way to test before you commit.
Every number in these answers was read from postplanner.com/plans-signup and hootsuite.com/plans on 15 September 2026
Run the comparison on your own accounts
Try Post Planner's free plan and a Hootsuite trial, then put one real week of your own posts through the free plan beside them. Ours is the entry with no countdown on it.
Every Post Planner and Hootsuite figure on this page was read on 15 September 2026 from each vendor's own pricing page. Prices move; the links above exist so you can check theirs and ours.