Free
Free
Up to 3 channels
- 10 scheduled posts per channel at a time
- 100 ideas and 3 tags
- 1 user
- AI Assistant
- Insights with 30 days of history
- Community inbox
- 1 API key, 3,000 requests a month
Scheduling one post to several networks
Schedules, publishes and analyses posts across 12 social networks from one calendar, with a free plan for three channels
from$5a month per channel, billed yearly
Buffer has a free plan and a 14-day free trial with no card needed. Prices in US dollars as Buffer's pricing page showed them on 11 October 2026.
Plans
Try Buffer free
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- Web
- iPhone and iPad
- Android
- Chrome extension
- API
What Buffer does
This is Buffer, a social media scheduling app from a fully remote team. Plan posts on a calendar, publish across your channels and see how they performed, starting on a free plan.
Publishing and scheduling
Write a post once, adjust it for each network and schedule it into posting slots or a set time. Buffer publishes to Instagram, Facebook, TikTok, LinkedIn, X, YouTube, Threads, Pinterest, Google Business Profile, Bluesky, Mastodon and Substack.
Ideas board and templates
The Create area stores content ideas on a board with columns and tags, with a template library and feeds to pull ideas from. The AI Assistant can suggest ideas from a short description of your business and audience.
Insights
Analytics show top posts, posting volume and audience growth for every channel together or one at a time. Paid plans add advanced analytics, and Team adds branded reports.
Community inbox
Comments from connected channels arrive in one inbox, sorted by post, with AI reply suggestions and saved replies. The free plan includes five AI reply suggestions a week.
Team collaboration
The Team plan adds unlimited users, access levels and an approval workflow so drafts can be checked before they publish. There is no extra charge per user.
Start Page
A free link-in-bio page builder that sits alongside the scheduler, for linking from Instagram or TikTok profiles.
API and MCP server
Every plan includes API keys with a monthly request allowance, and Buffer offers an MCP server so AI assistants such as Claude can draft and schedule posts in your account.
Mobile apps and browser extension
Apps for iPhone and Android let you schedule and reply on the go, and a browser extension shares pages straight into the queue.
Works with
- Canva
- Zapier
- Make
- n8n
- IFTTT
- Microsoft Power Automate
- Dropbox
- Google Drive
- Google Photos
- OneDrive
- Unsplash
- Bitly
- Feedly
- WordPress
- ChatGPT
- Claude
- Cursor
- Perplexity
- Raycast
- Quuu
- Nelio Content
- Evergreen Content Poster
- WriteStack
How much Buffer costs
Essentials
$6a month per channel
Lower price per channel above 10 channels
- Unlimited scheduled posts per channel
- Unlimited ideas
- 1 user
- AI Assistant
- Advanced analytics
- Hashtag manager
- First comment scheduling
- 3 API keys, 7,500 requests a month
Team
$12a month per channel
Everything in Essentials, for any number of users
- Unlimited team members
- Access levels
- Content approval workflows
- Branded reports
- Advanced analytics
- 5 API keys, 15,000 requests a month
Prices in US dollars. UK consumers pay VAT at the standard rate; businesses can add a VAT number for reverse charge. Yearly billing saves two months. Nonprofits and charities get 50% off paid plans. Prices in US dollars, from Buffer's pricing page on 11 October 2026. Buffer may charge VAT on top, and prices can change.
Buffer pros and cons
Pros
- Free plan connects three channels and includes Insights and the community inbox
- Per-channel pricing keeps small setups cheap: two channels on Essentials cost $10 a month billed yearly
- Team plan includes unlimited users, approvals and access levels with no per-seat fee
- Covers 12 networks, including Bluesky, Mastodon, Threads and Google Business Profile
- Mobile app rated 4.7 out of 5 on the UK App Store from over 9,500 ratings
- 14-day trial without entering card details, then a drop to the free plan
Cons
- Priced in US dollars only, with VAT added for UK consumers
- Costs climb with channel count: 10 channels on Team are $120 a month billed monthly
- Essentials allows only one user, so any second person means paying Team rates
- Reviewers on Trustpilot describe the analytics as basic
- Some reviewers report scheduled posts failing to publish and needing manual checks
- Free plan caps each channel at 10 scheduled posts at a time
Good for
- Solo creators and small businesses posting to one to five social accounts
- Small teams that need approvals and access levels without paying per user
- Charities and nonprofits, which get 50% off paid plans
- People active on newer networks such as Bluesky, Threads and Mastodon
Look elsewhere if
- Agencies that need in-depth, client-ready analytics or social listening
- Businesses managing dozens of accounts, where per-channel pricing adds up
- Teams who need several people editing the same post at once
What reviewers say about Buffer
“Not only is this a great app to help manage your socials, plan ideas and turn them into posts and increase engagement”
“Thanks to Buffer, I can automate and schedule all my posts on social networks. The interface is intuitive.”
“Buffer does not support real-time collaborative editing. If 2 people are working in the same post there’s no concurrency control”
What reviewers like
- Quick to learn, with a clear visual calendar
- Managing several networks from one dashboard
- A free plan that covers the basics for small accounts
- Affordable for individuals and small teams
- Helpful customer support
What reviewers complain about
- Analytics and reporting are thin next to bigger suites
- Occasional posts that fail to publish
- Costs rise quickly as channels are added
- Features moved from the free plan to paid ones over the years
- Trouble connecting some accounts
Buffer: what to know before you pay
The product
Buffer is a tool for planning, scheduling and publishing social media posts from one place. You keep a library of ideas, drop them into a queue or visual calendar, and Buffer posts them for you. There is also an AI assistant for drafting and repurposing, a link-in-bio page builder called Start Page, and analytics on how posts perform.
The channels
Buffer connects to Instagram, Facebook, TikTok, LinkedIn, X, YouTube, Threads, Pinterest, Google Business Profile, Bluesky, Mastodon and Substack. It also works with tools such as Canva, Google Drive, Zapier, Unsplash and Dropbox, and has a browser extension, mobile apps and an API.
Pricing
Buffer charges per connected channel rather than per seat, which suits people who add or drop accounts as clients come and go. A free plan covers a few channels with a limit on queued posts. The paid plans lift that limit and add deeper analytics, and the team plan adds unlimited team members, access levels and approval workflows. Paying yearly works out cheaper than monthly, and the paid plans start with a free trial.
Who it suits
Buffer positions itself as a simpler alternative to enterprise suites, with versions of its pitch for creators, small businesses, agencies, nonprofits and universities. It suits anyone who wants a clean calendar and a quick way to schedule, rather than a heavy social management platform.
Saving
Live codes and offers are listed on this page. Copy one and apply it when you pick a paid plan. Buffer prices in dollars, and UK customers see VAT added where it applies.
The company
Buffer was founded in 2010 and its team works remotely from around the world, with its CEO and co-founder Joel Gascoigne leading it.
Alternatives to Buffer
Every social media & creator tools tool →
Postiz
Social media scheduler for 30+ networks that AI agents can drive through MCP, a CLI and an API; open source to self-host
7-day free trial · from $23 a month 3.6 on Trustpilot (11)
Free planZernio
Social media API for posting, scheduling, analytics, messages and ads across 16 networks, priced per connected account
Free plan · from $1 a month per account 4.8 on Trustpilot (207)
Guides that cover Buffer
Social media scheduling tools worth it in the UK
A social media scheduler publishes your posts from one calendar. For Facebook and Instagram only, Meta Business Suite lists no price; Buffer's free plan covers three accounts, Publer is cheapest with approvals and Postiz suits teams who want unlimited teammates.
Questions about Buffer
Are there any Buffer discount codes?
We don't currently list a confirmed discount code. That doesn't mean the store has no promotions; check its website for current prices.
Does Buffer have a free plan?
Yes. The free plan covers a small number of channels with a cap on queued posts, and the paid plans start with a free trial.
Which social networks does Buffer support?
Instagram, Facebook, TikTok, LinkedIn, X, YouTube, Threads, Pinterest, Google Business Profile, Bluesky, Mastodon and Substack.
Does Buffer charge VAT in the UK?
Buffer says it applies VAT for UK consumers, while business customers can enter a VAT number to have it removed through reverse charge.
Does Buffer work on iPhone and Android?
Yes. There are iOS and Android apps, a web app and a browser extension.
Is Buffer priced per user?
Mostly per channel. The team plan adds unlimited team members, so you pay for the channels you connect rather than for each person.
Got a question about Buffer?