![Later vs Hootsuite](png/later-vs-hootsuite.png)
Later vs Hootsuite
What To Choose?
What is "Later"?
Later is a visually-focused social media scheduling tool that allows users to plan, schedule, and analyze posts across several social media platforms. It’s especially known for its Instagram-friendly features, such as the visual content calendar and the ability to preview your Instagram feed before posts go live.
Later’s user-friendly UI appeals to both newcomers and social media experts. The platform offers a simple visual content calendar that allows users to schedule their social media posts with clarity and simplicity. This visual approach streamlines the process of content planning, allowing users to curate their articles while maintaining a consistent and appealing look.
While Later is best known for its Instagram-first strategy, it has recently expanded its support to include major social networks such as Facebook, Twitter, and Pinterest. Users may manage a wide range of social network content from a single interface, simplifying the content scheduling and posting process. It acts as a consolidated center for social media management, allowing users to maintain a consistent online appearance across different networks.
If you’re seeking alternatives to Later, there are other social media planning tools available that offer similar or different features to meet your specific needs and preferences.
What Is "Hootsuite"?
Hootsuite is a comprehensive social media management platform that helps businesses execute their social media strategies across various networks. From scheduling posts to monitoring conversations and analyzing performance, Hootsuite provides a one-stop solution for social media management.
Hootsuite’s content discovery feature is a unique feature that is useful for finding relevant information for your social media accounts. You can search for material using keywords, hashtags, or subjects, and Hootsuite will return a curated collection of articles, photographs, and videos to share on your social media accounts. This tool makes it easier to identify and share engaging information with your audience.
Additionally, Hootsuite’s scheduling tool allows you to plan and schedule your posts in advance, ensuring that you can share information at the most opportune times for your audience. Hootsuite’s analytics function provides you with valuable insights into your social media accounts, including data on follower growth and engagement rates.
If you’re looking for Hootsuite alternatives, there are several other social media management platforms to consider that may align better with your specific needs and preferences.
Overview
In the evolving world of social media management, tools like Later and Hootsuite can be crucial for businesses to streamline their efforts. However, choosing between these two can be a challenging task. Our Later vs HootSuite guide will help you with your quest.
We at RecurPost, with our extensive social media industry experience, are here to provide you with an unbiased (maybe a little shameless plug in the end) comparison to help you make the best decision. The comparison today will be between Later vs Hootsuite.
Later vs Hootsuite: User Rating
Criteria | Later | Hootsuite |
---|---|---|
Star Rating (Out of 5) | 4.5 | 4.1 |
Meets Requirements (Out of 10) | 8.7 | 8.3 |
Ease of Use (Out of 10) | 9.2 | 8.4 |
Ease of Setup (Out of 10) | 9.1 | 8.4 |
Ease of Admin (Out of 10) | 9.3 | 8.5 |
Quality of support (Out of 10) | 8.9 | 7.9 |
Has the product been a good partner in doing business? (Out of 10) | 9.0 | 8.3 |
Product Direction (% positive) (Out of 10) | 8.6 | 7.3 |
Later scores higher in most categories, such as ease of use and setup, quality of support, and overall product direction. However, both tools closely meet users’ requirements, with Later having a slight edge. Let’s move to the feature comparison to test Later vs Hootsuite.
Later vs Hootsuite: Feature Comparison
Features | Later | Hootsuite |
---|---|---|
Pricing (per month in USD, pricing is set for the baseline of managing 5 social media accounts) | 18$ | 99$ |
Free Trial | Yes | Yes |
Platforms supported | Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, LinkedIn, Pinterest, TikTok | Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, LinkedIn, Pinterest, Youtube, TikTok |
Bulk scheduling | No | Yes |
RSS feeds | No | No |
Recurring posts | No | No |
Social inbox | Yes | Yes |
AI content generation | No | No |
Hashtag storage | No | Yes |
Caption Customization | No | No |
AI images | No | No |
Advanced analytics | No | No |
White label reports | No | No |
URL shortener | No | No |
Unlimited workspaces | No | Yes |
Team management | No | Yes |
Now, let’s compare the two tools in terms of some of their features:
Feature 1: Ease of Use
Ease of use is crucial when it comes to any kind of software. It directly impacts user experience, affecting the speed of adoption, productivity, and overall satisfaction.
According to the given data, Later scores a high 9.2 out of 10 in ease of use. This suggests that Later is intuitive and user-friendly.
It likely has an interface that is easy to navigate, making it simple for users to find and use the features they need.
This simplicity is critical in a social media management tool, where users often need to schedule posts, track engagement, and manage comments or messages across various platforms.
On the other hand, Hootsuite scores a little lower with 8.4 out of 10 in ease of use. Although it’s still a relatively high score, it indicates that some users may find the platform a little more complex or challenging to navigate.
With Hootsuite being a comprehensive tool that integrates a wide array of features, it may take some time for new users to familiarize themselves with the platform and effectively utilize its features.
However, once users overcome this learning curve, Hootsuite’s functionality can prove very beneficial.
Feature 2: Pricing
Later offers its services for $18 per month. This makes it a more affordable option compared to many other social media management tools in the market, including Hootsuite.
For small businesses or individual users who are budget-conscious, this could be a deciding factor.
It’s important to note, though, that the features offered within this price range must also meet the users’ needs.
Hootsuite, on the other hand, is priced at $99 per month, making it one of the more expensive options in this comparison.
However, the higher cost comes with a broader range of features and capabilities, which could justify the pricing for larger businesses or for users with more extensive needs.
Hootsuite’s pricing may reflect its comprehensive suite of tools, providing a one-stop-shop for all social media management needs.
HootSuite is infamous for raising their prices even as much as 10X at times. They don’t even grandfather existing users, so keep that in mind as your pricing might just shoot up in no time. Later is a good alternative, but we have talked about a plethora of other Hootsuite alternatives.
Feature 3: Quality of Support
Quality of support is an essential factor for any software service. Having a helpful and responsive support team ensures that users can get their questions answered and issues resolved quickly.
According to the provided data, Later scores 8.9 out of 10 for quality of support, indicating a high level of customer satisfaction.
Users of Later can expect to have a reliable team backing their usage, providing the necessary assistance when needed. This could include live chat, email support, and a resourceful help center.
Hootsuite, however, scores slightly lower at 7.9 out of 10 for quality of support. Although this is still a decent score, it indicates that some users might have faced issues or delays when seeking assistance.
The effectiveness of the support team could vary based on the complexity of the issues faced or the response times.
Feature 4: Product Direction
Product direction is another important consideration as it represents the company’s vision and the future potential of the product.
Later scores an 8.6 out of 10 for product direction, which suggests that users are generally confident about the platform’s ongoing development and improvement.
This could mean regular updates, new features, and general improvements based on user feedback.
In contrast, Hootsuite scores slightly lower at 7.3 out of 10 for product direction. While this is not a low score, it suggests that users might have some reservations about the future direction and updates of the tool.
This could be related to the pace of innovation, introduction of new features, or adaptability to changing social media trends.
Feature 5: Platforms Supported
The number and type of social media platforms supported by a tool is critical for users who manage multiple profiles across various platforms.
Later supports six platforms: Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, LinkedIn, Pinterest, and TikTok. This range should meet the needs of many users, especially those focusing on visually-oriented platforms like Instagram and Pinterest.
Hootsuite, however, supports seven platforms: Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, LinkedIn, Pinterest, YouTube, and TikTok.
In addition to the platforms supported by Later, Hootsuite also includes YouTube, which is a significant advantage for users who also manage video content.
Pros and Cons of Using Later
Pros
-
- Affordable pricing
-
- Easy to use interface
Cons
-
- Lacks several features like bulk scheduling, hashtag storage, etc.
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- Limited social media platforms
Pros and Cons of Using Hootsuite
Pros
-
- Comprehensive feature set
-
- Supports a wide range of social media platforms
Cons
- Interface may be complex for beginners
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- Higher pricing
- Interface may be complex for beginners
Later vs Hootsuite – The Bottom Line
While Hootsuite offers a comprehensive set of features, it comes at a higher price. On the other hand, Later is more affordable but lacks some of the features that Hootsuite offers.
The decision between Later and Hootsuite depends on the specific needs and budget of your business.
RecurPost as an alternative to Later and Hootsuite
If you’re looking for a tool that offers the best of both worlds, look no further than RecurPost. RecurPost offers an easy-to-use interface with advanced features such as bulk scheduling, recurring posts, social inbox, AI content generation, and more, all at an affordable price.
Comparing all three tools:
Features | Later | Hootsuite | RecurPost |
---|---|---|---|
Pricing (per month in USD, pricing is set for the baseline of managing 5 different social media accounts) | 80$ ($18 if you have one profile for each platform) | 99$ | 25$ |
Free Trial | Yes | Yes | Yes |
Platforms supported | “Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, LinkedIn, Pinterest, Tik Tok” | “Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, LinkedIn, Pinterest, Youtube, Tik Tok” | “Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, LinkedIn, Pinterest, Google Business Profile, Youtube, Tik Tok” |
Bulk scheduling | No | Yes | Yes |
RSS feeds | No | No | Yes |
Recurring posts | No | No | Yes |
Social inbox | Yes | Yes | Yes |
AI content generation | No | No | Yes |
Hashtag storage | No | Yes | Yes |
Caption Customization | No | No | Yes |
AI images | No | No | Yes |
Advanced analytics | No | No | Yes |
White label reports | No | No | Yes |
URL shortener | No | No | Yes |
Unlimited workspaces | No | Yes | Yes |
Team management | No | Yes | Yes |
Note on Pricing |
If you haven’t checked us out yet, please do that. It will likely save you some frustration later as well as a lot of money over time. RecurPost is built to grow with you.
Why RecurPost Is Better Than Later and Hootsuite
Given the comprehensive features, extensive platform support, and competitive pricing, the question isn’t whether you should choose Later or Hootsuite.
Instead, you should be asking why not choose RecurPost? With RecurPost, you get a powerful social media management tool that is easy to use, offers great support, and most importantly, it’s priced competitively for the value it provides.
So why wait? Try RecurPost today and take your social media management to the next level.