Social Media & Content · head to head
Planoly vs Buffer

Planoly
Social Media & Content
Visual social media planning, scheduling, and link-in-bio platform
- From
- $14/month
- Rated
- -

Buffer
Social Media & Content
Build your audience organically on social media
- From
- Free
- Rated
- -
The short version
- Only Buffer has a free tier, so it costs nothing to try first.
- Each has a real cost: Planoly the free mobile app tier is limited to 10 uploads per month, too low for active accounts.; Buffer the free plan allows 3 connected channels and 10 scheduled posts per channel
- They diverge on capability: Planoly covers Visual grid planning, Buffer covers Post scheduling.
Where they differ
Only the attributes on which Planoly and Buffer actually diverge.
Identical on both: platforms (web, ios, android), user rating (Not yet rated).
What each one covers
Drawn from each product's published feature list. An absence here means we hold no record of it - not that the product lacks it.
Only in Planoly
- Visual grid planning
- Auto-posting
- AI content ideas
- Link in bio
- DM and comment automation
- Media library
- Analytics
Only in Buffer
- Post scheduling
- Content calendar
- Analytics dashboard
- Link shortening
- Hashtag manager
- First comment
- Instagram Stories
- Shop Grid
What people use each for
The jobs each tool is most often brought in to do.
Planoly
- Planning an Instagram feed grid before postingnot Buffer
- Scheduling and auto-publishing across multiple social networksnot Buffer
- Selling digital products or merch via a link-in-bio pagenot Buffer
- Automating Instagram DM replies for lead capturenot Buffer
- Managing content for multiple clients as an agencynot Buffer
Buffer
- Social media schedulingnot Planoly
- Content planningnot Planoly
- Performance analyticsnot Planoly
- Team collaborationnot Planoly
- Client managementnot Planoly
Where each one falls short
Documented limitations, not opinions. Every one is a constraint you would hit in normal use.
Planoly
- The free mobile app tier is limited to 10 uploads per month, too low for active accounts.
- Additional social sets and team seats require paid add-ons rather than being included at higher volumes.
- Auto-posting to some platforms requires a push notification and manual tap to finish publishing rather than being fully automatic.
- Advanced monetization and automation features are gated behind paid plans with no lower-cost equivalent.
Buffer
- The free plan allows 3 connected channels and 10 scheduled posts per channel
- Essentials at $5 a month covers a single user; team members need the Team plan at $10 a month
- Approval workflows and custom permissions are Team tier only
- API access is rationed by plan, from 3,000 monthly requests on free to 15,000 on Team
- Content ideas are capped at 100 on the free plan
Pricing, plan by plan
Planoly
$14/month- Starter$14/month
- 1 social set
- Unlimited uploads
- 1 user
- Growth$24/month
- 2 social sets
- Unlimited uploads
- 2 users
- Pro$47/month
- 6 social sets
- Unlimited uploads
- 6 users
Buffer
Free- FreeFree
- 3 connected accounts
- 10 scheduled posts per channel per month
- 100 content ideas
- Essentials$5/month
- Unlimited scheduled posts
- Per-channel pricing
- Advanced analytics
- Team$10/month
- Unlimited team members
- Unlimited scheduled posts
- Content approval workflows
Which should you pick?
Choose Planoly if
- You need visual grid planning.
- You work on web, ios, android.
- You also want auto-posting.
Choose Buffer if
- You need post scheduling.
- You want to start without paying.
- You work on Web, iOS, Android.
- You also want content calendar.
Questions people ask
- Is Planoly or Buffer better?
- Neither clearly leads. Planoly starts at $14/month and Buffer at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
- Which is cheaper, Planoly or Buffer?
- Buffer has a free tier; the other does not. Paid plans start at $14/month for Planoly and Free for Buffer.
- Does Planoly or Buffer run on more platforms?
- Planoly runs on web, ios, android. Buffer runs on Web, iOS, Android.
- Can I use Buffer for free?
- Yes. Buffer has a free tier, so you can try it without paying. Planoly starts at $14/month.
- What is Planoly best used for?
- Planoly is most often used for planning an instagram feed grid before posting, scheduling and auto-publishing across multiple social networks, selling digital products or merch via a link-in-bio page, automating instagram dm replies for lead capture. Of those, planning an instagram feed grid before posting and scheduling and auto-publishing across multiple social networks are not what Buffer is typically brought in for.
- What can Planoly do that Buffer cannot?
- Planoly covers Visual grid planning, Auto-posting, AI content ideas, Link in bio. Buffer covers Post scheduling, Content calendar, Analytics dashboard, Link shortening.
Answered from the vendors’ own pages
Planoly: Does Planoly offer a free trial?
All paid plans include a 14-day free trial before users are charged, letting new users test scheduling and link-in-bio features first.
SourceBuffer: Does Buffer's free plan include all social media platforms?
The free plan supports 3 connected accounts across any of Buffer's 11 supported platforms (Instagram, Facebook, TikTok, LinkedIn, X, YouTube, Threads, Pinterest, Google Business Profile, Bluesky, Mastodon) with up to 10 scheduled posts per channel per month.
SourcePlanoly: What are Planoly's pricing tiers?
Planoly offers Starter ($14/mo), Growth ($24/mo), and Pro ($47/mo) monthly plans, with lower per-month rates if billed annually; each tier increases the number of social sets and users included.
SourceBuffer: Can I schedule Instagram Stories with Buffer?
No. Instagram Stories cannot be auto-published. Buffer sends a mobile notification to manually post stories, as Instagram does not provide an API for automated Story scheduling.
SourcePlanoly: Can I cancel or change my Planoly plan anytime?
Plans can be upgraded, downgraded, or canceled at any time according to Planoly's pricing page.
SourceBuffer: What is Buffer's per-channel pricing model?
Buffer charges per social media account (channel) rather than per user. Channels 1-10 cost standard rates ($5 Essentials or $10 Team), with additional channels beyond 10 discounted per channel.
SourcePlanoly: Is there a free version of Planoly?
A free mobile app tier exists with a limit of 10 uploads per month; full scheduling features require a paid plan.
SourceBuffer: Does Buffer have a mobile app and what platforms does it support?
Yes, Buffer offers iOS and Android apps for mobile management. The iOS app supports Mastodon and YouTube comment features, while Android support for these features is in development. Android community access works on the six most recent major Android versions.
SourceBuffer: What discount does Buffer offer for annual billing?
Buffer offers a 20% discount for annual billing across all paid plans, plus an additional 50% discount on paid plans for nonprofit organizations.
SourceBuffer: Can Buffer integrate with content creation and storage tools?
Yes. Buffer integrates with 24 tools including Canva, Google Drive, Dropbox, Unsplash for media, Zapier and Make for automation, WordPress for publishing, and Claude, ChatGPT, and Perplexity for AI-assisted content creation.
SourceRelated pages
Other head to heads
- Planoly vs Midjourney
- Planoly vs DALL-E
- Planoly vs Runway
- Planoly vs Brandwatch
- Planoly vs Mention
- Planoly vs Metricool
- Planoly vs Sked Social
- Planoly vs Opus Clip
- Planoly vs Sprinklr
- Planoly vs Tailwind
- Planoly vs Talkwalker
- Planoly vs Wrike
- Planoly vs Hootsuite
- Planoly vs Moz
- Planoly vs Ahrefs
- Planoly vs Customer.io
- Planoly vs Instapage
- Planoly vs Iterable
- Planoly vs Leadpages
- Planoly vs Mailgun
- Planoly vs MoEngage
- Planoly vs Postmark
- Planoly vs Typeform
- Planoly vs Unbounce
- Planoly vs Vimeo
- Buffer vs Midjourney
- Buffer vs DALL-E
- Buffer vs Runway
- Buffer vs Brandwatch
- Buffer vs Mention
- Buffer vs Metricool
- Buffer vs Sked Social
- Buffer vs Opus Clip
- Buffer vs Sprinklr
- Buffer vs Tailwind
- Buffer vs Talkwalker
- Buffer vs Wrike
- Buffer vs Hootsuite
- Buffer vs Moz
- Buffer vs Ahrefs
- Buffer vs Customer.io
- Buffer vs Instapage
- Buffer vs Iterable
- Buffer vs Leadpages
- Buffer vs Mailgun
- Buffer vs MoEngage
- Buffer vs Postmark
- Buffer vs Typeform
- Buffer vs Unbounce
- Buffer vs Vimeo
