In 2026, there are around 5.66 billion active social media users worldwide (Source).
I would like to share an experience when I almost gave up social media marketing. Client count of 5 and platform count of 6-30 accounts that I was manually handling. To post at the best times, it was to set an alarm at 2 am.
I missed the wedding of my friend due to my posting of posts. My girlfriend would even say that she would put my phone in the toilet.
Then I came to know about Free All SMO Tools For Social Media Success, which transformed it all. This process, which had been taking me 4-5 hours a day, was now reduced to 45 minutes.
I ceased to miss life incidents. I was even able to sleep in the regular hours. Best part? The majority of the tools that I use are free or cheaper than a pizza delivery.
The list I have today is the top 10 SMO tools that do work in 2026 with full pricing, features, and my own straightforward opinion about each one of them.
This guide will save you hours per week, regardless of the number of accounts you handle, one or fifty.
Let’s dive in.
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What Are SMO Tools?
SMO refers to Social Media Optimization. SMO tools are computer programs that enable you to organize, plan, compare, and optimize your social media without losing your mind attempting to post all the stuff manually.
Around 80% of marketing leaders plan to shift budget from other channels to social, and 87% expect their paid social spend to increase (Source).
Consider them as power tools in social media. Of course, you can go and post to Instagram at 10am, Facebook at 2pm, Twitter at 4pm, LinkedIn at 6pm, and you have to log into each platform individually, write captions, post images on several occasions. Or just 10 minutes and one dashboard with an SMO tool will get it done.
This is what makes SMO tools so important in 2026, because of them, you can plan out weeks of content beforehand so you can always be sure you will have something to share. Share to various platforms all in one location.
Monitor the performance of actual content. Communicate effectively with followers from a single inbox. Share teamwork without sharing passwords.
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10 Free All SMO Tools For Social Media Success(Detailed Guide)
1. Buffer
Buffer is the most basic, uncomplicated SMO tool. This is a good place to begin if you have not used social media management software. Simple to use interface, no overload, easy scheduling.
Key Features
- Its posts can be scheduled on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, LinkedIn, Pinterest, and TikTok.
- Calendar of visual content with all scheduled posts.
- Simple analytics tracking interest, visits, and clicks.
- Easy content-sharing browser extensions.
- On-the-go management mobile applications.
- Caption generation and content ideas AI assistant.
- Bio links landing page builder- Start Page.
Pricing
- Free: 3 social channels, 10 scheduled posts in each channel.
- Paid- $20 per month, with 4 channels
- Team: An annual cost of $40/month for 4 channel with unlimited users.
- 20% discount on annual billing
- 50 percent nonprofit discounting.
Pros- So easy to use, low price of entry, wide-ranging free plan, great mobile application, easy to learn, dependable scheduling.
Cons- Per-channel pricing can be cumulative with multiple accounts, analytics are not as detailed as its competitors, team collaboration features are not as advanced on lower levels, and some of the more advanced features are only available on higher levels.
Best For- Individual businesspeople, small companies, novices, and people who need to get into business without difficulty.
My opinion- I had started my professional journey with Buffer there, and I continue to use it on personal accounts. Literally, it is impossible to find a simpler tool. Buffer helps you to keep social media under control in case you are overwhelmed.
The free plan actually comes in handy- I operated on it 4 months before graduating to the paid version.
2. Hootsuite
Hootsuite is the Swiss Army knife of the SMO tools. It does all the tasks- scheduling, monitoring, analytics, team collaboration, and social listening. Strong and requires a learning curve and a higher cost.
Key Features
- Have unlimited social accounts on the higher levels.
- Sophisticated time scheduling and post uploading (350 posts at a time).
- Extensive analytics and tailor-made reporting.
- Monitoring brand mentions and keywords through social listening.
- All the remarks and messages in one inbox.
- Approval processes in teamwork.
- Curating content and integrating RSS feeds.
- 100+ app integrations
PricingÂ
- 30 Days Free Trial
- Professional: 1 account, 10 users at ₹1,915per monthper user/mo
- Team: ₹7,540 per monthper user/month, 3 users, 20 accounts.
- Enterprise: Contact for pricing.
- 30-day free trial available
Pros- Advanced functionality, unlimited scheduling, teamwork, excellent analytics, social listening service, and suitable agencies that work with many clients.
Cons- Not as cheap as alternatives, no free option, has a steep learning curve, is too complicated to be used as a solopreneur, per-user pricing will add up, some features of it are restricted to the enterprise version.
Best Use- Agencies, big teams, businesses, and those who need high analytics and social listening.
My Personal opinion- Hootsuite is effective and costly. I changed Hootsuite to Buffer when I noticed that I was paying 249/month and only consumed 30 per cent of the features.
Hootsuite is worth the money when you deal with numerous customers or require in-depth analytics. In the case of a small business, it is likely to be excessive.
3. Later
Later becomes a specialist in the planning of visual content, and Instagram in particular. It has a visual drag-and-drop calendar that allows you to preview your grid layout before posting- a life-changer in terms of keeping looks consistent.
Key Features
- Drag and drop visual Instagram grid planner.
- Posts of schedules, stories, reels, IGTV, and carousels.
- LinkedIn.bio analytics and shoppable posts.
- Optimal time to post suggestions, according to you.
- Content management is created by the users.
- Hashtag recommendations and hashtag groups.
- TikTok and Pinterest scheduling.
- Organizing content media library.
Pricing
- Free- 1 social set (Instagram + Facebook + Twitter + Pinterest), 30 posts/profile.
- Beginner-$18.75 USD/month- 1 social set, 60 posts/profile, Instagram stories.
- Growth- $82.50 USD/month- 3 social sets, 150 posts/profile, LinkedIn. bio analytics.
- Premium- $80/month – 6 social sets, limitless postage, sophisticated statistics.
- Annual billing saves 16.7%
Pros- Best visual planning interface, Instagram-specific features, free plan is generous, drag-and-drop is easy to use, works best with visual brands, Linkin.bio is included.
Cons- Instagram/Facebook/Tik Tok/pinterest only (no twitter/linkedin), analytics not as powerful as Hootsuite, more expensive than Buffer, paid features necessary on the Instagram platform.
Best When- You are an Instagram creator, influencer, e-commerce brand, or have a heavy visual-driven business, and you care about Instagram aesthetics.
My Opinion- Later is undefeatable, in case you use Instagram as your major platform. The graphical grid planner is sufficient to justify the price.
I plan my Instagram content using Later and other platforms using Buffer. The drag-and-drop feature is able to help keep a unified Instagram aesthetic with ease.
4. Sprout Social
Sprout Social is the essential one that is to be used by companies that take social media analytics and reporting seriously. Very costly and provides organizational insights, client care solutions, and staff coordination capabilities.
Key Features
- In-depth analytics on all platforms using personalized reports.
- Social listening and competitive analysis.
- Intelligent inbox, message tagging, and assignment.
- CRM has the characteristics of customer contact tracking.
- Best sending time through AI.
- Sharing work with task organization.
- Employee advocacy tools
- Overview of management integration.
Pricing
Standard plan at $199 per seat/month with 5 social profiles
Professional Plan at $299 per seat/month with Unlimited social profiles
Advance Plan at $399 per seat/monthÂ
- Enterprise: Custom pricing – sophisticated analytics, custom workflows.
- 30-day free trial
- No free plan
Pros- State of the analytics, complete reporting, outstanding customer service, powerful social listening, and CRM connection, ideal for data-driven marketing.
Cons- Literally costly, no free option, oversized to small businesses, per-user, learning curve, and it takes a major time commitment.
Most suitable People- large companies, data-driven brand marketing teams, data-driven brand marketing teams, social media customer service-related, analytics-driven agencies, with analytics-driven clients.
My Opinion- Sprout Social is a post-graduation level, when you are earning a good income from social media, and you need serious data to optimize. It is not beginner-friendly and costs as much as 249/month minimum.
However, when you are spending over 10k in social advertising per month, the knowledge that Sprout will give you is easy to pay.
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5. Canva
Canva is a hybrid solution with primary capabilities of a graphic design tool that has SMO capabilities. Make graphics and plan for social media- a convenient option for visual content creators.
Key Features
- Social media content templates (100,000 and more).
- Drag and drop design interface (no design skills required)
- Plan posts in Instagram, Facebook, Pinterest, Twitter, LinkedIn.
- Saved fonts, logos, colors, brand kit.
- AI-powered design tools
- Reel and Tik tok editing in video.
- Content planner calendar
- Team support in designs.
PricingÂ
- Free: Simple templates, simple functions, watermark.
- Pro: $14.99/month (1 person)- 100+ million stock photos, 610k templates, brand kit.
- Teams: 30/month (first 5 members)- team services, brand management.
- Business: Special rates- SSO, special support.
- 30-day free trial on Pro
Pros- Great design tools, huge template library, simple to use, content creation and schedule under one roof, cheap when compared to the value of what you get.
Cons- Scheduling is not as good as specific SMO tools, analytics is less advanced than it could be, heavy social media management is not its priority, it is design-oriented, not schedule-oriented.
Best For- Those who want to make content and schedule it, and small businesses in need of a designer, as well as anyone making a visual piece regularly.
My Opinion- Canva Pro creates heaps of graphics, followed by Buffer to arrange them. The scheduling on Canva is good, but not as powerful as specific applications.
The price is the design capabilities- $15/month of professional-appearing graphics with simple scheduling can be a good offer in case you develop a large amount of visual information.
6. Metricool
The underdog, Metricool, is the one that provides unexpectedly strong features at affordable prices. Powerful SMO software that will rival high-priced solutions and cost only a fraction of that price.
Key Features
- Publish on all the significant platforms, such as TikTok.
- Competitor analysis: monitoring competitor performance.
- Analytics report exported in PDF dashboard.
- Facebook and Instagram ad management.
- Most suitable time to make recommendations.
- Hashtag monitoring and evaluation.
- Condensed link with analytics.
- Google Analytics implementation.
Pricing
- Free: 1 brand, unlimited posts, rudimentary analytics.
- Starter From $18/month
- Advanced From $45/month
- Annual billing available
Pros- Very cheap, plenty of free competitor analysis from the start, any platform works, surprisingly extensive at the price, and as ad management.
Cons- Interface not as polished as other competitors, slower customer support than more expensive tools, some features are basic, and advanced features require a learning curve.
Best If- Small enterprises with limited financial resources, freelancers, startups, and anyone seeking to have all features without high premiums.
My Opinion- Metricool is the most value-based SMO tool. Features are included in the $12/month plan that are priced at $99+ in other locations.
I would recommend it to those clients who are unwilling to pay for Hootsuite but more than the free version of Buffer. The money itself is worth it because of the competitor analysis.
7. SocialBee
SocialBee is a content classification and recycling business. Develop content categories, automatizing tool to ensure that evergreen posts are not duplicated, but that there is an equal posting schedule.
Key Features
- Automatically recycled category of content.
- RSS feed automation
- Evergreen content library
- Same content variations creation.
- Hashtag groups management
- Tracking Shortening of URLs.
- Team collaboration
- Detailed analytics
PricingÂ
- Bootstrap: 5 profiles, 1 workspace, $24/month.
- Accelerate: $40/month – 10 profiles, 5 workspaces.
- Pro: $82/month – 25 profiles, 10 workspaces.
- 14-day free trial
- Annual billing saves 20%
Pros- Ideal with evergreen content, content recycling is time and money saving, category system is not repeated, excellent features value.
Cons- It is more expensive than Buffer, the category system has a learning curve, the interface is dated, smaller user base reduces integrations.
Best- Any business that has many evergreen content pieces, a content marketer, and agencies that handle similar content for multiple clients, and all who have problems with content repetition.
My Opinion- The categorization of the content in SocialBee is brilliant when it comes to businesses whose content is evergreen.
I applied it to a client who had 200 evergreen tips- automatic rotation of the tips was used by SocialBee so that followers do not see the same tips. SocialBee will maximize its value if you have an evergreen content library.
8. Planoly
Planoly is an Instagram and Pinterest-based tool that has e-commerce-specific features. Its visual planning, shoppable posts, and user-generated content management make it suitable for product-related businesses.
Key Features
- Instagram and Pinterest planner.
- Shoppable posts on Linkin.bio.
- Find and manage user-generated content.
- Hashtag suggestions
- Auto post for Instagram
- Incorporating product catalogs.
- Sales-oriented analytics.
- Collaboration tools
Pricing
- Free: 30 posts/month, 1 user
- Starter: $15/month – 60 posts/month
- Growth: $30/month -150 posts/month, several users.
- Professional: 50/month – unlimited posts, advanced analytics.
- Annual billing saves 20%
Pros- E-commerce dedicated features, shoppable LinkedIn.bio, UGC management, visual planning, product integration, and low-cost.
Cons-2 Only Instagram/Pinterest, no Facebook/Twitter/LinkedIn, less sophisticated analytics than others, fewer product features overall.
Best Used: E-commerce brands, Instagram stores, product-based companies, and brands that use user-generated content.
My Opinion- Planoly is ideal in case you sell products via Instagram. The sales are made through the shoppable linkin.bio facility alone. This is the reason why I apply it to e-commerce clients only because it is designed to sell products, rather than to post content.
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9. TubeBuddy
TubeBuddy is focused on the YouTuber community. A browser extension that provides keyword research, search optimization, analytics, and a/b testing, the most important to achieve on YouTube.
Key Features
- Research the video title and tag keywords.
- Thumbnail A/B testing
- The best period to publish the analysis.
- Competitor analysis
- Processing of cards and end screens (massively).
- Search rank tracking
- Sifting of replies and ready answers.
- Video topic planner
PricingÂ
- Pro: 3/month – basic features, keyword search.
- Legend: $15/month – A/B testing, search explorer.
- Free version and limited features at maximum.
- Annual billing saves 50%
Pros- YouTube SEO is essential, Keyword research is money-making, A/B testing is performance boosting, is free, and is incorporated with YouTube itself.
Cons- not multi-platform (YouTube) and requires Chrome browser, some of its features are gimmicky, and it does not replace the necessity to possess such an SMO tool in general.
Best For- YouTubers, video creators, and people who are entirely determined to expand their YouTube channels that earn money through YouTube.
My Opinion- You cannot possibly be on YouTube and do without TubeBuddy. The keyword research shows that the titles do not appear clever, but can be searched.
I subscribe to the A/B testing plan of thumbnail- a 40 percent increment in CTR is compensated by the cost.
10. Sendible
Sendible is a product that is customizable to allow agencies to fulfill the need for white labeling. Rebrand the platform to yours, which is stunning to hand over to the clients as their own.
Key Features
- Rebranding completely white-label.
- Dashboard customer management.
- Canva-improved suggestions of content.
- Social listening
- Priority inbox customer care.
- Approval workflows
- Brandable reports.
- YouTube, Google Business Profile integration
Pricing
- Creator: $29/month – 1 user, 6 profiles
- Traction: $89 monthly – 4 users, 24 profiles.
- Scale: $199/month – 7 users, 49 profiles
- Advance: $299/ month – 20 users, 105 profiles.
- 14-day free trial
Pros- White-labeling, client management features, complete platform support, features of a good team, and agencies are relatively affordable.
Cons- It is not inexpensive when applied by a solopreneur and is not user-friendly compared to Buffer, and it is overly keen when working with clients.
Best For- There are also agencies, freelancers who do business on behalf of clients, white-label resellers, and teams that just need customer-specific dashboards.
My Opinion- Since I used to be a freelancer and do social media on behalf of clients, I could brand everything with my logo, and it made me feel that it was already an established company, despite the fact that it was not.
White-labeling creates a professional impression, which is worth the investment in case you introduce social media dashboards to customers.
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How to Choose the Best SMO Tool?
Do not just pick the tool that is the most expensive or the most popular. This framework will allow you to choose it based on your needs.
Start with platform focus- Which are the social sites do you use in real life? Instagram and TikTok heavy? Later or Planoly. YouTube focused? TubeBuddy. Multiple platforms? Buffer or Hootsuite. And do not pay premiums when you are just using 3 platforms.
Consider team size honestly- Solo? Buffer, Metricool, or SocialBee are good. Small team (2-5)? Afterwards, Buffer Team, or Sendible. Large team or agency? Hootsuite or Sprout Social. Team features are important when working in a team.
Evaluate must-have features- Need just scheduling? Buffer suffices. Want analytics? Metricool or Sprout. Is visual planning essential? Later or Planoly. Content recycling? SocialBee. YouTube? TubeBuddy. Do not conform to what one wants and the needs.
Budget is all that they do not want it to be- Free or under $15/month. Buffer, Metricool, Canva. $30-50 / month. Later, SocialBee. $100+/month. Hootsuite, Sprout Social. Never tell any lies with what you can afford.
Test before committing- There are free trials on all these tools. As a matter of fact, use them- design actual content, test it all. You are over-buying when you are not utilizing half of the features in the trial.
My recommendation formulation- Buffer-free plan. Outgrow it? Try Metricool at $12/month. Need visual planning? Add Later. Scaling to the team? Hootsuite. All the steps that were founded on objective growth, rather than aspirations.
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Common SMO Tool Mistakes
Mistake 1- Regarding many tools simultaneously. I had to think that 5 different SMO tools were superior. Wrong. Created chaos, wasted money. Appropriate one main tool and perhaps a specialist tool. That’s it.
Mistake 2- Scheduling overtime and automating. The thing is that you can put 50 pieces of content; however, it does not imply that you should do it. Mixed organic content and live engagement, or you will have a robot as your brand.
Mistake 3- Making the mistake of forgetting the analytics. Most of the users utilize SMO tools to make the timetable and cease worrying about the analytics dashboard. It is the information where you become more serious. Insights into weekly minimum checks.
Mistake 4- Not communicating with the followers. Content is planned so pretty by tools and does not replace the human element. Write notifications in response to messages and comments daily. This does not imply that automation should not be present.
Mistake 5- Buying work-tools which are expensive, and being still uninformed about how to use free tools. One does not need to hurry up to Sprout Social, spending up to $249/month without burning the free version of Buffer. Go through the ropes and then begin to spend.
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Conclusion
You now know the best 10 All SMO tools, their cost, functionality, and which one fits in different applications. The question is, will you do something, or will you stay on posting manually as it was in the year 2010?
This week: Sign-up a free account in Buffer. Prepare no more than 5 posts for your platforms. See how much time you save. Get comfortable with the basics.
After that, customize 3 more platforms when necessary. Start monitoring analytics to know what is performing well. Change strategy, not guesses.
Buffer free plans are too small, switch to Essentials, which costs $6/month, or put Metricool to the test, which also costs $12/month. Specialty tools must never be used unless you are certain that you need them.
Learn not to learn all at once. You must not spend your money on expensive tools without being familiar with the free tools. Robotize not your organic voice.
Start with one tool today. Schedule one week of content. Spend your wasted time on something more exciting than hand posting.
This is how every effective SMO strategy will be launched.
FAQ
Buffer is unquestionably most suitable among amateurs. Easy interface that you can master in 15 minutes, free account with 3 accounts with 10 scheduled posts, paid accounts are only 6/month per channel, easy-to-use mobile app, and no unnecessary features.
SMO tools are necessary as they address the three largest social media issues-
consistency with scheduled content so you will never miss posting days, efficiency in multiple platforms managed in a single dashboard, and data-driven decision making, analytics will reveal the specific content that works best.
HubSpot claims that companies that apply social management tools achieve 30 percent more engagement as opposed to manual posting.
Autonomous tools save time spent on repetitive work allowing you to be strategic and mindful.
Some of the most frequent pitfalls include utilizing too many tools causing confusion rather than productivity, scheduling too much content that makes your brand appear robotic, neglecting analytics features that leave opportunities to optimize content, forgetting about human interaction and not taking part in real-time, and automation alone.Â
IG tools (Instagram tools) can be used to schedule feed posts/stories/reels in desktop, visually plan what it would look like on the grid before posting, research hashtags find relevant high-performing hashtags, analytics that are better than those provided by Instagram, manage engagements concentrating comments and DMs, competitor analysis track successful accounts, linkin.bio creation of landing pages, and hashtag research. The Later, Planoly, and Metricool are the best IG tools and used to plan, promote, and analyze.
Social media tools are the software used to manage the online presence easily. Among them are management (Buffer, Hootsuite) to schedule and post, analytics (Sprout Social) to measure performance, content creation (Canva) to design and listening (mention monitoring).
They save time because they can post to several mediums in one place, achieve consistency based on pre-scheduled queues, integrate analytics in a single dashboard, and allow collaboration between teams.
Aim is to computerize routine work and concentrate on the strategy and true community development.
Most of them have free plans with restrictions: Buffer free (3 accounts, 10 posts each), Metricool free (1 brand, unlimited posts), Later free (30 posts per profile), Canva free (basic features), TubeBuddy free (limited features).
Free plans are suitable in cases of solopreneurs and small businesses which are starting out. Paid plans were required to exceed free quotas or to have more specifications such as teamwork and in-depth analytics. Free to upgrade when there is a real need.
Yes, but don't overcomplicate. A good configuration consists of one management tool (Buffer or Hootsuite) to schedule, one tool to create content (Canva), and potentially a tool to work with YouTube (TubeBuddy).
The application of 5+ tools is confusing to counteract the goal of simplification. Choose one that does 80 out of what you require, specialty tools are added where there are gaps only.
Excessive number of tools will result in multiple logins which will be counterproductive.
Yes, some of them support TikTok: Hootsuite, Sprout social, Buffer, and Metricool also have a Tik Tok scheduling option. TikTok algorithm however, prefers genuine and spontaneous content and as such heavy automation is not effective as on other platforms.
Planning and analytics tools may be used, but the best is achieved through the use of real-time presence. Tik Tok support is increasing at a fast rate as the platform gains significance.
TubeBuddy works best with YouTube and key word research, tag recommendations, thumbnail A/B, and analytics necessary to achieve YouTube success with cost of 9-99/month.
Alternative: VidIQ is also a similar feature. In the case of general management, Hootsuite and Sprout social contain YouTube scheduling.
The key to YouTube success lies not in the consistency of posting, but in SEO and keywords; in this regard, professional tools such as TubeBuddy are more useful on this platform, compared to general tools of SMO.
Free plans have simple scheduling, account/post restrictions, no more than basic analytics, one-user, and standard support. Paid plans offer unlimited scheduling, sophisticated analytics and reporting, team collaboration, priority customer service, extra integrations and automation.
Free of charge to learn, paid when enhancements are really hindering progress. Numerous companies operate on free plans and are successful - do not spend money on something you will not utilize.
