Buffer vs Tailwind
We give Buffer a 2.8 GPA and Tailwind a 2.2, out of 4.0. Buffer grades higher on the free plan and ease of use. They get the same grade on value for money, features and platforms.
Price, platforms and features side by side. The table says where each price was read and when.
Buffer
Social media scheduler priced by the channel, with a free plan
Tailwind
Pinterest scheduler that designs, writes and times Pins for you
How we grade them
| 2.8GPABufferGood | 2.2GPATailwindFair | |
|---|---|---|
| Value for money | CFive channels on Team, which a team needs because Essentials is one user, is $50 a month billed yearly ($10 a channel). That's above this category's $29 middle and under the $58 where the dearer quarter starts. On your own, Essentials is $25 for five. | COne Pinterest account is $17.99 a month billed yearly, or $29.98 with the SEO and engagement tools. It covers one network, so we set it against its listed alternatives: Buffer charges $10 a channel on Team, but Tailwind also designs and writes the Pins. |
| Free plan and trial | BFree for good with up to 3 channels, AI help, a comment inbox and 30 days of insights. One person can run three accounts on it. The catch is 10 queued posts per channel at a time and a single user. | CNo free plan, but each Pinterest account gets a one-off set of free actions, including 10 scheduled Pins and 5 SmartPins, with no card needed. |
| Features | CQueue, calendar, ideas board, AI help, reports and an API across 12 networks. The gaps it shows: the inbox is described for comments only, there's no competitor tracking on record, and Instagram personal profiles and Facebook groups only get a reminder to post by hand. | CSmartSchedule, weekly SmartPins built from your pages, Ghostwriter copy, and site sync with Shopify and WordPress. It does the Pinterest job fully, but it's one network, and SEO and boosts are separate tools on a credit allowance. |
| Ease of use | AIts iPhone and iPad app averages 4.7 from about 34,600 ratings, and the free plan needs nothing but your social accounts connected. | CThere's no App Store rating on record for us to go by, and you'll connect Pinterest and your website before the weekly Pins start. So it gets the ordinary grade. |
| Platforms and integrations | BWeb, iPhone, Android and a Chrome extension, plus an API on every plan, an MCP server, and Canva, Zapier, Make and WordPress. No desktop app, which is what an A needs. | BWeb plus Chrome, Firefox and Safari extensions, with Canva, Shopify, WordPress, Squarespace, Claude and ChatGPT. No phone or desktop app is listed. |
| Best for | paying only for the channels you use | Pinterest traffic for blogs and shops |
The GPA is the average of the five grades: an A is 4 points, an F is none. The full reasons are on each tool's page: Buffer and Tailwind. How we grade
Price against what you get
Buffer starts at $5 a month and scores 3.0 out of 4 on features, ease of use and platforms. Tailwind starts at $17.99 a month and scores 2.3.
Buffer scores higher and starts $12.99 a month lower. Of the other social media schedulers on the chart, none scores higher than Buffer for less, and 4 score higher than Tailwind for less.
Features, ease of use and platforms, averaged
What paid plans start at, a month (each step along is roughly double) →
- The best score at each price
- Has a free plan
- No free plan
Where they differ
- Buffer starts at $5 per channel / month, billed annually ($6 billed monthly). Tailwind starts at $17.99 per Pinterest account / month, billed annually ($29.99 monthly).
- Buffer has a free plan. Tailwind does not, though it has a free trial.
- Only Buffer lists iOS and Android apps.
- Buffer also covers templates.
At a glance
| Buffer | Tailwind | |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing | Free plan | Free trial |
| Starts at | $5 per channel / month, billed annually ($6 billed monthly) | $17.99 per Pinterest account / month, billed annually ($29.99 monthly) |
| Free plan | Up to 3 channels, 10 scheduled posts per channel at a time, 1 user, 100 saved ideas and 30 days of analytics history. | None |
| Free trial | 14-day free trial of the paid plans | One-time free actions per Pinterest account, including 10 scheduled Pins and 5 SmartPins; no card needed |
| Web | ||
| iOS | ||
| Android | ||
| Browser extension | ||
| Made by | Buffer | Tailwind (Bridesview, Inc.) |
| Price read from | buffer.com | tailwindapp.com |
| Checked | Oct 17, 2026 | Oct 17, 2026 |
Who each one suits
Buffer
- Solo creators and small businesses posting to a handful of accounts
- People who want a free plan for up to three social accounts
- Agencies that add and drop client accounts and want to pay only for those connected
Tailwind
- Bloggers and online shops that get traffic from Pinterest
- Sites with many pages they want turned into fresh Pins each week
- People who manage several Pinterest accounts and pay per account
Worth knowing
Buffer
- The Free plan holds only 10 scheduled posts per channel at a time and keeps 30 days of analytics.
- Essentials allows a single user; approval workflows, access controls and branded reports need Team.
- Upgrading means paying for every connected channel, including the three that were free.
- Instagram personal profiles and Facebook groups get reminder notifications to post by hand, not automatic publishing.
Tailwind
- Current plans cover Pinterest only; Instagram and Facebook scheduling are limited to legacy plans no longer sold.
- Pinterest SEO and Pinterest Engagement are each $11.99 a month billed yearly ($14.99 monthly) when bought on their own.
- Each plan has a monthly credit allowance that does not carry over; extra credits cost $10 per 100.
- Every Pinterest account needs its own subscription, and the free start is a one-time set of actions, not a free plan.
Key features
Buffer
- Queue and calendar
- Posts go into a per-channel queue or onto a visual calendar for Instagram, Facebook, LinkedIn, TikTok, X, Threads, Bluesky, Mastodon, Pinterest, YouTube, Substack and Google Business Profile.
- Ideas and AI Assistant
- An ideas board stores drafts and inspiration (100 on Free, unlimited on paid plans), and the AI Assistant helps write and repurpose posts on every plan.
- Community inbox
- Comments from connected accounts can be answered in one place, with saved replies and AI reply suggestions (5 a week on Free).
- Analytics and reports
- Insights cover follower growth, engagement and post performance. Free keeps 30 days of history; paid plans add reports and UTM tags, and Team adds branded reports.
- Start Page
- A link-in-bio page builder is included on every plan, alongside link shortening and a Chrome extension for sharing from any web page.
- API and MCP server
- Every plan includes API keys, from 3,000 requests a month on Free to 15,000 on Team, and Buffer lists a social media MCP server for AI tools.
Tailwind
- SmartSchedule
- Builds a posting calendar with suggested time slots, and spacing rules keep Pins from the same page from going out too close together.
- SmartPin
- Turns pages from your site into new Pin designs each week, picking images and writing copy. A basic SmartPin costs 3 credits and a premium one 7.
- Ghostwriter AI
- Drafts Pin titles, descriptions and alt text. Each generation uses 1 credit from the monthly allowance.
- Website sync and browser extension
- Pulls content from Shopify, WordPress, Squarespace and other sites, and the Chrome, Firefox and Safari extensions make Pins from any page.
- Pinterest SEO
- Keyword research with a single score per keyword, keyword tracking, and a view of which keywords Pinterest matched to each Pin. Sold as a separate tool.
- Turbo boosts
- The Pinterest Engagement tool puts chosen Pins in front of a community of Tailwind users for 30, 60 or 90 days. Sold as a separate tool.
Plans
Buffer
Free$0
Up to 3 channels and 1 user, 10 queued posts per channel at a time, the AI Assistant and a comment inbox.
Essentials$5
per channel / month, billed annually ($6 billed monthly)
1 user, unlimited scheduled posts, hashtag manager, first-comment scheduling and reports. The rate per channel drops after 10: $100 a month at 25 channels, billed annually.
Team$10
per channel / month, billed annually ($12 billed monthly)
Unlimited team members, approval workflows, access levels and branded reports. $150 a month at 25 channels, billed annually.
Tailwind
Pin Scheduling & Creation$17.99
per Pinterest account / month, billed annually ($29.99 monthly)
SmartSchedule, Pin spacing, website sync, weekly SmartPin creation and Ghostwriter copy, with 300 credits a month. Scheduling a Pin uses 1 credit.
Bundle$29.98
per Pinterest account / month, billed annually ($44.98 monthly)
Scheduling and creation plus the Pinterest SEO and Pinterest Engagement tools, with 400 credits a month. Saves $180 a year against monthly billing.
Ways to pay less
Buffer
- Annual discount
About two months free with yearly billing
Yearly billing brings Essentials to $5 a channel a month from $6, and Team to $10 from $12. The pricing page calls it saving two months.
- Nonprofit
50% off for nonprofits and charities
Buffer's pricing FAQ offers nonprofit and charity organizations a 50% discount on its paid plans.
Tailwind
- Annual discount
Up to 40% off with annual billing
Annual billing brings Pin Scheduling & Creation from $29.99 to $17.99 a month and the Bundle from $44.98 to $29.98, charged once a year.
- Nonprofit
50% off for nonprofits
Tailwind's pricing FAQ offers 50% off any product to verified nonprofits that send in their documentation.
