Hootsuite vs SocialPilot
We give Hootsuite a 2.6 GPA and SocialPilot a 2.4, out of 4.0. Hootsuite grades higher on ease of use. SocialPilot grades higher on value for money. They get the same grade on the free plan, features and platforms.
Price, platforms and features side by side. The table says where each price was read and when.
Hootsuite
Social media suite for publishing, inbox, listening and reports
SocialPilot
Social media scheduler for agencies and small teams, priced by plan
How we grade them
| 2.6GPAHootsuiteGood | 2.4GPASocialPilotFair | |
|---|---|---|
| Value for money | DStandard is $99 a user a month billed yearly, so two people managing five profiles pay $198 a month and three pay $297. That's in this category's dearest tenth, which starts at $99. Listening and competitor benchmarks are what the money buys over cheaper tools. | CEssentials is one user, so a team of two or three buys Standard: $42.50 a month billed yearly for 15 accounts and 3 users. That's above this category's $29 middle and under the $58 dearer quarter. |
| Free plan and trial | CNo free plan, but a 14-day trial with no card needed. Trial accounts are held to 10 to 20 posts a day and can't bulk schedule, which is fine for a look around. | CNo free plan, but a 14-day trial with no card needed. |
| Features | BPublishing to nine networks, a shared inbox with WhatsApp in it, listening, benchmarks against 5 competitors and analytics on the first plan. Nothing in the listing shows a gap in the core job; approvals and routing just cost more, on Advanced. | BQueues and a calendar for 10 networks, RSS, AI credits, an inbox, analytics, approvals and white-label reports for agencies. Nothing in the listing shows a gap in the core job; the API is held back for Enterprise. |
| Ease of use | AIts iPhone and iPad app averages 4.7 from about 34,300 ratings. Connecting profiles and setting up approvals takes a little time, but people clearly get on with it. | CThere's no App Store rating on record for us to go by, and you'll connect accounts and set up queues first. So it gets the ordinary grade. |
| Platforms and integrations | BWeb, iPhone and Android, with more than 100 apps in its directory, among them Canva, Salesforce, Slack and monday.com, plus MCP connectors for ChatGPT and Claude. No desktop app, which an A needs. | BWeb, iPhone, Android and a browser extension, with Canva, Slack, Zapier, Google Drive, Dropbox, Box and Unsplash. No desktop app, which an A needs. |
| Best for | publishing, inbox and listening in one place | small teams that want an inbox on a budget |
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: Hootsuite and SocialPilot. How we grade
Price against what you get
Hootsuite starts at $99 a month for each person and scores 3.3 out of 4 on features, ease of use and platforms. SocialPilot starts at $25.50 a month and scores 2.7.
Hootsuite scores higher, and starts $73.50 a month higher: the question is whether the extra is worth that to you. Of the other social media schedulers on the chart, none scores higher than Hootsuite for less, and 3 score higher than SocialPilot 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
- Hootsuite starts at $99 per user / month, billed annually. SocialPilot starts at $25.50 per month for up to 7 accounts, billed annually ($30 billed monthly).
- Only SocialPilot lists a browser extension.
- Hootsuite also covers shared inbox.
At a glance
| Hootsuite | SocialPilot | |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing | Free trial | Free trial |
| Starts at | $99 per user / month, billed annually | $25.50 per month for up to 7 accounts, billed annually ($30 billed monthly) |
| Free plan | None | None |
| Free trial | 14-day free trial, no credit card required | 14-day free trial, no credit card required |
| Web | ||
| iOS | ||
| Android | ||
| Browser extension | ||
| Made by | Hootsuite Inc. | SocialPilot Technologies Inc. |
| Price read from | hootsuite.com | socialpilot.co |
| Checked | Oct 17, 2026 | Oct 17, 2026 |
Who each one suits
Hootsuite
- Marketing and social teams that also handle customer messages on social
- Brands that want listening and competitor tracking beside publishing
- Larger organizations that need approvals, routing and single sign-on
SocialPilot
- Small agencies that want client approvals and branded reports at a flat price
- Teams posting from RSS feeds or bulk CSV files
- Freelancers managing a handful of accounts on a budget
Worth knowing
Hootsuite
- There is no free plan. Trial accounts are limited to 10 to 20 posts a day and cannot bulk schedule.
- Every user is a paid seat, and Standard stops at 10 social accounts; unlimited accounts need Professional at $199 per user / month.
- Approval workflows and message assignment need Advanced at $399 per user / month; single sign-on is Enterprise only.
- Monthly billing is offered at a higher rate than the annual figures the plans page shows, but the monthly price is not published there.
SocialPilot
- There is no free plan, only a 14-day trial.
- Essentials has 1 user and no inbox, analytics or approvals; those start on Standard.
- Extra social accounts cost $4 a month each and extra users $5 a month each.
- Bulk scheduling, client approvals and white-label reports need Premium; API access is limited to Enterprise.
Key features
Hootsuite
- Publishing calendar
- Posts for Instagram, Facebook, TikTok, YouTube, X, LinkedIn, Threads, Pinterest and Bluesky are planned on one calendar, with best-time suggestions and bulk scheduling.
- Shared inbox
- DMs and comments land in one inbox, WhatsApp included, with saved and suggested replies. Professional automates replies; Advanced adds assignment and routing.
- Listening and competitors
- Track mentions, trends and competitors' posting. Standard benchmarks 5 competitors and Professional 20; Enterprise covers 13 months of history across more sources.
- Analytics and reports
- Performance analytics come with every plan. Custom, scheduled and exported reports start on Professional, and branded reports shared outside the account need Advanced.
- Wisdom AI and MCP connectors
- An AI assistant drafts posts, recommends and analyzes on every plan, and MCP connectors let ChatGPT, Claude, Copilot and Gemini run Hootsuite tasks.
- App directory
- More than 100 apps plug into the dashboard, among them Canva and Adobe Express in the composer, Salesforce, Slack, monday.com and Google Business Profile.
SocialPilot
- Queues and calendar
- Posts for Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, X, Threads, TikTok, Pinterest, YouTube, Google Business Profile and Bluesky go into smart queues or onto a calendar view.
- Bulk and RSS scheduling
- CSV uploads and bulk scheduling start on Premium, and every plan can pull posts from RSS feeds (5 on Essentials up to 20 on Ultimate).
- AI Pilot credits
- An AI writer drafts and adapts posts on monthly credits: 500 on Essentials, 1,000 on Standard, 5,000 on Premium and unlimited on Ultimate.
- Social inbox
- From Standard, comments, messages and story replies are answered in one inbox, with inbox automation.
- Analytics and white-label reports
- Standard adds analytics and emailed PDF reports; Premium adds custom and competitor reports and reports carrying the agency's own branding.
- Client management and approvals
- Premium gives clients their own seats to review and approve posts, and Ultimate adds an advanced white-label dashboard.
Plans
Hootsuite
Standard$99
per user / month, billed annually
Up to 10 social accounts, unlimited scheduling, AI posts and images, a shared inbox, listening and benchmarks against 5 competitors.
Professional$199
per user / month, billed annually
Unlimited social accounts, automated inbox replies and DMs, 30-day Quick Search, 90-day trend forecasts and custom scheduled reports.
Advanced$399
per user / month, billed annually
Approval workflows, internal comments, message assignment and routing, satisfaction surveys, team productivity and branded reports.
EnterpriseCustom
Single sign-on, compliance tools, 13 months of listening history, attribution and ROI reporting, employee advocacy and onboarding.
SocialPilot
Essentials$25.50
per month for up to 7 accounts, billed annually ($30 billed monthly)
7 social accounts, 1 user, 500 AI credits, smart queues, a calendar, a content library and 5 RSS feeds.
Standard$42.50
per month for up to 15 accounts, billed annually ($50 billed monthly)
15 accounts, 3 users, 1,000 AI credits, the social inbox, analytics, PDF reports and manager approvals.
Premium$85
per month for up to 25 accounts, billed annually ($100 billed monthly)
25 accounts, 6 users, unlimited client seats, bulk scheduling, custom and competitor reports, client approvals and white-label reports.
Ultimate$170
per month for up to 50 accounts, billed annually ($200 billed monthly)
50 accounts, unlimited users and AI credits, advanced white label, enforced 2FA, migration help and an account manager.
EnterpriseCustom
Custom account limits, unlimited users and clients, single sign-on and API access.
Ways to pay less
Hootsuite
- Nonprofit
Up to 60% off for nonprofits
The HootGiving program gives approved nonprofits a discount of up to 60% on the Standard, Professional and Advanced plans, by application.
SocialPilot
- Annual discount
15% off with annual billing
Annual billing brings Essentials to $25.50 a month from $30, Standard to $42.50 from $50, Premium to $85 from $100 and Ultimate to $170 from $200.
