Later vs Sprout Social
We give Later a 2.4 GPA and Sprout Social a 2.2, out of 4.0. Later grades higher on value for money and ease of use. Sprout Social grades higher on features. They get the same grade on the free plan and platforms.
Price, platforms and features side by side. The table says where each price was read and when.
Later
Visual social media planner with link in bio and analytics
Sprout Social
Social media management with a shared inbox, listening and reports
How we grade them
| 2.4GPALaterFair | 2.2GPASprout SocialFair | |
|---|---|---|
| Value for money | CA team of two needs Growth, since Starter has one user: $37.50 a month billed yearly for 2 users and up to 16 profiles. That's above this category's $29 middle and under the $58 dearer quarter. Starter is $18.75 if you're on your own. | DEssentials is $79 a seat a month billed yearly and covers 5 profiles, so two people pay $158 a month and three $237. That's in this category's dearest tenth, from $99. And that plan has no inbox: Standard, which does, is $199 a seat. |
| Free plan and trial | CNo free plan, just a 14-day trial of the paid plans. That's enough to plan a couple of weeks of posts and see whether the calendar suits you. | CNo free plan, but a 30-day trial with no card needed, twice the usual 14 days here. That's time to run a whole month of posts through it. |
| Features | CVisual planner, best times, AI captions, link in bio, an inbox and approvals are all here. The gaps it shows: its eight networks leave out X and Bluesky, the inbox covers only Instagram, Facebook and TikTok, and Starter stops at 30 posts per profile a month. | BPublishing to 11 networks including Reddit and Snapchat, an inbox that pulls in messages, reviews and WhatsApp, approvals, competitor and paid reports, and an API. Nothing in the listing shows a gap in the core job; listening is an add-on. |
| Ease of use | BIts iPhone and iPad app averages 4.55 from about 2,500 ratings, solid but just short of an A. | CIts iPhone and iPad app averages 4.2 from about 1,300 ratings, and the full suite takes some setting up across profiles, inbox rules and reports. |
| Platforms and integrations | BWeb, iPhone, Android and a browser extension, with Canva, Mailchimp, Google Analytics and Mavely plugged in. No desktop app, which an A needs, and the integration list is short. | BWeb, iPhone and Android, with Salesforce, Zendesk, HubSpot, Canva, Slack, Shopify and Tableau, and the Sprout API on Advanced. No desktop app, which an A needs. |
| Best for | planning Instagram and TikTok visually | customer care on social for bigger teams |
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: Later and Sprout Social. How we grade
Price against what you get
Later starts at $18.75 a month and scores 2.7 out of 4 on features, ease of use and platforms. Sprout Social starts at $79 a month for each person and scores 2.7.
They score the same, and Later starts $60.25 a month lower. Of the other social media schedulers on the chart, 3 score higher than Later for less, and 3 score higher than Sprout Social 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
- Later starts at $18.75 per month for up to 8 social profiles, billed annually. Sprout Social starts at $79 per seat / month, billed annually ($99 billed monthly).
- Only Later lists a browser extension.
At a glance
| Later | Sprout Social | |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing | Free trial | Free trial |
| Starts at | $18.75 per month for up to 8 social profiles, billed annually | $79 per seat / month, billed annually ($99 billed monthly) |
| Free plan | None | None |
| Free trial | 14-day free trial | 30-day free trial, no credit card required |
| Web | ||
| iOS | ||
| Android | ||
| Browser extension | ||
| Made by | Later | Sprout Social, Inc. |
| Price read from | later.com | sproutsocial.com |
| Checked | Oct 17, 2026 | Oct 17, 2026 |
Who each one suits
Later
- Creators and brands built around Instagram and TikTok
- Small teams that want a link-in-bio page and scheduler together
- Agencies grouping each client's profiles into a social set
Sprout Social
- Marketing teams that handle social customer care in the same tool
- Brands that want competitor and paid reporting beside publishing
- Companies connecting social to Salesforce, Zendesk or HubSpot
Worth knowing
Later
- There is no free plan, only a 14-day trial, and the plans page shows annual-billed prices, which Later says are 25% below monthly billing.
- Starter has 1 user, 30 posts per profile a month and 3 months of analytics, with no add-ons; the social inbox and approvals need Growth.
- A social set holds one profile per network, so a second Instagram account needs a second set ($11.25 a month on Growth and Scale, billed annually).
- Competitor benchmarking, brand mentions and custom analytics are limited to Scale.
Sprout Social
- There is no free plan, and every seat is charged at the plan's full rate, from $79 a month on Essentials to $399 on Advanced, billed annually.
- Essentials and Standard stop at 5 social profiles; unlimited profiles start at Professional.
- The Sprout API and help desk integrations need Advanced at $399 per seat / month, billed annually.
- Listening and Premium Analytics are paid add-ons on top of the plan price, available from Standard.
Key features
Later
- Visual planner and auto-publishing
- Posts, Reels, Stories, Pins, Shorts and Snapchat Spotlight are dragged onto one calendar and published automatically, or by phone notification for Instagram and TikTok.
- Best time to post
- Suggested posting times for Instagram, TikTok and Facebook show in the calendar; seeing them across several profiles at once needs Growth or Scale.
- AI captions and ideas
- Caption Writer and Ideas run on monthly AI credits: 5 on Starter, 50 on Growth and 100 on Scale, where one credit is one caption or three ideas.
- Link in Bio
- A link-in-bio page with clickable posts, product carousels, email sign-up forms and Mavely affiliate links comes with every plan.
- Social inbox and approvals
- From Growth up, Instagram and Facebook DMs and comments and TikTok comments are answered on the web, and posts go through internal or external approval.
- Analytics and listening
- History runs to 3 months, 1 year or 2 years by plan. Scale adds custom cross-network reports, Meta ads data, competitor benchmarks and brand mentions.
Sprout Social
- Publishing calendar
- Posts for Facebook, Instagram, X, LinkedIn, TikTok, YouTube, Threads, Pinterest, Bluesky, Reddit and Snapchat are planned on one calendar, with optimal send times.
- Smart Inbox
- Messages, comments, Messenger and WhatsApp conversations and reviews arrive in one inbox, with tagging from Professional and sentiment on Advanced.
- Approvals and collaboration
- Message approval workflows, calendar notes and a shared asset library, with calendars that can be shared with people outside the account for sign-off.
- Reports and competitor insights
- Profile and post reports on every plan; competitor, tag and paid reports from Professional; team productivity and customer care reports on Advanced.
- Trellis AI agent
- Each seat gets 100 Trellis credits a month for questions about social data. Trellis Plus costs $28 per user a month billed annually ($35 monthly).
- Add-ons
- Listening, Premium Analytics and Employee Advocacy are sold separately on Standard and up, and influencer marketing is a separate product.
Plans
Later
Starter$18.75
per month for up to 8 social profiles, billed annually
1 social set (one profile per network), 1 user, 30 posts per profile a month, 5 AI credits and 3 months of analytics. No add-ons.
Growth$37.50
per month for up to 16 social profiles, billed annually
2 social sets, 2 users, 180 posts per profile a month, social inbox, approvals, UGC collection and 1 year of analytics.
Scale$82.50
per month for up to 48 social profiles, billed annually
6 social sets, 4 users, unlimited posts, custom and Meta ads analytics, benchmarks against 20 competitors, brand mentions and 2 years of data.
Sprout Social
Essentials$79
per seat / month, billed annually ($99 billed monthly)
Publishing for up to 5 social profiles, optimal send times, profile and post reports, and 100 Trellis AI credits a month.
Standard$199
per seat / month, billed annually ($249 billed monthly)
5 social profiles, the consolidated inbox, collaboration tools, keyword and location monitoring, and review management.
Professional$299
per seat / month, billed annually ($399 billed monthly)
Unlimited social profiles, message tagging, competitor, tag and paid insights, and AI post enhancement.
Advanced$399
per seat / month, billed annually ($499 billed monthly)
AI reply help, inbox sentiment, the Sprout API, help desk integrations, team productivity and customer care reports, and spike alerts.
EnterpriseCustom
A tailored plan with white-glove onboarding, single sign-on setup and priority support.
Ways to pay less
Later
- Annual discount
25% off with annual billing
Later says annual plans save 25% against monthly billing, which it describes as three months free.
- Nonprofit
50% off the annual Growth plan for nonprofits
Later's pricing FAQ gives qualified nonprofit organizations 50% off the Growth plan when billed annually.
Sprout Social
- Annual discount
About 20% off with annual billing
Paying for a year up front brings Standard to $199 a seat a month from $249, Professional to $299 from $399 and Advanced to $399 from $499.
- Nonprofit
Nonprofit pricing on Professional and Advanced
US nonprofits that commit to at least two seats on an annual plan pay $239 a seat a month for Professional and $299 for Advanced.
