Taking on social media is a big challenge and requires time, money, and effort – although it’s worth it for the benefits of social media marketing. Thankfully, there are hundreds of social media tools out there to help marketers – whether it’s for scheduling, monitoring performance, or creating content, there’s a useful tool for everything. I have personally used or currently use them and these are the 13 best social media tools based on my opinion. Keep in mind that some of the tools cost money and some are free with limited use.
Best Social Media Management Tools:
- Sendible
- Notion
- SocialBee
- SocialPilot
- AdCreative.ai
- Venngage
- Buffer
- CoSchedule
- Insense
- Upfluence
- Linktree
- Bitly
- Canva
Sendible
Sendible is a popular social media management tool designed for agencies, marketers, and brand managers. It offers a range of features that help marketers grow their audience, attract new customers, and achieve social media goals. With the ability to add custom branding to dashboards and scalable pricing, Sendible is a perfect solution for agencies.
There are multiple plans available with prices starting at $29/Mo. for the ‘Creator’ plan but users can save 15% when opting for yearly. The Creator plan would be suitable for an individual or someone managing one brand’s social channels. The other three pricing plans are ideal for agencies where they offer collaboration, multiple profiles, and custom branding.
With Sendible you can also get:
- A 14-day free trial
- No card required
- Cancel anytime
- No contract
Top Feature Pick
The White Labeling feature is a personal favorite of mine – offering an effective solution to digital marketing agencies managing social media for their clients.
Top Sendible Features:
- Direct Scheduling: Schedule a month’s worth of content in minutes, with the ability to add profile tags, locations, and hashtags.
- Content Ideas and Customization: It provides a dashboard holiday calendar, automated RSS feeds, Google Alerts, and access to GIPHY, Pexels, and Canva for support with content creation.
- Client Collaboration: Secure client dashboards are available for agencies and there’s a feature for in-app approval of posts.
- Analytics and Reporting: Sendible offers automated reports to showcase results and insights into best-performing posts to inform strategy.
- Audience Engagement: A centralized inbox allows for quick responses to comments, direct messages, and mentions.
- White Label Dashboard: Agencies can white label Sendible’s platform to build trust and create new revenue streams.
- Social Media Platform Integration: Sendible supports major platforms like Instagram, Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter, YouTube, Google Business Profiles, and TikTok, offering specific tools for managing each.
- Reliability: The platform boasts an uptime of 99.8%, ensuring reliable service and proactive reconnections.
Notion
Notion is a versatile workspace platform that offers a wide range of features to enhance productivity, organization, and collaboration. While it’s not specifically built for social media, Notion is an invaluable tool for marketers who manage social media. It can be used for content planning, brainstorming, and repurposing content, and even has built-in AI to support content generation – although if you prefer to write manually, you should understand how to write a social media post.
The best thing about Notion is that it’s free on the most basic plan. However, I would only recommend the free plan for individuals looking to manage their socials. For social media marketers, businesses, and agencies, the paid plans available offer so much more – and not at the same expense as some of the tools on this list.
Top Feature Pick
One of my top features for Notion is the AI integration. It can save time and improve efficiency and workflow when used correctly.
Top Notion Features:
- AI Integration: Notion includes an AI assistant to help users find answers and streamline their workflow.
- Documentation and Notes: The platform provides tools for creating simple, powerful, and visually appealing notes and documents.
- Wikis: Users can centralize their knowledge, making it easier to access and manage information.
- Project Management: Notion facilitates the management of complex projects with tools that help reduce chaos and increase organization.
- Calendar Integration: A new calendar feature allows users to manage their time and projects more effectively.
- Template Gallery: The platform offers various templates to get users started on different projects and tasks.
- Customization: Users can customize information tracking with labels, tags, and more, ensuring everything stays organized.
- Drag and Drop Interface: Building any page is made easy with a drag-and-drop interface for images, to-do lists, and even embedded databases.
- Free and Paid Plans: Notion is free for individual use, with paid plans available for teams requiring advanced features.
SocialBee
SocialBee is an AI-powered social media management tool designed to help professionals, individuals, and agencies efficiently manage their social media presence. With built-in AI and integrations such as Canva and Unsplash, SocialBee has some great features and use cases for content marketers. If you are looking for an all-in-one tool that can schedule, create, track, measure, and engage, in a modern and clean dashboard, then this is no doubt the tool for you.
SocialBee doesn’t have a free plan, but in terms of pricing, there are separate plans for individuals and large agencies, discounts on yearly plans (16%), and also a 14-day free trial. The key differences between pricing plans are the number of users, workspaces, social accounts, and stored data. With the starting price at $24/Mo. SocialBee is great value for money considering the features it has as a social media management tool
Top Feature Pick
My top feature pick for SocialBee is the automation itself. It’s easy to set up and works effectively. With the ability to automate social content, marketers can save time while still driving results.
Top SocialBee Features:
- Content Creation: Craft and customize captions and visuals for various platforms, with integrations like Canva and Unsplash.
- Engagement Management: Efficient handling of social mentions, comments, and DMs.
- Scheduling & Publishing: Automate scheduling, publishing, and resharing of content.
- Collaboration Tools: Team invitations, role assignments, feedback, and post approvals.
- AI Assistant: Plan a social media strategy using AI-generated content plans & also generate AI content.
- Analytics: Track social performance and generate detailed reports.
- Network Integrations: Supports platforms like Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, and more.
- Diverse User Base: Suitable for freelancers, businesses, agencies, and various professionals.
SocialPilot
SocialPilot is a top-rated social media management and analytics tool designed for efficiency and ease of use. The platform, focused on SMBs, agencies, and large brands, offers a variety of features including AI integrations, collaboration, whitelabeling, and integrated analytics.
The platform itself has a clean and simple interface, making it easy to use and navigate for anyone getting started. Although I haven’t tested it to the full extent, SocialPilot appears to have more features and functionality than some of the other social media tools on this list.
SocialPilot has 4 pricing plans that range from individual users to agencies – and everything in between. Similar to other SMM tools, you can get a 15% discount by choosing to pay annually, otherwise, prices start from $30/Mo. for an individual user. There is a 14-day free trial available, you can switch pricing plans at any time, and you can also cancel at any point.
Top Feature Pick
My top feature pick for this social media management tool is the collaboration function. It’s simple to add people to a team, assign them roles, and also to remove people from that access. The interface is clean and simple, leaving no room for questions.
Top SocialPilot Features:
- Publishing: Advanced scheduling and publishing features for various platforms.
- Analytics: Detailed analytics with custom reports and automatic scheduling.
- Engagement: Unified inbox for managing social interactions.
- Collaboration: Features for team collaboration and client management.
- White Label: Customization options for a branded experience.
- AI Assistant: AI-driven content creation tools.
- Bulk Scheduling: Capability to schedule numerous posts simultaneously.
- Content Library: Storage for reusable content and hashtags.
AdCreative.ai
AdCreative.ai is a relatively new product – but has been labeled one of the ‘top 3 fastest growing products in the world’. The AI-powered tool offers a range of features for creating and enhancing digital advertising – including social media ads. According to AdCreative.ai, users experience up to 14x higher conversion rates and over 95% improve their CTR by using ads created with the tool. It can be used to generate creatives, and ad copy, monitor insights, and even monitor competitor ads.
Unfortunately, there is no free plan for AdCreative.ai, however, there is a 7-day free trial where you can test the account and features. Other paid pricing plans are calculated by credits (similar to most AI-based products) and start at $29/Mo. with a 50% discount being offered for yearly billing. Credits work on a monthly basis and 1 = 1 download.
Top Feature Pick
I have only used AdCreative.ai briefly – however, one of my favorite features is the ‘Product Photoshoot’. This feature uses AI to transform your product images into professional-looking photoshoots, which can then be used for a better-quality ad visual.
Top AdCreative.ai Features:
- AI-Generated Creatives: Produces AI-driven ad visuals and texts.
- Creative Insights: Analyzes ad performance for optimization.
- Competitor Analysis: Monitors and learns from competitors’ ads.
- Integration with Ad Platforms: Works seamlessly with major advertising platforms.
- Creative Scoring: Predicts the performance of ad creatives.
- Customizable Ad Campaigns: Tailors campaigns to specific needs and objectives.
- Generate Product Photoshoots: Upload product images and turn them into photoshoots.
- Complete Ad Package: Use AI to deliver a complete ad project.
Venngage
Venngage is a little bit different from the other tools on this list, it’s mainly an infographic creation tool offering a diverse range of templates, with other features perhaps not suited to social media usage. However, if you are looking for a tool to create high-quality infographics for social media, this is it. As an alternative to Canva, Venngage has a free plan with limited features then premium options with extended features. It’s suitable for individuals, agencies, businesses, and anyone looking to create infographics for social media.
Aside from the free plan (when you create an account), there are 3 other pricing plans available for individuals, businesses, and larger brands/agencies. Users can save 52% when paying annually – a larger discount than other tools on this list – but $19/Mo. is still acceptable. I would only recommend the paid plan if you create a lot of infographics – and perhaps use some of the other features such as presentations and mind-maps for example.
Top Feature Pick
This is slightly different from the other tools but my top feature pick would be the number of ‘free’ templates that are available. There are many options and using the free account doesn’t feel like you are getting premium thrown in your face at every opportunity.
Top Venngage Features:
- Infographic Maker: Streamlines the creation of infographics for various purposes.
- Brochure, Poster, and Flyer Makers: Tools for creating marketing and promotional materials.
- Data Visualization Tools: Helps in making complex data easily understandable.
- AI-Infographic Generator: Uses AI to create infographics from prompts or data.
- Text Improvement Feature: Enhances content quality with AI recommendations.
- Accessibility Tools: Ensures that designs are accessible to all users.
- Brand Kit and Collaboration Tools: Facilitates brand consistency and teamwork.
Buffer
Buffer is a social media ‘toolkit’ tailored for individuals, small businesses, and small agencies – with a focus on growing audiences organically. The main features of Buffer include publishing, analytics, and engagement, not forgetting the added ‘AI assistant’. They also have the option of creating ‘custom landing pages’ that go into your social bio and contain links to external sites/platforms. Buffer is well-known in the marketing world and is a great social media tool for those focused on organic growth.
Similar to other social tools, Buffer has a free plan – again with limited features. Then there are 3 paid plans starting at $6/Mo. per social channel (6 channels = $30/Mo.). If you opt for yearly billing, you can save 2 months. Although the free plan is great – I recommend opting for a paid plan to take advantage of Buffer’s features. Again, there is a 14-day free trial too!
Top Feature Pick
Although I don’t like the use of AI for content, I think that Buffer has ‘done it right’ when it comes to integrating AI into a platform. It’s easy to use and helps users with ideas, content creation, and even content repurposing.
Top Buffer Features:
- Content Creation: AI-assisted post creation for various social media platforms.
- Publishing: Tools for planning, collaborating, and publishing content.
- Analytics: Analyzing social media performance and generating reports.
- Engagement: Managing comments and audience interaction.
- Start Page: Building customized landing pages.
- AI Assistant: Generating ideas and rewriting copy.
- Wide Channel Support: Integrations with platforms like Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, and others.
CoScheulde
CoSchedule is a social calendar offering features for streamlined planning, scheduling, and analysis of social media content. It allows you to create a social strategy, and campaigns, create posts, and republish content at a later date to boost engagement. There are also built-in analytics within the tool, so you can measure the success of your content strategy. The calendar itself is a drag-and-drop interface, which offers seamless scheduling and moving content throughout the month.
Plans for CoSchedule are slightly different from the other social media tools on this list. They are separated into use cases – however, all plans apply to managing social media content. While the free plan is great – I highly recommend the ‘Social Calendar’ option to truly unlock the power of using a social content calendar. There are additional costs for adding social channels and also for adding users, which can be found on their pricing page.
Top Feature Pick
My favorite feature of CoSchedule is the ability to bulk schedule your social posts. It’s a simple feature – yet very effective if you are managing a shed load of content for socials.
Top CoSchedule Features:
- Social Media Calendar: A visual overview of the entire social strategy.
- Social Campaigns: Organize and track multiple social messages.
- Drag & Drop Rescheduling: Flexibility in changing social schedules.
- Social Composer: Crafting powerful social messages with optimization.
- AI Social Assistant: AI-driven content creation.
- Social Message Optimizer: Enhancing engagement and conversions.
- ReQueue: Automated publishing of top content.
- Social Templates: Predefined sharing plans for reuse.
- Best Time Scheduler: Optimized posting times.
- Social Engagement and Campaign Reports: Detailed analytics on social performance.
Insense
If you are looking to get started with influencer marketing and don’t know how – another one of the best social media tools you can use is Insense. Insense aims to simplify influencer marketing for brands, focusing on authentic content creation and efficient campaign management. The platform itself hosts a ‘Creator Marketplace’ where marketers can browse through influencers to collaborate with and run campaigns. Insense takes the complexities away from influencer marketing by being the middleman.
Insense is split into two different areas – businesses and brands, then creators. The pricing plans, as shown below, are for businesses looking to run influencer marketing campaigns. This is then split into quarterly and yearly payments (yearly offering some discounts), in addition to that, there are other pricing plans for ‘Managed Services’. Aside from the pricing plans, there are additional marketplace fees and direct fees to creators.
Top Feature Pick
While I have only used Insense on a couple of occasions, the best feature in my opinion is the marketplace. It makes searching and contacting influencers almost effortless, compared to doing it manually.
Top Insense Features:
- Influencer Discovery: Tools to find and connect with relevant influencers.
- Creator Marketplace: Browse through a marketplace of influencers.
- Matching Service: Complete a brief and get matched with suitable influencers.
- Direct Chat: Directly communicate with influencers and discuss collaboration.
- Legalities Covered: Agreements, payments, and copyrights are covered in the platform.
- Creator Licensing: Run whitelisted ads and increase CTR.
- TikTok Spark Ads: Run TikTok Spark ads with influencer partnerships.
- Content Creation: Collaboration with creators for authentic and engaging content.
- Campaign Management: Tools for managing and tracking influencer campaigns.
- Analytics and Reporting: Insights into campaign performance and influencer impact.
Upfluence
Upfluence is an advanced influencer and affiliate marketing platform. Similar to the previous social tool, Upfluence offers brands a way to search and find influencers on the platform. However, Upfluence drills down more into the data and analyzes the performance of influencers, including their engagement, likes, and comments, and even has a suggested price for working with them. Further to this, the platform has built-in workflow features that are supported by AI – to collaborate with creators in bulk.
If you want to learn more about the pricing of Upfluence – you will have to contact their team. Pricing is not openly displayed online.
Top Feature Pick
While I haven’t directly used Upfluence, I have seen it in action. One of the top features for me is being able to see the data for each influencer which helps to weed out the ‘fake’ profiles and ensure quality in your campaigns, which is essential according to the latest influencer marketing stats.
Top Upfluence Features:
- Influencer Discovery: Search and identify relevant influencers.
- Campaign Management: Tools to manage and track influencer campaigns.
- E-commerce Integration: Seamless integration with popular e-commerce platforms.
- Affiliate Marketing: Manage affiliate programs effectively.
- Influencer Analytics: Insights into influencer performance and audience.
- ChatGPT Integration: Enhancing interactions and insights with AI.
- Content Collaboration: Collaborate with influencers for content creation.
- Payment Solutions: Streamlined payment processes for influencers.
Linktree
Linktree is designed to simplify online content sharing, making it a popular tool for influencers, creators, and businesses. Instead of having one link in your social media bio, Linktree acts as a condensed landing page where you have hundreds of links to products, blogs, web content, or anything you like. The idea is to provide audiences with easier access to products and information – reducing the need for manual search. It’s easy to set up and simple to manage, making it an effective social media tool.
You’ll be glad to know that Linktree does have a free plan with basic features, but it’s perfect if you are an individual just looking to add links. For better features including scheduling, affiliate marketing tools, and advanced customization, you should really consider one of the paid plans. By opting for an annual plan you can save 30% and currently, only the Pro plan is offering a trial.
Top Feature Pick
My favorite feature is in the Pro plan where you can auto-generate affiliate links for certain programs – in particular, Amazon Associates. This makes affiliate marketing much easier and saves time.
Top Linktree Features:
- Single Link Creation: Consolidate multiple links into one.
- Customization: Personalize the appearance of your Linktree.
- Analytics: Track engagement and clicks.
- Integration: Connect to various social media platforms and services.
- Monetization Tools: Options for collecting payments or donations.
- Affiliate Marketing: Connect affiliate marketing programs and track.
Bitly
Bitly offers link management solutions, mainly link shortening, QR code customization, and ‘link-in-bio’ pages similar to Linktree. Two of these features can assist with social media management – link shortening cleaning up posts and encouraging clicks and link-in-bio to direct users to other destinations. Bitly also has built-in analytics which help users track the performance of QR codes and links in bio.
For most people, the free version of Bitly is enough. However, if you plan on implementing the features often, then it would make sense to upgrade to one of the paid plans. There is up to a 34% discount offered for annual billing and custom pricing is also available as an Enterprise solution.
Top Feature Pick
Although it’s a simple one, the free link shortener is a great feature. It really tidies up social posts, instead of having a URL that takes up 4 sentences!
Top Bitly Features:
- URL Shortener: Simplifies creating and sharing short links.
- QR Codes: Generates dynamic and customiThanzable QR codes.
- Link-in-bio Pages: Design pages for social media profiles.
- Analytics: Provides detailed tracking and performance metrics.
- Custom Branding: Enables branded links for enhanced recognition.
- Integration Options: Supports various app integrations.
Canva
Unless you’ve been living under a rock, everyone has heard of Canva. It is one of the most popular online design and visual communication platforms out there with many many features. In particular, it features templates tailored to pretty much every social media platform out there – with the correct dimensions. This includes videos, images, infographics, and much more. Then there’s the brand toolkits and collaboration features which really take the platform to the next level.
Given the popularity and features of Canva, it’s popular for individuals, marketing teams, agencies, brands, and huge organizations; meaning that it has many different pricing plans tailored to different use cases. The most important thing to note is that there is a free version – which is perfectly fine for individuals and very small businesses. If anything more than that, then a paid plan is essential
Top Feature Pick
Canva has so many features to choose from – my top pick is the integration of stock imagery and videos. It makes the process of creating visuals 10x easier and users don’t have to search around for ages to find the perfect image. Plus, there are options to directly edit those images in the editor pane.
Top Canva Features:
- Design Tools: Tools including a visual suite, video and photo editors, PDF editor, and more.
- Templates and Resources: Thousands of free, ready-to-use templates with a range of design ideas are available.
- Brand Features: Add your brand palette, logo, and assets for easy team collaboration.
- Stock Image & Video Library: On free and paid plans – access thousands of stock assets.
- Custom Import: Import your own images/documents to use in the editor.
- Built-In AI: Many AI features to streamline your workflow.
- Business Solutions: With features for content creation, visual communication, brand management, team collaboration, and more.
- Free and Paid Plans: It offers various plans including free, Pro, and Teams, catering to different user needs.
