Hootsuite Pricing Guide 2025: Is it Worth the Price at All?

For any brand or business to win online today, you’ve got to nail your social media game. That means staying in the loop. Every post matters, and every comment counts.

Unfortunately, this is not an easy task unless you have the right tools by your side.

With a social media management tool, you can handle your social media presence more seamlessly. It keeps you organized, saves you time, and literally takes the stress off you.

But there are so many options out there. So, which one gives you exactly what you need, without making a hole in your wallet?

Hootsuite is undoubtedly one of the big names you’ll see in your search for a social media management tool. You’ve probably come across it already.

But what does it actually cost in 2025? And more importantly, is it still worth the investment?

This guide will give you a breakdown of Hootsuite pricing & features in 2025, so you can make an informed decision for your brand.

 

Hootsuite New Pricing: Why Did Hootsuite Increase Pricing?

Hootsuite recently dropped a bombshell on its users. They got rid of the free plan and jacked up every plan by over 40%.

What used to be free now starts at $99 a month (plus tax).

Now you only have three paid options: Standard, Advanced, and Enterprise.

Hootsuite’s Old Pricing

 

The Standard plan now starts at $99 a month. The Advanced plan? That’s $249 per month when you pay yearly.

And don’t forget the extra fees at checkout. So, while you are hoping to pay $99 per month at checkout, you are suddenly paying a lot more.

Many users were shocked, and people who once loved Hootsuite began hunting for cheaper tools.

Tweets, blog posts, and Facebook comments lit up with complaints. Some even jumped ship altogether.

But why has Hootsuite increased its pricing? 

Unfortunately, Hootsuite hasn’t offered a word of real explanation on why they did it.

No big announcement, no official reason. Just a wave of angry tweets and comments from their users about the sudden increase in price.

But here is what we think is the case: Hootsuite is likely taking its focus away from small clients who could pay $5.99 per month.

They now seem to be aiming for larger businesses that can handle higher bills. And in the process, they’ve left plenty of small brands looking elsewhere.

 

Complete Breakdown of Hootsuite Pricing: What You Need to Know in 2025

While we’re still not sure why Hootsuite quietly scrapped its free tier and hiked prices, let’s take a closer look at the three Hootsuite paid plans you can choose in 2025.

Remember: if you were hoping for a free option, it’s gone for good.

Standard Plan – $149/month

This is the most basic paid plan Hootsuite offers. It’s aimed at solo creators and very small teams who need a simple way to stay active across social channels.

The plan costs $99 per month if billed annually, and $149 per month if you want to pay monthly.

The Standard plan allows you to connect up to 5 social profiles and manage them all from one dashboard.

Scheduling is unlimited, so you can queue as many posts as you like. You also get a single inbox that brings every comment and message into one place.

It offers an AI caption and hashtag generator. This makes it easier for users to quickly generate the write captions for their posts, accompanied by the right hashtags.

The analytics are simple but enough to track your basic performance. This gives you quick insights into your post performance without any complicated charts.

The Standard plan is well-suited for small businesses. However, the plan lacks some essential features that can hold you back as you grow.

Limitations:

• Accommodates only one user seat – no way to add extra team members
• Limited to 5 social profiles with no ability to add more
• No content approval or review workflows to streamline teamwork
• Basic support only, which can mean slower response times
• No dedicated asset library for your media files

 

Advanced Plan – $399/month

While the Standard plan works for one person, growing teams need more. That’s where the Advanced Plan comes in.

It’s built on the basics of the Standard tier but adds features to help small teams work together.

You can have up to three users sharing the same dashboard.

Everyone can see the team content calendar and slot in posts where they’re needed.

You also get twice as many social profiles – up to 20 accounts. That makes it easy to manage multiple brands, locations, or side projects all in one place.

Analytics step up a notch, too. It shows you team-wide performance metrics and deeper engagement reports.

Limitations:

• Fixed at three users with no option to add more
• Limited to 20 social profiles
• No advanced approval workflows beyond basics
• No content library to store and reuse assets
• Lacks advanced analytics or custom reporting
• No social listening tools to track brand mentions and trends

 

Hootsuite Enterprise Plan – Custom Pricing (Starts from $15,000)

The Enterprise Plan is Hootsuite’s top-tier offering.

It’s built for large organizations with big social media teams and complex needs.

Here, most of the caps on users and profiles no longer exist. You get full control with custom team permissions and multi-level approval workflows.

Advanced analytics let you build your own reports.

On the support side, you get a dedicated account manager and priority help.

That said, even this plan comes with its own hurdles:

Limitations:

• Requires a minimum annual commitment of $15,000 upfront
• Extra users cost between $1,800 and $2,000 per person each year
• Some advanced features need additional fees
• Premier services, custom consulting, and specialized training are add-ons that drive up the total bill

 

Side-by-Side Pricing: Hootsuite vs OnlySocial

Both Hootsuite and OnlySocial offer three paid plans, and neither has a free tier.

But the cost gap is hard to ignore.

On annual billing, Hootsuite’s entry-level plan starts at $99 per month. Whereas, OnlySocial’s Freelancer Plan kicks off at just $24 per month.

With OnlySocial, you get one user seat, unlimited post scheduling, and up to 15 social accounts, plus the option to add more as you grow.

Hootsuite, on the other hand, only lets you link 5 social accounts on its Standard tier, and still charges four times as much.

Hootsuite’s next level jumps to $249 per month (billed yearly).

By comparison, OnlySocial’s mid-tier plan, the Entrepreneur Plan, is $41 per month. You still enjoy unlimited scheduling, more user seats, and the freedom to add extra profiles at a fraction of the cost.

For large teams, Hootsuite’s Enterprise plan demands a minimum $15,000 annual commitment. Whereas, OnlySocial’s highest plan is $99 per month on a month-to-month basis.

With the plan, you get all the advanced features a big organization needs, without the huge upfront fee.

When you stack the numbers side-by-side, OnlySocial clearly delivers more: more social accounts, more flexibility, and far lower prices.

It’s indeed an alternative worth a closer look.

Let’s check out the features offered by the two tools to see how they match up.

 

 

Hootsuite vs OlySocial: A Detailed Feature Comparison

A good social media tool should feel like your right hand.

It should make your life easier by cutting your workload in half and handling the busywork you’d otherwise do manually.

It should be clean, simple, and fast. And it must pack the core features every social manager needs.

With these must-have features mentioned, let’s compare how Hootsuite and OnlySocial match up.

Let’s see which one gives you more bang for your buck.

1. Supported Networks

You need to post everywhere your audience hangs out.

Hootsuite covers the big 9: Facebook, Instagram, Twitter (X), LinkedIn, TikTok, Pinterest, YouTube, WhatsApp Business, and Threads.

OnlySocial goes further. You get those nine plus Telegram, Google Business Profile, Bluesky, Mastodon, Reddit, and Tumblr.

That’s 15 networks in total.

This means you are getting an even larger number of integrations with OnlySocial, without adding extra cost.

 

2. Publishing & Scheduling

Both tools let you queue posts from one dashboard. But OnlySocial layers on extras to make life easier.

You get a hashtag manager, content tagging, drafts, post previews, location tagging, and even auto-watermarks.

Bulk scheduling and custom queues work in both tools, but OnlySocial also offers cross-platform scheduling and a content library.

With Hootsuite, you’ll miss some of these small time-savers that add up fast.

 

3. Analytics & Monitoring

After your content drops, you need data to guide your next move.

Both platforms serve up charts, custom reports, and downloadable exports.

They point out your best times to post and break down engagement by network.

In our tests, the analytics felt neck-and-neck. Neither tool pulls ahead here. You get solid reporting either way.

4. Social Media Calendar

A visual calendar keeps your campaigns on track. Hootsuite and OnlySocial both show a grid view of all scheduled, published, or failed posts.

You can also easily drag and drop to reschedule or edit directly in the calendar.

The calendar of both tools also comes with a filtering feature. This makes it easy for users to filter posts according to published, deleted, or failed.

The calendars are nearly identical, so why pay extra for this feature with Hootsuite?

 

5. Customer Support

According to surveys, most people said they are more likely to stick to a brand or company if they receive good customer support.

In fact, 96% of the people who participated in the surveys affirmed this. This shows how important customer support can be when it comes to retaining a loyal customer.

OnlySocial offers 24/7 customer support via email and a full help-desk library packed with guides.

On the other hand, Hootsuite limits live support to its Business and Enterprise customers.

That means even if you’re paying hundreds or thousands each month, you might wait longer for answers.

Reliable support at every level gives OnlySocial a clear edge here.

When you line up these features side-by-side, OnlySocial seems to perform better, especially given its lower price.

 

Top Three Hootsuite Alternatives to Consider in 2025

You don’t have to settle for Hootsuite’s high bills. Plenty of tools do the same job, and cost a lot less.

We’ve combed the market for three standouts that give you all the essentials without the hefty price tag.

Let’s take a quick look at the tools.

#1: OnlySocial

OnlySocial is our top pick. It allows you to connect up to 15 social networks and you can schedule unlimited posts on every one. You no longer need to juggle multiple dashboards.

Plans start at just $24 per month. OnlySocial has a plan for all, regardless of your budget or business size.

The tool comes with various smart automation features that make your social media marketing much more manageable. Think of features like bulk upload and scheduling, RSS feeds, advanced AI for captions and hashtags generation, and much more.

You can save drafts, add custom thumbnails, set first comments, and tag accounts – all from one clean dashboard.

Need numbers? The analytics page shows weekly and monthly trends in simple charts. You can also export your data as PDFs or PPTs in one click.

And when you need help, live chat is there 24/7 to speak with a real person. You’ll also find a full help center packed with FAQs and guides.

All these you can get at a fraction of Hootsuite’s cost.

With OnlySocial, you get more features, more networks, and peace of mind, without breaking the bank.

 

#2: Buffer

Buffer has been a favorite for years. In fact, it is one of the oldest social media management tool in the market.

It launched around the same time as Hootsuite and built a solid reputation.

Today, you can still grab a free Buffer plan – or step up to one of its two paid tiers. Its Essential plan costs just $6 per month, while the Team plan goes for $12 per month.

Buffer supports Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, Pinterest, and X (Twitter). Its pricing is clear and easy to find on their website.

You’ll get reliable scheduling, simple analytics, and a hassle-free interface.

If you want the core tools without surprises, Buffer is a smart pick.

 

#3: MeetEdgar

MeetEdgar stands out for solo entrepreneurs and small teams. Its strength is automation.

You set up your content library once, and Edgar recycles your best posts over time, so your feeds never go quiet.

It handles Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, and Pinterest. You’ll also see content suggestions to keep ideas fresh.

The tool also offers analytics that show you what’s working and what’s not.

And customer support is on standby when you need a hand.

MeetEdgar has only two pricing plans: Eddie & Edgar (cute, right?), which are priced at $29.99 and $49.99 per month!

 

Final Thought

The big incease in Hootsuite’s prices has left many users reeling. What used to be affordable is now a hefty investment.

It feels like we’ve gone back in time to high-cost plans, and that has raised plenty of eyebrows.

Even though Hootsuite packs powerful features, the steep fees make it hard to justify. Especially when tools like OnlySocial offer equal or better functionality at a fraction of the cost.

If you want a social media manager that doesn’t break the bank, give OnlySocial a look.

It covers all the bases, keeps your budget happy, and still delivers quality.

Before you lock yourself into Hootsuite’s latest pricing, weigh your options and see how far your money can really go.

 

FAQs

Did Hootsuite go up in price?

Yes. In 2022, Hootsuite removed its free tier and raised costs across all paid plans by more than 40% in many cases.

Can I use Hootsuite for free?

No. Hootsuite no longer offers a free plan. You must choose one of their paid options to use the service.

How much more expensive is Hootsuite compared to OnlySocial?

On annual billing, Hootsuite’s starter plan is $99/month while OnlySocial’s entry plan is just $24/month. That’s nearly four times the cost for the same core features.

What platforms does Hootsuite support?

Hootsuite covers nine networks: Facebook, Instagram, X (Twitter), LinkedIn, TikTok, Pinterest, YouTube, Threads, and WhatsApp Business.

Is OnlySocial a good alternative to Hootsuite?

Absolutely. OnlySocial lets you manage more networks, offers smart automation, and starts at a lower price. Its support system is also more reliable and comes with strong features.

Do people still use Hootsuite?

Yes. Many brands and agencies stick with Hootsuite for its reputation and enterprise features. But lots of small teams are switching to budget-friendly options like OnlySocial.