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The best social media tools for marketers, free and paid

Agorapulse is the best social media tool for most marketing teams, with publishing, a shared inbox and reports for 10 profiles from $79 per user per month and a 30-day free trial. Buffer is the best value, with a free plan for 3 channels.

11 tools · Updated November 1, 2026Social media

The best YouTube tools to grow a business channel, free and paid

YouTube Studio is the best YouTube tool for any business channel, because it is free and holds YouTube's own analytics, trend data and title and thumbnail tests. Add vidIQ or TubeBuddy for keyword research and competitor tracking, and Descript, Canva or OpusClip to produce videos, thumbnails and Shorts.

7 tools · Updated November 1, 2026Social media

The best Facebook tools for marketing your business

Meta Business Suite is the best Facebook tool for most businesses, because it is free and handles posts, stories, messages and insights for your Page and Instagram account. Use Meta Ads Manager for paid campaigns, and add Agorapulse, Buffer or SocialPilot when you manage Facebook alongside other networks.

10 tools · Updated November 1, 2026Social media

The best IG scheduling apps for businesses and marketing teams

Later is the best IG scheduling app for most businesses, with a visual grid planner and auto-publishing for posts, carousels, Reels and Stories from $18.75 a month. Choose Metricool or Buffer for a free plan, or Planable, SocialPilot or Sendible when clients or managers approve posts.

10 tools · Updated November 1, 2026Social media

The best IG tools to grow your audience on Instagram

Metricool is the best IG tool for most businesses, because its free plan and low-cost Starter plan cover scheduling for posts, Reels and Stories, best times to post, competitor tracking and analytics. Choose Later for visual planning and creator campaigns, or Meta Business Suite for free, native scheduling.

10 tools · Updated November 1, 2026

Social media tools we cover

36 tools

AdEspressoA tool for creating, split testing and optimising Facebook and Instagram ad campaigns, with automated rules and reporting.Adobe ExpressAdobe's online design app for social posts, flyers, infographics, short videos and documents, with templates, Adobe Stock and Firefly generative AI. It replaced Adobe Spark.AgorapulseA social media management platform for publishing, a shared inbox, reporting and ROI tracking, with social listening as an add-on.BeFunkyA browser-based photo editor, collage maker and graphic designer with templates, including infographic templates, and AI photo tools.Brand24A media monitoring tool that tracks mentions of your brand, competitors and keywords across social media, news, blogs, podcasts, forums and reviews, with AI sentiment analysis.BufferA social media tool for scheduling posts, replying to comments and tracking results across a dozen networks, priced per connected channel.BuzzSumoA content research and media intelligence tool that shows which content gets shared and linked, monitors mentions and finds journalists to pitch.CanvaAn online design platform with templates, stock media, brand kits and AI tools for creating social posts, presentations, ads, documents, videos and simple websites.ClickToTweetA link generator that turns a prewritten message into a link people click to post it on X (formerly Twitter), with click tracking.CoScheduleSocial media management and marketing calendar software that plans, schedules and reports on posts and campaigns from one drag-and-drop calendar.HootsuiteA social media management platform that brings scheduling, content creation, a shared inbox, analytics and social listening into one place.IconosquareA social media analytics and scheduling tool that started with Instagram and now covers eight networks, with competitor benchmarks and reports.LaterA social media management and influencer marketing platform for planning, scheduling and measuring posts and creator campaigns.LinktreeA link-in-bio tool that turns the single link on an Instagram or TikTok profile into a page of links, sign-up forms and products.LoomlyA social media management platform for planning, creating, approving, scheduling and analysing posts across channels, with an AI assistant built in.ManychatA chat automation platform that answers Instagram comments and DMs, Messenger, TikTok and other channels with automated conversations, priced by active contacts.Meta Ads ManagerMeta's own tool for creating, running and measuring ads on Facebook, Instagram, Messenger and the Audience Network, formerly called Facebook Ads Manager.Meta Business SuiteMeta's free tool for managing a business's Facebook Page and Instagram account in one place, with a content planner, a shared inbox and insights.MetricoolA social media planner and analytics tool that schedules posts, tracks competitors and reports results for each brand you manage, with a free plan.OpusClipAn AI tool that turns long videos into short, captioned clips for YouTube Shorts, TikTok, Reels and LinkedIn, then posts or schedules them.PhotopeaA free, browser-based image editor that works like Photoshop, opens PSD and dozens of other formats, and runs entirely on your own device.PlanableA social media planning and approval tool where teams and clients create, review, approve and schedule posts in one place.QuuuAn AI social media agent that learns your brand voice, writes posts and publishes them to X, LinkedIn, Facebook and Bluesky on a schedule.SendibleA social media management platform for agencies and multi-location brands, with scheduling, a shared inbox, client approvals and branded reports, and unlimited users on every plan.SmartlyAn AI advertising platform that builds ad creative and runs paid campaigns across social, connected TV, video and the open web from one place.SnappaA simple online graphic design tool for social media graphics, ads, blog images and infographics, with templates, free stock photos and Buffer scheduling.SniplyA link shortener that adds your own call-to-action on top of any page you share, so curated content can send visitors back to your site.Social BladeA free statistics site that tracks public growth data for YouTube channels and other social profiles, with paid Premium tiers and a Business API.SocialPilotA social media scheduling, inbox and reporting tool for small businesses, agencies and multi-location brands, priced by plan rather than per seat.Sprout SocialA social media management platform for publishing, engagement, analytics and listening across networks, priced per seat.StoryChiefA content marketing platform that brings planning, AI writing, approvals and publishing to your website and social channels into one workflow.StreamYardA live streaming and recording studio that runs in the browser, for going live on YouTube and other platforms at once, interviewing guests and hosting webinars.Talos GrowthA LinkedIn growth service that likes relevant posts on behalf of your company or personal page, with AI tools for writing posts and carousels.TubeBuddyA browser extension for YouTube that adds keyword research, A/B tests, competitor tracking and bulk editing to YouTube Studio, with a free plan.vidIQA YouTube growth tool with keyword research, competitor tracking, daily video ideas and an AI coach, in a web app and a browser extension, with a free plan.YouTube StudioGoogle's free control room for a YouTube channel, where you upload, schedule, test, moderate and measure every video.

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