Planoly, Later, and Meta Put to the Test

Social Media Planning Showdown: What tool works the best?

As a UX designer with over 20 years of experience working for major brands including Meta’s Messenger and Instagram Apps, I've had my fair share of experience with social media planning tools. And let me tell you, I've tried them all - the paid options like Planoly and Later, and the free options like Meta's Business Suite app.

But after putting each of these tools to the test, I have to say that Meta's Business Suite app comes out on top for me. Don't get me wrong, I love Planoly for their well designed interface (and their Pinterest Uploader Chrome Plugin is a huge time saver). I love Later for their intuitive features. But when it comes down to actually planning and scheduling and getting my posts live, I find that Meta's Business Suite app delivers the most usable experience.

Why, you ask? Well, for starters, Meta is crafty about blocking 3rd party apps to retain their user base. Later and Planoly are blocked from scheduling carousel posts, they can only post a single image on a schedule. What winds up happening with Planoly and Later is basically a notification flow. Meta's Business Suite app actually allows me to plan and schedule my posts, making the process of managing my social media presence a breeze. Plus, the hashtag feature is by far the best because you can select from trending tags, your most recent tags and also save your tried and true tags. It also allows you to post to Facebook in the same swoop. You can schedule stories which is really nice too. A con to all of the tools is that you cannot really schedule reels yet, but its coming to Meta’s app very soon (the Facebook version of reels is in testing, so you might see it if your IP address is up for the split test).

So, if you're in the market for a social media planning tool and want to skip the hassle of testing out all of the tools, I highly recommend giving Meta's Business Suite app a try. Despite the competiton, they’re always going to block 3rd party apps from accessing all features, so trust me, your social media game will thank you.