Is Later Worth $25/Month in 2026? I Put It to the Test

Is Later Worth It?

How I Tested Later

I didn’t just read the features page.

I actually used Later for 90 days to schedule posts across multiple social accounts.

My testing process:

• Scheduled 200+ posts — Tested scheduling on Instagram, TikTok, Facebook, and Pinterest
• Used the visual planner — Planned Instagram feed layout with drag-and-drop calendar
• Tested Linkin.bio — Created a link in bio page to drive traffic from Instagram
• Tracked analytics — Monitored follower growth and engagement metrics

This review comes from 90 days of hands-on testing.

Not vendor screenshots.

Not press releases.

Real use.

Tired of posting on social media at random times?

You spend hours creating content. Then you forget to post it. Or you post when nobody’s online.

Enter Later.

This social media 调度器 promises to help you plan, schedule, and publish posts at the best times.

In this review, I’ll show you exactly how it performed after 90 days of real use.

Ready to try Later?

Start your free 14-day trial today. No credit card required.

稍后免费试用

稍后是什么？

之后 is a social media management tool that helps you schedule posts across multiple platforms.

Think of it like a calendar for your social media.

Here’s the simple version:

You upload media to your media library. Then you drag and drop posts onto time slots. Later automatically publishes them for you.

The tool focuses on visual content planning.

与……不同 Hootsuite or Sprout Social, Later started as an Instagram-first scheduler. It lets you preview your Instagram feed before posting.

Later supports Instagram, TikTok, Facebook, Pinterest, LinkedIn, and X (Twitter).

It also offers a Linkin.bio feature. This creates a link in bio page to drive traffic from Instagram and TikTok.

谁是后来的创作者？

Ian MacKinnon, Matt Smith, Cindy Chen, and Roger Patterson started Later in 2014.

The story: They built it at a hackathon in Vancouver, Canada. The idea was simple — create a scheduler for Instagram when scheduling wasn’t easy.

Today, Later has:

• Over 8 million users and enterprise clients
• Partnerships with Meta, TikTok, LinkedIn, YouTube, and Pinterest
• Offices in Vancouver, Boston, and London

In 2022, Mavrck (an influencer marketing platform) acquired Later. In 2024, both companies merged under the Later brand.

Scott Sutton is the current CEO.

后期的主要优势

Here’s what you actually get when you use Later:

• Save Time on Posting: Schedule posts in advance so you can focus on creating content. No more logging in every day to post.
• Plan Your Feed Visually: See exactly how your Instagram feed will look before publishing. The visual planner helps you create a cohesive look.
• Post at the Best Times: Later tells you when your followers are most active. Schedule posts during precise date and time windows for maximum engagement.
• Get More Followers: Use unique hashtag suggestions tailored to your audience. Later recommends hashtags to increase engagement on your posts.
• Drive Traffic from Bio: Turn your Instagram feed into a clickable landing page. Linkin.bio helps you drive Instagram followers to your website.
• Manage Multiple Platforms: Schedule content across Instagram, TikTok, Facebook, Pinterest, LinkedIn, and X from one dashboard.
• Create Content Anywhere: The Later mobile app lets you capture ideas and schedule posts on the go. Upload media from your phone when inspiration strikes.

Best Later Features

Here are the standout features that make Later worth your attention.

1. 社交媒体监测

Later’s social media monitoring tracks what people say about your brand online.

You can see comments, mentions, and tags from your social accounts in one place.

The tool shows sentiment analysis. This tells you if people feel positive or negative about your content.

Social listening helps you understand your audience better. You can spot trends before they take off.

But here’s the catch: full social listening is only for enterprise customers.

2. 内容创作工具

Later helps you create content without leaving the app.

You can edit photos, add 文本, and resize images for each social platform.

The AI caption writer helps you write 图片说明 fast. Just add a few tweaks to make it your own.

Later also saves captions for future use. This is helpful when you want to reuse winning posts.

You can store your graphic images in a media library. Everything syncs across the desktop and mobile apps.

3. 定制营销活动服务

Later offers campaign management for brands working with influencers.

You can discover creators from their database of over 14 million profiles.

The platform tracks campaign performance. You see engagement, reach, and sales data in one place.

Later’s AI helps match you with creators who fit your brand. It flags inauthentic audiences too.

This feature works best for brands running influencer marketing campaigns at scale.

Here’s a quick walkthrough of how Later works in practice.

4. 数据与基准测试

Later provides analytics for Instagram, Twitter, Pinterest, and TikTok.

You see key metrics like impressions, reach, and follower growth.

The best posts section shows what content works best. Use this to create more content your audience loves.

Basic Instagram analytics come with all plans. But detailed reports need higher tiers.

Later also tracks your link in bio clicks. You know exactly which posts drive traffic.

5. 安排和发布

This is Later’s core feature.

You schedule posts and they automatically publish at your chosen time.

The visual calendar shows all your scheduled content. Drag and drop posts to change the posting order.

Later supports auto publishing for Instagram posts, Stories, and Reels. TikTok auto publishing works too.

You can schedule Instagram Stories ahead of time. This saves hours every week.

The post feature also adds your automatically posted first comment. This is great for hiding hashtags.

6. 情感分析

Later tracks how people feel about your content.

The sentiment analysis shows positive, negative, and neutral mentions.

This helps you understand what content connects with your audience.

You can also track competitor sentiment. See how your brand compares to others in your space.

Sentiment data helps you pivot your content strategy in real-time.

7. Customize Your URL (Linkin.bio)

Linkin.bio is Later’s link in bio tool.

It turns your Instagram feed into a clickable landing page. Each post can link to a different URL.

You can customize your URL with your brand name. Make it look professional.

The tool tracks clicks so you know which posts drive the most traffic.

Linkin.bio helps you drive Instagram followers to your website, shop, or other social channels.

8. 影响者营销

Later Influence helps brands work with creators.

You can find influencers who match your target audience. The database has millions of profiles.

Later tracks campaign results. You see engagement, reach, and sales from each creator.

The platform flags fake followers and inauthentic engagement. This protects your brand.

Later is particularly favored by influencers and content creators who focus on Instagram and TikTok.

9. 日历

The visual calendar is Later’s best feature.

You see all your scheduled posts in one view. Weekly and monthly views help you plan ahead.

Drag and drop posts to rearrange your schedule. It’s simple to use.

The calendar shows best time to post recommendations. Later learns when your followers are most engaged.

You can schedule video content ahead of time. Plan your Instagram Reels and TikTok videos in advance.

💡 专业提示： Use the visual planner to batch schedule a few weeks of content at once. This frees up your time for other tasks.

Later Pricing

免费试用： Yes — 14 days with all features

退款保证： No refunds once charged

📌 笔记： Annual billing saves you 33% or more. The Starter plan drops from $25 to $16.67 per month.

⚠️ Warning: Users have reported issues with Later’s refund policy. Many say canceling is difficult. Test during the free trial before committing.

Is Later Worth the Price?

Later offers a free plan as one of its pricing options. But the free version limits you to 5 posts per social profile per month.

The paid plans unlock unlimited posts on higher tiers and full analytics.

You’ll save money if: You’re a solo creator who posts mainly on Instagram and TikTok. The visual planner alone is worth the price.

You might overpay if: You need advanced team features or manage many clients. 缓冲 or Hootsuite offer better value for agencies.

💡 专业提示： Start with the annual Starter plan at $16.67/month. Upgrade only if you need more social sets or users.

Later Pros and Cons

✅ What I Liked

❌ What Could Be Better

Is Later Right for You?

✅ Later is PERFECT for you if:

• You post mainly on Instagram and TikTok
• You want to visually plan your Instagram feed
• You’re a solo creator or 自由职业者
• You need a link in bio tool to drive traffic

❌ Skip Later if:

• You need team collaboration and approval workflows
• You manage multiple clients as an agency
• You want advanced social listening features

My recommendation:

Later is best for visual-first creators who love Instagram and TikTok.

If you’re a social media manager handling many accounts, look at Buffer or Hootsuite instead.

For solo creators, Later is a solid choice at a reasonable price.

Later vs Alternatives

How does Later stack up? Here’s the competitive landscape:

Quick picks:

• Best overall: Later — Great for visual-first Instagram creators
• Best budget option: Buffer — Simple and affordable at $6 per channel
• Best for beginners: Socialpilot — Easy to use with client management
• Best for teams: Loomly — Superior collaboration features and workflows

🎯 Later Alternatives

Looking for Later alternatives? Here are the top options:

• 🏢 Sprout Social： Combines social media and 客户关系管理 capabilities. Best for enterprise teams who need deep analytics and customer engagement tools.
• 💰 Socialpilot: Budget-friendly with excellent client management. Great for agencies managing multiple brands.
• 🔧 Sendible： Powerful for agencies with white-label 报道 and client dashboards.
• 🧠 内容工作室: AI-powered content discovery and creation. Good for content-heavy strategies.
• ⚡ 英雄邮报: Fast scheduling with bulk upload features. Simple and straightforward.
• 🚀 广场脉搏： Strong inbox management and team collaboration. Great for customer service via social.
• 🎨 Zoho Social: Integrates with Zoho CRM. Best for businesses already using Zoho 工具。
• 👶 缓冲： The simplest scheduler. More affordable and easier to learn than Later. Buffer lacks visual planning but wins on simplicity.
• 🔒 洒水器: Enterprise-grade social management. Expensive but powerful for large organizations.
• 🌟 隆普利： Loomly is a versatile alternative to Later with superior collaboration capabilities. Teams can work together on creating, editing, and approving posts.
• 🧠 火焰： AI-first approach to social media. Generates content ideas and captions automatically.
• 📊 Metricool: Strong analytics and competitor tracking. Good for data-driven marketers.

⚔️ Later Compared

Here’s how Later stacks up against each competitor:

• Later 与 Sprout Social: Sprout Social’s pricing is significantly higher than Later’s, making it less accessible for smaller businesses or individual users.
• Later 与 Socialpilot: Socialpilot offers better client management. Later has better visual planning.
• Later 与 Sendible: Sendible wins for agencies. Later is better for solo creators.
• Later vs 内容工作室: Content Studio has better AI features. Later has better Instagram tools.
• 稍后 vs 英雄邮报: Similar pricing. Later has more features overall.
• 后来与广场脉搏: Agorapulse has better team features. Later is more visual.
• Later 与 Zoho Social: Zoho integrates with CRM. Later is simpler to use standalone.
• 稍后与缓冲: Buffer lacks the visual planning capabilities that make Later stand out. But Buffer is cheaper and simpler.
• Later 与 Sprinklr: Sprinklr is enterprise-only. Later works for any size creator.
• Later 对比 Loomly: Loomly beats Later on collaboration. Later wins on Instagram visual planning.
• 后来对阵烈焰: Blaze has more AI. Later has better scheduling tools.
• Later 对比 Metricool: Metricool has stronger analytics. Later has better content creation.

My Experience with Later

Here’s what actually happened when I used Later:

The project: I managed 3 Instagram accounts and 2 TikTok accounts for 90 days.

时间线： 90 days of daily use

结果：

What surprised me: The visual planner changed how I think about content. I started planning my feed layout, not just individual posts. My Instagram account looked more cohesive.

What frustrated me: The social inbox is limited. I could only reply to comments on Instagram and TikTok. Editing posts after scheduling takes extra clicks.

Would I use it again? Yes — for Instagram and TikTok focused accounts. I’d skip it for accounts that need heavy team collaboration.

🎯 Quick Win: Use Later’s best time to post feature for your first month. Watch your engagement climb as you hit the right posting windows.

最后想说的话

Get Later if: You’re an Instagram or TikTok creator who wants visual content planning and a link in bio tool.

Skip Later if: You need team collaboration, manage multiple clients, or want advanced social listening.

My verdict: Later does one thing really well — visual Instagram planning. The drag-and-drop calendar and Linkin.bio feature are worth the price for solo creators.

After 90 days, I keep 使用 Later for my Instagram accounts.

Later is best for individual creators. Not for agencies or large teams.

Rating: 4.1/5

常见问题解答

Is Later social media scheduler free?

Later offers a free plan as one of its pricing options. But the free plan limits you to 5 posts per social profile per month. Most users need a paid plan for serious social media management.

Does Later actually work?

Yes, Later works for scheduling and publishing posts automatically. The visual calendar and auto-publish features work reliably. However, some users report issues with customer support and billing.

Is Later approved by Instagram?

Yes, Later is an official Instagram partner. It uses Instagram’s official API for scheduling and publishing. Your account is safe when using Later for Instagram scheduling.

Is Later worth paying for?

Later is worth paying for if you focus on Instagram and TikTok. The visual planner and Linkin.bio features add real value. Skip it if you need team collaboration or manage many clients.

What app is better than Later?

Hootsuite offers a more comprehensive suite of features than Later, including social listening and customer engagement tools. Buffer is more affordable for simple scheduling. Loomly has better team collaboration.