Product comparison
Metricool vs Later
Metricool and Later both combine social publishing with performance information. Metricool is particularly useful for reports across brands and competitor comparisons. Later puts more emphasis on preparing visual content, managing media and linking people onward from a social profile.
Start with Metricool when explaining results is a large part of the work. Give Later a closer look when the content calendar revolves around photos, videos and Instagram publishing.
The main differences
Reports and performance
Metricool's Starter plan includes PDF and PowerPoint reports, more performance history and broader competitor tracking than Free. Advanced adds customisable reports and a Looker Studio connection. Those are useful features when a client or colleague needs a clear account of the results, not just access to a dashboard.
Later also provides analytics. Starter includes a shorter history, Growth expands it, and Scale adds more detailed reporting and benchmarking. Choose on the reports you need, rather than assuming that a visually focused tool has no useful analytics.
Preparing the next posts
Later's media library, calendar and Link in Bio tools keep much of visual publishing together. It can also add eligible Instagram audio to automatically published Reels. The audio library is limited by what Instagram makes available, and you cannot choose a particular starting section of a track.
Metricool keeps planning beside its analytics and reports. That is useful for moving from a performance review into the next schedule, especially when you manage several brands and want their content and results kept separate.
Compare the right plans
| Need | Metricool, annual billing | Later, annual billing |
|---|---|---|
| Paid publishing and reporting | Starter: $20 a month equivalent, up to five brands | Starter: $18.75 a month equivalent, one social set and one user |
| Collaboration and approvals | Advanced: $53 a month equivalent, up to fifteen brands | Growth: $37.50 a month equivalent, two social sets and two users |
These prices buy different capacities and features. A Metricool brand and a Later social set each permit one profile per supported network. Several accounts on the same network require additional brands or sets. Count those before deciding which starting price is cheaper for your work.
Metricool Free has one brand, twenty posts monthly and thirty days of analytics; LinkedIn is paid and X is an extra. Later describes a limited free plan, but its full current allowance is not clear from its plan guide. Its paid Starter plan allows thirty posts per profile each month, compared with Growth's 180.
Our verdict
Choose Metricool when shareable reports and comparing performance across brands are central to the job. Choose Later when organising visual content and its route from social post to linked page matter more. Both support planning and measurement; choose the one that removes the most repeated work from the part you do most often.