Hootsuite vs SMARTLY.IO

Publer

Instagram

Zoho Social

Let a Superhero help you manage your Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, Twitter, LinkedIn, Pinterest, Google My Business, YouTube, and WordPress.

Instagram is a social networking app which lets users share photos & videos from their mobile phones, like posts, comment, send private messages, and more

Zoho Social helps marketers in small to large organizations to grow the social media presence of their brand with actionable insights focused on content and engagement by scheduling unlimited posts, managing social networks, tracking conversations, and measuring performance from a single dashboard

Social Media Manager 

Hootsuite has a slower customer support response and can't be quite difficult to navigate for new users

Associate Director, External Relations and Development

That it was a Canadian company with an OK service. Although not always reliable, it did the job most of the time, but there are better alternatives.

Hootsuite helps brands manage social media better, from the smallest businesses to the largest enterprises across CPG, finance, healthcare, tech, higher-ed, and government services.

A/B Testing

Access Controls/Permissions

Activity Dashboard

Activity/News Feed

Activity Tracking

Advertising Management

Alerts/Escalation

Alerts/Notifications

Approval Process Control

Assignment Management

Audience Targeting

Automated Publishing

Automated Scheduling

Behavior Tracking

Benchmarking

Blogs

Brand Tracking

Calendar Management

Calendar/Reminder System

Campaign Analytics

Campaign Management

Campaign Planning

Campaign Scheduling

Campaign Tracking

Categorization/Grouping

Chat/Messaging

Collaboration Tools

Commenting/Notes

Communication Management

Competitive Analysis

Competitor Monitoring

Compliance Management

Contact Database

Contact Management

Content Creation

Content Discovery

Content Library

Content Management

Conversion Tracking

Customer Database

Customer Engagement

Customer Experience Management

Customer History

Customer Segmentation

Customer Social Profiles

Customer Support

Customizable Branding

Customizable Fields

Customizable Forms

Customizable Reports

Customizable Templates

Dashboard

Dashboard Creation

Data Import/Export

Data Security

Data Visualization

Drag & Drop

Editorial Calendar

Email Alerts

Employee Advocacy

Employee Database

Employee Engagement

Engagement Tracking

Event Triggered Actions

Feedback Management

File Sharing

Filtering

Group Management

Image Library

Impact Measurement

Influencer Tracking

Keyword Filtering

Keyword Tracking

KPI Monitoring

Lead Engagement

Live Chat

Marketing Automation

Media Library

@mentions

Mobile Access

Mobile Alerts

Monitoring

Multi-Account Management

Multi-Campaign

Multi-Channel Campaigns

Multi-Channel Communication

Multi-Channel Data Collection

Multi-Channel Management

Multi-Channel Marketing

Multi-Channel Social Integration

Multi-Language

Performance Metrics

Post Scheduling

Pre-Approved Content Library

Predictive Analytics

Progress Tracking

Project Management

Publish Scheduling

Real-Time Analytics

By industry, Hootsuite reviewers are most commonly professionals in marketing and advertising (18%). The most frequent use case for Hootsuite cited by reviewers is social media management (59% of reviewers).

Users and use cases

Some users report that Hootsuite’s free version meets basic needs and they appreciate the range of pricing plans and nonprofit discounts. However, users indicate that costs rise quickly, with limited free features and expensive premium upgrades.

Value for money

The Hootsuite integrations most frequently cited by reviewers are: Instagram (a social networking product rated 4.6 out of 5 for its integration with Hootsuite), Twitter/X (a social networking product, 4.5), and Meta for Business (a social media marketing product, 4.4).

Integrations

Hootsuite is a social media management program offering key features such as post scheduling, social media integration, automated publishing, multi-account management, content management, and reporting/analytics, among others.

Hootsuite

Web-based

Android

iPhone

iPad

Buffer

Sprout Social

Later Social

Agorapulse

HubSpot Marketing Hub

Loomly

Meta for Business

X Pro

CoSchedule Marketing Suite

SocialPilot

Sendible

Brandwatch

mLabs

SmarterQueue

Standard

Advanced

Enterprise 

Expensive paid features

Profesional en cine y tv

It has too many limitations to upload visual material such as images or videos and to unlock all the features you have to pay very expensive memberships.

61% of reviewers feel negative about Hootsuite’s paid features. Reviewers say many essential tools and integrations are locked behind expensive subscriptions, making the platform less accessible for small businesses or freelancers. They mention the free version is very limited, and upgrading can become costly as needs grow. Some users report frustration with billing practices, auto-renewals, and difficulties obtaining refunds. They feel the value of paid features does not always justify the price, especially with competing free alternatives.

Image posting limitations

65% of reviewers feel negative about Hootsuite’s handling of post images. Reviewers indicate the platform restricts the number of images per post, often allowing only one image when networks like Instagram or Facebook support multiple. They say image sizing and cropping are problematic, leading to posts that appear incorrectly formatted or with reduced quality. Some users report difficulties with uploading large files, animated GIFs, or videos, and find the lack of native editing options inconvenient for quick posting.

Cluttered and outdated interface

Digital Creative Director

I can't stand the interface, needs to be cleaned up quite a bit visually and more intuitive for users.

45% of reviewers feel negative about Hootsuite’s user interface. Reviewers describe the interface as cluttered, visually outdated, and not very intuitive, especially for new users. They say the abundance of features and information can make navigation confusing and overwhelming. Some users report that the design feels busy and that important options are hard to find. They feel the interface requires improvement to become more user-friendly and visually appealing compared to other social media management tools.

Frequent bugs and glitches

Director Of Database Marketing

Something I don't like is that sometimes there are synchronization errors with some platforms such as Instagram, there is still no good synergy with the reels.

Owner

Getting a lot of random errors and having to redo a post or getting errors connecting a profile, etc.

80% of reviewers feel negative about Hootsuite’s bugs and issues. Reviewers report experiencing glitches such as failed posts, synchronization errors, and platform disconnections, especially with Instagram and Facebook. They say these problems often require manual intervention, causing frustration and extra work. Some users mention slow loading times, freezing, and lost progress when composing posts. They feel that recurring technical issues disrupt their workflow and reduce reliability, especially when managing time-sensitive content.

High and restrictive pricing

Content Marketer

Hootsuite has some good features, but for the price it is blown out of the water by newer tools. Although many can't do monitoring well, there is no difference compared to most of the cheaper tools, which makes it hard to pay their monthly price as a smaller company.

45% of reviewers feel negative about Hootsuite’s pricing. Reviewers indicate the free plan is highly limited, forcing users to upgrade for basic functionality like managing multiple accounts or scheduling more posts. They say paid plans are expensive, especially for small teams or solo users, and that additional features often require further payment. Some users mention the pricing structure is confusing, with steep jumps between tiers and extra costs for add-ons, making it hard to find an affordable option.

Effective content planning

89% of reviewers feel positive about Hootsuite’s content calendar. Reviewers appreciate the visual calendar layout for planning and scheduling posts across multiple platforms. They say the calendar view helps them track upcoming content, avoid overlaps, and coordinate with team members. Some users report that being able to see and adjust posts at a glance improves their content strategy. They find the drag-and-drop and auto-scheduling features particularly helpful for managing high volumes of social activity.

Significant time savings

96% of reviewers feel positive about Hootsuite’s time saving capabilities. Reviewers indicate the platform allows them to manage multiple social networks from one location, automate posting, and batch schedule content, which frees up hours each week. They appreciate being able to focus on other business priorities instead of spending time on repetitive social media tasks. Some users say the ability to plan ahead and post consistently is crucial for their workflow. They find the centralized dashboard and automation features help them stay organized and reduce multitasking.

User-friendly experience

I only used this platform for weeks in my new job and I found it very easy to use.

90% of reviewers feel positive about Hootsuite’s ease of use. Reviewers say the platform is straightforward to set up and navigate, even for those new to social media management tools. They appreciate that it simplifies managing multiple accounts and makes scheduling posts intuitive. Some users mention that while there is a short learning curve, the interface becomes easy to use with regular use. They find that Hootsuite helps them complete tasks quickly and efficiently.

E-Commerce Manager

The convenience in terms of planning our marketing materials is amazing as we can conveniently make promotional video posts on all our retail social networks at once.

Marketing Assistant

It makes managing multiple social media accounts so much easier, helps me stay organized with scheduling, and gives a clear picture of how posts are performing.

Web Consultant

The platform allows you to analyze SO many different metrics for your content strategy.

I like about Hootsuite that you can centralized many social platforms there and manage scheduling and analytics.

Community Manager

With Hootsuite, LinkedIn doesn’t allow you to schedule PDF uploads, which is a shame.

Marketer

It is competitive with other social media schedulers for businesses and provides useful basic features like managing multiple social media accounts, auto-posting, and media libraries.

system technique

Hootsuite is a really useful tool that saves time and provides opportunities for better performance with strategies that have been successful when scheduling posts, it knows the most opportune moment for posts to have a greater reach and greater views to the public, achieving the achievement of goals, you can have a perfect follow-up of each post by keeping track of statistics.

freelancing

the best tool that i can use to manage more social media accounts, and it has the best features to schedule and publish all in one central place and it is time-consuming software

Marketing Manager

automated social media posts, staying consistent, building a brand, knowing when are better times to post vs not, getting feedback on statistics and trends, tips and tricks, effective and reliable.

Writer

Hootsuite is a wonderful social media tool for integrating and analyzing one's social media statistics and results, it is a wonderful social media statistics integration tool.

Social media manager

with a touch of a button I can monitor all my social media mentions, schedule posts to twitter(X), Facebook, Instagram and LinkedIn.

Executive Technical Director

Hootsuite enhances multi-profile post scheduling across a wide range of social media accounts which boost our brand online.

Property Manager

I can schedule posts across all my channels, keep an eye on what people are saying, and see how my posts are performing, all in one place.

Media Producer

Hootsuite made it easier for me to tackle my social media management and engage with my audience across platforms much more easily, which led to improved presence online.

Marketing

It saves time, supports team workflows, and simplifies planning posts in one dashboard.

Senior Digital Strategist

Hootsuite provides a variety of easy intuitive tools for online and social media brand management, including customer service and marketing.

Marketing and Communications Specialist

Im able to draft out my content for months which allows me to be productive in other areas in my profession.

Strategic Projects and Operations Manager

It gives you suggestions like when the best time to post on social media for the best engagement, which helps you get the most bang for your buck and more reach.

Hootsuite vs SMARTLY.IO Comparison (2026)

Hootsuite

SMARTLY.IO

Overview

Video & Screenshots

Pricing

User reviews

Key features

Integrations

Alternatives