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It’s hard to imagine a time before social media. Not only have the number of platforms multiplied, but the use of social media has also changed over time. These sites now let users keep up to date with loved ones, while also providing fans with a way to interact with their favourite celebs and organisations the opportunity to share news with customers.

So, whether you have a business, a blog, or simply want to up your game, these top social media scheduling tools will help take the stress out of posting regular updates:

Hootsuite

Hootsuite is one of the most well-known scheduling tools and is used by some pretty big brands. It offers users an easy way to add accounts, schedule posts in advance across a range of social media platforms, including Instagram, and provides basic analytics.

You can start a free 30-day trial or, if you want to get more serious with your social media, take a look at their plans to get even more features and add more users, depending on the size of your team and your budget. Their training platform will provide you with knowledge on how to use the tools and how to approach social media marketing.

Buffer

Buffer is very similar to Hootsuite, and many of the main features overlap. One thing that sets Buffer apart is its Chrome extension, which means that you can easily schedule content while you’re browsing the web. It also suggests the best possible times to share your content throughout the day, based on follower activity.

You’ll need to pay for one of their plans if you’d like to be able to access link tracking and features like the RSS Feed but the free option still lets you manage three social profiles, schedule up to 10 posts, create and schedule content with their image creator and GIF/video uploader, and use the Chrome extensions and mobile app.

Sprout Social

Sprout Social offers “complete social media management”. A lot of the features are similar to that of Buffer and Hootsuite, but you get additional features depending on the plan. Like Hootsuite, Sprout Social offers a free trial but then you will need to opt for one of the plans at the end of the trial.

The most basic plan, called ‘Premium’, provides an all-in-one social inbox, a social content calendar, the opportunity to schedule posts across 10 social profiles, an accompanying app, reporting, and the chance to monitor profiles, keywords and locations.

Later.com

While Hootsuite, Buffer and Sprout Social now allow you to post to Instagram, a lot of scheduling tools out there don’t because the photo-sharing site has prohibited third-party solutions from publishing directly to Instagram.

If your focus is mainly, or solely, on Instagram, then a tool like Later is all you need. The calendar lets users plan their posts in advance and the tool now lets you auto publish to the platform.

Additional features include real-time post previews, basic analytics, and hashtag curation. The Free Forever plan lets users post up to 30 photos, but no video, per social profile every month. If you’ll post more than that or want access to more features, consider their paid plans.