Tools and AI
The best social media scheduling tools for hospitality
The right scheduler for a venue depends on which networks you use, who writes the posts and how far ahead you plan. This guide compares Buffer, Hootsuite, Later and Planoly on what matters to a pub or restaurant, covers the free options and explains where a hospitality tool fits.
10 min read
The best social media scheduling tools for a pub, bar, restaurant or cafe are the ones that match how you already post. If you only use Facebook and Instagram and are happy writing every post yourself, a free option may be enough. If you post to lots of networks, Buffer and Hootsuite cover the most ground. If the look of your Instagram matters most, Later and Planoly are built around visual planning. And if the real problem is finding time to write posts at all, a tool that drafts them for you will save more time than any calendar.
What a pub or restaurant actually needs from a scheduler
A venue's needs are simpler than a marketing agency's, but a few things really matter:
- The right networks. Facebook and Instagram, plus any others you use, such as Google Business Profile or TikTok.
- A calendar you can read at a glance. A week or month view shows the gaps before they become a quiet Tuesday with nothing posted.
- Real automatic publishing. Some tools publish some posts automatically and only send a phone reminder for others. Check the ones you rely on, such as Stories and Reels.
- Team access that fits. Check how many people each plan includes, and whether approvals are on the plan you would buy.
- Help with writing. All four tools compared below include an AI writer, but how well it knows your venue varies a lot.
- A warning when something fails. A post about tonight's quiz that never went out is a lost night.
- Pricing that suits one site. Tools charge per social account, per user or per bundle of profiles.
Tip
Before you trial anything, list every post you made last month and check each tool can handle all of them, including Stories and event posts.
The tools compared: Buffer, Hootsuite, Later and Planoly
Everything about these four tools comes from each company's own website as read on 29 September 2026. We describe how each tool charges rather than quoting prices, because prices change often and some are shown in US dollars. Check each tool's pricing page for current prices before you decide.
Buffer
Buffer says it builds simpler social media tools for busy people.
- Networks: Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, LinkedIn, Threads, Bluesky, YouTube, Pinterest, Google Business Profile, Mastodon, X and Substack.
- Planning: a calendar with week and month views, where you can drag posts to reschedule them.
- Team access: one user on the free tier and on Essentials. The Team plan adds unlimited team members, access levels and approval workflows.
- Free option and trial: a free tier for up to three channels, with 10 scheduled posts per channel at any one time, plus a 14-day free trial of the paid plans.
- Pricing model: paid plans are charged per channel (each social account you connect), billed monthly or yearly, and the rate per channel falls as you add more. See Buffer's pricing page for current prices.
- Writing help: an AI Assistant on every plan, including the free tier.
- Worth knowing: it only publishes automatically to Instagram business and creator accounts. Personal profiles get a reminder instead.
A good fit if you want to start free, also post to Google Business Profile, and have someone who enjoys writing the posts.
Hootsuite
Hootsuite is a social media management platform with plans that run up to large organisations.
- Networks: Facebook, Instagram, X, LinkedIn, TikTok, YouTube, Threads, WhatsApp and Pinterest, plus an app for Google Business Profile (listed as Google My Business) to create posts and reply to reviews.
- Planning: each plan is built around one calendar for all your accounts, with one inbox for messages and comments.
- Team access: sold per user, so you pay for each person's seat. Team content approval is part of the Advanced plan.
- Free option and trial: no free version is listed on its plans page. The 14-day free trial needs no credit card, but trial accounts have daily posting limits.
- Pricing model: charged per user each month, on monthly or annual billing, with a custom-priced Enterprise plan for large organisations. See Hootsuite's plans page for current prices.
- Writing help: AI that generates posts and images.
A good fit for a multi-site group or a business with a marketing team. A single venue may pay for a lot it never uses. If you want a Hootsuite alternative because you only post to Facebook and Instagram, the lighter tools here may cover what you need.
Later
Later's homepage now leads with influencer marketing. Its scheduler is called Later Social.
- Networks: Instagram, Facebook, TikTok, Threads, YouTube, Pinterest, LinkedIn and Snapchat.
- Planning: a drag-and-drop visual planner showing your whole schedule on one calendar, plus a Link in Bio page.
- Team access: one user on Starter. Growth has two users and adds post approvals. Scale has four.
- Posting limits: 30 scheduled posts per profile per month on Starter, 180 on Growth and unlimited on Scale.
- Free option and trial: no free version is listed on its pricing page. There is a 14-day free trial.
- Pricing model: three plans (Starter, Growth and Scale), billed monthly or yearly in US dollars, with taxes extra. See Later's pricing page for current prices.
- Writing help: AI credits for ideas and captions, with 5 a month on Starter (one credit writes one caption).
- Worth knowing: for Instagram you can choose a phone reminder instead and finish the post in the app, which is handy for adding music.
A good fit for Instagram-led venues that want a visual calendar and a link page, and post about once a day or less per profile.
Planoly
Planoly's own FAQ says it is no longer just for Instagram.
- Networks: Instagram, TikTok, LinkedIn, Facebook, Pinterest, YouTube and Threads, with reminders for X.
- Planning: one calendar across your channels, plus an Instagram grid preview so you can rearrange posts until the feed looks right.
- Publishing: automatic where the platform allows, otherwise a reminder with your content ready.
- Team access: Starter has one user and one "social set" (one account per network). Growth has two users and Pro six.
- Free option and trial: a free version in the Planoly mobile app with 10 uploads a month, and a 14-day free trial on paid plans.
- Pricing model: three paid plans (Starter, Growth and Pro) that include different numbers of social sets and users, paid monthly or annually. See Planoly's pricing page for current prices.
- Writing help: AI post ideas and caption suggestions.
- Worth knowing: a free link-in-bio page, plus creator features such as selling digital products.
A good fit for cafes, bakeries and bars where the look of the Instagram grid matters as much as the schedule.
At a glance
| Feature | Buffer | Hootsuite | Later | Planoly | Cheers |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Facebook and Instagram | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Google Business Profile | Yes | Through an app | Not listed | Not listed | No |
| Other networks | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | No |
| Planning view | Week and month calendar | One calendar | Visual planner | Calendar and grid preview | Planner calendar |
| People included | 1 (unlimited on Team) | Priced per user | 1 on Starter | 1 on Starter | Team members on the plan's seats |
| Free version | Up to 3 channels | None listed | None listed | Mobile app, 10 uploads a month | No |
| Free trial | 14 days | 14 days, no card | 14 days | 14 days | 14 days, card needed |
| AI writing | Included | Included | Monthly credits | Included | Writes Facebook and Instagram versions in your voice |
Free social media schedulers: what you get, and the limits
A free social media scheduler can work well for a single venue, as long as you know the limits.
- Meta Business Suite. Meta's own tool is free. You can create and schedule posts, stories and reels for your Facebook Page and Instagram account, see them in a calendar, and use AI to help generate ideas. It only covers Meta's own apps, such as Facebook and Instagram. Our guide to scheduling Facebook posts walks through it.
- The Instagram app. Public accounts can schedule photo posts, reels and carousels in the app, up to 25 posts a day and up to 30 days ahead. See how to schedule Instagram posts.
- Buffer's free tier. Three channels, 10 scheduled posts per channel at a time and one user.
- Planoly's free version. In its mobile app, with 10 uploads a month.
The catch with free social scheduling tools is rarely the scheduling. It is the limits, such as Buffer's single user and short queue, and the fact that you still write, check and photograph every post yourself. Free social media scheduling tools save you clicks, not thinking time.
Tip
Book a regular hour each week to write and schedule everything in one go. A content calendar makes that hour much faster.
How to choose: five questions
The best social scheduling tools for a venue are the ones you will actually open every week. Ask yourself:
- Where do your customers see you? If it is Facebook and Instagram, you do not need a tool built for twelve networks.
- Who writes the posts? If nobody has time, choose on writing help first.
- Who needs access? Count the people, then check user limits and approvals on the plan you would buy.
- How far ahead do you plan? Ten scheduled posts per channel is about ten days ahead if you post once a day.
- What happens when a post fails? Ask how each tool tells you, and test it during the trial.
Tip
Trial two tools in the same fortnight with the same week of real posts, so you compare like with like.
Where a general tool suits a venue better
To be fair, a general tool is the better choice if:
- You post beyond Facebook and Instagram. Cheers only publishes to those two, so for any other network you need another tool.
- You want one inbox for replies. Buffer, Hootsuite and Later's Growth plan all include an inbox for replying to comments, and some handle messages too.
- You manage many brands or accounts. The best social media management tools for a large group, with detailed reporting and listening, are rarely the best fit for one pub.
- You love writing posts and just want the cheapest way to queue them. Buffer's free tier or Meta Business Suite may be all you need.
Where a hospitality tool like Cheers fits
General schedulers are built around the calendar. Cheers starts with the writing. You describe a post once, for example "quiz night every Thursday at 8pm, teams of up to six", and the AI writes versions for Facebook and Instagram in your venue's own voice, using your tone settings and a list of phrases you never want to see.
Event posts get a date strip on the image and come as a feed and story pair, and regular nights can run as weekly recurring posts. The trade-off is focus: Cheers only covers Facebook and Instagram. For more on the writing side, see our guide to using AI to write your venue's posts.
How Cheers helps
Cheers is built for pubs, bars, restaurants, cafes and hotels that post to Facebook and Instagram. You can review, edit and approve each draft in a planner calendar before it is scheduled. Posts then publish automatically to your Facebook Page and Instagram, with checks before sending and an email alert if anything fails. Your photos are named and tagged in the media library, and team members can join on the plan's seats.