The verdict
On the data we hold, Sprout Social comes out ahead. Here is why, point by point.
What the data says
- Both cover 13 of the 13 features we compared.
- Later starts lower, at $18.75/mo against $79/mo.
- In our Organic social ranking, Sprout Social places 3 and Later 4 of 14.
Side by side
| 17 points compared | ||
|---|---|---|
| Starts at | $18.75/mo | $79/mo |
| Free plan | No | No |
| API | Not known yet | Yes |
| MCP server | Not known yet | Yes |
| AI content assistant | Yes | Yes |
| AI post drafting | Yes | Yes |
| Analytics & reporting | Yes | Yes |
| Best time to post | Yes | Yes |
| Bulk post upload | Yes | Yes |
| Competitor benchmarking | Yes | Yes |
| Link in bio page | Yes | Yes |
| Multi-network publishing | Yes | Yes |
| Post approval workflow | Yes | Yes |
| Post scheduling & queues | Yes | Yes |
| Social listening | Yes | Yes |
| Team collaboration | Yes | Yes |
| Unified social inbox | Yes | Yes |
| Links |
Plans and pricing
Later
- Starter1 social set (8 profiles), 1 user; $18.75 per month billed yearly.$25/mo
- Growth2 social sets (16 profiles), 2 users; $37.50 per month billed yearly.$50/mo
- Scale6 social sets (48 profiles), 4 users; $82.50 per month billed yearly.$110/mo
Sprout Social
- EssentialsPer seat; $99 per month billed monthly, $79 per month billed annually.$99/mo/seat
- StandardPer seat; $199 per month billed annually, monthly price not shown.$2,388/yr/seat
- ProfessionalPer seat; $299 per month billed annually, monthly price not shown.$3,588/yr/seat
- AdvancedPer seat; $399 per month billed annually, monthly price not shown.$4,788/yr/seat
Prices as the vendors list them. They change often; the final price is on their sites.
Who each is for
Choose Later if…
Social media managers and small marketing teams who plan visual content for Instagram, TikTok and other platforms and want scheduling, analytics and a link in bio page in one tool.
Choose Sprout Social if…
Mid-market and enterprise marketing teams managing several brands or many profiles that need publishing, a shared inbox, listening and reporting in one social platform with collaboration workflows.
Other options worth a look
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Tool·Client acquisitionSchedules and publishes social media posts across multiple platforms from one dashboard with team approval workflows.Organic social
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Tool·Client acquisitionSchedule, publish and manage social media across multiple channels and analyse performance from one dashboard.Organic social
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Tool·Client acquisitionCreate, schedule and analyse LinkedIn posts with AI to build your personal brand and generate leads.Organic social
From $32/mo yearlyAffiliate link