Later vs Sprout Social: Save Time & Boost Engagement in 2024?

Feeling swamped by social media? It’s a lot to handle!

Later and Sprout Social can help you take control, saving you precious time and boosting your engagement.

But which one’s right for you?

This post compares Later vs Sprout Social to both platforms to helped you choose the perfect tool for your 2024 social media strategy.

Later vs Sprout Social: Overview

To give you the most accurate comparison, we’ve spent weeks testing both Later and Sprout Social, scheduling posts, digging into analytics, and exploring all the features they have to offer.

This hands-on experience gives us a solid foundation for comparing these two popular social media management platforms.

What is Later?

Ever wished you could plan your Instagram feed visually? That's where Later shines.

It started as a simple tool for scheduling Instagram posts, but it's grown into a complete social media management platform.

Think of it as your content calendar and scheduling assistant all rolled into one. It's super user-friendly, even for beginners.

Key Benefits

• Visual content planning: Drag and drop posts to design the perfect feed.
• Best Time to Post: Schedule content when your audience is most active. This feature analyzes your historical data to suggest optimal posting times.
• Linkin. Bio: Turn your Instagram feed into a clickable landing page. Drive traffic to your website & your specific products.
• Hashtag suggestions: Find relevant hashtags to increase your reach. Later, suggest hashtags based on your content and current trends.
• Analytics tracking: Monitor your performance and track key metrics. See what's working and what needs improvement.

Pricing

• Starter: $16.67/month (30 posts per social profile, Limited analytics up to 3 months of data, 5 credits for AI features)
• Growth: $30/month (150 posts per social profile, Full analytics up to 1 year of data, 30 credits for AI features)
• Advanced: $53.33/month (Unlimited posts, Full analytics up to 1 year of data, 50 credits for AI features)

What is Sprout Social?

Need a serious social media management tool? Sprout Social is a powerhouse.

It's designed for businesses and agencies that need advanced features, in-depth analytics, and powerful social listening capabilities.

Think of it as your all-in-one social media command center.

Key Benefits

• Social listening: Monitor brand mentions and industry conversations. Stay ahead of the curve and manage your online reputation.
• Comprehensive engagement tools: Manage all your messages, comments, and social interactions in one unified inbox. No more switching between platforms!
• Advanced analytics: Track performance with in-depth reports and data visualizations. Get valuable insights to refine your strategy.
• Team collaboration: Streamline workflows and improve communication with team assignments and approval processes.
• CRM integrations: Connect Sprout Social with your CRM to manage customer relationships and social data in one place.

Pricing

• Standard: $249 per month. This gets you 5 social accounts and basic features.
• Professional: $399 per month. You get 10 social accounts and more advanced features like social listening and custom reporting.
• Advanced: $499 per month. This plan gives you 10 social accounts and all the bells and whistles, including automation tools and competitive analysis.
• Enterprise: For custom Pricing, contact them.

Later vs Sprout Social: Feature Comparison

Let's break down the key differences between Later and Sprout Social to help you choose the right marketing platform for your needs.

Supported Social Media Platforms

• Later: Focuses on visual platforms like Instagram and Pinterest, making it ideal for businesses with a strong visual brand identity. This means you can easily plan and schedule stunning content for these social channels. However, it lacks support for some key platforms like Twitter.
• Sprout Social: Supports a wider range of social channels, including Twitter, LinkedIn, and Google Business Profile. This makes it suitable for businesses managing a social media presence all various social media platforms and needing a centralized marketing platform.

Scheduling and Publishing

• Later: Offers a visual planner to design a cohesive Instagram feed easily. This drag-&-drop interface makes it simple to visualize your content and ensure it aligns with your brand aesthetic. You can also schedule posts for other supported platforms, but the visual planner is a standout feature for Instagram.
• Sprout Social: Provides advanced scheduling features like queue scheduling and optimal send times to optimize your social media presence. This ensures your content reaches your audience when they are most active. You also have more granular control over scheduling options than later.

Social Media Listening

• Sprout Social: Excels in social media listening, allowing you to monitor brand mentions and track industry trends. This helps you understand what people are saying about your brand and identify potential opportunities or crises. You can also use this data to inform your content strategy and engage in relevant conversations.
• Later: Offers basic listening, but it's not as comprehensive. You can track mentions and hashtags, but you don't get the same depth of analysis or the ability to monitor industry trends as you do with Sprout Social.

Engagement and Inbox Management

• Later: Provides a unified inbox to manage social media engagement from various social channels. This helps you stay organized and respond to comments and messages efficiently. However, the features are more basic than those of Sprout Social.
• Sprout Social: Offers advanced features like automated responses and chatbots to streamline your engagement efforts. This allows you to scale your responses and provide timely support to your audience, even when you're not available.

Analytics Capabilities

• Later: Focuses on essential metrics like engagement and reach, giving you a basic overview of your social media performance. This is sufficient for understanding basic trends, but you may need more detailed insights to make informed decisions.
• Sprout Social: Provides more in-depth analytics capabilities, including competitive analysis. This allows you to track your progress against your competitors and identify areas for improvement. You can also generate custom reports to share it with your team or stakeholders.

Ease of Use

• Later: User-friendly interface, ideal for beginners and small businesses new to managing social media. The platform is intuitive & easy to navigate, allowing you to get started with scheduling and publishing content quickly.
• Sprout Social: There is a steep learning curve due to its advanced features. While the interface is well-designed, it takes time to master all the functionalities. This makes it more suitable for experienced social media managers or larger teams.

Pricing

• Later: More affordable, making it suitable for budget-conscious small businesses. It offers a free plan with limited features & affordable paid plans for those who need more functionality.
• Sprout Social: Higher price, reflecting its more comprehensive features. This makes it a better investment for larger businesses with dedicated social media teams and bigger budgets.

What to Look For When Choosing the Right Tool?

• Social Media Goals: Define your objectives. Are you focused on brand building, driving traffic, or increasing sales? Your goals will influence the features you need.
• Budget: Set a realistic budget. Consider the features you need and the pricing plans of different tools. Don't overspend on features you won't use.
• Team Size: If you have a team, consider collaboration features, user roles, and approval workflows.
• Technical Expertise: Choose a tool that can matches your team's technical skills. Some platforms are more complex than others.
• Customer Support: Look for responsive and helpful customer support. You'll need assistance at some point.
• Free Trial or Demo: Take advantage of free trials or demos to test the platform before committing.
• Integrations: Consider integrations with other tools you use, such as your CRM or email marketing platform.
• Social media management tools are constantly evolving. Stay updated on new features and industry trends.
• Don't be afraid to switch tools if your needs change. The best tool for you today might not be the best tomorrow.
• Consider the long-term value. Investing in a robust tool can save you time and improve your results in the long run.

Final Verdict (Our Pick)

So, which tool comes out on top? For most users, especially small businesses, we recommend Later.

It's easy to use, has a great visual planner, and won't break the bank. Plus, it offers all the essential features you need to boost your social media game.

Later, it makes scheduling visual content a breeze and provides helpful analytics to track your progress.

Need a Sprout Social alternative that's less complex and more affordable? Later is a great choice.

However, if you need advanced features like in-depth social media listening and Google Analytics integration, Sprout Social stands out as the more powerful option.

Sprout Social offers a more robust feature set, including detailed analytics and social listening tools, but it comes at a higher cost.

We've tested both platforms extensively so that you can trust our recommendation. Ultimately, the best choices depends on your specific needs and budget.

Choose wisely and watch your social media engagement soar!

Still not sure? Try out the free trials of both Later and Sprout Social to see which one feels like the best fit for you.

Frequently Asked Questions