Metricool vs Later vs Post Pilots: Instagram 2026
Later dropped its free plan. Metricool skimps on visual planning. See how all three compare on price, carousel support, AI captions, and grid view in 2026.
Quick Answer
Later removed its free plan in early 2025. If you were using it as a free Instagram scheduler, Metricool is the most direct replacement - it has a permanent free tier covering one brand and 50 posts/month. But the tools serve genuinely different audiences. Later ($18.75-25/mo) is best for creators whose Instagram grid aesthetic is a brand pillar. Metricool (free or $25/mo Starter) is best for marketers who want analytics, competitor tracking, and multi-platform reach from one dashboard. Post Pilots ($12-24/mo) is best for Instagram-only creators who post carousels and Reels and want AI-generated captions and burned-in subtitles without leaving the scheduling workflow.
Why Later's free plan removal changed the market
Later built its reputation as the Instagram visual planner, and a lot of that reputation came from its free plan. Hundreds of thousands of solo creators used it to drag and drop posts into a grid preview, schedule a week of content, and call it done - without paying anything.
When Later removed the free tier in early 2025, those users had a choice: pay $18.75/month (annual billing) for the Starter plan, or move to something else. Search volume for "metricool vs later" spiked almost immediately. Metricool had an obvious answer: a permanent free plan that does not expire, covering one brand and 50 scheduled posts per month.
That swap works for some creators and not others. Metricool's free tier is capable - competitor tracking, basic scheduling, analytics - but its visual grid planning is lighter than Later's. If the reason you used Later was the grid aesthetic, the switch to Metricool requires some adjustment.
This comparison is for anyone navigating that decision, plus anyone comparing all three before committing to one.
Pricing at a glance
| Tool | Free tier | Cheapest paid | Instagram-only value |
|---|---|---|---|
| Later | No (14-day trial) | $18.75/mo (annual) | High - best visual planner |
| Metricool | Yes - 1 brand, 50 posts/mo | $25/mo Starter (multiple brands) | Medium - analytics depth, lighter visual UX |
| Post Pilots | No (14-day Professional trial) | $12/mo Hobbyist | High - carousel + Reel + subtitle focus |
Later's $18.75/month on the Starter plan is billed annually. Monthly billing runs higher. The plan limits posts to 30 per profile per month and gives 5 AI caption credits per month - enough for light use but tight if you post daily.
Metricool's free plan is genuinely usable long-term. The limitation is one brand (one connected set of accounts), and some features like custom report branding and best-time-to-post recommendations are locked to paid tiers. The $25/month Starter plan adds multiple brands and unlocks more analytics depth.
Post Pilots works a bit differently from both. The Hobbyist plan at $12/month covers 50 posts per month with AI captions and the drag-and-drop grid planner. The Professional plan at $24/month adds unlimited posts, Reels with subtitle burning, and priority support. All new signups get a 14-day Professional trial automatically - no credit card required.
Tool-by-tool breakdown
Later
Later started as an Instagram visual planner and remains the best in class for that specific job. The drag-and-drop content calendar shows you exactly how your grid will look, with live rearranging so you can optimize the aesthetic before anything posts.
Auto-publishing covers the full Instagram format set: single images, carousels with up to 10 slides and precise ordering, Reels with custom cover frames, and Stories. Posts go live within seconds of the scheduled time - Later's reliability on Meta's API has historically been strong.
The platform has expanded beyond Instagram over the years. It now covers TikTok, Facebook, LinkedIn, Pinterest, X, and YouTube. Instagram still receives the most polished feature set, but you can manage other channels without switching tools.
Where Later falls short is analytics depth. Competitor benchmarking is not included at any price point. Best-time-to-post data is basic compared to Metricool. If you want to track how your content is performing against similar accounts, you will need a separate analytics tool alongside Later.
AI captions exist on the platform but are limited - 5 credits per month on the Starter plan, 50 on Growth ($37.50/month). They are template-style, not contextually generated from the actual image content.
Best for: Brands where the Instagram grid aesthetic is a strategic asset and a dedicated visual planning workflow is worth paying for.
Metricool
Metricool takes the opposite approach from Later. Where Later prioritizes visual planning and Instagram-first UX, Metricool prioritizes data. Competitor benchmarking, engagement rate tracking, best-time-to-post recommendations, and cross-platform analytics are available on all plans - including the free tier.
The platform covers more than 12 platforms and includes Google Business Profile and Twitch alongside the standard Instagram, TikTok, Facebook, LinkedIn, Pinterest, and X set. For agencies or marketers managing multiple brands and multiple channels, Metricool's pricing by brand (rather than per user) works out significantly cheaper than competitors.
The trade-off: visual grid planning is lighter. Metricool has a planner with grid preview on paid tiers, but it is not as fluid or as focused as Later's drag-and-drop experience. Creators who center their workflow on the grid aesthetic find it functional but not as polished.
Carousel support is present - you can schedule multi-image posts with ordering control - but the interface is designed around a calendar view rather than a grid planner. The difference matters if you are making aesthetic decisions post-by-post based on how the grid looks.
AI caption generation exists on Metricool but is template-based. You enter a topic, pick a tone, and get a generic draft that does not know what image you uploaded.
Best for: Marketers and social media managers who need analytics depth, competitor tracking, and multi-platform coverage from one dashboard at a reasonable price.
Post Pilots
Post Pilots was built around one use case: Instagram carousels and Reels for creators who want the whole workflow handled in one place. That focus shapes every product decision.
The upload flow takes bulk image drops and stacks them into the grid planner automatically. From there, drag-and-drop reordering works within each carousel and across the grid, so you can optimize individual posts and overall aesthetic in the same session. AI captions run on Gemini and are contextually aware - they read the actual images or video you uploaded and generate captions specific to that content, not generic templates.
The Reels workflow goes further than anything else in this comparison. Post Pilots integrates AssemblyAI for automatic transcription and Shotstack for burning subtitles directly into the video before it posts. Upload a Reel, choose your subtitle style, schedule it, and it publishes with captions already embedded. I built this after talking to creators who were spending 20-30 minutes per Reel doing this manually in CapCut - the goal was to make it a one-step process inside the scheduler.
iPhone HEVC footage is handled natively. (We had an earlier subtitle-burning integration that silently failed on MOV files from iPhones. We switched to Shotstack specifically because it handles HEVC without needing a conversion step.)
The honest constraint: Post Pilots is Instagram-only. No LinkedIn, TikTok cross-posting, no Google Business Profile, no analytics beyond what Instagram's API provides. If you manage multiple platforms from a single dashboard, you need Metricool or Later. If Instagram is your primary channel and you want carousels and Reels handled automatically with the least friction possible, that single-platform focus is a feature.
Start your free 14-day Post Pilots trial - no credit card, no commitment.
Best for: Instagram-focused creators who post carousels and Reels regularly, especially if subtitle burning or AI caption quality matters to the workflow.
Feature comparison: carousel and Reels depth
This table focuses on Instagram-specific features, which is where the three tools diverge most:
| Feature | Later | Metricool | Post Pilots |
|---|---|---|---|
| Visual grid preview | Yes (drag-and-drop) | Yes (paid plans) | Yes (drag-and-drop) |
| Carousel scheduling | Yes, up to 10 slides | Yes | Yes |
| Carousel drag-and-drop | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Reels auto-publishing | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| AI subtitles for Reels | No | No | Yes |
| AI captions - image-aware | No (template) | No (template) | Yes (Gemini) |
| Competitor tracking | No | Yes (all plans) | No |
| Free tier | No | Yes | No (trial only) |
| Instagram-only focus | No | No | Yes |
The subtitle gap is the sharpest differentiator. Meta has published data showing the majority of video on its platforms plays without sound - a pattern that holds across Facebook and Instagram. Burned-in subtitles improve watch time and reach without the creator doing anything extra. Neither Later nor Metricool include subtitle burning in the posting workflow. If Reels with subtitles is a core part of your content strategy, Post Pilots is currently the only Instagram scheduler that handles the transcription, burning, and scheduling in one step.
AI caption quality
All three tools include some form of AI captions, but the implementation differs significantly.
Later's AI credits are limited (5 per month on Starter) and generate based on a topic prompt you provide. The output is serviceable but generic - it does not know what is in your image.
Metricool's AI assistant works similarly: you describe the topic, pick a tone, and it generates. Again, not image-aware, but unlimited usage on paid plans.
Post Pilots runs captions through Gemini with the actual image or video as context. The model sees what you are posting and generates captions relevant to the specific content rather than a topic description you typed. In practice, this produces drafts that need less editing, especially for carousels where each slide adds context to the caption.
If AI caption quality matters to your workflow, Post Pilots has the advantage. If you primarily want AI as a starting point to edit heavily anyway, the difference between Later and Metricool on captions is minimal.
Verdict by use case
If you are coming from Later's free plan and just need a replacement: Metricool's free tier is the cleanest swap. One brand, 50 posts/month, grid preview included. The visual planning UX is different but workable.
If you are paying for Later and care primarily about the grid aesthetic: Later is still worth the price at $18.75/month if that visual planning experience drives your content workflow. Do not switch for cost reasons alone - the difference between $18.75 and $12 is less than the friction of relearning a different interface.
If you post primarily carousels and Reels, and caption quality or subtitle automation matters: Post Pilots at $12-24/month is the most efficient workflow. The grid planner is as capable as Later's, AI captions are image-aware, and Reels publishing with burned subtitles is built into the scheduling step. Start your free 14-day trial - no card, no commitment. See our Later vs Buffer vs Post Pilots comparison for a deeper look at how Post Pilots sits against Later specifically.
If you manage multiple brands or need competitor benchmarking: Metricool is the strongest option. The analytics depth at free (and at $25/month) is not matched by Later or Post Pilots.
If you are not primarily Instagram-focused: Neither Later nor Post Pilots. Metricool's multi-platform coverage and analytics breadth make it the natural choice for marketers managing five platforms simultaneously.
FAQ
Did Later really remove its free plan? Yes. Later discontinued its free plan in early 2025. The only way to use Later now is on a paid plan, starting at $18.75/month billed annually. There is a 14-day free trial available before you commit.
Is Metricool's free plan actually useful? For one brand and 50 posts per month, yes. The free plan includes scheduling, basic analytics, and competitor tracking - which Later does not offer at any price. The main limitation is one connected brand. If you manage multiple clients or accounts, you need a paid plan.
Does Post Pilots have a free plan? No free plan, but all new accounts start with a 14-day Professional trial automatically. No credit card required to start.
Which tool has the best Instagram grid preview? Later and Post Pilots both have polished drag-and-drop grid planners. Metricool's grid preview is available on paid plans but is less central to the UX. If the grid aesthetic drives your planning decisions, Later and Post Pilots are the stronger options.
Can I schedule Instagram Reels with subtitles burned in? Post Pilots is the only tool in this comparison that includes subtitle burning in the scheduling workflow. Later and Metricool auto-publish Reels but require you to burn subtitles externally before uploading.