Head to head
Gain vs Maeve Social
Last updated 3 August 2026
Gain is a content-approval tool first and a scheduler second. Its whole point is getting client sign-off without friction: clients review and approve posts by email or SMS without logging in, channels are unlimited, and you pay by team size and client count rather than per account.
- From
- $99 /mo
- Free plan
A newer scheduler built around approvals and client review rather than the solo posting queue.
- From
- $20 /mo
- Free plan
Bottom line
Maeve Social is the pick for teams and agencies that approve posts before they go out, and it's the cheaper start, from $20 a month. Gain fits agencies whose bottleneck is client review and sign-off better.
Maeve Social starts cheaper, $20 a month against $99 a month for Gain. Maeve Social adds social inbox that Gain leaves out.
Key differences
Where the two actually diverge, before the full tables.
- Maeve Social starts at $20 a month, Gain at $99 a month.
- Only Gain reaches Google Business.
- Only Maeve Social reaches YouTube.
- Gain has custom permissions; Maeve Social doesn't.
- Maeve Social has social inbox; Gain doesn't.
Features compared
| Feature | Gain | Maeve Social |
|---|---|---|
| AI captions | Yes | Yes |
| Basic analytics | Yes | Yes |
| Advanced reports | No | Partial |
| Bulk upload | Not assessed | No |
| Evergreen recycling | No | Partial |
| Team roles | Yes | Yes |
| Approvals | Yes | Yes |
| Link in bio | No | No |
Platforms compared
| Network | Gain | Maeve Social |
|---|---|---|
| Auto | Auto | |
| Auto | Auto | |
| X (Twitter) | Auto | Auto |
| Auto | Auto | |
| TikTok | Auto | Auto |
| Auto | Auto | |
| YouTube | No | Auto |
| Threads | Auto | Auto |
| Google Business | Auto | No |
Pricing
Headline prices are for a single unit. Here is the real monthly cost as each tool scales, costed on its own unit so the two stay honest.
No free plan; 14-day trial.
- Cheapest paid plan
- $99/mo
Whole-plan price; it doesn't scale per unit.
No free plan; 3-day trial.
- Cheapest paid plan
- $20/mo
Whole-plan price; it doesn't scale per unit.
Gain
Starter
$99/mo billed annually
- Seats
- 3
- Accounts
- Unlimited
- Scheduled posts
- Unlimited
- $119/mo, $99 on annual
- Up to 3 team members, up to 6 client workspaces, unlimited social accounts
- Unlimited approval workflows and client reviewers, content calendar, AI writing assistant
Agency
Popular$199/mo billed annually
- Seats
- 6
- Accounts
- Unlimited
- Scheduled posts
- Unlimited
- $239/mo, $199 on annual
- Up to 6 team members, up to 12 client workspaces, unlimited social accounts
- Adds white-label and more capacity
Agency Premium
$399/mo billed annually
- Seats
- 20
- Accounts
- Unlimited
- Scheduled posts
- Unlimited
- $479/mo, $399 on annual
- Up to 20 team members, up to 30 client workspaces, unlimited social accounts
Enterprise
- Seats
- Unlimited
- Accounts
- Unlimited
- Scheduled posts
- Unlimited
- Custom pricing, as many team members and workspaces as you need
- Unlimited social accounts, advanced support
- Flat, quota-bundled plans: each tier bundles team members and workspaces (one per client), with unlimited social accounts on every plan, so the price scales by team size and client count rather than per channel.
- Client reviewers are unlimited and don't count against your seats: clients approve or reject posts by email or SMS without needing a Gain account.
- There's no free plan, only a 14-day trial, no card required.
- Annual billing is about 17% cheaper: Starter is $99 a month versus $119, Agency $199 versus $239, Agency Premium $399 versus $479.
- White-label is included from the Agency plan up.
- Prices are USD, read off the live pricing page by toggling monthly and annual.
Maeve Social
Basic
$20/mo billed annually
- Seats
- 1
- Accounts
- 20
- $25/mo, $20 on annual ($240/yr)
- 1 user, 2 workspaces, 20 social connections
- 800 AI credits a month, 20 GB media storage
Standard
Popular$79/mo billed annually
- Seats
- 5
- Accounts
- 50
- $99/mo, $79 on annual ($950/yr)
- 5 users, 5 workspaces, 50 social connections
- Adds approvals, client review links, shareable calendars, and PDF reports
- Public API, CLI, and MCP access; 1,500 AI credits a month
Premium
$158/mo billed annually
- Seats
- Unlimited
- Accounts
- Unlimited
- $199/mo, $158 on annual ($1,900/yr)
- Unlimited users, workspaces, and social connections
- Adds team insights and realtime co-editing
- 3,000 AI credits a month, 100 GB media storage
- Flat, quota-bundled tiers: each plan includes a fixed number of users, workspaces, and social connections, and you move up a plan rather than buying seats one at a time.
- No plan-level post cap. Publishing limits are per connected channel and follow each network's rules, for example 100 posts a month per X account.
- The trial is 3 days on every plan and takes a card up front; annual billing works out to roughly 20% off. AI credit top-ups are available at 50 credits per US dollar, $10 minimum.
Pros and cons
Gain
- Best-in-class client approvals: sign off by email or SMS, no account needed
- Unlimited client reviewers and unlimited social accounts on every plan
- Flat pricing by team and client count, with white-label from Agency up
- Revision tracking through each feedback round
- No social inbox, listening, or evergreen recycling
- Light analytics and reporting
- No YouTube or Bluesky
- Priced for teams, with the entry plan at $99 a month
Maeve Social
- Approvals and client review links on Standard and up
- Direct publishing on all eight supported networks
- Media Room, grid planner, and content board on every plan
- Public API, CLI, and MCP server for automation
- No bulk CSV upload or link-in-bio
- Inbox covers Instagram, Facebook, and Threads only
- No X or LinkedIn analytics yet
- Three-day trial is short and takes a card
Gain vs Maeve Social: FAQ
- Is Gain or Maeve Social cheaper?
- Maeve Social is cheaper to start, from $20 against $99 for Gain. The unit each one charges by differs, so the real bill depends on how many channels or seats you run.
- Does Gain or Maeve Social have a free plan?
- Neither has a free plan. You get a free trial to test things, then you pay.
- Which is better, Gain or Maeve Social?
- Gain is the stronger pick for agencies whose bottleneck is client review and sign-off, while Maeve Social is the better fit for teams and agencies that approve posts before they go out. We don't score them; the right call comes down to how you post.