Head to head

Planoly vs SmarterQueue

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Planoly grew up as an Instagram feed planner and still leads with the visual side: drag posts around a grid preview until the profile looks right, then schedule them, with a link-in-bio page that can sell digital products. It publishes to eight networks and prices in flat plans from a free mobile tier to $47 a month.

From
$14 /mo
Free plan

SmarterQueue is built around evergreen recycling and content curation: you sort posts into categories, it re-shares the best ones automatically with small variations, and a curation tool helps you find fresh content to fill the gaps. It runs two flat plans with a profiles slider, no free plan, and a trial that starts after your first queued post.

From
$21 /mo
Free plan

Bottom line

Planoly is the pick for Instagram-led creators who plan their grid visually, and it's the only one of the two with a free plan. SmarterQueue fits creators and small businesses who want evergreen recycling and curation better, and it adds evergreen recycling and advanced reports that Planoly leaves out.

Planoly starts cheaper, $14 a month against $21 a month for SmarterQueue. Planoly brings visual feed planner that SmarterQueue skips, while SmarterQueue has evergreen recycling Planoly doesn't.

Key differences

Where the two actually diverge, before the full tables.

  • Planoly has a free plan; SmarterQueue doesn't, though it offers a 14-day trial.
  • Planoly starts at $14 a month, SmarterQueue at $21 a month.
  • Planoly posts to 8 networks, SmarterQueue to 9.
  • Only SmarterQueue reaches Google Business.
  • Planoly has visual feed planner; SmarterQueue doesn't.
  • Planoly has link in bio; SmarterQueue doesn't.
  • SmarterQueue has evergreen recycling; Planoly doesn't.
  • SmarterQueue has advanced reports; Planoly doesn't.

Features compared

FeaturePlanolySmarterQueue
AI captionsYesYes
Basic analyticsYesYes
Advanced reportsNoYes
Bulk uploadNot assessedYes
Evergreen recyclingNoYes
Team rolesYesYes
ApprovalsNot assessedYes
Link in bioYesNo

Platforms compared

NetworkPlanolySmarterQueue
InstagramAutoAuto
FacebookAutoAuto
X (Twitter)AutoAuto
LinkedInAutoAuto
TikTokAutoAuto
PinterestAutoAuto
YouTubeAutoAuto
ThreadsAutoAuto
Google BusinessNoAuto

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.

Planolyflat pricing

Free plan available.

Cheapest paid plan
$14/mo

Whole-plan price; it doesn't scale per unit.

SmarterQueueflat pricing

No free plan; 14-day trial.

Cheapest paid plan
$21/mo

Whole-plan price; it doesn't scale per unit.

Planoly

Free

Free
Seats
1
Accounts
1
Scheduled posts
10
  • 1 social set, 1 user (mobile app)
  • 10 uploads a month
  • Visual planner and link-in-bio

Starter

$16 /mo

$14/mo billed annually

Seats
1
Accounts
1
Scheduled posts
Unlimited
  • $16/mo, $14 on annual
  • 1 social set, 1 user, unlimited uploads
  • Free link in bio; upgrade to Growth to add sets or users

Growth

Popular
$28 /mo

$24/mo billed annually

Seats
2
Accounts
2
Scheduled posts
Unlimited
  • $28/mo, $24 on annual
  • 2 social sets, 2 users, unlimited uploads
  • Extra social set $10/mo, extra user $5/mo

Pro

$55 /mo

$47/mo billed annually

Seats
6
Accounts
6
Scheduled posts
Unlimited
  • $55/mo, $47 on annual
  • 6 social sets, 6 users, unlimited uploads
  • Extra social set $8/mo, extra user $3/mo
  • Flat, quota-bundled plans: each tier bundles a number of social sets and users. A social set is one account per network (Instagram, TikTok, Pinterest, and so on), so one set covers your presence across the networks you connect.
  • Starter has no add-ons (you upgrade to grow). Growth and Pro let you buy extra sets ($10 then $8 a month) and extra users ($5 then $3 a month).
  • There's a free mobile plan (1 social set, 10 uploads a month).
  • Annual billing is up to 15% cheaper. Annual rates were read off the live pricing page; the Pro monthly figure is derived from the page's stated annual discount.
  • Prices are USD, read off the live pricing page.

SmarterQueue

Pro

$25 /mo

$21/mo billed annually

Seats
1
Accounts
5
  • $25/mo, $21 on annual; base covers 5 social profiles and 1 user
  • 1 workspace, 10 content categories, 1 RSS importer
  • 100 scheduled posts and 100 published posts per profile a month
  • 10,000 AI words a month

Team

Popular
$50 /mo

$42/mo billed annually

Seats
3
Accounts
5
  • $50/mo, $42 on annual; base covers 5 social profiles and 3 users
  • Unlimited workspaces, 20 content categories, 3 RSS importers, advanced importer
  • 250 scheduled and 200 published posts per profile a month, advanced analytics
  • 25,000 AI words a month
  • Two plans, Pro and Team, with a slider: the base price covers 5 social profiles and the bundled users, and you add more profiles and users to scale, so the monthly cost grows with the slider. SmarterQueue recently replaced its older Solo / Business / Agency lineup with this Pro / Team-plus-slider structure.
  • There's no free plan, only a free trial whose timer starts after your first queued post rather than at signup.
  • Annual billing is 15% cheaper: at the 5-profile base, Pro is $21 a month and Team $42.
  • Extra social profiles and extra users are add-ons priced through the slider. AI caption writing is metered (10,000 words a month on Pro, 25,000 on Team), and X posting is capped at 5 tweets a week.
  • Nonprofits, charities, schools, and full-time students get 50% off.
  • Prices are USD, read off the live pricing page with the currency switched to USD and the billing toggled; the GBP figures (about £17 and £34 a month on annual) cross-check to the same numbers.

Pros and cons

Planoly

  • Best-known Instagram feed/grid visual planner
  • Link-in-bio page that can sell digital products
  • Schedules to eight networks with AI captions and auto-responses
  • Free mobile plan and clear, cheap add-ons
  • Analytics are moderate, with no custom reports
  • No evergreen recycling or broad listening
  • No Bluesky or Google Business
  • Starter can't add sets or users without upgrading

SmarterQueue

  • Strong category-based evergreen recycling with text and media variations
  • Built-in content curation and importer to keep the queue full
  • Fairly priced, with competitor analysis and a social inbox included
  • Publishes to nine networks with an AI caption writer
  • No free plan, and the trial timer starts after your first queued post
  • AI words are metered and X posting is capped at five a week
  • No visual feed planner or link-in-bio
  • Profiles and users scale the price through the slider

Planoly vs SmarterQueue: FAQ

Is Planoly or SmarterQueue cheaper?
Planoly is cheaper to start, from $14 against $21 for SmarterQueue. The unit each one charges by differs, so the real bill depends on how many channels or seats you run.
Does Planoly or SmarterQueue have a free plan?
Planoly has a free plan; SmarterQueue does not, though it offers a 14-day trial.
Which is better, Planoly or SmarterQueue?
Planoly is the stronger pick for Instagram-led creators who plan their grid visually, while SmarterQueue is the better fit for creators and small businesses who want evergreen recycling and curation. We don't score them; the right call comes down to how you post.

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