Difference Between Hootsuite and Buffer (With Table)

This Article has been written by: Supriya Kandekar

The world is digitalizing, and every marketer is shifting more focus on digital media than the traditional way. Some of them curled with new businesses, some of them are well recognized, some are small businesses, some are large, and even entrepreneurs. All of them are acknowledged and started using Social Media Marketing, online promotions, and advertising campaigns.  

Promoting online has made the markets to target a vast audience, and there are many social media platforms available to do so. It is time-consuming and confusing to select the right ones. Social Media Management Tools have made the work easy as they facilitate handling all of them in one place and let us choose our audience range that is time-saving.  

Two such tools are Hootsuite and Buffer. They both work to assist marketers in managing social media platforms, online advertisements. And provide services like the engagement of the audience, create brand awareness, analyze progress, and making schedules for all of it.

Hootsuite vs Buffer

The main difference between Hootsuite and Buffer is that they have goals for different audiences. Hootsuite targets large businesses, enterprises, and big firms, whereas Buffer’s audience is starters, small businesses, and entrepreneurs. 

Comparison Table Between Hootsuite and Buffer    

Parameter of Comparison 

Hootsuite 

Buffer 

Target Audience 

The target audience is Large Scale Businesses, Enterprises with vast projects and products. 

Small Scale Businesses, self-entrepreneur, and new businesses can start with Buffer. 

Official Website Interface 

The interface is more information focused on supplying details and a total overview. 

The interface is filled-up with more Visual, Creative, and Optimistic details. 

Plans 

Free, Professional, Team, Business, Enterprise are the available plans varying with different services. 

Free, Professional, Premium, Business plans available with providing different services. 

Free Trial 

Total 30 days of free trial is available to professional, team users, and Demo to business and Enterprise subscribers. 

To all types of users, 14 days free trial with any time cancellation and no credit details perks. 

Services 

Primary services provided are Publish, Engage, Monitor, Advertise, Analyze, and many sub-goals included. 

Publish, Analyze are the primary goals and include small sub-goals. 

Supportive Browsers 

Google Chrome, Mozilla Firefox, Apple Safari, Microsoft Edge, Microsoft Internet Explorer 11 are the supporting browsers. 

Compatible browsers are Google Chrome, Mozilla Firefox, Apple Safari, Opera. 

Dashboard 

Mention, Reviews, Analytics, Stats, Drafts, Pins, Calendar, and many more for the wide range of approaches. 

More focused on small goals with sorted and posts oriented view Dashboard. 

Available in Languages 

The multilingual website has different languages available, Spanish to Polish. 

Only available in the English language. 

Social Media Courses 

Certified courses by own ‘Hootsuite Academy.’ 

Courses and certifications available on other learning software- Skillshare, Coursera, Udemy. 

What is Hootsuite? 

Large businesses have long planning, schedules, big target, wider audience, and many things to handle.   

Hootsuite is a software program that helps large businesses to target a large audience. To date, it has supported more than 16 million businesses. It helps them to set and accomplish bigger goals. Its interface is detailed and explanatory. Hootsuite’s Dashboard is also a field with a detailed analysis that provides all information sorted and on one page for a quick overview. It helps to view the overall growth of the business.   

In the beginning, the application gives 30 Days free-trial after that, it is a paid plan. Its services are planned for larger businesses as it provides plans for teams, collaborations, enterprises, and businesses. The package offers different promotional targets like to publish content, increasing brand recognition, advertisements, and analytics. 

The website is available in different languages English (Default) to Spanish, Japanese, French, German, Polish, and more. The application has its Hootsuite Academy, where are courses provided for businesses to acquire social media marketing knowledge. It is accessible for Google Chrome, Mozilla Firefox, Apple Safari, Microsoft Edge, Microsoft Internet Explorer 11 users. 

What is Buffer? 

Plenty of new businesses are emerging, and small-scale companies are in the market; they have small approaches and need compact business goals.  

For such businesses, Buffer is the best option as they need optimized planning and strategies. Buffer is the software application that works for small business goals with focusing on creating brand awareness. It is the best choice for those users who have to start their business; they can focus more on creating a place in the market.   

The new user gets 14 Days free trial, and then it is a paid service. As its goals are optimized, the app is only available in the English language. The interface is centered on creative visuals and less wordy. The Dashboard is more sorted and focusing only on posts and related that. Provided plans are concerned with publishing and analyzing. That makes the application very easy to understand and use.   

Google Chrome, Mozilla Firefox, Apple Safari, Opera are the supporting browsers for its use. They also provide social media marketing courses on online learning websites like Skillshare, Udemy, and Coursera. 75000, and more small businesses have trusted Buffer with their social media management. 

Main Differences Between Hootsuite and Buffer 

  1. Hootsuite avails features for large business firms, and Buffer, on the other hand, avail for entrepreneurs, small and new businesses. 
  2. Mainly Hootsuite is used for recognizing the brand and increasing Goodwill. Oppositely, Buffer for spreading awareness about the brand and creating a new place in the market. 
  3. The interface of Hootsuite has detailed information and more options to select exact goals for its accomplishments. Comparatively, Buffer does not have more options, but the interface is on point with more visualizing, attractive, and creative for users. 
  4. Total 30 days of free trial served by Hootsuite Professional and Team plans. Business and Enterprise plans have demos. Whereas; all of the Buffer plans give 14 days of free trial service. 
  5. Publish, Engage, Monitor, Advertise, and Analyze are the primary services provided by Hootsuite. While Buffer only has Primary services, like Publish and Analyze. 
  6. For a vast range of audiences, Hootsuite provides multilingual service whereas, Buffer serves only in the English language. 

Conclusion 

Both the Hootsuite and Buffer websites have achieved great success in building trust and serving their best. Websites are accessible for browsers, and applications are available for android and iOS users. They have different users with different goals. Marketers can choose one of them relating their business plans and targets.  

For large businesses, Hootsuite is a great choice, and for small ones, Buffer is splendid. Often companies create brand awareness with Buffer. Then switch to Hootsuite to maintain and grow brand recognition, also to fulfill larger goals.