Our Honest Take on Planoly: Why We Switched Our Recommendation After 6 Months of Testing

So we’ve been using Planoly for about 6 months now with several of our clients, and honestly… I’m going to tell you what we actually liked, what drove us crazy, and why picking the wrong scheduler can really mess with your social media game.

Table of Contents

• TL;DR: The Bottom Line on Planoly

• Planoly

• Top 4 Alternatives to Planoly We Actually Recommend

• Frequently Asked Questions About Planoly

• Final Thoughts: Beyond Pretty Grids

TL;DR: The Bottom Line on Planoly

• Planoly’s visual Instagram grid planning is still amazing but good luck using the mobile app without wanting to throw your phone

• They killed their free plan which makes that $16/month starting price feel pretty steep

• Auto-posting works reliably across 7 platforms, but they’re always behind on newer networks like Bluesky

• Analytics are pretty basic – you’ll definitely need other tools for real insights

• Perfect if you’re obsessed with Instagram aesthetics, but not great value for multi-platform strategies

• Mobile app crashes constantly, which is a huge problem when you’re trying to post on the go

Planoly

Criteria	Rating (1-5)	Notes
Visual Planning Capabilities	5/5	Seriously the best Instagram grid editor we’ve used – drag and drop just works
Scheduling & Automation	4/5	Posts go out when they’re supposed to, which honestly is all we ask for
Analytics & Insights	3/5	Pretty basic stuff – you’ll probably want something else for the real data
Multi-Platform Support	4/5	Covers the big ones but they’re slow to jump on new platforms
Ease of Use	4/5	Great on desktop, but good luck using it on your phone
Pricing Value	3/5	$16/month with no free option? Come on, guys
Reliability & Performance	3/5	Website’s fine, mobile app… not so much
Team Collaboration	4/5	Works well if you upgrade, but you shouldn’t have to

What Planoly is Best Known For

Here’s the thing – Planoly basically solved one problem really, really well: helping people see what their Instagram was going to look like before they posted. And honestly? That was genius back when everyone was scrambling to make their feeds look cohesive.

I remember the first time I used their grid planner – it was like finally having x-ray vision for Instagram. You could drag posts around, see how colors flowed together, and actually plan an aesthetic instead of just hoping for the best. For lifestyle bloggers and fashion brands especially, this was like finding the holy grail.

But here’s where it gets frustrating. They killed their free plan in 2023 (which was honestly a huge part of why people loved them), and they’ve been super slow to add new platforms. Like, where’s Bluesky support? Meanwhile, their competitors are adding new integrations left and right.

Features That Actually Matter

Okay, let’s talk about what actually works. That visual grid planner? Still amazing. You upload your content, drag it around until it looks perfect, and boom – you know exactly how your Instagram feed will look. The drag-and-drop works great on desktop, though fair warning – on mobile it’s way too sensitive and you’ll accidentally move stuff constantly.

The auto-posting is solid – we’ve tested this across Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, TikTok, LinkedIn, and YouTube, and posts actually go out when they’re supposed to. That might sound basic, but you’d be surprised how many tools mess this up.

Their hashtag thing is pretty clever too. You can save groups of hashtags and just apply them with one click. If you’re one of those people who has like 15 different hashtag strategies (we see you), this’ll save you tons of time.

And hey, Instagram Stories and Reels scheduling is included, which some competitors make you pay extra for. The “Sellit” feature tries to help with shoppable posts, but honestly, it’s not great compared to actual e-commerce tools.

You can reply to comments right in the app, which is convenient. But the analytics? Meh. You get the basics – follower growth, engagement rates, post performance – but nothing that’ll blow your mind or actually help you make better content decisions.

Pros

The Grid Planner is Chef’s Kiss

Look, if Instagram aesthetics matter to your brand, nothing comes close to Planoly’s visual planner. It just works, and it makes planning content actually fun.

Posts Actually Go Out

We’ve had very few posting failures, which honestly is more than we can say for some other tools we’ve tried. When you schedule something, it posts. Revolutionary, I know.

Stories and Reels Without Extra Fees

While other platforms nickel and dime you for every feature, Planoly includes Instagram’s newer formats in the base price. Respect.

It’s Actually Pretty to Look At

The interface is clean and doesn’t make you want to gouge your eyes out, which is more than I can say for some scheduling tools.

Instagram Won’t Hate You

They’re an official Instagram partner, so you don’t have to worry about getting your account suspended for using some sketchy third-party tool.

Cons

The Mobile App is a Disaster

I cannot stress this enough – if you need to manage social media from your phone (and who doesn’t these days?), this app will make you want to throw your device across the room. It crashes, it’s slow, it’s just… bad.

Analytics That Tell You Nothing

The insights are so basic they’re almost insulting. You’ll learn more from Instagram’s native analytics than from Planoly’s reports.

They’re Always Behind on New Platforms

Still no Bluesky? Really? While competitors are adding new networks, Planoly seems content to stick with the same old platforms.

Expensive for What You Get

$16 a month with no free option feels steep when you can get similar (or better) functionality elsewhere for less. Or free.

You Can Only See Your Last 18 Posts

This is just weird and annoying. Why limit this? It makes no sense for brands with lots of content.

How Planoly Measures Against Key Criteria

Visual Planning: 5/5

This is where they absolutely nail it. The grid editor is intuitive, fast, and does exactly what you need it to do.

Scheduling: 4/5

Seven platforms, reliable posting – no major complaints here, though they could be faster adding new networks.

Analytics: 3/5

Basic metrics that won’t help you make better content decisions. You’ll need other tools for real insights.

Multi-Platform: 4/5

Covers the main ones but they’re definitely not leading the pack on new platform adoption.

Ease of Use: 4/5

Great on desktop, terrible on mobile. It averages out to “okay.”

Pricing: 3/5

Just doesn’t feel worth it anymore, especially without a free tier to try things out.

Reliability: 3/5

Web version is solid, mobile app is a mess. Pick your battles.

Team Stuff: 4/5

Works fine if you pay for the higher plans, but basic collaboration shouldn’t require an upgrade.

What People Actually Say

Reddit users are pretty split on this one. The r/socialmedia crowd loves the grid planner but constantly complains about the price. One person put it perfectly: “It’s like paying premium prices for one really good feature and a bunch of mediocre ones.”

The mobile app complaints are everywhere. ProductHunt reviews are full of people saying stuff like “I plan everything on my laptop then pray I don’t need to post from my phone.” That’s… not great in 2024.

People are still pretty salty about losing the free plan. Twitter is full of former users talking about feeling “betrayed” after recommending Planoly to everyone for years, only to get kicked off when they couldn’t afford the paid plans.

Social media managers on LinkedIn acknowledge that the Instagram partnership is legit – you don’t have to worry about account issues. But most are recommending alternatives now because the value just isn’t there anymore.

The G2 reviews mention that new users struggle with the interface at first. One reviewer said the drag-and-drop is “so sensitive I kept accidentally moving posts when I was just trying to scroll.” Been there.

Facebook groups for social media managers still recommend Planoly, but only for “Instagram-obsessed brands” and usually with a caveat like “but honestly, try Later first.”

AppSumo community members are still bitter about the free plan removal. Several people said they “felt betrayed after promoting Planoly to their networks for years.” The overall vibe is that people love what it does but hate how the company has handled things lately.

Pricing Structure

The Starter Plan is $16/month (or $14 if you pay yearly) and you get 60 posts per month for one “social set.” That’s… not a lot if you post regularly.

The Growth Plan jumps to $28/month ($24 yearly) and removes the post limits while adding three user accounts. Most actual businesses will need this level.

Compared to competitors with free plans or cheaper entry points, Planoly feels expensive. You’re basically paying extra for that visual planning feature, which may or may not be worth it to you.

Where to Find Planoly

Just go to planoly.com and sign up. They have web and mobile apps, though honestly, I’d stick to the web version until they fix their mobile situation.

Top 4 Alternatives We Actually Recommend

Later: The One That Actually Works on Mobile

Later has pretty much the same visual planning stuff as Planoly, but their mobile app doesn’t suck. That alone might be worth switching. Their free plan gives you 30 posts per month, and paid plans start at $18/month.

The interface feels familiar if you’re coming from Planoly, but everything just… works better. Plus they include TikTok and Pinterest in their base plans without making a big deal about it.

Check out Later here

Post Planner: The Budget Winner

Post Planner starts at $9/month and honestly gives you more features than Planoly charges premium prices for. Their content curation tools actually help you find stuff to post, and they’ll automatically repost your evergreen content so your feeds stay active.

The visual planning isn’t quite as pretty as Planoly’s, but for half the price and way more features? Yeah, I’d take that trade.

Explore Post Planner options

ContentStudio: The AI-Powered Option

ContentStudio brings AI content suggestions and actually useful analytics for $19/month. They support more platforms than Planoly and their content discovery features might actually help you create better posts.

The analytics are way more detailed than Planoly’s basic stuff. If you actually want data that helps you make decisions, this is worth looking at.

See ContentStudio features

Tailwind: The Pinterest Specialist

Tailwind has a free forever plan and they’re amazing for Pinterest while still handling Instagram well. Their SmartSchedule thing automatically posts when your audience is most active, which is pretty cool.

If Pinterest drives real traffic to your business, Tailwind’s specialized tools make it worth considering over Planoly. The Instagram features are solid, just not as visually focused.

Try Tailwind free

Frequently Asked Questions About Planoly

Is Planoly worth the cost without a free plan?

Honestly? For most people, probably not. If you’re absolutely obsessed with Instagram aesthetics and have the budget, maybe. But there are so many good alternatives with free tiers that let you actually try before you buy.

The removal of their free plan really hurt them. It’s hard to justify $16/month when you can’t even test drive the thing first, especially when competitors offer solid free options.

Consider exploring our comprehensive Buffer review for a detailed comparison of another popular scheduling tool that might be a better fit for your needs.

How reliable is Planoly’s auto-posting feature?

Yeah, this part they do well. In our six months of testing across multiple client accounts, we had less than 2% posting failures, which is actually better than average. When posts didn’t go out, it was usually Instagram’s fault, not Planoly’s.

It works across all seven platforms they support – Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, TikTok, LinkedIn, and YouTube. Posts consistently go out at the scheduled times, and Instagram Stories and Reels post reliably too. Credit where credit’s due.

The reliability extends to all the different content types, which isn’t always the case with other scheduling tools. So at least when the app doesn’t crash, your content actually gets published.

Can Planoly handle multiple Instagram accounts effectively?

Sort of. The Starter plan technically allows multiple accounts in one “social set,” but you’re still limited to 60 total posts across everything. The visual planner works separately for each account, which is nice for maintaining different aesthetics.

But if you need different team members managing different accounts, you’ll need the Growth plan at $28/month. And switching between accounts in the interface is clunkier than it should be – sometimes takes several clicks just to get to the account you want.

For agencies or businesses managing multiple Instagram presences, it works but feels limited compared to what you’d expect for the price point.

What happens to my content if I cancel Planoly?

Your scheduled posts stop immediately, which is standard across most platforms. Already published stuff stays on your social platforms (obviously), but you lose access to analytics for that historical content.

The bigger pain is that Planoly doesn’t have great export options, so moving your planned content to another platform means basically starting over. If you’ve got a bunch of content queued up, plan your cancellation timing carefully to avoid gaps in your posting schedule.

Does Planoly work well for businesses beyond Instagram?

Not really. I mean, it works fine for basic scheduling on Facebook, Pinterest, and TikTok, but you’re paying premium prices for Instagram-specific features that don’t translate to other platforms.

The visual planning magic that makes Planoly special only really matters for Instagram. On other platforms, you’re essentially using an expensive basic scheduler. If Instagram is like 80% of your strategy, maybe it’s worth it. But if you’re managing a diverse social media presence, you can find way better value elsewhere.

How does the Planoly Creator Store feature work?

It’s pretty basic. You can set up a simple landing page with product links that connects to your Instagram bio. The setup is straightforward and the design is clean and mobile-friendly, which matches Instagram’s vibe.

But the e-commerce features are bare-bones. No inventory management, basic analytics, simple checkout process. It’s fine for creators with a few products, but if you’re serious about selling stuff, you’re better off using Instagram’s native shopping features or a real e-commerce platform.

Most businesses would get more value from dedicated e-commerce tools that actually integrate well with their existing systems.

Can I use Planoly for team collaboration and client management?

The Growth plan ($28/month) supports up to three team members with different permission levels – Admin, Editor, or Viewer. There’s an approval workflow so people can submit content for review before it goes live, which is essential for brand consistency.

For small teams, it works fine. But if you’re an agency managing multiple clients, the features feel pretty limited. No client-specific reporting, no white-label options, and the user management interface could be way more sophisticated.

Larger teams or agencies will probably want something with more comprehensive collaboration tools, though you’ll pay more for those features elsewhere too.

Final Thoughts: Beyond Pretty Grids

Look, after six months of really trying to make Planoly work, we just can’t recommend it to most people anymore. Yeah, the visual planning is still great, but everything else feels like it’s getting worse while the price goes up.

The mobile app issues are honestly a dealbreaker in 2024. When your tool for managing visual content doesn’t work well on the devices people use to create visual content… that’s a problem.

If you’re a lifestyle brand or fashion company where Instagram aesthetics are literally everything, maybe Planoly is still worth the premium. That grid planner really is the best out there for that specific use case.

But for everyone else? There are better options that cost less money and actually work properly on mobile. The social media world has moved on, and Planoly hasn’t kept up.

If you’re already using Planoly and it’s working for you, no need to panic and switch immediately. But if you’re shopping around for a new tool, I’d honestly try Later or one of the other alternatives first. Your wallet and your sanity will thank you.