Buffer vs. Meta Business Manager

Overview
ProductRatingMost Used ByProduct SummaryStarting Price
Buffer
Score 8.2 out of 10
Small Businesses (1-50 employees)
Buffer is a social sharing tool. When browsing content, clicking on the Buffer icon automatically stores the content and schedules posts to social media channels throughout the day.
$15
per month
Meta Business Manager
Score 7.5 out of 10
N/A
Meta Business Manager (formerly Facebook Business Manager, or Pages Manager) is a mobile app that supports management of up to 50 Facebook pages from a smart phone or tablet, allowing social media managers to see activity, post updates, and respond immediately to customers.N/A
Pricing
BufferMeta Business Manager
Editions & Modules
Publish Pro
$15
per month
Analyze Pro
$35
per month
Analyze Premium
$50
per month
Publish Premium
$65
per month
Publish Business
$99
per month
No answers on this topic
Offerings
Pricing Offerings
BufferMeta Business Manager
Free Trial
YesNo
Free/Freemium Version
YesNo
Premium Consulting/Integration Services
NoNo
Entry-level Setup FeeNo setup feeNo setup fee
Additional DetailsHere are the prices of our various plans: Pro: $15/month Small Business: $99/month Medium Business: $199/month Large Business: $399/month Enterprise: Feel free to get in touch with us at onboarding@buffer.com. All plans can be paid on either a monthly or yearly basis. If you choose to pay yearly, you would receive a 15% discount, which works out to be approximately two months free per year.
More Pricing Information
Community Pulse
BufferMeta Business Manager
Considered Both Products
Buffer
Chose Buffer
Buffer has a clear, easy to use interface and a reliable scheduling calendar.
Meta Business Manager

No answer on this topic

Top Pros
Top Cons
Features
BufferMeta Business Manager
Publishing
Comparison of Publishing features of Product A and Product B
Buffer
7.6
64 Ratings
4% below category average
Meta Business Manager
5.9
49 Ratings
29% below category average
Content planning and scheduling9.364 Ratings7.049 Ratings
Content optimization6.457 Ratings5.744 Ratings
Workflow management7.053 Ratings4.838 Ratings
Audience targeting00 Ratings6.046 Ratings
Reporting/analytics
Comparison of Reporting/analytics features of Product A and Product B
Buffer
7.8
59 Ratings
1% below category average
Meta Business Manager
5.7
47 Ratings
32% below category average
Campaign success analytics7.859 Ratings7.246 Ratings
Real-time tracking00 Ratings5.943 Ratings
Competitor analysis00 Ratings4.027 Ratings
Account management
Comparison of Account management features of Product A and Product B
Buffer
8.4
61 Ratings
3% above category average
Meta Business Manager
6.2
49 Ratings
27% below category average
Role-based user permissions & privileges7.649 Ratings5.546 Ratings
Mobile access9.159 Ratings6.947 Ratings
Listening/monitoring
Comparison of Listening/monitoring features of Product A and Product B
Buffer
-
Ratings
Meta Business Manager
6.1
35 Ratings
23% below category average
Boolean keyword searches00 Ratings6.020 Ratings
Filtering out noise/spam00 Ratings5.326 Ratings
Sentiment analysis00 Ratings7.322 Ratings
Broad channel coverage00 Ratings6.125 Ratings
Engagement
Comparison of Engagement features of Product A and Product B
Buffer
-
Ratings
Meta Business Manager
6.0
42 Ratings
29% below category average
Automated routing and prioritization00 Ratings5.434 Ratings
Customer interaction histories00 Ratings4.738 Ratings
Bulk actions00 Ratings7.925 Ratings
Marketing
Comparison of Marketing features of Product A and Product B
Buffer
-
Ratings
Meta Business Manager
6.1
47 Ratings
23% below category average
Lead generation00 Ratings4.838 Ratings
Content marketing00 Ratings5.742 Ratings
Paid media management00 Ratings6.239 Ratings
Campaigns and promotions00 Ratings7.543 Ratings
Channel coverage/integration
Comparison of Channel coverage/integration features of Product A and Product B
Buffer
-
Ratings
Meta Business Manager
6.3
49 Ratings
30% below category average
Twitter00 Ratings4.010 Ratings
Facebook00 Ratings8.148 Ratings
LinkedIn00 Ratings5.98 Ratings
Google+00 Ratings7.33 Ratings
Instagram00 Ratings7.334 Ratings
Pinterest00 Ratings6.05 Ratings
YouTube00 Ratings5.612 Ratings
Best Alternatives
BufferMeta Business Manager
Small Businesses
Publer
Publer
Score 9.8 out of 10
Publer
Publer
Score 9.8 out of 10
Medium-sized Companies
Social Suite by Reputation.com
Social Suite by Reputation.com
Score 9.3 out of 10
Social Suite by Reputation.com
Social Suite by Reputation.com
Score 9.3 out of 10
Enterprises
Social Suite by Reputation.com
Social Suite by Reputation.com
Score 9.3 out of 10
Social Suite by Reputation.com
Social Suite by Reputation.com
Score 9.3 out of 10
All AlternativesView all alternativesView all alternatives
User Ratings
BufferMeta Business Manager
Likelihood to Recommend
8.2
(84 ratings)
9.1
(49 ratings)
Likelihood to Renew
8.0
(14 ratings)
-
(0 ratings)
Usability
8.1
(23 ratings)
7.5
(15 ratings)
Availability
8.2
(2 ratings)
-
(0 ratings)
Performance
8.0
(2 ratings)
-
(0 ratings)
Support Rating
6.3
(23 ratings)
5.9
(14 ratings)
Implementation Rating
8.0
(2 ratings)
-
(0 ratings)
Configurability
10.0
(1 ratings)
-
(0 ratings)
Product Scalability
8.6
(2 ratings)
-
(0 ratings)
User Testimonials
BufferMeta Business Manager
Likelihood to Recommend
Buffer
It helps me save hours by devoting only half an hour in a month's worth of posting, in addition to that it is quite simple to use. Buffer for scheduling social posts well in advance, but I have begun using it instead of posting natively on the social apps themselves because it makes it super easy to post the same messages to more than one platform.
Read full review
Meta Platforms Inc
If using a desktop, Facebook Business Manage can help integrate and consolidate your workload when managing multiple pages for multiple clients. However, it can also be clunky when trying to use it on the go from a smartphone as the functionality is more limited. For those that sit at desks all day, it's a good program. For those of us that stay mobile, it can be frustrating.
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Pros
Buffer
  • I can plan and publish content on social channels.
  • Buffer's interface is quite tidy and generates the necessary facilities to save us time in publishing consistent content.
  • It has a special price; it is pretty affordable.
  • It has the possibility of integrating with other tools to improve its functions.
Read full review
Meta Platforms Inc
  • Stats and insights, to have data to back up assumptions and actions.
  • Scheduling posts, which is helpful when you can't always post in real time.
  • Messenger, which allows me to interact directly with potential customers.
  • Roles, which allows me to assign an intern to help manage the profile.
  • Ads, which allows me to target and advertise to potential customers.
  • Pixel, which connects my Facebook data with my website.
Read full review
Cons
Buffer
  • Expensive Analytics: The upgrade you need to access your analytics is quite expensive, and I have come across other tools that provide the same or even more for a lesser priced plan.
  • No Media Library: The one feature I have found on another social media planning tool that I wish Buffer had is a media library. This allows you to upload photos you aren't using right away to have them readily available when you do decide to use them. This is not a feature in Buffer.
Read full review
Meta Platforms Inc
  • The only thing I have noticed is when on my device, it calls out a list of names that have shared your post, and it only shows one. On the computer it will let you scroll down and see all of them.
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Likelihood to Renew
Buffer
I am giving buffer this rating because of a couple issues that it has compared to other platforms. It does not always post to instagram and you will need to go in an manually post. Also, one of the biggest qualms that we have with buffer is the price it costs to have robust analytics
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Meta Platforms Inc
No answers on this topic
Usability
Buffer
We use Buffer for certain website content that should be shared on social networks, having this tool helps us to do it faster and easier since we can send the publications from the internet browser and the stack of scheduled messages. It is really fast and easy for all team members who share access to the account, so at the same time that we analyze the information that we can share, the message stack is prepared
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Meta Platforms Inc
I give Facebook Business Manager this rating because how I am able to edit and customize each client location page easily and can add users as needed without any hoops to jump through. I also appreciate the about of reach that Facebook has, so having a tool like this that's easy to use and can be in control of the backed of what people see is so important.
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Reliability and Availability
Buffer
Buffer is always on hand and very reliable, their software suite rarely has outages
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Meta Platforms Inc
No answers on this topic
Performance
Buffer
Buffer performs well on both desktop and mobile platforms. The one area as I have stated before is that it does not always want to automatically push to Instagram and the user will have to go do it manually. Buffer works very well pushing to other platforms. The instagram issue is the only reason buffer does not get a 10 on this section
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Meta Platforms Inc
No answers on this topic
Support Rating
Buffer
  1. It really helped to my business to grow online.
  2. I was able to take actions mindfully as the analytics are damn good.
  3. Also used for managing clients social media accounts and it proved to be a best resource.
  4. Clients were really happy as they got high demand and growth on internet and the secret is Buffer.
  5. The user interface is really easy to understand and manage. Support is 24/7 available to help.
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Meta Platforms Inc
The few times I've had to reach out for ad questions, Facebook Pages customer service is prompt and friendly with their advice. I've never waited longer than 24 hours to get a response, and generally it's just a few hours. They're also quick at removing spam from my Pages when I've needed them to.
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Implementation Rating
Buffer
We were very satisfied with the implementation of Buffer. We had no issues switching from the platform that we were using over to buffer. Our staff did not even miss a beat when it came to posting content. It was an easy transition and I feel that is something that buffer has really done well. They have an "out of the box" usability platform
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Meta Platforms Inc
No answers on this topic
Alternatives Considered
Buffer
I also used Combin which is easy and free to use. However, Combin only posts when the computer is active and connected to the internet. So, posting while you are not actively using your computer at that moment is not possible, therefore Buffer is much more efficient as you can even post while being on vacation without working.
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Meta Platforms Inc
While we looked at different possibilities, it just seemed that this program was designed for our key social media platforms. There really was no point in utilizing a different program when this was designed for these platforms specifically. The mobile app is an added convenience that allows me to manage our social media on the go.
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Scalability
Buffer
Buffer does what it say on tin as they say! you can always count on Buffer. Buffer can be scale to 25 social account with 2,000 scheduled post which is enough for most agencies or businesses
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Meta Platforms Inc
No answers on this topic
Return on Investment
Buffer
  • It has saved money by allowing us to automate our social using one person
  • It allows us to connect one channel at a time instead of wasting money on larger account management tools
  • We are making money, because it has already delivered several clients
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Meta Platforms Inc
  • Most of our leads come from Facebook paid marketing.
  • Our business is centered around our content, which allows us to stand out from the completion. Facebook allows us to get the content in front of our audience.
  • Facebook Marketing is so dynamic that it takes loads of trial and error to get to a winning formula. And the errors can be expensive.
Read full review
ScreenShots

Buffer Screenshots

Screenshot of The Buffer dashboardScreenshot of Customizable posting scheduleScreenshot of Tailored PostsScreenshot of List or calendar view of scheduled postsScreenshot of Browser extensionScreenshot of Social media analytics