Metricool is one of the most underrated social media tools on the market. Its analytics are genuinely best-in-class for the price. But analytics and done-for-you posting solve completely different problems.
Quick Comparison
| Factor | Glow Social | Metricool |
|---|---|---|
| What it does | Creates AND publishes content for you | Analytics dashboard + scheduling tool |
| Monthly cost | $49 (single plan) | $0-45 (Free to Advanced) |
| Your time | 5 minutes setup | 5-10 hours/month |
| Creates content? | ✅ Yes — 12 original posts/month | ❌ No — AI caption assist only |
| Creates images? | ✅ Yes — custom images included | ❌ No |
| Analytics depth | Basic | ✅ Exceptional — social, web, ads, competitors |
| Competitor analysis | ❌ No | ✅ Yes — up to 100 profiles |
| Ad analytics | ❌ No | ✅ Google Ads + Facebook Ads |
| Web analytics | ❌ No | ✅ Yes — website traffic integration |
| SmartLinks (Link in Bio) | ❌ No | ✅ Yes |
| Platforms | Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, TikTok | Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, X, TikTok, Pinterest, YouTube, Google Business, Twitch |
| Free plan | ❌ No | ✅ Yes — 1 brand with limited features |
| Best for | Business owners who want zero effort | Data-driven marketers who want to optimize performance |
The Core Difference: Data vs. Delegation
Metricool gives you the best possible view of your social media performance. You see what's working, what isn't, how competitors are doing, and when to post. Then you create and schedule the content.
Glow Social skips all of that. No dashboards, no competitor comparisons, no optimal posting time analysis. Just 12 professional posts per month, published automatically.
These tools answer different questions:
- Metricool answers: "How is my social media performing?" → Requires you to do social media first
- Glow Social answers: "Can someone just do social media for me?" → Does social media for you
When Metricool Is the Better Choice
Metricool is genuinely excellent if you:
- Run paid social campaigns — Facebook/Google Ads analytics in one dashboard
- Want competitor analysis — track up to 100 competitor profiles
- Need reporting for clients — downloadable PDF/PPT reports
- Manage multiple brands — up to 5 brands for $18/month
- Want a free analytics tool — the free plan is legitimately useful
- Already create content and want to understand what performs best
- Track web traffic alongside social — unified marketing analytics
- Use Twitch — one of the few tools with Twitch integration
Bottom line: If you're a marketer who loves data and already creates content, Metricool gives you more actionable insights per dollar than almost any competitor.
When Glow Social Is the Better Choice
Glow Social makes more sense if you:
- Don't run paid social campaigns — ad analytics don't help
- Don't have time to analyze data — a dashboard you never check adds no value
- Don't create content — analytics on zero posts is meaningless
- Don't care about competitor analysis — you just want your page active
- Want social media handled, not optimized — good enough beats perfect
Bottom line: Analytics tools only help if you're already posting. If the problem is getting posts out the door, data won't solve it.
The True Cost Comparison
| Cost Factor | Glow Social | Metricool (Starter) |
|---|---|---|
| Subscription | $49/month | $18/month |
| Your time (content + analysis) | 0 hours | 5-10 hours/month |
| Time value @ $50/hour | $0 | $250-500/month |
| True monthly cost | $49 | $268-518 |
Can You Use Both?
Actually, yes. If you want Glow Social to handle posting and Metricool to track performance, that's $49 + $18 = $67/month for automated posting with professional analytics. That's a legitimate setup for businesses that want hands-off posting but occasional performance visibility.
Bottom Line
Choose Metricool if: You create content, run ads, and want the best analytics dashboard for the price.
Choose Glow Social if: You don't create content and want it handled automatically.
Choose both if: You want automated posting with analytics tracking.
Try done-for-you posting at glowsocial.com — $49/month, 5-minute setup.
Compare also: Social Media Management Pricing Guide · Zoho Social vs. Glow Social · Compare All Solutions
About Glow Social: AI-powered software that automatically creates and publishes 12 custom posts per month to Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, and TikTok. $49/month, 5-minute setup. glowsocial.com