Sequence vs Hootsuite: what does your team actually need?
Compare Sequence and Hootsuite for client content, approvals and wider social management, with a clear look at per-user pricing and plan limits.
Hootsuite deserves a place on your shortlist when you need publishing, engagement, reporting and listening across a wider social team. Sequence focuses on planning content with clients, reviewing the creative and getting it approved. Start with the work your team needs to do, then price the Hootsuite tier that includes it.
What would you ask the new tool to fix?
A small agency waiting for clients to approve next week's posts has a different problem from a social team tracking brand conversations and coordinating replies across departments. Both need to publish. That shared requirement doesn't make their buying decisions the same.
If you're in the first group, Sequence is worth trying. The plan, media review, approval and publishing status stay together, so an account manager can follow a post without rebuilding its history from messages.
If you're in the second group, give Hootsuite's wider capabilities proper attention. Paying for features your team uses every day can be sensible, even when a more focused tool costs less.
This article is written by the Sequence team. We use Hootsuite's published information for competitor features and prices, and call out the plan differences that matter to the examples.
Where Hootsuite earns a closer look
Hootsuite combines publishing and a calendar with inbox tools, analytics and listening capabilities. That breadth matters when your social team is responsible for more than producing and approving posts.
For example, suppose your brief includes monitoring conversations about the brand, comparing performance and managing who can act across a large team. Ask Hootsuite to demonstrate those requirements on the exact plan being quoted. A calendar demo won't tell you enough.
Sequence's case is more specific. If the daily questions are “Which version should the client review?” and “Can this go out on Friday?”, a workspace built around the post and the people approving it is a useful place to start. Pro includes media review, approvals, inbox and organic/ads analytics.
Sequence compared to Hootsuite
✅ Included in the named plan. ❌ Not included in the named plan; the available upgrade is shown alongside it. ◐ Paid option. Check channel, format and capacity limits.
| Feature | Sequence | Hootsuite |
|---|---|---|
| Calendar and publishing | ✅ Built in | ✅ Built in |
| Client approvals | ✅ Free and Pro | ❌ Standard / Professional; ✅ Advanced |
| Social inbox | ✅ Included | ✅ Unified inbox |
| Analytics | ✅ Organic and ads | ✅ Reports; depth varies by plan |
| Unlimited users without seat fees | ❌ Free; ✅ Pro | ❌ Per-user pricing |
Sequence vs Hootsuite pricing
The important number is the price of the plan that covers your requirements. Hootsuite lists content approvals from Advanced. Standard and Professional may cover other needs, but they aren't the right plans to quote for this approval workflow.
Prices checked on 4 September 2026, in USD before tax. Annual monthly equivalents require annual billing. Promotional discounts and negotiated contracts are excluded.
| Plan and pricing | Sequence | Hootsuite |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing basis | By brand. | Per user. |
| Monthly billing | Free: US$0. Pro (1 brand): US$29/month. | Monthly billing is available; the published USD figures below are annual-billing rates. |
| Annual billing | Free: US$0. Pro (1 brand): US$290/year (US$24.17/month equivalent). | Standard: US$99/user/month, billed annually. Professional: US$199/user/month, billed annually. Advanced: US$399/user/month, billed annually. Enterprise: custom quote. |
| Free access | ✅ Ongoing Free plan; 1 brand, 1 account, 1 user, 10 scheduled posts | ❌ No ongoing free plan; 14-day trial |
| Connected accounts | Free: 1 brand and 1 account. Pro: 5 accounts / brand. | Standard: 10 accounts. Professional and Advanced: unlimited accounts. |
| Team members | ❌ Unlimited on Free (1 user); ✅ Unlimited on Pro | ❌ No unlimited-user bundle; billed per user |
| Approvals and team workflows | ✅ Pro includes approvals, media review, inbox and organic/ads analytics. | ❌ Standard / Professional; ✅ Advanced |
| Enterprise capabilities | Pro provides the shared agency-client content workflow. | Enterprise: governance, security and advanced capabilities, with a custom quote. |
Hootsuite offers monthly billing, but the USD figures shown here are its published annual-billing rates. We haven't treated those as month-to-month quotes. Regional prices can also differ.
A three-person agency with 15 social accounts
Assume three client brands with five accounts each. Sequence Pro costs US$690/year, equivalent to US$57.50/month, and includes unlimited team members. Month-to-month billing is US$69.
Three Hootsuite Professional seats cost US$7,164/year, equivalent to US$597/month. If the team needs the content approvals listed on Advanced, three seats cost US$14,364/year, equivalent to US$1,197/month. Standard's ten-account limit doesn't cover this example.
That's a substantial difference, but it doesn't make the products interchangeable. If you need Hootsuite's wider capabilities, compare their value with the cost of meeting those needs elsewhere. If you mainly need client planning and approval, Sequence's smaller bill is worth investigating.
Sequence Pro includes 15 accounts across these three brands, plus media review, approvals, inbox and organic/ads analytics. Additional connected accounts cost US$5/month each. Extra storage and AI credit top-ups are separate.
Take two workflows into the demo
First, take a client post from draft through a media correction, approval and scheduling. Bring someone who normally reviews the work, so you can see how the handover feels to them.
Second, bring a task that justifies a broader platform: a listening question, a reporting requirement or a team permission rule you need. Ask to see it working on the proposed plan, including any extra costs.
Check support for your particular networks and post formats as well. If the wider tasks are essential, keep Hootsuite on the shortlist. If the approval exercise reveals your main problem, start with one brand in Sequence and judge it against that work.
Sources and pricing notes
Sources: Hootsuite plans and pricing; Sequence pricing. Checked 4 September 2026. Confirm the current quote before subscribing.
