Managing Instagram is not easy these days. You have to come up with creative photos and also take care of the upload schedule. To top it off, you now have Instagram Reels which have a wider reach. If you want to build a good brand, you also have to ensure that your feed looks professional. The official Instagram app doesn’t provide much help with it. Thankfully, you can use third-party Instagram feed planner apps to monitor comments, schedule posts, and most importantly, plan your Instagram feed visually. So, let’s check out some cool Instagram feed planner apps below.
Best Instagram Feed Planner Apps
1. Plann
If you are looking for a minimal feed planning app with the ability to schedule posts on Instagram, Plann is a good app to start with. Plann has a pretty robust Android, iOS, as well as a web app. So, you can manage your Instagram account from your smartphone as well as the desktop.
Foremost, you get your Instagram feed within the app. Here, you can upload and schedule posts to visualize your feed. Plann also provides you a basic editor within the app. However, I would still prefer Instagram’s built-in photo editor or an advanced editor like Adobe Lightroom.
My most favorite option within Plann was the inbuilt calendar. It lets you schedule posts way in advance. If you are a social media manager or influencer, festivals and important days play a huge role in engaging with your audience.
Apart from feed planning and post-scheduling, all the other options are fairly basic like a hashtag set builder. So, instead of typing all your hashtags from scratch, you can use the hashtag sets. You also get basic analytics for your profile which is on par with what Instagram offers.
Lastly, in the free version, you get to link and manage only 1 Instagram account. You can upload 30 posts/month including videos up to 60 seconds. In order to link more accounts, you’ll have to upgrade starting at $7/month.
What’s missing?
The free plan is basic and a lot of features like color palette and analytics for other accounts are missing. Feed planning and auto-post are the only highlights in the free version.
2. Preview
Now, if you need an Instagram feed planner app that doesn’t force a monthly limit on the number of posts, Preview is an ideal option. I came to know about Preview recently. The mobile app is pretty straightforward and helps you to plan your Instagram feed. As soon as you finish linking your Instagram account, you will be presented with the Instagram feed.
Preview also features tabs for Instagram Reels, IGTV, and Stories. You can curate your feed by swapping the images accordingly. Similar to the Plann app, you get the option to create hashtag groups. So, you don’t have to write all the hashtags from scratch every time.
Preview also has an inbuilt editor which I found to be slightly superior to what Instagram offers. You get a bunch of free filters to quickly enhance edited images. You can also give a shot to paid filters that look good on the surface. Apart from all of these, you get basic Instagram analytics.
A cool feature is the ability to view your competitors’ Instagram account analytics. However, you will have to buy the premium version starting at $14.99/month to unlock such premium features which include multiple business accounts, paid filters, fonts, full analytics, etc.
Premium – $14.99/month
What’s missing?
Although Instagram is built for mobile devices, a huge number of people choose to edit their photos and videos on desktops. So, it makes sense to use Preview app on the desktop. However, the free version doesn’t allow you to do that.
3. UNUM
UNUM is my favorite Instagram feed planner app due to the UI. I love how carefully the app was designed. Apart from planning feeds, UNUM lets you link up to 3 Instagram accounts in the free plan.
What separates UNUM from the previous app is the web application. You can upload photos directly to the web app and start working on your Instagram feed.
It also has some basic analytics which is on par with the other Instagram feed planner apps. The best thing is the Phantom mode, which lets you hide photos that exist in your Instagram feed so you can visualize the feed after deleting them. This helps if you frequently archive old posts to maintain the color pallete.
It is for individual creators who have 2 accounts – one business and one personal. UNUM targets people who are just starting out in social media marketing. The prices for the premium account are also cheaper than the other offerings. UNUM is available for free, with 18 grids, 500 photo or video uploads/month.
What’s missing?
UNUM still can’t auto-post to Instagram or send post reminders. It is the most basic feature in a feed planner app.
4. Planoly
Planoly is a full-blown social media manager and not just an Instagram feed planner. Foremost, it lets you link both Pinterest and Instagram accounts in the free version. So, you can import photos from Pinterest to Instagram or upload images to both platforms at once.
Also Read: What Is Planoly and How to Use It to Manage Instagram Account
Unlike the above-mentioned apps, Planoly lets you schedule a post for both Instagram and Facebook at the same time. This really helps if your Instagram account is linked to a Facebook page or account.
This way, you can manage both Instagram and Facebook from the same feed planner app. Moreover, Planoly also allows you to respond to comments and posts from the app.
Planoly also gives you basic analytics, similar to the other apps. However, it’s worth mentioning that the analytics are well represented within the app. You get a summary table that displays the current week’s performance against the previous week. Good job, Planoly!
The only bummer is Planoly doesn’t let you see analytics on a monthly or yearly basis. You would have to upgrade to a premium account for that. The premium account starts at $7 per month. It unlocks features like auto-post to Twitter, unlimited photo and video uploads, photo filters, etc.
Planoly also has a web app that includes the entire social media planning suite. It is a must-try if you manage multiple Instagram accounts for clients.
What’s missing?
Apparently an inbuilt photo editor which not many people will miss.
Install Planoly for Android | iOS
5. Later
Similar to Planoly, Later is also a social media management app. However, it provides much more than Planoly. Foremost, you get to add one account of Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and TikTok each in the free version and post 30 content/month per social media profile.
Later provides you a feed planner buried under settings where you can upload and schedule posts. It helps you visualize social feeds. Additionally, there’s a visual calendar where you can schedule posts and view them for all social media platforms.
Later’s specialty is that it lets you create Linkin landing page for free. Now, basically, it is a landing webpage that features products that you endorse or your own portfolio.
The idea of Linkin is similar to Instagram Shop. However, for Instagram Shop, you need a proper domain name. But, with Linkin, you can link your products to your Amazon or other affiliate links.
What’s missing?
Later isn’t a dedicated Instagram feed planner app. Hence, you don’t get basic options like hashtag builder, photo editor, etc.
Instagram Feed Color Ideas
6. Puzzle Collage Template
The templates are really good but you need to watch a 30-second video to get to use the template.
Download Puzzle Template Android | iOS
Which Instagram Feed Planner should you choose?
Planoly is something which you should definitely give a try. As an individual creator, it suffices most of your needs and the auto-post feature is just a boon. In my opinion, this is the best feed planning app for Instagram.
If you don’t seem to be posting frequently, UNUM would be a better option. In case you have any more queries, connect with me on Instagram!
Also Read: 9 Best Video Editing Apps for Instagram
