LazyRelay vs Buffer
Buffer is one of the longest-running schedulers out there, with a mature dashboard and a real free plan. Here's an honest look at where it and LazyRelay actually differ.
Where Buffer is genuinely ahead
Buffer has a persistent Ideas feature (100 on Free, unlimited on paid) for saving content ideas over time; LazyRelay's AI idea generator only gives you 5 fresh ideas on demand right now, with nothing saved (a saved backlog is planned, see In the Works). Buffer also already posts to Google Business Profile and X, neither of which LazyRelay supports or plans to add.
| LazyRelay | Buffer | |
|---|---|---|
| Platforms | 18 distribution platforms plus WhatsApp: Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, Pinterest, YouTube, LinkedIn, Threads, Mastodon, Bluesky, Telegram, Discord, Tumblr, WordPress, dev.to, Hashnode, Lemmy, Slack, X | 12: Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, Pinterest, YouTube, LinkedIn, Threads, Mastodon, Bluesky, X, Google Business Profile, Substack |
| Telegram, Discord, Tumblr | Supported | Not supported |
| X (Twitter) | Supported on paid plans, with your own X developer keys (X bills your developer account for posts) | Supported |
| Google Business Profile | Not offered today | Supported |
| Pricing shape | Credits: 1 credit per channel destination | Per channel — multiplies as you grow |
| Entry paid price | Pay-as-you-go: $15 one time, 300 credits. Growth: $29 a month, 1,000 credits | $5/mo per channel, billed yearly (Essentials) |
| Free tier | $0, 30 credits once, 3 accounts, Proof-of-Publish included | $0, 3 channels, 10 scheduled posts/channel (refillable), 100 ideas, AI Assistant, Insights |
| Post verification | Proof-of-Publish: independently confirms a post is actually live | Not found — "sent" is the end state |
| AI-agent (MCP) access | 27 tools, included on every plan, including Free | Included on every plan, including Free |
| Content ideas | 5 fresh AI suggestions on demand, nothing saved yet | Persistent Ideas backlog (100 Free, unlimited paid) |
| Approval workflows | Included on paid plans (client review links) | Team plan only ($10/mo per channel) |
| First-comment scheduling, hashtag suggestions | Included | Included (Essentials and up) |
| Browser extension | Included (Developer Manual Install Only) | Included on every plan |
| Multi-brand / workspace management | Yes, a set number of brands per plan | Per-channel pricing serves this instead of a brand concept |
Buffer's prices and features checked directly on buffer.com. Rows can go stale as either product changes — if you spot one that's out of date, that's worth telling us.
The gap that actually matters: "sent" isn't "published"
Buffer calls the platform's API, gets a success response, and marks your post published. That response confirms the request was accepted, not that the post is actually visible to anyone. LazyRelay separately re-checks the platform after every post to confirm it's genuinely live — that's Proof-of-Publish, included on every LazyRelay plan including Free. We didn't find an equivalent check anywhere in Buffer's own documentation.
The other real difference: how the bill grows
Running 5 channels? Buffer Essentials is 5 × $5 = $25/month. At 10 channels it is $50/month. LazyRelay has no per-channel subscription: Growth is $29 a month for 1,000 credits and 30 connected accounts, and each post costs 1 credit for every channel it goes to, so your cost follows how much you publish. Buffer says the price per channel falls after 10 channels, but it does not publish the lower rate on its pricing page, so check Buffer's own calculator for your exact channel count.
Pick Buffer if
- You only run 1-5 channels and want the lowest possible entry price.
- You need Google Business Profile posting. LazyRelay does not offer Google Business Profile today.
- You want a persistent, saved content-ideas backlog rather than one-off suggestions.
Pick LazyRelay if
- You want to pay in credits for what you publish instead of a subscription for every channel.
- You want independent proof a post actually went live, not just "accepted."
- You post to Telegram, Discord, or Tumblr — Buffer supports none of these three.
- You manage more than one brand or client and want that built into the plan rather than paying per channel.
- Approval workflows matter to you and you don't want to pay for Buffer's Team tier just to get them.
Try Proof-of-Publish for free. LazyRelay's free tier includes 30 credits once at registration.
See plans and get started freeFrequently asked questions
Is LazyRelay cheaper than Buffer?
It depends on how many accounts you run. Buffer charges per channel ($5/month each on its Essentials plan, billed yearly), so its bill grows with every channel you add. LazyRelay is priced in credits instead: Growth is $29 a month for 1,000 credits and 30 connected accounts, and each channel a post goes to costs 1 credit. Buffer says the price per channel falls after 10 channels but does not publish the lower rate, so check Buffer's own calculator for your exact channel count.
Does Buffer verify that a post actually went live, like LazyRelay's Proof-of-Publish?
Not that we found documented on buffer.com. Buffer schedules and publishes reliably, but we didn't find any feature that independently re-checks a platform after publishing to confirm the post is genuinely visible, the way LazyRelay's Proof-of-Publish does on every plan including Free.
Does Buffer have AI-agent (MCP) access on its free plan?
Yes, and so does LazyRelay. Both companies include MCP access on every plan, including Free, at no extra cost.