# Buffer: how AI models rank it, November 2026

Gane Index, November 2026 Edition. Named in 81 judge labels across 7 categories by 14 of 14 models. Page: https://www.gane.ai/index/gtm/vendors/buffer

## Standing by category

| Category | Share | Rank | Negative rate | Labels |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| [Social media management](https://www.gane.ai/index/gtm/marketing/social-media-management/index.md) | 22% | 2 | 13% | 52 |
| [AI marketing agents](https://www.gane.ai/index/gtm/marketing/ai-marketing-agents/index.md) | 2% | 9 | 0% | 2 |
| [Content marketing platforms](https://www.gane.ai/index/gtm/marketing/content-marketing-platforms/index.md) | 0% | 15 | 0% | 14 |
| [Audience and consumer insights platforms](https://www.gane.ai/index/gtm/marketing/audience-and-consumer-insights/index.md) | 0% | 38 | 0% | 4 |
| [Ecommerce marketing](https://www.gane.ai/index/gtm/marketing/ecommerce-marketing/index.md) | 0% | 21 | 0% | 4 |
| [Mobile apps](https://www.gane.ai/index/gtm/marketing/mobile-apps/index.md) | 0% | 45 | 0% | 3 |
| [Search and social advertising platforms](https://www.gane.ai/index/gtm/marketing/search-and-social-advertising-platforms/index.md) | 0% | 35 | 0% | 2 |

## What the models said for it

- "Buffer – Best for small budgets, offering a free plan for up to 3 social media profiles and paid plans starting at just $6 per month per channel." (Mistral Small, Social media)
- "For most small to medium-sized businesses, Buffer, Agorapulse, or SocialPilot tend to have more consistent user satisfaction records" (Qwen 3.7 Flash, Social media)
- "Start with Industry Leaders: Platforms like Buffer, Hootsuite, Sprout Social, Later, and Meta Business Suite have established reputations" (MiniMax M2.5, Social media)
- "Best Overall Low-Cost Option: Buffer ... widely considered the top choice for startups, solo creators, and small businesses" (Qwen 3.7 Flash, Social media)

## And against it

- "Has received negative reviews regarding security and billing practices, including unauthorized charges after account cancellation." (Mistral Small, Social media)
- "Avoid or be cautious about: Buffer (due to its 2013 breach history and Meta account issues)" (GLM 4.7 FlashX, Social media)
- "Frequently grouped with Hootsuite in safety discussions... poor reviews on platforms like Trustpilot for Buffer, Hootsuite, and Metricool" (Muse Glimmer 30B, Social media)
- "lean toward mid-market/enterprise-leaning tools rather than solo/small-business options like basic Buffer" (Grok 4.20, Social media)

## By model

| Model | First choice | Alternative | Mention | Warning | Labels |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Claude Haiku 4.5 | 2 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 7 |
| GPT-5.4 mini | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 3 |
| Gemini 3.5 Flash | 1 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 4 |
| Perplexity Sonar | 2 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 4 |
| Grok 4.20 | 2 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 8 |
| Mistral Small | 1 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 6 |
| DeepSeek V4 Flash | 1 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 7 |
| Llama 4 Maverick | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2 |
| Qwen 3.7 Flash | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 4 |
| Kimi K2 | 1 | 3 | 3 | 1 | 8 |
| GLM 4.7 FlashX | 0 | 8 | 2 | 1 | 11 |
| MiniMax M2.5 | 2 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 6 |
| GPT-6 Luna | 1 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 4 |
| Muse Glimmer 30B | 1 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 7 |

## Sources returned with these answers

The sites and pages cited by the answers that named Buffer, from 202 of the 235 answers that named it (only the models that return a source list).

### Domains cited

- buffer.com: 100 (its own site)
- blog.hubspot.com: 85
- forbes.com: 55
- capterra.com: 38
- g2.com: 38
- linkedin.com: 36
- softwareadvice.com: 36
- tech.co: 34
- blog.hootsuite.com: 31
- napoleoncat.com: 31

### Pages cited

- https://blog.hubspot.com/marketing/best-social-media-management-tools: 65
- https://forbes.com/advisor/business/best-social-media-management-software: 51
- https://buffer.com/resources/best-social-media-management-tools: 48
- https://tech.co/digital-marketing/small-business-social-media-management-tools: 33
- https://napoleoncat.com/blog/social-media-management-tools: 29
- https://techradar.com/best/best-social-media-management-tools: 20
- https://zapier.com/blog/best-social-media-management-tools: 19
- https://buffer.com/resources/digital-marketing-tools: 18

## The company

Buffer; https://buffer.com/. From Wikidata, fetched 2026-09-14.

## In its own words

What Buffer's own pages state, read 2026-09-28. Stated by the vendor, not checked by the index.

- Positioning: social media management platform (https://buffer.com/)
- For: individuals, creators, and small businesses (https://buffer.com/)
- Price stated: Try our forever free plan or upgrade for more. (https://buffer.com/)
- Starting price: 5 (https://buffer.com/pricing)
- Free plan or trial: forever free plan (https://buffer.com/)
- Customers named: Sapphire Social, Audio in the Trees

## What it publishes

Every page buffer.com exposes, read 2026-09-29: 3661 addresses. By kind, pages and the last 90 days:

- blog: 2314 pages, 98 in the last 90 days, latest 2026-09-29
- case study: 37 pages, 16 in the last 90 days, latest 2026-09-24
- webinar or virtual event: 1 pages, 0 in the last 90 days, latest undated
- conference or event: 13 pages, 1 in the last 90 days, latest 2026-09-29
- report or ebook: 79 pages, 19 in the last 90 days, latest 2026-09-29
- comparison: 24 pages, 13 in the last 90 days, latest 2026-09-29
- template or tool: 3 pages, 2 in the last 90 days, latest 2026-09-29
- glossary or explainer: 7 pages, 1 in the last 90 days, latest 2026-09-29
- podcast or video: 17 pages, 3 in the last 90 days, latest 2026-09-29
- news or press: 6 pages, 0 in the last 90 days, latest 2026-03-10
- Recent: 2026-09-29 blog: All posts - Buffer Blog https://buffer.com/resources/all-posts
- Recent: 2026-09-29 blog: Creator - Buffer Blog Posts https://buffer.com/resources/creator
- Recent: 2026-09-29 blog: Flow - Buffer Blog Posts https://buffer.com/resources/flow
- Recent: 2026-09-29 blog: Social Media Marketing - Buffer Blog Posts https://buffer.com/resources/social-media-marketing
- Recent: 2026-09-29 blog: Tools - Buffer Blog Posts https://buffer.com/resources/tools
- Recent: 2026-09-29 blog: 13+ Free Social Media Calendar Templates to Help You Plan Your Content https://buffer.com/resources/social-media-calendar-template

## Record

- Method: https://www.gane.ai/index/gtm/methodology
- License: CC BY 4.0. Cite as Gane Index, November 2026 Edition, www.gane.ai/index/gtm.