Looking for a cheap management tool for a half-dozen accounts

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I hope this doesn't go the wrong way but Since you are exploring many options, I understand your problem. You just wanna make sure you get it right and don't miss out anything.

Have you given a thought to your own product? Scheduling tasks to different social media platforms does not need a complex software and with Ai soaring the skys right now. You can build a very easy just as you described kinda platform very easily.

Literally close to the budget you said monthly.

I use feedhive

Metricool

Six accounts is the part that would decide it for me. A lot of the free tiers tap out well before that.

Which six networks and account types are you using, and does 'engagement' mean comments, DMs, or both? That would narrow the list much more than the scheduling requirement.

During a trial, I'd send one test comment and message to each connected account, confirm which you can answer from the shared inbox, then check that the quoted plan includes all six accounts and the analytics you need. A posting checklist and an inbox checklist would make those options much easier to compare.

I'd start with the tool you already know and trial just one alternative instead of testing the whole list. Since you've got six different networks, check publishing and comment-reply support separately for each one rather than assuming a connected account gets every feature. Price it with all six accounts and the analytics you actually need; if one network isn't supported, using its native scheduler may still be cheaper than moving the other five to a bigger plan.

Heyo if you need another option, I’m the cofounder of OneUpApp

We have scheduling, crossposting, analytics, social inbox, DM automations, and social listening all in one place

SocialBu co-founder here. I’d use engagement as your first filter: check whether each tool supports the comments and DMs you need across your six accounts, within your budget. During a trial, try publishing a post, replying to a comment, and checking results. That should narrow the list faster than comparing feature charts.

With six accounts, check how each tool prices before you look at features, because a lot of them bill per channel. Buffer's paid plan was around $6 a channel last I checked, so six accounts puts you past $30 before you add anything. The other thing that'll separate them is the inbox. Every tool says it has one, but which platforms actually feed comments and DMs into it varies a lot. On each trial, connect all six accounts immediately and see what really shows up.

In Kadenzo, the $29 plan covers up to 15 accounts and includes the inbox and analytics, so you don't have to do per-channel math.