A restaurant pays from $0 to $2,000 or more a month for social media, and the price follows who writes the posts. Doing it yourself with Meta Business Suite costs nothing but the manager's time. A scheduler costs $0 to about $25 a month and still leaves the writing to you. Software that writes the posts from the restaurant's website, such as Boomp, starts at $9 a month. A post service such as Feedbird or Socinova costs $99 to $500 a month. Upwork's sample billing for an intermediate US-based freelancer managing two channels is $400 to $2,000 a month, and social media agencies that publish prices had a median entry price of $575 a month in Boomp's November 2026 pricing study. Ads, food photography and replies to comments cost extra almost everywhere.
What each option costs
| Option | Typical monthly cost | Who writes the posts | What the restaurant still does |
|---|---|---|---|
| Do it yourself with Meta Business Suite | $0 | The owner or manager | Everything: ideas, writing, photos, scheduling and replies |
| A scheduler such as Buffer, Later or Metricool | $0 to about $25 | The owner or manager | The writing, photos and approval; the tool only publishes |
| Boomp Packs | $9 | Software, from the restaurant's website | Reads each post and publishes it; nothing is connected |
| Boomp Core | $39 | Software, from the restaurant's website | Approves each post in the app, about ten minutes a week |
| A post service such as Feedbird or Socinova | $99 to $500 | A person on the service's team | Sends facts, approves posts; check what replies and ads cost |
| Boomp done-for-you | $275 | Software, approved by Boomp's founder | Keeps the website current; never opens the app |
| A freelance social media manager | Varies by scope | A person | Sends specials and photos, answers questions |
| A restaurant marketing agency | Varies by scope | A team | Approves work, pays for shoots and ad spend separately |
The vendor prices were read from each vendor's own pricing page: Buffer (a free plan, and Essentials at $5 a month per channel) and Later (Starter, $18.75 a month billed yearly, about $25 month to month) on September 16, 2026, Metricool (Starter, $20 a month billed yearly) on July 29, 2026, and Feedbird (ten posts for $99 a month) and Socinova ($99 to $500 a month) on September 16, 2026. Freelancer and agency prices vary by scope. Upwork's cost guide, read November 2, 2026, puts sample billing for an intermediate US-based freelancer managing two channels at $400 to $2,000 a month. In Boomp's November 2026 pricing study, social media agencies that publish prices had a median entry price of $575 a month, and 11 of the 20 agencies checked showed no price. Neither figure is specific to restaurants, so ask for shoots, ads and PR to be priced separately. Check the vendor's page before you buy, because prices change.
Where the options differ for a restaurant
Restaurant posts go stale faster than most. A special ends, an item sells out, the hours change for a holiday. So the real question is not only who writes the post, but who knows today's facts when they write it.
- A scheduler is cheap because it does the smallest job. It publishes a post someone else already wrote, which is usually the manager, between services. - Software that writes from the website is only as current as the website. Boomp reads the public site, such as the about, events and catering pages, and writes posts from what it says. It reads the menu only when the menu is text on the restaurant's own site; a menu posted as a PDF or an image, or hosted on an ordering site, is not read. It does not see the POS, today's specials or what sold out an hour ago. - A person or a service can react to today's special and ask for a photo. That is what the higher price pays for, and it only works if someone at the restaurant sends them the facts. - An agency makes sense when the restaurant runs paid ads, has several locations or wants planned photo and video shoots.
What raises the price
1. Specials that change every day or week. Someone has to learn about each one, write it and retire it when it ends. 2. Food photography and video. A shoot is usually billed separately from the monthly fee. 3. Replies to comments, messages and reviews. Many cheaper options leave these with the restaurant. No Boomp plan includes replies. 4. More than one location. Each location has its own menu details, hours and pages to keep current. 5. Paid ads. Expect a management fee plus the ad spend itself.
What stays with the restaurant at any price
No tool, service or agency knows these better than the restaurant:
- current prices and what is on the menu today;
- allergens, ingredients and dietary claims;
- sold-out items, closures and changed hours;
- permission to use a guest's photo or review.
A quote that includes "everything" still needs one person at the restaurant who owns these facts and keeps the website current.
A simple way to choose
- You have ideas and photos, but writing the posts never happens: software that writes them.
- Writing is fine, but posting on time is the chore: a scheduler.
- You want nobody at the restaurant to touch it: a done-for-you option or a person.
- You run ads or several locations: a manager or an agency.
To compare two quotes, put both into the same columns: channels, posts a month, photos, replies, ads, reporting, contract terms and the hours your team still spends. The guide to what social media management costs walks through that comparison, and Best Restaurant Social Media Posting Service covers who should own the recurring work.
Boomp's three options
Boomp is software that reads a restaurant's public website and writes social media posts about it, with images. It reads the menu when it is text on the restaurant's own site, not a PDF, an image or an ordering site. There is no contract on any plan.
- Packs, $9 a month: ten finished posts sent by email link each month. You publish them yourself, and nothing is connected. - Core, $39 a month: twenty posts, a carousel and a short video, published to the channels you connect after you approve each one. - Done-for-you, $275 a month: the same posts, and Boomp's founder approves every one, so you never open the app. It is not an agency: no ads, no replies, no photo shoots.
Get ten free posts made from your restaurant's website: enter the website and an email, and the link to the posts arrives by email, with images, a carousel and a short video, and no account or card.