Client approval for social posts, without a login
Send your client a review link. They see each post as it will look on its network and approve it or ask for changes, in the browser, with no account and no seat on your plan. Until they approve, the post does not publish. Approvals are included from the Pro plan.
How it works
- 1
Choose how strict to be
In your workspace's approval settings, pick Optional, where you decide per post whether a client needs to see it, or Required, where every post you schedule is sent for review automatically. Off switches approvals away and releases anything that was waiting.
- 2
Create a review link and send it
Make a link for the client and choose how long it lasts: 7, 30 or 90 days, or a year. Copy it into an email, a Slack message or anything else. Anyone with the link can review; nobody with it can edit, schedule or publish.
- 3
The client approves or asks for changes
The link opens a review page in the browser with each post as it will look on its network. The client approves it, or requests changes with a comment, and adds their name so you know who decided. There is no account to create and no seat to pay for.
- 4
Nothing unapproved goes out
While a post is waiting for review, or has changes requested, it is held: its scheduled time can pass and it will not publish. Once it is approved it goes out at its time, or within about five minutes if that time has already passed.
What happens after they decide
Editing a post sends it back for review
Each decision is stored against the version of the post the client saw. If you change the text, the media, the thread or the channels afterwards, the approval no longer applies and the post returns to waiting for review. Moving only its time does not, so rescheduling an approved post keeps it approved.
You can see who decided, and on which version
The post's history lists each decision with the reviewer's name, their comment and the version they looked at, and marks the ones that came through a review link, so a question about who approved what has an answer.
Ending access is one click
Rotate a link to issue a new one and break the old one at once, which is useful if it was forwarded too widely. Revoke it to switch it off entirely. Links also stop working on their own at the expiry you chose.
Client approval in other schedulers
PostDaily is not the only tool where a client can approve without an account: Sprout Social, Later and Metricool do it too. What differs is the plan it starts on, and what an approval actually does. Competitor details come from each company's own pricing and help pages, last checked . Prices change, so check theirs before deciding.
| Tool | Where approval starts | That plan's list price | Reviewer needs an account | What to know |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| PostDaily | Pro | $24 a month, or $19 a month billed annually | No | Held posts do not publish; links last 7 days to a year |
| Sprout Social | Advanced | $399 per seat a month, billed annually | No | External approval, up to 3 approvers |
| Hootsuite | Advanced | $399 per user a month, billed annually | Yes | Approver is a member of your organisation; outside approvals can only be recorded, on Enterprise |
| Metricool | Advanced | From $53 a month, billed annually | No | Reviewers invited by email; a rejection stops the post |
| SocialBee | Accelerate | $49 a month | Yes | Reviewer creates a SocialBee account |
| Later | Growth | $37.50 a month, billed annually | No | Review links expire after 7 days, and approval does not block publishing |
| Planable | Basic (optional); Pro for required approval | $33 a month, billed annually | Yes | Client approves as an invited workspace member; public links can only view and comment |
| Buffer | Team | $10 per channel a month, billed annually | Yes | Each reviewer has their own Buffer login |
| Publer | Business | From $10 a month for one account | Yes | Client is added as a member of your workspace |
| Meta Business Suite | None documented | Free | Yes | Access is shared through business portfolio permissions; Meta documents no approval step before publishing |
Sources: each vendor's own pricing page and help centre. Tool names link to the full comparison, which says where each fact came from.
What it does not do
Review is one step: a client approves a post or asks for changes. There is no multi-stage sign-off, where a manager approves before the client does, and no in-line editing or annotation on the review page; feedback comes back as a comment. If several people need to edit and mark up the same post before it goes out, a collaboration-first tool such as Planable is built for that.
Common questions
- Does my client need a PostDaily account to approve posts?
- No. You send them a review link and they approve or request changes in the browser. They never sign up, and they do not take a seat on your plan.
- Will a post publish if the client has not approved it?
- No, not while approvals are turned on. A post waiting for review, or with changes requested, is held even if its scheduled time passes. When the client approves, it publishes at its time, or within about five minutes if that time has already gone.
- What happens if I edit a post after the client approved it?
- Changing the text, media, thread or channels sends it back for review, because the client approved a different version. Changing only the scheduled time keeps the approval.
- How long does a review link last?
- As long as you choose when you create it: 7, 30 or 90 days, or a year. You can rotate it to replace it, or revoke it to end access sooner.
- Is PostDaily the only scheduler with no-login client approval?
- No. Sprout Social, Later and Metricool also let a reviewer approve without an account. The difference is where it starts on the price ladder, how long links last, and whether an approval actually holds the post; the table on this page lays those out with the date each was checked.