Later started as Latergramme, an Instagram scheduling tool, back when Instagram didn’t have an official API for third-party scheduling. Matt Smith, Ian MacKinnon, and Roger Patterson founded it in 2014 in Vancouver. The name was shortened to Later in 2016 as the platform expanded beyond Instagram.
The visual-first approach is what makes Later distinct. Instead of text-heavy post composers, Later uses a drag-and-drop visual calendar where you can preview exactly how your Instagram grid will look before publishing. For brands and creators who care about aesthetic consistency on Instagram, this feature alone justified the subscription.
Later expanded to support TikTok, Facebook, Twitter/X, Pinterest, LinkedIn, and YouTube. The platform added link-in-bio landing pages (Linkin.bio), letting creators direct followers to a mini website that mirrors their Instagram feed with clickable links to products or blog posts.
In 2021, Later acquired Mavrck, an influencer marketing platform, merging creator scheduling with influencer discovery and campaign management. The combined platform lets brands find influencers, manage collaborations, and track results alongside their regular social media operations.
The company serves over 7 million users, from individual creators to major brands. Pricing starts at $25/month for the Starter plan. Later was acquired by Mavrck’s parent company and later raised additional funding. Its strength is the creator economy โ it’s built for visual-first platforms and the people who depend on them for income, not for enterprise social media teams managing crisis communications.
