Free social media audits: what agencies get from them

Key takeaways

A free social media audit is a sales tool: an agency spends an hour or two reviewing your accounts to show what it would fix and win your business. It can be genuinely useful. A paid audit, typically £300–£1,500, goes deeper and is independent of a sale. Never hand over passwords for a free review.

• Free audit: an hour or two, aimed at a sale.
• Paid audit: £300–£1,500, deeper and independent.
• Public profiles can be reviewed without access.
• Never share passwords for a free review.

What does a free audit include?

Usually a quick look at public profiles, posting consistency, content quality, bios and links, plus a few quick wins. It is based on what anyone can see, not your analytics or ad account, so it cannot judge results in depth.

• Social media agency pricing in the UK
• What a social media audit costs in the UK

How does it compare with a paid audit?

A paid audit, about £300–£1,500 at 4 to 15 hours, reviews analytics, audience, content performance, competitors and often ad accounts, then gives a prioritised plan. It is written for you, not as a pitch. A free audit is a useful first opinion but rarely more.

• Free: public profiles, quick wins.
• Paid: analytics, ads, competitors, plan.
• Free: tied to a sales offer.
• Paid: yours to use with anyone.

• Paid social audit costs: is your ad account wasting money?

How do you share access safely?

For a free audit, public profiles are usually enough. If deeper access is needed, grant a limited analyst role through the platform's business tools and remove it afterwards. Never share a password.

When is a free audit not useful?

When it is a template with your name added, when every finding leads to the agency's most expensive package, or when it ignores results. Ask what the audit is based on and what it would cost to act on each point yourself.

What does this look like in practice?

A pattern we see: a business collects three free audits that all say post more. Asking each agency for its top three fixes and why usually separates genuine insight from sales copy.

• See client work
• Social Media Marketing for UK businesses

Free audit checklist

• Ask what the audit is based on.
• Share public links, not passwords.
• Ask for the top three fixes and reasons.
• Check fixes you could do yourself.
• Pay for depth if decisions are big.

• Brand lift studies: what measuring awareness costs
• Paid discovery phases: what agencies charge to start

Next step

Before any audit, write down your goal. A good audit judges your accounts against it.