Comparison
aiCarousels alternative: SlideBuddy
aiCarousels is one of the fastest ways to make a carousel — no account, no setup, straight into the editor. What it doesn't do is post. SlideBuddy is slower to start and then never asks you to upload anything again.
- Design tool vs. publishing system
- Written from their published site
- Updated July 2026
Five carousels free, no card · Or 7 days of everything
What aiCarousels does well
For making a carousel right now, it's genuinely better than SlideBuddy. There's no account to create and no brand to configure — you land on the page and start. If that's the job, stop reading and go use it.
- No sign-up required. You can be editing within seconds of landing on the site.
- LinkedIn carousels on the free tier. SlideBuddy publishes to LinkedIn only on Agency, so for LinkedIn alone this is far cheaper.
- Smart auto-resize across LinkedIn, Instagram and TikTok formats from one design.
- A genuinely useful set of extras around the edges — quote cards, infographics, post idea generation, a LinkedIn post formatter and a headshot generator.
- A real editor with predefined palettes and fonts, if you like controlling each slide by hand.
- Nothing to cancel if you only ever need one carousel.
Side by side
Where the two actually differ
| The job | aiCarousels | SlideBuddy |
|---|---|---|
| Getting a post live | Download the slides, then upload them to the platform yourself — their own FAQ walks through doing this for LinkedIn, Instagram and TikTok. | Published directly through each platform's API. Nothing to download. |
| Starting out | No account needed. Straight into the editor. | An account and a brand setup — about ten minutes before the first carousel. |
| Making the tenth carousel | The same work as the first one. | Generated overnight and waiting for you to approve. |
| Scheduling | Not part of the product. | Queued and spread between 7am and 10pm in the brand's timezone. |
| Platforms | Designs sized for LinkedIn, Instagram and TikTok, exported for you to post. | Instagram, TikTok and Facebook published natively; YouTube and LinkedIn on Agency ($199). |
| Who writes the copy | An AI writing assistant helps while you build each slide. | Written end to end against your brand voice and a chosen content angle. |
| Multiple clients | Not a concept in the product. | Separate brands with their own voice, palette, schedule and accounts — unlimited on Agency. |
| If an account stops posting | Not applicable — you're doing the posting. | A daily health check emails you the morning it goes quiet. |
Written from aiCarousels' published site, checked 31 July 2026. Their pricing isn't quoted here because it isn't published where it could be verified. Features on both sides change. Check aiCarousels's own site for their current features and pricing.
Which one
Honestly, it depends what you're doing
Pick aiCarousels if…
- You need one carousel today and don't want to create an account to get it.
- LinkedIn is where your carousels go and you don't want SlideBuddy's Agency plan to reach it.
- You enjoy designing each slide and want direct control over every one.
- You post occasionally rather than daily, so automation would sit unused.
- You want the side tools — quote cards, infographics, headshots — in the same place.
Pick SlideBuddy if…
- You're posting several times a week and the uploading has become the annoying part.
- You want Instagram, TikTok and Facebook handled without touching a phone.
- You'd rather approve a batch than build each carousel.
- You're running client brands that need to stay separate.
- You want the account to keep posting in the weeks you're busy.
Questions
- Does aiCarousels post to Instagram or TikTok for you?
- No — it's a design and export tool. Their own FAQ explains how to post a carousel to LinkedIn, Instagram and TikTok, and each of those walkthroughs describes downloading the files and uploading them yourself. That's the fundamental difference between the two products, and it's not a criticism: exporting is what the tool is for.
- Is SlideBuddy an aiCarousels alternative?
- Only if your problem is the posting. If your problem is making a good-looking carousel quickly and for free, aiCarousels solves that better — no account, no setup. SlideBuddy is worth the extra setup once you're doing this most days and the repetitive part is the uploading rather than the designing.
- Which is cheaper?
- aiCarousels has a free tier and a PRO plan; they don't publish the price on a page we could check directly and third-party sources disagree on the figure, so go and look at their current plans rather than trusting a number quoted on a competitor's site. SlideBuddy is free for five carousels and then $29/month, where the thing you're buying is the publishing.
- Can I use both?
- Yes, and it's a sensible combination — aiCarousels for LinkedIn, which SlideBuddy only reaches on its top plan, and SlideBuddy running Instagram, TikTok and Facebook on autopilot. Nothing about one interferes with the other.
- Does SlideBuddy watermark free carousels?
- No. Downloads are full resolution and unbranded on every tier including free. Adding your own logo or @handle to slides is an optional setting rather than something applied for you.
Try it on your own brand
Every feature free for 7 days, publishing included — the only way to compare two of these properly is to watch both post.
Full features for 7 days, cancel any time before it ends. Card required to start the trial so posting can begin immediately — or take five carousels free on the no-card plan, for ever.