Planable: client sign-off and post locks

Choose the approval gate

The right workflow depends on whether a client signature is required before a post can enter the schedule. Decide who may change that rule before choosing a plan.

Planable’s workflow guide distinguishes optional approval from required approval. Optional approval allows publication without sign-off; required approval blocks scheduling and publishing until approval. The same guide lists required approval on Pro and Enterprise and multi-level approval on Enterprise.

Planable lets owners and admins change the workflow. When switching to Required, the guide offers a choice to automatically approve posts already scheduled. Review those posts before selecting that option, and record who may change the setting afterward.

For example, prepare a dummy post with a writer and a client approver. Try scheduling before the client acts, then repeat after an administrator changes the workflow. Keep both results alongside the settings used; a successful gate in one configuration does not prove the other.

Agree on the person responsible for exceptions when the client is away. Test that person’s actual access, including whether a scheduled post remains pending when nobody replies. The documentation does not prove the outcome for every configuration.

Give clients the right review access

Choose a review path the client can actually use, and distinguish a comment from formal approval. A link that opens a post is only useful as a sign-off gate if its recipient can take the approval action.

Planable’s client approval guide directs teams to invite clients as Client members with Approver permissions. It says a public link permits viewing and comments without login but cannot approve.

Planable’s workflow blog instead says a client can approve through a shareable link without an account. These vendor statements conflict. Ask Planable which path applies to your plan and the cost of your client reviewer mix, then test with a signed-out client.

Try the invited account separately. Record whether the client can see the intended post and formally approve it. Check that the person cannot publish or edit if your agreement reserves those rights for the agency.

Planable’s approval guide also distinguishes public feedback from approval by an account with permission. Planable’s pages do not provide a complete reviewer price for the actual client reviewer mix.

Protect the approved version

Approval only protects the final post if the version cannot quietly change afterward. Treat content locking and publication timing as separate settings.

Planable’s workspace settings list approval type, approver permissions, auto-scheduling and the post-approval lock as separate controls. Check each one on the workspace you intend to use.

Planable’s workflow guide says the enabled lock covers text, media, date and time, and links. Editing can resume after unapproval or after the lock is disabled. The setting therefore needs an owner and a documented exception process.

In a trial, approve a dummy post and attempt to change one word. Repeat with the lock disabled, then unapprove it and try again. Record who changed the setting and whether your client needs to approve the revised version.

Test the actual scheduled time too. A locked version and an automatic schedule answer different questions: one concerns edits, while the other determines what happens after approval. Make both choices visible in your handoff.

Price and test the actual workflow

Quote the plan around the roles and approval rules you need, rather than the number of people who merely want to see a draft. The available documentation does not prove a complete Planable price for a particular agency.

Planable’s approval guide places required approval on Pro and Enterprise, with multi-level approval on Enterprise. Ask for the current entitlement and a written quote for your workspaces and reviewers.

Use a realistic sample rather than a clean single-person demo. Include a writer who cannot publish, an internal reviewer and a client approver. Then use an administrator account to inspect the settings that govern the handoff.

Test unanswered approval past the intended publishing time and compare the approved content with the final post. Keep the test private and use dummy material. Record the plan and settings so the result can be reproduced after a permission change.

If a client needs an exception, agree on who can authorize it and how it is recorded. A feature setting cannot replace that operating decision. Run the same fixture with each shortlisted product before accepting a quote.

How to compare the alternatives

Consider Sendible when unlimited users on its listed plans matter to your reviewer mix. Sendible pricing lists unlimited users and introduces assignment and approvals on Plus; check workspace and profile needs in the quote.

Consider SocialPilot when its Premium client approval tier and documented role model match your process. SocialPilot’s workflow guide says managers may approve directly or send content to clients, so test whether that discretion fits your agreement.

Sendible’s client setup guide says an administrator switching into a client dashboard is exempt from the client’s approval requirement. SocialPilot’s manager and administrator paths also deserve separate trials. Neither product should be assumed to make every privileged action pass through a client.

Use the Planable alternatives comparison to compare the same decisions side by side. The social publishing and approvals buying guide has a worksheet for the full approval chain.

Common questions

Can a client approve Planable content without an account?

Planable’s sources disagree. Its client approval guide says public links cannot approve, while its workflow blog says a shareable link can. Test the current path with a signed-out client.

Does Planable lock approved posts?

Planable’s workspace settings include a configurable lock after approval. Test the enabled setting and who can disable it.

Which Planable plans have required approval?

Planable’s workflow guide lists required approval on Pro and Enterprise and multi-level approval on Enterprise. Confirm current entitlements before purchase.

Should an agency choose Planable?

Start with Planable if required sign-off and a configurable post lock fit your workflow. Test the client access path and obtain a quote for your reviewers.

Sources and scope

We read the linked vendor documentation and pricing on October 29, 2026.

We have not tested these products or published content. Confirm current entitlements and reproduce the approval cases in your own configuration.