Outstand
One API to post, schedule, and pull analytics across 11 social networks
Writing your own posting service is a weekend build, and for the networks with open APIs (Bluesky, Mastodon, Telegram) it genuinely is: a queue, a cron tick, one adapter per network, done. The wall is not code. Instagram, TikTok, YouTube, LinkedIn, and Pinterest each require your own developer app and a platform review before they will accept a single post, X meters writes on a paid tier, and then eleven integrations keep changing under you: token refresh, media specs, rate-limit budgets, deprecated endpoints. You can build the API. You cannot one-shot permission to use it.
Build verification: not recorded. How we judge buildability
What you give up
- pre-approved platform apps for Instagram, TikTok, YouTube and LinkedIn
- eleven maintained integrations, kept alive as platforms change
- automatic token refresh and rate-limit queueing
- per-network media transcoding from a single upload
- cross-platform analytics in one shape
- the MCP server that hands all of it to an AI agent
Why people still pay
Every network you actually want is gated by someone else's approval queue. Getting an Instagram or TikTok app cleared to post takes review cycles and a real business case, and that is before you own token refresh, per-platform media specs, and rate limits for eleven APIs forever. Paying converts an approval problem and permanent maintenance into a bearer token, which is exactly the trade a developer shipping a product wants to make.
Your build guide
The stack, security requirements, and agent rules for a focused replacement.
Before you start
- Node, a private authenticated API endpoint, a persistent SQLite directory and access credentials for each explicitly enabled network. Validate current API permissions and quotas.
- Implementation components: Node.js, TypeScript, Fastify and SQLite for a private publishing API and scheduler. Schema-validated normalized posts with separate official-network adapters; no interactive web frontend is required.
- Scope boundary: pre-approved platform apps for Instagram, TikTok, YouTube and LinkedIn; eleven maintained integrations, kept alive as platforms change
Use these project rules and optional skill references alongside the prompt. Review each skill before adding it to your agent; the AGENTS.md export includes the same guidance.
Optional external skill: sharp-edges — Review security-sensitive APIs and configuration for dangerous defaults and easy-to-misuse interfaces. Review its instructions and compatibility before use; it does not grant deployment, data-access or publication permission.
Optional external skill: mcp-builder — Build MCP servers that expose external APIs through tools using Python FastMCP or the Node/TypeScript MCP SDK. Review its instructions and compatibility before use; it does not grant deployment, data-access or publication permission.
Project rule — data model: API keys, normalized posts, target accounts, capability declarations, job IDs and per-target receipts
Project rule — preserve this invariant: An idempotency key is scoped to the caller and immutable request body; partial success never becomes a whole-job success placeholder.
Project rule — acceptance evidence: Replay a request and receive the same job; one failed target can retry without reposting to delivered targets, and missing impressions remain null.
Implementation plan
Phase 1
Scope and fixtures. Implement this bounded workflow: Expose a small authenticated HTTP publishing API with text/media validation and independent adapters for approved networks. Provide create/status/cancel endpoints and normalize available metrics with null for unavailable fields. Record prerequisites, select representative user-owned fixtures and document the unsupported features: pre-approved platform apps for Instagram, TikTok, YouTube and LinkedIn; eleven maintained integrations, kept alive as platforms change
Phase 2
Durable model. Model API keys, normalized posts, target accounts, capability declarations, job IDs and per-target receipts Add migrations or a versioned document format, explicit validation, stable IDs and a visible import-error report. Preserve this rule: An idempotency key is scoped to the caller and immutable request body; partial success never becomes a whole-job success placeholder.
Phase 3
Complete the first useful path. Implement the workflow's input, review and output interface, with clear controls and explicit empty/error states. Track each target independently with pending, publishing, delivered, failed and unknown states. Reconcile a timeout using provider receipts before retrying; respect rate-limit backoff. An optional stdio MCP adapter may expose the same authenticated create/status operations with identical approval requirements.
Phase 4
Permissions and integration failure. Keep OAuth tokens server-side and encrypt persistent tokens with a separately managed key. Publication requires an explicit approved revision and target account. Request integration credentials and permissions only for the enabled feature; show a disconnected state instead of mock results.
Phase 5
Portable handoff. Use a consistent SQLite backup and an attachment manifest. Export portable JSON/CSV, then restore to a new directory without overwriting the original data. Include setup, operating limits, fixture walkthrough and shutdown/restart instructions in the README.
Phase 6
Acceptance scenarios. Replay a request and receive the same job; one failed target can retry without reposting to delivered targets, and missing impressions remain null. Repeat the workflow after restart and with a denied permission or unavailable dependency; show recoverable failure rather than a success placeholder.
WORKING SLICE Expose a small authenticated HTTP publishing API with text/media validation and independent adapters for approved networks. Provide create/status/cancel endpoints and normalize available metrics with null for unavailable fields. Build this scoped Outstand-inspired workflow with a documented data model and visible failure states. Architecture - Node.js, TypeScript, Fastify and SQLite for a private publishing API and scheduler. - Schema-validated normalized posts with separate official-network adapters; no interactive web frontend is required. Prerequisites and limits Node, a private authenticated API endpoint, a persistent SQLite directory and access credentials for each explicitly enabled network. Validate current API permissions and quotas. Outside this release: pre-approved platform apps for Instagram, TikTok, YouTube and LinkedIn; eleven maintained integrations, kept alive as platforms change Data model and correctness API keys, normalized posts, target accounts, capability declarations, job IDs and per-target receipts Invariant: An idempotency key is scoped to the caller and immutable request body; partial success never becomes a whole-job success placeholder. Track each target independently with pending, publishing, delivered, failed and unknown states. Reconcile a timeout using provider receipts before retrying; respect rate-limit backoff. An optional stdio MCP adapter may expose the same authenticated create/status operations with identical approval requirements. Security and privacy Keep OAuth tokens server-side and encrypt persistent tokens with a separately managed key. Publication requires an explicit approved revision and target account. Recovery and export Use a consistent SQLite backup and an attachment manifest. Export portable JSON/CSV, then restore to a new directory without overwriting the original data. Implementation order 1. Phase 1 — Scope and fixtures. Implement this bounded workflow: Expose a small authenticated HTTP publishing API with text/media validation and independent adapters for approved networks. Provide create/status/cancel endpoints and normalize available metrics with null for unavailable fields. Record prerequisites, select representative user-owned fixtures and document the unsupported features: pre-approved platform apps for Instagram, TikTok, YouTube and LinkedIn; eleven maintained integrations, kept alive as platforms change 2. Phase 2 — Durable model. Model API keys, normalized posts, target accounts, capability declarations, job IDs and per-target receipts Add migrations or a versioned document format, explicit validation, stable IDs and a visible import-error report. Preserve this rule: An idempotency key is scoped to the caller and immutable request body; partial success never becomes a whole-job success placeholder. 3. Phase 3 — Complete the first useful path. Implement the workflow's input, review and output interface, with clear controls and explicit empty/error states. Track each target independently with pending, publishing, delivered, failed and unknown states. Reconcile a timeout using provider receipts before retrying; respect rate-limit backoff. An optional stdio MCP adapter may expose the same authenticated create/status operations with identical approval requirements. 4. Phase 4 — Permissions and integration failure. Keep OAuth tokens server-side and encrypt persistent tokens with a separately managed key. Publication requires an explicit approved revision and target account. Request integration credentials and permissions only for the enabled feature; show a disconnected state instead of mock results. 5. Phase 5 — Portable handoff. Use a consistent SQLite backup and an attachment manifest. Export portable JSON/CSV, then restore to a new directory without overwriting the original data. Include setup, operating limits, fixture walkthrough and shutdown/restart instructions in the README. 6. Phase 6 — Acceptance scenarios. Replay a request and receive the same job; one failed target can retry without reposting to delivered targets, and missing impressions remain null. Repeat the workflow after restart and with a denied permission or unavailable dependency; show recoverable failure rather than a success placeholder. Acceptance Replay a request and receive the same job; one failed target can retry without reposting to delivered targets, and missing impressions remain null. Use real source data or clearly labeled fixtures. Explain unsupported input and provider failures; do not fabricate analytics, delivery receipts, accuracy claims or security guarantees. Optional agent guidance Optional external skill: [sharp-edges](https://github.com/trailofbits/skills/blob/main/plugins/sharp-edges/skills/sharp-edges/SKILL.md) — Review security-sensitive APIs and configuration for dangerous defaults and easy-to-misuse interfaces. Review its instructions and compatibility before use; it does not grant deployment, data-access or publication permission. Optional external skill: [mcp-builder](https://github.com/anthropics/skills/blob/main/skills/mcp-builder/SKILL.md) — Build MCP servers that expose external APIs through tools using Python FastMCP or the Node/TypeScript MCP SDK. Review its instructions and compatibility before use; it does not grant deployment, data-access or publication permission. Project rule — data model: API keys, normalized posts, target accounts, capability declarations, job IDs and per-target receipts Project rule — preserve this invariant: An idempotency key is scoped to the caller and immutable request body; partial success never becomes a whole-job success placeholder. Project rule — acceptance evidence: Replay a request and receive the same job; one failed target can retry without reposting to delivered targets, and missing impressions remain null.
$ open in your agent (prompt prefilled, you press enter), copy the prompt or copy or download AGENTS.md
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Outstand pricing
| plan | monthly | annual (per mo) | what you get |
|---|---|---|---|
| base | $19/workspace | — | 3,000 posts/month across 11 social networks; unlimited client accounts and no seat charge. |
free tierno free tier
billingmonthly only; no annual plan published
hidden costsPost overages are $0.007 each from 3,001-10,000 and $0.005 each above 10,000; X, Google Business Profile and Vimeo require the customer's own platform API keys.
pricing sources checked 2026-08-14 · pricing source ↗
Questions about Outstand
Can you build your own Outstand with AI?
Partly. Writing your own posting service is a weekend build, and for the networks with open APIs (Bluesky, Mastodon, Telegram) it genuinely is: a queue, a cron tick, one adapter per network, done. The wall is not code. Instagram, TikTok, YouTube, LinkedIn, and Pinterest each require your own developer app and a platform review before they will accept a single post, X meters writes on a paid tier, and then eleven integrations keep changing under you: token refresh, media specs, rate-limit budgets, deprecated endpoints. You can build the API. You cannot one-shot permission to use it.
What does the Outstand build prompt cover?
The prompt starts with this scope: Expose a small authenticated HTTP publishing API with text/media validation and independent adapters for approved networks. Provide create/status/cancel endpoints and normalize available metrics with null for unavailable fields. Full-product capabilities excluded from the comparison include: pre-approved platform apps for Instagram, TikTok, YouTube and LinkedIn; eleven maintained integrations, kept alive as platforms change; automatic token refresh and rate-limit queueing. Follow the implementation plan and its prerequisites before expanding the build.
How do I use the prompt, AGENTS.md and agent skills?
Start with the Outstand prerequisites and stack, then copy the prompt into your coding agent. Save the project rules as AGENTS.md in the project root. Linked skills are optional packages or source instructions for specific tasks; review their current contents and install only those matching the chosen stack. A skill does not supply API credentials or verify the finished app.
How long will this Outstand project take?
The catalogue estimate is multi-day for the limited scope. Setup, integration approvals, debugging, deployment and ongoing maintenance can add time. This is an estimate, not a delivery guarantee.
What would I give up by replacing Outstand?
pre-approved platform apps for Instagram, TikTok, YouTube and LinkedIn; eleven maintained integrations, kept alive as platforms change; automatic token refresh and rate-limit queueing; per-network media transcoding from a single upload; cross-platform analytics in one shape; the MCP server that hands all of it to an AI agent. Every network you actually want is gated by someone else's approval queue. Getting an Instagram or TikTok app cleared to post takes review cycles and a real business case, and that is before you own token refresh, per-platform media specs, and rate limits for eleven APIs forever. Paying converts an approval problem and permanent maintenance into a bearer token, which is exactly the trade a developer shipping a product wants to make.
What price is this guide comparing against?
The recorded Base plan is $19 reference price (monthly + usage), checked 2026-07-30. Check the linked pricing source before buying. Building your own also has hosting, API and maintenance costs; the recorded amount is not a guaranteed saving.
What can I use instead of building Outstand?
Postiz: One API for thirty-odd social networks; the OAuth paperwork is now your hobby. Check each option's license, hosting needs and feature limits.