Facebook is not just one app anymore. Over the past several months, Meta has quietly spun off a string of new standalone apps and services. Some are free. Others come with monthly fees that range from a few dollars to hundreds.
For Northeast Ohio residents, community group members, creators and small business owners, the list can feel confusing. Here is a plain breakdown of five offerings worth knowing about: Forum, Muse, Creator Studio, Meta One and Meta AI.
Forum: Facebook Groups Get Their Own Home
Forum is a standalone app built entirely around Facebook Groups. Users log in with their Facebook accounts, and their existing groups, profiles and activity carry over automatically.
The big difference is the feed. Forum focuses almost entirely on group conversations rather than mixing in posts from friends, Pages and recommended content. New users also pick topics they care about, and the app suggests groups to join.
What Makes It Different
Two AI features stand out. An “Ask” tool pulls answers from multiple groups into a single response, and group admins get an AI assistant to help with moderation. That could be handy for anyone who belongs to several local neighborhood, school or buy and sell groups.
Privacy works a little differently too. Members can post with a nickname, but group admins can still see real identities. Nothing is truly separate from Facebook, either. Posts made in Forum also appear in the connected Facebook Groups, and vice versa.
Meta has tried this before. The company launched a dedicated Groups app in 2014 and shut it down in 2017. Forum first appeared on iPhone in May and has since been reported on Google Play as well.
Who Should Use Forum
Forum makes the most sense for heavy group users and group administrators. If you run a community page or a local interest group, the admin tools are worth testing. Casual Facebook users probably won’t notice much difference.
Muse: Meta’s Personal AI Agent
Muse is the most ambitious app on this list. Launched in September, it is a personal AI agent that plans tasks, browses the web and makes secure payments on a user’s behalf. People can use it through its own app or directly inside WhatsApp.
Instead of answering a question and stopping, Muse keeps working. Users give it a goal rather than step by step instructions. For longer tasks, it continues after the app closes and checks back when it needs approval. Examples include sending emails, booking travel and making online purchases.
Safety and Privacy Features
Meta has leaned hard on security messaging. Muse runs inside a dedicated virtual machine in the cloud, and a separate security agent called Sentinel controls its internet access. Users choose which services Muse can reach and which actions require their approval. Every account also gets an audit trail showing what the agent has done.
Meta does admit limits. The company acknowledges that prompt injection, a type of manipulation attack, remains an unsolved problem across the industry. Muse will also sometimes get things wrong. Users can opt out of having their data train Meta’s AI models, and Meta says Muse does not share personal conversations with its advertising systems.
Cost and Popularity
Muse is free to use with usage limits. People who want more capacity can pay $20 or $100 a month. The app took off fast and climbed past ChatGPT to become the top free app on Apple’s US App Store.
Who Should Use Muse
Muse fits busy people who juggle errands, scheduling and online shopping. Business owners may find another angle useful. Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg said Muse can connect to Meta ads accounts to offer guidance on marketing. Anyone uneasy about an AI making purchases should start with approvals turned on for everything.
Creator Studio: Back With an AI Coach
Longtime page managers will remember Creator Studio. Meta ran a desktop version for several years, then retired it in 2023 and folded its scheduling, inbox and insights tools into Meta Business Suite.
The new version is a different animal. Meta released it as a free standalone iPhone app in August. It is built around an AI assistant that maps out daily priorities, offers personalized growth tips and drafts comment replies in the creator’s own voice.
Ask Your Insights Instead of Digging Through Reports
This may be the most practical feature for business owners. Instead of exporting insight reports and scrolling through spreadsheets, page managers can simply ask the assistant about their performance. Questions like which posts drew the most engagement or what content is working get answered in plain conversation.
For a small business owner who handles social media between customers, that saves real time. It also makes the numbers easier to understand for people who never enjoyed reading analytics charts.
Availability
Creator Studio is available now for US users as a free download on the App Store. The one catch is that it’s iPhone only for now, and Meta has not announced an Android version. There are no paid tiers or in-app purchases.
It also does not replace Business Suite. That older tool still handles everyday posting, inbox and scheduling work.
Who Should Use Creator Studio
Video creators, bloggers and anyone trying to grow a Facebook following are the main audience. Business pages benefit too, especially owners who want quick answers about their insights without pulling reports. The AI comment replies could save time, but read them before posting. Anything published goes out under your name.
Meta One: The New Subscription Layer
Meta One is not an app. It is a subscription that unlocks extra features across Facebook, Instagram, WhatsApp and Meta AI. Meta says it launched with more than 50 features and has already logged 15 million subscriptions and trials. The company stresses that the core experience across its apps stays free.
Plans for Individuals
Single app plans for Facebook Plus, Instagram Plus and WhatsApp Plus run $2.99 to $3.99 a month each. Consumer bundles include Core at $7.99 and Premium at $19.99, and those mostly add cosmetic and personal features.
Plans for Businesses
Business owners should pay closer attention. There are four tiers: Essential at $14.99 a month, Advanced at $49.99, Expert at $149 and Max at $499. Essential includes a verified badge, impersonation protection and more responses from Meta Business Agent, the AI that answers customer messages.
Some of the paid features used to come free with a business presence. Subscribers can schedule Reels and posts up to a year ahead and put clickable links inside organic posts and Reels. Instagram reporting also extends past the usual 90 day limit, with CSV export. Some plans even place businesses in a dedicated Facebook carousel of Meta One profiles.
Watch the Fine Print
Costs add up quickly for anyone managing multiple pages. Plans are sold per account, so each page or profile a business subscribes carries its own charge.
Access is also uneven. Meta says plans and availability vary by region, app and account. Some page owners clicking Meta One links currently see a message saying the content isn’t available, which likely means the rollout hasn’t reached them yet.
Who Should Use Meta One
Small businesses that answer the same customer questions all day may get real value from the Business Agent responses. Most casual users can skip it. Multi-page operators should calculate the total cost before subscribing more than one account.
Meta AI: The Free Assistant Everywhere
Meta AI is the free assistant built into Meta’s apps. It answers questions and generates images across Facebook, Messenger, Instagram, WhatsApp and Meta.ai. Users can reach it by tapping the Meta AI icon in Facebook’s search bar or from Messenger’s menu.
There is also a standalone Meta AI app. It replaced Meta View, the companion app for Ray-Ban Meta smart glasses, and now serves as the hub for Meta’s AI services. A Discover feed shows how others use the AI, and users can copy or customize popular prompts.
New Tools for Small Businesses
The business side has grown. Owners can connect their Instagram and Facebook accounts, Meta Ads campaigns and Google Workspace tools like Gmail, Docs and Sheets. From there, they can ask which posts performed well, compare results and set up recurring performance updates.
Who Should Use Meta AI
Pretty much everyone already has it. Small business owners will get the most out of the new data connections. Smart glasses owners need the standalone app to manage their devices.
Quick Guide: Which Meta App Fits You
Group admins and active group members: Try Forum.
Busy people who want tasks handled: Try Muse, with approvals turned on.
Creators and business pages who want fast answers about their numbers: Try Creator Studio on iPhone.
Businesses buried in customer messages: Look at Meta One Essential.
Everyone else: Free Meta AI is already inside your apps.
Meta is clearly betting that focused apps and paid add-ons will keep people inside its family of apps. The free versions are worth exploring. Paid plans deserve a hard look at the math first.
Want to Get Found in AI Search? Join Us Nov. 12
Apps like Muse and Meta AI are changing how customers find local businesses. That shift goes well beyond Facebook. More people now ask AI tools for recommendations instead of scrolling through search results.
Business owners who want to stay visible can learn how at an upcoming Nordonia Hills Chamber of Commerce workshop. Julie D’Aloiso of SpiderCat Marketing will lead the session as part of the chamber’s Coffee and Connections networking series.
When: Thursday, Nov. 12, from 8:30 to 10 a.m.
Where: Location to be announced by the chamber
Cost: Free for chamber members. Nonmembers are asked for a $10 donation that goes toward an NHS scholarship.
What You Will Learn
How local search works today
How AI search is changing business visibility
Practical AI tools for running your business
How to use Gemini to create stronger social media content
The workshop is designed for owners who already use AI and for those still figuring out what it means for their business. Registration is required, and the chamber says registration details are coming soon.
Get the full details here: AI Search Workshop for Businesses in Nordonia Hills
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the Meta Forum app?
Forum is a standalone app from Meta built around Facebook Groups. It shows a feed of group conversations, includes an AI “Ask” tool that pulls answers from multiple groups, and gives admins AI moderation help. Posts made in Forum also appear on Facebook.
Is Meta’s Muse app free?
Muse is free to download and use with usage limits. People who want more capacity can pay $20 or $100 a month. It is available in the United States on iPhone, Android, the web and inside WhatsApp.
Is Facebook Creator Studio coming back?
Yes. Meta relaunched Creator Studio in August as a free iPhone app with an AI assistant. Creators and business page owners can ask it about their insights in plain language instead of digging through exported reports. It is available now in the US, though Android users will have to wait.
How much does Meta One cost for businesses?
Meta One business plans start at $14.99 a month for Essential and climb to $49.99, $149 and $499. Pricing is per account, so businesses with several pages pay for each one they subscribe.
Why can’t I access Meta One on my Facebook business page?
Meta One is rolling out gradually, and Meta says availability varies by region, app and account. If the link shows an error message, the subscription likely has not reached your account yet.