Don’t know when to post on Instagram? Our guide breaks down the Best Time to Post on Instagram for maximum engagement and reach. Improve your social media presence today.
If you want to build a large following on Instagram, you need to provide valuable content that people actively seek out and interact with. If you don’t publish your stuff at the opportune point, most of your audience won’t see it. When should you post for your core demographic?
Test your posts to see when they get the most responses.
What is the Ideal Time to Upload Instagram Posts?
With Instagram, every business has a unique sweet spot for posting content. This is because each social media brand caters to a different demographic with different behavioural patterns.
But don’t lose hope! There are several best practices that social media marketers can use to achieve great results globally.
Instagram’s algorithm values news, which is why it’s essential to post while your followers are online. A newer post will rank higher in the IG news feed, all else equal.
In terms of optimizing a post for success, regency is one of the quickest and easiest benefits. (However, if you’re interested, we have plenty of other techniques for getting free Instagram likes.)
However, it’s also important to have clear goals for your Instagram marketing approach. Do you have specific goals for increasing brand awareness, engagement, and traffic? What is success for you? Have your previous blogs been successful? Your past wins are a key indicator of when you should be posting globally.
- Monday, Wednesday, and Friday from 11 a.m. to 12 p.m. CDT – Most of your IG followers will be lunching and checking Instagram for updates from friends, favourite brands, and influencers. So share easy-to-engage content during this time.
- Tuesday: 11:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. Central Daylight Time – Lunch breaks are also common during these hours. However, the extra time can be used to share longer material like IG TV movies or even going live on Instagram.
- Thursday at 11:00 am. For shorter Thursday lunch breaks, try publishing IG stories with polls, puzzles, and quizzes for rapid answers that viewers will read later. When scheduling Instagram posts, the same hours may not work every day. Think about; both the weekdays and your industry (more on that shortly).
- Monday through Friday: Post content on IG from 7:00 am to 10:30 am CDT. This will result in the most consistent interaction as your content will have plenty of time to get views and shares before peak hours at 11 am CDT.
Best Time to Post on Instagram, According to Industry:
Healthcare
- Best times: Sunday (8 a.m.- 9 a.m.), Tuesday (8 a.m. to 12 p.m.), and Wednesday (5 p.m.-8 p.m.).
- The best days: are Monday and Tuesday.
- The worst day: is Saturday.
Media
- Best times: Tuesday (1 p.m.-5 p.m.), Wednesday (11 a.m.), and Thursday (8 a.m. to 9 a.m).
- The best days: are Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday.
- The worst day: is Sunday.
Education
- Best times: Friday (4 a.m.-5 p.m.) and Thursday( 2 p.m.).
- Best day: is Friday
- Worst day: is Sunday
Restaurants
- Best times: Monday (9 a.m.-1 p.m.).
- Best day: is Monday
- Worst day: is Saturday
Technology
- Best times: Monday (10 a.m.-11 a.m., 2 p.m.-5 p.m., and p.m.), Tuesday (10 a.m.-1 p.m.), Thursday (noon), and Friday (11 a.m.).
- Best day: is Monday
- Worst day: is Sunday
Travel & Tourism
- Best times: 7 AM on Thursdays and 11 AM to 3 PM on Mondays.
- The best day: is Thursday
- The worst days: are Saturday and Sunday
Hospitality
- Best Times: Wednesday (at noon), Thursday (from 3:00 p.m.-4:00 p.m.), and Friday (8:00 a.m.-12:00 p.m.).
- Best day: is Friday
- Worst day: is Sunday
Tips for Determining the Optimal Posting Time on Instagram
- understand the algorithm.
- Examine your best-performing content.
- Evaluate your audience’s peak activity.
- Consider when your rivals are posting content.
- Post in your audience’s time zone.
- Observe and modify.
- Consistently appear over the long term.
- Try a new strategy for a month before giving up.
Key Instagram Learnings to Tackle the IG Algorithm
1. Publish before Peak Time
Using IG Analytics as your reference, keep an eye out for engagement heights. Ideally, you should publish soon before that occurs.
2-Determine Your Intended Market’s Location
If you’re in San Francisco but most of your audience is in NYC, you must adjust your strategy to accommodate for the time difference and display it first thing in the morning on their feed.
If you upload content early in the morning on the West Coast, NYC residents will see it later in the day. Therefore, 6 AM on the West Coast would be the optimal time to post on Instagram.
There is no Perfect Instagram Posting Time!
You are doing yourself and your business a tremendous disservice if you put on blinders and focus entirely on finding the ideal posting time, hence not posting frequently or delaying posting. You can only learn from insights if you continue to post.
I work at Likes Geek as a marketing researcher and journalist with over 5 years of experience in media and content marketing. With a demonstrated history of working in the international news and financial technology publishing industries. I manage content and the editorial team at Likes Geek.