If you’ve ever wondered what the best times to post on Instagram are and the best days of the week to get the most likes, comments, and engagement on your posts then you’re in the right place. Keep reading to find out the universal best time to post on Instagram when it seems like all your posts perform their best and how to find your brand’s very own, unique best times to post (because all businesses and audiences are different).
When Is The Best Time To Upload Photos To Instagram?
Because they cater to various audiences who engage with social media in a variety of ways, different brands have found that different times of day are optimal for posting on Instagram. There are, however, some best practices that you can follow that will typically produce great results. You can do this by reading this article.
Because the Instagram algorithm places a high value on new content, it is critical that you post at times when your followers are actively using the app. To put it another way, a more recent post will have higher visibility in the newsfeed compared to an older one.
One of the quickest and easiest ways to optimize a post for success is to make it as recent as possible. (If you would like more free likes on Instagram, we have plenty of additional recommendations.)
In addition to that, it is of the utmost importance to comprehend the goals of your Instagram marketing strategy. Do you want to boost people’s awareness, their participation, or their traffic? What does the term “success” mean to you, and at what point did you feel that your posts had achieved it? Your history of success can assist you in determining the optimal time to post.
The Optimal Time To Post On Instagram
We examined more than 30,000 Instagram posts made by businesses of varying sizes, in addition to the observations and experiments conducted by our own social media team, in order to determine when the optimal time is for posting on Instagram.
The daytime and weekday hours are the times when Instagram users are most likely to interact with the content posted on the platform. It makes perfect sense, too, because taking a break from work or school is an excellent opportunity to scroll. (And sharing.)
The weekends typically see less activity overall. Our best guess is that this is due to the fact that people are spending less time on Instagram and more time actually living their lives.
How often do you get together? There is a prime posting window for Instagram posts that corresponds to each day of the week.
Best Time To Post On Instagram On Monday
When it comes to Instagram, the best time to post on Monday is at twelve o’clock. While the majority of Instagram users enjoy making a productive start to their week at work, it appears that around lunchtime they take a break to check out their feeds.
Best Time To Post On Instagram On Tuesday
The best time to post on Tuesday is nine in the morning. Engagement is high between 8 and 10 in the morning, but it reaches its highest point around 9 in the morning.
Best Time To Post On Instagram On Wednesday
On Wednesdays, the best time to post is at eleven in the morning. It appears that Wednesday is the day with the highest level of participation across the board.
Best Time To Post On Instagram On Thursday
When it comes to Instagram, the best time to post on Thursday is at twelve o’clock. Engaging in conversation is optimal on weekdays between the hours of 11:00 AM and 2:00 PM.
Sharing Photos And Videos On Instagram On Fridays
Even though engagement is at its highest from seven in the morning until two in the afternoon on Fridays, the best time to post on Instagram is at two in the afternoon.
Saturday Instagram Posting Times
Before people start getting busy with their offline plans Saturday morning at nine in the morning is the best time to post on Instagram.
Sunday Instagram Posting Time
Even though engagement is at its highest throughout the afternoon and evening from 12:00 PM to 8:00 PM on Sundays, the best time to post on Instagram is at 7:00 PM on Sundays.
If you’re new to Instagram and don’t have a lot of historical data or audience insights to work with, we recommend scheduling your posts around the times we tested above.
As your account grows, you may find that you need to modify your posting schedule so that it is more relevant to the people you are trying to reach. This is how we determine the best times to post on Instagram using Hootsuite.
According to Brayden Cohen, who works as a Social Marketing and Employee Advocacy Strategist for Hootsuite, “On weekdays, we try to post between 8 a.m. and 12 p.m. Pacific Standard Time or between 4 and 5 p.m. PST.”
When we post our content in the Pacific time zone early in the morning or late at night, we see the highest levels of engagement from our audience. In the Eastern time zone, we see the highest levels of engagement when we post late at night.
The activity heatmap provided by Hootsuite Analytics reveals the times of day when Hootsuite’s Instagram audience is most likely to be online.
In addition to this, they utilize Hootsuite Impact to evaluate the effectiveness of both posts and campaigns.
The data tells us if we should keep going with the same strategy or pivot,
We use past performance as a guide, and then review when the audience is online as a second opinion, says Cohen. When the audience is online, we use that as a second opinion.
If, after that, our content is not performing well, we will experiment with posting at different times to determine whether or not that helps. “
In general, the data should serve as the foundation for an Instagram content calendar.
Taking into consideration the bigger picture, the following are a few essential Instagram metrics and demographics to take into account:
- Typically, businesses will update their feeds once per day.
- The typical level of user participation for a business account is 0.96 percent.
- People spent 30 minutes per day on Instagram in the year 2022. (up from 26 minutes per day in 2021)
- Each visit to the platform lasts for 6 minutes and 35 seconds.
- Among Instagram users in the United States, 63 percent visit the platform on a daily basis, and 42 percent do so multiple times.
Best Time To Post On Instagram Reels
You can increase the number of people following you and engaging with your content on Instagram by posting Reels at any time of the day. Compared to regular Instagram videos, Reels get up to 300 percent more engagement.
Over the past year and a half, we have been sharing Reels with our 170,000 Instagram followers. Monday through Thursday between the hours of 9 AM and 12 PM is the best time to post reels.
When Is The Most Optimal Time To Upload Photos And Videos To Instagram?
Watch Out For Those Who Come Out On Top!
First, you need to decide whether your primary goal is to increase engagement or brand awareness. Your timing strategy for Instagram posts may need to be adjusted depending on which of these factors is most important to you.
Which of your previous posts has garnered the most attention from readers? When was it posted? Which posts garner the most attention and support?
The analytics provided by Instagram is the most reliable way to verify these. You may be able to avoid tedious data crunching with the assistance of certain social media management tools.
For instance, the Best Time to Publish feature of Hootsuite recommends the best times of the day and times of the week to post to Instagram. In order to determine the best time slots, it analyzes all of your posts from the previous thirty days, organizes them according to the day of the week and the hour, and computes the average number of impressions or the engagement rate.
Investigate The Online Behavior Of Your Target Audience.
The following thing you should do is check your analytics to find out when your followers are scrolling through their feeds.
Marketers are required to have a solid understanding of their target demographic. If you’re trying to reach tech executives who meditate in infrared saunas at four in the morning, it’s possible that their social media habits are quite different from those of Gen Z sports fans who use Instagram.
Hootsuite’s Best Time to Publish feature will automatically generate a heatmap using this data once it has been uploaded (see above). In addition to this, it forecasts the hours that your Instagram followers will be active, making it much simpler for you to conduct experiments.
In addition, it will suggest time slots that you haven’t used in the previous thirty days, which will assist you in experimenting with new posting strategies and give you more options.
Consider The Times At Which Your Competitors Post
It’s possible that competitors in your industry are carrying out calculations and experiments very similar to yours. Through the use of social listening, you can keep an eye on what appeals to the audiences in your industry (or a full social competitive analysis).
Consider posting a few minutes before or after the hour of 00 in order to avoid having to compete with other sellers for limited shelf space.
Publish Your Content According To The Time Zone Of Your Target Demographic
We can see you, Mumbai; how are things in Sydney?), so it’s possible that three in the morning is the best time to post.
Would you rather have harsh alarms set for yourself or would you rather automate your Instagram posts? One of the most useful tools that will assist you in accomplishing this goal is Insta-scheduler.
Adjust As Needed
It takes more than just selecting the appropriate filter to make an Instagram post successful; there are many other factors involved. Not only is it simple to do, but it also guarantees that your content will be seen by the appropriate people. In point of fact, it is much simpler than honing your skills in videography or writing, both of which come highly recommended by us.
According to Brayden Cohen, a member of Hootsuite’s Instagram team, “We look at our top-performing posts on a weekly basis to determine whether there are any insights that can assist us in reworking our strategy or posting cadence.” “However, we do not alter the posting times more frequently than once every three months.”
Cohen pointed out that the impact the pandemic will have on work schedules in 2022 will result in a reduction of commuting time as well as traditional lunch breaks. It is evident that B2B audiences are more mobile, which is reflected in the way that they use Instagram.
It is essential to reconsider your findings and make alterations in light of the shifting conditions in the world.
Always Be Reliable Over The Long Term
To derive the maximum benefit from all of this audience data, it is critical to maintain a consistent posting strategy. Utilizing the data on a consistent basis will, over time, move the needle, but not by a significant amount.
They actively engage with the content and find it enjoyable. The outcome is beneficial for both parties. Your presence on Instagram will increase your credibility, trust, and intimacy.
When you have a genuine connection with your target audience, the algorithm will take notice, and so will your bottom line.
Conclusion
The best way to keep track of Instagram will be to use an Instagram scheduler, one that is constantly updated and that is always ahead of the curve. It’s a simple strategy, really: if you want great engagement on your content, don’t post when everyone else does. Post at different times, test out when your audience likes it best, and use an Instagram scheduling tool (or more than one) to make sure that you are posting at the right times. That will give you the biggest return on your investment with Instagram