Best Time to Post on Instagram in 2024

Are you banging your head against the wall trying to figure out why your Instagram Reels aren’t getting the views you were hoping for?

Trust me, I know first-hand that’s a pain after you spent all that time and money on a kick-ass Instagram video and not hitting the numbers you were expecting. So how do you fix this?

Part of it is just posing at the right time.

So let’s dive in and see when you need to hit that post or publish button on your brand new video.

Over 200 million businesses from around the world use Instagram to build an audience, connect with customers, and achieve their marketing goals.

According to Instagram, 9 out of 10 people follow at least one business (or brand).

Businesses spend billions of dollars every year to create posts, reels, and stories for Instagram.

Well, they will be losing huge sums of money if they don’t know the ideal time to post on Instagram.

For weeks, I have been burning the midnight oil, researching millions of Instagram accounts, and analyzing other marketing reports to identify the best time to post on Instagram in 2024.

Here is what I found.

A Meta-Analysis on the Best Time to Post on Instagram

A meta-analysis of multiple studies on this subject will reveal valuable insights into posting strategies.

Our effort aims to identify common trends and patterns that can serve as a guide on when to post for maximum reach and engagement.

Through this meta-analysis, we aim to provide evidence-based recommendations to improve your Instagram performance. So, let’s get started.

Sprout Social

According to this study form Sprout Social, the best days to post on Instagram for peak performance are Tuesdays, Wednesdays, and Thursdays.

Days of the week that promise decent engagement are Mondays, Fridays, and Saturdays.

The worst day to post on the platform is Sunday.

Best times to post on each day of the week:

Day	Time
Monday	from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m.
Tuesday	from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.
Wednesday	from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m.
Thursday	from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. and from 2 p.m. to 4 p.m.
Friday	11 a.m. to 2 p.m.
Saturday	9 a.m. to 12 p.m.
Sunday	10 a.m. to 12 p.m.

• Instagram, along with Facebook, offers the highest Return on Investment at 29%.
• Reels outperform all other types of content on Instagram when it comes to engagement.
• Interestingly, audience engagement on Instagram is higher during weekdays than on weekends.
• The best time to post during weekdays is from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., and on weekends, from 9 a.m. to 12 p.m.
• For optimal engagement, make slight changes to your posting schedule on weekdays. On Mondays and Fridays, post from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.; on Tuesdays and Wednesdays, post from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.; and on Thursdays, post from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m.
• The healthcare industry uses Instagram to educate its audience, whereas the food and beverage industry predominantly uses the platform to provide updates and promotions.
• The restaurant and café business witnesses higher engagement around lunch hours, mostly during weekdays.
• Schools and universities use social media to share school updates, educate parents, and engage past, present, and future students.
• Educational institutions use Instagram for various purposes and to achieve various goals. Their content on Instagram receives the highest engagement during weekdays from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. and also at 9 p.m. on Wednesdays.
• Post-pandemic, there has been a steady increase in travel and gradual growth in the hospitality industry. Engagement with travel and hospitality industry content has doubled compared to last year.
• Data shows decent engagement with posts related to the travel and hospitality industry throughout the week, from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Engagement is highest on Wednesdays and Sundays, from 2 p.m. to 4 p.m. and 11 a.m. to 1 p.m., respectively.

Buffer

The best days to post on Instagram are Monday to Friday.

Days of the week that see the least engagement: Saturday and Sunday.

The ideal times to post on Instagram:

Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, and Saturday: at 7 a.m.

Friday: at 4 p.m.

Sunday: at 7 p.m.

Best times to post on each day of the week:

Day	Time
Monday	7 a.m., 8 a.m., 4 p.m., and 8 p.m.
Tuesday	7 a.m., and 6 p.m.
Wednesday	7 a.m. to 8 a.m.
Thursday	7 a.m., 8 a.m., and 4 p.m.
Friday	7 a.m., and 8 a.m. or 4 p.m.
Saturday	7 a.m., 4 p.m., and 8 p.m.
Sunday	6 p.m. to 9 p.m. (peak period: 7 p.m.)

• After analyzing over 5 million posts, Buffer finds that the early morning hours, just after waking up, are the ideal hours to post on Instagram.
• In a way, these findings make perfect sense because people tend to check their phones as soon as they wake up in the morning.
• Further, the data shows decent engagement with Instagram posts around noon, mostly during the lunch break, and again in the evening, after 4 p.m.
• According to Adam Mosseri, the head of Instagram, users engage with the platform for entertainment during certain periods and to connect with friends during others.
• An analysis of 12 million posts sent through Buffer revealed that reels are the most popular form of content on Instagram. Additionally, videos for entertainment tend to perform well in the evening hours, just before bedtime.

Later

The best day to post on Instagram: Thursday

The worst day to post on Instagram: Saturday

Worst times to post on Instagram: Monday at 1 a.m. and Saturday at 10 a.m.

Best times to post on each day of the week:

• These findings were derived after analyzing over 9 million posts between January 1st and October 1st, 2023.
• According to this study form Later, it is recommended to post early in the morning to benefit from less competition. By posting early, users give their content the best chance to engage people who spend considerable time on their phones before going to the office.
• Contrary to popular belief, Saturday sees the lowest engagement compared to other days of the week. It is believed that people tend to spend less time online to spend more time offline with their family and friends.
• Although engagement is lower on Sundays compared to weekdays, it is still fairly higher than on Saturdays.
• To tap into Sunday early morning users, post between 1 a.m. to 6 a.m. Sunday evenings witness decent engagement, with interactions peaking around 9 p.m.

10 Key Takeaways from the Three Studies

After a thorough analysis of the studies, we have arrived at the following understanding.

1. Looking at the three studies, it’s easy to understand that each has a slightly different take on the best posting time. This makes us conclude that the best time to post depends on several factors, including the niche and audience preference and behavior.
2. All three studies concur that the morning period, from the time a person wakes up till leaving for work, is the prime time for engagement. The three organizations attribute this to people wanting to catch up on news and updates after lengthy hiatus at night.
3. There is also a clear increase in engagement during the lunch break. This suggests people turning to Instagram for de-stressing and communication with friends and family.
4. Instagram users spend more time watching Reels in the evening than in the mornings. This could be because users are seeking entertainment and trying to wind down before bedtime.
5. All three studies show that weekdays outperform weekends in terms of engagement. People are least active on social media on Saturdays.
6. Similarly, people trying to unwind after a long week are responsible for a slight uptick in engagement during Friday evenings. Plus, the Sunday evening upswing can be attributed to anticipation for the week ahead.
7. All three studies show that Instagram Reels continuously outperform other content formats including carousels and images. You can use editing apps to create engaging reels.
8. Posting early in the morning, either a couple of hours before or after the average wake-up time of 7 a.m. can boost engagement. This is because of the increased phone usage during this period.
9. The best posting time for maximum engagement varies based on your industry. For example, the food and beverage industry sees higher engagement on weekdays, around lunchtime. In the case of educational institutions, the best time to post is during weekdays afternoons, and Wednesday evenings.
10. These findings are not definitive rules. They are guidelines that will help you determine the most effective posting time on Instagram. To maximize engagement tailor the posting schedule to suit your specific niche and analyze your account’s engagement metrics.

How to Find the Best Time to Post on Instagram in 2024

Your ideal posting schedule for peak engagement may differ from someone else’s.

Hence, for marketers, the success of the Instagram campaign rests on concrete data. Here are several ways to identify the ideal posting times in 2024.

Turn Your Attention to Instagram Insights

The easiest way to determine the best time to post on Instagram in 2024 is to ask Instagram itself.

If you are already using the social media platform and posting regularly, take a peek into Instagram Insights for answers.

You can use either the Instagram built-in analytics tool or a third-party tool. Why not start with the native tracker first?

Instagram will provide you with a ton of data. It’s up to you to segregate the grain (useful data) from the chaff.

Look for audience engagement in the best-performing posts.

You can later categorize these posts into Reels, Stories (up to 60 seconds), Live Videos, etc.

Open Instagram Insights and go to Audience, then scroll down to check the data on when your audience is most active on the platform.

What if the Instagram account is new and has less engagement?

In that case, continue reading to find the optimal posting time.

Consider Audience Behavior

In addition to the data that your account insights can provide, use third-party tools to research the audience and identify the days and hours they are online.

For truly accurate data, look for audiences who not only view but also engage with your posts.

It’s also important to consider the audience demographics and behavior.

Both of these factors will determine when to post and what kind of content to post on Instagram.

Digging into demographic data such as age, location, and profession can help you schedule posts at their local time when they are most likely to use Instagram.

For example, a B2B marketing agency noticed a spike in engagement at 7 a.m. Pacific Time on Tuesdays and Wednesdays.

Since much of the engagement came from the target audience on the East Coast, the marketing agency used a scheduling tool to publish Instagram posts at 10 a.m. Eastern Time.

Understand Industry-Specific Patterns

Those wanting to expand their reach on Instagram should also focus on understanding industry trends.

Different niches have different peak engagement hours.

For example, experts believe that the fashion industry considers Fridays and Saturdays as prime posting days and evening hours as ideal posting times.

This is because their target audience – young men and women – engage with Instagram posts more leisurely during weekends.

In contrast, as we have seen in the preceding sections, educational institutions post mainly on weekdays to garner higher engagement.

This might be because people are more focused on weekdays and more receptive to educational content.

You can also learn from your competitors and industry leaders.

Look at the days and times they post, and monitor their engagement metrics. You can either follow in their footsteps or learn from their mistakes.

Experiment and A/B Testing

Through all the above methods, it’s only possible to narrow down the best time to post on Instagram.

It’s nearly impossible to find the optimal posting schedule at the start of your Instagram marketing campaign.

You need to experiment with your posting schedule and use A/B Testing to identify hours and content types that see higher engagement.

One way to experiment is by mimicking your competitors.

Start by creating and editing video content for social media similar to your competitors and post on the same days and hours as they do.

Observe the performance for a couple of weeks.

In the next installment of A/B Testing, post on days and times arrived at after analyzing Instagram

Insights, researching audience behavior, and considering industry-specific patterns.

After a few weeks, analyze the engagement metrics (views, likes, comments, and shares) to arrive at the best time to post on Instagram in 2024.

Finally, utilize scheduling tools to post consistently and continue to track results over time.

Final Thoughts

Whether you’re an influencer, entrepreneur, or big business, with a small account or millions of followers, you can’t post whenever you want and expect to achieve your marketing goals.

The information in this article must certainly be an eye-opener for you.

Our article emphasizes that there is no ‘one-size-fits-all’ answer to the question ‘what is the best time to post on Instagram in 2024.’

That said, our article aims to guide you in the right direction and provide you with tips to help identify days and time slots suitable for your niche and business.

By identifying the best time to post on Instagram and scheduling the content in advance to appear when the audience is most active, you increase the chance of engagement.

Get started, and once you succeed, share your success story with us.