Social media is an ever-evolving tool for marketing and building relationships with your audience, and one of the most popular platforms is Instagram.
Knowing the best time to post on Instagram can be the difference between gaining followers or falling short.
With the right timing, you can reach more people, generate more engagement, and build a larger and more active community.
In this article, we will examine the best time to post on Instagram.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the Best Time to Post on Instagram?
You generally have three times to start posting: when people start their days, around noon, and in the evening or just before they go to bed.
However, publishing schedules can change according to the targeted audience’s age, profession, and demography.
Is it Better to Post on Instagram in the Morning or Night?
It depends, really.
In general, you probably won’t reach your maximum audience on Instagram at night.
Most research indicates that mid-morning to early afternoon is the best time to post on Instagram.
How Can You Determine the Best Time to Post on Instagram?
When deciding when to post something on Instagram, remember that there are numerous time zones worldwide.
Knowing which part of a global viewing public you are hoping to reach is crucial because the following timings depend on their particular time zone.
People usually check their social media accounts shortly after waking up and spend a few minutes browsing their social feeds or streaming Instagram Reels.
Thus, 7-8 in the morning can be a good time to post.
A different time when people frequently use their phones is at lunch.
You can increase your post’s likelihood of appearing higher at the top of their feed by posting between 11 and 1 p.m. when people are probably taking a lunch break.
Now that many work from home, several of these recommended times offer greater flexibility.
Additionally, people frequently browse social media before going to sleep or soon after work.
Therefore, you generally have three times to start posting: when people start their days, around noon, and in the evening or just before they go to bed.
However, publishing schedules can change according to the targeted audience’s age, profession, and demography.
Instagram’s analytics section can help you determine the best time to post on Instagram.
Let’s look at how you can do this:
1. Understanding your following using Instagram data
Go to your profile and select the Insights action button to examine your account insights.
Furthermore, you can choose Insights by tapping Menu in the top right corner.
Hit the Metrics in the Overview dashboard section or a specific piece of shared content for a more in-depth evaluation.
Remember that you’ll only be able to access insights for content you’ve published since switching to a creator or business account.
You can examine insights for your chosen preset or custom timeframe within the last 90 days by tapping the drop-down menu at the top of the screen.
You can view your audience’s age, gender, and locality if you create an Instagram business account.
These Instagram insights also show you when your followers are online, which will help you organize your posts for the appropriate time zone.
You can use this information to pinpoint the exact moments when your audience is most engaged to offer compelling content online.
2. Test out posting at various times
The optimal Instagram posting time is typically determined by trial and error.
It’s crucial to keep trying different times until you find one that yields consistent results because what performs one week may not always work the next time.
Find out which posts perform the best by using Instagram’s analytics tool or conducting the investigation manually using a spreadsheet.
If you posted on Monday at 4 p.m. the first week, the second week’s posting time should be 5 p.m.
Experiment again once you’ve identified the times that produce the highest Instagram engagement to confirm your theory and ensure that the initial findings weren’t a coincidence.
3. Schedule posts for peak hours
Your followers won’t always have access to you at the same time.
The times you can publish may be restricted, though, if the performance of your post hinges on your ability to engage with commenters.
Consider using scheduling tools to set your posts to publish at those times if they don’t depend on your presence.
Choose if you want to boost engagement rates or brand awareness before anything else.
Depending on your goals, you could decide to schedule your Instagram posts using a different approach.
The more often you publish, the easier it will be to determine whether the times you’ve selected are ideal or whether there is room for improvement.
Tracking, monitoring, and adjusting your Instagram posts as necessary all year long is essential for achieving the highest levels of engagement.
4. Think about the posts you make
Your Instagram posts’ quality will undoubtedly have a wider impact than just the passing of time; poor posts will almost certainly perform poorly, while excellent posts will perform superbly at all times.
Engagement levels will fluctuate throughout the day, depending on what you post.
For instance, your content may perform best in the evening or late afternoon if it incorporates or supports something people often do at night.
Consider the specifics of what you’re marketing, the purpose of your Instagram post, and when this content could be most helpful to your followers when deciding when to share it.
When is the best time to post on Instagram generally?
Most likely, you’re expecting we can tell you with certainty when to post on Instagram.
Sadly, there are simply too many variables in reality for it to be that easy.
The “optimal” time to publish on Instagram was selected by most of the studies we examined.
However, keep in mind that these rely on time zones and that not all blogs use the same time zone when making their recommendations.
The majority of these studies used CT (Central Time US) as their time zone.
Even though you’ll probably post more than once a week, several studies indicate that the best time to post on Instagram is when:
The ideal moment to post to Instagram is:
Wednesdays at 11 a.m.
Thursdays from 2 till 3 p.m.
Friday at 10:00 a.m.
Even while posting in the mornings versus the evening may not significantly impact interaction levels, you still want your message to be seen by the correct audience at the right time.
This is why it’s crucial to take your posts’ content into account as well.
Given the discrepancies across the studies, it is preferable to consider a wider range of hours rather than just one ideal time to post on Instagram because, if you want to succeed, you will post more frequently than once per week.
When should different niche industrial post on Instagram?
The ideal Instagram posting timings for various sectors are shown in this study by Sprout Social.
Remember that the results include the publishing schedules of over 20,000 businesses and that the mentioned industries have a wide range of specialties and divisions.
If you need help figuring out where to start and want to do some research, you can use these posting times as a decent starting point, but remember that they should just be used as a preliminary step.
- Entertainment: Friday (9 a.m.)
- eCommerce: Wednesday (3 p.m.) and Friday (11 a.m.–12 p.m.)
- Food: Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, and Saturday (12 p.m.)
- Education: Friday (10 a.m.)
- IT & Tech: Wednesday (6 a.m. and 9 a.m.)
- Travel: Friday, Tuesday, and Wednesday (11 a.m.–1 p.m. and 9 a.m.–10 a.m.)
- Non-profit: Wednesday (2 p.m.)
- Professional services: Every day (9 a.m.–10 p.m.)
- Medical: Tuesday (8 a.m.)
Wrapping Up
You must be diligent in your posting if you want to capitalize completely on this understanding of your target audience.
Certainly, if you post a few hours sooner than usual occasionally, you might not see a startling increase.
However, over time, using the data regularly will result in progress.
Once they get used to noticing your brand on their feed, your audience will adore and engage with your content.
Using Instagram regularly enables you to build a reputation and stronger relationships with your followers.
Similar posts to check out
- Best Time to Post on Facebook: The optimal time to publish on Facebook can significantly increase your company’s visibility and audience reach; therefore, this article will show you the best time to post on Facebook.
- Best Time to Post on Twitter: If you want to reach and engage with your audience on Twitter, you should learn how to determine the best times to post on Twitter.
- Best Time to Post on LinkedIn: Once you’ve decided what to share on LinkedIn, you still need to make a timing decision to ensure maximum impact. We’ll show you the best time to post on LinkedIn.
