The Best and Worst Time to Post on Instagram (Guide with Cheatsheets)

With the ever-changing Instagram algorithm, if you don’t post at the right time, people might never see your post. Though Instagram lets people post at anytime anywhere, businesses need to determine a mindful approach towards it. Posting at the right time on Instagram is like throwing a wider net to catch a maximum number of fish at once. 

If Instagram posting fills you up with doubts, don’t fret. We’re here to tell you the best times to post on Instagram to get the most engagement possible.

Let’s dive right in!

When is the best time to post on Instagram?

On average, the best day and time to post on Instagram is Tuesday between 12 PM to 3 PM EST. While the best time frame to post on weekdays is from 12 PM to 3 PM EST for more engagement.

The best time to post on Instagram every day

• Monday: 5 AM
• Tuesday: 6 AM
• Wednesday: 6 AM
• Thursday: 5 AM
• Friday: 6 AM
• Saturday: 6 AM
• Sunday: 6 AM

The worst time to post on Instagram every day

• Monday: 2 PM
• Tuesday: 1 PM
• Wednesday: 10 AM
• Thursday: 11 PM
• Friday: 9 AM
• Saturday: 8 PM
• Sunday: 4 PM

Best time to post on Instagram by industry

1. Best times to post on Instagram for retail

The best time to post on Instagram for retail industry business owners is on Saturdays at 11 AM and 1 PM. Following are the optimum days and times where retailers can reach the maximum audience.

• Wednesday: 11 AM - 3 PM
• Thursday: 2 PM - 4 PM
• Friday: 10 AM - 3 PM

2. Best times to post on Instagram for media & entertainment

The best time to post on Instagram for businesses in the media & entertainment industry is on Fridays at 9 AM. Lowest engagement is noticed on weekends as most people have days off from work and spend their days away from their screens Let’s check the optimum days and times where businesses in the media & entertainment sector can reach the maximum audience. 

• Wednesday: 8 AM - 5 PM
• Thursday: 8 AM - 5 PM
• Friday: 8 AM - 5 PM

3. Best times to post on Instagram for technology companies

The best time to post on Instagram for tech-based companies is Mondays between 10 AM - 11 AM. Following are the optimum days and times where tech companies can reach the maximum audience.

• Monday: 2 PM - 5 PM
• Monday: 8 PM
• Tuesday: 10 AM - 1 PM
• Thursday: 12 PM - 3 PM
• Friday: 11 AM

4. Best times to post on Instagram for non-profit

The best time to post on Instagram for non-profits is on Wednesday at 2 PM. Here are the best days and times for non-profits to promote their initiatives and reach people.

• Tuesday: 3 PM and 9 PM
• Wednesday: 3 PM and 4 PM
• Thursday: 2 PM and 3 PM
• Friday: 10 AM and 2 PM

5. Best times to post on Instagram for educational organizations

Mornings and afternoons are when people from the education industry i.e., students, faculty, etc, are the most active. The best time to post on Instagram for educational organizations is on Friday between 4 AM - 5 AM and Thursday at 2 PM. Below are the optimum days and times for educational organizations.

• Monday: 8 PM
• Friday: 10 AM
• Saturday: 10 AM - 8 PM
• Saturday: 6 PM - 8 PM

6. Best times to post on Instagram for healthcare companies

Since the pandemic, social media channels like Instagram have become a platform to respond to global audiences. The best day and time to reach them is on Tuesday at 8 AM. Following are the optimum days and times for healthcare companies.

• Sunday: 8 AM - 9 AM
• Monday: 8 AM - 12 PM
• Tuesday: 8 PM - 12 PM
• Tuesday: 5 PM - 8 PM

7. Best times to post on Instagram for restaurants

Instagram played a massive role in updating people about the restaurant’s/hotel’s changing rules and practices during the pandemic. It became essential for them to reach more audiences in order to keep running their businesses. And, the best time and day that worked for them is on Monday at 12 PM and on Friday between 1 PM - 2 PM. Other optimum days and times are as follows.

• Monday: 9 AM - 1 PM
• Friday: 7 PM - 9 PM

Best time to post on Instagram by location

There are a variety of audiences all over the world. Just like their locations, their behaviors differ too. As per reports by Later, below mentioned are the best times to post by location.

• UK – 4 AM to 6 AM
• Western Europe – 6 PM to 8 PM
• Eastern Europe – 5 AM to 7 AM
• US and Canada (Western) – 12 AM to 6 AM
• US and Canada (Central) – 6 AM to 8 AM
• US and Canada (Eastern) – 4 AM to 9 AM
• South Asia and Middle East – 3 AM
• East Asia and Southeast Asia – 11 PM to 4 AM
• Australasia – 11 PM to 2 AM

How to find your own unique best time to post on Instagram?

Your personalized best time can be defined only when you post enough to gather enough data about your audience’s activity. You can do that by beginning to experiment with posting at different times of the day for a certain period. This practice can help you analyze what time your audience is the most active and engaging.

To check this, go to Insights > Audience and scroll down to see what days and times your audience is the most active.

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Best practices around making the most out of your best time to post on Instagram 

Tip #1: Be consistent with your posting and testing

It takes diligent work for any business to figure out their unique best time to post on Instagram. This can be done only by posting regularly at different times of the day and analyzing which time brings the most engagement from your audience.

Don’t just do it once and sit back!

As your business grows, your audience also changes. Hence, it's recommended to follow this testing practice once in a while to gauge any new best times to post.

Tip #2: Use a social media scheduling app like Later

Instagram’s ever-changing algorithm demands businesses and influencers to be on it 24/7 but that’s just impossible!

Don’t worry, there are tools available that can help you.

For example, if you’re testing the best times to post on Instagram on Sunday, you can directly schedule posts throughout the day using Later and analyze them.

Tip #3: Take the best time to post on Instagram guides (like this) with a grain of salt

Resources can be your bible when marketing on Instagram and the internet has a lot of it. Researching about the best times to post can give you a fair idea of where the potential lies. Guides can help you with detailed research of when to post from where depending on which industry you are from and you can further utilize that to figure out your unique best time to post.

Tip # 4: Use both your built-in analytics and 1-on-1 conversations to understand your audience

Every audience behaves in a certain way and without understanding the audience’s detailed behavior, habits, etc, it’s impossible to market your product/service to them. 

Fortunately, there are tools available in the market that can help you with your social media analytics. Furthermore, you can interact with your audience one-on-one through interactive posts, in the comments section, or through Instagram Stories just like National Geographic did.

Tip #5: Analyze your data to prioritize your posts

Once you start posting, pay attention to which posts your audience is engaging with the most. And derive what kind of content to post from the results. Because in the end, it’s all about posting what your audience likes. Knowing what works makes success a repeatable and teachable process.

Tip #6: Leverage video content for Instagram for even more engagement

Brands who use video on Instagram grow revenue 49% faster than those who don’t. If your business has a story, go and post about it in the best way possible. 

When you explain your story and post about how your product/service is created or behind the scenes like @warbyparker did, people will start to trust you more.

Finding the best time to post can be a crucial factor to reach the maximum audience. 

Any kind of business you have, this guide will help you reach the maximum audience at their ‘peak’ time. So, start off by creating engaging videos using a video editor like VEED and utilize the best time to post on Instagram i.e. Tuesday between 12 PM to 3 PM EST and then work towards finding your unique best time.

For more related Instagram posts, check out our blog.