What’s the Best Time to Post on Instagram?

We’ve all noticed those people who delete and re-upload posts on Instagram at different times of the day to get more likes than they did the last time, but is there really a method to their madness? Some individuals monitor their own feed and figure out when to post in order to get the most likes, and businesses can use a similar approach to increase their engagement.

While posting quality content on a regular basis is key, it might be worth your while to take note of peak hours and schedule your posts for a specific time and day; there are certain times in which brands will find that they have further reach with their social media posts. So, what is the best time to post on Instagram?

When Is the Best Time to Post on Instagram?

The goal is to post when the most users are online. The Pew Research Center found that half of Instagram’s users use the app every single day — while this definitely makes ironing out your posting schedule a little easier, there are days that are better than others.

Hubspot found that the best days to post on Instagram are Mondays and Thursdays at pretty much any time of the day, other than between 3 pm and 4 pm. If you’re planning to post videos, you’ll want to schedule them for later in the day at around 8 pm or 9 pm since not many people want to commit to watching an entire video, no matter how short it is, while they’re at the office — most people just take a quick Instagram break of a few seconds to refresh their feed while they’re getting coffee, or out for a smoke break.

While peak posting time varies by industry, you can generally expect to see better engagement on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Thursdays at a few different times during the day. You’ll see more people engaging during their morning commute from 8 am to 9 am, at the end of the workday at 5 pm, and prime time for night-owls is around 2 am.

When Is the Worst Time to Post on Instagram?

Just like there are prime times for posting, there are prime times for not posting. Both Hubspot and Sprout Social found that posts published on Sunday see lower engagement compared to any other day of the week. Most people take the last day of their weekend to spend time with their families and prepare themselves for the week ahead — which doesn’t leave much time for scrolling through their feed.

While these general guidelines will point most businesses in the right direction to help them find their sweet spot when it comes to scheduling posts, peak Instagram times are brand specific. So how can you figure out what’s best for your business? You’ll have to put some work in, to figure that out.

How To Find the Best Time to Post on Instagram For Your Brand

Keep Track of Your Followers

We mean this in both the geographic and demographic sense. If most of your followers are on the East Coast, make sure that you’re posting during optimal times for their time zone, and not yours.

You’ll also want to keep track of whether most of your followers are working professionals or college students. If the majority of them work 9-5 jobs, you’ll want to avoid posting midday and late at night; adversely, if they’re students, these would be prime times for your posts.

Post Important Stuff During the Week

It’s clear that engagement drops off during the weekend, so stick to scheduling your most important posts for during the week. However this doesn’t mean you should completely refrain from posting on the weekend; you can still post fun, entertaining content on the weekend while reserving your best posts for the week ahead.

Use Instagram Insights

This is a pretty useful tool, and you should use it to your advantage. You’ll be able to identify when your followers are the most active, making it easy to run your own tests. Schedule posts for different times based on the insights you’ve observed thus far, and keep track of the likes and comments you get on each. After a running a few tests, you’ll have a solid idea of what the best days and times for posting for your brand are.

Posting at the right time is arguably just as important as posting quality content; if you don’t post during prime times, how will people engage with your brand? With Instagram’s ever-changing algorithm, it’s imperative to run tests and take note of your insights to keep up with any changes.

To learn more about how to increase your engagement, call TechWyse Internet Marketing at 866.208.3095 today, or contact us here.