Best Times to Post on Social Media in 2023

We’re asked “When is the best time to post on social media?” often, so we wanted to present the ultimate guide for brands and industries to use in 2023 and beyond.

Social media marketers are putting tons of effort into crafting the ultimate tweet or designing the perfect infographic to share on Facebook, but those efforts won’t pay off if no one sees your post or tweet. Figuring out the best time to post on social media (and how often you should post on social media!) will help you increase your reach and engage more of your followers, and can be easily achieved in just a few steps.

This definitive guide offers suggestions about the best times to post on social media and breaks it down by industry, time of day, day of the week, and channel. We hope this information helps you target your posts and increase your engagement. We studied engagement data from 14 key industries on Instagram, TikTok, Facebook, and Twitter.

Here are a few key best time to post on social takeaways:

• Most brands post or tweet between 10am-4pm, but that doesn’t necessarily mean it’s the best time to post on social.
• Try weeknight and weekend posting to maximize engagement on Instagram.
• Weekends are a gold mine for brands looking for engagement on Facebook and Twitter.
• Brands were all about the workday posting on TikTok this year, which was a better time to reach followers than evenings or weekends.
• If you haven’t already experimented with weekend posting, try it out–especially in the evenings. It may not work for every brand, but it can be a good time to catch your followers online.
• Experiment and research to find the best times to post on social for you and your competitors using native analytics or a social media analytics tool like Rival IQ.

Best time to post on Instagram

We love to say that Instagram is the most engaging social network, and the numbers don’t lie: according to our Social Media Industry Benchmark Report, average engagement rates are 7x more than on Facebook and about 13x more than on Twitter, so it’s really important to make the most of your posting on this channel.

Before we jump into the rankings, let’s talk about how to read the embedded data below. We computed the average engagement rate over the course of the day for a big set of brands, and then correlated whether engagement rates in that time period were better or worse than their average content and by what percentage. Use the temperature indicator to see how engagement rates vary from the average (red is bad, blue is good). For example, a 1.3 ratio in dark blue indicates a 30% increase for brands over their average engagement rate. This setup makes brands relative to themselves for extra data accuracy.

The size of each dot is the relative volume of posting in each time slot to help give you a sense of how popular a time slot is. It’s important to look at both the engagement rate ratio and the volume of posting in each time slot for a true sense of how to apply these findings to your brand. Just because the engagement rate ratio is high in the overnight slot doesn’t necessarily mean it’s the key to social media success for your particular brand or industry.

As we noted above, the best time to post on social media for any channel is unique to your brand and deserves some study and experimentation. That said, here are a few key Instagram takeaways from our Cross-industry data:

• Try posting later in the weekday: Posting during the workday hardly did any favors for brands on Instagram this year. Try moving away from the lunch hour and into dinner and bedtime for an engagement boost.
• Experiment with weekend posting: With most weekday slots scoring average or below average engagement and most weekend slots rocking above-average engagement, it’s clear that most brands are concentrating their posting on the work week. If you’re not seeing the engagement returns you’d like on weekdays, consider changing it up to hit your followers when they’re relaxing at home on the weekends.

Let’s jump into the best time to post on Instagram broken down by industry.

Best time to post on Instagram: Alcohol

The graph below displays the median engagement rate lift for Alcohol brands, disaggregated by day of week and time of day. The area of each bubble is in proportion to the number of posts published by Alcohol brands during this time on Instagram.

Weekday mornings are a strangely popular (and engaging) time for Alcohol brands to post on Instagram, but don’t sleep on that coveted Monday evening time slot. Avoiding happy hour on Wednesdays and Thursdays is also a good bet.

Best time to post on Instagram: Fashion

The graph that follows displays the median engagement rate lift for Fashion brands, broken down by day of week and time of day. The size of each bubble is relative to the quantity of posts published by Fashion brands during this time on Instagram.

Weekends outperform weekdays for Fashion brands on Instagram by a factor of 2x. If you’re going to post on weekdays, experiment with overnight posting to catch sleep shoppers and international buyers in other time zones.

Best time to post on Instagram: Financial Services

The chart below illustrates the median lift in engagement rate for Financial Services companies, broken down by day of week and time of day. The area of each bubble is in proportion to the number of posts published by Financial Services companies during this time on Instagram.

Financial Services brands saw the most success on Instagram when posting on the weekends, which is counterintuitive to how you’d imagine a work-related industry would perform. Monday and Friday evenings earned the strongest engagement rates for weekdays.

Best time to post on Instagram: Food & Beverage

The visualization that follows illustrates the median engagement rate lift for Food & Beverage brands, broken down by day of week and time of day. The area of each bubble is in proportion to the quantity of posts published by Food & Beverage brands during this time on Instagram.

Food & Beverage brands earned the highest engagement rates on Instagram when posting overnight on weekday slots or in the early evening on Sunday. These brands focused a lot on the 10am-1pm time slot, so don’t be afraid to shake up your posting a bit.

Best time to post on Instagram: Health & Beauty

The visualization below illustrates the median engagement rate lift for Health & Beauty brands, broken down by day of week and time of day. The area of each bubble is in proportion to the number of posts published by Health & Beauty brands during this time on Instagram.

Early mornings on the weekdays and especially late nights on the weeknights are good times for Health & Beauty brands to catch their followers on Instagram. Skip posting after lunch on weekdays, except that elusive overnight slot on Wednesday evenings.

Best time to post on Instagram: Higher Education

The chart below illustrates the median lift in engagement rate for Higher Education institutions, grouped by day of week and time of day. The size of each bubble is relative to the amount of posts published by Higher Education institutions during this time on Instagram.

Evenings and weekends are where it’s at for colleges and universities on Instagram this year, who especially thrived in the overnight slot. No shame in skipping weekday posting in this industry.

Best time to post on Instagram: Home Decor

The following chart illustrates the median lift in engagement rate for Home Decor brands, disaggregated by day of week and time of day. The area of each bubble is relative to the quantity of posts published by Home Decor brands during this time on Instagram.

Home Decor brands were especially successful on Instagram with early-morning posts any day of the week except Tuesday and Friday. Saturdays and Sundays are good times to post, and the overnight slot doesn’t do much for this industry.

Best time to post on Instagram: Influencers

The following chart displays the median engagement rate lift for Influencers, disaggregated by day of week and time of day. The area of each bubble is in proportion to the volume of posts published by Influencers during this time on Instagram.

Big red bubbles in so many weekday slots mean Influencers are all vying for the same users at the wrong time. Influencers would do better to increase posting on weekends and in super late time slots.

Best time to post on Instagram: Media

The graph below illustrates the median engagement rate lift for Media brands, broken down by day of week and time of day. The size of each bubble is relative to the number of posts published by Media brands during this time on Instagram.

Media brands see much higher engagement on weekends than weekdays. The overnight slot on Tuesdays and Wednesdays earned top engagement for Media brands, as did early morning posting on Saturdays and Sundays.

Best time to post on Instagram: Nonprofits

The visualization that follows displays the median lift in engagement rate for Nonprofits, disaggregated by day of week and time of day. The area of each bubble is relative to the quantity of posts published by Nonprofits during this time on Instagram.

Nonprofits were all about weekend engagement this year, with Sunday posting dominating any other day of the week. The 10am-1pm weekday slot was a notably terrible time for Nonprofit engagement, so skip the pre-lunch posting for now and try focusing on early morning or overnight posts instead.

Best time to post on Instagram: Retail

The chart below illustrates the median engagement rate lift for Retail brands, broken down by day of week and time of day. The size of each bubble is in proportion to the volume of posts published by Retail brands during this time on Instagram.

Retail brands earned the highest engagement rates in early morning and overnight time slots on weekdays on Instagram. Weekends were also good times for these brands to post, suggesting that catching people as they’re thinking more about shopping and less about work is a strong engagement strategy for these brands.

Best time to post on Instagram: Sports Teams

The chart below shows the median lift in engagement rate for Sports Teams, broken down by day of week and time of day. The size of each bubble is in proportion to the quantity of posts published by Sports Teams during this time on Instagram.

Forget about reaching your followers when they’re at work, Sports Teams. Better to stick to posting after 4pm when followers can give games and players their full attention.

Best time to post on Instagram: Tech & Software

The chart below illustrates the median lift in engagement rate for Tech & Software companies, broken down by day of week and time of day. The area of each bubble is relative to the volume of posts published by Tech & Software companies during this time on Instagram.

Tech & Software brands’ best times to post eschew patterns, but Tuesday and Friday mornings were rock solid for these brands, and weekend posting was fairly successful as well (especially if you ignore Sunday mornings and evenings).

Best time to post on Instagram: Travel

The graph below illustrates the median lift in engagement rate for Travel, broken down by day of week and time of day. The area of each bubble is in proportion to the quantity of posts published by Travel during this time on Instagram.

Travel brands see stronger engagement and less competition for eyeballs with weekend and weeknight posting, so that’s a good place for this industry to focus its efforts.

Best time to post on Facebook

Even though Instagram is the engagement juggernaut, it’s still really important to target your followers when they’re most active on Facebook as well.

Here are a few key trends for the best time and day to post on Facebook:

• Move away from lunchtime: Much like on Instagram, weekday mornings and afternoons see the highest concentration of posting, but don’t have much to show for themselves by way of engagement. Experiment with late night Facebook posts to see if you can catch your followers outside of work.
• Try posting on weekends: Brands are seeing above average engagement rates on Facebook on the weekends, especially in the evenings.

Does that increased engagement on Saturday nights guarantee your brand visibility and likes on Facebook? Not necessarily. The best time to post on Facebook is ultimately unique to your brand, so do some research and experimentation to see when your followers are active on the site and then tailor your posting accordingly.

Best time to post on Facebook: Alcohol

The following graph shows the median engagement rate lift for Alcohol brands, grouped by day of week and time of day. The area of each bubble is in proportion to the quantity of posts published by Alcohol brands during this time on Facebook.

Alcohol brands earned top engagement rates on Facebook while followers were out on the town in the evenings, but no surprise that a few drinks led to a sharp decline in engagement in overnight and early morning slots across the board.

Best time to post on Facebook: Fashion

The following chart illustrates the median engagement rate lift for Fashion brands, broken down by day of week and time of day. The area of each bubble is in proportion to the volume of posts published by Fashion brands during this time on Facebook.

Fashion brands hoping to boost their engagement on Facebook should try to catch their followers in weekend mode, with Saturday and Sunday posts performing much better than weekday updates. Experiment with overnight posting between 10pm-7am to reach late-night shoppers.

Best time to post on Facebook: Financial Services

The following graph shows the median lift in engagement rate for Financial Services companies, disaggregated by day of week and time of day. The size of each bubble is in proportion to the number of posts published by Financial Services companies during this time on Facebook.

Financial Services brands are working hard to engage followers during the workday on Facebook, but would be better served focusing on overnight and weekend posting.

Best time to post on Facebook: Food & Beverage

The chart that follows displays the median engagement rate lift for Food & Beverage brands, grouped by day of week and time of day. The size of each bubble is in proportion to the volume of posts published by Food & Beverage brands during this time on Facebook.

Food & Beverage brands are a little all over the place with Facebook engagement, but good bets are weekday mornings and just about anytime on the weekends.

Best time to post on Facebook: Health & Beauty

The graph below illustrates the median lift in engagement rate for Health & Beauty brands, disaggregated by day of week and time of day. The size of each bubble is relative to the quantity of posts published by Health & Beauty brands during this time on Facebook.

Health & Beauty brands saw the most success on Facebook on weekday mornings in the first half of the week, and especially rocked the 7pm-10pm weeknight slots.

Best time to post on Facebook: Higher Education

The chart that follows displays the median engagement rate lift for Higher Education institutions, disaggregated by day of week and time of day. The size of each bubble is relative to the volume of posts published by Higher Education institutions during this time on Facebook.

The highs were high and the lows were low for Higher Ed on Facebook this year, with evening and weekend posting absolutely killing it and weekday posting falling flat.

Best time to post on Facebook: Home Decor

The following graph illustrates the median engagement rate lift for Home Decor brands, disaggregated by day of week and time of day. The area of each bubble is relative to the number of posts published by Home Decor brands during this time on Facebook.

Sundays are prime time for Home Decor brands hoping to reach their followers on Facebook, tracking with the time and day when many DIYers are at the hardware store or in the garage making their dreams come to life.

Best time to post on Facebook: Influencers

The visualization below displays the median engagement rate lift for Influencers, broken down by day of week and time of day. The area of each bubble is relative to the quantity of posts published by Influencers during this time on Facebook.

Influencers were especially successful on Facebook with early morning and weekend posting, but they shouldn’t sleep on the overnight slot, which yielded great engagement amplification for these brands.

Best time to post on Facebook: Media

The following chart displays the median engagement rate lift for Media brands, grouped by day of week and time of day. The area of each bubble is in proportion to the volume of posts published by Media brands during this time on Facebook.

Weekend posting really stood out for Facebook followers of Media brands this year, while overnight and pre-lunch posting struggled to find its engagement footing.

Best time to post on Facebook: Nonprofits

The graph that follows displays the median lift in engagement rate for Nonprofits, grouped by day of week and time of day. The size of each bubble is in proportion to the number of posts published by Nonprofits during this time on Facebook.

Nonprofits struggled a little with weekday posts during working hours, and were more likely to see strong Facebook engagement after the beginning of the workday between 7pm-10pm or on the weekends.

Best time to post on Facebook: Retail

The visualization below displays the median lift in engagement rate for Retail brands, grouped by day of week and time of day. The area of each bubble is relative to the quantity of posts published by Retail brands during this time on Facebook.

The 4pm-7pm time slot earned top engagement for Retail brands on Facebook this year, while posting after 7pm yielded more slugging engagement results.

Best time to post on Facebook: Sports Teams

The following visualization illustrates the median engagement rate lift for Sports Teams, grouped by day of week and time of day. The size of each bubble is in proportion to the volume of posts published by Sports Teams during this time on Facebook.

No surprise that weekends dramatically outperform weekdays for Sports Teams when it comes to Facebook engagement. 7pm-7am is another surefire time slot for teams to reach their fans.

Best time to post on Facebook: Tech & Software

The visualization that follows illustrates the median engagement rate lift for Tech & Software companies, broken down by day of week and time of day. The area of each bubble is in proportion to the quantity of posts published by Tech & Software companies during this time on Facebook.

If Tech & Software brands are looking for Facebook success, weekday mornings or just about anytime on the weekends is the way to go.

Best time to post on Facebook: Travel

The visualization below displays the median lift in engagement rate for Travel, broken down by day of week and time of day. The size of each bubble is in proportion to the volume of posts published by Travel during this time on Facebook.

Travel brands were all over the map this year when it comes to the best time to post on Facebook, but Monday and Wednesday evenings were usually a good bet, as were just about anytime on Sunday.

Best time to post on Twitter

Just because Twitter makes it extra-tricky to figure out when to tweet for optimum engagement doesn’t mean it’s not important.

Is the pattern of run-of-the-mill engagement during the workday starting to look familiar?

• Try late night tweeting: Just like on Instagram and Facebook, most brands are all about the weekday posting between 10am-4pm without any engagement gains to show for it. Twitter has especially high engagement rates for brands late at night on weekdays, so try sending a few tweets around bedtime to see if you find any traction.
• Befriend the weekend: Every weekend time slot except Saturday midday sees above-average engagement rates on Twitter, so don’t be afraid to change it up.

Best time to post on Twitter: Alcohol

The graph that follows displays the median engagement rate lift for Alcohol brands, grouped by day of week and time of day. The size of each bubble is relative to the volume of tweets published by Alcohol brands during this time on Twitter.

Just like on other channels, evenings and overnight are the perfect times for Alcohol brands to engage with their followers on Twitter. Trade the 1pm-4pm time slot for the unexpected success of posting first thing in the morning to shake up engagement even more.

Best time to post on Twitter: Fashion

The chart below illustrates the median lift in engagement rate for Fashion brands, disaggregated by day of week and time of day. The area of each bubble is in proportion to the volume of tweets published by Fashion brands during this time on Twitter.

Big midday and mid-week circles mean Fashion brands are concentrating their posting during these time slots, but they’d see more engagement on Twitter with early morning or weekend posts instead.

Best time to post on Twitter: Financial Services

The chart below illustrates the median engagement rate lift for Financial Services companies, disaggregated by day of week and time of day. The area of each bubble is relative to the quantity of tweets published by Financial Services companies during this time on Twitter.

Financial Services brands earned top engagement early on Mondays or overnight towards the end of the week, and absolutely rocked engagement with weekend posting.

Best time to post on Twitter: Food & Beverage

The visualization that follows illustrates the median lift in engagement rate for Food & Beverage brands, broken down by day of week and time of day. The area of each bubble is in proportion to the volume of tweets published by Food & Beverage brands during this time on Twitter.

Food & Beverage saw pockets of Twitter engagement boosts throughout the week, especially in overnight slots or during the day on weekends.

Best time to post on Twitter: Health & Beauty

The chart below shows the median engagement rate lift for Health & Beauty brands, disaggregated by day of week and time of day. The size of each bubble is relative to the volume of tweets published by Health & Beauty brands during this time on Twitter.

Health & Beauty brands should play more with evening and overnight posts to maximize engagement on Twitter, and might want to stay away from posting during the workday on weekdays.

Best time to post on Twitter: Higher Education

The following graph illustrates the median engagement rate lift for Higher Education institutions, grouped by day of week and time of day. The size of each bubble is relative to the number of tweets published by Higher Education institutions during this time on Twitter.

It’s smooth sailing for Higher Ed on weekends and between 7pm-10am on weekdays. Colleges and universities concentrating their posting on weekdays during the workday might want to try these slots instead.

Best time to post on Twitter: Home Decor

The chart that follows displays the median lift in engagement rate for Home Decor brands, disaggregated by day of week and time of day. The area of each bubble is relative to the quantity of tweets published by Home Decor brands during this time on Twitter.

To maximize engagement on Twitter, Home Decor brands should experiment with morning posting, especially on Mondays, Tuesdays, and Sundays.

Best time to post on Twitter: Influencers

The following visualization displays the median lift in engagement rate for Influencers, broken down by day of week and time of day. The size of each bubble is in proportion to the number of tweets published by Influencers during this time on Twitter.

There’s no mistaking the colors in this graphic: weekends outperform weekdays dramatically for Influencers on Twitter. If Influencers need to reach followers on Twitter on weekdays, they should tweet in the evenings or overnight.

Best time to post on Twitter: Media

The chart that follows displays the median lift in engagement rate for Media brands, disaggregated by day of week and time of day. The size of each bubble is relative to the volume of tweets published by Media brands during this time on Twitter.

Sorry, Media reporters with 9-5s: the best time to reach your followers on Twitter is overnight or on the weekends, so figure out how to staff that graveyard shift accordingly.

Best time to post on Twitter: Nonprofits

The following visualization illustrates the median lift in engagement rate for Nonprofits, grouped by day of week and time of day. The size of each bubble is in proportion to the quantity of tweets published by Nonprofits during this time on Twitter.

Tweeting during the workday led to engagement declines for Nonprofits on Twitter. These organizations saw much more success when posting overnight or on the weekends.

Best time to post on Twitter: Retail

The following graph shows the median lift in engagement rate for Retail brands, grouped by day of week and time of day. The area of each bubble is relative to the quantity of tweets published by Retail brands during this time on Twitter.

Retail brands saw the highest Twitter engagement when tweeting on evenings and weekends.

Best time to post on Twitter: Sports Teams

The graph that follows shows the median engagement rate lift for Sports Teams, disaggregated by day of week and time of day. The area of each bubble is relative to the volume of tweets published by Sports Teams during this time on Twitter.

This graphic has more blue than a Seahawks game because Sports Teams found success reaching their followers at nearly every time of day. Early morning and late-night tweets were especially successful.

Best time to post on Twitter: Tech & Software

The graph that follows illustrates the median lift in engagement rate for Tech & Software companies, grouped by day of week and time of day. The size of each bubble is in proportion to the number of tweets published by Tech & Software companies during this time on Twitter.

Contrary to logic, Tech & Software brands should stay away from workday tweets and stick to weekends and overnight slots to maximize engagement on Twitter.

Best time to post on Twitter: Travel

The chart that follows displays the median lift in engagement rate for Travel, disaggregated by day of week and time of day. The size of each bubble is relative to the volume of tweets published by Travel during this time on Twitter.

Travel saw strong Twitter engagement on weekends and after work as followers dreamed of getaways in their free time.

Best time to post on TikTok

We’re thrilled to roll out data all about the best time to post on TikTok in 2023 based on oodles of videos from thousands of brands.

Is anyone else surprised to see brand fared best on TikTok with workday posting?

• Stick to posting TikTok videos in the first half of the workday: Engagement was especially high before lunch, and really petered out after 4pm.
• Ditch weekend posting: If you have to post TikTok videos on the weekend, try evening posting, and definitely ignore Sunday mornings.

Best time to post on TikTok: Alcohol

The graph that follows displays the median engagement rate lift for Alcohol brands, grouped by day of week and time of day. The size of each bubble is relative to the volume of tweets published by Alcohol brands during this time on TikTok.

Curiously, weekday posting during the workday was the best time for Alcohol brands to catch engagement on TikTok. Skip posting on evenings and weekends–followers are already at the bar.

Best time to post on TikTok: Fashion

The chart below illustrates the median lift in engagement rate for Fashion brands, disaggregated by day of week and time of day. The area of each bubble is in proportion to the volume of tweets published by Fashion brands during this time on TikTok.

Big midday and mid-week circles mean Fashion brands are concentrating their posting during these time slots, but they’d see more engagement on TikTok with early morning or late night posts instead.

Best time to post on TikTok: Financial Services

The chart below illustrates the median engagement rate lift for Financial Services companies, disaggregated by day of week and time of day. The area of each bubble is relative to the quantity of tweets published by Financial Services companies during this time on TikTok.

Bright and early on weekdays is the way for Financial Services brands to reach their followers–no surprise considering banking hours. But don’t sleep on the mid-afternoon weekend slot too.

Best time to post on TikTok: Food & Beverage

The visualization that follows illustrates the median lift in engagement rate for Food & Beverage brands, broken down by day of week and time of day. The area of each bubble is in proportion to the volume of tweets published by Food & Beverage brands during this time on TikTok.

Food & Beverage saw pockets of TikTok engagement boosts throughout the week, especially earlier in the morning or on the weekends during the day.

Best time to post on TikTok: Health & Beauty

The chart below shows the median engagement rate lift for Health & Beauty brands, disaggregated by day of week and time of day. The size of each bubble is relative to the volume of tweets published by Health & Beauty brands during this time on TikTok.

Health & Beauty brands should play more with posting first thing in the morning on weekdays to maximize TikTok engagement. Skip posting later in the day, especially on the weekends.

Best time to post on TikTok: Higher Education

The following graph illustrates the median engagement rate lift for Higher Education institutions, grouped by day of week and time of day. The size of each bubble is relative to the number of tweets published by Higher Education institutions during this time on TikTok.

It’s smooth sailing for Higher Ed on weekdays during the workday and on Saturdays. Colleges and universities might want to skip the late-night and Sunday posting on TikTok, though.

Best time to post on TikTok: Home Decor

The chart that follows displays the median lift in engagement rate for Home Decor brands, disaggregated by day of week and time of day. The area of each bubble is relative to the quantity of tweets published by Home Decor brands during this time on TikTok.

Workday posting earned Home Decor brands more engagement on TikTok than evening or weekend posting, with the exception of Sunday mornings.

Best time to post on TikTok: Influencers

The following visualization displays the median lift in engagement rate for Influencers, broken down by day of week and time of day. The size of each bubble is in proportion to the number of tweets published by Influencers during this time on TikTok.

Big blue circles mean Influencers are right about concentrating their TikTok posting on workdays, but might want to give late-night posting a go, especially later in the week.

Best time to post on TikTok: Media

The chart that follows displays the median lift in engagement rate for Media brands, disaggregated by day of week and time of day. The size of each bubble is relative to the volume of tweets published by Media brands during this time on TikTok.

Media brands should forget about trying to reach followers on TikTok on Mondays, with way more success later in the week or on the weekends during the day.

Best time to post on TikTok: Nonprofits

The following visualization illustrates the median lift in engagement rate for Nonprofits, grouped by day of week and time of day. The size of each bubble is in proportion to the quantity of tweets published by Nonprofits during this time on TikTok.

Nonprofits were all about the workday TikTok activity this year but might want to experiment with overnight or weekend posting to see if they can boost engagement rates.

Best time to post on TikTok: Retail

The following graph shows the median lift in engagement rate for Retail brands, grouped by day of week and time of day. The area of each bubble is relative to the quantity of tweets published by Retail brands during this time on TikTok.

Workday posting was a snooze for Retail brands on TikTok, who cared better with early-morning posting and daytime posting on Saturdays.

Best time to post on TikTok: Sports Teams

The graph that follows shows the median engagement rate lift for Sports Teams, disaggregated by day of week and time of day. The area of each bubble is relative to the volume of tweets published by Sports Teams during this time on TikTok.

Sports Teams fared best on TikTok when games were actually being played, like on evenings and weekends. Teams might want to skip workday posting and focus on these time slots instead.

Best time to post on TikTok: Tech & Software

The graph that follows illustrates the median lift in engagement rate for Tech & Software companies, grouped by day of week and time of day. The size of each bubble is in proportion to the number of tweets published by Tech & Software companies during this time on TikTok.

No surprise that Tech & Software brands concentrated a lot of their TikTok posting during the workday, but these brands might want to experiment with posting late on Fridays or later in the day on Sundays to reach more followers.

Best time to post on TikTok: Travel

The chart that follows displays the median lift in engagement rate for Travel, disaggregated by day of week and time of day. The size of each bubble is relative to the volume of tweets published by Travel during this time on TikTok.

Travel saw strong engagement nearly every day of the week on TikTok as followers dreamed of getaways, but were especially successful with morning and late-night posting.

How to Find Your Best Time to Post

Finding your best time to post on social media varies by channel, but we broke it down for you. Of course, you could always just use a third-party social media analytics tool to aggregate all of your best times to post in one place…

How to find your best times to post on Instagram

Instagram makes it easy to see when your followers are online in its native app, and you can also use a handy tool like Rival IQ to dig into your data. We’ll walk you through both options.

To find your best time to post using Instagram Insights, navigate to your profile page and then to the Insights tab. Find your Audience insights by selecting your Total Follower, and then scroll down to the bottom of your follower breakdown to find your most active times. Active time on Instagram denotes when your followers are logged in and liking, commenting, or saving your content.

Easily toggle between your best times and days to post using the selector in the bottom right. You can also switch between Insights that go back up to 90 days using the selector at the top for even more data.

If you want to go back further in time or are looking to compare your best times to post on social against your competitors, be sure to check out an app like Rival IQ.

Here you can see the same 30-day retrospective from Instagram’s native tools in a more digestible format. Our followers use Instagram pretty consistently throughout the week, but midday is definitely the right time to catch them with a post or video.

For even more information about the best time to post on Instagram, Rival IQ can help you make sense of how your posting activity correlates to engagement rate by day and time. Don’t miss the dotted grey line that compares your average activity and engagement rates by day and hour to that of your main competition. This competitive view comes in especially handy when trying to gain an edge over your competitors by helping you schedule your posts at times when your followers are active and engaged.

How to find the best times to post on Facebook

Facebook offers a 7-day view into when your followers are online to help brands and agencies figure out when to post on the platform. Here’s how to find it using native Facebook analytics.

Head to your brand’s Facebook page, and then select “Insights” from the navigation bar on the left. From there, select “Posts” in the left nav to check out the days and times your Facebook fans are online.

As you can see in the screenshot above, Rival IQ’s fans log into Facebook really consistently no matter what day of the week it is. Our best time of day to post is right around the noon hour, with engagement decreasing early in the morning and late at night.

Sadly, Facebook doesn’t offer competitive insights about the best time and day to post, so you’ll just have to experiment until you find what works best for your brand, or turn to a social media analytics tool like Rival IQ.

Like in the Post Times table in Rival IQ from the Instagram section up above, you can see your best times and days to post compared against your competitive landscape, which is represented by the grey dotted line. Don’t forget to hover for even more info, and to toggle the date range to go back further in time than Facebook’s 7-day limit in its native analytics.

How to find the best times to post on Twitter

Sadly, Twitter makes it really tough to access the best times to tweet natively (we’re pretty sure it requires a line-by-line Excel export, a map, and a compass). Thankfully, there’s Rival IQ.

Don’t forget to note when your competitors are tweeting to supercharge your Twitter activity.

Methodology

We studied over 1 million posts from more than 2,100 brands between January and December 2022 on Instagram, Facebook, TikTok, and Twitter to find the best time to post on social media for each channel. We studied the same group of brands from 14 diverse industries that we use in our Social Media Industry Benchmark Report.

Wrapping it up

We hope these heat maps give you a better understanding of the best times to post on social for Instagram, Facebook, TikTok, and Twitter for your industry and brand. We wish there was a one-size-fits-all answer, but ultimately the best thing you can do to ascertain when you should be posting on social is to experiment and track your results over time using native analytics or a social media analytics tool like Rival IQ.

Ready to find your best time to post? Sign up for a free 14-day trial in Rival IQ.

Happy posting and tweeting!