The Best Time to Post on Instagram in 2021

Remember the good ol’ times of chronological feed on Instagram? When all you had to do was find the right time of the day to post on Instagram and utilize it to the max and get a ton of engagement?

Well, those days are over. Now you have to wait and see if the gods controlling the moody Instagram algorithm would decide you’ve suffered enough. And reward you with your post showing up in your followers’ feed. 

This is especially tough on businesses trying to stay front of mind with their audience. The algorithm is more likely to show content from friends and family to users, and leave out the brand content, especially if it contains links that direct users away from the app. 

This is where it gets tricky. Businesses now need to work twice as hard to be able to succeed. First, they need to find the optimal posting time when their audience is on the app. And this also mustn’t overlap with the time most users are posting.

So how do you win the content timing battle? To get more people to follow you and engage with your content, you first have to make sure they’ve seen your posts. 

How do you determine the best time to post on Instagram in 2021? What’s the optimal posting time for your target audience? 

We’re breaking it all down in today’s article. 

Read on to find out when to post on Instagram to ensure maximum reach and engagement. 

How to determine the best time to post on Instagram 

If you want to get the super-precise data for your specific audience, the best route is the one less traveled. 

You should take the manual approach and do a thorough analysis. Only then would you be able to pinpoint exactly when to post on Instagram to ensure your target audience is up to date on your posts. 

Although time-consuming, this approach yields the most accurate results. You can craft a monthly content plan and schedule your posts over a range of times of the day, 7 days a week. Then, analyze your engagement to determine potential patterns in engagement spikes. Those are your best Instagram posting times. 

If you don’t have enough time or resources to conduct this analysis, don’t worry. 

There are experts out there who did the work for you. 

We’ll break down the two most extensive experiments on the subject to help you determine the best Instagram posting times. 

Overall best time to post on Instagram

Both Later and Sprout Social reached pretty much the same conclusions regarding the general best time to post on Instagram. 

Experts at the two social media management platforms analyzed their customer data in an attempt to answer a million-dollar question – When’s the best time to post on Instagram? 

The verdict is….

Wednesday at 11 am, and Friday between 10 and 11 am. 

Of course, we have to consider that these are average results gathered from analyzing millions of posts in different time zones worldwide from various sized accounts. So, be sure to take this with a grain of salt. 

However general, these findings also make the perfect sense when you think about it. 

As it turns out, mid-day and mid-week are when most users would interact with content on Instagram. This is precisely when most people would decide to take a break from everyday obligations and scroll for some escapism and entertainment on Instagram. 

Though probably not the most precise data for larger, business Instagram profiles, this could be super valuable for Instagram beginners. Suppose you’re an aspiring influencer or a business with a small following on Instagram. In that case, you can try and implement this posting strategy. It’s great to have something to start with, as you probably don’t have enough user data to analyze in the beginning. 

Later on, as you build your follower list, you can do more testing and see what specific times best work with your audience. 

And, if you need help on the follower front, you know who to turn to. Flock Social is your all-in-one solution to fast, organic, laser-targeted Instagram growth. Join our growing community of 9,000+ users that use Flock to accelerate their Instagram growth. Get started today and discover the fastest way to grow your community, increase your organic engagement, and boost conversions.

And for those of you still trying to figure out the best Instagram posting formula for your specific audience, be sure to read on. We’ve got more data to analyze. 

We’ll break down findings by day of the week and industry for you. You can make a more informed decision and craft the perfect posting schedule that fits your specific niche and audience. 

Best time to post on Instagram by day of the week

Sure, Wednesdays and Fridays are settled, but what about when to post on Instagram during the rest five days? 

Here’s the lowdown on the best Instagram posting times by day of the week according to Later’s research: 

• Mondays: 6 am, 10 am, and 10 pm EST
• Tuesdays: 2 am, 4 am, and 9 am EST 
• Wednesdays: 7 am, 8 am, and 11 pm EST 
• Thursdays: 9 am, 12 pm, and 7 pm EST
• Fridays: 5 am, 1 pm, and 3 pm EST
• Saturdays: 11 am, 7 pm, and 8 pm EST
• Sundays: 7 am, 8 am, and 4 pm EST

Sprout Social had similar findings:

• Mondays: 11 am – 2 pm within each time zone globally 
• Tuesdays: 10 am – 3 pm, and 7 pm for the super-high engagement 
• Wednesdays: 7 am – 4 pm – the highest engagement between 11 am – 2 pm
• Thursdays: 10 am – 2 pm, 6 – 7 pm
• Fridays: 9 am – 2 pm – engagement peaks at 9 am
• Saturdays: 9 am – 11 am
• Sundays: 8 am – 2 pm – usually a day with the lowest engagement 

Again, suppose we want some easy engagement wins from this data. In that case, we could say that you’ll probably get the most optimal results if you post on Instagram between 9 am and 4 pm Monday to Friday. 

If you want to get more intentional with your Instagram posting time, we’ve got more data to share. Next up, we’re breaking down the best time to post on Instagram by industry. 

Best time to post on Instagram by industry

For all of you really looking to amplify your Instagram efforts by consistently showing un in your audience’s feed, you should consider adding the best Instagram posting times by industry into the mix.

A beauty blogger’s audience isn’t necessarily active on Instagram at the same time as people who follow tech companies, for example. 

Read on to find out when to post on Instagram and grab the attention of your industry audience. 

Best times to post on Instagram for the tech industry

If you’re a tech company, here’s some info you’d want to mark into your posting schedule for more engagement on Instagram. 

Best time to post: 6 am and between 9 – 10 am on Wednesdays, between 7 am – 10 am on Fridays

Consistent engagement opportunities: between Tuesday evening to Wednesday afternoon, and Fridays between midnight to 10 pm

Worst time to post: Sundays

Best times to post on Instagram for the B2C industry

Take notes retailers, food shops, clothing boutiques, and all of you B2C folks. Here’s how you can get more granular about when to post on Instagram and make sure your audience engages. 

Best time to post: 3 pm on Wednesdays

Consistent engagement opportunities: between Tuesday and Friday from 11 am to 3 pm

Worst time to post: Sundays

Best times to post on Instagram for the healthcare industry

Here are the best times to post on Instagram and jump to the front of your audience’s mind as a healthcare business. 

Best time to post: 8 am on Tuesdays

Consistent engagement opportunities: varying depending on the specific niche

Worst time to post: Saturdays and Sundays

Best times to post on Instagram for the education industry 

Educational organizations will notice the peak engagement happening somewhat later in the day compared to most other industries. Here’s your guide to a posting plan if you want to catch your students at their most active time on Instagram.

Best time to post: 10 am on Fridays 

Consistent engagement opportunities: 9 am to 10 pm on Wednesdays, Fridays, and Saturdays

Worst time to post: Sundays

Best times to post on Instagram for non-profit

Non-profits can amplify their social media efforts with the strategic posting plan on Instagram. Read on to find out when’s the best (and worst) time to post on Instagram for non-profits. 

Best time to post: between 1 and 2 pm on Tuesdays, and 2 pm on Wednesdays

Consistent engagement opportunities: between 10 am to 4 pm Monday to Friday

Worst time to post: Sundays

Takeaway

Unfortunately, Instagram is not as easy as – post great content, and your audience will see it. There’s a lot of strategic thinking and planning that goes into reaching your goals through Instagram. 

Use our guide to craft a winning posting strategy on Instagram and stay top of mind with your audience.