Best time to post on Instagram in 2026, by day and timezone
What the published studies say about the best time to post on Instagram, day by day, converted to your timezone, with every source named.
On this page
The best time to post on Instagram depends on your audience, and the published studies don't fully agree. Below is each study's answer by day, where they overlap, and a free checker that puts those times on your clock. If you'd rather not plan timing at all, Postdom makes your Instagram posts from your website and schedules the ones you approve in your time zone.
This page is compiled from published studies, not from Postdom's own data. Every source is named at the bottom with its date and sample.
Free best time to post on Instagram checker
The studies give times in your audience's local time. Tell the checker where your audience is, and it puts the times on your clock. It's free and runs in your browser.
Best time to post on Instagram by day
Each study's best times, in your audience's local time. The first column is any hour that sits inside two or more studies' windows for that day.
- Monday
Where they agree: 3–4pm, 6–8pm (Sprout Social, Hootsuite, Buffer)
Sprout Social: 2–4pm
Hootsuite: 3–9pm
Buffer: 7pm, 6pm, 8pm
Later: 5am, 11pm
- Tuesday
Where they agree: 3–7pm (Sprout Social, Hootsuite, Buffer)
Sprout Social: 1–7pm
Hootsuite: 5–8am and 3–7pm
Buffer: 7pm, 3pm, 5pm
Later: 5am
- Wednesday
Where they agree: 12pm, 5–6pm (Sprout Social, Hootsuite, Buffer)
Sprout Social: 12–9pm, and 11pm
Hootsuite: 5pm
Buffer: 12pm, 6pm, 8am
Later: 3am
- Thursday
Where they agree: No hour two studies share
Sprout Social: 12–2pm
Hootsuite: 4–5pm
Buffer: 9am, 8am, 7am
Later: 4–5am
- Friday
Where they agree: No hour two studies share
Sprout Social: No significant peak
Hootsuite: 4pm
Buffer: 10pm, 9pm, 6am
Later: 3–5am
- Saturday
Where they agree: No hour two studies share
Sprout Social: Lowest engagement of the week
Hootsuite: 11am and 5pm
Buffer: 9pm, 10pm, 8pm
Later: 5am
- Sunday
Where they agree: No hour two studies share
Sprout Social: One of the worst days
Hootsuite: 12–3pm
Buffer: 9pm, 10pm, 8pm
Later: 12am, 5am, 11pm
| Day | Where they agree | Sprout Social | Hootsuite | Buffer | Later |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Monday | 3–4pm, 6–8pm Sprout Social, Hootsuite, Buffer | 2–4pm | 3–9pm | 7pm, 6pm, 8pm | 5am, 11pm |
| Tuesday | 3–7pm Sprout Social, Hootsuite, Buffer | 1–7pm | 5–8am and 3–7pm | 7pm, 3pm, 5pm | 5am |
| Wednesday | 12pm, 5–6pm Sprout Social, Hootsuite, Buffer | 12–9pm, and 11pm | 5pm | 12pm, 6pm, 8am | 3am |
| Thursday | No hour two studies share | 12–2pm | 4–5pm | 9am, 8am, 7am | 4–5am |
| Friday | No hour two studies share | No significant peak | 4pm | 10pm, 9pm, 6am | 3–5am |
| Saturday | No hour two studies share | Lowest engagement of the week | 11am and 5pm | 9pm, 10pm, 8pm | 5am |
| Sunday | No hour two studies share | One of the worst days | 12–3pm | 9pm, 10pm, 8pm | 12am, 5am, 11pm |
Best day to post on Instagram
Best: Sprout Social: Tuesday and Wednesday. Hootsuite: Monday, Tuesday and Thursday. Buffer: Wednesday. Later: Monday.
Worst: Saturday is the weakest day for Sprout Social, Buffer and Later. Buffer adds Friday.
Where they disagree: Later's 2024 data puts the best times at 3 to 5am, which no other study comes near. Thursday, Friday and the weekend have no hour two studies share.
It depends on your audience
- These are patterns across other accounts' posts. Your followers' habits can be different, and your own results are the better guide once you have a few weeks of them.
- The times are in your audience's local time. If most of your followers are in another country, use the checker above.
- A good post at an average time beats an average post at the best time. Timing moves results at the margin.
- Test it: post at two of the windows above for a few weeks each, and keep the one your own numbers favour.
Post on Instagram at the right time with Postdom
Postdom turns your website into ready-to-post videos, slideshows and single images in your brand. It posts the ones you approve to Instagram, including on the Free plan. Approved posts are scheduled for you in your time zone, with quiet hours overnight, and you can change any post's time.
Postdom's Free plan has no card: 1 post a month made for you from your website, posted to 2 connected accounts of your choice. Free posts keep the Postdom watermark. See pricing for paid plans, and how scheduling works in Postdom.
Method and sources
We read each study's own page and copied its times as stated. Where a study gives no time for a day, the table says what it says instead. We don't average, and we don't fill gaps. Postdom will switch this page to its own numbers once it has enough published posts with a week of results.
Sprout Social: Best times to post on Instagram
Published or updated 31 March 2026. Read 5 October 2026.
Sample: About 2 billion engagements across about 307,000 social profiles, 27 Nov 2025 to 27 Feb 2026.
Times are in: Your audience's local time.
The best times to post on Instagram are Mondays 2–4 p.m., Tuesdays 1–7 p.m., Wednesdays 12–9 p.m. and Thursdays 12–2 p.m.
Hootsuite: Best time to post on Instagram
Published or updated 14 July 2026. Read 5 October 2026.
Sample: Over 1 million social posts from businesses of all sizes, with Critical Truth. The page gives no date range.
Times are in: Localized across the 118 countries the data came from.
Instagram engagement peaks during early mornings and early evenings — especially early in the week
Buffer: When is the best time to post on Instagram
Published or updated 23 September 2026. Read 5 October 2026.
Sample: 9.6 million Instagram posts sent through Buffer. We could not confirm the date range on the page.
Times are in: Your audience's local time.
Note: Buffer ranks three slots a day, best first.
Wednesday is the best day to post on Instagram
Later: Best time to post on Instagram
Published or updated 21 April 2026. Read 5 October 2026.
Sample: Over 6 million Instagram feed posts, January to October 2024.
Times are in: Your audience's local time.
Note: The page was updated in 2026; the data is from 2024.
The overall best time to post on Instagram is at 5 AM
Best time to post on Instagram: questions
What is the best time to post on Instagram?
Tuesday 3 to 7pm in your audience's local time is the one window three of the four big studies agree on. Midday Wednesday is close behind, and weekends are weak in three of them.
What is the best day to post on Instagram?
Sprout Social: Tuesday and Wednesday. Hootsuite: Monday, Tuesday and Thursday. Buffer: Wednesday. Later: Monday. Saturday is the weakest day for Sprout Social, Buffer and Later. Buffer adds Friday.
What timezone are these times in?
Your audience's local time: the studies adjusted their times to the local time of the people seeing the posts. If your audience is where you are, use them as they are; if it's somewhere else, convert them with the widget on this page.
Why do the studies disagree?
They measure different accounts, over different months, with different definitions of engagement. Later's 2024 data puts the best times at 3 to 5am, which no other study comes near. Thursday, Friday and the weekend have no hour two studies share.
Is this Postdom's own data?
No. It's compiled from Sprout Social, Hootsuite, Buffer and Later. Postdom will publish its own numbers once at least 10,000 posts published through Postdom have a week of results.
Best times on other platforms
More free tools for planning your posts are on the free social media tools page.