Summary

  • Posting times is a crucial element for social media success and can affect the impact of social strategies with business goals.
  • The overall best times to post on social media are generally Tuesdays through Thursdays between 10 a.m. and 5 p.m., varying by platform.
  • Sprout’s data shows that for specific networks, Facebook and Instagram see high engagement throughout the business day, LinkedIn Company Pages during midmornings andTikTok from early to late evenings.
  • Sprout Social's Optimal Send Times and ViralPost® features use AI to analyze your audience's engagement patterns and determine the best posting times for your brand.
  • To effectively use the data, combine general insights with network-specific and industry-specific engagement times. Continually test and refine your posting schedule.

In social media, timing is everything. Whether you want to join a trend or cultural moment or make the most of your social campaigns, when to post is just as important as what to post. Posting your content at the right time can determine the success of your social campaigns or leave you struggling to align social strategies to business goals.

As social networks evolve to further engage audiences in new ways, you need to nail your social media game and stay on top of these changes. This guide will walk you through the latest insights on the optimal posting times for major networks like Facebook, Instagram, TikTok and YouTube. Once you understand how peak engagement periods affect your social strategy, you can tailor your efforts to sync with your audience’s habits.

We worked closely with Sprout’s Data Science team to uncover how users have been engaging with social media. We reviewed data from Sprout Social’s over 30,000 customers to understand when their content was most and least frequently engaged with, broken out by platform and industry.

Disclaimer

  • Data from Sprout Social include users from various plan types, industries and locations. All times are recorded globally (not by US Central Time). We recommend testing with your own accounts to find the most optimal send times.

If you’re looking to dive deeper into platform-specific optimal engagement times, including industry posting times, review our guides on the following:

We’ve also uncovered the best posting times on social media for international audiences:

Use the data from this article to help inform your publishing calendar. Still, the best way to identify your brand’s best times to post across each network is to start a free trial of Sprout Social and test our ViralPost® feature with your social profiles.

Start a free Sprout Social trial

Best times to post on social media

We analyzed nearly 2.7 billion engagements across 463,000 social profiles, including Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, Pinterest, TikTok, X (formerly Twitter) and YouTube. Unfortunately, we don’t have engagement data for Threads, yet. Our analysis uncovered some unique findings based on the data of our customers and their profile engagements.

The overall best times to post on social media are:

  • Mondays: 10 a.m.–7 p.m.
  • Tuesdays: 10 a.m.–5 p.m.
  • Wednesdays: 10 a.m.–5 p.m.
  • Thursdays: 10 a.m.–5 p.m.
  • Fridays: 10 a.m.–4 p.m.
  • Best day to post on social media: Tuesdays, Wednesdays, Thursdays
  • Worst day to post on social media: Saturdays, Sundays

 

When deciding which social media network to prioritize for your brand, it all starts with determining your goals, campaigns, content types and target audience. Each channel has its own benefits and use cases, and with data-driven insights you can confidently make the decision about what to post and where.

According to the 2025 Sprout Social Index™, social media is how consumers keep up with trends and cultural moments. Brands who understand their consumers and their behaviors on social media thrive and create authentic connections.

Comparison chart showing what social marketers should start and stop doing in 2025.

As we reviewed Optimal Send Times data for each social network, we noticed the highest engagement patterns are highly platform-specific.

Entertainment-focused networks see their highest engagement in the evening. For example, TikTok’s optimal times for engagement are almost exclusively in the evening, and YouTube also has strong evening slots.

On the other end of the spectrum, professional platforms like LinkedIn peak during the workday, with prime times in the morning and around lunch. Then, many major networks show broad engagement throughout the midday and afternoon. This is true for Instagram, Twitter and Facebook.

There’s more to posting on social media than this quick stat, though. Remember, each network is unique and sees varying engagement throughout the week and at different times. And when you separate industries on each network, engagement varies even more. Consider other variables before you schedule any posts, such as network, audience, algorithms, content quality and captions.

Best times to post on Facebook

The best times to post on Facebook are:

  • Mondays: 9 a.m.–6 p.m.
  • Tuesdays: 9 a.m.–6 p.m.
  • Wednesdays: 8 a.m.–6 p.m.
  • Thursdays: 8 a.m.–6 p.m
  • Fridays: 9–11 a.m. and 2–4 p.m.
  • Saturdays: 8 a.m.–6 p.m
  • Sundays: 9–11 a.m. and 3–6 p.m.
  • Best days to post on Facebook: Mondays through Fridays
  • Worst days to post on Facebook: Sundays

 

It’s true: Facebook is still the largest social media network in the world with 3.065 billion monthly active users. And our research has uncovered that 90% of consumers maintain a profile on Facebook. The impact Facebook has on social media for consumers and marketers is still ever present. Our latest data, however, reveals a major shift in user behavior. Instead of concentrated morning peaks, high engagement on Facebook now stretches across the entire workday.

The best times to post are now defined by a broad, reliable window from morning through late afternoon on most days of the week. Optimal send times for Facebook are consistently run from 8 or 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. on Mondays through Thursdays, and even on Saturdays. This suggests that users are integrating Facebook into their daily routines, checking in consistently throughout the day, not just at the start.

Heatmap showing when the best times to post on Facebook in 2025 for global engagement are by day of the week and time of day.

What does this mean for marketers? You have more flexibility to reach your audience during the week. Rather than focusing on a single golden hour, your content has the potential to perform well throughout the entire business day. However, keep an eye on engagement as the week closes out, since concentrated times on Friday, Saturday and Sunday tend to be shorter.

With a good Facebook marketing strategy, businesses connect with the right audiences, whether it’s to share product announcements or announce special deals. Remember, engagement is a combination of how often you post on social media, the content you post and when you post.

Best times to post on Instagram

The best times to post on Instagram are:

  • Mondays: 1–2 p.m. and 4–5 p.m.
  • Tuesdays: 11 a.m.–6 p.m.
  • Wednesdays: 11 a.m.–6 p.m. and 7–9 p.m.
  • Thursdays: 11 a.m.–6 p.m.
  • Fridays: 10 a.m.–5 p.m.
  • Saturdays: 10 a.m.–6 p.m.
  • Sundays: 4 p.m.
  • Best days to post on Instagram: Tuesdays through Thursdays
  • Worst days to post on Instagram: Saturdays

 

Our research found that most consumers maintain a Facebook profile, but not too far behind is Instagram at 82% of consumers. Like Facebook, 51% of network consumers use Instagram to keep up with cultural moments and trends. Participating in these conversations and knowing when trends are emerging is important–if your audience is there.

According to our latest data, the best days to post on Instagram are Tuesdays through Thursdays, which consistently show the highest engagement levels. The new peak times are generally from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. on these days. This broad window shows that users are highly active from late morning through the entire workday. To optimize your reach, we recommend scheduling Instagram posts these weekdays midmornings for optimal engagement. It’s wise to benchmark these times against your current metrics too.

Heatmap showing when the best times to post on Instagram for global engagement are by day of the week and time of day.

Instagram has grown a long way since its photo-only days. The app, which has 2 billion monthly active users, is a platform to share images, videos, Reels and live streams, just to name a few creative content types. Instagram lets brands and influencers collaborate and partner seamlessly, and it continues to evolve its ecommerce solutions for better shopping experiences.

To be successful on Instagram, brands need to balance posting high-quality content, consistently, and engaging and entertaining their audiences. Understanding these foundational efforts can help guide your Instagram marketing strategy.

Best times to post on LinkedIn

The best times to post on LinkedIn are:

  • Mondays: 11 a.m.–noon
  • Tuesdays: 8 a.m.–2 p.m.
  • Wednesdays: 8 a.m. and noon
  • Thursdays: 8 a.m. and noon
  • Fridays: 7 a.m.–2 p.m.
  • Saturday: 7 –10 a.m.
  • Sundays: 6–8 a.m.
  • Best days to post on LinkedIn Company Pages: Tuesdays through Thursdays
  • Worst days to post on LinkedIn Company Pages: Saturdays and Sundays

 

Unsurprising for this professional-focused social platform, LinkedIn engagement times are consistent with general business hours. High engagement hours are more concentrated to midday on weekdays. Businesses are more likely to succeed in their LinkedIn marketing during these times when users are more active on the platform.

Our analysis reveals distinct engagement patterns on these peak days of posting on LinkedIn. Wednesdays and Thursdays show two strategic windows for posting: one at the beginning of the day around 8 a.m. and another during the lunch hour at noon. Tuesdays and Fridays offer broader and sustained windows of high engagement, from usually 7 a.m. to 2 p.m. Weekends see the lightest engagement, making them the least effective days for posting on LinkedIn.

Heatmap showing when the best times to post on LinkedIn in 2025 for global engagement are by day of the week and time of day.

Businesses on LinkedIn are finding new ways to generate leads, find co-marketing partners, and attract talent, so it makes sense that posting and engagement match with the business hours. Understanding how to reach a wider audience through thoughtful content planning, scheduling and advocacy differentiates your LinkedIn strategy from the next business.

Best times to post on Pinterest

The best times to post on Pinterest are:

  • Mondays: 10 a.m. and 1 p.m.
  • Tuesdays: 10 a.m. and noon
  • Wednesdays: 10 a.m.
  • Thursdays: 10 a.m.
  • Fridays: 7 a.m. and 10 a.m.
  • Saturday: 7 a.m.
  • Sundays: 7 p.m.
  • Best days to post on Pinterest: Tuesdays and Wednesdays
  • Worst days to post on Pinterest: Saturdays and Sundays

 

Our latest data reveals a clear and consistent pattern of engagement, replacing the sporadic hours we’ve seen in the past. The best days to post on Pinterest are weekdays, with the highest engagement on both days peaking at 10 a.m. This indicates a reliable habit of users browsing the platform in the late morning. Activity on the weekends drops significantly and shows very little engagement throughout the day.

Heatmap showing when the best times to post on Pinterest for global engagement are by day of the week and time of day.

The long-term value of Pinterest lies in its search-driven, evergreen nature, and you can give your content a powerful initial boost by aligning your publishing schedule with these peak hours. Prioritize pinning your high-quality and keyword-optimized content during this 10 a.m. weekday window to maximize its initial discovery and momentum. Build a social media calendar for your Pinterest content, without worrying about posting times.

Best Times to Post on TikTok

The best times to post on TikTok are:

  • Mondays: 6–9 p.m.
  • Tuesdays: 5–9 p.m.
  • Wednesdays: 5–9 p.m.
  • Thursdays: 5–9 p.m.
  • Fridays: 3–10 p.m.
  • Saturdays: 7–9 p.m.
  • Sundays: 8 p.m.
  • Best days to post on TikTok: Monday through Thursdays
  • Worst days to post on TikTok: Sundays

 

Beyond viral and cultural trends, TikTok’s advanced algorithms and precise targeting capabilities have made it an indispensable platform for data-driven marketers. With over 2.65 billion monthly visits globally, understanding optimal posting times on TikTok is essential for maximizing reach for any brand on the app.

Our latest data reveals a significant shift in user behavior, with peak engagement now firmly concentrated in the evening hours. The best days to post on TikTok are Monday through Thursday with powerful windows of high engagement, typically from 5 p.m. to 9 p.m. This indicates users are most active after the traditional workday.

Heatmap showing when the best times to post on TikTok in 2025 for global engagement are by day of the week and time of day.

With TikTok trends changing quickly, it’s important to understand trend lifecycles and how they influence consumer behavior and expectations. Once you understand how trends evolve and how consumers use the network to keep up with cultural moments, you can create a proactive TikTok marketing strategy rather than participate reactively.

Best Times to Post on X (Twitter)

The best times to post on X (Twitter) are:

  • Mondays: 9 a.m.–8 p.m.
  • Tuesdays: 11 a.m.–5 p.m.
  • Wednesdays: 10 a.m.–5 p.m.
  • Thursdays: 10 a.m.–5 p.m.
  • Fridays: 10 a.m.–5 p.m.
  • Saturdays: 11 a.m.–2 p.m.
  • Sundays: 2–6 p.m.
  • Best days to post on X (Twitter): Tuesdays through Thursdays
  • Worst days to post on X (Twitter): Saturdays and Sundays

 

X (formerly known as Twitter) has consistently been the platform for up-to-the-minute conversations and breaking news. Our most recent data confirms engagement that matches the last few years that focus closely with the traditional workday. Users are actively engaging with X during business hours.

The best days to post are now Tuesdays through Thursdays, with the highest engagement occurring consistently between 10 a.m. and 5 p.m. Conversely, Saturdays and Sundays see the least engagement overall. Adapt your strategy to focus content scheduling during these core business hours to capture when your audience is most active.

Heatmap showing when the best times to post on Twitter (X) in 2025 for global engagement are by day of the week and time of day.

While our global data shows a clear trend, your specific audience may have different habits. Use this data as a starting point and analyze your own X analytics to pinpoint the exact hours that drive the most engagement for your brand. Keep in mind that brands use X as part of their customer service strategy, as an alternative to traditional customer support options.

Best Times to Post on YouTube

The best times to post on YouTube are:

  • Mondays: Noon and 3–8 p.m.
  • Tuesdays: 6 p.m.
  • Wednesdays: 7 p.m.
  • Thursdays: 1 p.m.
  • Fridays: Noon–5 p.m.
  • Saturdays: 11 a.m. – 4 p.m.
  • Sundays: 6 p.m.
  • Best days to post on YouTube: Tuesdays and Wednesdays
  • Worst days to post on YouTube: Sundays

 

For marketers using YouTube, consistent scheduling is key to maximizing audience reach and engagement. Understanding optimal posting times can significantly impact video performance, and our latest data reveals more varied and strategic windows.

Our analysis shows that the best days to post on YouTube are Tuesdays and Wednesdays, with engagement concentrated in the evening hours of 6 p.m. and 7 p.m., respectively. This points to a strong pattern of viewers settling in to watch content after their day is done.

Heatmap showing YouTube Global Engagement times for 2025 by day and time of day.

Other days show different patterns. Fridays and Saturdays offer broader windows of sustained engagement throughout the afternoon, while days like Thursdays show a distinct midday peak.

While viewing happens all week, it’s worth noting that Sunday tends to see the lowest overall engagement. Maintaining a regular YouTube posting schedule that aligns with these high-engagement windows, whether it’s a primetime evening slot or a broad afternoon break to help you build a loyal audience and maximize your video’s reach.

How to find your own best times to post on social media

Social marketers can plan content more effectively when they’re armed with data. As social media continues to evolve, brands and consumers will need to evolve with it. Staying aware of new content formats and trends might help you reach your audience in unexpected ways and build more authentic connections.

You may be ready to post content at these provided best engagement times as part of your strategy, but consider pairing this data with your own social media data analysis. You may discover that your specific target audience is active near the peak times we’ve outlined or slightly different hours. Remember industry, network and audience as major factors.

A social media management tool like Sprout Social can help you drill into your analytics and develop tailored findings for your brand accounts across all networks, holistically and individually. Gain competitive insights by comparing your performance to your competitors, to find new opportunities for engagement.

How to find your own best times to post with Sprout Social

Sprout’s patented ViralPost® technology uses the same data we used to look at all our customer accounts to find the best time to post, based on your account. ViralPost® algorithmically determines the results for our Optimal Send Times feature, a publishing option available in Professional and Advanced plans. Our proprietary machine learning feature isn’t new, but we’re constantly learning and improving our product to help brands surface insights faster. Our goal is to help people who use our product work more effectively.

With features like post tagging and cross-network reporting, you can separate different elements like post author or types of content, and drill down into how your posting time influenced your social success.

Step 1. Start your free Sprout Social trial: Sign up for a free trial of Sprout Social with your business email and connect to your social media profiles. This will allow the platform to gather data from your accounts and personalize the Optimal Send Times feature to your specific audience engagement patterns.

Step 2. Compose your message and select networks. Open the Compose window in Sprout to craft your social media post. Select the network or networks where you want to publish.

Step 3. Schedule with Optimal Send Times: Next to “When to post,” choose “Specific Days and Times” to reveal the Optimal Send Times feature. Select one of the suggested times, calculated based on when your audience is most likely to engage. The stars suggest a time that’s likely for more engagement.

Sprout Social's Compose box with the "Use Optimal Times" dropdown selected with several times provided as options of when to schedule social media posts for the highest engagement.

Step 4. Finalize and publish: Complete your post with a compelling message, visuals and relevant hashtags. Schedule it to publish at your chosen Optimal Send Time.

The specific times offered through Optimal Send Times are based on when your audience engages the most using your publishing history.

ViralPost® also continuously refines these suggestions, saving you time and effort from repeated analysis and allowing you more time to craft great content.

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How Sprout gathered the data

We understand that these reports can raise questions about just where the data is coming from. That’s why we want to be clear about the data we pulled and how we got here.

Sprout Social’s Data Science team gathers this information by analyzing nearly 2.7 billion social media engagements across 463,000 social profiles across Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, Instagram, Pinterest, TikTok and YouTube over a 4-month period (May 14 – September 3, 2025). We synthesize this information in collaboration with our Data Science team to provide you with this article.

Unfortunately, we don’t have engagement data for Threads, yet.

Disclaimer

 Data from Sprout Social include users from various plan types, industries and locations. All times are recorded globally (not by US Central Time). This means you should be able to publish with the times provided in any time zone and see positive engagement results. Number of engagements represents total engagements a brand received on the specific channel during that hour time frame. Industry-specific data includes mid- to high-level engagement times. We recommend testing with your own accounts to find the most optimal send times. 

Take the guesswork out of posting times with Sprout

The best times to post on social media vary by platform and industry, but generally, weekdays between 10 a.m. and 5 p.m. see the highest engagement. Each network sees different levels of engagement throughout the week and at different times. This all depends on the target audiences or demographic using each network. When you separate industries on each network, engagement varies even more.

The data we provide is directional to put you on the right track. The best way to identify your brand’s best times to post across each network is to start a free 30-day trial of Sprout Social or request a personalized demo and try it for yourself.

Looking for more posting resources?

We create a collection of over a dozen resources to help with your social media posting strategies.

Best times to post FAQs

What is the best time to post on Monday?

Overall, our research shows the best time to post on Monday is spread throughout the day, with a strong window from late morning through the afternoon for many platforms, and a second peak in the evening for others.

  • Best time to post on Monday on Facebook: 9 a.m.–6 p.m.
  • Best time to post on Monday on Instagram: 1–2 p.m. and 4–5 p.m.
  • Best time to post on Monday on LinkedIn: 11 a.m.–noon
  • Best time to post on Monday on Pinterest: 10 a.m. and 1 p.m.
  • Best time to post on Monday on TikTok: 6–9 p.m.
  • Best time to post on Monday on X (Twitter): 9 a.m.–8 p.m.
  • Best time to post on Monday on YouTube: Noon and 3–8 p.m.
What is the best time to post on Tuesday?

Overall, our research shows the best time to post on Tuesday is from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m., a period of high engagement across multiple networks.

  • Best time to post on Tuesday on Facebook: 9 a.m.–6 p.m.
  • Best time to post on Tuesday on Instagram: 11 a.m.–6 p.m.
  • Best time to post on Tuesday on LinkedIn: 8 a.m.–2 p.m.
  • Best time to post on Tuesday on Pinterest: 10 a.m. and noon
  • Best time to post on Tuesday on TikTok: 5–9 p.m.
  • Best time to post on Tuesday on X (Twitter): 11 a.m.–5 p.m.
  • Best time to post on Tuesday on YouTube: 6 p.m.
What is the best time to post on Wednesday?

Overall, our research shows the best time to post on Wednesday is from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m., with an additional peak in the evening for entertainment-focused platforms.

  • Best time to post on Wednesday on Facebook: 8 a.m.–6 p.m.
  • Best time to post on Wednesday on Instagram: 11 a.m.–6 p.m. and 7–9 p.m.
  • Best time to post on Wednesday on LinkedIn: 8 a.m. and noon
  • Best time to post on Wednesday on Pinterest: 10 a.m.
  • Best time to post on Wednesday on TikTok: 5–9 p.m.
  • Best time to post on Wednesday on X (Twitter): 10 a.m.–5 p.m.
  • Best time to post on Wednesday on YouTube: 7 p.m.
What is the best time to post on Thursday?

Overall, our research shows the best time to post on Thursday is from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m., a consistently strong window for engagement.

  • Best time to post on Thursday on Facebook: 8 a.m.–6 p.m.
  • Best time to post on Thursday on Instagram: 11 a.m.–6 p.m.
  • Best time to post on Thursday on LinkedIn: 8 a.m. and noon
  • Best time to post on Thursday on Pinterest: 10 a.m.
  • Best time to post on Thursday on TikTok: 5–9 p.m.
  • Best time to post on Thursday on X (Twitter): 10 a.m.–5 p.m.
  • Best time to post on Thursday on YouTube: 1 p.m.
What is the best time to post on Friday?

Overall, our research shows the best time to post on Friday is from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. as users begin to wind down for the weekend.

  • Best time to post on Friday on Facebook: 9–11 a.m. and 2–4 p.m.
  • Best time to post on Friday on Instagram: 10 a.m.–5 p.m.
  • Best time to post on Friday on LinkedIn: 7 a.m.–2 p.m.
  • Best time to post on Friday on Pinterest: 7 a.m. and 10 a.m.
  • Best time to post on Friday on TikTok: 3–10 p.m.
  • Best time to post on Friday on X (Twitter): 10 a.m.–5 p.m.
  • Best time to post on Friday on YouTube: Noon–5 p.m.
What is the best time to post on Saturday?

Overall, our research shows the best time to post on Saturday is from late morning to early afternoon, particularly between 11 a.m. and 4 p.m.

  • Best time to post on Saturday on Facebook: 8 a.m.–6 p.m.
  • Best time to post on Saturday on Instagram: 10 a.m.–6 p.m.
  • Best time to post on Saturday on LinkedIn: 7–10 a.m.
  • Best time to post on Saturday on Pinterest: 7 a.m.
  • Best time to post on Saturday on TikTok: 7–9 p.m.
  • Best time to post on Saturday on X (Twitter): 11 a.m.–2 p.m.
  • Best time to post on Saturday on YouTube: 11 a.m. – 4 p.m.
What is the best time to post on Sunday?

Overall, our research shows the best time to post on Sunday is in the late afternoon and evening, generally between 3 p.m. and 8 p.m., as people prepare for the week ahead.

  • Best time to post on Sunday on Facebook: 9–11 a.m. and 3–6 p.m.
  • Best time to post on Sunday on Instagram: 4 p.m.
  • Best time to post on Sunday on LinkedIn: 6–8 a.m.
  • Best time to post on Sunday on Pinterest: 7 p.m.
  • Best time to post on Sunday on TikTok: 8 p.m.
  • Best time to post on Sunday on X (Twitter): 2–6 p.m.
  • Best time to post on Sunday on YouTube: 6 p.m.