Uncovering the Best Time to Post Reels on Instagram

Posting Reels on Instagram can help you connect with your target audience, convert them into leads, and increase sales. A recent study shows that Reels have an average engagement rate of 1.23% and an average reach rate of 30.81%.

However, the feat of organically boosting your visibility and engagement relies on finding the best time to post on Instagram.

So, at what time is your target audience most active on Instagram? 

If you're experiencing this dilemma, you're on the right page. We'll look at what various studies suggest about the best time to post Reels on Instagram and why posting at the right time matters.

Let's get started.

What Are the Best Times to Post Reels on Instagram?

Finding the right time to post on social media to engage your audience can be tough as there's no one-size-fits-all posting time. However, several studies have a consensus on the best times to post Reels on Instagram. I’ll show you what they say.

1. The Best Times to Post Reels on Instagram According to My Findings

My Instagram account has a diverse following and a good reach. Digging deep into my Instagram Analytics, here’s what I found:

The best time to post Reels on Instagram is during lunch breaks (between 11 a.m. to 1 p.m.).

Here's a deeper look at the best time to post Reels on each day of the week:

• The best time to post Instagram Reels on Monday: Mondays start with blues and the worry of the new week doesn’t allow many people to check their social accounts early in the morning. However, many people utilize the lunch break hour (11:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m.) to stay on the go with what's popping up on their feeds.
• The best times to post on Reels on Tuesday: The contentment of finishing off Mondays could be the reason why many people check out their IG accounts early in the morning on Tuesdays. The best time to post Reels on Tuesdays is between 8:00 a.m. and 9:00 a.m.
• The optimal time to post Reels on Wednesday and Thursday: Like Mondays, many users are active on their accounts during the lunch break hour.
• The best time to post Instagram Reels on Friday: Instagram users show a different engagement pattern on Fridays. Most people are active at mid of the day, possibly because they are looking for a new thing to try over the weekend. The ideal time to post on Friday is between 3:00 p.m. and 4:00 p.m.

2. The Best Time to Post Reels on Instagram According to Industry Experts   

Several agencies conducted studies to establish the best times to post on Reels. Below are some of their findings:

CoSchedule’s Findings About the Best Times to Post on IG

According to CoSchedule, the best time to post Instagram Reels is before work, during lunch breaks, and after work (9 a.m., 12 p.m., and 7 p.m.).

The best days to post Reels are Tuesday, Wednesday, and Friday. Whereas, Monday, Saturday, and Sunday are the worst days to post on Instagram. 

The same study lists the following as the best time to post Reels on Instagram for engagement:

• 8:00 a.m.
• 9:00 a.m.
• 11:01 a.m.
• 11:58 a.m.
• 12:01 p.m.
• 7:59 p.m.
• 8:00 p.m.

HubSpot’s Findings About the Best Times to Post on Instagram

According to HubSpot, Thursday is the best day to post on Instagram (5 a.m., 11 a.m., 3 p.m., and 4 p.m.).

The best time to post Reels on Instagram on Tuesday, Wednesday, and Friday is 5:00 a.m. On Monday, the best time to post Reels is 11 a.m. (when people are getting ready for lunch) and 5 p.m. (when they are exhausted).

Other optimal times to post Reels are:

• 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. on Tuesdays
• 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. on Wednesdays
• 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Fridays
• 11 a.m. on Saturdays
• 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. on Sundays

Influencer Marketing Hub’s Findings About the Best Times to Post on IG

A 2022 study by Influencer Marketing Hub suggests that the best times to post Reels are:

• 6 a.m., 10 a.m., and 10 p.m. on Mondays
• 2 a.m., 4 a.m., and 9 a.m. on Tuesdays
• 7 a.m., 8 a.m., and 11 p.m. on Wednesdays
• 12 a.m., 9 a.m., and 7 p.m. on Thursdays
• 5 a.m., 1 p.m., and 3 p.m. on Fridays
• 11 a.m., 7 p.m., and 8 p.m. on Saturdays
• 7 a.m., 8 a.m., and 4 p.m. on Sundays

Hootsuite’s Findings on the Best Times to Post Reels on Instagram

A Hootsuite study indicates that the best time to post Reels on Instagram is from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. on weekdays. Here’s a further breakdown of their findings:

• The best time to post Reels on Monday is 12 p.m. when most of your audience is on lunch break.
• 8 a.m. – 10 a.m. is the best time to post Reels on Instagram on Tuesday with 9 a.m. being the peak hour.
• Wednesday, 11 a.m. is the overall best time to post Instagram Reels.
• The best time to post Reels on Thursday is 12 p.m.
• On Friday, the best time to post Reels is between 7 a.m. and 2 p.m.
• Saturday, 9 a.m. is the best time to post Reels.
• 12 p.m. to 8 p.m. is the best time to post Instagram Reels with 7 p.m. being the peak hour.

While these studies point in the same direction, it is advisable to conduct your own research to find a strategy that works for your specific audience.

Why Does Posting at the Right Time Matter?

Instagram has approximately 2.38 billion active monthly users, making it a good marketing hub for many brands. And to reach your target audience, you need to post at the right time.

Here's why: 

1. Staying Competitive

Instagram is a highly competitive platform. So, posting Reels when your target audience is active helps you reach a larger percentage of the audience. This boosts your brand's organic reach, engagement, conversions, and sales, helping you stay competitive. 

2. Determining Visibility

Instagram’s algorithm favors recency when determining the visibility of posts and Reels. The algorithm also considers relevancy and user activity when ranking content on the feed. Posting content that aligns with these algorithms and at the right time increases its visibility and reach.

3. Catering for Different Time Zones

For businesses whose audience is spread across different timing zones, timing your posts ensures your audience has equal chances of seeing your content when they're active.

4. Boosting Engagement

Posting when your target audience is online significantly increases your chances of receiving likes, comments, and shares. This boosts your visibility and improves conversion and sales rates.

5. Satisfying Your Audience 

After identifying the unique patterns of your audience, you'll need to satisfy their taste and preferences. Posting at times when they're active every day keeps them engaged and helps you build brand loyalty. 

Tips for Finding the Best Times to Post on Instagram Reels

Creating relevant Reels isn't enough to achieve a higher ROI. The key is posting your content when the target audience is active on Instagram.

But how do you find the best time to post Reels on Instagram for your account? Here are a few tips to help you know when to post Instagram Reels for your audience:

1. Analyze the Posting Times of Your Top-Performing Reels

If you're wondering when to post Reels on Instagram, start by reviewing your top-performing Reels.When did you post the Reels? Did they reach your target audience? You can use Instagram analytics tools to monitor the performance of your content.

Analyzing the performance of your past content gives you their average engagement or impression rate. This helps you identify the time when your target audience is active on Instagram, what type of content impresses them, and the leads you can convert to sales.

You can repurpose your top-performing content and post it as a throwback. This will give your audience nostalgia while saving you time and resources that you’d use to create entirely new content.

And the hashtag, “#ThrowbackThursdays,” seem to perform well for me and most marketers and influencers.You can find more amazing hashtags to boost your content’s reach using tools like Inflact. It also helps you schedule your posts in advance.

2. Know the Location of Your Audience

Recent Reels statistics show that the biggest Reels-watching audience (230.25 million users) is in India, followed by the U.S. with 159.75 million users, and then Brazil with 119.45 million users.

Knowing the geolocation of your target audience gives you insights about the peak hours to post Reels depending on their time zones.

To get more accurate data on where your audience is, consider changing your Instagram account to a business account. This way, you will receive insights from Instagram on where your followers are located.

For example, my IG account Analytics shows that most of my audience resides in the United States, followed by those living in India.

Similarly, you can check your audience demographics using Instagram Analytics.

For more detailed insights into which states in the U.S. are the audience from, you can check out the analytics in the Meta Business Suite. Here is a screenshot from mine:

3. Post When Most of Your Audience is Active 

After knowing the geolocation of your audience, the next assignment is to find out when they are active on Instagram. This means you have to analyze their demographic (age, gender, education, financial status, and occupation) to get insights on when they are mostly active and scroll through their feed section.

For example, if you're targeting working professionals, the best times to post Reels on Instagram are early in the morning, during breaks, and in the evenings after work.

But if you're targeting stay-at-home moms, the best times to post Reels would be during afternoon hours.

If your audience is spread across the globe, posting within their specific time zones can be tedious. Creating a content calendar or using social media marketing tools will help you post for people in different time zones every day.

4. Post Consistently

Once the Instagram algorithm makes your content visible on the feed of your audience, post consistently. By posting Reels at the same time, 2-3 times a week, you connect with the audience that forms a habit of seeing your content at that particular time.

Consistency is the best way to create an authentic relationship with your followers. The more the audience interacts with your content, the higher the credibility and trust of your account.

5. Analyze Your Competitors’ Posting Times

Another way to know when to post Reels on Instagram is to research the times your competitors publish their Reels. If their content is reaching and engaging a larger audience, find out the metrics they are using.

You can also consider posting a few minutes before or after the hour mark when your competitors post their Reels. Considering the recency factor of Instagram algorithm, your Reels may stand a chance of popping up in the users’ feeds way before those from your competitors.

6. Consider the Best Posting Times for Your Industry

Different industries have different target audiences and therefore, different best times to post Reels on Instagram. According to CoSchedule’s findings shared earlier, the best times to post on Reels per industry are:

Industry	The Best Times to Post Reels on Instagram
B2C businesses	8 a.m., 1 p.m., and 9 p.m.
B2B businesses	Between 12 p.m. and 1 p.m., 5 p.m. and 6 p.m., and 8 p.m. and 9 p.m.
Media sector	9 a.m., 12 p.m., and 3 p.m.
Higher education industry	From 5 p.m. to 6 p.m.
Healthcare industry	10 a.m. and 2 p.m.
Software industry	11 a.m., 1 p.m., and 5 p.m.

To get higher reach and engagement, always ensure you are posting when your industry’s target audience is active on Instagram.

7. Consider Your Audience’s  Work Breaks on Each Day of the Week

It's a no-brainer that engagement and activity on Instagram vary depending on the day of the week.

For example, on Mondays, the rush to start a new week may prevent people from logging into their Instagram accounts in the morning.

On the other hand, the first thing many people do after waking up from Tuesdays to Fridays is to check out their Instagram feeds. This makes 5 a.m. the best time to post Reels on Instagram during these days.

The likelihood of people checking their social accounts during work breaks is also high. So, posting Reels during lunch break hours boosts your chances of reaching more people and leading them to your landing pages.

8. Test Different Posting Times for Your Instagram Reels

While the tips above provide insightful data that bring you closer to the best time to post Reels, conducting your account research is the deal breaker.

Carry out trial and error (split tests) experimentation throughout the week and mark the engagement your Reels get at different times and days.

After collecting enough data on when your target audience is most active, take that as your best time to post on Instagram Reels.

Start Posting Reels on Instagram at Optimal Times

Posting Reels whenever you feel like will not get you a greater ROI. The best way to Instagram success is to study your target audience and post when they’re most active on Instagram.

From conducting your account’s audience research to analyzing competitors’ posting times, you’ll find the best time to post Reels on your account.Take advantage of social media scheduling and analytics tools like Inflact and Sprout Social to schedule posts at optimal times, boost engagement, gain more followers, and convert more leads into sales.