Uploading engaging content at the right time is an unspoken practice essential to becoming a successful influencer on Instagram. However, to attain this status, you must know about your target audience to estimate the best time to post a reel on Instagram.
In most countries, there are unanimous active hours among Instagram users; for instance, after waking hours and after work hours is when there is most traffic on Instagram. But there are other important factors to consider, like time zones, that can give influencers a hard time associating a specific hour of the day to upload content that caters to all. Therefore, we bring you a thorough guide that will help you select the best time to post a reel on Instagram.
Use Followers’ Location to Find the Best Time to Post a Reel on Instagram
Figuring out where your audience belongs can open up a goldmine of views for your content. For instance, The US has over 130 million active Instagram users, India has 100 million, and Brazil comes third in the list of countries with the most Instagram users, with a whopping 91 million accounts. Not to forget, millions of other users who may or may not watch your videos are scattered across the world.
Thus, your first line of duty is to check your viewership demographics, as this will majorly influence the type of content you should create to grab their interest. Secondly, your pique audience’s location will decide the time zone in which you must upload to get more views.
For example, If 4 PM on a Monday is considered a good time to catch heavy online traffic, it doesn’t mean you should upload at 4 PM in your time zone. Instead, research where most of your audience belongs and upload at 4 PM in their time zones.
Convert Instagram Account Into a Professional Account To View Insights
First, convert your Instagram account into a creator or business account on the app. This is the only way you’ll get access to Instagram Insights, which will show the viewer’s demographics, like which country they belong to and the content they liked the most.
- Open your app and go to its menu option.
- Select Settings.
- Then go to the Accounts Settings.
- Scroll down to find the option to switch to a professional account.
- Hit continue, and select which kind of account you have, Creator or Business. Choose other suitable options and tap on done.
Your account will transform into a professional Instagram account. Now you can check out the account’s Insights inside the professional dashboard available in your profile section.
Best Time to Post a Reel on Instagram is When Users are Most Active
Once you review your demographics and Instagram Insights, you can research the pique hours of your audience on Instagram. Consider it logically about what people do in a day to day life.
- On average, individuals with 9-5 job, who makes up a significant percentage of global Instagram users, wake up in the morning to check their Instagram. While they don’t spend hours here, it is common for people to devote a couple of minutes to updating their feeds and watching newly uploaded Instagram reels at this time of the day. The first active time slot is around 7–8 AM.
- Lunch breaks are another hour of the day people prefer to spend on social media to catch up with entertainment briefly without getting swept up in hours of content. This makes 11 AM –1 PM a good uploading time to stay on top of their feeds.
- The golden hours on a weekday are time after work and before bed. This is when most people scroll through their feed for hours to come, as their no deadline or pending chore for them to complete. Thus, 5–6 PM and 9–11 PM are good times to catch your viewers’ attention.
- While all these data work well for a weekday, on weekends and on other holidays, the trend will differ. Subsequently, working from the home audience is not bounded by the traditional 9-5 time limitation to surf on the internet; thus, the golden hours to post can be drastically different for their engagement.
- Meanwhile, another critical criterion to consider is age, whether your content appeals more to college-going and working users or is dedicated to high schoolers. Thus, we suggest you review how your target audience interacts with your content.
Best Time to Post a Reel on Instagram
As we discussed earlier, the best time to post a reel on Instagram depends on your followers’ time zone, activities, age, etc. However, on average, the Instagram algorithm tends to promote the most recent posts to the active users, which is why ensuring that most of your followers are active at the time of uploading is crucial to growing engagement.
So now, let’s break down the days and posting times:
- Monday: 6 AM, 11 AM, 1 PM-2 PM.
- Tuesday: 8–10 AM, 1 PM- 2 PM.
- Wednesday: 9–11 AM.
- Thursday: 11 AM-2 PM, 7 PM.
- Friday: 11 AM-12 PM, 2–4 PM.
- Saturday: 8–11 AM.
- Sunday: 6–8 PM.
Note: These are mainly EST time zone-driven data on the best time to post a reel on Instagram.
Hours to Avoid Uploading Content on Instagram
Times To Avoid uploading content on Instagram is mainly when it has a good chance of going unnoticed by the general audience. Like before, you must keep an average user’s routine in mind. Most people don’t use Instagram at uncanny hours, like 12 AM to 6 AM on a weekday.
Furthermore, on weekends engagement trend is unpredictable.
- Saturday is a decent time to post because users can turn in late and have more free time.
- However, for brands that sell consumer goods, Sundays are ideal to see high engagement.
So it also depends on what kind of content you present, whether as a creator or for business purposes. But if you’re a weekly uploader, try avoiding Sunday.
Check Competitors’ Content to Estimate Best Time to Post a Reel on Instagram
Another helpful tip to assess the best time to post a reel on Instagram is by reviewing one’s competition to build a strategy. For example, if you witness a similar reel to yours doing well at 5 PM, you can use this knowledge to your advantage.
Using Different Tools
You can try specific tools like Later or Brandwatch to calculate the best time to post a reel on Instagram. Or Facebook Creator Studio if you regularly upload on Facebook as well, as these tools will help you schedule the post and showcase your analytics in one platform.
Scheduling the reel helps users upload their content at the appropriate time when they may or may not be available to post their reels manually. This can be achieved by content management platforms that can either upload your content automatically or give you a reminder when it is time.
How Often Should You Post?
This question has a reasonably subjective answer for different users because it mainly depends on your content. If you’re selling products or post lifestyle hacks or tips etc., posting a couple of times a week in 30-60 second reels is a good amount. However, if you post entertainment-related content, you should post regularly so as not to ghost your followers.
Although don’t post reels for the sake of consistency, make sure whatever you share on your account is on par with the quality of your other posts. If you are worried, you may run out of ideas, then post by planning ahead of time. Create enough content to sustain your account for a month to give you enough time to think of new ideas for future posts.
Lastly, you can always readjust your schedule after a while to find the best time to post a reel on Instagram for you.
Related Posts:
- How to Upload High Quality Reels on Instagram
- How to Fix Instagram Reel Not Showing
- How to Add Full Reel on Instagram Story
Conclusion
Instagram has a broad reach across our planet, as people worldwide spend hours on the app scrolling through reels every day. Thus, if one learns to crack the algorithm, they can too become a viral Instagram sensation in no time. Remember, the quality of your content matters, but so do other factors that beginners constantly overlook; consistency and the best time to post a reel on Instagram.
