Best Times to Post on Social Media, 2027 Report
What 11.4 million posts from 63k brand profiles show about the best days and times to post on Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, TikTok, YouTube, X and Threads
Posts from November 1, 2025 to October 31, 2026. Published .
- Data window
- Nov 1, 2025 to Oct 31, 2026
- Sample
- 11.4M posts, 63k brand profiles
- Coverage
- 7 networks
- Published
- November 2026
On this page
Key findings
Vista Social data from 11.4 million brand posts, November 2025 to October 2026. Every comparison is against the same brand's other posts from the same quarter of the year.
+10%
On all 7 networks we measured, brand posts published on Sunday get more impressions than the same brand's posts on other days, from 3% more on TikTok to 10% more on YouTube, even though brands post far less on Sunday than on weekdays.
- 02
4
Sunday's lead holds all year: in each of the 4 quarters from November 2025 to October 2026, brand posts published on Sunday got more impressions than the same brand's posts on other days, on all 7 networks we measured.
- 03
+7%
Brand posts on LinkedIn published on Sunday get 7% more impressions than the same brand's LinkedIn posts on other days, yet brands publish 2.6 to 2.8 times as many LinkedIn posts on each weekday as on Sunday.
- 04
14 to 22%
Brands publish only 14 to 22% of their posts on Saturday and Sunday, depending on the network, though the weekend is 29% of the week.
- 05
7 of 7
Brand posts published from 9am to 12pm, the busiest time of day for brand posts, get fewer impressions than the same brand's posts at other times on all 7 networks we measured.
- 06
+12%
Brand posts published from 9pm to 12am get 12% more impressions on Threads than the same brand's posts at other times, 9% more on X and 5% more on Instagram.
- 07
+13%
The best single time slot for impressions on Facebook is Sunday from 6pm to 9pm, when brand posts get 13% more impressions than the same brand's posts at other times.
- 08
3%
More impressions don't bring more engagements: on every network, brand posts on any day of the week get within 3% of the engagements of the same brand's posts on other days.
- 09
+4%
Brand posts on Instagram published from 6pm to 9pm get 4% more engagements than the same brand's posts at other times, the largest time-of-day gain in engagements on any network we measured.
About this report
Most advice on when to post comes from a single account's experiments or from what marketers say they do. This report measures 11.4 million posts that 63k brand profiles, managed from 13k Vista Social accounts, published on seven networks over a full year, how many impressions each post got and how many engagements.
The data covers every post on those profiles, whether it was published through Vista Social (6.6 million posts) or directly on the network (4.9 million). Each post's time is the local time for the brand, in the time zone set for the profile in Vista Social.
Every number compares a brand with itself. For each brand, we compared the impressions and engagements of its posts on a given day, or at a given time, with its own posts at other days or times in the same quarter of the year, then took the median across brands. So "+7%" means the typical brand gets 7% more impressions with posts at that time than with its own posts at other times. Big brands don't outweigh small ones, a brand that posts a lot at one time doesn't skew the result, and a busy season doesn't get mixed up with a busy day.
No figure describes a single customer. A number is published only when it rests on at least 50 brand profiles managed from at least 10 different Vista Social accounts.
Terms used in this report
- Impressions: the number of times the network showed a post, as each network reports it. One person who sees a post twice counts twice, so impressions are not the number of people reached.
- Engagements: the interactions a post gets, such as reactions, comments, shares and saves.
- Engagement rate: a post's engagements divided by its impressions.
- Lift: how much more or less a brand gets (impressions, engagements or engagement rate) on posts at a given day or time than on its own posts at other days or times, as a percent.
- Time band: one of seven parts of the day: 12am to 6am, 6am to 9am, 9am to 12pm, 12pm to 3pm, 3pm to 6pm, 6pm to 9pm and 9pm to 12am.
- Brand profile: one account on one network, such as a company's Instagram account or its LinkedIn page.
Brand posts published on each day, compared with Sunday. 2.7x means brands publish 2.7 times as many posts on that day as on a Sunday.
Table 1.1 Posts by day, compared with Sunday
| Day | TikTok | YouTube | X | Threads | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Monday | 1.4x | 1.7x | 2.6x | 1.4x | 1.4x | 1.7x | 1.4x |
| Tuesday | 1.5x | 1.8x | 2.7x | 1.5x | 1.4x | 1.8x | 1.5x |
| Wednesday | 1.5x | 1.9x | 2.8x | 1.5x | 1.4x | 1.9x | 1.6x |
| Thursday | 1.5x | 1.8x | 2.7x | 1.5x | 1.4x | 1.8x | 1.5x |
| Friday | 1.5x | 1.8x | 2.6x | 1.5x | 1.4x | 1.8x | 1.5x |
| Saturday | 1.1x | 1.1x | 1.2x | 1.1x | 0.9x | 1.1x | 1.1x |
| Sunday | 1.0x | 1.0x | 1.0x | 1.0x | 1.0x | 1.0x | 1.0x |
Source: Vista Social Research, posts from Nov 1, 2025 to Oct 31, 2026.
Brands publish 1.4 to 1.9 times as many posts on a weekday as on a Sunday, and on LinkedIn up to 2.8 times as many, on Wednesday. Saturday is barely busier than Sunday, and on YouTube slightly quieter. Over the week, LinkedIn brands publish 14% of their posts on the weekend, against 22% on Facebook, TikTok, YouTube and Threads.
Share of each network's brand posts published in each time band, in the brand's local time.
Table 1.2 Share of posts by time of day
| Time | TikTok | YouTube | X | Threads | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 12am to 6am | 8% | 3% | 4% | 4% | 6% | 5% | 6% |
| 6am to 9am | 11% | 11% | 15% | 10% | 10% | 10% | 10% |
| 9am to 12pm | 22% | 26% | 30% | 21% | 21% | 23% | 22% |
| 12pm to 3pm | 19% | 21% | 22% | 20% | 19% | 21% | 21% |
| 3pm to 6pm | 18% | 19% | 17% | 21% | 20% | 20% | 18% |
| 6pm to 9pm | 14% | 14% | 9% | 17% | 16% | 13% | 15% |
| 9pm to 12am | 9% | 5% | 3% | 7% | 7% | 7% | 8% |
Source: Vista Social Research, posts from Nov 1, 2025 to Oct 31, 2026.
Brand posting follows the working day. From 9am to 3pm, six hours, brands publish 40 to 52% of their posts, and the most on LinkedIn. After 9pm, brands publish 3 to 9% of their posts.
Figure 1
Impressions and engagements by day
| Day | Impressions | Engagements | Posts compared with Sunday |
|---|---|---|---|
| Monday | +2% | 0% | 1.4x |
| Tuesday | 0% | -1% | 1.5x |
| Wednesday | -2% | -2% | 1.5x |
| Thursday | -1% | -1% | 1.5x |
| Friday | 0% | -1% | 1.5x |
| Saturday | +5% | 0% | 1.1x |
| Sunday | +7% | 0% | 1.0x |
| Day | Impressions | Engagements | Posts compared with Sunday |
|---|---|---|---|
| Monday | 0% | 0% | 1.7x |
| Tuesday | -1% | -1% | 1.8x |
| Wednesday | -2% | -1% | 1.9x |
| Thursday | -1% | -1% | 1.8x |
| Friday | 0% | -1% | 1.8x |
| Saturday | +5% | -1% | 1.1x |
| Sunday | +4% | 0% | 1.0x |
| Day | Impressions | Engagements | Posts compared with Sunday |
|---|---|---|---|
| Monday | +5% | 0% | 2.6x |
| Tuesday | +1% | 0% | 2.7x |
| Wednesday | 0% | -1% | 2.8x |
| Thursday | -1% | -1% | 2.7x |
| Friday | -3% | -2% | 2.6x |
| Saturday | 0% | -1% | 1.2x |
| Sunday | +7% | +2% | 1.0x |
| Day | Impressions | Engagements | Posts compared with Sunday |
|---|---|---|---|
| Monday | +1% | 0% | 1.4x |
| Tuesday | -1% | -2% | 1.5x |
| Wednesday | 0% | -1% | 1.5x |
| Thursday | -1% | -1% | 1.5x |
| Friday | 0% | -1% | 1.5x |
| Saturday | +2% | 0% | 1.1x |
| Sunday | +3% | +2% | 1.0x |
| Day | Impressions | Engagements | Posts compared with Sunday |
|---|---|---|---|
| Monday | -3% | -3% | 1.4x |
| Tuesday | -4% | -2% | 1.4x |
| Wednesday | -5% | -3% | 1.4x |
| Thursday | 0% | 0% | 1.4x |
| Friday | +3% | +1% | 1.4x |
| Saturday | +10% | +3% | 0.9x |
| Sunday | +10% | 0% | 1.0x |
| Day | Impressions | Engagements | Posts compared with Sunday |
|---|---|---|---|
| Monday | +2% | 0% | 1.7x |
| Tuesday | 0% | 0% | 1.8x |
| Wednesday | -1% | -1% | 1.9x |
| Thursday | -2% | -2% | 1.8x |
| Friday | -2% | -3% | 1.8x |
| Saturday | +6% | 0% | 1.1x |
| Sunday | +9% | +3% | 1.0x |
| Day | Impressions | Engagements | Posts compared with Sunday |
|---|---|---|---|
| Monday | 0% | 0% | 1.4x |
| Tuesday | 0% | -1% | 1.5x |
| Wednesday | 0% | -2% | 1.6x |
| Thursday | 0% | -2% | 1.5x |
| Friday | 0% | -1% | 1.5x |
| Saturday | +3% | 0% | 1.1x |
| Sunday | +7% | +1% | 1.0x |
Impressions per post on each day, against the same brand's posts on other days.
Table 2.1 Impressions by day
| Day | TikTok | YouTube | X | Threads | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Monday | +2% | 0% | +5% | +1% | -3% | +2% | 0% |
| Tuesday | 0% | -1% | +1% | -1% | -4% | 0% | 0% |
| Wednesday | -2% | -2% | 0% | 0% | -5% | -1% | 0% |
| Thursday | -1% | -1% | -1% | -1% | 0% | -2% | 0% |
| Friday | 0% | 0% | -3% | 0% | +3% | -2% | 0% |
| Saturday | +5% | +5% | 0% | +2% | +10% | +6% | +3% |
| Sunday | +7% | +4% | +7% | +3% | +10% | +9% | +7% |
Source: Vista Social Research, posts from Nov 1, 2025 to Oct 31, 2026.
The weekend is the best time to post for impressions on all seven networks. Sunday is the best day on Facebook, LinkedIn, TikTok, X and Threads. On Instagram, Saturday (+5%) is just ahead of Sunday (+4%), and on YouTube the two are even (+10%). The Sunday gain is largest on YouTube (+10%) and X (+9%), and smallest on TikTok (+3%). On LinkedIn, Saturday is flat, Monday is the best weekday (+5%) and Friday the worst (-3%).
The weekend effect holds whether brands post through Vista Social or directly on the network. Sunday impressions for posts published through Vista Social and posts published natively: Facebook +7% and +6%, Instagram +4% and +5%, LinkedIn +8% and +9%, TikTok +3% and +3%, YouTube +12% and +13%, X +9% and +9%, Threads +6% and +10%. So it is not a side effect of scheduling.
It also holds all year. In each quarter from November 2025 to October 2026, Sunday posts got more impressions than the same brand's posts on other days on every network, from +2% (LinkedIn, February to April) to +14% (X, February to April, and YouTube, August to October). On most networks the gain was largest from August to October.
The busiest day for brand posts is not the best day for each post. Brands publish 1.4 to 1.9 times as many posts on each weekday as on Sunday, and up to 2.8 times as many on LinkedIn (Table 1.1), most likely because that is when their teams work. People keep using social networks on the weekend. So on Sunday, each brand post likely competes with fewer other brand posts for a place in the feed, and the networks show it more often. Per post, Sunday wins. In total, a brand still gets more impressions on a weekday, because it publishes far more posts then.
Engagements per post on each day, against the same brand's posts on other days.
Table 2.2 Engagements by day
| Day | TikTok | YouTube | X | Threads | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Monday | 0% | 0% | 0% | 0% | -3% | 0% | 0% |
| Tuesday | -1% | -1% | 0% | -2% | -2% | 0% | -1% |
| Wednesday | -2% | -1% | -1% | -1% | -3% | -1% | -2% |
| Thursday | -1% | -1% | -1% | -1% | 0% | -2% | -2% |
| Friday | -1% | -1% | -2% | -1% | +1% | -3% | -1% |
| Saturday | 0% | -1% | -1% | 0% | +3% | 0% | 0% |
| Sunday | 0% | 0% | +2% | +2% | 0% | +3% | +1% |
Source: Vista Social Research, posts from Nov 1, 2025 to Oct 31, 2026.
For engagements, the day of the week barely matters. Every day lands within 3% of the same brand's posts on other days, on every network. Sunday is slightly ahead on X (+3%), LinkedIn (+2%) and TikTok (+2%), and Saturday on YouTube (+3%).
Engagement rate of posts on each day, against the same brand's posts on other days.
Table 2.3 Engagement rate by day
| Day | TikTok | YouTube | X | Threads | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Monday | -2% | 0% | -4% | 0% | 0% | -1% | 0% |
| Tuesday | 0% | +1% | -1% | 0% | +2% | -1% | 0% |
| Wednesday | 0% | +2% | +1% | +1% | +2% | -1% | -1% |
| Thursday | +1% | +1% | +1% | 0% | +2% | +1% | 0% |
| Friday | 0% | -1% | 0% | 0% | -1% | 0% | -1% |
| Saturday | -2% | -3% | 0% | -1% | -3% | 0% | 0% |
| Sunday | -2% | -3% | -3% | 0% | -6% | -1% | -4% |
Source: Vista Social Research, posts from Nov 1, 2025 to Oct 31, 2026.
Sunday posts get a slightly lower engagement rate than the same brand's other posts on most networks (down 2 to 6%), while they get more impressions. The two roughly cancel out: a Sunday post gets about the same number of engagements as the same brand's posts on other days. The likely reason: with fewer brand posts competing for attention on the weekend, the networks show each post more often, including to people who are less likely to react. So Sunday is the best day to be seen, not a better day to get responses.
Figure 2
Impressions and engagements by time of day
| Time | Impressions | Engagements | Share of posts |
|---|---|---|---|
| 12am to 6am | -5% | -3% | 8% |
| 6am to 9am | -5% | -4% | 11% |
| 9am to 12pm | -3% | -2% | 22% |
| 12pm to 3pm | +1% | 0% | 19% |
| 3pm to 6pm | +4% | +1% | 18% |
| 6pm to 9pm | +5% | +1% | 14% |
| 9pm to 12am | +2% | 0% | 9% |
| Time | Impressions | Engagements | Share of posts |
|---|---|---|---|
| 12am to 6am | -3% | -5% | 3% |
| 6am to 9am | -5% | -5% | 11% |
| 9am to 12pm | -4% | -4% | 26% |
| 12pm to 3pm | +1% | 0% | 21% |
| 3pm to 6pm | +3% | +2% | 19% |
| 6pm to 9pm | +4% | +4% | 14% |
| 9pm to 12am | +5% | +2% | 5% |
| Time | Impressions | Engagements | Share of posts |
|---|---|---|---|
| 12am to 6am | -6% | -3% | 4% |
| 6am to 9am | 0% | -1% | 15% |
| 9am to 12pm | -1% | -2% | 30% |
| 12pm to 3pm | +1% | 0% | 22% |
| 3pm to 6pm | +1% | 0% | 17% |
| 6pm to 9pm | 0% | -1% | 9% |
| 9pm to 12am | 0% | -1% | 3% |
| Time | Impressions | Engagements | Share of posts |
|---|---|---|---|
| 12am to 6am | 0% | -5% | 4% |
| 6am to 9am | +1% | -2% | 10% |
| 9am to 12pm | -1% | -2% | 21% |
| 12pm to 3pm | 0% | -1% | 20% |
| 3pm to 6pm | 0% | +1% | 21% |
| 6pm to 9pm | +1% | +1% | 17% |
| 9pm to 12am | +3% | +1% | 7% |
| Time | Impressions | Engagements | Share of posts |
|---|---|---|---|
| 12am to 6am | -7% | -8% | 6% |
| 6am to 9am | +2% | +1% | 10% |
| 9am to 12pm | -2% | -2% | 21% |
| 12pm to 3pm | -2% | -1% | 19% |
| 3pm to 6pm | +3% | +1% | 20% |
| 6pm to 9pm | +3% | +1% | 16% |
| 9pm to 12am | +4% | -2% | 7% |
| Time | Impressions | Engagements | Share of posts |
|---|---|---|---|
| 12am to 6am | 0% | 0% | 5% |
| 6am to 9am | -1% | -1% | 10% |
| 9am to 12pm | -4% | -1% | 23% |
| 12pm to 3pm | 0% | -1% | 21% |
| 3pm to 6pm | +1% | 0% | 20% |
| 6pm to 9pm | +5% | +1% | 13% |
| 9pm to 12am | +9% | +2% | 7% |
| Time | Impressions | Engagements | Share of posts |
|---|---|---|---|
| 12am to 6am | 0% | -2% | 6% |
| 6am to 9am | 0% | -2% | 10% |
| 9am to 12pm | -2% | -1% | 22% |
| 12pm to 3pm | 0% | -1% | 21% |
| 3pm to 6pm | 0% | -1% | 18% |
| 6pm to 9pm | 0% | 0% | 15% |
| 9pm to 12am | +12% | +2% | 8% |
Impressions per post in each time band, against the same brand's posts at other times.
Table 3.1 Impressions by time of day
| Time | TikTok | YouTube | X | Threads | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 12am to 6am | -5% | -3% | -6% | 0% | -7% | 0% | 0% |
| 6am to 9am | -5% | -5% | 0% | +1% | +2% | -1% | 0% |
| 9am to 12pm | -3% | -4% | -1% | -1% | -2% | -4% | -2% |
| 12pm to 3pm | +1% | +1% | +1% | 0% | -2% | 0% | 0% |
| 3pm to 6pm | +4% | +3% | +1% | 0% | +3% | +1% | 0% |
| 6pm to 9pm | +5% | +4% | 0% | +1% | +3% | +5% | 0% |
| 9pm to 12am | +2% | +5% | 0% | +3% | +4% | +9% | +12% |
Source: Vista Social Research, posts from Nov 1, 2025 to Oct 31, 2026.
Time of day matters less than the day, but it has a clear shape. Afternoon and evening posts get a few more impressions, and morning posts a few less:
- Facebook and Instagram: the evening is best: 6pm to 9pm on Facebook (+5%) and 9pm to 12am on Instagram (+5%, with 6pm to 9pm at +4%). Posts before 12pm get 3 to 5% fewer impressions.
- YouTube, X and Threads: the best time is 9pm to 12am: +4% on YouTube, +9% on X and +12% on Threads.
- LinkedIn and TikTok: time of day barely matters. Every band from 6am to 12am lands within 3% of the same brand's posts at other times. On LinkedIn, avoid 12am to 6am (-6%).
- 9am to 12pm, the busiest time of day for brand posts, gets fewer impressions than the same brand's posts at other times on all seven networks.
Engagements per post in each time band, against the same brand's posts at other times.
Table 3.2 Engagements by time of day
| Time | TikTok | YouTube | X | Threads | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 12am to 6am | -3% | -5% | -3% | -5% | -8% | 0% | -2% |
| 6am to 9am | -4% | -5% | -1% | -2% | +1% | -1% | -2% |
| 9am to 12pm | -2% | -4% | -2% | -2% | -2% | -1% | -1% |
| 12pm to 3pm | 0% | 0% | 0% | -1% | -1% | -1% | -1% |
| 3pm to 6pm | +1% | +2% | 0% | +1% | +1% | 0% | -1% |
| 6pm to 9pm | +1% | +4% | -1% | +1% | +1% | +1% | 0% |
| 9pm to 12am | 0% | +2% | -1% | +1% | -2% | +2% | +2% |
Source: Vista Social Research, posts from Nov 1, 2025 to Oct 31, 2026.
Time of day matters more for engagements than the day does, mostly because of what to avoid. Overnight posts (12am to 6am) get 5 to 8% fewer engagements on Instagram, TikTok and YouTube, and Instagram posts before 12pm get 4 to 5% fewer. The best time for engagements is the evening on Instagram (+4% from 6pm to 9pm). On the other networks, every band from 12pm to 12am lands within 2%.
Table 3.3 Engagement rate by time of day
| Time | TikTok | YouTube | X | Threads | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 12am to 6am | -1% | -3% | -1% | -3% | -5% | +3% | -9% |
| 6am to 9am | -1% | -1% | -2% | 0% | +2% | 0% | -4% |
| 9am to 12pm | 0% | -1% | -2% | -1% | 0% | +1% | -1% |
| 12pm to 3pm | -2% | -1% | -1% | -1% | -1% | -2% | 0% |
| 3pm to 6pm | -2% | +1% | 0% | +1% | -1% | -1% | -1% |
| 6pm to 9pm | 0% | +1% | 0% | +1% | -2% | -3% | 0% |
| 9pm to 12am | 0% | -1% | 0% | 0% | -6% | -1% | -6% |
Source: Vista Social Research, posts from Nov 1, 2025 to Oct 31, 2026.
From 6am to 9pm, engagement rate stays within about 4% of the same brand's posts at other times on every network. Overnight posts (12am to 6am) lose engagement rate on six of the seven networks, by up to 9% on Threads; X is the exception (+3%). On YouTube and Threads, late evening posts (9pm to 12am) get more impressions but a lower engagement rate (-6%), the same pattern as Sunday.
Figure 3
Posts, impressions, engagements and engagement rate by day and time
Impressions
| Day | 12am to 6am | 6am to 9am | 9am to 12pm | 12pm to 3pm | 3pm to 6pm | 6pm to 9pm | 9pm to 12am |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Monday | <1%0%-1%-2% | 2%-1%-3%0% | 4%-2%-4%-1% | 3%0%-2%0% | 3%+1%+1%+2% | 2%+3%+2%+2% | 1%0%-1%+2% |
| Tuesday | <1%-3%-5%-2% | 2%-2%-3%0% | 4%-4%-4%+1% | 3%-1%-2%+1% | 3%-1%0%+2% | 2%0%+1%+4% | 1%0%+1%+4% |
| Wednesday | 1%-6%-7%-2% | 2%-5%-4%+1% | 4%-3%-3%+2% | 4%-3%-3%+1% | 3%-2%-1%+2% | 2%0%0%+3% | 1%0%0%+1% |
| Thursday | 1%-3%-3%0% | 2%-4%-4%0% | 4%-4%-4%+1% | 3%-3%-3%+1% | 3%0%0%+2% | 2%+1%+1%+3% | 1%+1%-1%+2% |
| Friday | 1%-1%-2%-1% | 2%-3%-5%-2% | 4%0%-3%0% | 4%0%-2%-2% | 3%+3%0%0% | 2%+4%0%0% | 1%+6%+1%-1% |
| Saturday | <1%0%-3%+1% | 1%+1%-2%-1% | 3%+2%-3%-2% | 2%+5%0%-3% | 2%+5%0%-3% | 2%+9%+1%-3% | 1%+11%+7%+1% |
| Sunday | <1%+7%+6%-1% | 1%+1%-3%-3% | 2%+2%-3%-3% | 2%+5%-1%-3% | 2%+7%+1%-3% | 2%+6%+2%-1% | 1%+3%0%-2% |
Instagram, posts from November 1, 2025 to October 31, 2026, in the time zone set for each profile in Vista Social. Impressions per post against the same brand's posts at other days and times, median across brands. Source: Vista Social Research.
When brands post
| Day | 12am to 6am | 6am to 9am | 9am to 12pm | 12pm to 3pm | 3pm to 6pm | 6pm to 9pm | 9pm to 12am |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Monday | <1%0%-1%-2% | 2%-1%-3%0% | 4%-2%-4%-1% | 3%0%-2%0% | 3%+1%+1%+2% | 2%+3%+2%+2% | 1%0%-1%+2% |
| Tuesday | <1%-3%-5%-2% | 2%-2%-3%0% | 4%-4%-4%+1% | 3%-1%-2%+1% | 3%-1%0%+2% | 2%0%+1%+4% | 1%0%+1%+4% |
| Wednesday | 1%-6%-7%-2% | 2%-5%-4%+1% | 4%-3%-3%+2% | 4%-3%-3%+1% | 3%-2%-1%+2% | 2%0%0%+3% | 1%0%0%+1% |
| Thursday | 1%-3%-3%0% | 2%-4%-4%0% | 4%-4%-4%+1% | 3%-3%-3%+1% | 3%0%0%+2% | 2%+1%+1%+3% | 1%+1%-1%+2% |
| Friday | 1%-1%-2%-1% | 2%-3%-5%-2% | 4%0%-3%0% | 4%0%-2%-2% | 3%+3%0%0% | 2%+4%0%0% | 1%+6%+1%-1% |
| Saturday | <1%0%-3%+1% | 1%+1%-2%-1% | 3%+2%-3%-2% | 2%+5%0%-3% | 2%+5%0%-3% | 2%+9%+1%-3% | 1%+11%+7%+1% |
| Sunday | <1%+7%+6%-1% | 1%+1%-3%-3% | 2%+2%-3%-3% | 2%+5%-1%-3% | 2%+7%+1%-3% | 2%+6%+2%-1% | 1%+3%0%-2% |
Instagram, posts from November 1, 2025 to October 31, 2026, in the time zone set for each profile in Vista Social. Share of the network's brand posts published in each day and time band. Source: Vista Social Research.
| Day | 12am to 6am | 6am to 9am | 9am to 12pm | 12pm to 3pm | 3pm to 6pm | 6pm to 9pm | 9pm to 12am |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Monday | 1%0%-3%-2% | 2%0%-3%-3% | 3%0%-2%-2% | 3%+2%-1%-1% | 3%+5%0%-1% | 2%+6%0%-1% | 1%+4%0%+1% |
| Tuesday | 1%-6%-4%0% | 2%-6%-6%-2% | 3%-3%-3%0% | 3%0%-2%0% | 3%+1%-1%0% | 2%+2%0%+1% | 1%0%0%+3% |
| Wednesday | 1%-8%-5%+1% | 2%-8%-5%0% | 4%-3%-3%+1% | 3%-1%-2%0% | 3%0%-2%+1% | 2%0%-2%-1% | 1%0%-1%+2% |
| Thursday | 1%-10%-5%+1% | 2%-7%-5%0% | 3%-3%-2%+1% | 3%-1%-2%0% | 3%+1%-1%0% | 2%+1%-1%+2% | 1%0%0%+3% |
| Friday | 1%-7%-4%+1% | 2%-5%-5%-1% | 3%-2%-3%+1% | 3%0%-2%0% | 3%+3%-1%-1% | 2%+2%-1%-1% | 1%+3%0%+3% |
| Saturday | 1%-4%-4%0% | 1%0%-3%-1% | 2%+1%-2%-2% | 2%+5%-1%-2% | 2%+8%0%-3% | 2%+9%+1%-1% | 1%+11%+2%-1% |
| Sunday | 1%0%-2%-2% | 1%0%-2%-1% | 2%+1%-1%+2% | 2%+10%0%-4% | 2%+13%+2%-4% | 2%+13%+3%-4% | 1%+10%+2%0% |
| Day | 12am to 6am | 6am to 9am | 9am to 12pm | 12pm to 3pm | 3pm to 6pm | 6pm to 9pm | 9pm to 12am |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Monday | <1%0%-1%-2% | 2%-1%-3%0% | 4%-2%-4%-1% | 3%0%-2%0% | 3%+1%+1%+2% | 2%+3%+2%+2% | 1%0%-1%+2% |
| Tuesday | <1%-3%-5%-2% | 2%-2%-3%0% | 4%-4%-4%+1% | 3%-1%-2%+1% | 3%-1%0%+2% | 2%0%+1%+4% | 1%0%+1%+4% |
| Wednesday | 1%-6%-7%-2% | 2%-5%-4%+1% | 4%-3%-3%+2% | 4%-3%-3%+1% | 3%-2%-1%+2% | 2%0%0%+3% | 1%0%0%+1% |
| Thursday | 1%-3%-3%0% | 2%-4%-4%0% | 4%-4%-4%+1% | 3%-3%-3%+1% | 3%0%0%+2% | 2%+1%+1%+3% | 1%+1%-1%+2% |
| Friday | 1%-1%-2%-1% | 2%-3%-5%-2% | 4%0%-3%0% | 4%0%-2%-2% | 3%+3%0%0% | 2%+4%0%0% | 1%+6%+1%-1% |
| Saturday | <1%0%-3%+1% | 1%+1%-2%-1% | 3%+2%-3%-2% | 2%+5%0%-3% | 2%+5%0%-3% | 2%+9%+1%-3% | 1%+11%+7%+1% |
| Sunday | <1%+7%+6%-1% | 1%+1%-3%-3% | 2%+2%-3%-3% | 2%+5%-1%-3% | 2%+7%+1%-3% | 2%+6%+2%-1% | 1%+3%0%-2% |
| Day | 12am to 6am | 6am to 9am | 9am to 12pm | 12pm to 3pm | 3pm to 6pm | 6pm to 9pm | 9pm to 12am |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Monday | 1%0%-1%+5% | 3%+6%-1%-5% | 5%+3%-3%-5% | 4%+5%-1%-3% | 3%+7%0%-3% | 1%+2%0%0% | <1%0%-4%+2% |
| Tuesday | 1%0%-4%-2% | 3%+2%-1%-2% | 5%0%-2%-1% | 4%0%-3%-3% | 3%0%-3%0% | 1%0%-2%0% | 1%-2%-1%+3% |
| Wednesday | 1%-6%-6%-5% | 3%-2%-2%+1% | 5%0%-3%0% | 4%0%-2%0% | 3%0%-1%0% | 2%0%-2%0% | 1%0%-3%+2% |
| Thursday | 1%-8%-7%0% | 3%-1%-3%+1% | 5%-2%-2%+1% | 4%0%-2%0% | 3%0%-2%-1% | 1%-3%-4%0% | <1%+7%0%0% |
| Friday | 1%-7%-6%+2% | 3%-4%-3%0% | 5%-3%-3%0% | 4%-4%-4%-1% | 3%-4%-4%+2% | 1%-4%-4%0% | <1%-5%-1%+4% |
| Saturday | <1%-5%-3%+3% | 1%-2%+1%+2% | 2%-2%-2%+2% | 2%-2%-1%+3% | 1%+2%-1%-2% | 1%0%-1%+1% | <1%0%-2%+4% |
| Sunday | <1%0%+1%+2% | 1%+7%+5%+6% | 2%+3%+1%-1% | 1%+7%+1%-4% | 1%+16%+3%-2% | 1%+13%+3%-2% | <1%+5%+2%-5% |
| Day | 12am to 6am | 6am to 9am | 9am to 12pm | 12pm to 3pm | 3pm to 6pm | 6pm to 9pm | 9pm to 12am |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Monday | 1%0%-4%0% | 1%+1%+1%+1% | 3%+1%+1%+1% | 3%0%-1%0% | 3%+1%0%+1% | 3%+2%0%0% | 1%+2%-1%0% |
| Tuesday | 1%-4%-11%-5% | 1%-1%0%+3% | 3%-2%-3%0% | 3%0%-3%0% | 3%0%0%+1% | 3%0%-1%-1% | 1%0%-1%+1% |
| Wednesday | 1%-2%-10%0% | 1%0%0%+1% | 3%-1%-1%0% | 3%0%-2%+1% | 3%0%-2%+2% | 3%0%-1%+1% | 1%0%0%+2% |
| Thursday | 1%-2%-7%-3% | 1%-1%-1%+2% | 3%-1%-3%0% | 3%-1%-2%+1% | 3%+1%-1%+2% | 3%+1%0%0% | 1%0%-4%0% |
| Friday | 1%-2%-9%0% | 2%-2%-1%+2% | 4%-1%-4%0% | 3%0%-3%0% | 3%0%-1%0% | 3%+1%-1%-1% | 1%0%-1%-2% |
| Saturday | 1%-1%-6%-5% | 1%+1%0%+1% | 3%+1%-1%+1% | 2%+2%+1%0% | 2%+4%-1%-1% | 2%+3%+2%-2% | 1%+4%+1%-3% |
| Sunday | 1%+3%-9%-5% | 1%+2%+2%+1% | 2%+3%+1%0% | 2%+3%+2%-1% | 2%+4%0%-1% | 2%+4%+3%+1% | 1%+3%-2%-2% |
| Day | 12am to 6am | 6am to 9am | 9am to 12pm | 12pm to 3pm | 3pm to 6pm | 6pm to 9pm | 9pm to 12am |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Monday | 2%-7%-18%-10% | 2%0%-3%-1% | 3%-5%-3%+1% | 3%-1%-4%0% | 3%-4%-4%+1% | 2%0%-1%0% | 1%+1%+2%0% |
| Tuesday | 1%-7%-5%+2% | 2%-1%+2%+4% | 3%-4%-3%+1% | 3%-5%-1%+3% | 3%-2%-1%+1% | 2%-1%-1%+1% | 1%0%+2%+3% |
| Wednesday | 1%-8%-2%+2% | 2%-2%-2%+5% | 3%-6%-7%+1% | 3%-4%-2%+1% | 3%-4%-3%+2% | 2%-1%-1%+2% | 1%0%-1%-2% |
| Thursday | 1%0%-8%-1% | 2%+3%0%+3% | 3%0%-1%+2% | 3%0%-1%+2% | 3%+1%0%0% | 3%+3%0%+1% | 1%+5%0%0% |
| Friday | 1%0%-2%+1% | 2%+2%0%+2% | 3%0%-1%0% | 3%+2%+1%-2% | 3%+3%0%-1% | 2%+7%+1%-2% | 1%+6%+2%-3% |
| Saturday | 1%+10%0%-2% | 1%+7%+3%-2% | 2%+9%+1%-2% | 2%+9%+4%-1% | 2%+10%+3%-1% | 2%+8%+1%-3% | 1%+16%+10%-2% |
| Sunday | 1%+1%-9%-7% | 1%+13%+5%-4% | 2%+11%+1%-5% | 2%+10%0%-7% | 2%+5%0%-3% | 2%+8%+2%-3% | 2%+6%-11%-14% |
| Day | 12am to 6am | 6am to 9am | 9am to 12pm | 12pm to 3pm | 3pm to 6pm | 6pm to 9pm | 9pm to 12am |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Monday | 1%0%+4%+8% | 2%+1%-1%+1% | 4%0%0%0% | 3%+2%0%-2% | 3%+3%+1%0% | 2%+7%+2%-1% | 1%+9%+2%0% |
| Tuesday | 1%-2%0%+10% | 2%0%0%0% | 4%-2%-2%0% | 4%-3%-2%0% | 3%0%-1%-3% | 2%0%-2%-3% | 1%+7%-1%-2% |
| Wednesday | 1%-3%-2%+5% | 2%-4%-1%+3% | 4%-6%-3%0% | 4%-3%-2%+1% | 3%-1%-3%-1% | 2%0%-2%-2% | 1%+8%+2%+4% |
| Thursday | 1%0%0%+6% | 2%-4%-2%+2% | 4%-5%-3%+4% | 3%-4%-5%0% | 3%-1%-2%+1% | 2%0%-2%-3% | 1%+4%0%+2% |
| Friday | 1%-6%-3%+3% | 2%-6%-2%+6% | 4%-7%-5%0% | 3%-3%-4%-1% | 3%0%-3%0% | 2%+3%-2%-2% | 1%+12%+3%-1% |
| Saturday | 1%+2%+3%+13% | 1%+5%+2%0% | 2%+2%0%+2% | 2%+4%-1%+1% | 2%+9%+2%+1% | 2%+9%+1%0% | 1%+16%+7%+4% |
| Sunday | 1%+9%+3%+7% | 1%+7%+2%+5% | 2%+7%+3%+1% | 2%+9%+3%-1% | 2%+8%+3%0% | 1%+12%+6%0% | 1%+11%+5%+1% |
| Day | 12am to 6am | 6am to 9am | 9am to 12pm | 12pm to 3pm | 3pm to 6pm | 6pm to 9pm | 9pm to 12am |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Monday | 1%0%-1%- | 1%0%-1%0% | 3%0%-3%+5% | 3%0%-1%+4% | 3%0%0%+4% | 2%+2%0%+6% | 1%+13%0%+4% |
| Tuesday | 1%-4%-6%- | 2%0%-1%-8% | 3%0%-2%0% | 3%-3%-2%+3% | 3%0%-1%+2% | 2%0%-1%-1% | 1%+9%+1%-3% |
| Wednesday | 1%-2%-4%- | 2%0%-3%-11% | 4%-8%-2%0% | 3%-2%-3%+1% | 3%0%-3%-6% | 2%0%-1%0% | 1%+4%+1%-3% |
| Thursday | 1%0%-3%- | 2%0%-2%+4% | 4%-3%-2%+2% | 3%0%-3%-3% | 3%0%-3%+1% | 2%0%-1%+4% | 1%+19%+2%-3% |
| Friday | 1%0%-3%- | 2%0%-2%-2% | 4%0%-2%-3% | 3%0%-1%+2% | 3%0%-1%+2% | 2%0%-2%+1% | 1%+7%+3%-3% |
| Saturday | 1%0%-3%- | 1%0%-1%+1% | 3%0%-1%+4% | 2%+3%-1%+2% | 2%+10%+3%+4% | 2%+2%0%+3% | 1%+18%+1%-2% |
| Sunday | 1%+4%-3%- | 1%+12%-1%-3% | 2%+3%-1%0% | 2%+8%0%-3% | 2%+8%+1%-3% | 2%+20%+3%-2% | 1%+20%+4%-8% |
The heat map shows impressions, engagements and engagement rate for every day and time band. For impressions, the strongest slots fall on weekend afternoons and evenings:
Table 3.4 The best day and time slots
| Network | Best slot for impressions | Lift |
|---|---|---|
| Threads | Sunday, 9pm to 12am | +20% |
| YouTube | Saturday, 9pm to 12am | +16% |
| X | Saturday, 9pm to 12am | +16% |
| Sunday, 3pm to 6pm | +16% | |
| Sunday, 6pm to 9pm | +13% | |
| Saturday, 9pm to 12am | +11% | |
| TikTok | Saturday, 9pm to 12am | +4% |
Source: Vista Social Research, posts from Nov 1, 2025 to Oct 31, 2026.
The weakest slots are weekday mornings and nights: Thursday 12am to 6am on Facebook (-10%), Wednesday 12am to 6am on YouTube (-8%), Wednesday 9am to 12pm on Threads (-8%), Friday 9am to 12pm on X (-7%) and Wednesday 12am to 6am on Instagram (-6%).
Part 4
Does timing matter?
Less than what you post. The largest effect of the day of the week in this report is +10% (Saturday and Sunday on YouTube), and most time-of-day effects are within 5%. In our What Makes Social Media Content Perform, 2027 Report, choices about the content itself moved engagement much further: YouTube videos of 1 to 3 minutes got 36% more engagement than the same brand's other videos, and Facebook image posts with a link got 20% less.
Timing changes how often a post is seen more than how much response it gets. Impressions move with the day and time, while engagements per post stay within 3% from day to day. A well-timed post gets seen more often; it doesn't make the post better.
So the best time depends on the goal. To be seen, post on the weekend, when few brands compete for attention: on LinkedIn, only 6% of brand posts go out on Sunday. To get responses, the day matters little; avoid overnight and, on Instagram, morning posts.
Part 5
By industry
Industries use the names and codes from the Social Media Benchmarks by Industry, 2027 Report. For each industry and network, the table shows the day and time band with the most impressions against the same brand's other posts, and the share of posts the industry publishes on weekends. Only networks with at least 50 brand profiles from 10 accounts in the industry are shown. "No clear winner" means no day or time beat the rest by 3% or more.
Sunday is the best day for impressions in 49 of the 92 industry and network rows, and Saturday in 14.
| Network | Best day for impressions | Best time for impressions | Share of posts on weekends |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sunday, +8% | 6pm to 9pm, +5% | 22% | |
| Sunday, +5% | No clear winner | 19% | |
| Sunday, +11% | No clear winner | 12% | |
| TikTok | No clear winner | 9pm to 12am, +5% | 20% |
| YouTube | Sunday, +14% | 6pm to 9pm, +4% | 20% |
| X | Sunday, +14% | 9pm to 12am, +11% | 13% |
Sunday is the best day for impressions on five of the six networks, by up to 14% on YouTube and X. Yet business services brands publish only 12% of their LinkedIn posts and 13% of their X posts on weekends.
| Network | Best day for impressions | Best time for impressions | Share of posts on weekends |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sunday, +4% | 3pm to 6pm, +5% | 24% | |
| Sunday, +3% | 6pm to 9pm, +6% | 21% | |
| TikTok | No clear winner | No clear winner | 19% |
For restaurants, the time matters as much as the day. Instagram posts from 6pm to 9pm get 6% more impressions than the same restaurant's posts at other times, and Facebook posts from 3pm to 6pm 5% more.
| Network | Best day for impressions | Best time for impressions | Share of posts on weekends |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sunday, +3% | 3pm to 6pm, +4% | 17% | |
| Sunday, +4% | 9pm to 12am, +8% | 17% | |
| Sunday, +9% | 3pm to 6pm, +3% | 14% | |
| TikTok | No clear winner | No clear winner | 20% |
| YouTube | Saturday, +15% | 9pm to 12am, +20% | 20% |
| X | No clear winner | No clear winner | 12% |
Health care brands get the most impressions with Sunday posts on LinkedIn (+9%), Saturday videos on YouTube (+15%), and late evening posts on Instagram (+8% from 9pm to 12am) and YouTube (+20%). Only 17% of their Facebook and Instagram posts go out on weekends.
| Network | Best day for impressions | Best time for impressions | Share of posts on weekends |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sunday, +5% | 3pm to 6pm, +5% | 19% | |
| Sunday, +5% | 6pm to 9pm, +6% | 20% | |
| Sunday, +13% | No clear winner | 15% | |
| TikTok | No clear winner | 9pm to 12am, +9% | 23% |
| YouTube | Sunday, +10% | 6am to 9am, +7% | 22% |
| X | No clear winner | 12pm to 3pm, +4% | 18% |
Schools and universities get the most impressions with Sunday posts on LinkedIn (+13%) and YouTube (+10%). On TikTok, videos published from 9pm to 12am get 9% more impressions than the same school's videos at other times.
| Network | Best day for impressions | Best time for impressions | Share of posts on weekends |
|---|---|---|---|
| Saturday, +14% | 9pm to 12am, +14% | 24% | |
| Sunday, +12% | 9pm to 12am, +12% | 20% | |
| No clear winner | 6am to 9am, +5% | 11% | |
| TikTok | Sunday, +3% | No clear winner | 19% |
| YouTube | Thursday, +25% | 3pm to 6pm, +18% | 27% |
| X | Saturday, +8% | 6pm to 9pm, +11% | 23% |
Nonprofits post more on weekends than most industries, and it pays off: Saturday posts on Facebook get 14% more impressions than the same organization's posts on other days, and Sunday posts on Instagram 12% more. Late evening (9pm to 12am) is the best time on both. YouTube is the exception, with Thursday the best day (+25%).
| Network | Best day for impressions | Best time for impressions | Share of posts on weekends |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sunday, +7% | 9pm to 12am, +10% | 24% | |
| Saturday, +4% | 9pm to 12am, +10% | 23% | |
| Monday, +5% | 12pm to 3pm, +6% | 22% | |
| TikTok | Sunday, +7% | 9pm to 12am, +6% | 25% |
| YouTube | Sunday, +11% | 9pm to 12am, +10% | 25% |
| X | Sunday, +10% | 9pm to 12am, +10% | 28% |
Late evening is the best time for sports, fitness and entertainment brands: posts from 9pm to 12am get 6 to 10% more impressions on Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, YouTube and X. These brands already publish about a quarter of their posts on weekends.
| Network | Best day for impressions | Best time for impressions | Share of posts on weekends |
|---|---|---|---|
| Saturday, +10% | 6pm to 9pm, +7% | 16% | |
| Saturday, +7% | 9pm to 12am, +6% | 16% | |
| Monday, +5% | No clear winner | 16% | |
| TikTok | No clear winner | 6pm to 9pm, +3% | 19% |
| YouTube | Sunday, +38% | 6pm to 9pm, +18% | 16% |
Saturday is the best day for real estate on Facebook (+10%) and Instagram (+7%). On YouTube, Sunday videos get 38% more impressions than the same brand's videos on other days.
| Network | Best day for impressions | Best time for impressions | Share of posts on weekends |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sunday, +7% | 6pm to 9pm, +3% | 23% | |
| Sunday, +5% | 6pm to 9pm, +5% | 23% | |
| TikTok | No clear winner | 6am to 9am, +4% | 24% |
| YouTube | Sunday, +13% | 9am to 12pm, +5% | 23% |
Sunday is the best day for specialty retailers on Facebook (+7%), Instagram (+5%) and YouTube (+13%).
| Network | Best day for impressions | Best time for impressions | Share of posts on weekends |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sunday, +9% | 12pm to 3pm, +4% | 18% | |
| Sunday, +9% | 6pm to 9pm, +5% | 19% | |
| Sunday, +11% | No clear winner | 16% | |
| TikTok | Sunday, +4% | No clear winner | 22% |
| YouTube | Sunday, +30% | 6am to 9am, +9% | 21% |
| X | Monday, +5% | No clear winner | 20% |
Professional services firms have some of the largest Sunday gains in the report: +9% on Facebook and Instagram, +11% on LinkedIn and +30% on YouTube, against the same firm's posts on other days.
| Network | Best day for impressions | Best time for impressions | Share of posts on weekends |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sunday, +5% | 6pm to 9pm, +6% | 24% | |
| No clear winner | 6pm to 9pm, +4% | 22% | |
| TikTok | Sunday, +3% | 6pm to 9pm, +7% | 22% |
| YouTube | Thursday, +8% | No clear winner | 22% |
For salons and spas, the evening matters more than the day: posts from 6pm to 9pm get 6% more impressions on Facebook and 7% more on TikTok than the same business's posts at other times.
| Network | Best day for impressions | Best time for impressions | Share of posts on weekends |
|---|---|---|---|
| Saturday, +5% | 12pm to 3pm, +6% | 21% | |
| Saturday, +5% | 6pm to 9pm, +5% | 21% |
Hotels get the most impressions on Saturday: 5% more on both Facebook and Instagram than the same hotel's posts on other days.
| Network | Best day for impressions | Best time for impressions | Share of posts on weekends |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sunday, +12% | 6pm to 9pm, +16% | 17% | |
| Saturday, +11% | 3pm to 6pm, +11% | 19% | |
| Monday, +6% | 3pm to 6pm, +4% | 15% | |
| TikTok | Sunday, +6% | No clear winner | 22% |
| YouTube | Sunday, +23% | 3pm to 6pm, +7% | 20% |
Law firms get the most impressions with Sunday posts on Facebook (+12%) and YouTube (+23%), Saturday posts on Instagram (+11%) and Monday posts on LinkedIn (+6%). On Facebook, posts from 6pm to 9pm get 16% more impressions than the same firm's posts at other times.
| Network | Best day for impressions | Best time for impressions | Share of posts on weekends |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sunday, +4% | 6pm to 9pm, +11% | 20% | |
| Monday, +6% | 6pm to 9pm, +8% | 19% | |
| TikTok | No clear winner | 12pm to 3pm, +4% | 22% |
For car dealers, the evening matters more than the day: posts from 6pm to 9pm get 11% more impressions on Facebook and 8% more on Instagram than the same dealer's posts at other times.
| Network | Best day for impressions | Best time for impressions | Share of posts on weekends |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sunday, +12% | 3pm to 6pm, +6% | 23% | |
| Saturday, +8% | 9pm to 12am, +5% | 21% | |
| Sunday, +9% | No clear winner | 14% | |
| TikTok | Sunday, +5% | 9pm to 12am, +3% | 23% |
| YouTube | Sunday, +11% | 3pm to 6pm, +4% | 20% |
| X | Sunday, +19% | 6pm to 9pm, +8% | 17% |
Publishers get the most impressions on Sunday on five of the six networks, led by X (+19%) and Facebook (+12%). On Instagram, Saturday wins (+8%).
| Network | Best day for impressions | Best time for impressions | Share of posts on weekends |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sunday, +6% | 3pm to 6pm, +10% | 15% | |
| Saturday, +8% | 6pm to 9pm, +6% | 16% | |
| Monday, +9% | 3pm to 6pm, +6% | 14% | |
| TikTok | Sunday, +7% | 6pm to 9pm, +3% | 20% |
| YouTube | Sunday, +23% | 6pm to 9pm, +16% | 20% |
Afternoon is the best time for contractors on Facebook and LinkedIn: posts from 3pm to 6pm get 10% and 6% more impressions than the same brand's posts at other times. On LinkedIn, Monday is the best day (+9%). Contractors publish only 14 to 16% of their Facebook, Instagram and LinkedIn posts on weekends.
| Network | Best day for impressions | Best time for impressions | Share of posts on weekends |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sunday, +6% | 3pm to 6pm, +7% | 15% | |
| Saturday, +8% | 9pm to 12am, +7% | 17% | |
| Monday, +5% | 6pm to 9pm, +9% | 14% | |
| TikTok | Sunday, +3% | No clear winner | 17% |
| YouTube | Sunday, +33% | 6am to 9am, +17% | 19% |
| X | No clear winner | No clear winner | 16% |
Finance and insurance brands get 33% more impressions with YouTube videos published on Sunday than with the same brand's videos on other days. On LinkedIn, Monday is the best day (+5%) and 6pm to 9pm the best time (+9%).
| Network | Best day for impressions | Best time for impressions | Share of posts on weekends |
|---|---|---|---|
| Saturday, +10% | 3pm to 6pm, +8% | 22% | |
| Saturday, +4% | 3pm to 6pm, +5% | 19% | |
| TikTok | No clear winner | No clear winner | 19% |
Food and beverage brands get the most impressions on Saturday: 10% more on Facebook and 4% more on Instagram than the same brand's posts on other days. Afternoon posts (3pm to 6pm) do best on both.
| Network | Best day for impressions | Best time for impressions | Share of posts on weekends |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sunday, +9% | 3pm to 6pm, +10% | 23% | |
| No clear winner | No clear winner | 18% | |
| TikTok | No clear winner | No clear winner | 21% |
Grocery stores get the most impressions on Facebook with Sunday posts (+9%) and with posts from 3pm to 6pm (+10%). On Instagram and TikTok, no day or time stands out.
| Network | Best day for impressions | Best time for impressions | Share of posts on weekends |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sunday, +4% | No clear winner | 16% | |
| No clear winner | 12pm to 3pm, +4% | 17% | |
| Tuesday, +7% | 3pm to 6pm, +7% | 8% | |
| TikTok | No clear winner | No clear winner | 18% |
| YouTube | No clear winner | No clear winner | 20% |
On LinkedIn, wholesalers get the most impressions on Tuesday (+7%) and in the afternoon (+7% from 3pm to 6pm). They publish only 8% of their LinkedIn posts on weekends.
| Network | Best day for impressions | Best time for impressions | Share of posts on weekends |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sunday, +8% | 6pm to 9pm, +10% | 27% | |
| No clear winner | 12pm to 3pm, +10% | 21% |
Fashion brands get 10% more impressions with Facebook posts from 6pm to 9pm, and with Instagram posts from 12pm to 3pm, than with the same brand's posts at other times. On Facebook, Sunday posts get 8% more.
Part 6
Time zones and global audiences
Every time in this report is local time for the brand, in the time zone set for the profile in Vista Social. For a local business, that is also its audience's time zone. A brand whose audience lives in another time zone should shift the times in this report to the audience's clock.
The time bands are three hours wide (six overnight), so a difference of an hour or so between a brand and its audience rarely changes the result. For brands with a spread-out audience, the day of the week is the safer guide, because a Sunday is a Sunday in most time zones for most of the day.
The best times for one brand can still differ from the median. Vista Social suggests the best times to post for each profile, based on how that profile's own posts perform.
Questions this report answers
Yes. In each quarter from November 2025 to October 2026, brand posts published on Sunday got more impressions than the same brand's posts on other days on all seven networks, from +2% (LinkedIn, February to April) to +14% (X, February to April, and YouTube, August to October). On most networks the gain was largest from August to October.
The weekend. Brand posts on Instagram published on Saturday get 5% more impressions than the same brand's posts on other days, and on Sunday 4% more. Weekdays are within 2% of each other.
Sunday. Brand posts on LinkedIn published on Sunday get 7% more impressions than the same brand's posts on other days, though only 6% of brand posts on LinkedIn go out on Sunday. Among weekdays, Monday is best (+5%) and Friday worst (-3%).
Sunday, then Saturday. Brand posts on Facebook published on Sunday get 7% more impressions than the same brand's posts on other days, and on Saturday 5% more.
Saturday or Sunday. YouTube videos that brands publish on either weekend day get 10% more impressions than the same brand's videos on other days. Wednesday is the weakest day (-5%).
Sunday, by a small margin. Brand videos on TikTok published on Sunday get 3% more impressions than the same brand's videos on other days, and on Saturday 2% more. Every other day is within 1%.
Evening. Brand posts on Instagram published from 9pm to 12am get 5% more impressions than the same brand's posts at other times, and from 6pm to 9pm 4% more. Posts from 6am to 9am get 5% fewer impressions. The best single slot is Saturday from 9pm to 12am (+11%), with Saturday from 6pm to 9pm close behind (+9%). Evening is also the best time for engagements on Instagram: posts from 6pm to 9pm get 4% more than the same brand's posts at other times.
6pm to 9pm. Brand posts on Facebook published then get 5% more impressions than the same brand's posts at other times, and 13% more on Sunday evening. Posts before 12pm get 3 to 5% fewer impressions.
Time of day barely matters on LinkedIn: for impressions, every band from 6am to 12am lands within 1% of the same brand's posts at other times. Avoid 12am to 6am (-6%). The day matters more, and the best slot is Sunday from 3pm to 6pm (+16%).
Afternoon or evening, and not overnight. Brand posts published from 12am to 6am get 5 to 8% fewer engagements than the same brand's posts at other times on Instagram, TikTok and YouTube. On Instagram, the best time for engagements is 6pm to 9pm (+4%), and posts before 12pm get 4 to 5% fewer. The day of the week barely matters for engagements: every day lands within 3% of the same brand's other days, on every network.
It affects impressions more than engagements. The day and time change a brand post's impressions by up to 10% for the day and 12% for the time band, but engagements per post stay within 3% from day to day. Engagement rate, the share of impressions that lead to an engagement, stays within about 4% of the same brand's other posts from 6am to 9pm on every network.
No. Sunday posts get more impressions than the same brand's posts on other days on every network, and Saturday posts do on most, with about the same number of engagements. Brands publish only 14 to 22% of their posts on weekends, depending on the network, so there is less competition for attention.
Most likely because brands post less on Sunday. Brands publish 1.4 to 2.8 times as many posts on each weekday as on Sunday, depending on the network, while people keep using social networks on the weekend. With fewer brand posts competing for the feed, each Sunday post gets shown more: up to 10% more impressions than the same brand's posts on other days, on YouTube, and 9% more on X.
Data source
Anonymized, aggregated data from Vista Social. The report covers every post that brand profiles connected to Vista Social published from November 1, 2025 to October 31, 2026, on Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, TikTok, YouTube, X and Threads. Vista Social collects a profile's posts whether they were published through Vista Social or directly on the network, so both are included: 6.6 million posts published through Vista Social and 4.9 million published natively.
Included: feed posts of every format (images, video, Reels, carousels, text posts and articles) with impressions reported, on profiles with at least 10 such posts in the year and a time zone set in Vista Social. Excluded: Stories, Facebook ad posts that never appeared on the page, competitor profiles that customers only track, and posts with an engagement rate above 100% (data errors). After those rules, the data covers 11.4 million posts from 63k brand profiles managed from 13k accounts.
Day and time
Each post's publish time, as reported by the network, is converted to local time in the time zone set for the profile in Vista Social. Days run from midnight to midnight. Weekend posts get more impressions on most networks for North American brands on their own, for brands in the UK and for brands in Australia, and also when posts are grouped by day in GMT instead of local time, so the weekend result is not a side effect of time zones. Time is grouped into seven bands: 12am to 6am, 6am to 9am, 9am to 12pm, 12pm to 3pm, 3pm to 6pm, 6pm to 9pm and 9pm to 12am.
Metrics and comparison
Impressions and engagements are the counts each network reports for a post. Engagement rate is the post's engagements divided by its impressions.
The year is split into four quarters: November to January, February to April, May to July and August to October. For each brand profile and quarter, we compared the median impressions of its posts on a given day (or in a given time band, or day and time slot) with the median impressions of its own posts at all other days or times in the same quarter, and report the median of those ratios across all profiles and quarters. Comparing within a quarter keeps seasonal changes in impressions, such as a busy autumn or a slow summer, from mixing with the day. A profile counts toward a comparison in a quarter only if it has at least 5 posts on each side in that quarter. Engagement rate is compared the same way. Engagements per post are small whole numbers, so for them we compare the typical post on a log scale (the geometric mean of engagements plus one) rather than the median. Share of posts is the share of all posts on the network in each day or band. Posts compared with Sunday divides each day's posts per calendar day by Sunday's, since the year has 53 Saturdays and 52 of every other day.
Industries
Industries come from the classification used in the Social Media Benchmarks by Industry, 2027 Report: a code from the US Standard Industrial Classification, assigned from each profile's public name and bio. For each industry and network, the best day and best time are those with the most impressions against the same brand's other posts, shown only when that lift is 3% or more.
Privacy
No figure describes a single customer. A number is published only when it rests on at least 50 brand profiles from at least 10 Vista Social accounts. The analysis used only times, counts and network metrics. No captions, media or links were read.
Limitations
- Correlation, not causation. Comparing a brand with itself removes the effect of brand size, industry and audience, but not everything. A brand may save certain kinds of posts, such as weekend events, for certain days.
- Brand time, not audience time. Times are in the time zone set for the profile, which may differ from where its audience is.
- One year of data. The report covers November 2025 to October 2026, one of each season. The 2028 edition will show whether the patterns hold from year to year.
- Networks count impressions differently, so compare days and times within a network, rather than networks with each other.
- Impressions are not people. Networks count every time a post is shown, so a post seen twice by the same person counts twice. The networks don't report unique reach for every post, so this report doesn't measure it.
How to cite this report
Vista Social. Best Times to Post on Social Media, 2027 Report. November 2026. https://vistasocial.com/research/best-times-to-post/
This report is published under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 license (CC BY 4.0). Charts, tables and figures may be reused with credit to Vista Social and a link to this page.
For press questions or custom cuts of the data, contact the Vista Social team at research@vistasocial.com.