What is the best time for posting on Instagram? What is the best day to post on instagram? What are the benefits of posting at the right time?

We all come across these questions often because we all desire reach for our content on instagram. For making the best out of your content on instagram one must be aware about the best and worst times to post on instagram. 

Despite months of consistent hard work on instagram by posting content daily can bear no fruit because you are not posting on the right time. 

Time plays a crucial role in posting your content on Instagram. You have made great content, now the next step is posting it on Instagram. Choosing the right time is pivotal in achieving the desired engagement and reach on Instagram from the UK. 

So, how do you know what is the right time to post on Instagram? This article will explore how you can boost engagement on your page by just posting at the right time on Instagram. 

Why does timing matter on Instagram?

Instagram’s algorithms don’t fall asleep but your users can. Instagram’s algorithms don’t become inactive but your users do become offline sometimes. 

This is the most basic reason timing matters on instagram. If you are posting when your followers are inactive or offline, then it’s like milking a dry cow. 

Seasoned content creators and social media marketers know that posting on the right time is one of the most pivotal metrics required to increase engagement. 

Why does your presence on Instagram matter?

The most important query about Instagram is why, when and how should we post our content on Instagram?

Instagram is a hub which is ubiquitous nowadays. Everyone or nearly everyone uses Instagram everyday to entertain, to provide awareness, or to increase their engagement on the platform.

This is your biggest motivation to post on instagram but it depends primarily on the time you post on instagram. 

If you have a clothing brand, the best time to post on Instagram UK would be 11AM to 1PM as it is lunch break during this time and people usually scroll their Instagram to stay updated. 

With over 2 billion users on the platform it is the best place to promote your small businesses, to launch yourself as a celebrity or a vlogger and it is the best hub to entertain yourself. 

What is the best time to post on Instagram UK?

You must have explored the internet and would have ended up becoming perplexed about the best time to post in the UK. 

Different people suggest different times which they think is the best to post, because it provides them the best results. 

However researchers have suggested that the best time to post on Instagram UK is:

“When people are free”. 

This means posting when people usually wake up, when they are having lunch at their offices and when they are going to bed. 

However, following is considered the best time to post on instagram to get the most engagement:

Monday 

Monday is the first day of the week and often the timings to post on monday are a little confused. However, research suggests that one should post between 11 am to 1 pm and 10 pm at night. The reason is that between 11am to 1pm, there is mostly lunch break going on in offices and recess in educational institutes. You can post at  these times to get more likes, comments and followers on your public profiles. 

Tuesday 

Tuesday follows Monday which is just like Monday, a very busy, exhaustive and boring day generally. Just after getting up you can post at 6am in the morning because everyone else like you must also be exploring instagram for a fresh start of the day. At 10am and 12pm there is an increased engagement proven by studies because these are lunch hours and the time to chill with friends on instagram. Post at these specific times to elevate your presence on instagram. 

Wednesday

7am and early morning hours work best for posting and increasing the reach of your profile on instagram. The reason for posting at this time is that mostly gen Z wakes up at this time and they go for their phones to update themselves about everything going around them on social media. It is easy to acquire this young audience as your followers. This is the best time to post and increase engagement on your page on Wednesday. 

Thursday

Most of us are excited on Thursday because we consciously acknowledge the fact that the week is about to end soon. So, how to persuade those users to like, share and comment on your posts? Well, 9am to 11am in the morning works best when most of the users are either going to their educational institutes or are in their recesses. This is the time to hook them up. At night you can post between 7pm to 8pm, by the time when those active users have arrived home or are on their way. 

Friday

We all love Fridays because it is the last working day of the week. It is the time when we make plans on how to enjoy the next two days. You can post between 11am to 4pm to gradually grow your audiences. This is the time for lunch breaks, recesses, going homes, and reaching homes. People use their mobile phones and actively use instagram, so why not post at these hours to grow your page.. 

Saturday

Weekends are usually considered as days “not good” for posting on Instagram because most of the users are hanging out with their partners, friends, families or relatives. But, you can post at the right time to increase your potential and growth on the platform. Post at 11am when users are usually waking up late to entertain them, post between 6pm to 8pm when they are getting back home after a day full of joy and wonder to lighten up their moods digitally too. 

Sunday

Last day of the week and unfortunately the last fun day of the week too. So, what to do on this day? At what time should you post to grow your account? Post at 10am (again, this is the time they are getting up) to increase your engagement. At night you should post between 7pm to 10pm to freshen up the minds of instagrammers. Post between these times to increase likes, share on stories, mentions, followers and comments on your page now. 

These times work best for increasing engagement on your page and the reasons seem quite clear for that.  

Worst time to post on Instagram UK

We have discussed the best times in which you can post on Instagram and increase engagement on your page and boost your brand awareness gradually. 

But what is the worst time to post on instagram UK?

The worst time for posting on Instagram UK is after 10pm. This is the team which is not recommended at all by any social media expert. 

The reason for that is, it is the time in which people are least active on instagram. 

Most of the people fall asleep, or are planning to sleep, or are with their partners, friends and families (most probably on weekends). 

Posting on Instagram according to your industry

It is important to consider the particular industry which you are promoting while posting on Instagram. 

The time you will select for posting will be directly proportional to the industry or brand you are working for. 

For example, if you have a gaming brand, or you are a gamer you should post your carousel posts or reels to maximize views at 7pm, 8pm, 9pm instead of posting early in the morning because your most predicted target audience (teenagers) are active not in the early mornings but at night. 

Fashion and retail

If you own a brand regarding fashion and retail the best time for you to post on Instagram in the UK would be 7am to 9am, 12pm and 6pm to 9pm and the best days would be Wednesdays, Fridays and Saturdays. 

The reason for posting in these times and on weekends is that users shop during breaks, evenings and weekends. 

Food and restaurants 

You are a restaurant owner and want to increase your engagement so what’s the best time for you to post on instagram UK? 

The best time for you to post would be 12pm to 2pm, 6pm to 9pm and the best days would be weekends. 

The reason is quite predictable, that people look at these times for going out to restaurants for eating and hanging out. 

Fitness & Wellness

The best time to post on instagram UK, if you are a brand relating to fitness and wellness of people is 6am to 8am and 8pm to pm and the best days would be all days of the week because fitness is desired by everyone. 

Most people workout early in the morning and after coming back home. 

Education and coaching

The best time to post on instagram in the UK if you are running a page relating to education and coaching would be 7am to 9am and 4pm to 7pm and the days are working days. 

The reason is that this time is the best for school and institute-going people. 

Gaming and technology 

You are a gamer or have a brand regarding gaming and you are looking to increase your engagement, the best time to post on instagram UK would be 2pm to 4pm and 8pm to 9pm. And the best days would be wednesday, friday and saturday. 

2pm to 4pm is best for the students coming back from school and 8pm to 9pm is after people get free from their work. 

For more insights on industry-specific posting times, check out Hootsuite’s Guide to Instagram Posting Times.

Try these Tips to increase your engagement gradually

If you are still wondering what other metrics you can adopt to increase your engagement on Instagram UK, you can try these:

Posting quality content

If you are posting terrible content on Instagram, sorry to say, no time is suitable for you to post on Instagram UK. 

You have to post content which is relevant, highly qualitative, consistent and last but not the least: content which is related to your niche. The last one is the most important one because if you are only following trends, and not creating your own niche, it won’t work for you. 

Test different posting times 

You can post on the time recommended above but you can also try different posting times to increase your engagement. 

These times have been proven to be the best to post on Instagram UK but you can give a try to other time zones too, to find your own way and increase engagement metrics such as likes, followers and comments on your profile. 

Use Instagram insights 

You can use Instagram insights to check when your audience is most active. It has many benefits such as, Instagram insights will help you in knowing your audience’s demographics, it will provide you insights into which content is being appreciated by the users the most and it will also help you to track performance of your content too. 

Use the right captions and CTAs

Captions are one of the best metrics to increase engagement on your instagram profile. Writing captions which not only resonates with your post but also with your audience is the key to success. Use short, crispy and engaging captions to make your posts more attractive. Moreover, try using CTAs such as “send to your friends”, “mention them”, “tag your partner”, “checkout our more products in our bio” etc have also proven to be effective methods to make your page and content visible. 

Your audience is your everything 

Reply to the queries, questions and comments of your audiences actively. This will help you establish yourself as an interactive, user-friendly and responsive account on instagram thus helping you win over the confidence of your audience. Remember, only an active audience can help you acquire your desired goals and objectives on instagram. 

For more tips, visit Later’s Instagram Engagement Tips.

Conclusion

Timing is everything on Instagram. By strategically choosing the best times to post, you can significantly enhance your engagement and reach.
Test the timings mentioned above, adapt them to your audience’s behaviour, and watch your Instagram presence grow!