The Best Time to Post on Instagram in 2025

Why should you customize your social media posting schedule for Instagram?

Instagram, like all other social media platforms, has a specific target audience. Apart from this, the nature of the app also influences how and when people use it.

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In Instagram’s case, people use it to catch up with friends, keep up with their favorite influencers and brands, and also entertain themselves when they are not posting content themselves.

Considering all the above-mentioned facts, we can say that Instagram users see this social network as a spare-time treat. So, in general, to find engagement peaks, you will look for moments in a day when your unique audience has the time and availability to scroll through their Instagram feed. 

But the question still stands. Why should you customize your social media posting schedule for Instagram?

The answer is simple: to increase how many users see your posts and boost Instagram engagement. It’s all a chain reaction, really. Let us explain.

The Instagram app allows users to organize their Instagram feeds in two ways:

• Favorites: The posts and Instagram Stories that show up first are from accounts the user interacts with the most.
• Following: All the content is ordered chronologically, so the most recent Instagram post appears at the top of a user’s feed.

How a user configures their feed is a matter of preference, but if you can secure your place on both feed types, you secure a sweet spot at the top.

By scheduling your content when your primary audience is active on Instagram, you ensure your posts will be at the top of their feed.

Increasing your reach also improves your chances of having your Instagram followers interact with your content. The more they interact with your content, the more they will see your posts in the future, thus solidifying your connection.

NOTE: Keep in mind that several factors go into post or Reels performance, whether it’s using popular sounds, the Instagram algorithm, or having an engaging video hook to capture the attention of your audience.

How to schedule Instagram posts effectively

Every aspect of your social media strategy should be a strategic move: the content topics you tackle, the social media platforms you use, and last but not least, the posting time frames when you schedule your content.

Here are the steps you need to follow in order to schedule your Instagram posts effectively:

1. Check your Instagram insights
2. Monitor your competitors
3. Use a social media management tool

1. Check Your Instagram Insights

If you own an Instagram business or creator account, you will be able to access your Instagram analytics from the mobile app and the Instagram creator studio dashboard. 

The Instagram Insights dashboard reveals demographic information about your target audience, content performance (reach and engagement), and account growth, but most importantly, it discloses the time frames when your followers are the most active on the platform.

So, if you want to schedule Instagram Reels and posts at peak engagement times, don’t hesitate to use the engagement data from your Instagram Insights to craft the perfect content strategy. You can also use these insights to post Stories at optimal times.

2. Monitor Your Competitors

You and your competitors have one thing in common: your potential customers.

After all, you are all fighting for the attention of the same target audience. Better to turn a negative situation into a positive one and use your competition as a research tool.

Analyzing the Instagram posting strategy of other rival brands can give you some insight into how they plan their content and what their optimal posting times are. That’s because someone working in the food and beverage industry might see different engagement patterns than someone who works in fashion.

Additionally, you will get the chance to gather some content topics for your own Instagram strategy.

You can either gather data about your competitors manually by accessing their social media accounts or by using a social media listening tool. 

Since a social media strategy is not complete without a competitor analysis, we have created a free competitor analysis sheet you can access right away. It will enable you to centralize all your research data and draw a conclusion that will constructively inform your own posting strategy.

Social Media Competitive Analysis Template

Audit your competitors’ social media with this free template.

Get access

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