With an audience of as many as 2.70 billion monthly users, YouTube’s influence is hard to overestimate. Any experienced businessman understands that YouTube is no longer a platform for sharing funny videos. As the third most popular social media platform in the world, YouTube is a gate to an enormous audience. Needless to say, having a YouTube account is a must for anyone who wants to gain success in his field.
Decoding YouTube’s Algorithm for Optimal Post Timing
How to avoid getting lost among YouTube’s large audience is the question many beginners search for. If you think of how many videos are uploaded there daily, you’ll get that the competition there is crazy, so if you really want to get noticed by the viewers, you should know some tricks. And the main question everyone is dying to know the answer to is, “When is the best time to post on YouTube?
Leveraging YouTube Analytics to Enhance Viewer Engagement
First of all, why is it important when you post, and is it really? Surprisingly, if you go to YouTube Help, you’ll find there such information: “Publish time is not known to impact a video’s long-term performance.” However, our own experience, as well as the experience of many other users backed by several surveys show that the time of your YouTube posts is crucial if you want to get the biggest coverage on YouTube. And here’s why:
- If you want your audience to grow, you should do everything to make your videos visible to other users. To make sure your videos are noticed, you should know when YouTube’s users are most active and post your videos exactly when they are most hungry for new content.
- It may not be easy even with users who already follow you. To keep them interested, you should constantly remind them of your channel. Even the most loyal viewer can sometimes overlook your new videos, so if you want to boost their engagement, post when they are ready to watch!
- The first hours after your videos’ release are the most important. This is when YouTube analyzes the activity and people who watch it to decide whether it’s worth promoting your video. So, if you want to get high in the rankings, you should make sure that your performance is at its best right after the release. And the easiest way to do that is to post your YouTube videos at the right time.
Analyzing Peak Viewing Times on YouTube: A Data-Driven Approach
No more bloviating. Let’s finally get to the point. What is the best time to upload to YouTube, and what are the best days to post on YouTube? YouTube’s mechanisms are pretty tricky, and with its vast audience, it would take a lot of work to analyze all of its statistics. Luckily, someone has already done that for us. We’ve studied the most popular surveys conducted on over 1000 businesses to come up with a schedule suitable for most YouTube users.
But before we get down to the survey’s results, there is one crucial note to make. The stats are helpful if you want to understand how posting time on YouTube works. Knowing the best times to post on YouTube according to such surveys is a good starting point. However, you need to analyze your specific audience to get the best results. You need to learn their watching habits and try various posting times and tricks to see when they engage the most. So read the stats, take them as a reference, and then use them to study your own viewers.
The Science Behind Scheduling: Best Days and Times to Post on YouTube
When defining the best time to post on YouTube, you should mind the specificity of content for YouTube. For example, TikTok videos and Instagram reels are way shorter than average YouTube videos. And this type of content doesn’t require any special conditions to watch. Usually, we can watch TikToks even during the workday. We watch Instagram reels before bed or in the morning when it’s so hard to leave the bed. But with YouTube videos, it’s more complicated. You need to find the right time when the user is willing to spend 30 minutes to watch a whole video. And this is why it’s best to post on weekends. This said, Monday to Wednesday are when we usually plan more business meetings and have less time to watch content during the day. Still, if you want to post on these days, there are specific time slots.
When to post on YouTube on Monday?
According to overall stats, it is the worst day to post on YouTube. That could be easily explained by the fact that the beginning of the week is the time when people recover after the weekend, get back to their normal routine, and usually have more tasks to complete. However, if you decide to upload your video on Monday, note that the best time to post on YouTube on Monday is between 2 p.m. and 4 p.m. Yep, don’t count on people watching your videos when they get home after a hard day at work. Instead, aim at the time of their lunch break, or simply the afternoon concentration drop, when our work stops being so engaging.
When to post on YouTube on Tuesday?
Tuesday is a rather tough day as well. It is still the very beginning of the week when people are busy, so if you want to post your content on Tuesday, it is best to upload a shorter video so that your viewers could watch it during their short break at work. The best time to post on YouTube on Tuesday is between 2 p.m. and 4 p.m. as well.
When to post on YouTube on Wednesday?
When it comes to the best time to post on YouTube on Wednesday, the time slot is basically the same. 2 p.m. to 4 p.m. is what you should aim for. During the first three days of the week, the users’ behavior is very similar, and their activity is not so high. But the game changes on Thursday, which is thought to be one of the best days for posting on YouTube.
When to post on YouTube on Thursday?
Thursday and Friday are the finishing lines before the weekends when the users are most active. The busiest days of the workweek are over, and now it’s time to relax and prepare for the weekend. So, if you want to get the biggest coverage on YouTube, try to hit those two days.
The 12 p.m. to 3 p.m. slot is thought to be the best time to post on YouTube on Thursday. Like before, it is an afternoon time slot, but it starts earlier than during the first three days of the week. Basically, after 12 p.m., users start watching YouTube, either during their lunch, waiting in the car line when getting home earlier after work, or even while doing some easier mundane tasks.
When to post on YouTube on Friday?
If not on Thursday, then Friday is when you simply must post that video! The end of the week is the greatest time to share your content and catch the viewers between busy workdays and active weekends outside their homes. Don’t aim for Friday evening as it’s usually when people are going to dinners or already starting their party weekend ;). The exact time slot, between 12 p.m. and 3 p.m., is the best time to post on YouTube on Friday. Once again, you’ll catch the viewer’s attention during that afternoon peak, and your new content will come in handy, especially for those who finish earlier on Fridays. Coming home after a hard working week and watching that new video to relax – what could be better?
When to post on YouTube on Saturday?
The rules of the game change on the weekend. While for other social media platforms, it might not be the best time for sharing content on YouTube, if you want to catch the biggest audience possible, Saturday and Sunday are the best YouTube posting times. These are the days when users have more time and are more willing to watch a longer video on their favorite topic than simply scroll through their Instagram feed. Both expert videos and entertaining content they can binge-watch are perfect for posting on weekends.
The best time to post on YouTube on Saturday to get the maximum viewer attention is between 9 a.m. and 11 a.m. Remember that when we talk about good times to post on YouTube, we give our videos a rough 2-hour reserve to reach the viewers. The goal is to publish your video just before the bulk of your audience is coming online. So, for example, if you post your video at 11 a.m., be ready to get that peak of attention by 1 p.m.
When to post on YouTube on Sunday?
The best time to post on YouTube on Sunday is basically the same as on Saturday. Try to hit that morning 9 a.m. to 11 a.m. slot to give your users a new dose of content to watch while they cook their lazy Sunday breakfast. Leave the evening to get some rest and prepare for a long working week.
Summary of the best and the worst days to post on YouTube
| Monday | Is the worst day to post on YouTube. Still, if you do, aim for a shorter video and try to post between 2 p.m. and 4 p.m. |
| Tuesday | Is not the best day either. If you decide to post your video on Tuesday, you should do that in the evening. 2 p.m. till 4 p.m. is just fine. |
| Wednesday | Is the last busy weekday. If you want to post at the beginning of the week, choose Wednesday over Monday and Tuesday. 2 p.m. – 4 p.m. is the best time to post. |
| Thursday | Is one of the best days to share content on YouTube. Choose the 12 p.m. to 3 p.m. slot. The best for longer informative videos. |
| Friday | Is a great day to post your video on YouTube. Let people relax after a long week and post some easy content. To get the best engagement, post between 12 p.m. and 3 p.m. |
| Saturday | A good day for sharing content. Unlike during the week, here it’s best to choose the early time slot from 9 till 11 a.m. |
| Saturday | A good day in general. Both educational and entertainment content are going to work well. To get the most of the viewers’ attention, post early in the morning, between 9 a.m. and 11 a.m. |
Understanding Audience Demographics for Targeted Posting
Now that you’ve got an insight into some data-backed posting schedules, you need to craft your own personalized posting schedule. Following some basic principles is better than doing nothing. But if you want to get the most out of your audience, you should adjust those stats to your viewers. I know it may sound complicated, but we’ll do it together. So, to craft your posting schedule, you should understand who your viewers are. To do that, you’ll need some demographic insights. Go to your channel’s stats and see who watches your videos. Ask yourself, who do you make content for? No one knows your audience better than you. Where are those people from? Do you create videos in English, and they are spread worldwide, or do they live in one specific country? Knowing that is crucial if you want to come up with an adequate schedule. Obviously, the bigger your audience is and the more it’s scattered all over different countries, the harder it would be to find a perfect balance and strike a time slot that will suit everyone. But the sky’s the limit. We did things even harder!
Crafting Content for Maximum Reach: Timing and Strategy
Your YouTube best time to upload the videos also depends on the content you make. Is it designed for women only? Or do you shoot videos for kids? Or maybe your viewers are all people of the same profession? Come up with a portrait of your average user to be able to adapt the posting time for your specific type of content. If it all sounds too abstract, here are some concrete examples. Imagine that your channel is about cooking. When is the best time to post on YouTube? According to Anna Boling O’Steen, the creator of LovelyLadyCakes, it’s on weekend mornings when families gather together to prepare a more exquisite breakfast. Or Friday evenings when they’re looking for perfect romantic night receipts. Are you making videos about art, fashion, or cinema? There are their own busiest days of the year in all those niches. Fashion weeks, Oscars, world art fairs – follow the news and post your videos as soon as something shocking happens. Be in the center of those events and adapt your schedule to give your viewers all the news right away.
Summing up, there are a few main rules you should follow if you want to get that first 100k views:
- Posting time matters, so crafting your schedule is a must if you want to get into the recommendations and build a strong audience.
- Data-backed surveys are the foundation. Knowing the typical posting times on YouTube is essential if you want to understand how YouTube’s mechanisms work. But if you want a real result, do not restrict yourself. Craft your own schedule and get the maximum.
- Analytical tools and YouTube stats are your go-to. To come up with the perfect strategy, you’ll need to understand your audience first. The stats will tell you who they are, what they like, and when they watch your video. In this video, you’ll find a great example of using YouTube statistics to get the best posting time slots.
- Test, test and test. Do not wait for an insane result right away. Understanding your audience preferences is gonna take some time. So prepare for waiting, test various posting schedules, analyze the results and believe me, the fame will come!
Why does the timing of a YouTube post matter?
To get a good number of views, you should first make sure that enough users notice your videos. To get into the rankings, you should play by YouTube's rules. YouTube algorithms consider many parameters, and the posting time of your videos is one of them.
How can one determine the best time to post on YouTube?
Get some basic YouTube posting stats, analyze your audience, and adapt that strategy for your specific type of content. Try a few posting schedules to see which works best for your channel.
Does the type of content influence the optimal posting time on YouTube?
Yes, it does. When coming up with a posting schedule, it's important to know what people are watching you to understand when they are most busy and when they are most willing to watch your videos. The type of content determines your audience.
What tools can help identify the optimal posting time on YouTube?
YouTube's stats are your primary tool. Go to a followers tab and find all the demographic data about people who watch you.
