Here's something most creators miss: the difference between posting a Facebook Reel at 3 AM versus 7 PM can mean the difference between 500 views and 50,000 views. Same content, wildly different results.
And in 2025, this matters more than ever. Facebook made a massive shift – every single video you upload is now automatically a Reel. That means the algorithm for short-form video isn't just important anymore; it's the only video algorithm that matters on Facebook. If you're not timing your posts strategically, you're essentially throwing great content into the void and hoping someone finds it.
This guide cuts through the guesswork with fresh 2024-2025 data on exactly when to publish your Facebook Reels for maximum reach. But more importantly, you'll understand why certain times work – and how to identify the optimal windows for your specific audience. Because while there are proven high-traffic periods that work for most creators, the absolute best posting time is the one that aligns with when your followers are actively scrolling and ready to engage.
Here's what we'll cover:
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Why timing is critical for how the Facebook Reels algorithm distributes your content
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The best posting times backed by recent data (including one surprising late-night window that consistently crushes it)
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A step-by-step process to find YOUR optimal posting schedule using analytics
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How to track and refine your timing strategy over time
By the end, you'll have a data-driven posting strategy that maximizes every Reel you publish.
Why Does Posting Time Affect Facebook Reels Views?
Before we jump into the "when," let's talk about the "why" – because understanding how the Facebook Reels algorithm works will completely change how you approach posting.
When you publish a Reel, Facebook doesn't immediately blast it to millions of people. Instead, it shows your content to a small initial audience – typically your followers plus a sampling of others – to test the waters. The algorithm watches one thing closely: how quickly people engage with your Reel.
If viewers start watching, liking, commenting, and sharing within the first hour or two after posting, that's a massive green light to Facebook. The algorithm interprets early engagement as a signal that your content is worth showing to a broader audience. Think of it like a snowball rolling downhill – that initial momentum determines whether it grows into an avalanche or peters out.
This is where timing becomes crucial. Posting when your audience is actively online gives your Reel that running start it needs. Research shows that posting during peak activity hours increases the chances of early engagement, which Facebook's algorithm favors to improve reach.
Post at 3 AM when your followers are asleep? Your Reel sits there accumulating dust in those critical first hours. Post at 7 PM when they're scrolling on the couch after work? You've got dozens of eyes on it immediately, telling the algorithm this content deserves more distribution.
Here's another key piece: Reels are specifically designed for discovery beyond just your existing followers. Facebook describes them as "immersive videos that entertain your fans and help introduce your content to new audiences." They show up in the dedicated Reels feed, in Facebook Watch, and get pushed to people who don't follow you yet. But to unlock that wider reach, your Reel needs to prove itself with strong early performance. A well-timed post doesn't just reach your fans – it opens the door to reaching thousands of potential new followers.
There's also a competitive angle to consider. Since every video on Facebook is now a Reel, you're competing in a flood of video content. Your followers have limited attention and scrolling time.
When you post during their peak activity windows, you're catching them at the moment they're most receptive – not buried under 50 other posts they'll never scroll back to see.
Think of timing as surfing. The wave of user activity is there whether you catch it or not. Post at the right moment, and you ride that wave to exponentially more views. Miss it, and even incredible content can sink without a trace. Timing won't magically fix a bad video, but it absolutely can be the factor that lets a great video actually get seen and shared.
Now that you understand why timing matters, let's get into the data on when to post.
What Are the Best Times to Post Facebook Reels?
So when exactly are those waves of user activity happening on Facebook? Recent studies analyzing millions of Reels have identified some clear patterns. These are generalized trends, so your specific audience might vary – but they're an excellent starting point for your posting strategy.
When Should You Post Facebook Reels for Maximum Views?
Midnight Going Into Saturday: The Surprising Champion
This might sound counterintuitive, but data shows that midnight going into Saturday (late Friday night) is the single best time to post Facebook Reels. Analysis found Reels posted at this time averaged significantly higher views than other time slots.
Why does this odd hour perform so well? A few factors at play: there's less competition from new posts as many creators aren't publishing at midnight. The late-night scrollers who are online tend to be highly engaged – people unwinding before bed, scrolling through their feeds with focused attention.
And by posting just as Saturday begins, your Reel has all night and the next morning to accumulate engagement before the weekend rush hits.
Early Morning (7:00-9:00 AM): The Commute & Coffee Window
Morning hours, particularly 7-9 AM, consistently perform well for Facebook Reels and other short-form video platforms. Think about the typical person's routine: they wake up, check their phone, scroll while having breakfast, browse during their commute (if they take public transit), or scroll in the parking lot before heading into work.
This is prime snackable content time. People aren't trying to read long articles at 7:30 AM – but they'll absolutely watch a quick, entertaining Reel.
If your content is engaging, you'll catch viewers in that groggy-but-receptive morning state, and your Reel builds momentum throughout the day as the algorithm recognizes that strong early performance.
Evening After Work (5:00-8:00 PM): The Wind-Down Window
The early evening slot is another consistently strong performer for Facebook Reels. Between 5 PM and 8 PM, people are finishing their workday, making dinner, settling onto the couch, or unwinding from a long day. Many turn to Facebook during these hours specifically to relax and be entertained.
This window captures what's essentially prime time for social media. Viewers have more leisure time to watch videos, engage with content, and share things they find interesting. Post a Reel at 6:30 PM, and you're meeting your audience exactly when they're looking for something to watch.
Midday Lunch Break (11:00 AM-2:00 PM): The Reliable Steady Window
Don't overlook the lunch crowd. Facebook activity tends to spike around midday on weekdays, roughly between noon and 2 PM. People step away from their desks, pull out their phones while eating, and scroll through social media as a mental break from work.
While midday might not hit the stratospheric highs of late-night or prime evening slots, it's a reliable high-activity period that reaches a broad, diverse audience. It's particularly effective for B2B content or professional audiences who are most active during traditional business hours.
What Days Are Best for Posting Facebook Reels?
Not all days are created equal when it comes to Facebook Reels engagement:
Mid-Week Days Are Peak Days
Research consistently shows that Wednesday is the single best day overall, with Thursday and Tuesday also performing particularly well. By Wednesday, people have settled into their weekly routine and might be looking for a mid-week distraction. Thursday maintains strong engagement as the week continues. Friday shows mixed results—while it can work for light, entertaining content posted early in the day, overall engagement tends to drop in the afternoon as people enter weekend mode.
Monday can also be solid, especially earlier in the day as people ease back into the work week and catch up on social media they might have missed over the weekend.
Weekends: Know Your Audience
Here's where things get audience-dependent. Overall Facebook traffic can dip on Saturdays and Sundays compared to weekdays – many people are out doing activities, spending time with family, or generally away from their screens. Saturday mid-days can be hit or miss, and Sunday evenings often see lower interaction as people prep for the week ahead.
However, there are important exceptions. That late Friday night/early Saturday slot we mentioned? Total outlier and opportunity.
And if your target audience skews younger – Gen Z and millennials – weekends might actually be prime time for short-form video content. Younger users often scroll through social media heavily on weekend afternoons and late nights to unwind. A gaming brand, entertainment content creator, or pop culture page might find their most engaged audience online Saturday afternoon, while a B2B company probably won't.
Facebook Reels Posting Schedule: Quick Reference Guide
To summarize the data:
Late Night Winner: 12:00 AM Friday night/Saturday morning
Morning Boost: 7:00-9:00 AM (especially weekdays)
Evening Power Hours: 5:00-8:00 PM
Lunch Break: 11:00 AM-2:00 PM
Best Days: Wednesday, Thursday, Tuesday
Slower Days: Saturday mid-day, Sunday evening (with exceptions)
How to Schedule Facebook Reels in Advance
You're probably thinking, "I'm not staying up until midnight every Friday to post a Reel." Smart – you shouldn't have to. Both Meta Business Suite and various third-party social media monitoring tools allow you to schedule Reels in advance.
Take advantage of scheduling to hit these optimal windows without disrupting your workflow or sleep schedule. Batch-create your content, schedule posts for those high-engagement time slots, and let automation handle the rest. You can literally set up a week's worth of perfectly timed Reels in one sitting.
These global trends give you a strong foundation – but here's the thing: your specific audience might have different patterns. A fitness brand might find 6 AM crushes it because that's when their audience is at the gym. A parenting page might see 9 PM spike when kids are in bed. The next section shows you exactly how to find YOUR optimal posting time.
How Do I Find the Best Time to Post for My Audience?
Industry benchmarks are useful, but the absolute best time to post your Facebook Reels is when your specific audience is online and engaged. Every page's follower base has unique habits, time zones, and activity patterns. Here's how to identify your golden posting windows:
How to Check When Your Facebook Followers Are Most Active
Facebook hands you valuable data on when your followers are most active – you just need to know where to look.
Log into your Facebook Page and navigate to Meta Business Suite > Insights > Audience > Trends. This section shows you the specific hours and days when your followers are online. You'll see a heat map or chart breaking down activity by hour and day of the week.
This data is gold. If you notice your follower activity peaks at 9 PM each evening, that's a strong signal to schedule your Reels for around 8:45-9:00 PM to catch that wave. Similarly, if Sundays show surprisingly high activity for your page (even though they're generally slower), lean into that – post on Sundays and capitalize on when your fans are engaged, not just what works for the average Facebook page.
Pay attention to both the peak hours (highest bars on the chart) and secondary peaks. You might find you have two strong windows – say, 8 AM and 7 PM – giving you two opportunities daily to maximize reach.
What Tools Track Facebook Reels Performance by Posting Time?
While Facebook Insights gives you follower activity times, it doesn't always connect the dots between when you post and how your content performs. This is where dedicated analytics tools become invaluable.
Shortimize specializes in exactly this problem. It's a cross-platform analytics tool built specifically for short-form video – tracking your Reels across Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, and YouTube Shorts all in one dashboard. Instead of manually piecing together which posts performed best at what times, Shortimize provides visual charts showing your posting schedule correlated with view counts and engagement.
Here's what that looks like in practice: Shortimize automatically tracks every Reel you publish, monitoring its performance over time. Then it surfaces patterns – showing you that, for example, your 7:30 PM posts consistently get 40% higher average views than your noon posts. Or that Wednesday evenings vastly outperform Monday mornings for your specific content and audience.
The platform handles multiple accounts effortlessly (perfect if you're managing content for clients or running several brand accounts) and organizes your top-performing videos into Collections. You can filter by time period, compare performance across platforms, and identify exactly which posting strategies are working.
Shortimize essentially removes the guesswork from timing optimization. Instead of relying on general best practices, you get concrete data: "Your best posting window is 6-8 PM on Wednesdays and Fridays based on your last 50 Reels." That specificity is powerful.
If you're serious about maximizing your Reels performance, Shortimize offers a 7-day free trial – enough time to track a week's worth of content and start identifying your optimal posting patterns.
How to Test Different Posting Times for Facebook Reels
Data is great, but nothing beats direct experimentation. Set up systematic tests to see what works specifically for your content and audience.
Here's how: Take two Reels of similar quality and topic, and post one at time A and another at time B. For example, post a video on Wednesday at 8:00 AM, then the following Wednesday post comparable content at 8:00 PM. Keep everything else as similar as possible – video quality, length, topic, thumbnail – so you're isolating the effect of timing.
Watch what happens. Which Reel gets more views in the first hour? Which has stronger engagement after 24 hours? Which one did the algorithm push to a broader audience?
Do this consistently for several weeks across different time slots. You'll start to see clear patterns emerge in your video performance data – maybe mornings consistently outperform afternoons for you, or weekends actually crush it for your specific audience despite the general trend suggesting otherwise.
The key is to keep testing and refining. What works in January might shift by June as your audience grows or their habits change. A/B testing keeps you agile and responsive to those shifts.
Do Time Zones Affect Facebook Reels Posting Strategy?
If you have a geographically diverse audience, determining one "best" posting time gets trickier – but it's absolutely manageable.
Start by identifying where the majority of your followers are located. Facebook Insights shows you the top cities and countries for your audience. If 80% of your viewers are in the Eastern US time zone, schedule for Eastern Time peaks. Problem solved.
But what if you have two significant audience segments – say, one in North America and another in Europe? You have options:
Rotate posting times on different days to serve both groups fairly. Schedule some Reels for 6 PM Eastern (catching evening in the Americas) and others for 6 PM GMT on different days (hitting evening in Europe). Over the course of a week or month, you're giving both segments of your audience quality content during their peak hours.
Identify overlap windows where both time zones have decent activity. Early morning Eastern might catch European evenings, for example.
Create separate content strategies for each major geographic segment if your audience is truly global. This is advanced, but large brands sometimes maintain region-specific posting schedules.
The important thing: be fair to all major segments of your audience over time. Don't always post at 3 AM your time just because it's convenient for you, if that means a huge chunk of your followers never see your content during their active hours.
Should I Post at the Same Time on Facebook and Instagram?
Many creators cross-post their Reels to both Instagram and Facebook to maximize reach – smart move. But here's something to keep in mind: the platforms may be owned by the same company (Meta), but they have different audience behaviors.
Your Instagram followers might be most active at 6 PM, while your Facebook page's followers peak at 8 PM. The demographics can differ (Instagram skews younger, Facebook has a broader age range). The contexts in which people use each platform vary.
So while cross-posting is great for reach, consider staggering your posts to optimize timing on each platform. Post to Instagram first at their optimal time, then schedule the Facebook version for a couple hours later when that audience is most active.
Check the analytics for each platform separately – both have "when your followers are online" data built into their Insights. Treat them as related but distinct channels. The extra effort to customize timing for each can significantly boost performance across both.
How Often Should I Review My Facebook Reels Posting Times?
Your audience isn't static, and neither should your posting strategy be. People's routines change, new followers join with different habits, platform algorithm shifts, and seasonal variations affect when people are online.
Make it a habit to revisit your analytics every quarter and ask: are the patterns still holding? That 9 PM slot that crushed it in January might be less effective in June if your audience demographics have shifted. Or you might discover that as you gained followers in a new time zone, your optimal posting windows have changed.
Stay agile and willing to adjust your content strategy. Social media success is an ongoing process of testing, measuring, learning, and refining. The good news: if you're using tools like Shortimize and keeping an eye on native platform Insights, you'll spot these shifts early and can adapt before your performance suffers.
By combining broad research with your specific data, you create a powerful strategy. Start with the proven high-engagement windows we covered earlier (early morning, evening, late night) as your baseline theory, then test and refine in practice using your actual results. Over time, you'll develop an intuition for your community – and a data-backed posting schedule that consistently delivers results.
Advanced Tactics to Maximize Facebook Reels Performance
Once you've nailed your optimal posting times, here are some advanced tactics to take your Facebook Reels strategy even further:
Establish Posting Consistency
Once you identify your sweet spot times, stick with them. Consistency matters for two reasons: audiences can become trained to expect content at certain times (building anticipation), and the Facebook algorithm tends to favor creators who post regularly and maintain a consistent schedule.
If 7 PM on Wednesdays and Fridays works well, make that a standing appointment with your audience. The reliability builds trust and habit.
Track Competitors' Posting Strategies
Curious when your competitors are posting and how it's working for them? Shortimize lets you track any public account across Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, and YouTube. You can monitor their posting schedule, see which of their videos are performing best, and identify patterns in their strategy.
This competitive intelligence is invaluable. Maybe you notice a competitor in your niche consistently posts at 10 PM and gets strong engagement – that's a signal to test that window yourself. Or you might spot gaps in when they're posting, giving you opportunities to own certain time slots while they're absent.
Leverage Collections to Organize Top Performers
As you build a library of content, Shortimize's Collections feature lets you group your best-performing Reels together. Create Collections based on posting time (e.g., "Morning Winners" and "Evening Hits") to easily reference what's worked and identify patterns.
This organizational system makes it simple to analyze: "My top 10 Reels this quarter – when were they posted?" That pattern recognition informs future strategy.
Set Up Performance Alerts
Shortimize integrates with Slack and Discord, allowing you to receive notifications when a video is going viral or hitting certain performance thresholds. This real-time feedback lets you capitalize on momentum – if a Reel suddenly takes off, you can engage with comments immediately, prepare follow-up content, or adjust your posting schedule to ride the wave.
Analyze Trending Content Patterns with Timing Context
When you spot trending topics or content formats performing well in your niche, note when those successful Reels were posted. The combination of trendy content + optimal timing is potent. Shortimize's discovery features help you identify similar accounts and viral videos for inspiration, and you can see exactly when those high performers went live.
Facebook Reels Timing Mistakes to Avoid
Even armed with data, it's easy to fall into these traps. Watch out for:
Posting at Times Convenient for YOU, Not Your Audience
Just because you create content at 2 AM doesn't mean you should post it then (unless your data says your audience is active at 2 AM). Separate creation time from posting time by using scheduling tools.
Ignoring Your Analytics Data
You have access to incredible data through Facebook Insights and tools like Shortimize – actually use it. Too many creators rely on guesswork or outdated advice instead of looking at their real performance metrics.
Assuming One-Size-Fits-All Timing Works Forever
What works for a general audience might not work for you. What worked last quarter might not work now. Stay flexible and keep testing.
Not Accounting for Time Zone Differences
If you're based in Los Angeles but most of your audience is in New York, posting at "7 PM" your time means it's 10 PM for your followers – potentially past their peak activity. Always consider audience location.
Forgetting to Schedule Posts for Optimal Hours
Those odd-hour opportunities (like midnight Friday) are golden – but only if you actually post then. Use scheduling so you never miss an optimal window just because it's inconvenient.
Neglecting to Revisit and Update Your Strategy
Set a quarterly reminder to review your posting time performance. What worked six months ago might have changed as your audience evolved.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the absolute best time to post Facebook Reels?
Based on 2025 data, midnight going into Saturday (late Friday night) shows the highest average views, followed by early morning (7-9 AM) and evening (5-8 PM). However, the absolute best time for YOU depends on when your specific audience is most active. Check your Facebook Insights and test different windows to find your optimal times.
Does posting time really affect Reels views that much?
Yes, significantly. The Facebook Reels algorithm prioritizes early engagement – the first 1-2 hours after posting are critical. Posting when your audience is online increases the chances of that crucial initial engagement, which signals to the algorithm that your content deserves wider distribution. Same Reel posted at different times can see dramatically different reach.
Should I post my Reels at the same time on Facebook and Instagram?
Not necessarily. While both are Meta platforms, they have different audience behaviors and demographics. Check the analytics for each platform separately – your Instagram followers might peak at 6 PM while your Facebook audience is most active at 8 PM. Consider staggering posts to optimize timing for each platform rather than cross-posting simultaneously.
How do I find when MY audience is most active?
Go to Meta Business Suite > Insights > Audience > Trends to see when your Facebook followers are online. For deeper analysis, use a tool like Shortimize to correlate your posting times with actual performance data and identify patterns in which time windows generate the most engagement for your content.
What tools can help me track my best posting times?
Facebook's native Insights show when followers are online. For more comprehensive tracking, Shortimize provides detailed analytics on your Reels performance across Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, and YouTube Shorts, with visual charts showing how posting time correlates with views and engagement. It tracks all your videos automatically and identifies your optimal posting patterns.
Can I schedule Facebook Reels in advance?
Absolutely. Meta Business Suite has built-in scheduling for Reels, and many third-party social media monitoring tools also support scheduled posting. This lets you hit optimal posting times (even odd hours like midnight) without having to be at your computer at that exact moment. Batch create content and schedule it strategically.
Do weekends or weekdays perform better for Facebook Reels?
Generally, weekdays (especially Wednesday, Thursday, and Tuesday) see higher engagement than weekends. However, there are exceptions – late Friday night going into Saturday is actually the top-performing time overall. Weekend performance also depends heavily on your audience; younger demographics (Gen Z) often scroll more on weekends. Check your specific audience data.
How long does the "golden hour" last after posting a Reel?
The first 1-2 hours after posting are most critical for engagement. The algorithm watches closely during this window to determine whether your Reel deserves broader distribution. However, momentum can build over several hours – a Reel that gains traction in the first hour might continue getting pushed by the algorithm for 6-12 hours or even days if engagement stays strong.
Should I delete and repost a Reel if I posted at the wrong time?
Generally no. Facebook's algorithm doesn't love seeing duplicate content, and if the Reel has already gotten some engagement, you'd be throwing that away. Better approach: learn from the timing mistake, note it in your tracking, and optimize the timing for your next Reel. Save the content idea and potentially recreate it with improvements to post at a better time in the future.
How often should I review and update my posting time strategy?
Review your analytics quarterly (every 3 months) to check if patterns have changed. Also revisit immediately if you notice a sudden drop in performance, as it might indicate your optimal times have shifted. Major audience growth, seasonal changes, or platform algorithm updates are all good triggers to reanalyze your posting strategy.
Does Facebook's algorithm change affect timing strategy?
Meta regularly updates the algorithm, though timing remains consistently important because it's tied to user behavior patterns (when people are online) rather than just algorithm mechanics. That said, algorithm changes can affect how much timing matters or how quickly the algorithm amplifies content. Stay informed about major updates and be ready to adjust if you notice your tried-and-true times suddenly aren't performing as well.
Can I use the same posting times for all types of content?
Generally yes, since optimal times are based on when your audience is active regardless of content type. However, certain content might perform differently – for example, educational content might do better during work hours, while entertainment content might peak in evenings. Test different content types at various times to see if specific patterns emerge.
Start Optimizing Your Posting Times Today
The difference between a Reel that gets 500 views and one that reaches 50,000 often comes down to timing. Not because timing is magic, but because it aligns your content with the moment your audience is ready to watch, engage, and share.
Here's your action plan:
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Check your Facebook Insights today to see when your followers are most active
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Start testing the high-performing windows from this guide (early morning, evening, late Friday night)
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Track your results to identify which times work best for your specific audience
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Use scheduling tools to consistently hit those optimal posting windows
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Refine continuously based on what your data tells you
And if you want to take the guesswork out of optimization entirely, try Shortimize free for 7 days. Track your Facebook Reels (plus Instagram, TikTok, and YouTube Shorts) all in one place, see exactly which posting times correlate with your best performance, and get visual analytics that make timing optimization effortless.
The data is clear: posting at the right time gives your Reels the initial momentum they need to reach their full potential. With the strategies from this guide, you'll never again wonder "when should I post this?" – you'll know exactly when, backed by data.
Your next Reel deserves to be seen by as many people as possible. Post it at the right time, and watch what happens.
