Best Time to Post on YouTube (2026)
YouTube has only two timing studies and they disagree: Buffer’s 1.8 million videos favor Sunday mornings for long videos and Friday evenings for Shorts, while SocialPilot’s 301,000 favor weekday afternoons for long videos and a spread from early morning to evening for Shorts, with noon to 2 p.m. and 6 to 7 p.m. as its headline.
YouTube’s own help says publish time is not known to affect a video’s long-term performance and matters most for live streams and Premieres, so check your Studio audience report before you chase an hour.
By Tayyab, Founder
Studies last checked October 14, 2026: two publishers report YouTube. Every figure below links to the page it came from.
Convert the studies to your timezone
Pick where your audience is and the clock you schedule in. Every window below is something a named publisher printed; the converter only moves it between time zones and counts how many studies agree. It is not our data and it is not a prediction for your account.
Hours are shown as the studies print them, which for most is local time where the audience is. Pick a different place above to convert.
Most agreement: Wed 3 p.m., Sun 9 a.m., each named by 2 of 2 studies.
What the studies say, not our data. Hours named by at least 1 of 2 studies, in your clock.
- Monday7 a.m. (1), 9 a.m. (1), 2 to 4 p.m. (1), 10 p.m. (1)
- Tuesday8 to 10 a.m. (1), 11 a.m. (1), 2 to 4 p.m. (1)
- Wednesday7 a.m. (1), 3 to 6 p.m. (2)
- Thursday7 a.m. (1), 3 to 7 p.m. (1)
- Friday11 a.m. to 4 p.m. (1)
- Saturday8 to 11 a.m. (1), 12 p.m. (1), 3 p.m. (1)
- Sunday8 to 11 a.m. (2), 12 p.m. (1)
See each study’s windows in your clock
Buffer July 24, 2026
Mon 7 a.m., 9 a.m., and 10 p.m.; Tue 8 to 10 a.m. and 11 a.m.; Wed 7 a.m., 3 p.m., and 5 p.m.; Thu 7 a.m. and 5 to 7 p.m.; Fri 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. and 3 p.m.; Sat 10 a.m., 12 p.m., and 3 p.m.; Sun 9 to 11 a.m. and 12 p.m.
SocialPilot no date on the page
Mon 2 to 4 p.m.; Tue 2 to 4 p.m.; Wed 3 to 5 p.m.; Thu 3 to 5 p.m.; Fri 1 to 3 p.m.; Sat 8 to 10 a.m.; Sun 8 to 10 a.m.
What each study says about YouTube
Hours are shown exactly as published, on the clock in the last column. Use the converter above to move them to yours.
Long videos
| Study | Sample | Days | Hours, as published | Clock |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| BufferThe Best Time to Post on YouTube: Data from 1.8M Shorts and Long-form VideosPublished July 24, 2026 | About 1.8 million YouTube videos, Shorts and long-form, sent through Buffer. Measure: Median engagement, shown as an engagement factor. | Best: Sun, Tue, and Mon. Weakest: Thu and Wed | Mon 7 a.m., 9 a.m., and 10 p.m.; Tue 8 to 10 a.m. and 11 a.m.; Wed 7 a.m., 3 p.m., and 5 p.m.; Thu 7 a.m. and 5 to 7 p.m.; Fri 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. and 3 p.m.; Sat 10 a.m., 12 p.m., and 3 p.m.; Sun 9 to 11 a.m. and 12 p.m. | Local to the audience |
| SocialPilotBest Time to Post on YouTube in 2026: Videos and ShortsNo date on the page | 301,000 YouTube videos published through SocialPilot by 27,000+ channels. | Best: Wed, Thu, and Fri | Mon 2 to 4 p.m.; Tue 2 to 4 p.m.; Wed 3 to 5 p.m.; Thu 3 to 5 p.m.; Fri 1 to 3 p.m.; Sat 8 to 10 a.m.; Sun 8 to 10 a.m.Avoid: Before 9 a.m. and after 10 p.m. on weekdays. | Local to the audience |
YouTube Shorts
| Study | Sample | Days | Hours, as published | Clock |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| BufferThe Best Time to Post on YouTube: Data from 1.8M Shorts and Long-form VideosPublished July 24, 2026 | About 1.8 million YouTube videos, Shorts and long-form, sent through Buffer. Measure: Median engagement, shown as an engagement factor. | Best: Fri, Sat, and Thu. Weakest: Tue and Mon | Mon 5 to 7 p.m. and 8 p.m.; Tue 7 to 10 p.m.; Wed 7 to 10 p.m.; Thu 7 to 10 p.m.; Fri 4 p.m. and 6 to 8 p.m.; Sat 11 a.m. and 6 to 8 p.m.; Sun 5 p.m. and 7 to 9 p.m. | Local to the audience |
| SocialPilotBest Time to Post on YouTube in 2026: Videos and ShortsNo date on the page | 301,000 YouTube videos published through SocialPilot by 27,000+ channels. | Best: Fri, Sat, and Thu | Mon 7 a.m. and 12 p.m.; Tue 7 to 11 a.m. and 5 to 7 p.m.; Wed 12 p.m. and 3 to 6 p.m.; Thu 7 to 11 p.m.; Fri 7 to 9 a.m. and 11 a.m. to 1 p.m.; Sat 9 a.m. and 3 to 6 p.m.; Sun 10 a.m. and 3 to 5 p.m.Avoid: 3 a.m. to 7 a.m. and Sunday evenings.SocialPilot’s text and its table disagree on the Friday Shorts hours; this uses the table. | Local to the audience |
Where the YouTube studies agree and where they split
- Long videos: No day is named by more than one study.
- Long videos: Hours: Buffer leans to mornings and SocialPilot leans to afternoons.
- Long videos: 1 of the 2 studies that rank days name a weekend day among their best.
- Shorts: Days named most: Thursday, Friday, and Saturday (2 of 2 each).
- Shorts: Hours: SocialPilot leans to mornings and Buffer leans to evenings.
- Shorts: 2 of the 2 studies that rank days name a weekend day among their best.
Each study is placed by the part of the day that holds most of the hours it names across the week. For the reasons the numbers differ, and the pages we did not count, see how we read the studies.
What the studies say about YouTube specifically
- For long videos, Buffer’s data favor Sunday at 10 a.m. and mornings from about 8 a.m. to 11 a.m., with weekday early and mid afternoons the weakest, especially Wednesday and Thursday. It advises publishing one to two hours before your audience’s peak so YouTube can process and test the video. (Buffer)
- For Shorts, Buffer’s top slots are Friday at 4 p.m., 6 p.m. and 7 p.m. and evenings from about 6 p.m. to 9 p.m. peak, with afternoons weakest except late Friday. It adds that Shorts keep resurfacing for days or weeks. (Buffer)
- SocialPilot reads long videos the other way round: uploads of 2 to 4 p.m. on weekdays (3 to 5 p.m. on Wednesday and Thursday) and 8 to 10 a.m. on weekends, with Shorts at 12 to 2 p.m. or 6 to 7 p.m. and Friday, Saturday and Thursday best. (SocialPilot)
- YouTube’s own help says publish time is not known to affect a video’s long-term performance, that posting when your audience is most active may help early views, and that timing matters more for live streams and Premieres. (YouTube Studio Help)
Find your own best time on YouTube
Your followers are the only sample that matters for your account, and the network already holds it.
- Open YouTube Studio, then Analytics.
- Open the Audience tab.
- Find When your viewers are on YouTube, which covers the last 28 days.
- For long videos, publish a couple of hours before the busy block, as Buffer and SocialPilot both advise.
Source: YouTube Help: understand your audience. Also see YouTube Studio Help: does publish time matter?.
What our scheduler uses for YouTube, and where it comes from
For YouTube, the table’s three slots for a general account in North America are Thursday 12 p.m., Friday 5 p.m. and Saturday 10 a.m., in your account’s timezone. The table is a file in our code whose header credits Sprout Social, Hootsuite and Buffer research from 2024 and 2025; the scheduler does not read the studies above, and its scores only rank the slots against each other.
On Pro and up, the scheduler also re-ranks those slots from your own last 30 days of results once a network has at least 7 measured posts.
The full account, including what it needs before it learns anything from your posts, is on the best time to post hub. Niche-by-niche slots are on the YouTube scheduling page.
Frequently asked questions
What is the best time to post on YouTube?
It depends on the format, and the two large studies disagree. For long videos, Buffer favors Sunday at 10 a.m. and mornings from 8 a.m. to 11 a.m., while SocialPilot favors weekday afternoons from 2 p.m. to 4 p.m. For Shorts, Buffer favors Friday at 4, 6 and 7 p.m. and SocialPilot noon to 2 p.m. or 6 to 7 p.m.
Does the time I upload to YouTube matter?
YouTube’s own help says publish time is not known to affect a video’s long-term performance, and that timing matters more for live streams and Premieres, which its audience report can help you schedule. SocialPilot adds that timing is a minor factor for small channels and cannot fix weak content.
What is the best day to post on YouTube?
For long videos Buffer ranks Sunday, Tuesday and Monday first and Thursday and Wednesday last, while SocialPilot ranks Wednesday, Thursday and Friday first. For Shorts both put Friday, Saturday and Thursday on top. Only Shorts have a day the two studies agree on.
Do these times use my timezone?
Both studies read every hour as local time where the viewer is: Buffer adjusted its slots so no conversion is needed, and SocialPilot says to use your target audience’s local time rather than the place you upload from.
How do I find when my viewers are on YouTube?
In YouTube Studio, open Analytics, then the Audience tab, and find When your viewers are on YouTube. It covers the last 28 days. Buffer and SocialPilot both advise publishing a couple of hours before the busy block so the video has time to be processed and tested.
How does Content Drifter pick YouTube posting times?
Its default YouTube slots for a general account in North America are Thursday 12 p.m., Friday 5 p.m., and Saturday 10 a.m., in your account’s timezone. The table does not split long videos from Shorts, its header credits 2024 and 2025 research, and the scheduler does not read the studies above.
Let your own results pick your YouTube slots
Connect YouTube and Content Drifter schedules posts into suggested slots, then learns from how your own posts perform. The studies above are where to start; your results are where to finish.
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