Key takeaways
- Sprout Social: Tuesday to Friday, 2–6pm; weekends worst.
- Buffer (7.1M posts): Sunday 9am, Monday 1pm and Sunday 1pm on top; Saturday the best day; evenings 6–11pm strongest.
- The two cannot both be followed, so test one window from each against your own audience.
- Post in your audience’s time zone, not yours.
On this page
What is the best time to post on TikTok?
Two large 2026 studies answer differently, so start from both:
| Sprout Social (31 Mar 2026) | Buffer (updated 14 Sep 2026) | |
|---|---|---|
| Sample | Nearly 2 billion engagements | 7.1 million posts |
| Best days | Monday to Friday | Saturday, then Monday and Sunday |
| Best times | Tuesday to Friday, 2–6pm | Sunday 9am, Monday 1pm, Sunday 1pm; evenings 6–11pm |
| Weakest | Weekends | Midday, 12–5pm |
What is the best day to post on TikTok?
It depends on which study you follow: weekdays for Sprout Social, Saturday for Buffer, whose Sunday and Monday slots also rank near the top. Neither published page explains the gap; samples, periods and how each counts engagement differ. Your own account is the tiebreaker.
How do you find your own best time on TikTok?
Run the two windows against each other instead of splitting the difference:
Pick one window from each study
A weekday afternoon (Sprout Social) and an evening or weekend slot (Buffer).
Alternate them
Post comparable videos in each window for several weeks.
Compare one metric
Views, watch time or shares, the same one each week.
Keep the winner
Make it your default slot, and retest every few months.
Does time zone matter for TikTok posting times?
Yes. The studies’ times are in the audience’s local time, so post for where your viewers are, not where you are; a global audience may need two slots. See the best time to post by time zone.
Does posting time matter as much as the video?
No. Buffer’s own study says content quality is the most important factor, and both studies say to test against your own audience. Timing is a lever worth testing once the videos are right; how often you post is covered in the TikTok posting schedule guide.
How do you schedule TikToks for the best time?
Upload the video or photo carousel, write the caption and pick the slot; SkedCast holds it and publishes it through TikTok’s API at that time, and the same clip can go to Reels and Shorts. Compare the slots in each post’s figures afterwards. See the TikTok scheduler and the best time to post on every platform.
Sources
FAQ
- What is the best time to post on TikTok?
- The two 2026 studies conflict: Sprout Social favours Tuesday to Friday 2–6pm, while Buffer (7.1M posts) favours Sunday 9am, Monday 1pm and evenings.
- What is the best day to post on TikTok?
- Weekdays per Sprout Social; Saturday per Buffer, with Sunday and Monday slots also near the top. Test both on your account.
- What is the worst time to post on TikTok?
- Weekends per Sprout Social; midday, 12–5pm, per Buffer.
- Why do TikTok best-time studies disagree so much?
- Their samples, periods and engagement definitions differ, and neither published page explains the gap, so your own account’s data is the tiebreaker.
- Does posting time matter as much on TikTok as other platforms?
- Buffer’s own study says content quality is the most important factor; timing is a secondary lever to test.