Best Time to Post on TikTok in 2026: Data From 176,367 Videos
Revid's data on 176,367 TikToks shows 3 to 6 a.m. ET beats the evening slot most guides recommend. Here is the best hour and day to post, and how to find yours.
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Based on Revid's analysis of 176,367 TikToks posted between October 2025 and October 2026, the best time to post on TikTok is 3 to 6 a.m. US Eastern, with 4 a.m. at the top. Saturday had the best median views, Sunday the most videos past 1 million, and 5 to 9 p.m. was the weakest window.
That last finding flips the most copied TikTok tip. "Post in the evening, 6 to 10 p.m." appears in almost every timing guide, yet in our data a video posted at 7 p.m. ET had a median of 50K views, while one posted at 4 a.m. had 120K. The hour you have probably been told to target is the one that did worst.
Best time to post on TikTok, hour by hour
Revid indexes viral TikToks with their public engagement data. For this study we took 176,367 TikToks with 1,000+ likes, posted between October 1, 2025 and October 16, 2026 by 61,203 creators, and compared posting hours for the 123,704 English-language videos, converted to US Eastern time. The full method and every chart are in our study of what makes a TikTok go viral.
Posts at 4 a.m. ET had the highest median (120K views) and the highest share past 1 million views (19.9%), against an overall median of 64.4K and 11.9% past 1 million. The 3 to 6 a.m. window was the strongest of the day. The 5 to 9 p.m. window was the weakest, with 7 p.m. as the low point at 50K.
Videos posted between 3 and 6 a.m. Eastern earned the most views and passed 1M views most often. The evening slot most guides recommend (5 to 9 p.m.) was the weakest of the day.
Source: Revid analysis of 123,704 English-language TikToks with 1,000+ likes posted between Oct 1, 2025 and Oct 16, 2026
Show the data
| Median views | Share that passed 1M views | |
|---|---|---|
| 12a | 67.3K | 14% |
| 1a | 79.4K | 15.1% |
| 2a | 79K | 14.2% |
| 3a | 90.8K | 16.1% |
| 4a | 120.4K | 19.9% |
| 5a | 93.5K | 16.7% |
| 6a | 97K | 17% |
| 7a | 75.8K | 13.1% |
| 8a | 83.9K | 14.3% |
| 9a | 70.5K | 13.1% |
| 10a | 65.5K | 13.6% |
| 11a | 65.7K | 13.1% |
| 12p | 60.4K | 11.9% |
| 1p | 60.9K | 11.8% |
| 2p | 53.7K | 11.2% |
| 3p | 63K | 11.9% |
| 4p | 63.8K | 11.5% |
| 5p | 55.6K | 11.1% |
| 6p | 55.3K | 11.5% |
| 7p | 50.4K | 11% |
| 8p | 60.5K | 12.3% |
| 9p | 62.2K | 13.1% |
| 10p | 62.3K | 12.6% |
| 11p | 67.2K | 13.3% |
| Posting time (US Eastern) | What the data showed |
|---|---|
| 3 to 6 a.m. | Best window of the day |
| 4 a.m. | Highest median (120K) and highest share past 1M views (19.9%) |
| All hours combined | 64.4K median, 11.9% past 1M views |
| 5 to 9 p.m. | Weakest window of the day |
| 7 p.m. | Lowest median of any hour (50K) |
Why 4 a.m. ET works (it is not about insomniacs)
English-language TikToks come from creators and viewers all over the world. A post at 4 a.m. Eastern lands in the morning in the UK and Europe and in the daytime in India and much of Asia. So "early morning ET" partly means "daytime for the rest of the English-speaking audience".
That changes how you should use the finding:
- If most of your followers live outside the US, the early ET window falls in their daytime. It is the strongest slot to test first.
- If your followers are mostly in the US, schedule a few posts in the 3 to 6 a.m. ET window and compare them with your followers' busiest hour. Let your own numbers decide.
- If you run a local business, post when your city is awake. Global medians matter less than the habits of the people who can actually visit you.
Best day to post on TikTok
Saturday had the best median views (70K), and Sunday had the highest share of videos past 1 million views (13.6%). Every weekday landed within a few percent of the others, between 63K and 65K median views. In practice, the hour you pick moves results far more than the day.
The bright band is the early morning, every day of the week. Each cell counts at least 242 videos.
Source: Revid analysis of 123,704 English-language TikToks with 1,000+ likes posted between Oct 1, 2025 and Oct 16, 2026
Show the data
Median views
| 12a | 1a | 2a | 3a | 4a | 5a | 6a | 7a | 8a | 9a | 10a | 11a | 12p | 1p | 2p | 3p | 4p | 5p | 6p | 7p | 8p | 9p | 10p | 11p | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mon | 72K | 70.9K | 66.4K | 86.9K | 104.6K | 84.9K | 95.2K | 82.6K | 77.4K | 69.9K | 75.3K | 65.6K | 56.9K | 67.2K | 53.4K | 57.5K | 60.5K | 58K | 57.9K | 49.4K | 60.3K | 62.9K | 61.8K | 60.9K |
| Tue | 69.9K | 90.2K | 103.9K | 110.5K | 127.6K | 91K | 91.6K | 69.4K | 88.8K | 65.1K | 62.2K | 65.4K | 62.4K | 58.4K | 51.5K | 64.7K | 60.7K | 58K | 53K | 45.7K | 57.5K | 60.4K | 60.4K | 57.2K |
| Wed | 62K | 91.2K | 63.8K | 79.8K | 113.7K | 81.2K | 95.1K | 76.3K | 75.6K | 72.6K | 60.3K | 61.2K | 56K | 57.8K | 55.1K | 63.7K | 74.5K | 44.7K | 68K | 47.4K | 62.7K | 60.9K | 60.8K | 64.6K |
| Thu | 70.5K | 52.7K | 72.4K | 102.4K | 111K | 119.1K | 118.1K | 91.7K | 74.5K | 73K | 67.9K | 62.2K | 60.2K | 61.7K | 55.2K | 61.2K | 68.5K | 55.8K | 59.6K | 45.8K | 52K | 58.2K | 61.7K | 78K |
| Fri | 65.5K | 73.3K | 86.2K | 84.1K | 104.5K | 98.6K | 96.8K | 60.6K | 91.6K | 71.2K | 62K | 62.4K | 58.2K | 59.5K | 54.8K | 64.5K | 63.8K | 58.6K | 52.1K | 54.4K | 68.4K | 58.3K | 56.9K | 70.7K |
| Sat | 71.3K | 79.9K | 74.9K | 76.9K | 160.2K | 88.8K | 92.7K | 80.3K | 75.8K | 70.3K | 68.9K | 70.8K | 72.2K | 62.9K | 55.4K | 71.9K | 64.2K | 71.2K | 49.9K | 55K | 72K | 76.2K | 76.7K | 86.7K |
| Sun | 65K | 111.5K | 91.4K | 89.2K | 138.2K | 92K | 92.8K | 75K | 104.3K | 75.6K | 65.5K | 75K | 57.8K | 61.2K | 49K | 61K | 60.2K | 47.7K | 51.8K | 52.2K | 58.2K | 66.6K | 65.4K | 76.3K |
Share that passed 1M views
| 12a | 1a | 2a | 3a | 4a | 5a | 6a | 7a | 8a | 9a | 10a | 11a | 12p | 1p | 2p | 3p | 4p | 5p | 6p | 7p | 8p | 9p | 10p | 11p | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mon | 13% | 14.1% | 13.3% | 15.1% | 21.4% | 15.2% | 17.7% | 13% | 15.5% | 13.6% | 14.3% | 12.8% | 11.4% | 12.7% | 9.7% | 11% | 12.6% | 11.1% | 11% | 10.5% | 11.8% | 11.8% | 11.6% | 13.5% |
| Tue | 13.1% | 15.6% | 14.7% | 17.8% | 20.5% | 14.6% | 18.5% | 13.6% | 16% | 13.4% | 12.2% | 12.6% | 12.6% | 11% | 10.4% | 12.2% | 10.1% | 11.3% | 10.6% | 9.7% | 12% | 13.3% | 12.1% | 10.9% |
| Wed | 13.8% | 15.2% | 13.2% | 15.1% | 18% | 15.5% | 14.1% | 14.8% | 11% | 11.7% | 13.3% | 12.3% | 11.3% | 11.6% | 11.5% | 11.9% | 12.4% | 9.8% | 13.4% | 10.8% | 12.2% | 13.2% | 11.5% | 16.5% |
| Thu | 13.8% | 11.3% | 12.5% | 15% | 18.3% | 18.4% | 16.4% | 13.7% | 11.9% | 13.1% | 13.5% | 12.3% | 10.7% | 11.7% | 12.1% | 12.6% | 12.4% | 10.6% | 11% | 12.1% | 10.5% | 11.9% | 12.3% | 14.1% |
| Fri | 15.3% | 14.3% | 14.5% | 15.1% | 20.1% | 17.9% | 17.5% | 10.5% | 14.3% | 12.9% | 11.5% | 14.2% | 13% | 12.5% | 10.8% | 12.2% | 10.6% | 11.3% | 10.5% | 10.5% | 13.4% | 11.9% | 11.3% | 11.5% |
| Sat | 14.8% | 16.8% | 16.7% | 18.6% | 20.2% | 17.1% | 15.3% | 12.6% | 14.7% | 12% | 14.3% | 12.9% | 12% | 10.8% | 11.7% | 12.4% | 10.5% | 13.5% | 13.4% | 10.8% | 13.4% | 15.8% | 17.1% | 13.4% |
| Sun | 14.4% | 18.2% | 14.7% | 16.1% | 21.5% | 17.9% | 19.5% | 13.5% | 17.5% | 15.9% | 16.4% | 14.6% | 12% | 12% | 12.3% | 10.8% | 11.7% | 10.4% | 10.3% | 13% | 13.6% | 14% | 13.3% | 12.7% |
Is Monday a good day to post on TikTok?
Yes, as good as any other weekday. Monday sits inside the same 63K to 65K weekday band as Tuesday through Friday, so the old "Tuesday to Thursday sweet spot" does not show up in recent data. On a Monday, focus on the hour: an early-morning ET post beats an evening one.
What time should you post on weekends?
Use the same early window. Saturday combined with 3 to 6 a.m. ET is the strongest pairing in the heatmap. Because Sunday produced the most breakout videos, put the post you most hope will travel (a new series, a trend you are early on) on Sunday. Before a weekend post, check rising TikTok trends so you ride a sound or format while it is still climbing.
Does the TikTok algorithm care what time you post?
Not directly, as far as TikTok has said. TikTok publishes no ideal posting time. The app opens on the personalized For You feed, and posting time only decides who is awake and scrolling when your video starts reaching people. Revid's data shows when the best-performing videos were posted, not a rule the algorithm applies.
The algorithm itself is also changing in the US. TikTok USDS Joint Venture LLC was established on January 23, 2026 to run TikTok in the US, and it will retrain, test and update the recommendation algorithm on US user data. Any timing advice, ours included, needs a check against your own analytics every few months.
Keep timing in proportion. In the same study, challenges had a 182K median, well above the 120K of the best posting hour. The format and the hook you choose move views more than the clock does.
What to do in the first hour after you post
TikTok does not publish how much early engagement counts, but the first hour is when your first viewers arrive, so be there for them:
- Post at a time when you can stay on your phone for the next hour.
- Pin a comment with a question that invites replies.
- Reply to early comments quickly; a reply often starts a second comment.
- Share the video to your Instagram Stories or other channels so your existing audience sees it early.
How to find your own best time in TikTok Studio
Revid's data gives you a starting slot. Your analytics give you the answer for your account.
- Open TikTok Studio: profile > menu > TikTok Studio > Analytics > View all. The same analytics are on Studio Web and in the TikTok Studio app.
- Open the Viewers tab to see when your viewers were most active over the last 7 days.
- Open the Followers tab to see follower activity broken down by hours and days.
- Set the date range to 28 or 60 days when you compare your past posts, so one lucky video does not skew the picture.
- Run a two-week test (schedule below), then compare each post's views after the same amount of time, for example its first 24 hours.
- Keep the winning slot and test a new challenger the following month.
For a faster read of what has worked on your account so far, run a free TikTok account audit.
Prompt to try
Make a 30-second vertical TikTok on 3 kitchen habits that waste money without you noticing. Open with the hook "You are throwing away $40 a week and you do not know it." Use fast cuts of stock footage, an upbeat friendly voiceover and bold synced captions, and end with a question that invites comments.
A best TikTok posting schedule you can copy
Test three slots for two weeks, and keep the type of video the same so you measure the time, not the content.
| Slot | When to post | Why test it |
|---|---|---|
| A: early window | 3 to 6 a.m. ET, scheduled in advance | Best window in Revid's data |
| B: your audience peak | The busiest hour in your Followers tab | Your own followers' habits |
| C: weekend | Saturday, early ET window | Best median day in Revid's data |
Week one: slot A on Monday, Wednesday and Friday, slot B on Tuesday and Thursday, slot C on Saturday. Week two: swap A and B. At the end, the slot with the higher views per post becomes your default, and the other becomes next month's challenger.
Posting for followers in several time zones
If your Followers tab shows two or three big countries, do not post the same video several times to cover them. Pick the slot that reaches your largest region in its daytime, then rotate slots across the week so each region gets some posts at a good hour. For English-speaking audiences split between the US and Europe, the early ET window already does much of this work, since it is morning in Europe.
TikTok LIVE teaser vs highlight video: when to post for a US audience
Going LIVE requires being at least 18 and having 1,000 followers (the follower threshold may vary by region). Treat the two videos differently:
- Teaser: post it earlier the same day or the day before, at your strongest slot, so it has time to collect views before you go live. Put the LIVE time and time zone in the on-screen text and the caption.
- Highlight: post it after the LIVE as a regular short video. The next early-morning ET slot works well, because by then it competes like any other post.
Who is on TikTok, and what it means for timing
In Pew Research Center's 2025 survey, 37% of US adults used TikTok, and use skews young: 63% of adults under 30 use it, compared with 12% of those 65 and older. About a quarter of US adults (24%) use TikTok daily, and roughly half of 18 to 29-year-olds go on it at least once a day. More figures are on our short-form video statistics page.
The takeaway for timing: age and location shape when your viewers scroll more than any universal chart does. If you target an older or very local audience, give your Followers tab more weight than global medians.
How to schedule TikTok posts so they go live at the right time
The early window is impractical to hit by hand, so schedule. TikTok Studio Web accepts uploads up to 60 minutes long and offers a schedule option when you upload; our guide on whether you can schedule TikTok videos covers the native options in detail.
Schedule TikToks with Revid
If you also need the videos themselves, Revid handles creation and scheduling in one place:
- Create a video in the AI TikTok video generator from a script or a link: it writes the visuals, voice-over and synced captions.
- Adjust anything in the timeline editor.
- Schedule it to TikTok, and to Instagram and YouTube if you cross-post, from one publishing queue.
- Compare slots using the views, likes and comments Revid reports for every published post.
For a steady test, an Auto-Mode worker can create a fresh video every day (3 workers on the Growth plan). If you cross-post to Reels, note that Instagram timing differs: see our best times to post on Instagram. Timing is one lever among several; the rest is in our TikTok follower growth playbook.
FAQ
What is the best time to post on TikTok today?
Between 3 and 6 a.m. US Eastern, whatever the day, based on Revid's 2025 to 2026 data. If you have missed that window, avoid 5 to 9 p.m. ET and post at the busiest hour shown in your TikTok Studio Followers tab.
What is the best time to post on TikTok on Sunday?
The same early window, 3 to 6 a.m. ET. Sunday had the highest share of videos past 1 million views of any day (13.6%), so it is a good day for the post you most want to break out.
Is it bad to post on TikTok in the evening?
It is the weakest choice on average: in Revid's data, 5 to 9 p.m. ET was the lowest window and 7 p.m. had the lowest median (50K views). Evening videos can still go viral, but if you can choose, schedule earlier.
Are 2025 TikTok posting times still accurate in 2026?
Many are not. Most 2025 guides pushed evening posting, while Revid's data running to October 2026 found evenings weakest and early mornings ET strongest, and TikTok's US algorithm is being retrained. Recheck your analytics every few months.
