PostEaseThe short answer
It depends on the format, because long videos and Shorts peak at almost opposite times. For a long video, publish on a weekend morning, around 9 to 10 a.m. in your viewers’ local time, or on a weekday afternoon. For a Short, publish in the late afternoon or evening, with Friday the strongest day.
Both large studies of 2026 found the split. Buffer, across 1.8 million videos, puts the best long-video slots at Sunday 10 a.m. and 9 a.m., and the best Shorts slots on Friday at 4, 6 and 7 p.m. SocialPilot, across 301,000 videos from 27,000 channels, puts long videos at 2 to 4 p.m. on weekdays and 8 to 10 a.m. on weekends. Then check YouTube Studio, which shows when your own viewers are on YouTube.
What two 2026 studies found
Both studies split long videos from Shorts, which is why their findings are more useful than a single chart for all of YouTube.
| Study | Data | Long videos | Shorts |
|---|---|---|---|
| Buffer, Jul 2026 | 1.8 million videos | Sunday 10 a.m. and 9 a.m., Friday 12 p.m.; weakest Wednesday and Thursday | Friday 4, 6 and 7 p.m.; weakest Monday and Tuesday |
| SocialPilot, Jul 2026 | 301,000 videos from 27,000 channels | Weekdays 2 to 4 p.m., weekends 8 to 10 a.m.; weakest before 9 a.m. and after 10 p.m. | Midday and evening windows; weakest 3 to 7 a.m. and Sunday evening |
The best time to post a long YouTube video, day by day
For a long video on a fixed day, this is each study’s best slot, in your viewers’ local time. The two agree on weekend mornings and differ on weekdays: Buffer leans towards mornings, SocialPilot towards the afternoon.
| Day | Buffer | SocialPilot |
|---|---|---|
| Monday | 9 a.m. | 2 to 4 p.m. |
| Tuesday | 9 a.m. | 2 to 4 p.m. |
| Wednesday | 7 a.m. | 3 to 5 p.m. |
| Thursday | 5 p.m. | 3 to 5 p.m. |
| Friday | 12 p.m. | 1 to 3 p.m. |
| Saturday | 12 p.m. | 8 to 10 a.m. |
| Sunday | 10 a.m. | 8 to 10 a.m. |
The best time to post a YouTube Short, day by day
Shorts peak later in the day in Buffer’s data, with every day’s best slot between 4 and 8 p.m. SocialPilot finds two windows on most days, one around midday and one in the evening.
| Day | Buffer | SocialPilot |
|---|---|---|
| Monday | 8 p.m. | 7 a.m. or 12 p.m. |
| Tuesday | 8 p.m. | 7 to 11 a.m. or 5 to 7 p.m. |
| Wednesday | 7 p.m. | 12 p.m. or 3 to 6 p.m. |
| Thursday | 7 p.m. | 7 to 11 p.m. |
| Friday | 4 p.m. | 7 to 9 a.m. or 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. |
| Saturday | 7 p.m. | 9 to 10 a.m. or 3 to 6 p.m. |
| Sunday | 7 p.m. | 10 to 11 a.m. or 3 to 5 p.m. |
Why the hour matters less on YouTube than on a feed
A post on a feed has a short life: it is shown near the time it goes out, then sinks. A YouTube video can keep being found through search and suggestions for months, so the upload hour mostly shapes its first day, not its lifetime. That first day still counts, because the viewers who arrive early are the ones whose watching tells YouTube who else might like the video.
Long videos and Shorts are watched in different moments, which is why they peak at different times. A long video suits time set aside for it, such as a weekend morning. A Short suits a few spare minutes, such as the end of a working day.
How to find your own best time to post on YouTube
YouTube shows you more about your own audience than most platforms do. Three steps:
- Open YouTube Studio, go to Analytics, then Audience, and find the report on when your viewers are on YouTube. YouTube’s Help Center says it “shows you when your viewers are online across YouTube in the last 28 days,” and suggests it for deciding when to schedule a Premiere or plan a live stream. The Top geographies report on the same tab shows where your watch time comes from.
- Publish a little before the darkest part of that chart, so the video is live when your viewers arrive. Test two slots for long videos and two for Shorts, over three or four uploads each.
- Compare the typical views in each slot over the first few days, not one video’s total. Keep the winner and check the report again each quarter.
Publish in your viewers’ time zone
Both studies report local time, meaning the time where your viewers are. YouTube Studio’s audience reports show which countries they watch from. If they are spread across time zones, choose the hours where the largest groups overlap, and schedule the upload ahead so it never depends on being at your desk.
If you connect YouTube to PostEase, the Performance page compares your hours for you. Its “When you publish” view lines up your videos by the hour they went out, in your workspace’s time zone, and shows the median views at each hour once three videos share it.
Questions
What is the best day to upload on YouTube?
Sunday for long videos and Friday for Shorts, in Buffer’s 1.8 million videos. SocialPilot finds Wednesday to Friday strongest overall. Both rank weekend mornings well for long videos.
What is the worst time to post on YouTube?
Overnight. SocialPilot finds long videos weakest before 9 a.m. and after 10 p.m., and Shorts weakest from 3 to 7 a.m. and on Sunday evening. Buffer ranks Wednesday and Thursday the weakest days for long videos.
Should Shorts and long videos go out at the same time?
No. Both studies find almost opposite peaks: long videos do best in the morning or early afternoon, Shorts in the late afternoon and evening. Schedule each format on its own slot.
How long before the peak should I publish?
Far enough that the video is live and processed when your viewers arrive. Publishing an hour or two before the busiest part of YouTube Studio’s chart is a common starting point to test.
Sources
- YouTube, Understand your YouTube audience, checked October 2026.
- YouTube, Get started with YouTube Analytics, checked October 2026.
- Buffer, The best time to post on YouTube: 1.8M Shorts and long-form videos, July 2026.
- SocialPilot, Best times to post on YouTube, July 2026.