The short version
- Facebook schedules Page posts for free in Meta Business Suite, with no extra tool needed.
- Meta's help page says you can schedule a post between 20 minutes and 29 days ahead.
- Scheduling beats posting live when your week is full or you want to post at a steady time.
- Never schedule bad news, emergencies or anything that could be out of date by the time it posts.
You remember to post on Monday and forget by Thursday. Learning how to schedule Facebook posts fixes that: you write once, pick a time and Facebook posts it for you.
It's free, it's built in and it takes a few minutes. Here's how it works, when to use it and the posts you should never schedule.
How to schedule Facebook posts in Meta Business Suite
Facebook's own free tool for this is Meta Business Suite. Meta's help page, Schedule a post and manage scheduled posts for your Facebook Page (opens in a new tab), lays out the steps. In plain words, they go like this.
Switch to your Page
Make sure you're acting as your business Page, not your personal profile.
Open Meta Business Suite
Meta's page says to click Meta Business Suite in the left menu of your Page.
Create a post
Click Create post below the Page's profile picture, then add your text and photo.
Turn on a date and time
Next to Scheduling options, turn on the Set date and time toggle and choose when it should go out. Meta says times use your current time zone.
Click Schedule
Check the preview once more. Then click Schedule to finish.
When scheduling beats posting live
| Situation | Better choice | Why |
|---|---|---|
| You're slammed Mon to Thu | Schedule | Write on a quiet day and let it post while you work. |
| You're on vacation | Schedule | Your Page keeps showing up while you're away. |
| A routine post, like weekly hours or a Friday special | Schedule | Same time every week, no reminders needed. |
| Something is happening now | Post live | A new batch out of the oven or a crew at work is better in the moment. |
| Something might change | Post live | A weather closing or a sold-out item shouldn't wait for a timer. |
Most owners do both. Schedule the steady stuff and post live when something fun happens. Our guide to a weekly Facebook posting schedule shows a mix that works.
What to check before you schedule
- Spelling, prices and phone numbers. Read it out loud once.
- Hours and dates. Will they still be true on the day it posts?
- The photo. Is it yours, clear and cropped well?
- The time zone. Meta's page says times use your current time zone.
- The preview. Make sure it looks right on a phone.
If you're not sure when to pick, see the best time to post on Facebook for a local business. Pick a time your customers are likely to be online and then watch the results.
What you should never schedule
Safe to schedule
- Weekly specials and regular hours
- Before and after photos from finished jobs
- Tips and seasonal reminders
- Thank-you posts and crew spotlights
Never schedule
- Bad news, like a closing, a recall or a sad announcement
- Anything tied to an emergency or a local tragedy
- A post that mentions today's weather, news or events
- Time-sensitive sales that could sell out
- A cheerful post on a day something sad happens in town
How to keep a scheduled Page from going stale
Plan one week at a time
A week of posts is easy to see and easy to change. See how to batch a month of posts for a bigger plan.
Look at your queue every Friday
Skim what's set to go out. Edit or delete anything that no longer fits.
Still reply live
A scheduled post doesn't answer comments. Check your Page daily and reply, as covered in how to reply to Facebook comments.
Sources
Outside numbers in this article come from these pages.