The job board analysed millions of data points from its site between 1st July 2019 and 30th June 2020 to understand the most popular times and days of the week for job views and applications.
It reveals that the most common time and day for candidates to view jobs is between 10am and 11am on a Wednesday, however, certain industries bucked this trend, including Agriculture, IT, Leisure/Tourism and Media.
Alongside this, Monday at 11am and 12pm is the most popular time for job applications, however Tuesday is the most common day for applications in Accounting/Finance, Agriculture and Property; while Wednesday is in Construction, Engineering, Hospitality, Medical and the Public Sector. The full findings include:
Industry |
Best time/day for views |
Best time/day for applications |
Accounting/Finance |
10-11am, Wednesdays |
11am-12pm, Tuesdays |
Administration |
10-11am, Wednesdays |
11am-12pm, Mondays |
Agriculture |
10-11am, Tuesdays |
10-11am, Tuesdays |
Arts/Design |
10-11am, Wednesdays |
11am-12pm, Mondays |
Automotive |
10-11am, Wednesdays |
10-11am, Mondays |
Catering |
10-11am, Wednesdays |
11am-12pm, Mondays |
Charity |
10-11am, Wednesdays |
11am-12pm, Mondays |
Construction |
10-11am, Wednesdays |
10-11am, Wednesdays |
Customer Service |
10-11am, Wednesdays |
12-1pm, Mondays |
Distribution |
10-11am, Wednesdays |
10-11am, Mondays |
Education |
10-11am, Wednesdays |
11am-12pm, Mondays |
Electronics |
10-11am, Wednesdays |
10-11am, Mondays |
Engineering |
10-11am, Wednesdays |
10-11am, Wednesdays |
Hospitality |
10-11am, Wednesdays |
11am-12pm, Wednesdays |
IT |
10-11am, Mondays |
11am-12pm, Mondays |
Legal |
10-11am, Wednesdays |
11am-12pm, Mondays |
Leisure/Tourism |
10-11am, Mondays |
10-11am, Mondays |
Manufacturing |
10-11am, Wednesdays |
10-11am, Mondays |
Marketing |
10-11am, Wednesdays |
11am-12pm, Mondays |
Media |
10am-11am, Tuesdays |
11am-12pm, Mondays |
Medical |
10-11am, Wednesdays |
11am-12pm, Wednesdays |
Property |
10-11am, Wednesdays |
10am-11am, Tuesdays |
Public Sector |
10-11am, Wednesdays |
11am-12pm, Wednesdays |
Recruitment |
10-11am, Wednesdays |
11am-12pm, Mondays |
Retail |
10-11am, Wednesdays |
11am-12pm, Mondays |
Sales |
10-11am, Wednesdays |
10-11am, Mondays |
Social Care |
10-11am, Wednesdays |
11am-12pm, Mondays |
Telecoms |
10-11am, Wednesdays |
11am-12pm, Mondays |
Lee Biggins, founder and CEO of CV-Library comments: “There’s no one-size-fits-all when it comes to hiring; and as our data shows, candidate behaviour varies massively depending on the industry you’re recruiting in. While application rates are higher than usual right now, it’s still important to understand when the best time to advertise your jobs might be; so you can maximise your postings as much as possible.”
Further analysis from the job board reveals that:
- Professionals in Agriculture, Construction, Engineering, Hospitality, Leisure/Tourism, IT, Medical and the Public Sector are most likely to apply for jobs straight after they’ve viewed them
- People working in Accounting/Finance and Media will wait nearly a whole week (six days) between viewing a job and then applying for it
- Most other industries analysed will wait five days between viewing a job and applying for it (Wednesday was most common for views and Monday for applications)
Biggins continues: “We know that for some professions, the application process can be lengthy, which is why there may be a longer time lag between people viewing and applying. On the other end of the spectrum, some sectors like construction or hospitality may not even require people to apply with a CV, hence the shorter time frame.”