A recurring question among job seekers is whether it makes any difference what day of the week they apply for a job. Do certain days improve the odds of an application or resume being noticed by a hiring manager, human resources team, or talent recruiter?  

This is a good and valid question. In today’s competitive hiring market, job candidates are eager to seize any strategy to stand out and be invited into a hiring company’s job interview and hiring process.  

In short, the answer is yes. Timing can make a difference. There is a broad consensus on what day or days of the week are best (and worst) to apply for a job – however, there are exceptions. For example, the best day to apply can vary depending on when a hiring company posts a job opening in the first place, as well as the urgency of their staffing needs.  

This article explores some statistics and opinions from recruiting industry experts, including our own, that reveal the best time to apply for a job.  

Maybe a better question is: What days are the least ideal to apply for a job?  

The hiring market is extremely complex, so it’s not surprising that there are different experiences and beliefs among recruiting experts, hiring companies, and job candidates. While the following scenarios can and do work for job candidates, they generally deviate from the broader consensus: 

• Fridays and Saturdays are not the best days of the week to apply for a job, simply because applications can pile up and go untouched and unread over the weekend. Consequently, this timeframe increases the chances of applications getting buried. Consider that many employers receive hundreds of applications in response to a single job posting.  

• There’s a common belief among job candidates that applying for a job on a Sunday evening or Monday morning may help bump their applications to the top of the list for review by a talent recruiter or hiring company. The rationale is that many recruiters and hiring managers are raring to go on Monday mornings to fill open positions. Also, many companies post new job openings on Mondays, so if candidates apply early, their applications may be among the first reviewed. Although that may or may not be the case, it ultimately depends on the recruiter and/or hiring manager working the search.
• Conversely, Mondays can be chaotic inside an HR department, which can increase the odds that job applications and resumes may get buried or go unnoticed. So, while some hiring managers may feel energized on Monday mornings, others may be busy fielding emails and other HR functions that they must deal with first.
• Dee Holland, Senior Recruiting Partner at Goodwin Recruiting, has noticed a bit of a trend in applications on Tuesday mornings. She stated, “I’m not sure if Tuesday is the best day, but by the end of Monday, most employees who considered changing roles over the weekend have usually made their decision and start applying for new positions on Tuesday.”  This day of the week may change based on the role and the industry, but looking at roles with a Monday through Friday schedule, that just may be the case – that a hiring manager could be finding better success finding new, uniquely qualified candidates on Tuesday mornings.

So – what’s the real sweet spot? 

The broader consensus among recruiters, hiring managers, and job candidates is that applications and resumes submitted on Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday garner the most attention and move candidates faster into the interview and hiring process. 

Our own findings bear this out. At Goodwin Recruiting, we ran the numbers on our job applicants from early January through late February 2025 to show the percentage of applications we received by day of the week. Here’s what we found… 

Those percentages show that weekdays see quite a bit more application traffic than weekends. They also reveal that Fridays could be a good day for you to contact a recruiter if you have questions about a position they are working to fill, as they may have a little more down time after wrapping up a busy week.  

Other factors that come into play 

• Is there a best time of day to submit a job application? Generally, and if possible, try to submit your application early in the morning on a business day, preferably before 10:00 a.m. If you’re applying for a job in a different time zone, keep the time differences in mind.  

• Customize your resume to the specific job and company. This will substantially increase your chances of getting noticed and landing an interview, no matter when you submit your application and resume. 

• Don’t hesitate to apply for a job that’s been available for a while. Today’s employers are very selective in hiring. Applying for a job that has been open for a long time doesn’t mean you’re late getting to the table. Rather, it likely means they haven’t found the right candidate. Further, many employers systematically keep job postings active for a certain number of days (sometimes a month or more) before narrowing down their candidate lists. These are often for specialized or leadership roles for which some employers want to cast a longer and wider net to attract top talent.  

• Similarly, don’t pass by jobs that have been reposted: As shared in this LinkedIn article from Forbes, when a job is reposted, it means the employer’s selection process has run its course. Now could be your time to strike as there may be a greater sense of urgency to fill the role this time.  

Take our advice to heart 

Ultimately, you are in control of your career and job search, so there’s no right or wrong day to apply for a job. Although there is a stronger trend that points to an early to middle-of-the-week strategy, use your best judgement. At Goodwin Recruiting, we recommend that you apply for a new role as soon as you see it posted, because a solid recruiter will be able to find your resume no matter when you submit it! 

We also recommend that you work with the professionals at Goodwin Recruiting to increase your likelihood of landing the job you want most. We not only have the ears of leading employers (every day of the week), but we’re also dedicated career coaches who maintain long-term relationships with our candidates. In other words, we’re your inside connection and we’re in this with you for the life of your career.