When you finish building a campaign, Omnisend gives you several options for when to send it. You can send immediately, pick a specific date and time, or let Omnisend automatically choose the best time for each contact based on their engagement history.
Before You Begin
Confirm your store's time zone is correct before scheduling.
All scheduling options appear in the Review step of campaign setup, after completing the Content and Audience steps.
Schedule for later is available for all channels. The Optimize Send Time options are available for Email campaigns only.
Based on subscriber's time zone and the AI-powered Send Time Optimization options are not available for A/B test campaigns. A/B test campaigns can only be scheduled based on your store's time zone.
💬 Setting up your first campaign? See:
Verify Your Time Zone
Before scheduling, confirm your store's time zone is accurate:
Navigate to Store Settings → Store information.
Scroll to the Timezone field and update if needed.
Accurate settings ensure your campaigns send at the intended time.
Schedule Email Campaigns
In the Review step, you'll find three send options:
Send now – Delivers the campaign within 5 minutes. Use this when you're ready to send immediately.
Schedule for later – Sends at a specific date and time you choose, based on your store's time zone.
Optimize Send Time for Better Performance – A toggle that controls how the email is timed for each contact. Turn it on to choose from four delivery modes: based on subscribers' time zone, click rates, open rates, or placed orders.
Schedule for Later
Use this option to send at a specific date and time you choose.
Step 1. Select Schedule for later.
Step 2. In the Date field, choose a date. In the Time field, enter the time you want (for example, 9:00 AM or 2:30 PM).
Step 3. Click Schedule Campaign.
💡 Scheduled campaigns sent to segments automatically update the recipient list 1 minute before the send starts. Any contacts who join the segment at that moment are included in the campaign.
Optimize Send Time for Better Performance
Turn on the Optimize Send Time for Better Performance toggle to choose how the email is timed for each contact. Four delivery modes become available:
Based on the subscribers' time zone – Sends at the scheduled time in each contact's local time zone. Selected by default when you turn the toggle on.
Based on click rates – Sends each contact at the time they're most likely to click, based on their engagement history.
Based on open rates – Sends each contact at the time they're most likely to open, based on their engagement history.
Based on placed orders – Sends each contact at the time they're most likely to place an order, based on their purchase history.
The three AI-powered options deliver all emails within 24 hours of the date you select. Contacts without sufficient engagement history receive the email at your brand's best send time in their local time zone.
Based on subscribers time zone - Time Zone Optimization (TZO)
Time Zone Optimization (TZO) sends your Email Campaign at the same local time for each contact. Instead of one global send moment, each contact receives the email at, say, 9 AM in their own time zone – whether they're in New York, London, or Tokyo.
How Does TZO Work?
IP Address Identification - TZO determines your subscribers’ time zones using their IP addresses. These IP addresses are collected automatically when contacts subscribe through Omnisend Signup Forms.
Limitations - If you import a Country property for your contacts or add location data manually, TZO won’t work because it requires an IP address. Subscribers without IP addresses receive campaigns based on your store's time zone.
Note: If a subscriber's local time has already passed your scheduled send time, the email delivers within 5 minutes. Otherwise, it sends at the scheduled time in their time zone.
Example: If you schedule a TZO campaign for 8:00 AM at 8:30 AM your time, subscribers in time zones where 8:00 AM has already passed (e.g., Eastern Time if you're in Central) will receive the email immediately (within 5 minutes). Other subscribers receive it at their local 8:00 AM.
💡 Use Omnisend Signup Forms to automatically collect IP addresses and get TZO working for your full contact list.
AI-powered options – click rates, open rates, placed orders
The three AI-powered options let Omnisend automatically pick the best send time for each contact individually – based on when they've previously opened emails, clicked links, or placed orders. You only choose the date and what you want to optimize for; Omnisend handles the timing.
All emails are delivered within 24 hours of the date you select. Contacts without sufficient engagement history receive the email at your brand's best send time in their local time zone.
⚠️ Important notes about AI-powered options:
Available for Email campaigns only.
Your store must have sent at least 10 Email campaigns for this option to appear.
Included on the Pro plan. If you're on the Standard plan, you can purchase the Send Time Optimization add-on. Learn more about Omnisend pricing plans.
Legacy Pro plan users need to migrate to the current Pro plan to access this feature.
Step 1. Turn on the Optimize Send Time for Better Performance toggle.
Step 2. Select a delivery mode from the four options.
Step 3. In the SEND TIME section, select Schedule for later.
Step 4. In the Date field, choose a date.
If you selected Based on subscriber's time zone: also enter a time in the Time field. This time will be delivered in each contact's local time zone.
If you selected an AI-powered option: the Time field is locked since Omnisend picks the best send time for each contact within 24 hours of that date.
Step 5. Click Schedule Campaign.
💡 Delivery takes up to 24 hours from 12:00 AM on the date you selected. Contacts without engagement history receive the email at your brand's best send time in their local time zone.
Schedule SMS & Push Notification Campaigns
SMS and Push Notification campaigns can only be scheduled based on your store's time zone. Subscriber's time zone and personalized send time options are not available for these channels.
Step 1. Under the Review step of your SMS or Push Notification campaign, navigate to Send and select Schedule for later.
SMS Quiet Hours: If you schedule SMS campaigns during quiet hours, messages may be postponed to the next allowed delivery window (default: 8 PM–8 AM). This does not apply to Email or Push campaigns.
Step 2. Click the Select Date field and choose a date, and enter any time you want (e.g., 9:33 AM, 2:47 PM).
Step 3. Click Schedule Campaign.
💡 Once scheduled, the campaign will appear under the Campaigns tab with a Scheduled status.
Edit or Cancel a Scheduled Campaign
To make changes or cancel a scheduled campaign before it starts sending:
In the Campaigns tab, click on the three-dot menu (⋮) next to your scheduled campaign.
Click Restore to drafts.
Update the campaign content or settings in the campaign draft editor.
Reschedule the campaign.
Important Notes:
Only campaigns with the Scheduled status can be restored to drafts.
If an Email campaign has already moved to Started or Sending status, it can still be canceled. Find more details below.
If a "Sending" campaign is canceled from the Campaigns tab, it will move to Canceled status. It will not be restored to draft.
💡 When does the Campaign status change to "Started"?
For campaigns based on your time zone, status changes to "Started" as soon as the first message begins sending.
For TZO campaigns, status changes to "Started" when the first batch of emails begins sending.
For AI-powered Optimize Send Time campaigns, status changes to 'Started' when the first email in the delivery window begins sending.
Cancel a Campaign that Started Sending
If your Email campaign has the "Started" or "Sending" status, you can cancel it even after the sending process has begun. This applies to all Email campaign types, including regular campaigns, A/B tests, boosters, TZO campaigns, and campaigns using Optimize Send Time.
To stop a Campaign that has started:
Go to the Campaigns tab and locate the campaign with the Started or Sending status.
Click on the three-dot menu (⋮) next to the campaign name.
Select Cancel.
How the Cancellation Window Works
Cancellation stops unsent emails immediately. Once you click Cancel, any emails still in the queue will not be sent. However, emails that have already been handed off to the delivery system cannot be stopped.
The cancellation window depends on the size of your recipient list. The larger the list, the longer you have to act. For smaller lists, the window may only last a few seconds. For larger sends, it could be several minutes.
What Happens After Cancellation
The campaign moves to Canceled status.
Emails that were already delivered will still appear in your reports. All metrics (open rate, click rate, sales) for those recipients are preserved.
You can still see how many of your planned recipients actually received the message.
Important Notes:
Canceled Email campaigns might not be refunded automatically. Contact our Support Team if you need assistance with credits.
SMS and Push campaigns cannot be canceled once sending has started. This cancellation capability applies to Email campaigns only.
FAQ
Why did my TZO campaign send immediately?
If you schedule a TZO campaign and some subscribers' local time is already past the scheduled time, those subscribers receive the email immediately (within 5 minutes). For example, if you schedule for 8:00 AM at 8:30 AM your time, subscribers in time zones where 8:00 AM has already passed will receive it right away, while others receive it at their local 8:00 AM.
Why can't I schedule for a time that seems to be in the future?
The schedule picker validates times against your store's time zone (Store Settings → Store information), not your physical location. If the time you enter has already passed in your store's time zone, scheduling is not available for that time.
What happens to contacts without IP addresses when I use TZO?
Contacts without IP addresses (imported from CSV, migrated from another platform, or manually added) receive emails based on your store's time zone instead of their local time, even if you enable TZO. Only subscribers with IP addresses collected can receive emails based on their time zone.
Why are the AI-powered Send Time Optimization options locked?
Two things are required:
Your store must have sent at least 10 Email campaigns.
You must be on the Pro plan or have purchased the Send time optimization add-on (available on Standard plan).
Legacy Pro plan users need to migrate to the current Pro plan to access this feature. If both conditions are met and the option still can't be selected, contact our Support Team via in-app chat or at [email protected].
Why did my SMS campaign get postponed?
If you schedule an SMS campaign during quiet hours (default: 8 PM–8 AM), messages are automatically postponed to the next allowed delivery window. This is a compliance feature that prevents SMS from being sent during nighttime hours. Quiet hours do not apply to Email or Push campaigns.
Are the Optimize Send Time options available for SMS or Push Notification campaigns?
No. Optimize Send Time options are available for Email campaigns only.
Can I cancel a campaign once it starts sending?
Email Campaigns (all types: regular, A/B test, booster, TZO, Optimize Send Time): Yes, you can cancel by clicking the three-dot menu (⋮) → Cancel.
SMS and Push Campaigns: No, once "Started" or "Sending," they cannot be canceled.
Will I get a refund if I cancel a started campaign?
Canceled Email campaigns might not be refunded automatically. Contact our Support Team via in-app chat or at [email protected] if you need assistance with credits.
Still have questions? Feel free to contact us via in-app chat or at [email protected]. We are here 24/7 for you!