A brief examination of the relationship between data assimilation cycle length and observation impact in a practical global mesoscale ocean forecasting setting is provided. Behind real-time reanalyses and forecasts from two different cycle length systems are compared and skill is quantified using all observations typically available for ocean forecasting. A 1-day Ensemble Optimal Interpolation (EnOI) cycle is compared to a 3-day cycle. The mean analysis increments for the 1-day system are significantly smaller suggesting a less biased system. Mean Absolute Increment is used to compare observation impact between the two systems. This shows that the 1-day system has larger mean absolute increments than the 3-day system indicating the observations are having a greater impact with the shorter cycle length. Whilst this alone does not guarantee a better forecast system, analysis of 7-day parallel forecasts shows that the 1-day cycle system delivers improvement in predictability, particularly for western boundary current regions and the sub-surface when compared to all available independent observations. The results are dependent on region, model and observing system, however, suggest the 1-day cycle provides better overall forecast skill. This is thought to come from less biased initial conditions, greater observation impact and improved consistency with respect to the timing of model and observations.