What is a LinkedIn carousel post?
On LinkedIn, carousel is the everyday name for a document post: a multi-page file, usually a PDF, added with the Add a document option. LinkedIn's help page for the format calls it uploading a document and doesn't use the word carousel; LinkedIn's carousel ads are a separate, paid format. Socialinsider, which benchmarks company page posts, describes native documents as PDFs uploaded straight to LinkedIn, similar to a carousel. Three formats get called carousels, and the deciding facts differ (LinkedIn help, checked 4 November 2026):
| Format | What you upload | Limits | After posting | Paid? |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Document post | One PDF, PPT, PPTX, DOC or DOCX file | 100MB and 300 pages; pages fitted to one size | You can edit the description, not the document; viewers can download it as a PDF | No, an organic post |
| Multi-photo post | Up to 20 images | 5MB per photo; ratios from 3:1 to 4:5; the layout follows the first image's shape | Photos can't be edited or resized; a company Page can't schedule one | No, an organic post |
| Carousel ad | 2 to 10 image cards in JPG, PNG or non-animated GIF | 10MB per card; 1080 x 1080 recommended; images scaled to 312 x 312 | Cards can't be edited once the ad is saved | Yes, a Sponsored Content ad |
Use a document post for anything people should read in order: steps, a framework, a checklist. Use a multi-photo post when each image stands on its own, such as event photos or design work. LinkedIn's photo help also says a post can carry a link or an image, not both, so a photo post won't show a link preview. Carousel ads need a Page role (super admin, content admin or Sponsored Content poster) plus creative manager access or higher on the ad account; our guide to LinkedIn carousel ads covers specs and examples.
What size should a LinkedIn carousel be?
Use 1080 x 1350 pixels, a 4:5 portrait page, unless you have a reason not to. LinkedIn's document help, shown as last updated three years before our check, gives no pixel size. It sets two size rules instead: the file can't exceed 100MB and 300 pages, and a PDF with pages of different sizes has to be fitted to one page size.
The pixel numbers come from LinkedIn's photo help, which recommends images 1080 pixels wide, accepts ratios from 3:1 to 4:5, and renders multi-photo posts at a maximum of 4:5. Applying those figures to a document is our reasoning, not a LinkedIn rule. At 1080 pixels wide, 4:5 gives 1080 x 5 / 4 = 1,350 pixels tall, the tallest page those specs allow.
| Page shape | Pixels | When to use it |
|---|---|---|
| Portrait 4:5 | 1080 x 1350 | Most carousels: the tallest page within LinkedIn's photo ratios |
| Square 1:1 | 1080 x 1080 | You will also run the pages as a carousel ad, where LinkedIn recommends 1080 x 1080 |
| Widescreen 16:9 | 1920 x 1080 | You are posting an existing widescreen deck without redesigning it |
Two traps. Canva's carousel guide lists 1200 x 627 pixels as the size for a landscape image in LinkedIn's feed. That is about 1.9:1 (1200 / 627 = 1.91), so each page would be wide and short, with little room for text. And if you plan an ad, size the text for the small view: LinkedIn's carousel ad specifications say images are scaled to 312 x 312, so a 40-pixel heading on a 1080-pixel card shows at about 12 pixels (40 x 312 / 1080 = 11.6).
How do you make a LinkedIn carousel in Canva?
Open a LinkedIn carousel template
Canva's LinkedIn carousel templates page showed more than 1,280 templates when we checked on 4 November 2026, plus a Create a blank LinkedIn Carousel button. The template we opened had a Customize free template button. Canva's carousel guide says elements marked with a crown icon require Canva Pro.
Check the page shape
Canva's guide says its templates are designed to match common platform dimensions. Check that your template's pages are the shape you want before you write, since Canva's guide also notes that small shifts in aspect ratio can affect how a post crops.
Write one idea per page
Canva's guide says each slide should focus on one clear idea, and that a slide which doesn't move the story forward should go. Draft the words first with the outline further down.
Download a flattened PDF
Canva's flattened PDF help gives the steps: go to Share, then Download, choose PDF as the file type, pick the Digital or Print preset and All pages, then open Advanced settings, switch on Flatten PDF and click Download. If you used paid elements, the button reads Pay and Download. Canva says flattening can make the file bigger, so check it is under LinkedIn's 100MB.
Why flatten: LinkedIn's document help says "PDFs with multiple layers must be flattened or merged," and Canva says flattening merges all design elements into a single image. Skip the PNG export that Canva's carousel guide suggests for image-only carousels. On LinkedIn, several PNGs upload as a multi-photo post, laid out according to the first image's shape, not as a document.
How do you post a carousel on LinkedIn?
Upload the PDF as a document from your homepage, a Group or a Page. These steps are from LinkedIn's document help, which has one set for desktop and one for the mobile app:
Open Add a document
Click Start a post at the top of your homepage, click More in the pop-up window, then the Add a document icon. In the app, tap Post, tap the More icon, then Document. If you see a Plus icon instead of More, use it: LinkedIn's newer posting help, updated four weeks before our check, names the Plus icon on desktop and in the app.
Choose the file
Click Choose file, or pick it from Dropbox or Google Drive. A corporate cloud account may ask for admin approval, and in the app you need the cloud service's own app installed.
Add a title
Type a title that tells people what the document is about, then click Done (tap Next in the app).
Write the post and publish
Add the description, with hashtags or @mentions if you want them, then click Post.
To publish it later, our guide to scheduling a LinkedIn post has the steps; documents aren't among the post types LinkedIn's help says it won't schedule.
Check four things before you press Post. You can't swap the file later: LinkedIn lets you edit the description or remove the post, but not change the document. Any member who can see the post can download the document as a PDF, so leave out anything you wouldn't send a stranger. Videos and animations show as still images. And links inside the PDF are unreliable: in a 2024 r/linkedin thread, replies said they only work once someone downloads the file, and Canva says flattening turns the file into a static image. Put the link in the post text instead; our guide to where to put a link on LinkedIn weighs the post against the first comment.
If the upload hangs on desktop, try the app. In a January 2026 r/linkedin thread, several people reported PDFs that wouldn't upload or display in desktop browsers, several of them on company Pages, while one said uploading through the iOS app worked; a later reply said it was working again after two months.
A LinkedIn carousel template you can copy
Write the words before you open Canva. In an April 2026 r/linkedin thread, the poster expected a carousel to take 20 to 30 minutes and found it ran past an hour, between splitting the text into slides and fixing the design. An outline settles the first part. Here are eight pages, filled in for Northwind Ltd, an invented company that sells invoicing software to small agencies:
Keep each page to about 15 to 30 words, so the whole document runs 8 x 15 = 120 to 8 x 30 = 240 words. The post text can run to 3,000 characters, per LinkedIn's posting help; our LinkedIn character limits table covers posts and comments.
Do LinkedIn carousels still work in 2026?
On company Pages, document posts are still at the top for engagement rate, level with multi-image posts. Socialinsider's LinkedIn benchmarks, which track 2.45 million organic posts from about 26,000 company pages, put both formats at a 6.40% average engagement rate in Q3 2026. Across 2025, documents led every format at 7.00%, up from 6.10% in 2024, while multi-image posts went from 6.60% to 6.45%. Socialinsider counts engagement as reactions, comments and shares divided by impressions. These are its own company page averages, not personal profile data.
Practitioners are less sure. In a July 2026 r/linkedin thread, someone whose clients post carousels reported 6 to 10 times fewer impressions than before; one reply said the way carousels display in the feed had changed, another that delivery had dropped for every format. In a June 2026 thread asking whether PDF or image carousels do better, one reply summed up the answers: "3 comments so far, 3 mutually exclusive answers." Two threads prove nothing about reach either way, so test it on your own audience.
Worked example (ours). To compare your own posts on Socialinsider's terms, add reactions, comments and reposts, divide by impressions and multiply by 100. A carousel with 1,400 impressions, 40 reactions, 12 comments and 4 reposts scores (40 + 12 + 4) / 1,400 x 100 = 4.0%. This week, post one idea as a document; next week, post a similar idea as a multi-photo post at the same hour, then compare. Our free LinkedIn engagement rate calculator does the sum.
Frequently asked questions
What is a LinkedIn carousel post?
A post built from a multi-page file, usually a PDF added with LinkedIn's Add a document option. It suits step-by-step guides, frameworks and checklists. Posting one from a profile or Page is an ordinary organic post; the paid version, with image cards that can each link somewhere different, is a carousel ad.
How do you post a slideshow on LinkedIn?
Save the slides as one PDF and add it as a document: Start a post, More, Add a document, choose the file, give it a title, then post. LinkedIn also takes PPT and PPTX files, but its help recommends converting to PDF where possible for the best upload quality. Any animation or video inside the slides shows as a still image.
What is a carousel ad on LinkedIn?
A paid Sponsored Content format with 2 to 10 image cards people scroll through, each able to link to its own destination. LinkedIn recommends 1080 x 1080 images of up to 10MB each, and its best practices suggest starting with 3 to 5 cards. Videos can't be added, and once the ad is saved its cards can't be edited.
What is the purpose of a carousel?
To teach or show something in order, one point per page, without sending readers off LinkedIn. That suits frameworks, checklists, before-and-after examples and short case breakdowns. In Socialinsider's 2025 company page data, native documents had the highest average engagement rate of any format, at 7.00%, though that is an average across brands, not a forecast for your account.
How many slides should a LinkedIn carousel have?
LinkedIn's document help caps files at 300 pages and doesn't suggest a length. For carousel ads, its best practices suggest starting with 3 to 5 cards out of the 10 allowed, and Canva's carousel guide says structure matters more than the number of slides. In our view, six to ten pages fits one idea, a few steps and a closing question.
Can you edit a LinkedIn carousel after posting?
Only the words around it. LinkedIn's help says you can edit the description of a document post but can't change or edit the document itself, so a typo on page four means removing the post and uploading a corrected file. Before posting, read the whole PDF once on your phone, since a mistake can't be fixed in place.
Sources
- LinkedIn Help: Upload and share documents on LinkedIn (checked 4 Nov 2026)
- LinkedIn Help: Share photos on LinkedIn (checked 4 Nov 2026)
- LinkedIn Help: Carousel Ads advertising specifications (checked 4 Nov 2026)
- LinkedIn Marketing Solutions Help: Best practices for Carousel Ads (checked 4 Nov 2026)
- LinkedIn Help: Post and share updates (checked 4 Nov 2026)
- LinkedIn Help: Schedule a LinkedIn Page post (checked 4 Nov 2026)
- LinkedIn Help: Schedule posts (checked 4 Nov 2026)
- Canva: LinkedIn carousel templates (checked 4 Nov 2026)
- Canva Design School: How to create carousels worth swiping for (last updated 8 Oct 2026; checked 4 Nov 2026)
- Canva Help Center: Download designs as flattened PDF (checked 4 Nov 2026)
- Socialinsider: 2026 LinkedIn Benchmarks (Elena Cucu) (published 16 Mar 2026, with Q3 2026 figures; checked 4 Nov 2026)
- r/linkedin: Is it possible to add a clickable link to my LinkedIn carousel PDF post? (posted 4 Jun 2024; checked 4 Nov 2026)
- r/linkedin: PDF-upload blocked and PDF carousel not displayed (posted 26 Jan 2026; checked 4 Nov 2026)
- r/linkedin: How long does it take you guys to make a LinkedIn carousel? (posted 25 Apr 2026; checked 4 Nov 2026)
- r/linkedin: Carousel post performance (posted 11 Jul 2026; checked 4 Nov 2026)
- r/linkedin: LinkedIn carousel with PDF or JPG? (posted 25 Jun 2026; checked 4 Nov 2026)
- Canva: Orange White and Black Simple Professional Business Tips LinkedIn Carousel template (checked 4 Nov 2026)