What should your LinkedIn profile pic look like?
Use a recent photo of you alone, cropped from the top of your shoulders to just above your head, with your face filling about 60% of the frame. That is the core advice in LinkedIn's Talent Blog guide to profile photos, written by Lydia Abbot, a fractional content and integrated marketing leader, and published on 1 August 2024. The guide also suggests:
- Someone else takes it. The front camera on most phones gives a lower-quality image than the rear one, the guide says, and can mirror words or logos.
- A simple background. Save the team photo for your banner.
- Soft light. An overcast day, light shade or a window in front of you.
- What you wear to work. Solid colours tend to do best on camera, the guide says.
- A current likeness: what you would look like if someone met you tomorrow.
LinkedIn's rules set the floor. Its profile photo guidelines allow an illustration, caricature or other artistic rendering of you, but say "your profile photo must reflect your likeness". LinkedIn may remove photos made up only of a company logo, emojis, landscape photos, animals, words or phrases, flags, childhood or baby photos, or someone else's likeness, including stock images, celebrities and fictional characters.
What size should a LinkedIn profile picture be?
Any size from 400 x 400 up to 7,680 x 4,320 pixels, saved as a PNG or JPG of 8MB or less. Those limits come from LinkedIn's help page for photos that won't upload, which also says LinkedIn doesn't support GIFs. Some size guides still list GIF as accepted, for example ZELIQ's profile picture size guide (checked 4 Nov 2026), so go by LinkedIn's page. Treat 400 x 400 as the smallest size LinkedIn takes; the Talent Blog guide says to avoid small, low-resolution images.
| Spec | LinkedIn's limit (checked 4 Nov 2026) | What to do |
|---|---|---|
| File type | PNG or JPG; GIFs not supported | Convert iPhone HEIF (.heic) files to JPG first |
| File size | 8MB maximum | Compress it to 8MB or less before uploading |
| Smallest | 400 x 400 pixels | Upload well above it, such as 1,000 x 1,000 |
| Largest | 7,680 wide x 4,320 tall | The biggest square that fits is 4,320 x 4,320 |
| Shape on screen | A round image, as the Talent Blog guide describes it | Centre your face; the corners are cut off |
A worked example. A 400 x 400 square has 160,000 pixels. The circle inside it covers π x 200 x 200, about 125,664 pixels, so roughly 78.5% of your upload shows and the four corners, about 21.5%, are cut off in the round display. An example 4,032 x 3,024 phone photo (about 12.2 megapixels) sits inside LinkedIn's range: crop it to a 3,024 x 3,024 square centred on your face. An example 8,064 x 6,048 photo (about 48.8 megapixels) is wider and taller than LinkedIn's stated maximum, so resize it first, say to 2,000 x 2,000.
iPhone photos can be HEIF files. Apple's support page on HEIF photos says to open one in Photos or Preview on a Mac and choose File, Export, then JPEG or PNG, or to set Settings, Camera, Formats to Most Compatible so new photos save as JPEG. If a file still won't upload, LinkedIn suggests a different browser, then compressing it.
Phone, photographer or AI headshot: which should you use?
In our view, a phone photo taken by a colleague is enough for most founders, and the Talent Blog guide says a smartphone camera works if a photographer isn't in the budget. Here is how the options compare, with prices as listed on each page on 4 Nov 2026:
| Option | Cost | What you get | Choose it when | Watch for |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Phone photo by a colleague | $0 | As many tries as you like | You have a window and a plain wall | Use the rear camera; front cameras can mirror text |
| Professional photographer | Typically $200 to $400, per the Talent Blog guide (2024) | Flattering light and someone directing you | You also need photos for a team page, press or talks | For a team, the cost adds up |
| HeadshotPro (AI) | From $29, one-time | Basic: 30 headshots in about 2 hours | You have no usable photo and no time for a shoot | The result must still reflect your likeness |
| Aragon (AI) | Headshot packages from $35, shown as 20% off for a limited time ($44 before the discount); monthly plans are on a separate Subscription tab | Basic: 40 headshots, about 45 minutes | As above | As above |
| Illustration of you | Varies | A drawn or painted version | Your brand is visual | Allowed only if it reflects your likeness |
A five-person team, worked out. Phone photos: $0. A photographer, if each person books a session: 5 x $200 = $1,000 up to 5 x $400 = $2,000. HeadshotPro Basic: 5 x $29 = $145. Aragon Basic: 5 x $35 = $175 at the discounted price, or 5 x $44 = $220 without it. HeadshotPro also lists team pricing, from $19.50, that gets cheaper the more you buy.
On AI photos, LinkedIn's October 2022 trust and safety post says a deep-learning model checks profile photo uploads to detect AI-generated images, as part of catching fake accounts, without facial recognition or biometric analysis. It doesn't say what happens when a real member uploads an AI-made photo of themselves, and the photo guidelines page doesn't mention AI (both checked 4 Nov 2026). Plan around the likeness rule: a buyer on a video call with you should recognise you.
How do you add or change your profile picture on LinkedIn?
From the introduction section at the top of your profile, on any device. These steps come from LinkedIn's profile photo help page, checked on 4 Nov 2026. The page shows it was last updated about two years ago, so button labels in the live app may differ.
On a computer
Click the Me icon at the top of your homepage, then View Profile. With no photo yet, click the Camera icon, then Upload photo or Use camera. With a photo, click it and choose Edit, Add photo, Frames or Delete. Click Save photo.
In the LinkedIn app
Tap your profile photo, then tap it again or tap View Profile to open your profile. With no photo, tap the Camera icon at the upper left, then Photo. With a photo, tap it, then View or edit profile photo, and choose Edit, Add photo, Add Frames or the Delete icon. Tap Save.
In a phone browser
Tap the Profile icon, then the Add Photo icon and Add profile photo. Take a photo or pick one from your library, drag it into position, set visibility if you want, and tap SAVE at the upper right. To replace it, tap your photo, tap it again, tap Edit, then CHANGE PHOTO.
After uploading, you can crop, rotate, resize, adjust, add a filter and choose who sees the photo; the Talent Blog guide says there are six filters plus brightness, contrast, saturation and vignette controls. Before you swap, note that LinkedIn can't restore or retrieve an old photo once you delete it or upload another, so keep a copy of the file.
Frames holds the #OpenToWork and #hiring frames; LinkedIn's photo frames help page says to pick one, or the Original photo, and click Apply.
Who can see your photo, and does LinkedIn announce a new one?
Anyone, unless you change it. LinkedIn's photo visibility settings page gives Anyone as the default (Everyone in a phone browser). Click your photo, then the Visibility icon, choose 1st-degree connections only, Your network, All LinkedIn members or Anyone, and click Save; in the app the change saves automatically. The version shown in web search results can also be set on its own, under Edit public profile & URL (a change made from your profile updates it too), and LinkedIn says it must be changed on the desktop site; the mobile app can't change it. If your public profile is turned off, the photo can't be set to Public.
If you contact people you aren't connected to yet, keep it on Anyone or All LinkedIn members. A photo limited to 1st-degree connections is hidden from the people you invite, since they aren't connections yet, and LinkedIn's photo help page says a photo lets people see who you are when you send invitations to connect.
As for announcements, LinkedIn's help page on the introduction section lists the profile photo among that section's fields and says your network won't be notified when you change them (checked 4 Nov 2026). The new photo goes live as soon as you save, for everyone your visibility setting allows. Our guide to which LinkedIn profile edits notify your network covers the other edits LinkedIn's help pages mention.
What do Reddit threads and photo studies say about LinkedIn photos?
In three 2025 Reddit threads, people who said they hire or recruit ranged from saying a photo had never changed a hiring decision to saying a professional one comes across better. Treat them as opinions, never as proof.
In an April 2025 r/linkedin thread about whether the photo matters, the most upvoted reply came from someone who said they were a recruiter. Their view: it is "more important not to have a bad picture than to have an amazing picture", and a phone will do. The second most upvoted reply said that in 20 years of hiring, a photo had never changed a decision.
A June 2025 r/sales thread asked whether a professional headshot or a casual photo works better. The top reply, from someone who had hired people, said a professional photo came across better, though they said they didn't hold a casual one against anyone and saw only a minor impact. One reply said it depends on the industry, casual for tech roles and professional headshots in financial services, and another said to dress for the buyer: anything goes for marketing directors, professional for CFOs of finance firms.
On AI headshots, an April 2025 r/linkedin thread split. Several replies said they could tell and took the person less seriously; others said an AI-enhanced photo beats a poor selfie, or that they didn't mind if it looked like the person. One said the gap shows when the person posts photos from company events. Many replies promoted AI headshot tools, so read it with care.
For what tends to rate well, the photo feedback site Photofeeler published a study in May 2014, last updated in January 2023, based on over 60,000 ratings of 800 photos in its own database, scored for competence, likability and influence. A smile showing teeth was the most impactful trait it found (+1.35 for likability); a laughing smile scored higher on likability (+1.49) but lost the gains in competence and influence. Formal dress gave the biggest gains in competence and influence, and sunglasses lowered likability. Head-and-shoulders or head-to-waist shots beat face-only close-ups and full-body photos, and the setting made no statistically significant difference. It is a vendor's own study, more than ten years old.
What should you do this week?
Then fix the image behind your photo with our LinkedIn banner sizes and ideas. For the headline, About and Featured sections, use our 30-minute-a-week LinkedIn system for founders.
If you send connection requests through a tool, fix the photo before they go out. Siela's LinkedIn Presence agent, for example, can send up to 5, 10 or 20 connection requests a day from your own account, and the people it invites see the photo you set here, if your visibility setting lets them. For the message itself, see our guide on whether to add a note to LinkedIn connection requests.
Frequently asked questions
How can I generate a professional photo for LinkedIn?
The cheapest route is a colleague with your phone's rear camera, a window and a plain wall, then LinkedIn's own crop, filter and brightness tools. AI headshot services build headshots from selfies you upload; on 4 Nov 2026 HeadshotPro listed one-time packages from $29 and Aragon listed headshot packages from $35 at a limited-time 20% discount. Whichever you use, LinkedIn requires the photo to reflect your likeness.
Does LinkedIn tell my connections when I change my profile picture?
Going by LinkedIn's help pages, no. The photo sits in the introduction section of your profile, and LinkedIn says changes there don't notify your network. The setting that shares profile updates covers job changes, education changes and work anniversaries. Anyone your visibility setting allows sees the new photo the moment you save it, though.
Can I use a cartoon, avatar or logo as my LinkedIn profile picture?
An illustration, caricature or other artistic rendering is allowed if it reflects your likeness. A photo made up only of a company logo, emoji, animal, flag, words, a childhood photo or someone else's likeness can be removed. If LinkedIn removes your photo, its guidelines say you can upload a different one, and contact LinkedIn if you want to know why it was taken down.
Can I get my old LinkedIn profile picture back?
No. LinkedIn keeps your original while you edit it, but its help page says it can't restore or retrieve an old photo once you delete it or upload a new one. Keep the original file on your computer or in cloud storage before you swap, so you can go back if the new one doesn't work.
How do I add or remove the #Hiring or #OpenToWork frame?
Open your profile, click your photo and choose Frames. Pick a frame or the Original photo, then click Apply. When removing a frame, the options depend on which one you have: remove Open to Work completely, share it with recruiters only, or remove the hiring frame along with the jobs shown on your profile. The app follows the same steps.
Should my LinkedIn photo be in colour or black and white?
Either works. Photofeeler's 2014 study of 800 photos, using ratings in its own database, found no statistically significant effect from black and white, positive or negative. It did find that very dark photos lowered likability and very high colour saturation lowered all three scores, so keep any editing moderate.
Sources
- LinkedIn Talent Blog: 10 Tips for Taking a Professional LinkedIn Profile Photo (Lydia Abbot) (1 Aug 2024; checked 4 Nov 2026)
- LinkedIn Help: Profile photo guidelines and conditions (checked 4 Nov 2026)
- LinkedIn Help: Photo won't upload to your profile (checked 4 Nov 2026)
- LinkedIn Help: Settings for profile photo visibility (checked 4 Nov 2026)
- LinkedIn Help: Add, change, edit, or delete your LinkedIn profile photo (checked 4 Nov 2026)
- LinkedIn Help: Change your profile photo frames (checked 4 Nov 2026)
- LinkedIn Help: Edit the Introduction section on your profile (checked 4 Nov 2026)
- LinkedIn Blog: New LinkedIn profile features help verify identity, detect and remove fake accounts (25 Oct 2022; checked 4 Nov 2026)
- ZELIQ: LinkedIn Profile Picture Size (checked 4 Nov 2026)
- Apple Support: Using HEIF or HEVC media on Apple devices (5 Dec 2025; checked 4 Nov 2026)
- HeadshotPro pricing (checked 4 Nov 2026)
- Aragon pricing (checked 4 Nov 2026)
- Photofeeler: New Research Study Breaks Down The Perfect Profile Photo (13 May 2014, updated 9 Jan 2023; checked 4 Nov 2026)
- r/linkedin: My manager told me that LinkedIn profile photo is more important than you think (9 Apr 2025; checked 4 Nov 2026)
- r/sales: Better to have professional headshot or casual picture on LinkedIn? (2 Jun 2025; checked 4 Nov 2026)
- r/linkedin: Can you actually tell if a LinkedIn profile photo is AI-generated? (22 Apr 2025; checked 4 Nov 2026)
- LinkedIn Help: Share profile updates (checked 4 Nov 2026)