LinkedIn is a social media networking site designed to connect professionals around the globe. It is for this reason that it’s so important to make your profile presentable and engaging. Fortunately, the platform offers a lot of personalization and customization options.
Your LinkedIn profile is where you can showcase your abilities, previous work experience, interests, etc. Other people will use that information to get to know you a bit better. One of the first things other users will notice is your background photo. You can use it to make a statement, showcase something you’re passionate about, or use one of LinkedIn’s stock photos.
This article will provide you with an easy-to-follow guide so that you can set your LinkedIn background photo without any problems.
Changing or Setting Your LinkedIn Background Photo
You can change your LinkedIn background photo on the website or the mobile app. Before we show you how to upload the photo, let’s first review some basic information that will help you along.
Things to Know
If you’re new to LinkedIn or you want to recreate your profile, a winning background photo can really boost your views and engagements. LinkedIn offers users the ability to upload their own photos or use a stock photo available for free on the platform.
If you choose to upload your own photo you’ll want to first ensure it’s appropriate for the audience that you’re trying to reach. Because we use LinkedIn to network with other professionals having an appropriate photo is vital to your profiles’ success. For example, if you’re looking to find a new employer it may be best to avoid anything controversial or too risque.
Another thing to keep in mind is LinkedIn’s background photo dimensions. Contrary to the profile picture (which is generally a square photo), the background photo is more elongated so not every photo will work. The LinkedIn background photo is 1584 X 386 pixels. When scrolling through your camera roll look for a photo that works best in the landscape orientation.
LinkedIn is compatible with JPG, PNG, and GIF formats. If your photo isn’t in one of these formats you can easily convert it using an online tool. One such tool is Techjunkie tools. You can upload your desired photo and download the appropriate version for LinkedIn.
Finally, it’s a good idea to double-check your photo before finalizing its upload. As soon as you complete the final steps (as described below), your photo goes live. Of course, there is no limit to how many times you can upload a photo to LinkedIn, so you can easily re-upload it if need be.
Now that we’ve covered all of the super important information, let’s get started on uploading your perfect LinkedIn background photo.
How to Upload a LinkedIn Background Photo – Web Browser
Uploading and editing your background photo is pretty easy on a computer. All you need to do is follow these steps:
- Open your favorite web browser and log into the LinkedIn website.
- In the upper right-hand corner, click on Me.
- In the dropdown menu, click on View Profile.
- Locate your background photo and tap on the pencil icon.
- Click Change Photo in the lower right corner of the pop-up window.
- Click on Upload Photo if you want to choose your own background image. Or, you can select one of the stock photos by scrolling down, clicking the bubble next to the image you like, and clicking Save.
- If you chose to upload your own photo, select the one you like from your computer and click Open. Then, resize your image and click Apply.
Now, when someone visits your LinkedIn profile they will see your background image along with other key details about you.
How to Add a Background Photo on LinkedIn – Mobile App
Some users prefer to use LinkedIn on their mobile devices. Fortunately, there is a mobile application available for both iOS and Android users. Here’s how to change your background photo on the LinkedIn mobile app:
- Open the mobile app and sign in if you haven’t already. Then, tap on your profile icon in the upper left-hand corner.
- Tap on Settings.
- Tap on the pencil icon in the upper right-hand corner of your current background photo.
- Tap on Add Photo.
- Choose Upload Photo or select one of the stock options provided by LinkedIn. Then, tap Save.
- If you choose to upload a photo, your photo gallery will open and you can select the image you’d like to use.
As mentioned above, be sure to select a background photo that will look great in landscape orientation.
Troubleshooting & Editing
Now that you’ve uploaded your photo, it’s time to review some editing and troubleshooting options.
What If My Photo Won’t Upload?
It’s a very common situation that people’s photos don’t upload to their LinkedIn profile. There are several reasons for that.
- Your picture’s size is over the limit – LinkedIn only allows you to upload files that don’t exceed the 8MB size limit. PNG tends to be the “heaviest” format, so if your PNG background image is over 8MB, use a tool like TinyPNG to drastically reduce its size without losing any visual information.
- Your picture’s dimensions are over the limit – When it comes to profile pictures, the pixel size of the photos you can choose goes from 400 (w) x 400 (h) to 7680 (w) x 4320 (h) pixels.As already mentioned, the background photo’s pixel dimensions should be about 1584 (w) x 396 (h) pixels. Thankfully, most photo editing tools will allow you to resize your images to fit these dimensions.
- You have selected an unsupported file type – LinkedIn only accepts PNG, GIF, and JPG files. As such, the reason why you can’t upload a photo might be because you have selected a type that isn’t supported by LinkedIn.
- Your browser’s cache memory is creating difficulties – In case none of the previous three options seem to be the problem, the problem could lie in your browser. Try changing your browser and uploading the image using a different browser.If that works, try deleting your default browser’s cache memory as it might be the reason why uploading isn’t possible.
How to Delete My Background Photo on LinkedIn?
You can delete your background photo in just a few steps. The steps are practically the same as when you want to add a photo:
- Click on the Me icon on your LinkedIn homepage.
- Click on the View Profile option.
- Select the pencil icon in the upper right-hand corner of your background photo.
- Click Delete Photo.
Confirm that you’d like to delete your background photo. The image will disappear and you will see a blank photo space.
How to Edit Your Background Photo
LinkedIn doesn’t give us a lot of editing tools likes Instagram. But, you can make some changes to the image before saving it.
First, you’ll want to drag your photo so that the most interesting part appears within the 3 X 3 box. You can do this on your phone with your finger, or your computer with your mouse or trackpad.
Next, you can use the Zoom and Straighten to properly adjust your photo within the box. Simply grab the sliders and drag them left or right until you’ve perfected the position of your photo.
Lastly, you can use the Crop, Filter, and Adjust options to perfect your photo. Cropping lets you cut out unwanted portions of your image, while filters can change the overall appearance of them. If you choose the Adjust option you can change the brightness and contrast among other things.
If you want to do more editing than LinkedIn allows it’s a good idea to use third-party software. An app like Snapseed is perfect for optimizing your photo. But keep in mind that you’ll need to download the image in the proper size and format to use it on LinkedIn.
Make Your LinkedIn Profile Amazing
What do you first see when you visit someone’s LinkedIn profile? It’s the profile and background photos, right?
Although your personal and professional information is at the center of your LinkedIn profile, the pictures that others will be able to see are quite important as well.
As such, pay attention to the quality of the pictures you upload and make sure to create an amazing profile.
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