LinkedIn Photo Tips: Get a Great Profile Photo

The 6 rules of a good LinkedIn photo

1. Your face fills the frame. Crop from just above the top of your head to just below your shoulders. Your face should take up about 60% of the photo. On LinkedIn your photo shows up as a small circle — often tiny, in a feed or search result — so anything far away or wide will turn you into a blur.

2. Plain background, no clutter. A plain wall, a quiet office corner, or a blurred outdoor backdrop all work. What does not work: a busy room, a restaurant, other people, a car interior. The background should disappear so your face is the only thing anyone notices.

3. Face the light. Stand facing a window with daylight coming toward your face. Never sit with your back to a window — your face will go dark. Overhead office lights cast harsh shadows under your eyes; soft daylight from the front fixes that for free. A cloudy day is actually ideal: no squinting, no harsh shadows.

4. Look friendly, not stiff. A natural smile or a relaxed, warm expression wins every time. Skip the passport-style blank stare. Look straight at the camera — direct eye contact reads as confident and approachable.

5. Dress like it is a good workday. Wear what you would wear to an important meeting in your field. A blazer, a neat shirt or blouse, a well-fitting sweater — solid colours photograph best (navy, charcoal, deep green, burgundy). Avoid loud patterns, big logos, and anything you keep fidgeting with. When in doubt, dress one step nicer than your everyday clothes.

6. Use a recent photo of just you. Solo, no cropping other people out of the frame, taken within the last two or three years. Your photo should look like the person who shows up on the video call.

The size LinkedIn actually needs

LinkedIn crops your photo into a circle, so upload a square image. The rules:

If an upload fails, it is almost always one of these: the file is over 8 MB, it is a HEIC file, or it is smaller than 400 pixels on one side after cropping.

• At least 400 x 400 pixels (bigger is better — 800 x 800 is a safe target)
• Under 8 MB file size
• JPG or PNG (iPhone HEIC files will not upload — convert first)
• Make sure your face is centred, because the circle crop cuts the corners off

Common mistakes that hurt your profile

• The wedding-photo crop. Cropped out of a group photo, someone else's shoulder still in frame. Everyone can tell.
• The car selfie. Taken from below at arm's length. It reads casual, not professional.
• Sunglasses or a hat. Hides your face — the whole point of the photo.
• Heavy filters or over-editing. If you do not look like yourself in person, you have broken trust before the first conversation.
• Black-and-white. Colour looks warmer and more current.
• A photo from ten years ago. When the real you shows up looking different, it feels off.

How to take one with your phone in 10 minutes

• Find a window with soft daylight, or step into open shade outside.
• Put your phone on a stack of books or a shelf at eye level — do not hold it in your hand.
• Use the self-timer (3 or 10 seconds), not the front camera at arm's length. The rear camera is sharper.
• Frame head and shoulders, leave a little space above your head.
• Take 20 photos. Try a small smile, a neutral warm look, slight head turns. Most people take 20 bad ones and 2 good ones — that is normal.
• Pick the sharpest one where you look like yourself on a good day.

The faster option: an AI headshot from your selfies

If you do not want to faff around with timers and lighting, there is a quicker route. Headshotsly turns up to 5 of your regular selfies into studio-quality professional headshots. You get one full-HD photo free — no watermark, no card needed — and a full set of five 4K photos for a one-time [$4.99](/pricing). The whole thing takes about 2 minutes. It is a practical way to get a LinkedIn-ready photo without booking a photographer or paying $200+ for a studio session.