Changing the background behind your LinkedIn profile photo can help your profile stand out and look more professional. Your LinkedIn profile photo serves as your digital first impression, so customizing it helps showcase your personal brand. Luckily, updating your LinkedIn background photo is easy to do through the LinkedIn website or mobile app. In this article, we’ll walk through the step-by-step process for changing your LinkedIn background on both desktop and mobile. We’ll also provide tips for choosing the right background to complement your photo and enhance your personal brand.
Benefits of Customizing Your LinkedIn Background
Here are some of the key benefits of changing your LinkedIn background:
- Makes your profile stand out: Most LinkedIn members use the default gray background. Customizing yours helps you stand out.
- Reinforces your personal brand: Pairing your headshot with a relevant, branded background reinforces your professional image.
- Shows off your personality: The right background provides glimpses into your interests, alma mater, company, etc.
- Looks more polished and put-together: A customized background elevates your profile above default settings.
- Draws viewers’ eyes: An eye-catching background encourages connections to click on your profile.
In summary, the right LinkedIn background attracts more profile views, makes your profile more memorable, and projects a professional image aligned with your brand.
How to Change LinkedIn Background on Desktop
Follow these simple steps to change your LinkedIn profile photo background on the desktop website:
- Go to your LinkedIn profile page and click on your profile picture, located in the top right corner.
- In the pop-up window, click on the pencil “Edit public profile & URL” button.
- This will open your profile editing page. Scroll down and click on “Background photo” under the Profile Photo section.
- Click the “Upload Photo” button to choose a file from your computer. Supported file types include JPG, GIF, and PNG. The recommended image size is 1400 x 425 pixels.
- Choose your desired image and select “Open.” You’ll see a preview of your new background.
- Adjust the photo position if needed. You can move your profile picture around on top of the background.
- Click “Save” to confirm the new background photo.
It just takes a few simple clicks to update your LinkedIn background photo on desktop. The changes will apply across your profile.
How to Change LinkedIn Background on Mobile
You can also easily change your LinkedIn background photo via the LinkedIn mobile app on your iPhone or Android device:
- Open the LinkedIn app and tap your profile picture at the top of your feed.
- Tap “View profile” to go to your public profile page.
- Tap the pencil “Edit public profile & URL” icon in the top right.
- Under the Profile Photo section, tap “Change background photo.”
- Select a background photo from your phone’s files or take a new photo directly in the app.
- Pinch and zoom the photo to adjust the cropping and position.
- Tap “Save” to confirm the new background photo.
Updating your background on mobile only takes a minute. The updated photo will now display across your LinkedIn profile.
Tips for Choosing Your LinkedIn Background Photo
When selecting a background photo, consider these tips:
- Use a high-quality, high-resolution image for best results.
- Pick aprofessional, branded background that aligns with your industry and interests.
- Make sure your profile photo stands out against the background.
- Blurring the background slightly can help your photo pop.
- Stick to simple, clean backgrounds free of clutter.
- Add your company logo or brand colors to reinforce your professional identity.
- Showcase interests like alma maters, nonprofit support, or hobbies.
- Consider tying your background to holidays, events, or causes.
- Opt for light-colored backgrounds for sufficient contrast.
- Coordinate your outfit and background colors for a pulled-together look.
Aim for a background that complements your photo and makes your profile more memorable. Stay on-brand and reinforce the image you want to project to connections.
Background Photo Size Requirements
LinkedIn requires background photos to meet the following size requirements:
- Minimum size: 400 x 400 pixels
- Recommended size: 1400 x 425 pixels
- Maximum file size: 8 MB
- Accepted file types: JPG, GIF, PNG
With an ideal photo size of 1400 x 425 pixels, you’ll have plenty of flexible space to position your profile picture on top of your chosen background.
Customizing Backgrounds for Company Pages
In addition to personal profiles, you can also customize the background photo behind images on LinkedIn Company Pages:
- Go to your company’s LinkedIn page and click “Edit page” in Admin mode.
- Click on the pencil icon to edit the profile photo and cover image.
- Upload your desired photos and adjust as needed.
- Click “Save” and review the changes on your Company Page.
Branded cover and profile photos help promote your company’s image and industry. Make sure graphics align with your brand style guide for consistency.
Using Custom Backgrounds for LinkedIn Posts
When sharing new posts on LinkedIn, you have the option to customize backgrounds:
- Draft your post in the “Start a post” box at the top of your feed.
- Click the background icon next to the image icon.
- Upload your desired image or choose a pre-set background.
- Publish your post featuring the customized branding.
Backgrounds are a great way to add visual interest to promotions, job openings, company news, and other updates. Just make sure your post text remains easy to read.
FAQs
Here are answers to some frequently asked questions about changing LinkedIn backgrounds:
Does a background photo expire?
No, once you set a custom LinkedIn background photo, it will not expire. It will remain your profile’s background until you manually update or remove it.
Can I revert back to the default background?
Yes, you can revert to the original LinkedIn gray background at any time. Just visit your profile editing page, click “Change background photo,” and select “Remove.” This will return your profile to the default look.
Does my background show on mobile?
Yes, the background photo you set on desktop will automatically carry over to the LinkedIn mobile app as well.
Do I have to crop my photo to fit the frame?
No cropping is required. LinkedIn automatically crops and positions your uploaded background photo to fit the 1400 x 425 pixel size.
Can I change the background of my company page?
Yes, Company Pages have separate cover images and profile pictures you can customize with relevant backgrounds. Add your company’s branding to these visuals.
Conclusion
Customizing your LinkedIn profile and background is a great way to showcase your personal brand, interests, company, and more. With LinkedIn’s user-friendly editing tools, it only takes a few minutes to update your background on desktop or mobile. Choose a high-quality photo that reinforces your professional image. Then sit back and watch as profile views and connections continue growing thanks to your enhanced personal branding.
Platform | How to Change Background |
---|---|
LinkedIn Desktop |
|
LinkedIn Mobile App |
|