LinkedIn is the world’s largest professional networking platform with over 850 million members worldwide. Many professionals rely on LinkedIn to build their professional brand, connect with other professionals, find jobs, market their business, and more. With so many relying on LinkedIn for professional reasons, an important question arises – how long does a LinkedIn account stay active if you stop using it?
A LinkedIn account can remain active even with no activity for a prolonged period. However, certain factors like inactivity for over a year can push the account into an inactive state. LinkedIn may also disable accounts completely if no activity occurs for several consecutive years.
Understanding how long LinkedIn accounts stay active can help you avoid losing access to your important professional connections and brand presence on the platform. This guide will cover:
- What determines if a LinkedIn account is active or inactive
- How long an inactive LinkedIn account stays accessible
- When inactive accounts may be disabled by LinkedIn
- Steps to keep your LinkedIn account active
- What happens when a LinkedIn account is disabled
- How to reactivate a disabled LinkedIn account
Knowing the answers to these key questions allows professionals to keep their LinkedIn presence active and prevent losing access to this crucial career and networking resource.
What Determines if a LinkedIn Account is Active or Inactive?
LinkedIn considers accounts as either active or inactive based on user engagement and activity over time. According to LinkedIn, accounts are generally considered active if the account holder:
- Logs into LinkedIn at least once every 90 days
- Actively engages with the LinkedIn platform by doing things like making connections, commenting, posting content, or sending messages
Conversely, accounts may be deemed inactive by LinkedIn if there is no login or engagement for prolonged periods.
But how long exactly can an account remain inactive before LinkedIn takes any action?
How Long Does an Inactive LinkedIn Account Stay Accessible?
LinkedIn accounts can generally remain in an inactive but still accessible state for a considerable length of time. According to LinkedIn’s infrastructure policies, inactive accounts stay open and can be reactivated for up to one year.
This means you can stop engaging with your LinkedIn account completely for up to 12 months before the account will actually be disabled or closed by LinkedIn. As long as you log in or engage with your account at least once within 365 days, your account should remain intact.
Some key points on inactive account duration:
- LinkedIn accounts may become inactive after 90 days of no logins or engagement
- Inactive accounts remain open for up to 1 year (365 days)
- Logging in or engaging with your account anytime before the year ends will reactivate it
So in summary, LinkedIn allows accounts to be inactive for up to 12 months before taking any action. But what happens after that one year of inactivity passes?
When Will LinkedIn Disable Inactive Accounts?
If your LinkedIn account remains completely inactive for one full year, LinkedIn may disable or delete the account completely.
Here are some key things to know about LinkedIn’s account disabling policies:
- Accounts with no logins or engagement for 365+ days may be disabled
- Disabled accounts are generally deleted after an additional 6 months of inactivity
- LinkedIn will send email notifications prior to disabling accounts
- Disabling prevents access to connections and profile information
So after 12 full months of inactive status, your account may be disabled by LinkedIn. Once disabled, you will no longer be able to access your profile, connections, or any other LinkedIn services.
LinkedIn states they will attempt to notify users via email prior to disabling an inactive account. However, if you have not updated your email address this notification may not reach you.
After disabling an inactive account, LinkedIn will usually completely delete the account after an additional 6 months passes with no activity. This permanent deletion removes all profile data from LinkedIn’s system.
To avoid losing access, it’s crucial to keep your account active by logging in or engaging at least once per year.
How to Keep Your LinkedIn Account Active
To prevent your LinkedIn account from being disabled due to inactivity, aim to log in or engage with your profile at least once every 365 days.
Here are some simple ways to keep your LinkedIn presence active:
- Log into LinkedIn via the website or mobile app at least once per year
- Update your LinkedIn profile (skills, about section, experiences etc) annually
- Comment on other users’ posts and articles at least once per year
- Send connection requests or messages to your network periodically
- Post your own updates, articles, or content at least yearly
Setting calendar reminders to engage with your profile every 6-12 months can help avoid periods of inactivity. Maintaining an active presence has the added benefit of keeping your professional brand and network up-to-date on LinkedIn.
What Happens When a LinkedIn Account is Disabled?
If your LinkedIn account is disabled after 1 year of inactivity, here is what typically occurs:
- You will be signed out and unable to log back in
- Your profile and network connections will no longer be accessible
- You will not be able to share content or communicate with connections
- Job seeking and networking functionality will be deactivated
- After 6 additional months, LinkedIn may delete your account entirely
Essentially a disabled account prevents you from accessing or leveraging any LinkedIn services. Your network of business contacts will also be unable to connect with you through LinkedIn.
It is still possible to reactive a disabled account if action is taken quickly by the account holder (see reactivation process below). But after 6 months, permanent account deletion is likely.
How to Reactivate a Disabled LinkedIn Account
If your LinkedIn account has been disabled due to prolonged inactivity, it is possible to reactive it in most cases. Here are the steps to take:
- Enter in your LinkedIn username and password when prompted after trying to login
- You will receive an on-screen notice that the account has been disabled
- Follow the on-screen instructions to start the reactivation process
- LinkedIn will send a reactivation confirmation email to your associated email on file
- Click the reactivation link in the email within 5 days to reactive your account
- Once confirmed, your account will be fully restored and any inactivity clocks will be reset
The key is to initiate the reactivation process soon after receiving notice that your account was disabled, as you typically have 120 days to complete reactivation before permanent deletion.
Updating your email address on file is also recommended, as this is needed to receive the reactivation notice from LinkedIn. Keeping your primary email current helps avoid complications in restoring disabled accounts.
Conclusion
To summarize key points on how long LinkedIn accounts remain active:
- LinkedIn accounts may go inactive after 90 days without engagement
- Inactive accounts stay open for access for up to 1 year (365 days)
- Beyond 1 year of inactivity, LinkedIn may disable accounts
- Disabled accounts can be reactivated within 120 days in most cases
- Permanent account deletion is likely after total inactivity of 18 months
- Logging in or engaging with LinkedIn at least once per year keeps accounts active
Maintaining an active LinkedIn presence is crucial for professionals to preserve their branding, network, and access to career opportunities. Setting calendar reminders to log in or update your profile periodically can help avoid accidental account deactivation. Overall, keeping your account active takes minimal effort but delivers major professional benefits.