LinkedIn banner size, and what to put on it

The LinkedIn banner size for a personal profile is 1584×396 pixels, a 4:1 strip. A company page cover is wider still, at 2256×382 pixels. On both, a photo or logo overlaps the lower left of the banner, and different screens crop the edges a little differently, so keep your words and logo in the centre and right of the banner with space all around them.

LinkedIn is the platform where people look you up after a meeting, before a call or while deciding whether to reply. Your banner is the widest piece of real estate on that page, and most people leave it as a default. Here is how to use it.

LinkedIn image sizes

Profile banner 4:1

1584 × 396

Company cover

2256 × 382

X header 3:1

1500 × 500

Where the profile photo covers the banner

On a personal profile, your round photo sits over the lower left of the banner. On a company page, the square logo does the same. Anything placed there disappears. The banner is also shown at slightly different proportions on phones and desktops, which trims a little from the edges, so text right up against any edge is at risk.

What to put on your LinkedIn banner

The best banners answer the question a visitor has in the first second: what does this person or company do? A few approaches that work.

• A one-line positioning statement. "Brand identity for independent food businesses." Specific beats clever.
• What to do next. A newsletter, a booking link, a book or a course, named in a few words.
• Something current. A launch, an event or a hiring push, changed when it's over.
• Your look, and nothing else. A distinctive background in your brand's colours or material can say more than words, especially if it matches your website and posts.

Whatever you choose, remember how small the banner becomes on a phone: a strip only a few centimetres tall. A line that looks bold on a monitor can shrink to a whisper. Before you settle on the wording, shrink the design to the width of your phone screen and check that the line still reads comfortably.

More ideas, including photographic ones, are in LinkedIn background photo ideas. If LinkedIn is central to how you work, it's worth reading personal branding too.

How to make a LinkedIn banner

1. 1

   Start at the exact size

   1584×396 for a profile, 2256×382 for a company page. Never crop one from the other.

2. 2

   Block out the photo area

   Mark the lower left of the canvas, roughly the first quarter of the width, as a no-text zone.

3. 3

   Choose the background

   Use your brand's colours or material, with the calmest part where the photo will sit.

4. 4

   Write one line

   Say what you do or what's next in under ten words. Set it large, in the centre or right half.

5. 5

   Export and check

   Export as PNG in sRGB if the design has text or gradients. Upload, then view your profile on a phone and a laptop before leaving it.

Keep your banner consistent with your other headers, such as your X header, so people who find you on one platform recognise you on the next. Gradiently has the LinkedIn banner, company cover and post sizes built in, and copy to sizes lays one design out again for each.