# LinkedIn profile banner ideas for job seekers [Canonical HTML page](https://gradiently.design/guide/job-seeker-personal-brand) Your LinkedIn banner is the widest space on your profile and the first thing a recruiter sees after your photo. Here are ten ideas for using it while you look for work, with wording to borrow. ## The short version - The best LinkedIn profile banner ideas for job seekers say what you do and what you are looking for, in one short line. - A LinkedIn profile banner is 1584×396 pixels, and the profile photo covers part of the lower left on desktop. - Words on a banner should sit in the centre and right, away from the edges, and stay large enough to read on a phone. - A calm, consistent background in your field's tone looks more professional than a stock photo of a city skyline. - The banner, headline, CV and portfolio should share the same message and look so a recruiter sees one clear personal brand. The strongest **LinkedIn profile banner ideas** for job seekers all do one thing: tell a recruiter, in a single glance, what you do and what you want next. "Product designer for health apps, open to senior roles" on a calm background does more than any skyline photo. Below are ten ideas, grouped by situation, with wording you can adapt and backgrounds that suit different fields. If you need the exact safe zones and crop behaviour first, [LinkedIn banner size](https://gradiently.design/guide/linkedin-banner-size) covers them. ## Where words go on a LinkedIn banner The banner is 1584×396 pixels, roughly four times as wide as it is tall. On desktop your round profile photo sits over the lower left; on phones the banner is cropped tighter at the sides. So put words in the centre and right, vertically centred and away from the edges, and make them big: they will be shown much smaller than you designed them. - Profile banner 4:1: 1584 × 396 - LinkedIn post 1:1: 1200 × 1200 - Link image: 1200 × 627 The banner next to a LinkedIn post and link image, to scale. Its extreme width is why short lines work best. ## Banner ideas for active job seekers ### 1. What you do and what you want The simplest and usually best idea. One line for your speciality, one smaller line for the role you are looking for. Recruiters search by role, so use the words that appear in job titles in your field. A LinkedIn banner reading Data analyst for retail teams, open to new roles, on a calm gradient Idea 1: speciality, availability and three skills, all in the centre and right. ### 2. Your value in one sentence Turn your strongest result into a plain sentence: "I help small teams ship mobile apps faster." Avoid superlatives; specific beats impressive. ### 3. The skills recruiters search for Three or four skills separated by full stops or spaced dots. Keep it to what a hiring manager would put in a job description, not every tool you've touched. ### 4. A link people can type Your portfolio or personal site written as a short address, such as mayaokafor.com. Links in the banner aren't clickable, so it must be easy to remember. ## Ideas for career changers and graduates ### 5. Bridge the old and new "Ten years in hospitality. Now building customer success teams." The banner explains the change before a recruiter has to wonder about it. A LinkedIn banner for a career changer reading From teaching to learning design Idea 5: a career changer's banner that tells the story in five words. ### 6. The graduate's focus "Mechanical engineering graduate. Interested in renewable energy." Naming a field shows direction even without experience. Pair it with a [student portfolio](https://gradiently.design/guide/student-portfolio) if you have one. ### 7. A certification or recent course If you've just qualified in something relevant, say so in the small line: "Newly certified project manager." Keep logos of awarding bodies off unless you are allowed to use them. ## Ideas for experienced professionals ### 8. Your field, not your employer While job hunting, a banner about your former employer points backwards. Lead with the work instead: "Supply chain leader. Food and drink." ### 9. A quiet background, no words If your headline already says everything, a calm branded background is a perfectly good choice. It looks deliberate, unlike the default blue banner, and never competes with your photo. ### 10. Speaking, writing or a project "Writing weekly about payments" or "Speaker on accessible design" shows expertise that a CV can't. Only use it if you're active. ## LinkedIn banner text formulas to copy If you are stuck on wording, start from a formula and fill in your own words. Keep the main line under about six words so it survives the shrink to phone size. | Situation | Formula | Example | | --- | --- | --- | | Active search | Speciality + "open to" role | Brand designer. Open to in house roles. | | Value | "I help" who + do what | I help clinics fill their diaries. | | Career change | From old field to new field | From retail to UX research. | | Graduate | Degree + field of interest | Chemistry graduate. Into food science. | | Experienced | Discipline + sector | Finance lead. Climate and energy. | Five formulas for the main line. Put the smaller supporting line, such as skills or a site address, underneath. ## Backgrounds for a LinkedIn banner by field Stock photos of laptops and skylines look generic, and busy photos make words hard to read. A soft gradient in a tone that suits your field reads as professional and keeps text clear. [LinkedIn background ideas](https://gradiently.design/guide/linkedin-background-ideas) has more styles, and [text on gradient](https://gradiently.design/guide/text-on-gradient) explains how to keep words readable. - Finance and law: steel: `linear-gradient(100deg, #0f2027 0%, #203a43 50%, #2c5364 100%)` - Consulting: linen: `linear-gradient(100deg, #f8f4ee 0%, #e8dccb 60%, #c9a882 100%)` - Tech and product: signal: `linear-gradient(100deg, #12002b 0%, #4c1d95 55%, #22d3ee 100%)` - Creative and media: coral: `linear-gradient(100deg, #fdf2e9 0%, #f9b48f 55%, #e2725b 100%)` - Health and education: sage: `linear-gradient(100deg, #eef7f2 0%, #a7d7c5 55%, #2f6f5e 100%)` - Engineering: graphite: `linear-gradient(100deg, #1c1c1c 0%, #3a3a3a 60%, #6b6b6b 100%)` Six banner grounds by field. Each runs left to right so the side where words sit stays even in tone. ### Avoid - Text under the profile photo - A motivational quote - Tiny type that vanishes on a phone - A city skyline stock photo - "Unemployed" or "Looking for anything" ### Do - Words in the centre and right - Your speciality in job title words - Large, simple type in two sizes at most - A calm ground in your field's tone - "Open to" plus the specific role ## Make the banner part of one personal brand The banner works best when it repeats your headline, CV and portfolio rather than saying something new. Use the same wording for your speciality everywhere, the same colours and the same typeface. [LinkedIn personal branding](https://gradiently.design/guide/linkedin-personal-branding) covers the headline and about section; [personal brand photos](https://gradiently.design/guide/personal-brand-photos) covers the photo that sits on top. Gradiently can do the matching for you. Choose a Mark as your personal background, then make the banner, a CV header and a LinkedIn post announcing you are open to work from the same design; with Pro it resizes to each format in one step. The Mark keeps its calmest area behind your words, so the line stays readable even at phone size. ## FAQ ### What should I put on my LinkedIn banner when looking for a job? Your speciality in the words recruiters search for, plus the kind of role you want. Keep it to one main line and one smaller line, in the centre and right of the banner. ### What size is a LinkedIn profile banner? 1584×396 pixels, a 4:1 ratio. Keep words in the centre and right, because your profile photo covers the lower left. ### Should I write open to work on my LinkedIn banner? You can, but name the role too, such as "Open to UX research roles". A specific line is more useful to recruiters than a general one. ### Is a plain background OK for a LinkedIn banner? Yes. A calm, deliberate background looks more professional than the default banner or a stock photo, especially if your headline already explains what you do.