Your LinkedIn profile is often the first thing a recruiter, potential client, or business contact sees. The background photo — that wide banner behind your profile picture — is the largest visual element on your profile. And yet most people either leave it as the default blue gradient or upload something that looks stretched, blurry, or cropped in the wrong place.
A well-designed LinkedIn background photo signals professionalism and attention to detail. A bad one signals the opposite.
The Correct LinkedIn Background Photo Size in 2026
LinkedIn's recommended background photo dimensions are 1584 × 396 pixels at a 4:1 aspect ratio.
| Setting | Value |
|---|---|
| Width | 1584 px |
| Height | 396 px |
| Aspect ratio | 4:1 |
| Max file size | 8 MB |
| Formats accepted | JPG, PNG |
This is a very wide, short banner — wider than most social media headers. Designing for it requires a different approach than, say, a Twitter header.
How LinkedIn Displays the Background Photo
LinkedIn crops and scales the background photo depending on the device and browser window size. A few things to know:
On desktop, LinkedIn shows the full width of the image, but the bottom portion is partially covered by your profile photo, name, and headline. The profile photo circle sits in the lower-left area of the banner.
On mobile, LinkedIn crops the sides of the image. The visible area is roughly the center 60% of the width.
On different screen sizes, the banner scales proportionally, so a design that looks balanced on a large monitor may feel cramped on a smaller laptop screen.
The Safe Zone for LinkedIn Banners
Given how LinkedIn crops the image across devices, keep all important content within this safe zone:
- Horizontal: Stay within the center 60% of the image (roughly x=316 to x=1268 on a 1584 px wide canvas)
- Vertical: Keep content in the top 75% of the image (the bottom 25% is often covered by the profile section)
- Bottom-left: Leave clear — the profile photo overlaps this area
The safest approach is to treat the center 950 × 280 px as your primary design area and use the rest as background.
What to Put on Your LinkedIn Background Photo
Unlike Twitter or Facebook where the banner is often decorative, LinkedIn banners work best when they communicate something specific about you or your work.
For Job Seekers
- Your professional tagline or value proposition
- Your key skills or areas of expertise
- A clean, professional background (city skyline, office, abstract)
For Freelancers and Consultants
- What you do and who you help ("I help SaaS companies grow with content marketing")
- A subtle call to action ("Open to new projects — DM me")
- Your website URL
For Business Pages
- Your company tagline
- A product visual or team photo
- Brand colors and logo (placed in the safe zone)
For Thought Leaders and Creators
- A recent speaking engagement or publication
- Your content focus area
- Social proof ("100K+ newsletter subscribers")
Design Tips for a Professional LinkedIn Banner
Keep it simple. LinkedIn is a professional context. Busy, colorful designs that work on Instagram look out of place here. Stick to 2–3 colors, clean typography, and plenty of white space.
Use your brand colors. If you have a personal brand or company brand, use those colors. Consistency across your profile photo, banner, and content builds recognition.
Make text large enough to read. The banner is displayed at varying sizes. Any text should be readable at 600 px wide — test this before uploading.
Avoid stock photo clichés. Handshakes, generic cityscapes, and blurry bokeh backgrounds are overused. A clean solid color or subtle gradient often looks more professional than a busy stock photo.
Match your profile photo. If your profile photo has a white background, a white or light-colored banner creates a cohesive look. If your photo has a colored background, pick up that color in the banner.
LinkedIn Company Page Banner Size
LinkedIn Company Pages use a slightly different banner size:
- Recommended: 1128 × 191 px
- Aspect ratio: ~6:1
- Max file size: 4 MB
This is even wider and shorter than the personal profile banner. The same safe zone principles apply — keep content centered and away from the edges.
Fix Your LinkedIn Banner Size
If your current banner is blurry, stretched, or the wrong dimensions, resize it before re-uploading.
Resize your LinkedIn banner now →
Set the output to 1584 × 396 px for personal profiles, or 1128 × 191 px for company pages, and download a banner-ready file.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the correct LinkedIn background photo size in 2026? The recommended size is 1584 × 396 pixels at a 4:1 aspect ratio. For LinkedIn Company Pages, use 1128 × 191 pixels.
Why does my LinkedIn banner look blurry? Blurry LinkedIn banners are usually caused by uploading an image that's too small. LinkedIn stretches small images to fill the banner area, which causes pixelation. Always upload at 1584 × 396 px or larger.
What part of the LinkedIn banner gets cut off on mobile? LinkedIn crops the sides of the banner on mobile, showing roughly the center 60% of the width. Keep all important content — text, logos, key visuals — in the center of your banner.
Should I use JPG or PNG for my LinkedIn background photo? JPG for photos and gradient backgrounds. PNG for designs with text, logos, or sharp edges. LinkedIn accepts both formats up to 8 MB.
How often should I update my LinkedIn background photo? Update it when your professional focus changes, when you have new social proof to highlight, or when your personal brand evolves. There's no set schedule, but a stale banner from years ago can signal an inactive profile.
