LinkedIn is the world’s largest professional network with over 722 million users worldwide. As a professional networking and career development site, LinkedIn profiles are an important part of many users’ online presence and personal branding. With so many people relying on LinkedIn to network, look for jobs, be found for business opportunities, and more – it’s natural for LinkedIn users to want to update and improve their profiles periodically.
This raises an important question: when you update your LinkedIn profile, does LinkedIn show or notify your connections that changes were made? Are the updates completely private, or does LinkedIn have features that highlight changes to your profile so your connections are aware you made edits?
The short answer is: yes, LinkedIn does have some features that can show or notify your connections when you update your profile. However, the visibility and notifications depend on the type of change you make, as well as your personal account settings and privacy options.
In this comprehensive guide, we’ll walk through what types of LinkedIn profile changes are public, private, or customizable based on your preferences. We’ll also provide tips on how to update your profile smoothly without bombarding your network with notifications.
LinkedIn Profile Changes That Are Always Public
While many LinkedIn profile sections allow you to control the visibility of changes, some types of updates will always be public to your first-degree connections (and often beyond to second- and third-degree connections).
Here are some of the profile changes that LinkedIn will always show publicly to your network:
Profile Photo Updates
Whenever you update your profile photo, LinkedIn automatically notifies your first-degree connections by showing “X updated their photo” in notifications and the LinkedIn feed. Profile photo changes are public and impossible to hide.
Headline Updates
Your headline (the text below your name describing your current role or title) is always public on your profile. Any time you modify or rewrite your headline, the change will be visible to your connections.
Current Position Changes
Just like your headline, your current job title and company are displayed on your profile overview and will notify your network if changed. “X has a new position” will appear in notifications to your connections.
Location Changes
The location associated with your profile (city, state/province, country) is public and will trigger a notification if you update it.
Skills Changes
The skills section of your profile is always public. Adding or removing skills will notify your connections that you’ve made a change.
Academic Changes
Academic entries like degrees, certifications, and educational institutions you’ve attended are fully public. Updating these sections notifies your network.
Username/Vanity URL Changes
LinkedIn usernames and custom vanity profile URLs are searchable and public. Changing your unique LinkedIn URL will be noticeable to anyone who has bookmarked or searched for your old one.
LinkedIn Profile Changes That Are Private by Default
While the sections above are unavoidably public when changed, many other LinkedIn profile fields have customizable privacy settings. By default, most of the following sections are private to you only until you actively share them:
Summary
Your profile summary section is private by default. You can edit or rewrite your summary freely without notifying your network, unless you actively share an update about it.
Work Experience Descriptions
The career history and work experience descriptions you provide are private. You can update these without LinkedIn actively notifying your connections.
Accomplishments
Your accomplishments, awards, honors, test scores, and other achievements can be updated privately without notifications.
Organizations
Adding or removing groups and organizations you’re a member of is a private change until shared.
Skills Details
While adding a new skill publicly notifies your network, elaborating on or changing any existing skill details is private.
Additional Background Info
Sections like About, Publications, Projects, Patents, Languages, and others let you expand on your background. Changes here are private.
Interests
Your interests like topics you follow and content you engage with is not shown in your main profile, so any changes are private.
Connections
Your LinkedIn network size and connections list is private. Adding new connections does not notify your existing network.
Customizing Your LinkedIn Profile Change Visibility
For many sections of your profile, LinkedIn allows you to customize exactly who can see changes once they are made through your settings:
Sharing Profile Edit Updates
In your account Privacy & Settings, you can change your profile visibility settings for “Your profile changes and updates” to be visible to your connections, to only you, or to a custom selection.
Who Can See Your Connections
You can limit which connections are able to see your full connections list, if you don’t want new connections broadcasted.
Managing Visibility by Section
LinkedIn lets you adjust the visibility section-by-section. For example, you can make your education history public but keep volunteer experience private.
Selectively Showcasing New Profile Content
When you add new content to your profile like projects or publications, you can choose who to actively share this with versus keeping it private until you’re ready.
Best Practices for Updating Your Profile
To manage your professional brand and network most effectively on LinkedIn, keep these tips in mind:
Update Sections Strategically
Focus first on improving public-facing sections like your headline, summary, and top skills. Then fill out additional background info that enhances your brand.
Make Changes Gradually
Avoid overhauling your entire profile in one day. Spread out changes over time so as not to overwhelm your network with notifications.
Review Custom Settings Frequently
Check your profile visibility preferences periodically to ensure you’re still controlling notifications as intended.
Share Significant Updates Selectively
Publicize exciting updates like new jobs, major publications, or big awards individually to highlight them for your network.
Frequently Asked Questions
Below are some common questions about LinkedIn profile visibility changes:
Do all profile changes notify my network?
No, only certain public sections like your photo, headline, and current position notify your connections automatically. Most other sections allow you to control visibility.
Can I change my profile without anyone seeing it?
Yes, through your settings you can change most sections privately without notifying connections before you’re ready to share.
Do my 2nd-degree connections see my profile changes?
In most cases, only your 1st-degree connections are notified unless you share a public update. However, some changes like new positions may become visible to 2nd- and 3rd-degree networks depending on your settings.
What are LinkedIn’s default profile visibility settings?
By default, new profile changes are only visible to you. But you can customize sections to share with your connections, the public, or specific individuals.
Can I prevent my network from expanding when I add connections?
Yes, through your settings you can limit which connections are able to see your full connections list. New connections can be private.
Conclusion
Maintaining your LinkedIn presence involves ongoing profile management as you grow in your career. By understanding the visibility settings LinkedIn provides, you can strategically highlight important updates for your network while keeping more minor changes private until you’re ready. Focus on showcasing each new achievement on its own merits.
Just remember – updates to public sections like your photo, headline, position, and summary will always notify your 1st-degree connections immediately. For most other profile sections, you can control visibility and notifications with your privacy settings. With the right strategy, you can build an impactful LinkedIn profile that strengthens your professional brand over time.
| Profile Section | Default Visibility | Customizable? |
|---|---|---|
| Photo | Public | No |
| Headline | Public | No |
| Position | Public | No |
| Location | Public | No |
| Skills | Public | No |
| Education | Public | No |
| Summary | Private | Yes |
| Experience | Private | Yes |
| Accomplishments | Private | Yes |
| Organizations | Private | Yes |
| Interests | Private | Yes |
| Connections | Private | Yes |
