LinkedIn is the world’s largest professional network with over 722 million users worldwide. As a platform built to connect professionals, LinkedIn provides many helpful features to users looking to network, search for jobs, market themselves, and more.
One common question LinkedIn users have is whether the platform shows them who has searched for or viewed their profile. LinkedIn does provide some visibility into who has viewed your profile, but with limitations compared to other social networks.
Does LinkedIn show who viewed your profile?
Yes, LinkedIn does show you some information about who has recently viewed your profile. However, LinkedIn does not provide a complete list of everyone who has searched for or looked at your profile.
Here’s an overview of how LinkedIn profile views work:
- LinkedIn shows you the last 5 profiles that have viewed yours in the last 90 days. You can see this list by going to your profile and clicking “See all profile views” under the Who’s Viewed Your Profile section.
- The list only includes anonymous LinkedIn members, not someone you are connected to already. So if a connection views your profile, you won’t see that in the list of recent profile views.
- LinkedIn rotates through a much longer list of anonymous viewers, showing you 5 at a time. So the list changes frequently.
- If someone views your profile multiple times, LinkedIn will only count it as 1 view.
- You can choose to turn off the ability for others to see that you viewed their profile in your account settings. Many members do this for privacy.
- LinkedIn Premium subscribers get more insight including being able to see the full list of who has viewed your profile in the last 90 days, including name and title info if available. But it still won’t show connections’ views.
So in summary, LinkedIn gives you a snapshot of some anonymous members who have recently viewed you, but not a complete list. You won’t see when your connections look at your profile.
Does LinkedIn show who searched for your profile?
LinkedIn does not show you who specifically searched for your name or profile on the platform. Search activity is kept anonymous.
Some key points about LinkedIn search:
- When you search for someone’s name or keywords on LinkedIn, it does not notify them or show that you performed that search.
- Your search history is private and not shown to any other users.
- If you click on a profile from search results, that user will now be able to see that your anonymous profile viewed theirs, as outlined above.
- Premium subscribers again have more insight. They can see aggregate data on how many times their profile appeared in search results, but not who specifically searched.
- Recruiters who search LinkedIn for candidates cannot see their own search history or results over time. Each search starts fresh.
- Paid LinkedIn recruiter seats do allow saving and tracking candidate search results over time.
So in summary, basic LinkedIn members cannot see who searched for them or their profile on the platform. Your search activity remains private.
3 ways to see who is interested in you on LinkedIn
While you can’t see exactly who has searched for you on LinkedIn, there are some signals that can give you an indication of who is interested in you and your work:
1. Profile views
As mentioned above, check the “Who’s viewed your profile” section to see a sample of anonymous members who have recently viewed your profile. While this isn’t comprehensive, it does give you a sense of the level and types of members interested in you.
2. Connection requests
Pay attention to who is sending you connection requests on LinkedIn, especially those that include personalized messages. These members clearly have an interest in you and your work.
3. Interactions with your content
Notice who is liking, commenting on, and sharing your posts and articles on LinkedIn. This type of engagement signals interest in your work and expertise. You can click to view the full list of people who engaged with your posts.
Other tips for seeing who is viewing your LinkedIn profile
In addition to the options above, here are some other tips for getting more insight into who is looking at your LinkedIn profile:
- Upgrade to a Premium account. This allows you to see all profile views in the last 90 days, including the names of anonymous viewers.
- Customize your public profile URL. This makes it easier to track traffic sources when people land directly on your profile.
- Use Google Analytics on your LinkedIn profile to see traffic sources and visitor demographics.
- Install the LinkedIn social browser extension. This shows you LinkedIn profiles that appear in your Google search results so you can identify anonymous viewers.
- List your LinkedIn URL prominently on all professional bios and sites. This makes it easy for interested people to find and view your profile.
Why LinkedIn profile views are anonymous
Some members wish LinkedIn showed exactly who has searched or looked at their profile, like more transparent social networks such as Facebook. However, LinkedIn designed their platform to keep search and browsing anonymous by default for a few reasons:
- Privacy – Members want to control what visibility they have into their activity and vice versa.
- Reduced self-censorship – Anonymity encourages more open searching and browsing without worrying about judgments.
- Less harassment – Anonymity protects against harassment from people who know exactly who looked at their profile.
- Fairness – Anonymity avoids preferential treatment based on who looks at your profile.
For these reasons, basic LinkedIn members only see a limited, frequently changing sample of anonymous profile visitors. However, premium members can unlock more transparency if they desire it.
How to tell if someone is stalking you on LinkedIn
While LinkedIn limits profile view transparency, some members still worry about being potentially “stalked” or harassed on the platform. Here are some signs to watch out for:
- You receive numerous connection requests from the same person, especially after ignoring initial requests.
- Someone constantly engages with all your posts and content even if you don’t know them.
- They message you frequently on LinkedIn without reciprocation from your end.
- They bring up personal details about you that you didn’t share on your profile.
- You notice them viewing your LinkedIn profile from multiple anonymous accounts.
If you suspect someone is stalking you or making you uncomfortable on LinkedIn, report them to LinkedIn customer service immediately so they can investigate and take action if needed.
Conclusion
LinkedIn provides limited visibility into who views your profile, searching anonymously by default. While you can’t see exactly who has searched for you, there are signals like profile views, connection requests, and engagement that indicate interested members. If needed, upgrade to a premium account or use other tools to gain more insight. But ultimately, LinkedIn’s default anonymity aims to create a professional community balanced with privacy.