If you are getting too many emails from LinkedIn and want to reduce or stop them, there are a few things you can do in Gmail to control which LinkedIn emails you receive. Here are the main options:
Unsubscribe from LinkedIn’s mailing lists
The easiest way is to unsubscribe from any LinkedIn mailing lists you no longer wish to be part of. Every LinkedIn email contains an unsubscribe link at the bottom – click this and you will be taken to a page where you can control your subscriptions.
Alternatively, you can visit the LinkedIn website directly. Go to your account settings, select “Communications” and then choose “Email preferences”. Here you can choose which types of emails you want to receive from LinkedIn.
Block or mute specific senders
If there are certain LinkedIn email addresses spamming your inbox, you can block or mute them in Gmail:
- Open the message from the sender you want to block
- Click the dropdown arrow next to the reply button
- Select “Block [sender’s email address]”
This will stop emails from that specific address. You can also mute threads instead of blocking, which will archive them automatically.
Use filters to organize, label or delete LinkedIn emails
Gmail’s filters are powerful tools to control your inbox. Here are some ways you can use them for LinkedIn emails:
- Create a filter for all mail from “linkedin.com” and apply a label like “LinkedIn”
- Filter by subject line keywords like “Invitation” or “Connection” to label/delete those emails
- Send automated replies to confirm subscription cancellations
- Skip the inbox and automatically archive LinkedIn mail
Go to Gmail Settings > Filters and Blocked Addresses > Create a new filter to set these up.
Adjust LinkedIn notification settings
In your LinkedIn account settings, you can also control which types of notifications you receive. Go to your Settings and Privacy page:
- Under “Preferences”, customize email and push notifications
- In “Communications”, review email frequency and categories
- Under “Notifications”, choose what notifications to get in the LinkedIn mobile app
Turning off certain notifications will reduce unnecessary emails.
Use LinkedIn’s “Vacation Responder”
If you will be away for a while, enable LinkedIn’s automated “Vacation Responder” under your Settings and Privacy page. This will send auto-reply messages to anyone who contacts you on LinkedIn informing them of your absence.
While it won’t directly stop emails, it should reduce conversations that lead to back-and-forth emails.
Adjust Email Digests settings
LinkedIn summarizes notifications and messages in “Email Digest” summaries sent periodically. To reduce these:
- In “Communications Settings”, disable digest emails or increase the digest frequency to reduce emails.
- In your profile, minimize notifications by adjusting endorsements, activity broadcasts, etc.
Unlink Connections
Having many connections on LinkedIn often leads to increased notifications and emails. Prune your connections to only those you actively engage with by:
- Regularly reviewing your connections
- Removing connections you no longer interact with
This reduces relationship-generated emails over time as your network shrinks.
Avoid LinkedIn’s “People You May Know” suggestions
LinkedIn’s suggestions to connect with new people often lead to notification emails. Reduce these by:
- In account privacy settings, disable tailored suggestions based on profile views, shared connections, etc.
- Be selective in accepting connection invites from people you don’t know.
Review Other Connected Accounts
LinkedIn may be connected to your contacts and calendars on mobile devices, Google, etc. Review these connections and remove any you don’t need. This reduces LinkedIn’s ability to spam your broader networks.
Use Third-Party Unsubscribe Tools
Tools like Unroll.me, Cleanfox and Maildozer can scan your Gmail inbox and unsubscribe / organize subscriptions in bulk. They make it easier to purge marketing emails from LinkedIn and other sites.
Block All LinkedIn Email
If you want to completely block LinkedIn from emailing you, a catch-all filter is an option. Create a filter in Gmail for:
- From: *@linkedin.com
- Mark as read and Delete it
- Never send it to Spam
This will automatically delete all LinkedIn email before you see it. Note that it prevents you from receiving ANY LinkedIn mail in future.
Close Your LinkedIn Account
The nuclear option is to completely close your LinkedIn account. You can temporarily disable or permanently delete it. Obviously this prevents all LinkedIn emails, but has many other effects:
- Lose access to your network and connections
- Job seeking & recruiting opportunities go away
- Lose access to content you created and conversations
- May still receive some emails from LinkedIn after closure
Usually adjusting a few settings is enough to control LinkedIn emails. But account closure is an option if you want to cut all ties.
In Summary
The key steps to reduce LinkedIn emails are:
- Opt out of mailing lists you don’t need
- Use Gmail filters, blocks and mutes
- Adjust LinkedIn notification settings
- Be selective with your LinkedIn connections
- Limit auto-syncing between LinkedIn and other apps/accounts
With a few tweaks, you can keep your LinkedIn connectivity while drastically reducing the email noise.
