LinkedIn's character limits vary significantly by field. Your headline — one of the most visible parts of your profile — is capped at 220 characters. The About section allows up to 2,600 characters. Posts can run to 3,000 characters. Connection request messages are limited to 300. Knowing these limits helps you write efficiently and avoid the frustration of content being cut off when you save.
Complete Character Limit Reference
| Field | Character limit |
|---|---|
| Headline | 220 |
| About (summary) | 2,600 |
| First name | 20 |
| Last name | 40 |
| Current position / job title | 100 |
| Company name | 100 |
| Experience description | 2,000 |
| Education description | 1,000 |
| Skills | 50 skills, 80 chars each |
| Post (text) | 3,000 |
| Post preview (before "see more") | ~210 |
| Comment | 1,250 |
| Connection request message | 300 |
| InMail subject line | 200 |
| InMail body | 2,000 |
| Recommendation | 3,000 |
The 220-Character Headline
Your LinkedIn headline is the single most important text field on your profile. It appears in search results, connection requests, and everywhere your name appears on the platform. Most users default to their job title and company name, which uses maybe 50 of the 220 available characters.
A stronger headline uses more of the available space to communicate value and specificity. Instead of "Software Engineer at Acme Corp," something like "Software Engineer · Full-Stack React + Node.js · Building developer tools that ship fast" uses the space to signal specialization and give a reader a reason to click through. The headline shows up in search results, so including relevant keywords is genuinely useful for discoverability.
Writing the About Section
LinkedIn shows approximately the first 300 characters of your About section before truncating with a "see more" link. This means the first two or three sentences serve as a hook — they need to communicate who you are and who you help before the reader has to make the decision to expand.
The full 2,600-character limit is generous. Profiles that use it well tend to include: a brief professional narrative (what you do and why it matters), specific accomplishments with numbers where possible, areas of expertise or skills in a scannable format, and a clear call to action at the end — whether that is an invitation to connect, a link to a portfolio, or an email address for inquiries.
Posts and the "See More" Cutoff
LinkedIn posts are cut off after approximately 210 characters in the feed, with a "see more" link to expand. The full post can run to 3,000 characters — about 450 to 500 words. This structure rewards a strong opening line: the first sentence should be compelling enough to earn the click to expand.
LinkedIn posts that perform well typically either lead with a bold claim or a provocative question, or open mid-story ("I made a hiring mistake that cost me six months..."). Generic openings ("Excited to share...") rarely stop scrolling.
Connection Request Messages
The 300-character limit on connection request messages is tight. It is just enough to introduce yourself, state why you want to connect, and give the recipient a reason to accept. Generic messages ("I'd like to add you to my professional network") waste the space. A specific, personalized message explaining the connection — a shared interest, a mutual contact, a specific reason you want to connect — performs significantly better.
Checking Character Counts
When drafting a LinkedIn headline, About section, or post outside the platform — in a document, notes app, or content scheduler — use the character counter at SoftEdit Tools to check your count before pasting in. It shows both characters with and without spaces, updates live, and requires no account.
The Bottom Line
LinkedIn headline: 220 characters. About section: 2,600 with ~300 visible before truncation. Posts: 3,000 with ~210 visible before "see more." Connection requests: 300. Use the available space in high-visibility fields like the headline — most profiles leave most of those characters on the table.