How to Link a LinkedIn Profile

Sharing your LinkedIn profile should be simple, but with custom URLs, hyperlinks, and different sharing options, it's easy to wonder if you're doing it the most effective way. Getting your link is easy, but using it correctly is what turns your profile from a static resume into a dynamic networking tool. This guide breaks down exactly how to find, customize, and share your LinkedIn profile link everywhere it matters, from your email signature to your resume.

Find and Customize Your Public Profile URL

Before you start sharing your LinkedIn link, take a minute to make sure it looks professional. By default, LinkedIn often assigns a URL with your name followed by a messy string of numbers and letters. A clean, custom URL is not only easier to remember and share but also reinforces your professional brand. Think of it as your digital business card - it should be clean, clear, and representative of you.

How to Create Your Custom URL

Customizing your URL is a quick process you can only do on a desktop browser, not the mobile app. Here’s how to do it step-by-step:

1. Click the “Me” icon in the top right of the LinkedIn homepage.
2. Select “View Profile” from the dropdown menu.
3. On your profile page, look to the top right corner and click “Edit public profile & URL.”
4. On the next page, again in the top right, you'll see a section called “Edit your custom URL.” Click the pencil icon to make changes.
5. Type your desired URL into the box. This part of the URL comes after www.linkedin.com/in/.
6. Click “Save.”

Best Practices for Your Custom URL

Picking the right URL is as much about branding as it is about availability. Here are a few tips to create a great one:

• Use Your Name: The most straightforward and professional option is yourfirstname-yourlastname. It’s what most people will search for.
• Keep it Simple: Aim for between 5 and 30 letters or numbers. Avoid special characters, spaces, or overly complex arrangements.
• What if Your Name is Taken? This is common. Don't worry, you have a few professional options:
  • Add your middle initial: john-f-doe
  • Add a relevant keyword or industry: janedoe-marketing or tomsmith-realestate
  • Incorporate a recognizable certification: sarahjones-cpa
• What to Avoid: Steer clear of birth years, silly nicknames from college, or random numbers that look like the default URL you were trying to get rid of in the first place. The goal is professional and memorable.

How to Copy Your Profile Link (On Desktop and Mobile)

Once your URL is polished, you need to be able to grab it quickly. Here’s how to find and copy your link on both desktop and mobile devices.

On a Desktop Browser

This is the easiest method. Once you are on your own LinkedIn profile page, simply highlight and copy the website address from your browser’s URL bar at the top of the screen. That’s it! The URL you see there is your direct link. This is why customizing it first is so important - it's the link you'll be grabbing most often.

On the LinkedIn Mobile App

For those times when you're on the go and need to text or email your profile link, the mobile app has you covered. The process is a little different but just as simple:

1. Open the LinkedIn app and tap your profile picture in the top left corner.
2. Tap “View Profile” just below your name.
3. On your profile page, tap the three-dots icon (...) a little below your profile headline to open more options.
4. In the menu that appears, tap “Contact info.”
5. Under the “Your Profile” section, you’ll see your LinkedIn URL. Tap it, and you'll be given an option to “Copy.” Now it’s on your clipboard, ready to paste anywhere.

Strategic Places to Share Your LinkedIn Profile Link

Having a great URL is only half the battle. The next step is placing it where recruiters, clients, and potential collaborators can find it easily. Treating your LinkedIn profile as a central hub for your professional life means linking to it from every relevant touchpoint.

In Your Email Signature

This is one of the most powerful yet underutilized places to put your link. Every email you send becomes a networking opportunity. Add a simple, clean link to your LinkedIn profile alongside your name, title, and company. It allows every recipient, from colleagues to prospective clients, to connect with you with a single click.

For example:

Jane Doe
Marketing Director | ACME Innovations
linkedin.com/in/janedoe-marketing

On Your Resume or CV

A non-negotiable for modern job seekers. Adding your LinkedIn profile link to your resume’s contact section gives hiring managers a chance to see a more complete picture of who you are professionally. They can see your recommendations, posts you’ve shared, and projects you’ve highlighted. Make sure the URL is a clickable hyperlink in the digital version (PDF) of your resume.

In Your Other Social Media Bios

Maintain a consistent brand across all your digital platforms. Add your LinkedIn profile URL to your bios on platforms like X (Twitter), Instagram, or your Facebook business page. This helps cross-pollinate your audience and shows visitors that you have a professional side. On platforms like Instagram where you only get one link, you might use a service like Linktree, but be sure your LinkedIn profile is one of the primary links listed.

On Your Personal Website or Blog

If you have a personal portfolio, website, or blog, a link to your LinkedIn profile is essential. You can add it in a few places:

• As a social icon in your site's header or footer.
• Hyperlinked from your name in your "About Me" page.
• As a clear call-to-action, such as "Connect with me on LinkedIn."

Beyond the Basics: Creating Hyperlinks and Tagging on LinkedIn

Sometimes, simply pasting a URL isn't enough. You might want to mention someone directly in a post or link out to your company’s page from a comment. Understanding how tagging works is another form of "linking" that's central to building relationships on the platform.

Can You Hyperlink Text in a LinkedIn Post?

This is a common question with a simple answer: no. In a regular LinkedIn post, comment, or message, you cannot create custom anchor text (for example, making the words “my latest blog post” a clickable link to a URL). When you paste a URL into a post, LinkedIn automatically makes it clickable and usually generates a preview image and text. While not a true hyperlink, it serves the same purpose of directing people to another page.

The only place you can create traditional hyperlinks on LinkedIn is within LinkedIn Articles - the platform's long-form blogging tool. The article editor works like a standard word processor, allowing you to highlight text and add a URL to it.

How to Tag People or Companies

Tagging, or mentioning, someone or a company on LinkedIn is a great way to link directly to their profile and get their attention. This brings your content into their notification feed and increases its visibility.

The process is straightforward:

1. In a post or comment, type the @ symbol.
2. Begin typing the name of the person or company you want to tag.
3. A dropdown menu will appear with suggestions. Select the correct profile from the list.
4. Once selected, the name will become a blue, clickable link to their profile.

Use tagging thoughtfully. Mention people when they are relevant to the conversation or content, not just to get their attention. For example, tag collaborators on a project you're sharing or a company you’re praising.

Linking *From* Your Profile to Showcase Your Work

Linking out from your profile is just as important as linking to it. You can use your profile to direct visitors to your best work, company websites, or side projects, turning your profile into a professional portfolio.

Use a Powerful "Featured" Section

The Featured section sits near the top of your profile and is a prime spot for showcasing a visual gallery of your proudest accomplishments. You can add a variety of links here:

• External Links: Add links to your personal portfolio, blog articles you've written, company product pages, or news features about you.
• LinkedIn Posts: Feature your most successful or insightful LinkedIn posts.
• LinkedIn Articles: Highlight your best long-form content.
• Media: Upload documents, photos, or presentations directly.

To add to this section, go to your profile, click "Add profile section," and choose “Featured.” You can then select what you’d like to showcase.

Add Websites to Your Contact Info

Further down, in your contact info section, you have the ability to list up to three websites. This is the perfect place to put links to your company website, personal blog, or portfolio. Better yet, LinkedIn allows you to customize the anchor text for these links. Instead of just showing the full URL, you can choose labels like “Company Website,” “Personal Blog,” or “Portfolio” to make it clearer for visitors what each link leads to.

Final Thoughts

Your LinkedIn profile is more than a digital resume, it's the center of your professional online identity. Knowing how to find, customize, and strategically share your profile link helps you build a stronger personal brand, network more effectively, and ensure that your next opportunity can find you.

Once your LinkedIn presence is polished, managing it alongside your other social channels is the next step. To keep everything consistent, I've found that using one calendar to see my entire content strategy is a game-changer. By planning and scheduling our content - for LinkedIn and all our other accounts - with Postbase, our team can maintain a steady, professional presence across platforms without the chaos of switching between dozens of tabs. It helps us see our brand's full voice, from casual posts on Instagram to professional articles on LinkedIn, all in a single, organized view.