How to Preview a LinkedIn Profile

Want to check out someone’s LinkedIn profile without leaving a digital footprint? You’ve come to the right place. Whether you’re a recruiter sourcing talent, a marketer analyzing competitors, or simply curious about an old colleague, there are ways to browse anonymously. This guide breaks down exactly how to preview LinkedIn profiles privately and also shows you how to see what your own profile looks like to others.

Why Would You Want to Preview a LinkedIn Profile Privately?

Before jumping into the "how," let's touch on the "why." Your reason for anonymous browsing shapes which method is best. Most people fall into a few common camps:

• Competitive Research: You’re analyzing a competitor’s team, checking out their marketing head's background, or seeing how a rival company structures its departments. You want to gather intelligence without tipping them off.
• Sales and Lead Generation: You're in the early stages of prospecting and want to learn more about a potential client before making the first move. Viewing their profile can be a great first touchpoint, but sometimes you aren't ready to start that conversation.
• Recruiting and Headhunting: As a recruiter, you might be looking at dozens, or even hundreds, of profiles a day. Browsing privately prevents you from sending notifications to candidates you haven't decided to contact yet, keeping your sourcing process clean.
• Simple Curiosity: Let’s be honest - sometimes you just want to see what an old classmate or former coworker is up to without making it an official “I looked at your profile” interaction.

On the flip side, you might want to preview your own profile to make sure your professional brand is communicating exactly what you want it to. Seeing your profile from an outsider's perspective helps you spot gaps, polish your summary, and make a stronger first impression.

Method 1: Using LinkedIn’s Built-in Private Mode

The most reliable way to browse without being seen is by using LinkedIn’s own privacy settings. The platform gives you direct control over what others see when you visit their profile. By default, it’s set to show your name, headline, and profile picture. But you can change that in just a few clicks.

This setting activates "Private Mode," making you a completely anonymous visitor. To the user you're viewing, you will appear simply as "LinkedIn Member - This person is viewing profiles in private mode.” They will have no information about who you are.

How to Activate Private Mode on Desktop:

1. Step 1: Access Your Settings
   Click the “Me” icon (your profile picture) in the top right corner of the LinkedIn navigation bar. From the dropdown menu, select “Settings & Privacy.”
2. Step 2: Navigate to Visibility Settings
   On the left-hand sidebar, click on the “Visibility” tab. This is where you control who can see your activity and profile information.
3. Step 3: Choose Your Profile Viewing Options
   In the “Visibility of your profile & network” section, click on “Profile viewing options.” You’ll see three choices.
4. Step 4: Select “Private mode”
   You will see the following options:
   • Your name and headline: This is the default. Everyone you view can see who you are.
   • Private profile characteristics: This is semi-private. It shows a vague description, like "Someone in the Marketing industry" or "Founder in San Francisco."
   • Private mode: Select this radio button. A message will confirm, “You’ll be in private mode.”

That’s it! Your changes are saved automatically. You can now browse profiles, and you will appear as a totally anonymous viewer.

The Important Trade-Off of Private Mode

There is one major catch to using Private Mode. LinkedIn is all about professional networking, so visibility is a two-way street. When you browse in Private Mode, you also lose the ability to see who has viewed your profile.

Your “Who’s viewed your profile” list will be cleared, and you won’t be able to see anyone who visits you while you have the setting active. If seeing your views is an important part of your networking or lead generation strategy, remember to switch back to public mode when you’re done with your private research. Simply follow the same steps and select “Your name and headline” again.

Method 2: Using the 'Semi-Private' Option

What if you don’t want to be completely invisible? That’s where the "Private profile characteristics" option comes in. It’s a happy medium between full visibility and complete anonymity.

When you use this setting, the person whose profile you view won't see your name, but they'll get a general idea of who you are. For example, they might see:

• "Sales Manager from the Tech Industry"
• "Recruiter specializing in Software Engineering"
• "Student at University of Washington"

This can be a strategic choice. It signals that someone with a relevant background has interest, which can spark curiosity without revealing your full identity. A potential candidate might think, "A recruiter is looking at my profile, I should make sure it's polished." A potential customer might wonder, "Which salesperson is this?" This can sometimes be just as effective as being fully public.

To activate it, follow the same steps for Private Mode but select "Private profile characteristics" instead.

Method 3: How to Preview Your Own LinkedIn Profile

Anonymous browsing is great for research, but one of the most productive ways to "preview" a profile is to see how your own page looks to different audiences. Your profile appears differently to your 1st-degree connections than it does to people who aren’t in your network, or to those who are logged out of LinkedIn entirely.

Checking your public view is essential for brand management. It helps you answer important questions:

• Does my headline grab attention?
• Is my banner image professional and relevant?
• Is my profile picture clear and welcoming?
• Is the most important information in my "About" section visible at a glance?

How to View Your Public Profile:

1. Step 1: Go to Your Profile Page
   Click the “Me” icon in the top navigation bar and then click “View Profile.”
2. Step 2: Find the Public Profile Settings
   On your profile page, look to the right-hand panel. You should see a box with a link that says “Edit public profile & URL.” Click it.
3. Step 3: See Your Profile as the Public Sees It
   A new page will open, showing you exactly what your profile looks like to people who are not logged into LinkedIn or are not connected with you. On the right side of this page, you’ll also find toggles that allow you to control which sections of your profile are public (like your past experience, education, or posts).

Regularly reviewing this public-facing version of your profile is a smart habit. It's your digital first impression, and ensuring it's sharp, compelling, and up-to-date can make all the difference in attracting the right opportunities.

Bonus Method: Logging Out or Using an Incognito Window

A quick and simple way to view a public LinkedIn profile is to simply log out of your account or open a private/incognito browser window and use a search engine.

For example, you could search Google for "Jane Doe LinkedIn Director of Marketing Acme Corp." If the profile is public and indexed by search engines, a link will likely appear. Clicking it will show you the public version of their profile.

However, this method has become less reliable over time. LinkedIn heavily encourages users to log in to see full profiles and often gate-keeps information behind a login wall, only showing a small snippet to logged-out users. For this reason, using LinkedIn's native Private Mode is a much more effective and thorough way to see a full profile anonymously.

Strategy: Know When to Be Seen and When to Be Invisible

Using private mode isn't an all-or-nothing decision. The smartest social media professionals use visibility strategically.

When does it make sense to view a profile publicly?

• After a meeting or call: Visiting their profile is a natural follow-up. It shows continued interest and puts you top-of-mind.
• As a warm outreach: A profile view notification can prime a prospect before you send a connection request or an InMail message.
• Networking with speakers or peers: If you attended a webinar or conference, viewing the speaker's profile is a clear signal of appreciation and interest.

When is it better to keep things private?

• Initial research phase: When you're just starting your competitor analysis or candidate sourcing, privacy is your friend.
• When you're not ready to engage: If you're just gathering information without any intent to connect, browsing privately prevents sending mixed signals.
• To avoid appearing intrusive: Viewing the same high-level executive's profile repeatedly might not be the impression you want to make.

Mastering these settings takes your LinkedIn strategy from passive to active, giving you total control over how and when you make your mark.

Final Thoughts

Whether you’re doing stealthy competitor research with Private Mode or polishing your personal brand by viewing your public profile, LinkedIn gives you the tools to see profiles how you want, when you want. Use private viewing for research, semi-private viewing to spark curiosity, and the public view editor to make sure your first impression is always a great one.

Managing your LinkedIn presence is a critical part of a modern social media strategy, but it’s often just one piece of the puzzle. We built Postbase because we were tired of wrestling with outdated tools that made simple things - like posting a Reel or seeing our entire content plan - feel complicated. With a simple visual calendar, reliable video scheduling, and a unified inbox for all our engagement, it helps us keep our entire social presence cohesive, from a polished LinkedIn post to the latest TikTok trend.