How to See Your Drafts on LinkedIn

So, you’ve crafted the perfect LinkedIn post, added a compelling hook, selected the right hashtags, and then hit “save as draft” to post it later. But when you come back, it seems to have vanished into thin air. Don’t panic - it’s a common frustration, and your work isn’t lost. This guide will show you exactly where to find your saved drafts on LinkedIn, whether you’re on a desktop computer or using the mobile app.

Why Bother with LinkedIn Drafts Anyway?

Before we get to the "how," let's quickly cover the "why." Using LinkedIn's draft feature might seem like an unnecessary extra step, but it’s a smart move for any creator or social media manager looking to build their brand thoughtfully. Here are a few reasons why drafts are a surprisingly powerful tool:

• It Prevents Accidental Posts: We've all been there - you're halfway through writing a post and your cat walks across the keyboard, accidentally hitting "Post." Saving it as a draft gives you a safety net, so you only publish when you’re truly ready.
• It Encourages Thoughtful Content: Some thoughts need time to develop. Saving a post as a draft allows you to step away, reflect on your message, and come back with a clearer, more impactful perspective. This is especially useful for more complex or nuanced topics that thrive on LinkedIn.
• It Allows for Team Review: If you're working with a team, you can write up a post on your own device, save it as a draft, and then screen-share it for feedback before it goes live. While not a full-blown collaboration tool, it’s a simple way to get a second pair of eyes on your content.
• It Facilitates Content Batching (in a pinch): While dedicated tools are better for this, you can use drafts to line up a few post ideas at the beginning of the day or week. This lets you quickly transition from one idea to the next without starting from a blank page every time.

In short, drafts turn impulse posting into intentional publishing. Now, let's go find where they're hiding.

How to See Your Drafts on LinkedIn (Desktop Version)

Finding your drafts on the LinkedIn website is straightforward once you know the secret spot. It's not immediately obvious, which is why so many people get stuck. Here’s the step-by-step process:

Step 1: Open the "Start a post" Window

Navigate to your LinkedIn homepage feed. At the very top, you’ll see the content creation box with your profile picture and the prompt “Start a post.” Click on that box as if you were about to write a brand new post.

Step 2: Locate the Drafts Link

When the full pop-up editor appears, ignore the main text area for a moment and look all the way to the bottom. Next to the "Post" button, you should see a small but visible line of text that says something like, “You have 1 draft. View.” The number will, of course, change based on how many drafts you have saved.

If you don’t see this link, it means you have no post drafts saved on your desktop account.

Step 3: Click "View" to See Your Drafts

Simply click on the word "View" (or anywhere on that line of text). LinkedIn will then open a new window titled "Saved drafts." Here, you’ll see a list of all the posts you started and saved.

Step 4: Edit, Post, or Discard Your Draft

From the "Saved drafts" list, you have a few options:

• Edit a draft: Click on the text of the draft you want to continue working on. This will open it back up in the content editor, allowing you to finish writing, add media, tag people, and hit "Post."
• Delete a draft: If you no longer need a draft, click the small trash can icon next to it. LinkedIn will ask you to confirm that you want to discard it permanently.

That's all there is to it on desktop. It's a slightly hidden feature, but once found, it's easy to access again and again.

Finding Your LinkedIn Drafts on the Mobile App (iOS & Android)

The mobile experience is a little different, but just as simple. The location has changed slightly over time with app updates, but the current method is quite reliable across both iPhone and Android devices.

Step 1: Open the Post Composer

Launch the LinkedIn app. At the bottom of the screen, you will see a navigation bar. Tap the centered “Post” button (it’s a plus sign inside a circle).

Step 2: Find the “Your drafts” or Clock Icon

This will open the screen where you compose your post. Right at the top, typically next to your name and profile picture, you'll see a small button with either a clock icon or the text "Your drafts." This is your gateway.

Step 3: Access Your Drafts List

Tap on that "Your drafts" button or clock icon. The app will pull up a list of all your saved post drafts. This list includes drafts you created on mobile, and often those created on desktop as well (though syncing isn't always perfect).

Step 4: Manage Your Mobile Drafts

As with the desktop version, you can tap on any draft to open it for editing. You can then continue writing, add media from your phone, and publish it directly from the app. To delete a draft, you’ll usually see an ellipsis (...) or a trash can icon next to it, which will allow you to discard it.

What About LinkedIn Article Drafts? A Different Hiding Spot

Here’s a common point of confusion: a short-form post draft is not the same as a long-form article draft. If you started writing a long-form article and saved it, it will not appear in the "Saved drafts" folder we just found. Articles have their own separate home.

Here's how to find your article drafts (this is best done on desktop):

1. On your LinkedIn homepage, find the content creation box again. Instead of clicking inside it, look for the option that says "Write article" and click it.
2. This will open LinkedIn’s publishing platform, a completely different interface designed for long-form content.
3. At the top of the publisher page, look for the "Publishing menu" located next to your profile picture.
4. Click on the "Publishing menu," and you'll see a dropdown with several options, including "My drafts." Click that.

This will take you to your dedicated article drafts page, where you can find and continue working on your bigger, more in-depth content pieces.

Troubleshooting: "Why Did My LinkedIn Draft Disappear?"

Sometimes, a draft you were sure you saved is nowhere to be found. Frustrating, right? Here are a couple of common culprits.

Drafts aren't permanent!

Think of LinkedIn's draft feature as a temporary holding area, not a permanent archive. While they no longer have a strict 7-day expiration policy as they did in the past, drafts are still prone to disappearing during app updates or cache clears. It's not a reliable place to store important content long-term. Never use LinkedIn as your primary place to house final, approved copy.

Device Sync Can Be Unpredictable

Drafts created on the mobile app don’t always sync perfectly with the desktop site, and vice versa. It’s gotten better, but it's not foolproof. A good rule of thumb is to try to finish and post a draft on the same device where you started it to avoid any syncing headaches.

You Might Have Tapped "Discard" Instead of "Save"

It sounds simple, but it happens. When you close the post composer, LinkedIn asks if you want to "Save draft" or "Discard." If you are moving quickly, it's easy to tap the wrong button without thinking, accidentally deleting your work.

A Better Approach to Managing Your LinkedIn Marketing Workflows

Knowing where to find your drafts is useful for quick edits and spur-of-the-moment ideas. But for a consistent, stress-free social media strategy, relying on the native draft feature isn't ideal. The most effective creators and brands treat LinkedIn as the last step in their workflow, not the first.

Always create your "master drafts" in an external tool you control - like a Google Doc, Notion, or a notes app. This gives you:

• A Permanent Record: Your content lives in your own system, safe from accidental deletions or platform glitches. You'll never lose work again.
• Easier Collaboration: Sharing a Google Doc or Notion page for feedback from teammates or clients is far easier and more effective than taking screenshots of a LinkedIn draft.
• Space for Repurposing: When you have an external archive of your content, it’s remarkably simple to revisit, update, and repurpose your best ideas for future posts.

By preparing your content offline first, you can focus on creating high-quality, thoughtful posts. Then, once you're ready, you simply copy and paste your final version into LinkedIn for publishing.

Final Thoughts

The feeling of losing a perfectly crafted LinkedIn draft is a frustration shared by many, but the solution is usually just a few clicks away. Once you know where to look, finding your drafts on desktop, mobile, and for articles becomes a quick and simple task, empowering you to post your best content with confidence.

Ultimately, a reliable workflow is less about recovering lost drafts and more about preventing them from being lost in the first place. For our own content marketing, we recognized that relying on any social network's native scheduling and draft tools was unreliable. That’s why we built Postbase to have a visual calendar and a rock-solid scheduler at its core, letting you plan and see your entire content schedule a month in advance. You can batch-create your posts, trust they will publish exactly on time, and never worry about your accounts randomly disconnecting or drafts disappearing again.