LinkedIn OG Image Checker — Verify Your Links Look Right on LinkedIn Before Sharing

LinkedIn is the platform where professional content spreads. A blog post, case study, or company page shared on LinkedIn needs to look sharp in the feed — but LinkedIn's link preview rules are stricter than most other platforms.

LinkedIn reads Open Graph tags (og:title, og:description, og:image) from your page HTML to build the preview card. If those tags are missing, wrong-sized, or cached incorrectly, your post looks unprofessional or does not show a preview at all.

Here is how to verify your LinkedIn OG tags specifically and fix the most common problems.

LinkedIn Link Preview Dimensions and Requirements

LinkedIn has specific requirements for link preview images that differ slightly from other platforms.

og:image size for LinkedIn

Minimum: 1200x627 pixels (approximately 1.91:1 ratio)
Recommended: 1200x627 or 1200x628 pixels
Maximum file size: 5MB
Formats: JPG, PNG, GIF (static)

If your image is smaller than 1200x627, LinkedIn may show it as a small thumbnail on the right side of the text rather than a large landscape card. The full-width card format is far more prominent and generates significantly more engagement.

og:title for LinkedIn

LinkedIn truncates og:title at approximately 70 characters in the feed. Keep your title under 60 characters to be safe and avoid mid-word truncation.

og:description for LinkedIn

LinkedIn shows about 100-150 characters of og:description in the feed card. Write your description to deliver the core message within the first 100 characters.

How to Check Your LinkedIn OG Tags

The Open Graph Checker renders a Facebook/LinkedIn preview card using your og: tags. Since LinkedIn and Facebook use the same OG protocol, the rendered preview closely matches what LinkedIn will show.

Method 1: HTML paste (most reliable)

1. Open the page you want to share on LinkedIn in a browser
2. Press Ctrl+U (Windows) or Cmd+U (Mac) to view source
3. Press Ctrl+A then Ctrl+C to copy all HTML
4. Open the Open Graph Checker
5. Paste the HTML and click Check Tags

Review the Facebook/LinkedIn preview card in the results. Check that the image loads at the right size, the title is not truncated, and the description is meaningful.

Method 2: LinkedIn Post Inspector (the official tool)

LinkedIn has its own tool at linkedin.com/post-inspector. Paste your URL and it shows the exact preview LinkedIn will display plus a button to force LinkedIn to re-crawl your page. Use this after making tag changes to clear LinkedIn's cache.

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Why LinkedIn Shows a Small Image Instead of a Large Card

This is the most common LinkedIn preview complaint. You share a post with a link, expecting a large banner image, but LinkedIn shows a tiny square thumbnail instead. Here is why it happens.

Image is too small

LinkedIn requires a minimum of 1200x627 pixels for the full-width card. If your og:image is 600x315 (a common "half size" that works on Facebook), LinkedIn will show it small. The fix is to regenerate your og:image at 1200x627 or larger.

Image returns an error or wrong content type

LinkedIn's crawler attempts to fetch the og:image URL. If the URL returns a 404, redirects to a login page, or returns a non-image content type, LinkedIn cannot display it. Check that your og:image URL is publicly accessible, returns HTTP 200, and serves a real image file.

og:image URL is relative, not absolute

The og:image must be an absolute URL: https://yourdomain.com/images/preview.jpg. A relative URL like /images/preview.jpg will not work. LinkedIn cannot resolve relative URLs.

WebP format issues

LinkedIn supports WebP og:images in most cases, but some older LinkedIn clients or integrations may not render WebP. Use JPG or PNG for maximum compatibility.

Force LinkedIn to Refresh Your Link Preview Cache

Even after fixing your OG tags, LinkedIn may continue showing the old broken preview because it caches link data. Here is how to force a refresh.

Using LinkedIn Post Inspector

1. Go to linkedin.com/post-inspector
2. Enter your page URL
3. Click Inspect
4. Review the preview and click Scrape again to force a re-fetch

After LinkedIn re-scrapes, new posts sharing that URL will use the updated OG tags. Existing posts that already shared the link will continue showing the cached version — LinkedIn does not retroactively update shared post previews.

Timing considerations

LinkedIn's cache duration varies — some pages are cached for days. If the Post Inspector shows the correct preview but live posts still show the old one, wait 24-48 hours and try sharing again.

For more cache-clearing strategies across all platforms, see the OG image cache refresh guide.

Frequently Asked Questions

What size should my og:image be for LinkedIn?

1200x627 pixels is the recommended size for a full-width LinkedIn link preview card. Smaller images (below this threshold) display as a small thumbnail beside the text instead of a large banner. Use JPG or PNG format for maximum compatibility.

Why is my LinkedIn preview showing the wrong image?

LinkedIn caches link previews and may be showing an older version of your og:image. Use the LinkedIn Post Inspector (linkedin.com/post-inspector) to force a re-scrape. If the new image still does not appear, verify your og:image URL is publicly accessible, returns HTTP 200, is at least 1200x627 pixels, and is not blocked by robots.txt.

Can I set a different image for LinkedIn vs Twitter?

Yes. Add a twitter:image tag pointing to your Twitter-optimized image. LinkedIn reads og:image while Twitter reads twitter:image first (falling back to og:image if not set). This lets you use a 1200x627 image for LinkedIn and a 1200x600 image for Twitter without them conflicting.