Removing a connection takes 30 seconds and the person won't be notified

To delete a connection on LinkedIn, open their profile, click the three dots next to the "Message" button, and select "Remove connection." The person stays in your network until you confirm the removal — they won't see a notification that you removed them, and the connection disappears from both your profiles immediately.

LinkedIn doesn't send a message to the other person when you remove them. They might notice you're no longer in their connection list if they look, but there's no alert or notification. This is different from blocking someone, which prevents them from seeing your profile or contacting you at all.

Key Takeaways

  • Removing a connection is permanent and immediate — it deletes the connection from both profiles right away.
  • The other person receives no notification when you remove them, though they can see you're no longer connected if they check your profile.
  • Removing a connection is different from blocking; blocking prevents someone from viewing your profile or messaging you.
  • You can remove connections one at a time from their profile or in bulk from your connections list.

How to remove a single connection from their profile

The fastest way to remove one person is to go to their profile directly. Search for their name in the search bar at the top of LinkedIn, or find them through a mutual connection or message thread.

Once you're on their profile, look for the "Message" button near the top. To the right of it, you'll see three horizontal dots (called a menu button). Click those dots and a dropdown menu appears. Select "Remove connection" from the list. A confirmation box will pop up asking if you're sure — click "Remove" to finish. The connection is gone immediately.

How to remove multiple connections at once

If you need to remove several people, going to each profile individually takes time. LinkedIn lets you remove connections in bulk from your connections list.

Go to your profile by clicking your photo in the top right corner, then select "Connections" from the dropdown menu. You'll see your full connection list. Hover over any connection's name and a checkmark box appears on the left. Click the box next to each person you want to remove — you can select as many as you want. Once you've checked all the people you want to remove, a "Remove" button appears at the top of the list. Click it, confirm the removal, and all selected connections are deleted at once.

The difference between removing and blocking

Removing a connection and blocking someone are two separate actions with different results. When you remove a connection, the person can still see your public profile, send you a message request, or add you again later. You simply won't be in each other's connection lists anymore.

Blocking is stronger. When you block someone, they cannot view your profile, send you messages, or see your posts. If you want to prevent someone from contacting you or seeing your activity, blocking is the right choice. To block someone, go to their profile, click the three dots, and select "Block" instead of "Remove connection."

What happens after you remove a connection

Once you remove someone, the connection is gone from both profiles. If you had sent them messages, those messages stay in your message history — removing the connection doesn't delete your chat. You can still read old conversations, but you won't be able to send new messages unless you send them a connection request first and they accept.

If the person sends you a new connection request later, you can accept it as if you were meeting for the first time. There's no record on either profile that you were previously connected. LinkedIn doesn't show a history of removed connections, so neither of you will see evidence of the removal unless you check each other's profiles and notice the connection is gone.

Reasons you might want to remove a connection

People remove connections for many reasons. You might clean up your network by removing people you no longer work with or have lost touch with. Some people remove connections to keep their network focused on current colleagues or industry contacts. Others remove connections after a job change or to reduce the size of their network.

You might also remove someone if you want to distance yourself professionally without the stronger action of blocking. Removing keeps things low-key — the person won't get a notification, and you're simply no longer connected. If you ever want to reconnect, you can send a new request.

Frequently Asked Questions

Will the person know I removed them?

No, LinkedIn does not send a notification when you remove a connection. The person won't be alerted, but they may notice you're no longer in their connection list if they look at their connections or try to visit your profile and see the "Connect" button instead of "Message."

Can I remove someone and then add them back?

Yes. After you remove a connection, you can send them a new connection request at any time, just like adding someone for the first time. They'll see it as a fresh request with no history of the previous connection.

Does removing a connection delete our message history?

No. Your past messages with that person stay in your message history even after you remove the connection. You can read old conversations, but you won't be able to send new messages unless you reconnect first.

What's the difference between removing and unfollowing?

Removing a connection deletes them from your network entirely. Unfollowing someone means you stay connected, but you won't see their posts in your feed. You can unfollow someone without removing them as a connection.

Can I undo a removal if I change my mind?

There's no "undo" button, but you can send a new connection request to the person you removed. They'll see it as a regular request, and if they accept, you're connected again.