How to Endorse a Person on LinkedIn: A Complete Guide
LinkedIn endorsements are one of the platform's most underused yet genuinely useful features. A well-placed endorsement can strengthen a colleague's profile, reinforce a professional relationship, and signal to recruiters that someone's skills are legitimately recognized — not just self-reported. Here's exactly how the process works, what it actually means, and what determines whether your endorsement carries weight.
What a LinkedIn Endorsement Actually Is
An endorsement on LinkedIn is a one-click validation of a skill listed on someone's profile. When you endorse a connection for, say, "Project Management" or "Python," your name and photo appear alongside that skill as social proof that you've seen that ability in action — or at least believe the person has it.
This is different from a LinkedIn Recommendation, which is a written testimonial that requires more effort and appears separately on a profile. Endorsements are lightweight by design: fast to give, easy to receive, and visible at scale.
Each skill on a LinkedIn profile can accumulate endorsements from multiple connections. The more endorsements a skill has, and the more credible the people giving them, the stronger the signal.
How to Endorse Someone on LinkedIn (Step-by-Step)
On Desktop
- Go to the profile of the person you want to endorse
- Scroll down to their Skills & Endorsements section
- Click the plus icon (+) or endorse button next to any skill you want to validate
- LinkedIn may prompt you with a quick question — "Do you want to endorse [Name] for these skills?" — and suggest a few based on their profile
- Confirm your selections
LinkedIn sometimes surfaces endorsement prompts proactively — you may see a card in your feed or notifications asking if you want to endorse a connection for specific skills. You can act directly from those prompts without visiting their profile.
On Mobile (iOS or Android)
- Open the LinkedIn app and search for the person's name
- Tap their profile to open it
- Scroll to the Skills section
- Tap the endorse option next to the relevant skill
- Confirm if prompted
🔍 Note: The exact layout of the Skills section may vary slightly depending on your app version or LinkedIn's current interface rollout. If you don't see an endorse button immediately, try tapping into the skill itself to expand it.
Who Can Endorse Whom
You can only endorse first-degree connections — people you're directly connected with on LinkedIn. You cannot endorse someone you haven't connected with, and you can't endorse yourself.
LinkedIn may also limit or prompt endorsements based on the nature of your connection. For example:
- If you've worked at the same company, LinkedIn may suggest skills tied to that shared experience
- If your connection is in a different field entirely, LinkedIn may still allow endorsements but won't suggest role-specific skills as strongly
What Makes an Endorsement Meaningful
Not all endorsements carry equal weight. Several factors affect how useful yours actually is:
| Factor | Why It Matters |
|---|---|
| Your professional relevance | Endorsing a developer for "JavaScript" carries more weight if you're also in tech |
| Length of your connection | Colleagues or collaborators are more credible endorsers than brief contacts |
| Number of shared experiences | LinkedIn shows context like shared workplaces, which adds credibility |
| Your own profile strength | A well-developed profile behind an endorsement signals you're a real professional |
A single endorsement from a credible, relevant connection often matters more than dozens from loosely connected contacts.
Can You Remove or Edit an Endorsement?
Yes. If you endorsed someone by mistake — or change your mind — you can remove it:
- Go to their profile
- Navigate to the Skills section
- Click the skill where your endorsement appears
- Toggle or click to remove your endorsement
LinkedIn does not notify the person when you remove an endorsement, so there's no social friction involved.
Endorsements vs. Recommendations: Knowing the Difference
| Feature | Endorsement | Recommendation |
|---|---|---|
| Effort required | One click | Written paragraph or more |
| Specificity | Skill-level only | Describes full experience |
| Visibility | Skills section | Dedicated Recommendations section |
| Recruiter impact | Signals skill validation | Tells a story |
| Request process | No request needed | Usually requested |
✅ Endorsements and recommendations serve different purposes. Endorsements add volume and visibility to specific skills; recommendations add narrative depth and personal credibility.
Variables That Change How Useful Endorsements Are
The value of giving or receiving endorsements isn't fixed — it depends on a few moving parts:
- Industry norms: In some fields (tech, marketing, finance), LinkedIn profiles are scrutinized heavily and endorsement counts matter more. In others, the profile is a formality.
- The skills listed: Endorsing highly specific, technical skills is more meaningful than endorsing something generic like "Communication" or "Leadership."
- Profile completeness: An endorsement on a sparse, incomplete profile contributes less than one on a fully fleshed-out profile with work history and a strong summary.
- Your relationship to the person: Endorsing a direct report, a long-time colleague, or a client reads very differently than endorsing someone you met once at a conference.
💡 A Note on Skill Selection
Before endorsing someone, it's worth glancing at which skills are actually listed on their profile. LinkedIn allows users to add up to 50 skills, but the top three are the most visible by default. If you're going to take the time to endorse someone, focusing on their top-pinned skills — especially ones tied to their current role or career direction — tends to be more useful than endorsing an outdated or lower-priority skill.
Whether a handful of targeted endorsements on key skills does more for a profile than broad endorsements across many skills is something that varies depending on how the person's profile is structured, what they're actively using LinkedIn for, and who's likely to be viewing it.