Turn off read receipts in LinkedIn's messaging settings

LinkedIn's read receipts let other people see when you've opened their messages. To turn this off, open LinkedIn on your computer or phone, go to your Settings & Privacy, select Visibility, then find Read receipts and toggle it off. Once disabled, people won't see a timestamp showing when you read their messages — though they'll still know you received them.

The setting works across all your LinkedIn messages once you change it. You don't need to adjust it per conversation. If you turn read receipts back on later, the change takes effect immediately for all future messages. This is a one-time change that affects every message thread you have, so you only need to visit the setting once unless you want to switch it back.

Key Takeaways

  • Read receipts on LinkedIn show other users the exact time you opened their message, and you can disable this in Settings & Privacy under Visibility.
  • Turning off read receipts prevents others from seeing when you read messages, but they can still see that you received them.
  • The setting applies to all your LinkedIn messages at once — you cannot turn read receipts off for just one person.
  • You can turn read receipts back on anytime using the same menu, and the change takes effect immediately for all future messages.

Where to find the read receipts setting on desktop

Start by clicking your profile photo in the top right corner of LinkedIn. A dropdown menu appears. Select Settings & Privacy from the list. This takes you to your account settings page where all privacy controls are located.

Once in Settings & Privacy, click the Visibility tab at the top. Scroll down until you see Read receipts. The toggle will show whether read receipts are currently on or off. Click the toggle to switch it. If it's blue and switched right, read receipts are on. If it's gray and switched left, they're off. The change saves automatically — you don't need to click a separate save button.

How to disable read receipts on the LinkedIn mobile app

On iPhone or Android, tap the Me icon at the bottom of the screen (it looks like a person's head and shoulders). Scroll down and tap Settings & Privacy. This opens the same settings menu you'd find on desktop, just formatted for your phone screen.

Tap Visibility, then scroll to find Read receipts. Tap the toggle next to it to turn read receipts off. The toggle will turn gray when disabled. The app saves your change immediately, so you can close the settings menu and return to your messages right away.

What happens when you turn read receipts off

When read receipts are disabled, people who message you won't see the time you opened their message. They'll still see that you received the message, but the "Seen" timestamp disappears. This applies to all your incoming messages — there's no way to hide read receipts from some people while keeping them visible to others.

If someone sent you a message before you turned off read receipts, they may have already seen that you read it. Disabling the setting only affects messages you open after you make the change. Messages you opened while read receipts were enabled will still show the old timestamp to the sender, but new messages won't display any read time once the setting is off.

Turning read receipts back on if you change your mind

You can re-enable read receipts anytime by going back to Settings & Privacy > Visibility > Read receipts and toggling it back on. The process is identical whether you're on desktop or mobile. Once you turn it back on, people will see when you read their messages going forward.

There's no penalty for switching read receipts on and off multiple times. LinkedIn doesn't track how often you change this setting, and no one gets notified when you toggle it. You can adjust it as often as you need to match your current preferences.

Why you might want to turn off read receipts

Some people disable read receipts to avoid the pressure of responding quickly. When others can see you've read a message, they may expect a reply within minutes. Turning off read receipts gives you more flexibility to respond on your own timeline without appearing to ignore someone. This is especially useful if you check messages during busy work periods but can't reply immediately.

Others turn them off for privacy reasons — they prefer not to share their activity patterns with their network. LinkedIn read receipts are less intrusive than some messaging apps, but the principle is the same: you control what information you share about when you're active. Some professionals also disable read receipts to maintain a boundary between their work and personal time, so contacts can't track when they're checking messages outside business hours.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can I turn off read receipts for just one person?

No. The read receipts setting is all-or-nothing on LinkedIn. When you disable it, it applies to everyone who messages you. You cannot hide read receipts from one contact while showing them to another.

Will people know I turned off read receipts?

No. People won't receive a notification that you've disabled read receipts. They'll simply stop seeing the "Seen" timestamp on messages you open after you make the change. They may notice over time that you no longer show read receipts, but LinkedIn doesn't announce the change to them.

Does turning off read receipts hide my online status?

No. Read receipts and online status are separate settings on LinkedIn. Disabling read receipts only hides when you open messages. Your profile may still show that you're active on LinkedIn depending on your other privacy settings. You would need to adjust a different setting if you want to hide your overall activity status.

What if I turn off read receipts but still want to see when others read my messages?

Unfortunately, you cannot do this on LinkedIn. The read receipts setting is mutual — if you disable it, you won't see when others read your messages either. The setting works both ways, so disabling it affects both what you share and what you can see from others.

Do read receipts work the same way on LinkedIn as they do on other messaging apps?

LinkedIn's read receipts are similar to those on other platforms — they show a timestamp when you open a message. However, LinkedIn doesn't show whether someone is currently typing a response, which some other messaging apps do. The core function is the same: disabling read receipts hides your message-opening activity from your contacts.