A LinkedIn endorsement is a one-click way for your connections to confirm that you have a specific skill
When someone endorses you, they are saying they have worked with you or know you well enough to vouch that you are competent at something — coding, project management, writing, whatever skill you listed on your profile. It takes them three seconds: they see your name, they see a skill, they click a checkmark. No message, no explanation, no back-and-forth.
Endorsements are not recommendations. A recommendation is a written testimonial where someone takes time to describe your work and character. An endorsement is just a tally mark next to a skill name. LinkedIn shows the number of endorsements each skill has received, and you can see who gave each one.
The endorsement feature exists because LinkedIn wants to make it easy for people to build social proof on their profiles. The easier it is to endorse, the more endorsements happen, and the more "activity" LinkedIn can show you when you log in. That activity keeps you coming back.
Key Takeaways
- An endorsement is a single click that confirms you have a skill; it requires no written explanation or detailed knowledge of your work.
- You can endorse skills on other people's profiles, and others can endorse yours — endorsements are mutual and visible to anyone viewing your profile.
- LinkedIn shows endorsement counts next to each skill and lets you see which connections endorsed you, but the endorsements themselves carry no weight in hiring decisions.
- You can hide endorsements, remove them, or reorder which skills appear most prominently on your profile.
How endorsements appear on your profile
When someone visits your LinkedIn profile, they see a "Skills" section that lists the skills you added yourself. Next to each skill is a number showing how many people have endorsed you for it. The skills with the most endorsements appear at the top by default.
If you hover over or click the endorsement count, LinkedIn shows you the profile pictures and names of the people who endorsed you. You can see exactly who said you are good at Excel, or Python, or whatever the skill is. This is public information — anyone viewing your profile can see the endorsement counts and the names of people who gave them.
You control which skills show up on your profile and in what order. You can hide endorsements you do not want displayed, delete skills entirely, or pin certain skills to the top so they appear first when someone lands on your profile.
Who can endorse you and why they might
Anyone on LinkedIn can endorse you for any skill you have listed — they do not need your permission, and they do not need to have worked with you directly. A former classmate, a colleague from five years ago, or someone you met at a conference can all endorse you. LinkedIn also prompts your connections to endorse you by showing them a list of your skills and asking if they want to confirm any of them.
People endorse for different reasons. Some do it genuinely because they have seen your work and want to support your profile. Others do it reflexively because LinkedIn keeps asking them to, or because they are endorsing you back after you endorsed them. Some endorse skills they have no real way of knowing you have, simply because the skill appeared in the suggestion list.
This is why endorsement counts are not a reliable measure of actual skill. A skill with 47 endorsements might mean you are genuinely strong at it, or it might mean you listed it, LinkedIn suggested it to your network, and people clicked without thinking much about it.
Endorsing other people's skills
When you visit someone else's profile, you see their skills and a button to endorse each one. You can endorse multiple skills at once, and the endorsement takes effect immediately. The person you endorsed gets a notification that you endorsed them, though they do not see a message from you explaining why.
LinkedIn also sends you notifications suggesting people to endorse. These suggestions are based on your connections and the skills they have listed. If you click through, you can endorse several people in quick succession without visiting their individual profiles.
Endorsing someone does not obligate them to endorse you back, though many people do. If you endorse someone and they later endorse you, it is usually coincidence or reciprocity, not a transaction.
Why endorsements matter less than you might think
Recruiters and hiring managers do look at LinkedIn profiles, and they do see endorsement counts. However, most experienced hiring people treat endorsements as a minor signal at best. An endorsement is not a reference, not a work sample, and not proof of anything except that someone clicked a button.
What matters far more to a hiring manager is your actual work history, the recommendations you have received (which are written and specific), your portfolio or work samples, and the conversation you have in an interview. A profile with 100 endorsements for "Leadership" but no written recommendations and a vague job description will not move the needle. A profile with three written recommendations that describe specific projects and outcomes will.
Endorsements can make your profile look more active and established, which has some value. But they are not a substitute for doing actual work that people can speak to directly.
Managing your endorsements
You have full control over what endorsements appear on your profile. You can hide individual endorsements so they do not show up when someone visits your profile, but the endorsement still exists and you can unhide it later. You can also delete skills entirely, which removes all endorsements for that skill.
To reorder your skills, click and drag them in your profile's Skills section. LinkedIn defaults to showing the skills with the most endorsements first, but you can pin specific skills to the top regardless of endorsement count. This is useful if you want to highlight skills that matter most for your current job search, even if they have fewer endorsements.
You can also turn off endorsement notifications if you find them annoying. Go to your settings, find the notifications section, and disable alerts about endorsements. This stops LinkedIn from telling you every time someone endorses you, though the endorsements themselves still happen.
Should you ask for endorsements
Some people ask their network to endorse them, especially when they are job searching or trying to build credibility in a new field. This is not against LinkedIn's rules, but it is worth thinking about what you are actually asking for.
If you ask someone to endorse you for a skill they have seen you use, that is reasonable. If you ask someone to endorse you for something they have no way of knowing about, you are asking them to put their name behind something they cannot actually vouch for. That weakens the value of their endorsement and can feel manipulative.
A better approach is to do work that is visible to your network, mention specific projects or skills in your posts or profile updates, and let endorsements happen naturally. People are more likely to endorse you when they have recently seen evidence that you have the skill.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I see who endorsed me for a specific skill?
Yes. Click on the endorsement count next to any skill on your profile, and LinkedIn shows you the names and profile pictures of everyone who endorsed you for that skill. You can see the most recent endorsements first.
What happens if I endorse someone and they endorse me back?
Nothing automatic happens. You both get notifications that you endorsed each other, but there is no special status or badge. It is just two separate endorsements that happen to go both directions.
Do endorsements help you get hired?
Endorsements are a minor factor at best. Hiring managers care much more about your work history, written recommendations from people who know your work, and your actual skills demonstrated in interviews or portfolios. Endorsements can make your profile look more established, but they are not a substitute for real evidence of your abilities.
Can I remove an endorsement someone gave me?
You cannot remove an endorsement directly, but you can hide it so it does not appear on your profile. Click the endorsement count, find the person who endorsed you, and select the option to hide that endorsement. You can unhide it later if you change your mind.
Should I endorse people I do not know well?
Only endorse skills you have actually seen someone demonstrate. If you endorse someone for a skill you have no real knowledge of, your endorsement becomes meaningless and you are putting your credibility behind something you cannot vouch for. Selective endorsements are more valuable than endorsing everything.