How to Move Profile Sections on LinkedIn: The Complete Guide for 2023

Moving and organizing the sections on your LinkedIn profile is an important part of optimizing your presence and showcasing your top skills, experiences, and accomplishments to connections and recruiters.

With LinkedIn’s profile customization options, you can now easily move sections up, down, or remove them entirely to highlight your most relevant credentials.

In this complete guide, we’ll cover everything you need to know about managing your profile sections on LinkedIn like a pro:

Overview of LinkedIn Profile Sections

LinkedIn profiles consist of default and optional sections that you can add or remove. Here are the key sections to understand:

Default Profile Sections on LinkedIn

These core sections appear by default on every LinkedIn profile in a fixed order:

• Profile photo and header background
• Name, headline, location
• About
• Experience
• Education

Also read: What is the LinkedIn Character Limits: The Definitive Guide for 2023

Customizable Profile Sections on LinkedIn

These additional sections can be moved, added, or deleted as needed:

• Skills
• Accomplishments
• Licenses & certifications
• Volunteer experience
• Projects
• Publications
• Courses
• Test scores
• Languages
• Recommendations
• Interests

Positioning Your Top Profile Sections on LinkedIn

When organizing your profile, think about which sections you want to showcase most prominently right at the top.

For many professionals, the Experience and Skills sections are most important for conveying your qualifications. Education is also key.

Make sure your most relevant credentials that make you stand out are highly visible when people land on your profile.

Also read: How to Add Volunteer Experience to LinkedIn

How to Move Sections on LinkedIn

Moving sections on LinkedIn is easy once you know where to find the option. Here are step-by-step instructions:

On Desktop:

Step 1: Go to your LinkedIn profile page and click “View profile” to access edit mode.

Step 2:

• Hover over the section you want to move. A 3-dot icon will appear.

Step 3:

• Click the 3-dot icon and select “Move section”.

Step 4:

• Choose where you want that section to appear by selecting “Move up” or “Move down”.
• Repeat steps 2-4 to move other sections until your profile is organized as desired.
• When finished, click “Save” at the top to save your new profile layout.

On Mobile:

Step 1:

• Tap your profile photo from LinkedIn’s main menu.
• Tap the pencil “edit profile” button.

Step 2:

• Tap and hold the section you want to move until options appear.
• Drag the section up or down and release when in the desired position.
• Tap “Save” to save your changes.

PRO TIP: You cannot move the default Profile, Experience, and Education sections – but the rest can be reorganized easily.

Also read: How to Share Your LinkedIn Profile

Removing and Adding Sections

In addition to moving sections, you can also remove or add new sections to your LinkedIn profile like so:

To remove a section:

• Click the 3-dot icon next to the section name and select “Remove section”. This will permanently delete it.

To add a new section:

• Click the “Add profile section” button at the bottom of your profile.
• Choose the section you want to add from the options.
• Fill out the section content and click “Save”. The new section will now appear in your profile.

Section Order Best Practices

Not sure of the optimal section order for your LinkedIn profile? Here are some best practices to follow:

• Profile/About: Lead with a strong professional summary that pitches your background at a glance.
• Experience: Showcase your most impressive and relevant roles here near the top.
• Skills: Important to highlight hard and soft skills. Rank your top skills first.
• Education: Degrees and certifications credentials should appear above less significant sections.
• Accomplishments: Prove your value with metrics, awards, publications, volunteering, courses etc.
• Recommendations: Social proof lends credibility – have at least a few recommendations and display them prominently.
• Additional details: Languages, interests, projects etc. go at the bottom.

Adjust this structure based on your own priorities and the strengths you want to feature.

Also read: How to Change Email on LinkedIn: A Step-by-Step Guide

How to Showcase Your Top Skills

The Skills section offers useful customization options beyond just moving it up or down your profile. You can also:

• Rank your best skills first – Edit the order of skills by dragging to rank your most important ones higher. Put the skills you want to highlight the most at the top.
• Show skill proficiency – For each skill, choose a proficiency level from “Novice” to “Expert”. This quantifies your skill level.
• Take a skills assessment – LinkedIn provides over 140 skills assessments to earn badges that validate your skills. Display these badges prominently.
• Get endorsed – Ask colleagues who can vouch for your skills to endorse you. Popular skills with several endorsements will stand out.
• Add multimedia – Include examples of your skills in action by linking to SlideShare presentations, YouTube videos, samples of your work, etc.

Strategically showcasing your skills will make them more prominent to recruiters.

Education Section Tips

The Education section is also very influential. Follow these tips for organizing it:

• List your highest degree first followed by other degrees/certifications in descending order.
• Only include degrees and academic credentials relevant to your career. No need for high school if you have higher degrees.
• Optionally include a brief description highlighting achievements, specializations, relevant coursework etc.
• Showcase test scores and honors like cum laude if they strengthen your profile.
• Add multimedia like screenshots of your diploma or transcripts for a extra credibility.
• Display certifications and licenses that required special exams or training.

Education often plays a key role in candidate selection, so ensure this section represents you well.

Also read: How to Tag a Company on LinkedIn: The Complete Step-by-Step Guide

Recommendations Best Practices

Here are some tips for effectively using the Recommendations section:

• Get at least 3 recommendations – Having 3 or more looks better than just 1 or 2. Shoot for 5 to 8 ideally.
• Request recommendations from positions where you had the most impact. Former managers often provide the best endorsements.
• Personalize each request by sending a quick note highlighting your shared experiences and accomplishments. People are more likely to oblige with a customized ask.
• Give recommendations too – You’re much more likely to get them if you provide them first. Practice reciprocity.
• Display selectively – If you have mixed or mediocre recommendations, only show your best ones. You can hide the rest.
• Ask clients or vendors you work closely with for recommendations to diversify your credibility beyond just managers/colleagues.

Social proof is highly influential, so don’t neglect your Recommendations!

Other Tips for a Polished Profile

• Choose the right headline – Summarize your professional identity in your headline like “Product Marketing Manager | Passionate Storyteller”. Include important keywords.
• Display multimedia – Include relevant videos, slide presentations, infographics, or portfolio examples showcasing your skills in action.
• Showcase volunteer work, publications, conferences etc under the Experience or Accomplishments sections. Highlight extra credentials you’re proud of.
• Trim obsolete details – Remove outdated jobs, skills, or projects that are no longer relevant. Tighten up your profile.
• Use LinkedIn Profile badges – Add badges like “Open for opportunities” or “Hiring manager” to stand out.
• Check for typos/errors – Grammatical or formatting mistakes on your profile can reflect poorly on your attention to detail. Proofread!

Keeping your profile updated, polished, and strategically organized will help you make a strong impression and achieve your career goals.

LinkedIn Profile Customization FAQs

Here are some commonly asked questions about customizing LinkedIn profile sections:

Maximizing Your LinkedIn Profile Impact

With over 875 million members, LinkedIn is the world’s most powerful professional networking platform. An optimized profile is vital for your career advancement and opportunities.

By featuring your strongest credentials prominently, structuring sections strategically, and highlighting relevant skills and achievements, you can make a winning impression and achieve your professional goals.

Remember to keep your profile updated regularly as you gain new skills, accomplishments, and career experiences. Consistently maintaining your LinkedIn presence is key to leveraging its full power for your future.

So take the time to properly organize your profile sections – it will pay dividends for your personal branding and career success!