Does LinkedIn Have Read Receipts? How to Turn Them On or Off
By Wingflow team · Updated · 1 min read
How LinkedIn read receipts work
| What you see | |
|---|---|
| Message read | A small version of their profile photo next to your message |
| They're typing | A typing indicator in the conversation |
| Turned off by either person | Neither of you sees read receipts or typing |
| InMail | No read receipts or typing for the sender |
From LinkedIn Help, checked October 2026.
How to turn read receipts on or off
Desktop: Me → Settings & Privacy → Data privacy → Messaging experience → Read receipts and typing indicators.
Mobile: tap your profile photo → Settings → Data privacy → Messaging experience → the same switch.
It's one switch for both read receipts and typing indicators, and it applies to all your conversations.
Should you turn them off?
Turning them off gives you privacy, but you lose the signal too, because it works both ways. For outreach, most people leave them on: knowing a message was read but not answered tells you when a polite follow-up makes sense.
What a read receipt does and doesn't tell you
- Read, no reply: they saw it. Give it a few days, then follow up once with something useful, not "just bumping this".
- No read receipt: they may not have opened it, or they've turned receipts off. Don't assume either way.
- Automated follow-ups: if you use an outreach tool, make sure follow-ups stop the moment someone replies. Wingflow cancels the rest of a sequence as soon as a reply arrives.
- InMail: you'll never see a receipt, so judge InMail on replies only. You get the credit back if they respond within 90 days (more on InMail).
Questions
How do I know if someone read my LinkedIn message?
A small version of their profile photo appears under your message once they've read it, as long as both of you have read receipts turned on.
How do I turn off read receipts on LinkedIn?
Go to Me, then Settings & Privacy, then Data privacy, then Messaging experience, and switch off Read receipts and typing indicators.
If I turn off read receipts, can I still see when others read my messages?
No. LinkedIn says that if they're turned off, no one in the conversation, including you, can see whether messages have been read or if someone is typing.
Does InMail show read receipts?
No. Read receipts and typing indicators don't appear to people who send InMail.