Your profile picture needs to work in a small circular crop, not just as a full-size portrait. Start with a current, clear photo of yourself. If the background or lighting is distracting, you can try our LinkedIn headshot scene—then compare the result with the real you before using it.
The safest choice is a recent solo head-and-shoulders image with your face unobstructed, an expression you would use when meeting a colleague, and clothing that fits your field. A studio look is optional; being recognizable is not.
Choose this when your face is already sharp and current. Crop from just above your head to your upper shoulders, then inspect the small circular preview. A good phone photo can be better than an AI portrait that changes your features.
The LinkedIn scene pairs a simple backdrop with a relaxed professional look. It can help you compare a less distracting version of a casual source image, but it cannot certify that the new face, clothing or lighting exactly match reality.
A consultant meeting clients may choose a jacket; a designer may look more like themselves in a clean casual layer. Do not pick a formal costume just because it looks ‘corporate.’ Your profile should still match how you show up to work.
This is the same fictional portrait at three crops, not an AI before-and-after. The point is to test whether your face and hair still read clearly when the photo becomes a small circle.
Keep the full head, hair edges and upper shoulders inside the source frame. A square image with breathing room gives you choices later.
At avatar size, look for visible eyes, an uncrowded hairline and a face large enough to recognize. This crop works as an illustration, not a universal template.
Zooming in too far can cut off hair and hide the shoulders. If your source photo has no extra space, take a wider shot instead of trying to invent missing edges.
Crop demonstration using one fictional model. These are not generated results or LinkedIn upload screenshots.
Use a recent solo portrait with even light, visible eyes and enough space around your head. Avoid screenshots, group crops, sunglasses, heavy filters and a face that is only a few pixels wide. A friend using a phone’s rear camera can be enough.
Leave some room above the hair and beside the shoulders. LinkedIn displays the avatar as a circle in many places, so critical details at the square image corners may disappear. Check it at thumbnail size before upload.
Wear or select a look consistent with your role and market. Plain colors generally keep attention on the face; intricate patterns, oversized accessories and logos can compete with it. If AI invents clothing you would never wear, reject the image.
Compare face shape, eyes, smile, hairstyle, skin details and glasses against your source photo. AI may subtly alter any of them. If a colleague would hesitate to recognize you, choose your original photo or take another one.
Open the LinkedIn upload preview and look at the small circle. Make sure the hair is not cut off, the eyes remain clear, and the shoulders are not crowded. Inspect the same crop on mobile as well.
Zoom in on ears, teeth, earrings, collars, hair edges and background artifacts. A polished image with impossible details is not a better professional photo. Retake the source or pick a less edited result instead.
The button takes you to the headshot workspace with the LinkedIn scene selected. You can inspect the current credit cost there before starting. Signing in may be required to generate.
Choose an image you have the right to use, featuring only yourself. The tool uses your upload as a reference, but its output is AI-generated—not a guaranteed faithful edit of your original photograph.
Review the produced image at both full size and LinkedIn-avatar size. If it changes your identity, misrepresents your role or crops poorly, do not publish it. Your source photo or a new phone portrait may be the better answer.
The pictured model is an illustrative style example, not a real user's before-and-after. A generated portrait can change facial traits, attire and background, and a result may need another attempt or may be unsuitable. We do not guarantee a perfect likeness, a specific generation time, job interviews, profile views, platform approval or eligibility for passports, visas or identity documents. For a regulated or identity-sensitive use, use an authentic photograph and follow that organization's rules.
Upload only a photo you are allowed to process. Review the current privacy policy before generating; account and generated-work controls are available in the workspace, but this guide makes no unverified claim about automatic deletion or retention time. Do not upload another person's face without permission.
Privacy policy ↗Start with your clearest recent portrait. Check the price and scene in the tool, then judge the output against the real you before posting it.