How to Block Someone on LinkedIn Without Hurting Your Career

To block someone on LinkedIn, go to their profile, select the More button near their name, choose Report or block, then select Block and confirm. Once you block someone on LinkedIn, you’re no longer connected, they can’t message you or see your profile while signed in, and LinkedIn doesn’t tell them. Because your LinkedIn profile may be visible to anyone on the web, a block limits contact more than it hides you, so save evidence first and check your public profile settings.

LinkedIn is the one network where the person you want to block may be a coworker, a former manager, a client or someone in your industry. That raises the stakes: you want the unwanted contact to stop without creating a workplace incident. This guide explains when a block is right, the quieter alternatives, what a blocked member can still see, and when a problem belongs with HR or police rather than the app.

Block, remove, unfollow or report: choosing the right step

Option	What it does	When it fits
Remove connection	Ends the connection; they aren’t notified, but can still see what’s public	Someone you no longer want in your network, with no harm involved
Unfollow	Stops their posts appearing in your feed while staying connected	A colleague whose posts you’d rather not see
Block	Ends the connection and stops them messaging you or viewing your profile while signed in	Unwanted messages, romantic advances, harassment, or anyone who makes you uneasy
Report	Asks LinkedIn to review a message, post, comment or profile	Harassment, threats, scams, fake profiles, sexual content
HR or your employer	Deals with conduct by colleagues, regardless of the platform	The person works with you, or the behavior ties to your job

Removing a connection is the quietest option, because nothing changes from their side unless they go looking. Unfollowing is quieter still. Block when the person is actively contacting you and you want it to stop.

What a blocked member can and can’t see

When you block a member on LinkedIn, generally:

• You’re no longer connected, and neither of you can message the other.
• They can’t view your profile while signed in to their account, and you can’t view theirs.
• You stop seeing each other’s shared content in your feeds.
• LinkedIn has said blocking removes endorsements and recommendations between the two of you, so expect to lose any they gave you.
• They aren’t notified.

The important limit is your public profile. LinkedIn profiles often have a public version that anyone can view without signing in, and it can appear in Google results for your name. A block doesn’t hide that public version. If you want the blocked person to see as little as possible, reduce what your public profile shows. Our guide to LinkedIn privacy settings covers public profile visibility and profile viewing options.

Also, a block doesn’t stop them seeing your comments on other people’s public posts from another account, or reading about you elsewhere. LinkedIn also warns that if you unblock someone, you may have to wait before you can block them again, so treat a block as a considered step.

How to block someone on LinkedIn

On the app or desktop

1. Open the person’s profile.
2. Select More (or the three-dot menu) in their profile introduction.
3. Choose Report or block.
4. Select Block, then confirm.

If you can’t reach their profile

If the person is contacting you through messages, you can usually open their profile from the conversation. If you’ve only seen them in comments, select their name to open the profile. If they’ve already blocked you, you won’t be able to open it at all.

Reviewing or undoing a block

Your blocked list sits in your settings, under visibility. You can unblock from there. Unblocking doesn’t restore the connection, endorsements or recommendations.

Save the evidence first

Workplace-related harassment is where records matter most, because HR, an employer or a lawyer may ask for them. Once you block someone, your conversation with them may become harder to access, so save it first.

• Screenshot messages with the sender’s name and the date visible, and scroll to capture the whole thread.
• Copy the profile link. The URL of their LinkedIn profile identifies the account better than a name, especially a common one.
• Screenshot public posts or comments that mention you, with a link to the post.
• Export your data if needed. LinkedIn lets you download a copy of your account data, which can include your messages.
• Keep a dated log of each contact, including any offline incidents at work, and who you’ve told.

Keep copies outside your work devices and work email, in case you change jobs or lose access.

Worked example: messages from a former colleague

This is an illustrative scenario, not a real client.

A project manager leaves her job. A former coworker, whom she had once turned down for a date, starts sending her LinkedIn messages several times a week, commenting on her posts and viewing her profile. When she doesn’t reply, the messages become personal and suggest he knows where her new office is.

She screenshots the full message thread, copies his profile link and downloads her LinkedIn data as a backup. She reports the messages to LinkedIn as harassment and blocks him. She limits her public profile so it no longer shows her current employer to people who aren’t signed in. Because the last message referred to her office, she tells her new employer’s security team and files a report with local police, bringing her log.

She doesn’t message him to explain the block and doesn’t post about it. The contact stops on LinkedIn, and she has a clean record if it resumes elsewhere.

When to report, and when it’s bigger than LinkedIn

LinkedIn’s Professional Community Policies prohibit harassment, threats, unwanted romantic or sexual advances, hateful content, scams and fake profiles. Report the specific message, post or comment from its menu, or report the profile itself if the whole account is fake or exists to target you. If someone is posting critical comments on your content rather than contacting you directly, our guide to negative comments on LinkedIn covers how to respond or remove them.

Escalate beyond the app when:

• The person works with you. Tell HR or use your employer’s reporting process. Many employers treat harassment by a colleague as a workplace issue even when it happens on a personal account.
• There are threats or signs you’re being followed. Contact local police, or call 911 in an emergency.
• It’s a job or recruiting scam. Report the profile and stop contact. Our guide to job scams covers the warning signs.
• It involves sexual harassment at work. An employment lawyer can explain your options, which may include a complaint to a government agency.

Our help resources page lists more places to report online abuse and find support.

Mistakes to avoid

• Blocking without saving the thread. If the matter goes to HR, the messages are your strongest evidence.
• Replying in public. A pointed post about “someone in my network” is visible to your employer and clients, and rarely helps.
• Forgetting your public profile. A block doesn’t hide it. Trim what’s visible to people who aren’t signed in.
• Keeping evidence only on a work laptop. Store copies somewhere you’ll still control if you leave.
• Accepting a new connection request from an unfamiliar profile right after blocking. It may be the same person.

Protecting your professional reputation afterward

LinkedIn is often one of the top results when someone searches your name, so it’s worth keeping your profile current and professional even while you limit contact. If a dispute has spilled into posts or pages that rank for your name, our personal reputation management service can help you work out what can be removed and what to outweigh with accurate content.

Frequently asked questions

Does LinkedIn notify someone when you block them?

No, LinkedIn doesn’t notify a member when you block them. They may notice that you’re no longer connected or that they can’t view your profile.

Can someone I blocked on LinkedIn still see my profile?

Not while signed in to their account. If your public profile is visible to people who aren’t signed in, they could still see that version, so adjust your public profile settings if that concerns you.

What's the difference between removing a connection and blocking on LinkedIn?

Removing a connection simply ends it, and they can still view your profile and message you if your settings allow. Blocking also stops messages and profile viewing between you while signed in.

Will I lose endorsements if I block someone on LinkedIn?

Yes, LinkedIn has said blocking removes endorsements and recommendations between you and the blocked member, and unblocking doesn’t bring them back.