Someone asked you to write them a LinkedIn recommendation. You said yes — and now you're staring at a blank text box wondering what to say.
Or maybe you want to write one proactively for a colleague, former boss, or employee who deserves the recognition. Either way, writing a good LinkedIn recommendation doesn't have to be painful.
Here's exactly how to write one that actually means something — plus 10 examples you can adapt for different situations.
What Is a LinkedIn Recommendation?
A LinkedIn recommendation is a written testimonial that appears on someone's profile. Unlike endorsements (which are just one-click skill validations), recommendations are personal statements that carry real weight.
They show up in a dedicated section on the person's profile, and they display your name, photo, and title — so your credibility is attached to every word.
Recruiters actually read these. A well-optimized LinkedIn profile with strong recommendations stands out far more than one without them.
Why LinkedIn Recommendations Matter
Think of recommendations as professional references that are always visible. They matter because:
- They build trust immediately. When a recruiter sees specific praise from a real person, it validates everything else on the profile.
- They're public social proof. Unlike private reference lists that only get checked late in the hiring process, recommendations are visible to anyone browsing the profile.
- They help with LinkedIn search rankings. Profiles with more recommendations tend to appear higher in recruiter searches.
- They strengthen your relationship. Writing someone a recommendation is a generous professional gesture that often gets reciprocated.
How to Write a LinkedIn Recommendation in 5 Steps
Step 1: Open with Your Relationship
Start by stating how you know this person and how long you worked together. This gives your recommendation context and credibility.
Don't just say "I worked with Sarah." Say something like: "I managed Sarah for two years on our product team" or "I hired James as a junior developer and watched him grow into a team lead over three years."
Step 2: Highlight a Specific Strength
Generic praise is forgettable. "Great team player" means nothing. Instead, pick one or two specific qualities and back them up.
What made this person stand out? Were they unusually organized? Did they have a knack for calming down frustrated clients? Could they explain technical concepts to non-technical people better than anyone you've met?
Step 3: Tell a Quick Story or Give a Concrete Example
This is what separates a good recommendation from a great one. A brief, specific example makes everything believable.
You don't need a long narrative. One or two sentences about a specific project, situation, or result is enough: "When our biggest client threatened to leave, Maria stepped in, restructured their entire account, and turned them into our most vocal advocate within three months."
Step 4: Mention Results When Possible
Numbers and outcomes make recommendations concrete. Did this person increase sales by 30%? Cut project delivery time in half? Train a team of 15 people? Mention it.
But don't force it. If you can't remember exact numbers, qualitative results work too: "The process she built is still in use two years later" or "His code reviews caught bugs that would have cost us weeks."
Step 5: End with a Strong Closing Statement
Wrap up with a sentence that makes it clear you genuinely recommend this person. Something forward-looking works well:
- "Any team would be lucky to have her."
- "I'd hire him again in a heartbeat."
- "She's one of the best managers I've ever worked for."
10 LinkedIn Recommendation Examples
1. For a Direct Report / Employee
"I managed Alex for three years on our marketing team, and he consistently exceeded every goal I set for him. What stood out most was his ability to take vague briefs and turn them into campaigns that actually moved the needle — our email open rates jumped 40% after he overhauled our entire sequence strategy. He's proactive, detail-oriented, and genuinely pleasant to work with. Any marketing team would benefit from having him."
2. For a Manager / Boss
"I reported to Diana for two years, and she's the reason I stayed at the company as long as I did. She gave clear, actionable feedback without micromanaging, and she fought hard for our team's resources during budget cuts. When I told her I wanted to move into product management, she helped me build a transition plan and connected me with mentors in the department. She's the kind of leader people follow to their next company."
3. For a Colleague / Peer
"I worked alongside Kevin on the infrastructure team for about 18 months. He was the person everyone went to when something broke at 2 AM — not because it was his job, but because he genuinely cared about keeping things running. He led our migration to AWS, which cut our hosting costs by 35% and eliminated the downtime issues we'd been dealing with for years. Reliable, smart, and easy to collaborate with."
4. For a Freelancer / Contractor
"We hired Priya to redesign our company website, and she delivered something far better than what we'd envisioned. She asked sharp questions during discovery that helped us rethink our messaging entirely. The project came in on time, on budget, and our conversion rate doubled within the first month of launch. I've since referred her to three other companies, and they've all had equally great experiences."
5. For a Sales Professional
"Marcus joined our sales team when we were struggling to break into the enterprise market. Within his first year, he closed our three largest deals to date — including a contract worth $2.1M that every other rep had given up on. But what impressed me most was how he did it. He built real relationships with decision-makers instead of pushing product features. His clients trusted him because he was honest about what we could and couldn't do. I'd want him on my team again without question."
6. For a Software Engineer
"I worked with Tomás on our backend team for two years. He has a rare combination of deep technical skill and the ability to explain things clearly to non-engineers. He rebuilt our payment processing pipeline, cutting transaction failures by 80% and saving us roughly $50K per quarter. He's also the kind of engineer who leaves codebases better than he found them — his documentation and code reviews made everyone on the team better. Any engineering org would be stronger with him."
7. For a Recent Graduate / Junior Employee
"I mentored Jessica during her first year out of college, and I was consistently impressed by how quickly she picked things up. Most new hires take months to contribute meaningfully — Jessica was running her own client accounts within six weeks. She asked great questions, took feedback without getting defensive, and volunteered for projects outside her comfort zone. She's going to do big things in this industry, and I'm glad I got to work with her early in her career."
8. For a Customer Service / Support Professional
"Rachel handled our most difficult customer accounts for over a year, and she turned several of them from detractors into advocates. Her patience is remarkable — I've watched her spend an hour on the phone with a frustrated client and end the call with them laughing. She also identified a recurring product issue that our engineering team had missed, which led to a fix that reduced support tickets by 25%. She's exactly the kind of person you want representing your company."
9. For a Teacher / Educator
"I worked with David at Lincoln High for four years, and he's one of the most dedicated educators I've ever met. His AP History pass rate was consistently above 85%, but what really set him apart was how he connected with students who had checked out of school entirely. He started an after-school mentorship program that helped dozens of at-risk students graduate. Parents requested him by name, and students came back years later to thank him. He makes a genuine difference."
10. For a Project Manager
"I worked with Anika on three major product launches over two years. She's the most organized person I've ever collaborated with — but not in a rigid, process-for-the-sake-of-process way. She adapted her approach to each team and each project, which is why everything she touched shipped on time. When our biggest launch hit unexpected regulatory delays, she restructured the entire timeline in a day and kept all five workstreams aligned. Project management is one of those roles where the best people make hard things look easy — that's Anika."
Tips for Writing Better Recommendations
| Do This | Not This |
|---|---|
| Be specific about what impressed you | Write vague praise like "great worker" |
| Include at least one concrete example or result | List generic adjectives without evidence |
| Keep it to 3-5 short paragraphs | Write a novel — nobody reads those |
| Mention how you know the person and for how long | Skip context about your relationship |
| Write in your natural voice | Use corporate buzzwords that sound robotic |
| Focus on 1-2 standout qualities | Try to cover everything they've ever done |
| End with a clear endorsement | Trail off without a conclusion |
How Long Should a LinkedIn Recommendation Be?
Aim for 100-300 words. That's roughly 3-5 short paragraphs.
Shorter than 100 words feels lazy. Longer than 300 words and people stop reading. The sweet spot is enough to tell one good story with context.
LinkedIn's character limit is 3,000, but you should never come close to that. The best recommendations are concise and specific.
What If Someone Asks You and You Don't Want to Write One?
This happens more than people admit. Maybe you didn't have a great experience working with them, or you just don't know their work well enough to say anything meaningful.
You have a few options:
- Be honest (diplomatically). "I don't think I'm the best person to write this — we didn't work closely enough for me to speak to your specific contributions. You might get a stronger recommendation from someone on your direct team."
- Offer an alternative. "I'm happy to endorse your skills on LinkedIn instead" — this is lower stakes and still helpful.
- Just say you're busy. Sometimes a simple "I've got a lot on my plate right now and couldn't give it the attention it deserves" is enough.
Whatever you do, don't write a lukewarm recommendation. A weak one can hurt more than no recommendation at all.
How to Request a LinkedIn Recommendation
If you're on the other side — wanting to get recommendations — here are a few tips:
- Ask people who actually know your work. A detailed recommendation from a close colleague beats a generic one from a VP you barely interacted with.
- Make it easy for them. Remind them of specific projects you worked on together or results you achieved. This gives them material to work with.
- Write them one first. The reciprocity principle is powerful. Write a thoughtful recommendation for someone, and they'll usually offer to return the favor.
- Don't ask everyone at once. One or two strong recommendations are better than five generic ones. Quality over quantity.
Having strong recommendations is part of building a complete professional presence online. If you're also working on your LinkedIn profile overall, recommendations are one of the last pieces that really polish things up. A well-written professional bio is another.
Common Mistakes to Avoid
- Writing the same recommendation for multiple people. LinkedIn doesn't flag duplicates, but people notice — especially if they're connected to each other.
- Focusing on personality instead of professional ability. "Fun to be around" is nice but not useful. Talk about their work.
- Being too short. "Good person to work with. Highly recommend." — this helps nobody.
- Using AI to write the whole thing. It reads as generic and hollow. Use your own words and real memories.
- Waiting too long. If someone asks you for a recommendation, try to write it within a week while the memories are fresh.
Related Career Resources
Building your professional presence goes beyond LinkedIn recommendations. Here are some related guides that might help:
- LinkedIn Profile Tips That Actually Get Recruiters to Message You
- How to Create a Professional Reference List
- How to Answer "Tell Me About Yourself" — useful for crafting your LinkedIn summary too
- How to Answer "What Is Your Greatest Strength?" — helps identify what to highlight
- Software Engineer Resume Example — for aligning your resume with your LinkedIn
- How to Write a Follow-Up Email After an Interview
- The Complete Guide to Changing Careers
- How to Answer "What Are Your Career Goals?"
- How to Network for a Job (Even If You Hate Networking)