LinkedIn Carousel Size & Dimensions Guide (2026)

Using the wrong dimensions for your LinkedIn carousel is one of the fastest ways to make good content look bad. I've done it myself — uploaded a carousel only to realize the text was getting clipped on mobile, or the slides looked weirdly stretched on desktop. Frustrating, especially when the actual content was solid.

So I put together this reference with every LinkedIn carousel spec I could nail down. I use it myself before every export, and I update it whenever LinkedIn tweaks something. Feel free to bookmark it.

If you're brand new to carousels, our complete guide to AI carousels covers the basics of what they are and why they tend to outperform other post types.

LinkedIn Carousel Dimensions at a Glance

Here are the numbers — screenshot this table if you want a quick reference:

Which Aspect Ratio Should You Choose?

LinkedIn technically supports several aspect ratios, but only two are worth using.

Square (1:1) — 1080 × 1080 px

This is the default most people go with, and for good reason. The equal height and width gives you a clean, balanced layout that renders the same way on every device. Most templates you'll find online are built for 1:1, so you'll have plenty of starting points.

I use square when the carousel is mostly text — frameworks, numbered tips, step-by-step guides. The symmetry keeps things tidy.

Portrait (4:5) — 1080 × 1350 px

Portrait gives you 25% more vertical space than square, which means your carousel takes up more of the screen when someone's scrolling on their phone. That extra real estate can make a noticeable difference in stopping the scroll.

The other advantage: if you ever want to repurpose the same carousel on Instagram, 4:5 works there natively — no resizing.

I reach for portrait when I'm doing case studies or story-driven posts where each slide needs a bit more breathing room.

Landscape (16:9) — 1920 × 1080 px

Technically supported. Practically useless. Landscape documents display tiny in the LinkedIn feed and waste a ton of space on mobile. Skip this unless you have a very specific reason.

LinkedIn Carousel File Requirements

It has to be a PDF

This trips people up because Instagram lets you upload images as a carousel. LinkedIn doesn't. You upload a PDF through the "document" post option, and LinkedIn turns each page into a swipeable slide. That's the only way.

File size

LinkedIn caps PDFs at 100 MB, but you should aim for under 10 MB. Anything bigger loads slowly on mobile data, and if the carousel hasn't rendered by the time someone scrolls past, you've lost them.

A few ways to keep the file lean:

• Stick with vector text rather than text baked into images
• Compress any photos before dropping them into slides
• Skip embedded videos or heavy animations in the PDF
• Export at 150 DPI (300 DPI is overkill for screens)

Slide count

You can technically go up to 300 pages. Don't. From what I've seen and what the data shows, 8–12 slides is the sweet spot — enough to say something meaningful, short enough that people actually finish. Go past 15 and completion rates start falling off a cliff.

What Goes Inside the Slide Matters Too

Nailing the pixel dimensions is step one. But I've seen plenty of correctly-sized carousels that were still hard to read because the designer crammed too much in or used tiny fonts. Here's how to avoid that.

Safe zones and margins

Leave at least 40–60 px of padding around every edge. Text that sits right against the border gets clipped on some devices, looks cramped on all of them, and can collide with LinkedIn's built-in page numbers and navigation arrows.

Text sizing guidelines

The mobile reality: Over 70% of LinkedIn users are on their phones. If your body text is under 18 px, most people won't bother pinch-zooming — they'll just keep scrolling. Hootsuite's data confirms mobile dominates across every major social platform, so design for a 6-inch screen first.

Fonts that actually work

Stick to clean sans-serif typefaces. These are the ones I've had the best results with:

• Inter — Excellent readability at small sizes
• DM Sans — Modern and professional
• Plus Jakarta Sans — Popular in SaaS and tech audiences
• Montserrat — Bold and attention-grabbing for headings

Steer clear of script fonts, anything thinner than weight 400, or decorative typefaces. They might look cool on a desktop mockup, but they fall apart on small screens.

Color contrast

Aim for a contrast ratio of at least 4.5:1 between your text and background — that's the WCAG AA standard. In practice, the combos that work best are pretty simple:

• White text on dark blue/navy background
• Dark text on light gray or white background
• White text on brand-colored solid background

If you're unsure whether your colors pass, run them through the WebAIM Contrast Checker — it takes 10 seconds.

Quick Checklist Before You Hit Export

I run through this list every time. It takes 30 seconds and has saved me from embarrassing uploads more than once:

• Correct dimensions — 1080 × 1080 or 1080 × 1350 for LinkedIn
• Safe margins — At least 40 px from all edges
• Readable text — Body text 22 px+, headings 36 px+
• High contrast — Text clearly visible against background (4.5:1 ratio)
• Consistent branding — Same colors, fonts, and layout across all slides
• Mobile preview — Checked on an actual phone screen
• File size — Under 10 MB for LinkedIn PDF
• Slide count — 8–12 slides for optimal engagement
• Hook slide — First slide is compelling and specific
• CTA slide — Last slide includes a clear call to action

How CarouselMaker.co Handles This for You

Honestly, the main reason I built dimension handling into CarouselMaker.co is because I got tired of double-checking specs manually. Here's what the tool takes off your plate:

• Exports in the correct LinkedIn dimensions automatically based on your chosen ratio
• Templates already have proper margins baked in, so text never gets clipped
• Font sizes default to mobile-readable values
• PDFs come out compressed and optimized for fast loading

It means you can skip this entire article's worth of specs and just focus on writing good slides. (Though I'd still recommend bookmarking the checklist above — it's useful for a final gut check.)

Want a full walkthrough? Here's our step-by-step guide to creating a LinkedIn carousel with AI.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the best size for a LinkedIn carousel?

1080 × 1080 px is the safe default that works everywhere. If you want your post to dominate more of the feed (especially on phones), go with 1080 × 1350 px. I use 4:5 most of the time now — the extra vertical space just makes slides feel less cramped.

What file format do LinkedIn carousels use?

PDF. There's no image-carousel option on LinkedIn like there is on Instagram. You upload a PDF via the "document" post type, and each page turns into a slide. If your tool doesn't export to PDF natively, you'll need to convert first — though CarouselMaker.co handles that for you.

How many slides should a LinkedIn carousel have?

8–12 is where I see the best engagement. Short enough to hold attention, long enough to actually teach something. LinkedIn's limit is 300 pages, but unless you're uploading a whitepaper, you'll never need anywhere close to that. Past 15 slides, most people drop off. More engagement tips in our LinkedIn engagement guide.

What font size should I use for LinkedIn carousel text?

22 px minimum for body text, 36 px for headings. The easiest test: open your exported PDF on your phone. If you can read every slide without zooming, you're good. If you're squinting at anything, bump it up.

Conclusion

Dimensions aren't the exciting part of carousel creation, but getting them wrong undermines everything else. A great 10-slide carousel with the wrong sizing just looks sloppy.

The short version:

• 1080 × 1080 or 1080 × 1350, exported as PDF, under 10 MB
• 8–12 slides, body text at 22 px+, margins of 40 px+
• Check it on your phone before you post

If you'd rather skip the manual spec-checking entirely, CarouselMaker.co handles all of this automatically.

Create your next carousel → AI Carousel Generator