LinkedIn Open to Work is a setting that tells recruiters you are looking for a job, along with the titles, locations and start date you want. For most job seekers it is worth turning on. The real choice is who sees it: all LinkedIn members, which adds the green #OpenToWork photo frame, or recruiters only, which keeps it quieter.
That choice depends almost entirely on your situation, so this page is built around a table. Find your row, read the notes for it, then set the feature up properly. Whatever you pick, the recruiter who finds you will read your headline next, and the free Headline Generator can draft one around the role you want.
The two settings in one minute
When you turn Open to Work on, you tell LinkedIn the job titles you want, where you want to work (including remote), the job types (full time, part time, contract) and when you can start. LinkedIn uses that to help recruiters find you and to show you more relevant jobs. Then you choose:
- All LinkedIn members. Anyone who views your profile can see you are open, and your photo gets the #OpenToWork frame.
- Recruiters only. The signal goes to people using LinkedIn’s recruiting products. No frame, and your general network does not see it.
LinkedIn says it takes steps to hide the recruiters-only signal from recruiters at your current company, and also says it cannot guarantee that. Treat recruiters only as discreet, not secret.
Find your row
| Your situation | Pick | Main reason | Main risk |
|---|---|---|---|
| A. Not working: between roles, laid off, finished a contract | All members | Your network can help, and nothing needs hiding | Some readers see the frame as urgency |
| B. Student or new grad looking for a first role | All members | You want as many people as possible to know | Off-target messages if your titles are vague |
| C. Employed and searching quietly | Recruiters only | Lower chance your employer finds out | Not guaranteed to stay hidden |
| D. Employed, and your company knows you are leaving | Either | Depends on whether you want network help | Few, as long as your manager really knows |
| E. Freelancer or contractor between projects | All members | Clients and peers can send work quickly | You may need to explain the frame to clients |
Notes for each row
Row A: You are not working right now
Show it to everyone. The biggest benefit is not the recruiters, it is the people who already know you. Former colleagues and friends often have no idea you are looking until they see the frame, and many will pass along a role or offer an introduction. That help is hard to get any other way.
About the frame’s reputation: opinions differ. Some hiring managers see it as a neutral signal, others read it as a sign of urgency. We are not aware of reliable data either way, so do not let worry about it cost you the network help. If you work in a field where you know it reads badly, use recruiters only and tell your close contacts directly.
Row B: You are a student or new grad
Show it to everyone. There is no employer to hide from, and early in your career more eyes almost always means more chances. Your risk is vague preferences: “Any role, anywhere” attracts messages for jobs you would never take. Name two or three specific titles and real locations. Our guide on LinkedIn for students covers the rest of a first profile.
Row C: You have a job and want to keep the search quiet
Pick recruiters only, and remember the setting is not the only thing that can give you away. A burst of profile edits, new connections at competitors or a headline rewritten overnight can all be noticed. Before you change your profile, turn off the setting that shares profile updates with your network, then make your changes gradually. And do not talk about your search in comments or posts.
Row D: Your company already knows you are leaving
You have a free choice. If your manager knows, there is little to lose by showing it to everyone, and your network may help. If only one or two people know, stay with recruiters only until the news is public.
Row E: You freelance or contract
Show it to everyone between projects. Clients and peers who see the frame can refer work quickly. When you add your preferences, choose contract or part-time job types so recruiters looking for full-time hires do not fill your inbox. Turn it off as soon as you are booked, so returning clients do not think you are unavailable for anything else.
Setting it up so it actually helps
Job titles
Choose the titles a recruiter would type for the job you want, not every title you might accept. “Product Designer” and “UX Designer” are a sensible pair. Five unrelated titles make your profile look unfocused and bring in poor matches.
Location and work type
Be truthful. If you only want remote work, say so. If you would relocate, list the cities you would really move to. A recruiter who finds out about a dealbreaker late usually moves on to the next candidate.
Start date
“Immediately” and “flexible” are both fine. What matters is that it is true, because it affects which openings you get matched with.
The short note, if you see the option
Where LinkedIn lets you add a few lines about what you want, use them for specifics: the kind of team, the problems you like to solve, the industry. One or two sentences is enough.
Your headline does not need to say “open to work”
The setting already carries that message. The headline does a different job: it tells a recruiter, in the few words they see in search results, what you do. Compare these two:
Seeking new opportunities | Hardworking professional
Data Analyst · SQL, Tableau, Python · Turning hospital data into staffing decisions
The first one says you are looking. The second one says why someone should want you, which is the part the setting cannot do. For more on writing a headline for the role you want, read our headline guide for job seekers.
The rest of the profile has to match
A recruiter who finds you through the setting will click through, so make sure the profile tells the same story:
- About: open with what you do and the role you want next, then two or three concrete results. The About Generator drafts one from your facts.
- Experience: where it is accurate, use the same words as your target titles in your recent roles.
- Skills: list the skills that show up in the job posts you are aiming for.
Then reach out yourself instead of waiting. Apply to roles that fit and send short notes to recruiters. How to message a recruiter on LinkedIn covers what to say.
Checking whether it is working
Give it three or four weeks, then look at two numbers: how many recruiter messages you received, and how many of them matched the roles you chose.
- Few messages: your titles may be too narrow, or your profile may not use the words recruiters search for.
- Plenty of messages, mostly off target: narrow your titles and tighten your headline.
- Plenty of good matches: leave it alone and keep applying.
When to switch it off
Turn it off when you accept an offer, or pause it if you stop searching for a while. Leaving it on after you start a new job confuses your new colleagues and keeps the messages coming. If you were showing it to all members, switching it off also removes the photo frame.
Your next step
Open to Work makes you findable. Your headline decides whether a recruiter clicks. Write one for the role you want with the free Headline Generator, then read how to get noticed by recruiters on LinkedIn for the rest of your profile, or start from our LinkedIn job search section for the whole process.