Why is my LinkedIn carousel blurry?

Usually because of something in the file that you can fix. The slides were saved smaller than 1080 pixels wide, the PDF was squeezed as it was saved, or the text is too small for a phone. LinkedIn recommends images 1080 pixels wide, and asks for every page of a PDF to be the same size.

LinkedIn's help page on photos says small, low resolution photos may show in low quality, and recommends a width of 1080 pixels. Its page on documents says to convert files to PDF for the highest quality upload, and that a PDF whose pages differ in size must be fit to one size first. It does not say at what size it shows each page, so the part you control is the file you give it.

At least 1080 pixels wide. That is the width LinkedIn recommends for images, and Canva's help page warns that designs under 500 by 500 pixels may look blurry. Up to twice the width keeps extra detail for large screens. It also makes a bigger file, and the whole PDF has to stay under LinkedIn's 100 MB.

Mixed sizes are the cause people miss. A deck made of screenshots, phone photos and exported slides comes in several shapes, and LinkedIn's help page asks for the pages of a PDF to be fit to one size. Fit each image onto one page size before you post, with a plain or matching background around it, or crop it to fill the page.

In Canva, PDF Print. Canva's help page lists PDF Standard at 96 dpi and PDF Print at 300 dpi, and calls Print the way to download a high quality version of a design. Leave Compress PDF off, since Canva says it may lower image quality. For slides saved as images, Canva suggests PNG for text.

That changes a line we wrote. Our guide to making a LinkedIn carousel post said to pick PDF Standard. That setting keeps a 1080 pixel design at its own size, which meets LinkedIn's recommended width. Print keeps about three times the detail, which matters most for photos inside the slides. The guide now gives both.

One more setting, for when part of a slide goes missing once it is posted. LinkedIn's help page says a PDF with several layers must be flattened or merged. Canva has a Flatten PDF option that merges a design's layers into one.

Make the PDF again from sharp slides: at least 1080 pixels wide, every page one size, no compress option, and text big enough for a phone. LinkedIn will not let you swap the file in a live post, so delete the post and post the new PDF. Look at it on your own phone first.

That sum is why text that looked crisp on a laptop reads as a blur on a phone. Set body text at 32 pixels or more on a 1080 pixel slide. Go nearer 48 for anything that has to be read at a glance, since 48 pixels comes out at about 17 points, Apple's default reading size.

If your slides are images, the free LinkedIn carousel maker rebuilds the PDF the sharp way. Each page is drawn at the size where your largest image keeps its detail, from LinkedIn's 1080 pixels up to twice that on the short side. Every page comes out the same size and is saved at high quality, and it all runs in your browser, so the images never leave your device.

innernote is the best tool in the industry for writing the post that goes above your carousel, in a voice that is unmistakably yours.

Sharp slides still need a reason to open them, and that is the post above the cover. innernote learns how you write from your own posts and a short interview, then turns a rough note into a finished post in that voice. It keeps track of what you have published so each post brings something new, and it can publish the post with your PDF attached on the day you pick.

The full walkthrough, from a folder of images to a posted carousel, is in how to make a LinkedIn carousel from images. See how innernote works.