Here's something counterintuitive: the Skills section isn't just about showing off. It's about being found.
When a recruiter searches "product manager SQL experience," LinkedIn's algorithm ranks profiles partly by skill matching. More relevant skills + more endorsements = higher in search results (LinkedIn Business Blog, 2024).
Think of skills as keywords in a search engine. Every skill is a door someone might walk through to find you.
The numbers game:
LinkedIn allows 50 skills. Most people add 8-10 and call it a day. That's like having a store with 10 products when you could have 50—all at no extra cost (LinkedIn Help Center, 2025).
How to choose skills:
- Start with your core expertise - The 3-5 things you're genuinely expert in
- Add related skills - Adjacent areas where you're competent
- Include industry terms - Not internal jargon, but how YOUR AUDIENCE searches
- Don't forget soft skills - Leadership, Communication, Strategy—these matter too (Edelman Trust Barometer, 2025)
A quick story:
Marcus is a data scientist. He added "Machine Learning" and "Python" and stopped. Meanwhile, his competitor added those plus "TensorFlow," "Deep Learning," "Neural Networks," "Data Visualization," "SQL," and 20 more relevant terms.
Guess who shows up in more searches?
The ordering trick:
Your top 3 skills show prominently on your profile. Strategically reorder to feature:
- Skills most relevant to where you're heading (not where you've been)
- Skills with the most endorsements (social proof)
- Skills you want to be known for going forward (LinkedIn Help Center, 2025)
Getting endorsements without being weird:
Ever gotten an endorsement from someone you worked with and thought, "Oh, I should endorse them back"? That's reciprocity. Use it.
- Endorse 10 people you genuinely respect for skills you've seen them demonstrate
- Many will endorse you back
- After projects, ask directly: "Would you mind endorsing me for [specific skill]?" (LinkedIn Social Selling Index Research, 2024)
The cleanup:
Look at your skills. See that "Microsoft Word" skill from your first internship? The "Photoshop" you used once in 2017? Remove anything that misrepresents your current expertise.
Why this matters:
It's not vanity. It's visibility. The right skills make you findable by the right people. And in a world where opportunities come through search, being findable is everything.
"Your LinkedIn presence is a compounding asset. Every post, comment, and connection adds to your professional equity." - Justin Welsh, LinkedIn creator with 1M+ followers, founder of The Saturday Solopreneur
Frequently Asked Questions
How many skills should I actually add to my profile?
LinkedIn allows you to add up to 50 skills. You should aim to use as many as are genuinely relevant to your expertise. This broadens the "keyword net" that allows recruiters and potential clients to find you through search (LinkedIn Help Center, 2025).
Do endorsements from others really matter for my ranking?
Yes. Endorsements act as a validation signal for LinkedIn's algorithm. A skill with 20+ endorsements carries more weight in search results than a skill with zero. They also provide essential social proof to humans viewing your profile (LinkedIn Business Blog, 2024).
Should I endorse other people first?
Absolutely. Reciprocity is a core behavior on LinkedIn. When you endorse a colleague for a skill you've actually seen them use, they receive a notification and are often prompted to endorse you back. It's a natural way to build mutual credibility (LinkedIn Social Selling Index Research, 2024).