Where the cut falls
LinkedIn does not publish a threshold. The orders of magnitude commonly reported: about 140 characters on mobile and about 210 on desktop, roughly three lines. The cut depends on lines more than characters: a blank line or a line break uses up room. Treat these figures as approximate and liable to change.
What to do
- Aim for mobile. If your hook fits before the mobile cut, it fits on desktop too.
- Put the strong idea in the first sentence. No preamble, no greeting.
- Avoid blank lines at the start. They pull the cut earlier.
- Finish the first sentence before the cut, so readers want to tap “see more” instead of reading half a sentence.
See the cut before publishing
The tool's preview shows where the cut falls on mobile and desktop (“Mobile hook” / “Desktop hook” toggle). Paste your text, adjust the first words, check.
To go further on writing the hook: LinkedIn hook: how to make people click “See more”.
Examples of a first sentence that fits before the cut
Here are short openings, invented to illustrate the length to aim for (under 140 characters):
- “I turned down a €120k offer. Here is why.”
- “My first hire failed in three months. What I changed:”
- “One setting halved my review time.”
Each is complete, announces a benefit and gives a reason to click.
What makes the cut come too early
- A greeting or pleasantry on the first line.
- A blank line right at the start: it uses up room.
- A first sentence so long it spills onto the next line and is cut mid-way.
- An emoji or decorative symbol taking the place of a word.
And after “see more”?
The reader who clicks expects the promise to continue. Do not repeat the hook: deliver the announced element straight away, then develop. If what follows does not keep the promise, the click was wasted.
Paste your text and open the “hook” preview: you see where “see more” falls on mobile and on desktop.
Approximate thresholds reported by several preview tools; LinkedIn does not publish them and may change them. LinkedIn is a trademark of LinkedIn Corporation; LinkedIn Format Pro is not affiliated with, endorsed or sponsored by LinkedIn.