LinkedIn has two swipeable formats. Attach 2 to 9 images and you get a multi-image post, a simple photo swiper. Attach a PDF and you get a document post, which renders as a page-by-page viewer with a progress bar and a download button. When people say "LinkedIn carousel", they almost always mean the PDF one.
#Quick answer
- Multi-image post: Start a post → image icon → select 2–9 images → Post.
- Document post (the real carousel): Start a post → document icon → upload a PDF → give it a title → Post.
- PDF limits: up to 300 pages and 100 MB.
- Which do I want? PDF, if you are making a slide deck. Images, if you are showing photos.
- Can I mix images and a PDF? No. One or the other.
#The difference in one table
| Multi-image post | Document post | |
|---|---|---|
| What you upload | 2–9 image files | 1 PDF |
| How it looks | Photo swiper | Page viewer with progress bar |
| Page/slide ceiling | 9 | 300 |
| Size ceiling | Per-image | 100 MB total |
| Has a title | No | Yes, shown above the viewer |
| Readers can download it | No | Yes |
| Usual use | Photos, screenshots, an event | Slide decks, guides, teardowns |
The download button is the part people forget. A document post is a file you are handing out, not just something to scroll. That is exactly why it works for a checklist or a template and badly for holiday photos. Our LinkedIn post ideas list marks which ideas suit a document post.
#How to post a PDF carousel
- Click Start a post.
- Click the document icon in the composer.
- Upload your PDF.
- Give it a title. This appears above the viewer and is the first thing people read.
- Write your post text.
- Click Post.
The title field is not optional decoration. It sits on the document itself in the feed, so "Untitled" or "deck-final-v3" is a wasted line of prime real estate.
#How to post a multi-image carousel
- Click Start a post.
- Click the image icon.
- Select between 2 and 9 images at once.
- Reorder them if needed, add alt text, write your post.
- Click Post.
Select one image and you get a normal single-image post. Select two or more and LinkedIn switches it to the swipeable layout automatically. There is no separate "make this a carousel" control.
#The limits, exactly
| Constraint | Value |
|---|---|
| PDF pages | 300 maximum |
| PDF file size | 100 MB maximum |
| Images in a multi-image post | 2–9 |
| Videos per post | 1 |
| Mixing formats | Not allowed: images, video and documents are mutually exclusive |
Three hundred pages is far more than anyone should use. A carousel that works is usually 8 to 12 slides. A good source for one is your best text post from last month, which is how the monthly LinkedIn calendar plans its repurposing week. The ceiling matters only because exports from design tools occasionally include hidden pages and push a file over a limit you did not know existed.
#Making the PDF
You do not need special software. Any tool that exports PDF works: Canva, Figma, Keynote, Google Slides, PowerPoint.
Two things that consistently matter more than the tool:
- Design for a square-ish frame. The viewer is not widescreen. A 16:9 deck renders small and unreadable on a phone. 1:1 or 4:5 uses the space you actually get.
- One idea per page. People swipe fast. A page that needs re-reading gets skipped instead.
- End on a page that points to you. Readers who finish a good carousel click your name next. Make sure the LinkedIn headline they land on says what you do.
Export at a sane resolution. A 90 MB PDF of ten slides means something has embedded full-size images, and it will be slow to open on mobile.
#Scheduling a carousel
On a personal profile, both formats can be scheduled through LinkedIn's own composer: build the post, then use the clock icon before publishing. Company Pages are different. LinkedIn Help says a Page cannot schedule posts with multiple photos (LinkedIn Help), so a multi-image Page post has to go out live.
If you are automating it, note that a PDF is a third kind of media, not a large image, and tools that only model "photo" and "video" cannot post one at all. Schedule & Chill treats a PDF as its own media type and enforces the 300-page and 100 MB ceilings before the post is sent, so a document post fails at upload time rather than at publish time. It is free, and it also posts to Bluesky, Mastodon, YouTube and TikTok.
#Frequently Asked Questions
How do I post a carousel on LinkedIn? Click Start a post, click the document icon, upload a PDF, give it a title, then post. That produces the page-by-page carousel most people mean. For a photo swiper, use the image icon and select 2 to 9 images instead.
What is the difference between a LinkedIn carousel and a multi-image post? A carousel is a PDF document post. It has a title, a progress bar, a download button, and takes up to 300 pages. A multi-image post is 2 to 9 photos with none of those things.
How many slides can a LinkedIn carousel have? Up to 300 pages in the PDF, though effective carousels are usually 8 to 12.
What is the maximum file size for a LinkedIn document post? 100 MB.
What size should a LinkedIn carousel be? Square (1:1) or portrait (4:5) render best, because the viewer is not widescreen and most readers are on a phone. A 16:9 deck comes out small.
Can I mix images and a PDF in one LinkedIn post? No. Images, video and documents are mutually exclusive. One post carries one media type.
Can I schedule a LinkedIn carousel? Yes, through the clock icon in LinkedIn's composer, or through any tool that supports PDF document posts. On a company Page, LinkedIn does not let you schedule multi-image posts.
