How To View the LinkedIn Desktop Site from your Phone

Jamie Read more February 23, 2021

If you use LinkedIn to network, find work or to promote yourself, then you’re most definitely not alone. Millions of people use it every day as a sort of Facebook for business, across careers and professions of all stripes. I use it and everyone I know uses it. While there is a very capable LinkedIn app for both iPhone and Android, the desktop site looks and feels very good, and some people are justifiably more comfortable using that.

If you’re tempted to use that instead of the app, here’s how to view the LinkedIn desktop site from your phone.

The LinkedIn app and mobile website got a serious makeover back in 2015, and the site was all the better for it. It was easier to manage, to read, and to use, and it was a real step forward for the network. Though it took a little time for it to happen, the website wound up getting the same treatment and it looks very good indeed.

Usually, a rebrand begins with the desktop website and flows down to the mobile version and the app, and then it makes its way to any ancillary sites from there. LinkedIn did it the other way round. It redesigned its app first and then gave its mobile website and, finally, the desktop website the love it needed afterwards. It also made the desktop version follow the design of the app, rather than the other way round. While contrary to tradition, it has worked amazingly well.

Why view the LinkedIn desktop site instead of a mobile version?

A mobile version of a website is tuned for smaller screens and designed to use as little data as possible. So why use a desktop version on a phone? Usually, a mobile website will have less functionality to save data and load faster. It may also have fewer images, fewer media elements, and a more basic layout. Much depends on the website and how it has been designed.

This is fine for most sites, as all you want is the content. But social networks like Facebook and LinkedIn are different. You want to see everything. You want all of the interactive elements and media options. You want the full experience, and you could miss something if you’re looking at a pared down version. If that is at the expense of slower loading and more data consumption, so be it.

The other mobile alternative is the app. If you have used social network apps, you will likely already know how monumentally annoying they can be, always prodding you to contact someone or view this or that. I ended up deleting Facebook Messenger because it would bother me at least once a day even when nobody had messaged. And this is where the desktop website comes in.

View the LinkedIn desktop site from your Android device

Android phones use Chrome by default, which has a setting that calls the desktop website instead of the mobile version. You can set it to use the desktop website at any time with a couple of taps.

Navigate to the LinkedIn website in Chrome on your Android device.
Select the three dot menu icon in the top right of the page.
Check the box next to Desktop site.

This should then use the desktop website for the rest of the session.

View the LinkedIn desktop site from your iPhone

iPhones can use Chrome or Safari, and both work well on the device. If you use Chrome, you can select the same options as Android to call the desktop LinkedIn website. Safari does things ever so slightly differently.

Navigate to the LinkedIn website in Safari.
Select and hold the circle icon in the top right.
Select Request Desktop Site in the popup.

This should achieve the same result as Chrome. Safari should call the full site and display it on your phone.

Viewing desktop websites on small screens

Depending on the quality of the website you are viewing, there may be lots of compromises when viewing a desktop version of a site on drastically smaller screens. There may also be few. As 60% of LinkedIn’s traffic comes from mobile, their websites are coded very carefully and work well regardless of what device you use.

The desktop site is small and needs tiny fingers to access options and menu but pinch to zoom works fine. The new desktop site is much cleaner and has much less clutter than the previous version, so it works very well on mobile and the odds of a mis-click are lower than they might be on other sites. And certainly, it’s much better than the LinkedIn app in my opinion.

Your main profile details come up first and you can slide around the page with ease using fingers. Scrolling is simple and all of the chat, invitation, promotion, and interactive features all seem to work fine on my Android phone. I’m sure iOS is just as good.

Do you view the LinkedIn desktop site from your phone or use the app or mobile site? Tell us about it below!