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LinkedIn Post Templates and Examples: 26 Formats to Copy
Here are 26 LinkedIn post templates, each a fill-in outline with the one question to answer first, plus example posts that show them filled in. Pick the template for what you want the post to do, answer its question, and replace each bracketed line with your own material.
Joschua Sünneke·Updated $1 for 7 days · Cancel anytime
How to use a LinkedIn post template
- Pick the template for what you want the post to do. The table below matches goals to formats.
- Answer its question first. Every template starts from one question, like "What's a number from your work you'd stand behind?". Your answer is the post's material.
- Replace each bracketed line. One line of the outline is usually one short paragraph of the post.
- Keep the first line under about 40 characters. In the 1,114 posts below, short first lines went viral more often. LinkedIn also cuts the post at about 210 characters on desktop, and less on a phone.
Two people using the same template should end up with two different posts, because the material is theirs.
| If you want to | Start with |
|---|---|
| Grow your audience | The mistake and the fix · The playbook · The receipts · A clear position |
| Get clients | The numbers · The mistake and the fix · The playbook · Problem, named fix |
| Show how you think | Then vs now · Problem, named fix · A clear position · What people think vs what's true |
| Share a lesson | The numbers · Then vs now · The mistake and the fix · The turning point |
| Launch something | The launch |
| Celebrate a milestone | The milestone · What I changed my mind on · Lead with the number |
| Recap an event | The event recap · Drop into the moment |
| Build in public | The numbers · The receipts · The turning point · The launch |
LinkedIn post format basics
- Length. LinkedIn allows 3,000 characters in a post. Match the length to the payoff: a few lines for one tool, result or opinion, and a longer post for steps, a breakdown or a story.
- The first line. Finish the hook before "see more".
- Line breaks. Short paragraphs with a blank line between them read well on a phone. One idea per paragraph.
- Links. Put links in a first comment, not in the post.
- Hashtags and emoji. None are needed. One emoji at most, if it adds something.
- Bold and italics. LinkedIn has no formatting buttons. The LinkedIn text formatter converts text to bold or italic characters you can paste.
What 1,114 LinkedIn posts say about format
Postel collected 1,114 LinkedIn posts by 45 builder and SaaS creators, published from June to October 2026, and compared each post with its creator's own median engagement:
- Posts whose first line was under 40 characters went viral for their creator (2x the creator's usual or more) 22% of the time, against 14 to 16% for longer first lines.
- Text-only posts had a median of 1.15x the creator's usual. Video posts had 0.88x, and posts with a link or an article 0.45x.
- Ending on a question made no difference: 15% of posts went viral either way.
It's one sample of one kind of creator, so read it as a direction to test. It's also why the outlines below keep the opening short and leave links out.
The 26 templates
Filter by what you want the post to do, then copy an outline. Every line in brackets is one beat of the post, usually one short paragraph. Each card also has an example post. We wrote every example on this page, so the people and numbers are made up.
Words in [brackets] are yours to fill. Copy puts the format on your clipboard.
7 formats shown
The numbers
Teach
[A real figure from your work] [What it took, or what it tells you] [The one thing the reader can copy]
A real figure stops the scroll, and the decisions behind it are what readers save.
On LinkedIn: about 210 characters show before "see more", so the first beat has to earn the click.
Answer this first: What's a number from your work you'd stand behind?
See an example post
We sent 412 proposals last year and won 61. That's 15%. The ones we won had one thing in common: we'd had a call with the client before we wrote a word. Proposals sent without a call won 4% of the time. So now there's a rule. No call, no proposal.
Then vs now
Teach
[How it used to work, concretely] [How it works now, just as concretely] [What that changes for the reader]
A concrete before and after shows a shift the reader can act on.
On LinkedIn: about 210 characters show before "see more", so the first beat has to earn the click.
Answer this first: What changed in how you work?
See an example post
Two years ago our client onboarding was a 40-slide deck and a 90-minute call. Now it's a one-page doc and a 20-minute call. The client reads the doc before we meet, and the call is only for their questions. Clients start using what we built a week earlier. If your onboarding is a presentation, try sending it as a page first.
The mistake and the fix
Teach
[The mistake, named precisely] [What it costs the reader] [The fix, as concrete steps]
Naming the mistake the reader is making earns the right to give the fix.
On LinkedIn: about 210 characters show before "see more", so the first beat has to earn the click.
Answer this first: What's a mistake you see people in your field make, and what works instead?
See an example post
Most freelancers price by the hour. It caps what you earn at the hours you have, and it charges clients less the faster you get. What works better: 1. Write down the result the client is paying for. 2. Quote one price for the whole project. 3. Offer two versions, so the client is choosing between them. Getting faster should raise your margin.
The playbook
Teach
[A hook that promises a concrete outcome] [The steps in the order the reader would take them, each with the how] [Why it works, or what you'd do first]
A promised outcome with steps in order is the post people bookmark.
On LinkedIn: about 210 characters show before "see more", so the first beat has to earn the click.
Answer this first: What's a process you could teach step by step?
See an example post
How we get a new client from signed contract to first draft in 5 days. Day 1: a 30-minute kickoff. We ask for three examples of work they like and one they hate. Day 2: a shared doc with our reading of the brief. They correct it in comments. Days 3 and 4: the first draft, built on the corrected doc. Day 5: we walk them through it on a call, so the first feedback is said out loud. Day 2 does most of the work. Clients argue with a page much faster than with a draft.
The receipts
Teach
[A title line] [An itemised list: tools, steps or examples, one per line] [One line on what it means]
An itemised list speaks for itself and reads fast on a phone.
On LinkedIn: about 210 characters show before "see more", so the first beat has to earn the click.
Answer this first: What's a list you could share: tools, examples or steps?
See an example post
Everything our team of three runs the company on: Email and calendar: the suite we already paid for Docs: one shared folder, no wiki Tasks: one board with three columns Calls: whatever the client uses Invoices: our bank's built-in invoicing Notes: one text file per client Total software bill: $64 a month. Most of the tools we tried and dropped solved problems we didn't have yet.
Problem, named fix
Teach
[A problem the reader has, in one line] [Its fix, named, in the next] [Three or four pairs, then how to do one of them]
Stacked problems with short answers let every reader find theirs.
On LinkedIn: about 210 characters show before "see more", so the first beat has to earn the click.
Answer this first: What problems do your clients or readers keep running into?
See an example post
Posting once, then nothing for a month. Fix: pick two days and keep them. Writing like a press release. Fix: write it the way you'd say it to a client across the table. No idea what to post. Fix: keep a note of every question a client asks you. Giving up after two weeks. Fix: decide now that you'll judge it after ten posts. Start with the questions note. After a month you'll have more posts than days.
The explainer
Teach
[The term, as the title] [What it is in one plain sentence] [How it works, step by step] [Why it matters to the reader]
A term everyone uses and few can explain is a post people save.
On LinkedIn: about 210 characters show before "see more", so the first beat has to earn the click.
Answer this first: What's a term in your field you could explain simply?
See an example post
What a posting slot is. A slot is a fixed day and time you post at, like Tuesday at 9:00. You set them once. Each week you fill the empty ones, and the time is already decided. It makes planning smaller. You stop deciding when to post and only decide what.
Example posts, one for each kind
An outline only shows the shape. These show it filled in, one for each kind of template.
Teach: The mistake and the fix
Posts that hand the reader something to use: a number, a process, a fix. They're the posts people save.
Take a side: A clear position
Posts with a position the reader can agree or argue with. They bring comments, and comments carry a post.
Relate: The turning point
Posts about the experience your readers share with you. They're the ones people answer and pass on.
Announce: The milestone
Launches, milestones, hires and events, told so they're worth reading for people who aren't you.
Hooks: Lead with the number
Formats built around the first line. Use one when you know what to say and need people to stop for it.
Use any template in your own voice
In Postel, these formats live under Viral posts > Formats, each shown with a real viral post that used it and how far that post beat its author's usual.
- Use as template asks the format's question, suggests answers from your Facts, and writes a LinkedIn post and an X post together, in your voice. "Schedule both" puts them in your next free slots, with Undo.
- Start from outline is free: it puts the template's lines into the editor for you to write, and the editor won't schedule a post while an outline line is still in it.
- Plan next week uses the same formats to fill your content calendar (on Pro and up).
Writing from a template costs 1 credit per network, or nothing on your own AI key (on Pro and up). Browsing formats and starting from an outline are free.
Use any of these formats in your own voice
Postel answers a format's question from your own material and writes the post for LinkedIn and X, in your voice.
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Frequently asked questions
Updated Oct 30, 2026.
What is a LinkedIn post template?
A reusable shape for a post: the order of its parts and what each part does. "The mistake and the fix", for example, names a mistake, says what it costs, then gives the fix. You fill the shape with your own material.
What is the best LinkedIn post format?
The one that fits what you have to say. Teaching formats like "The playbook" tend to get saved, positions like "A clear position" tend to draw comments, and stories like "The turning point" tend to be read to the end. Pick by the reaction you want.
How long should a LinkedIn post be?
As long as the payoff needs. One tool, result or opinion fits in a few lines. Steps, a breakdown or a story need more room. The limit is 3,000 characters.
Will people notice I used a template?
Not if the material is yours. Readers notice copied wording and generic examples. They rarely notice structure. Answer the template's question with something specific from your own work.
Can I use these templates on X?
Yes. Each line of an outline can be one post of a thread, or keep the first two lines for a single post. The tweet templates page has the same outlines for X.
Can I see LinkedIn post examples?
Yes. Every template above has an example post, and the examples section has a LinkedIn post for each kind of template: teach, take a side, relate, announce and hook. In Postel, each format also sits next to a real viral post that used it.