LinkedIn Hashtags are Becoming Less Relevant | Linkedist

There’s been a lot of buzz about LinkedIn hashtags recently, with many questioning whether they’re still worth the effort or have become just another relic of the platform’s evolving algorithm. Are LinkedIn hashtags still essential for reach, or have they become a minor detail in content strategy?

Short answer? Their role in driving viral engagement has faded, but they’re far from useless. Think of them as signposts rather than megaphones – helping the right audience find your content rather than amplifying it to the masses.

Long answer? Let’s dive in and break it down. 👇

In 2024, LinkedIn cut hashtags and started introducing new features that prioritize SEO and member content. Main changes were made in regards to discontinuing personal profile hashtags (and Creator Mode) and company page hashtags, and in the 2024 LinkedIn Algorithm report, it was mentioned that LinkedIn's algorithm now prioritizes content quality and engagement over the mere presence of hashtags.

This means that prioritizing organic, engaging content on personal and company profiles becomes essential. Recently, Linkedist discussed what could work in terms of content in our Audio event on YouTube, highlighting the importance of warm and human-like posts that bring the audience closer to the company, as well as sharing your personal stories on LinkedIn as a Thought Leader.

So… What happened to LinkedIn hashtags?

To put it simply, hashtags remain useful for content organization and discovery but are less influential in driving viral engagement. Adapting to this change involves emphasizing content quality and strategic hashtag use to align with LinkedIn's current algorithmic preferences.

💡Interested in how to craft engaging organic content? Linkedist did the job for you: check out our LinkedIn Marketing Strategies eBook!

While hashtags will not help you gain viral impressions, there are still implementations that can help you boost your SEO.

LinkedIn indexes hashtags, meaning posts that include relevant hashtags can appear in LinkedIn search results when users look for specific topics. If someone searches for “#B2BSales” or “#Linkedist” posts with those hashtags are more likely to show up. On LinkedIn itself, hashtags are still clickable: once you notice a hashtag on your news feed, you can click it, and content that includes that hashtag (and similar associations that have it listed as a keyword) will show up in your search. This also applies vice-versa, when you post about an event you will be attending or about your product, you can add a specific hashtag that, when clicked, will show similar posts.

Well, how should you use LinkedIn hashtags now?

This function also allows you to check posts that have been written using that hashtag or keywords from your network, in the past 24 hours or the past week.

Best Practices for Using LinkedIn Hashtags in 2025:

📍 Limit hashtag quantity. Overloading posts with hashtags can appear spammy and may be penalized by LinkedIn's algorithm. You can still use hashtags, but limit them to 3 per post.

📍 Prioritize relevance. Ensure that each hashtag directly relates to your content and your post is easily discoverable through search.

📍 Incorporate branded & niche hashtags. Develop unique hashtags specific to your brand or campaigns. Branded hashtags like #YourCompanyInsights or #YourProductLaunch can help consolidate related content and encourage user-generated posts.

📍 Monitor hashtag performance. Regularly assess which hashtags resonate with your audience by analyzing engagement metrics. You may conclude that hashtags do not impact your engagement.

📍 If you use multiple-word hashtags (e.g. #MarketingStrategyforCompanies), keep in mind that while it is searchable, your post will fall in a pool of similar hashtags – #marketing, #marketingstrategy, etc. – and your post will be hard to find.

📍 Ensure your posts are public for indexing by LinkedIn and Google.

“Despite their reduced impact, LinkedIn still recommends relevant hashtag use, not as a critical factor, but as a tool for content discovery” – Richard van der Blom, Algorithm Insight 2024.

💡 If your hashtags don’t work – use keywords instead. Keywords in comments and posts can help you improve visibility and searchability within the platform.

🧠 Linkedist’s two cents: we have stopped using LinkedIn hashtags quite awhile ago on company and personal posts. We started focusing on utilizing keywords and mentioning them in our copies – we have not seen a significant drop in our reach by omitting hashtags.

In short

LinkedIn hashtags are no longer the growth hack they once were. While they still help with content discovery and organization, LinkedIn’s algorithm now prioritizes content quality and engagement over hashtags. You can still use hashtags, however, keep in mind that your hashtag strategy should rely on how easily your posts are discoverable by searching or clicking the chosen hashtag.

We recommend focusing on quality content, adding relevant keywords, and appealing to your target audience that way.