What Do 1st, 2nd and 3rd Mean on LinkedIn? Connection Degrees Explained

The 1st, 2nd or 3rd next to a name on LinkedIn is your degree of connection with that person. 1st means you're directly connected: one of you accepted the other's invitation. 2nd means they're connected to one of your 1st-degree connections, so you share at least one mutual connection. 3rd means they're connected to one of your 2nd-degree connections. In search filters, 3rd+ groups 3rd-degree members and everyone further out.

The number doesn't mean they viewed your profile, and it isn't a ranking. It tells you how close they are in your network, and that decides what you can do: message them for free, invite them, or only reach them with InMail.

1st, 2nd and 3rd on LinkedIn at a glance

Definitions come from LinkedIn's help article Your network and degrees of connection.

What does 1st mean on LinkedIn?

1st means the person is one of your connections. Either you sent them an invitation and they accepted, or they invited you and you accepted. This is your actual network, and it unlocks the most:

• Free messaging. You can message a 1st-degree connection anytime, without Premium or InMail credits.
• Their posts in your feed. Connections automatically follow each other's posts and articles. You can unfollow someone without removing the connection.
• Contact info. By default, a member's primary email address is visible to their 1st-degree connections (LinkedIn Help). Many people also add a phone number or website, but that's their choice.

There's one ceiling: you can have up to 30,000 1st-degree connections. Once you reach it, Follow becomes the default button on your profile, and people can keep following you because followers aren't capped (LinkedIn Help). Following and connecting are different things; see follow vs connect on LinkedIn.

What does 2nd mean on LinkedIn?

2nd means the person isn't in your network, but at least one of your connections is connected to them. Think "friend of a friend". Their profile usually shows how many mutual connections you share and who they are.

You can't message a 2nd-degree contact for free. The Message button you sometimes see on their profile either opens an InMail (a paid message included in Premium and Sales Navigator plans, see what InMail is and how it works) or works for free because the person has a Premium Open Profile. Otherwise, send an invitation with the Connect button and message them once they accept.

For prospecting, 2nd-degree contacts are the sweet spot. You have a shared connection to mention, they can see who you have in common, and you can ask that mutual connection for an introduction when the stakes are high.

What does 3rd (or 3rd+) mean on LinkedIn?

3rd means the person is connected to one of your 2nd-degree connections: a friend of a friend of a friend. You have no mutual connection, but you're three steps apart. In search filters, 3rd+ groups 3rd-degree members and everyone further out of your network.

What you can do with a 3rd-degree member:

• Invite them. If Connect isn't the main button on their profile (for example because Follow is), click More, then Connect.
• Send an InMail, if you have InMail credits and they accept InMail.
• Message them for free if you're in the same LinkedIn group, or if they have an Open Profile.

Members fully out of your network can have some profile fields hidden. Growing your network brings more profiles into your 2nd and 3rd degrees, which is one reason networking compounds over time.

Group members and out-of-network members

LinkedIn counts two more categories as part of the picture:

• Fellow group members: people in the same LinkedIn group as you are considered part of your network, and you can contact them through LinkedIn messaging or directly through the group. That's why joining a few active groups in your niche widens who you can reach. (You can also export leads and emails from LinkedIn groups.)
• Out of network: everyone else. You see less of their profile, and InMail is your only direct LinkedIn channel, if it's available.

How to turn a 2nd or 3rd into a 1st-degree connection

1. Open the person's profile.
2. Click Connect. If you don't see it, click More, then Connect.
3. Click Add a note to write a short message (optional).
4. Click Send invitation.

The rules that apply, according to LinkedIn Help:

• Personalized notes: free accounts can add a note to up to three invitations per month, 200 characters each. Premium members can personalize every invitation (source).
• Weekly limit: LinkedIn doesn't publish an exact number. If you hit it, sending invitations is usually blocked for about a week (source). See how many LinkedIn invitations you can send per week for what users observe in practice.
• Spam reports: if people report your invitations as unwanted, LinkedIn can temporarily restrict your account from sending more.
• Withdrawn invitations: after you withdraw one, you can't invite the same person again for up to three weeks.

Because notes are scarce on a free account, many people send invitations without a note and write their real first message once the invitation is accepted. If you do add one, keep it specific; our LinkedIn connection message templates show what works.

How to contact 2nd and 3rd-degree people without connecting

• InMail: available with Premium, Sales Navigator and Recruiter plans, and works whatever the degree, as long as the recipient accepts InMail.
• Open Profile: Premium members who turn it on can receive free messages from any member.
• A shared group: you can message fellow group members.
• Email: if LinkedIn isn't the right channel, an email finder can find and verify the person's work email from their name and company.

Using connection degrees to prospect

A few habits that make the degrees work for you:

1. Start with 2nd-degree prospects. Filter your LinkedIn search by connection degree and work the 2nd-degree list first. A real mutual connection is the easiest opener you'll get.
2. Never pitch in the invitation. An invitation is a request to talk, not a sales email. Mention why you're connecting (a post they wrote, a shared group, a mutual connection) and stop there.
3. Personalize for real. "I saw your profile" and {firstname} templates are obvious. Reference something the person actually did or said.
4. Space out your invitations. Sending everything on Monday morning is the fastest way to hit the weekly limit or collect "I don't know this person" reports.

useArtemis runs this as a sequence: profile visit, invitation with an AI-written note based on the prospect's profile, then messages and emails, at safe sending limits and a human-like pace. You connect your LinkedIn account and mailbox, and replies from both channels land in one inbox. See plans and pricing.

FAQ

What does 3rd mean on LinkedIn?

3rd means the person is connected to one of your 2nd-degree connections, so you're three steps apart and have no mutual connection. You can usually still invite them (through More > Connect if Connect isn't the main button) or send them an InMail.

What's the difference between 1st and 2nd on LinkedIn?

A 1st-degree contact is a connection: you can message them for free and see their posts in your feed. A 2nd-degree contact is connected to one of your connections but not to you, so you need to connect first, use InMail, or rely on their Open Profile to message them.

Does 2nd or 3rd mean someone viewed my profile?

No. The badge only shows how you're linked through connections. Profile views are a separate feature: see whether LinkedIn shows who viewed your profile.

How many connections can you have on LinkedIn?

Up to 30,000 1st-degree connections. After that, you can't send or accept new invitations unless you remove connections, but the number of people who can follow you is unlimited.

How do I cancel a connection request on LinkedIn?

Click My Network, then Manage in the Invitations section, open the Sent tab and click Withdraw next to the invitation, then confirm. The person isn't notified and stops getting reminder emails, but you can't invite them again for up to three weeks.