LinkedIn can route a message to someone you are not connected to as a message request, and the recipient decides whether to accept it or privately decline it. This free route exists for coworkers and shared Group members: LinkedIn states you "can send a message request to communicate with coworkers or Group members that you aren't already connected with," and that you will be notified when you receive one (LinkedIn Help (opens in a new tab)).
What a message request is
When a message cannot go straight to someone's inbox because you are not connected, LinkedIn can route it as a request instead. The recipient sees it in a separate message-request area rather than in the main conversation list, and nothing enters the main inbox until they accept (LinkedIn Help (opens in a new tab)).
Two rules shape the experience. Attachments cannot be sent in a message request, and in a group chat "everyone in a group chat has the same view of the conversation history, no matter when they join" (LinkedIn Help (opens in a new tab)). If you are putting several people into one thread, assume everyone sees everything.
Who can send one
The documented senders are specific: coworkers and members of a LinkedIn Group you share. In a Group, you open the Groups homepage, click See all on the right, and click Message next to the member's name. To reach a coworker, click the Messaging icon, click Compose, type their name, write your message and click Send (LinkedIn Help (opens in a new tab)).
What LinkedIn does not promise is that any non-connection can reach you this way. The help page is worded around coworkers and Group members, and it adds a warning that LinkedIn may limit your ability to message members you are not connected to (LinkedIn Help (opens in a new tab)). Treat the request route as an exception, not a channel you can scale.
Accept, decline, or leave it alone
On the receiving side, LinkedIn lists requests separately. To act on one, open messaging and click the message-request count, open the request, and click Accept to continue the conversation, which moves it into the main inbox (LinkedIn Help (opens in a new tab)).
Declining is deliberately quiet. LinkedIn states: "If a member declines a message request, the sender won't be notified" (LinkedIn Help (opens in a new tab)). A decline is not a visible rejection, and the sender cannot tell the difference between a declined request and one that has not been opened.
Declines are also reversible. Members "can always review the message requests they've declined and accept them," from the More icon in the messaging window under Declined message requests (LinkedIn Help (opens in a new tab)). If you decline something by mistake, it is recoverable.
For the harder cases, LinkedIn's messaging settings give you account-level controls. You cannot stop messages from your 1st-degree connections, but you "can block a member to prevent them from interacting with you," and you can manage which categories of messages you receive from Settings & Privacy > Data privacy > Messages (LinkedIn Help (opens in a new tab)).
How it differs from InMail and invitation notes
Three ways of reaching someone are easy to confuse, and they have different costs and rules.
- Message request — free, documented for coworkers and shared Group members, arrives in a separate request area, and reaches the main inbox only on acceptance.
- InMail — a paid route to a member you are not connected to. LinkedIn describes InMail as "a premium feature" that lets you "directly message another LinkedIn member that you're not connected to" (LinkedIn Help (opens in a new tab)).
- Invitation note — a short message attached to a connection request. LinkedIn states a Basic member can add a personalized message to up to three connection requests per month, each up to 200 characters, while Premium members can send unlimited personalized invitations to all their connection requests, though the connection-request limits still apply (LinkedIn Help (opens in a new tab)).
The practical order is: use a free message request when the person is a coworker or in your Group; use an invitation note when the connection itself is the goal; spend InMail only when you need to reach a specific non-connection and have a reason they will recognise.
One more distinction matters if you are on a paid plan. A member can turn InMail off, in which case LinkedIn states you cannot message them by InMail at all (LinkedIn Help (opens in a new tab)). A message request follows different rules and depends on the shared-connection context, so the two routes are not substitutes.
A worked decision (illustrative)
You find a prospect who is not a connection but is in a Group you belong to. The decision tree is short: is there a genuine reason to write to this person, and is the shared Group enough context for the message to make sense? If yes, a short message request is the lowest-cost route. If the person is neither a coworker nor in a shared Group, a message request is not available and InMail is a paid alternative. The example is illustrative; the eligibility, not your preference, decides which route exists.
If you want to compare the paid route in more detail, see what a LinkedIn InMail is.
For a look at how messaging sits in a wider outreach stack, visit Clapa.
When a request will not arrive
A message request does not guarantee delivery. LinkedIn states it may limit your ability to message members you are not connected to, and the recipient can decline silently or simply never open it (LinkedIn Help (opens in a new tab)). There is no feature that turns a request into a reliable inbox.
FAQ
Who can send me a LinkedIn message request?
LinkedIn documents requests from coworkers and from members of a Group you share. It also states that, to keep the platform safe and professional, it may limit your ability to message non-connections (LinkedIn Help (opens in a new tab)).
Does the sender know if I decline a message request?
No. LinkedIn states that if a member declines a message request, the sender won't be notified (LinkedIn Help (opens in a new tab)).
Can I get a declined message request back?
Yes. Open messaging, click the More icon, choose Declined message requests, open the request and click Accept to move it into your main inbox (LinkedIn Help (opens in a new tab)).
Sources
- LinkedIn Help, "Send, receive, and manage message requests": https://www.linkedin.com/help/linkedin/answer/a552485 (opens in a new tab)
- LinkedIn Help, "Manage the types of messages you receive": https://www.linkedin.com/help/linkedin/answer/86234 (opens in a new tab)
- LinkedIn Help, "InMail Messages": https://www.linkedin.com/help/linkedin/answer/a543895 (opens in a new tab)
- LinkedIn Help, "Personalize invitations to connect": https://www.linkedin.com/help/linkedin/answer/a563153 (opens in a new tab)