Publishing Member Content via the LinkedIn UGC API

Automating Member Shares with the UGC API

To programmatically publish a post to a LinkedIn member's feed, you must use the User Generated Content (UGC) API. The primary requirement is an OAuth 2.0 access token granted with the w_member_social scope, which allows your application to act on behalf of the user to create shares.

The core takeaway for developers is that the UGC API is not a simple "text-to-post" endpoint; it requires a specific URN (Uniform Resource Name) for the author and a defined lifecycleState to make the content visible to the network.

The Mechanism of a UGC Post

A UGC post consists of three main components: the author's identity, the visibility settings (who can see the post), and the specific content (text, links, or media). The API uses the Restli protocol, which requires a specific header to ensure the request is processed correctly.

Implementation Example

The following example demonstrates how to publish a basic text-based share. This request should be executed from your application server to avoid exposing your access token in client-side code.

# Run this command from a terminal with curl installed
# Required Permissions: Valid OAuth 2.0 Access Token with w_member_social scope

curl -X POST 'https://api.linkedin.com/v2/ugcPosts' \
-H 'Authorization: Bearer YOUR_ACCESS_TOKEN' \
-H 'X-Restli-Protocol-Version: 2.0.0' \
-H 'Content-Type: application/json' \
-d '{
  "author": "urn:li:person:ABC123XYZ",
  "lifecycleState": "PUBLISHED",
  "specificContent": {
    "com.linkedin.ugc.ShareContent": {
      "shareCommentary": {
        "text": "Automating my professional updates via the UGC API!"
      },
      "shareMediaCategory": "NONE"
    }
  },
  "visibility": {
    "com.linkedin.ugc.MemberNetworkVisibility": "PUBLIC"
  }
}'

Configuration Breakdown

• author: Must follow the format urn:li:person:{member_id}. Using a plain ID without the URN prefix will result in a request failure.
• lifecycleState: Set to PUBLISHED. If omitted or set incorrectly, the post may not appear in the feed.
• shareMediaCategory: Set to NONE for text-only posts. If you are attaching an image or video, this must be changed to IMAGE or VIDEO, and the media must be pre-registered via the LinkedIn upload API.
• visibility: Accepts PUBLIC (anyone on or off LinkedIn) or CONNECTIONS (only the member's first-degree connections).

Constraints and Technical Limits

When designing your integration, account for the following hard limits to avoid application crashes or API bans:

Constraint	Limit/Requirement
Text Length	Maximum 1,300 characters per post.
Media Size	Images must be ≤ 5 MB.
Rate Limits	Approximately 100 shares per token per day (varies by app tier).
Immutability	Posts created via UGC API cannot be deleted via the API.

Common Integration Pitfalls

Scope Rejection: Many developers encounter an invalid_scope error during OAuth. The w_member_social scope is restricted; it is typically only granted to applications with a verified business email and an approved use case. Ensure your developer app is fully verified before requesting this scope.

Handling Rate Limits: When the daily quota is exceeded, LinkedIn returns a 429 Too Many Requests response. Your application must check for the Retry-After header in the response to determine when it is safe to attempt the next post.

Media Workflow: A common mistake is attempting to send a raw image URL in the ugcPosts request. LinkedIn requires a two-step process: first, register the upload and upload the binary file to a temporary LinkedIn URI; second, reference that URI in the ugcPosts call.

Verification and Testing

To verify the implementation, execute the POST request and check for a 201 Created status code. The response body will contain an activity URN (e.g., urn:li:activity:12345). To confirm the result, log into the member account associated with the token and verify the post appears on the profile's activity feed.