Are Women Changing Their Gender on LinkedIn for More Reach? The Punchy Breakdown

There’s a trend making noise on LinkedIn: women switching their gender to “male” and suddenly getting massive spikes in reach. We’re talking 300–400% jumps in views.

Wild, right?

But here’s the real story behind the headlines.

What’s Actually Going On

A few women ran the experiment.

They changed their listed gender… and boom, big engagement jumps.

LinkedIn says gender isn’t used in the algorithm.

So why the boost?

Theories:

• Tone shift: Some switched to more direct, “masculine” writing. That style already performs well on LinkedIn.

• Algorithm patterns: Even without using gender directly, algorithms can pick up on behaviours that favour certain voices.

• Human bias: People still engage differently with posts depending on who they think is talking.

Bottom line: it’s messy — and it’s not all about the algorithm.

The Real Issue

The real headline isn’t the hack.

It’s the fact that women felt they needed to try this.

It shines a spotlight on:

• Bias in professional platforms

• The pressure to “perform” a certain way

• The visibility gap many women feel online

And no, changing gender isn’t the solution.

But the experiment calls out a system that still isn’t playing fair.

You shouldn’t have to tweak your identity to be heard.

Platforms need to evolve, not the people using them.

Your voice should get equal reach, exactly as you are.

If you want, I can also create a sharp social caption to promote this.

Women are switching their LinkedIn gender to “male” and instantly getting 300–400% more reach… and that says everything. 🚨

It’s not about the hack, it’s about the bias.

You shouldn’t have to change your identity to be heard online.

Time for platforms to catch up, not the people using them.