What this tool checks, and why
Every check maps to a measured difference between the top 10% of posts and the bottom half in our analysis of 34,000 LinkedIn posts. The weights reflect how strongly each pattern separated the two groups.
| Check | Top 10% | Bottom 50% | Weight |
|---|---|---|---|
| Opens in first person | 19.6% | 10.1% | 30 |
| Says “you” in the hook | 47.5% | 32.7% | 25 |
| Leaves content past the fold | n/a | n/a | 20 |
| Contains a question | 19.0% | 14.2% | 15 |
| Fewer than four hashtags | 25.9% have 4+ | 41.9% have 4+ | 5 |
| No link in the hook | 22.1% link posts | 32.7% link posts | 5 |
Notice what is not checked: hook length. The median visible hook is 206 characters in the top decile and 205 in the bottom half, so length by itself predicts nothing. The tool shows you the fold so you can see what gets cut, not to push you toward a word count. Same for numbers in the opening line, which appear about equally in strong and weak posts.
How to use the score
- Draft the post first, then find the most arresting line in it and move that to the top. Most good hooks are discovered, not written.
- Check the fold preview. If the greyed section starts before your tension lands, cut words from the front.
- Fix any failed structural check that you agree with. Ignore the ones you do not: a post that scores 70 with a real story beats a post that scores 100 with nothing to say.
Frequently asked questions
How many characters show before the LinkedIn see more fold?
Roughly 210 characters on desktop web and noticeably fewer in the mobile app, where the column is narrower and every hard line break spends part of the preview. The safe working rule is to land your tension inside the first 140 characters so the hook survives the tightest crop.
What makes a good LinkedIn hook?
A specific person in a specific moment, with the outcome held back. In our analysis of 12,988 posts, 19.6% of top-decile posts opened in first person against 10.1% of the bottom half, and 47.5% put you or your in the visible hook against 32.7%. Length made no measurable difference.
Is this hook analyzer free?
Yes, and it needs no signup. Everything runs in your browser: the text you paste is never sent to a server or stored. The checks mirror the exact patterns we measured in our engagement study, so the tool and the research agree.
Does a high score mean my post will perform well?
No. The score measures how closely your opening matches patterns that correlate with high engagement, which is not the same as predicting performance. A checklist cannot judge whether the story underneath is worth reading. Treat it as a writing aid that catches structural mistakes.
About this data
Numbers come from our analysis of a public dataset of 34,012 LinkedIn influencer posts. We scored 12,988 English posts from 65 creators by engagement rate (reactions + 4× comments, divided by the author's followers) and compared the top 10% against the bottom half. The dataset captures each post's text up to LinkedIn's “see more” fold, which is exactly what a reader sees before deciding to engage. These are correlations, not guarantees. Full methodology and caveats are in the full study.
Want the full writing guide behind these checks? Start with how to write LinkedIn hooks and how to start a LinkedIn post. To benchmark a post that is already live, use the engagement rate calculator.