LinkedIn Premium: Career, Business & Sales Navigator — Complete Subscription Guide
LinkedIn is the world’s largest professional networking platform, connecting over 1 billion professionals across 200+ countries. But beyond basic networking, a LinkedIn Premium subscription unlocks a powerful suite of tools designed for job seekers, business leaders, and sales professionals alike. Whether you’re looking to accelerate your LinkedIn career growth, scale your LinkedIn business presence, or close more deals with LinkedIn Sales Navigator, this guide covers everything you need to make an informed decision about which plan is right for you.
What is LinkedIn Premium?
LinkedIn Premium is the paid subscription layer built on top of LinkedIn’s free platform. While the free version gives you access to basic profile creation, connection building, and job searching, Premium plans unlock significantly deeper capabilities — from seeing who viewed your profile to sending InMail messages to people outside your network and accessing detailed business intelligence tools.
LinkedIn Premium comes in multiple tiers, each tailored to a different professional use case. The main categories are LinkedIn Career, LinkedIn Business, LinkedIn Sales Navigator Core, and LinkedIn Sales Navigator Advanced. Understanding what each offers is key to choosing the subscription that delivers real value for your specific goals.
LinkedIn Premium Plans: Choose Your Subscription
Use the tabs below to explore what each LinkedIn Premium plan includes:
Profile Viewers
See the full list of everyone who viewed your profile in the last 90 days, including recruiters actively checking you out.
InMail Credits
Send 5 InMail messages per month to people outside your network, including hiring managers and industry contacts.
Applicant Insights
See how you compare to other applicants for any job posting — skills, experience, and education match scores.
LinkedIn Learning
Unlimited access to 20,000+ expert-led courses across tech, business, creative, and leadership topics.
AI Resume & Profile Tools
Stand out on job listings where your profile matches well, with a visible badge that signals recruiter-readiness.
Top Applicant Badge
Use AI-powered suggestions to tailor your profile headline, summary, and resume to specific job descriptions
15 Monthly InMails
Triple the InMail credits compared to Career — ideal for outreach to potential clients, partners, or collaborators.
Business Insights
Access detailed data on company growth trends, workforce composition, and industry benchmarks for strategic decisions.
Unlimited Browse Mode
Search and browse LinkedIn profiles without hitting the commercial use limit that restricts free accounts.
LinkedIn Learning Access
Full access to LinkedIn Learning's entire course library to keep upskilling on relevant business and leadership topics.
Full Profile Viewer History
See everyone who viewed your profile over the past 90 days — valuable intelligence on who's paying attention to you.
Featured Applicant Status
Stand out when applying to jobs on LinkedIn with premium visibility signals that catch recruiters' attention.
Advanced Lead & Company Search
Access 50+ search filters including job title, seniority, company size, industry, and geography to zero in on ideal prospects.
Lead Lists & Saved Searches
Build and manage lead lists, and save searches so you automatically get alerts when new prospects match your criteria.
50 InMail Credits / Month
Reach anyone on LinkedIn directly — even outside your network — with personalized outreach messages.
15 Monthly InMails
Visualize organizational structures within target accounts to identify key decision-makers and stakeholders efficiently.
Account Maps
Visualize organizational structures within target accounts to identify key decision-makers and stakeholders efficiently.
15 Monthly InMails
Get notified of key buying signals like job changes, company news, and profile updates among your saved leads.
Real-Time Sales Alerts
Triple the InMail credits compared to Career — ideal for outreach to potential clients, partners, or collaborators.
CRM Integration
Sync Sales Navigator data with popular CRMs like Salesforce and HubSpot to keep your pipeline data always up to date.
LinkedIn Premium Plans: Choose Your Subscription
If you’re deciding between the LinkedIn Sales Navigator Core plan and the LinkedIn Sales Navigator Advanced plan, here’s a side-by-side look at the key differences:
Feature
Sales Navigator Core
Sales Navigator Advanced
Advanced lead & company search
✓ Included
✓ Included
Monthly InMail credits
50
50 + team pooling
Real-time sales alerts
✓ Included
✓ Included
CRM integration
✓ Basic sync
✓ Advanced + validation
TeamLink (shared network)
— Not included
✓ Included
Buyer intent signals
✓ Included
✓ Included
Shared lead lists (team)
✓ Included
✓ Included
Advanced usage analytics
✓ Included
✓ Included
Best for
Individual reps & SDRs
Sales teams & revenue orgs
LinkedIn Premium Plans: Choose Your Subscription
Regardless of which plan you choose, LinkedIn Premium subscriptions consistently deliver value across several dimensions:
✓Expanded visibility: Premium profiles get significantly more visibility in search results and recruiter databases compared to free accounts.
✓Expanded visibility: Premium profiles get significantly more visibility in search results and recruiter databases compared to free accounts.
✓Competitive intelligence: Business and Sales Navigator plans provide company-level insights — workforce growth, hiring trends, and department structures — that inform smarter strategy.
✓AI-powered tools: From profile optimization to personalized outreach suggestions, LinkedIn’s AI features help you work smarter at every stage of the professional journey.
✓Continuous learning: LinkedIn Learning access (included on Career and Business) equips professionals with skills that keep them competitive in fast-changing industries.
✓Sales pipeline efficiency: Sales Navigator users report significantly shorter sales cycles by identifying the right contacts faster and engaging them with more relevant, timely outreach.
✓Direct outreach beyond your network: InMail lets you reach decision-makers, hiring managers, and prospects without needing a prior connection or introduction.
LinkedIn Premium Pricing Overview
LinkedIn Premium pricing varies by plan and billing cycle. Annual billing typically offers meaningful savings compared to monthly. Always check LinkedIn’s official website for the most current rates in your region.
How to Get Started with LinkedIn Premium
Getting set up with a LinkedIn Premium subscription is a simple process. Here’s a general walkthrough:
- Create or log in to your LinkedIn account: If you don’t already have a free LinkedIn profile, set one up first. A complete, optimized profile gets significantly more value from any premium plan.
- Visit the LinkedIn Premium page: Navigate to LinkedIn’s official Premium section to compare available plans and their current pricing for your location.
- Try a free trial if available: LinkedIn frequently offers a 1-month free trial for new subscribers — a great way to experience premium features before committing.
- Select your plan: Choose between LinkedIn Career, LinkedIn Business, Sales Navigator Core, or Sales Navigator Advanced based on your professional goals and budget.
- Set up your tools: For Sales Navigator users, connect your CRM, set up your lead filters, and configure saved searches to start receiving real-time prospect alerts immediately.
- Optimize your profile: Premium subscribers benefit most when their profile is fully optimized — use LinkedIn’s AI suggestions to improve your headline, summary, and skills sections for maximum visibility.
Who Should Use LinkedIn Premium?
Job Seekers
LinkedIn Career is ideal for anyone actively applying for roles — giving you a competitive edge through applicant insights and recruiter visibility.
Entrepreneurs
LinkedIn Business helps founders build authority, expand their network strategically, and understand the competitive landscape in their space.
Sales Reps & SDRs
Sales Navigator Core is tailored for individual contributors who need to find and reach the right prospects fast with advanced search and InMail.
Sales Teams Sales Navigator
Sales Navigator Advanced is built for teams that want to coordinate outreach, share leads, and leverage collective network reach to open doors.
Marketers & Brand Builders
Premium Business unlocks the company insights and outreach tools needed for effective B2B marketing and partnership development.
Students & Graduates
Career plan gives new professionals access to LinkedIn Learning and visibility tools that help them stand out at a critical early stage of their journey.
Recruiters
Recruiters using LinkedIn Business gain deep search capabilities and outreach tools to discover and connect with top passive talent at scale.
B2B Companies
Sales Navigator (either tier) is the go-to tool for any business using LinkedIn as a primary channel for pipeline generation and account-based selling.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is Linkdin Premium used for ?
LinkedIn Premium is used to unlock advanced features on top of the standard free LinkedIn platform. Depending on the plan, it can be used for job searching with a competitive edge (Career), growing professional networks and business presence (Business), or identifying and engaging sales prospects at scale (Sales Navigator). At its core, Premium removes the restrictions of the free tier and provides intelligence tools that help professionals achieve their goals faster.
Is Linkdin Premium worth the subscription cost?
Whether LinkedIn Premium is worth it depends heavily on how actively you use the platform and what your professional goals are. For active job seekers, the applicant insights and InMail access alone can justify the cost by helping you land interviews faster. For sales professionals, Sales Navigator’s lead targeting capabilities frequently generate returns that far exceed the monthly cost. For casual LinkedIn users who aren’t actively job searching or prospecting, the free tier may be sufficient. Most users find it worth trying via the free trial before committing.
What is the difference between Linkdin Sales Navigator Core & Linkdin Sales Navigator Advanced?
The LinkedIn Sales Navigator Core plan is designed for individual sales reps and includes advanced search filters, 50 InMail credits, real-time alerts, lead list management, and basic CRM integration. The LinkedIn Sales Navigator Advanced plan adds team-focused features on top — including TeamLink (shared network access across your team), buyer intent signals, shared lead lists, advanced CRM data validation, and usage analytics dashboards. If you’re a solo seller, Core is typically sufficient. If you’re managing a team or want deeper account intelligence, Advanced delivers significantly more value.
What is Linkdin Premium used for ?
LinkedIn Premium is used to unlock advanced features on top of the standard free LinkedIn platform. Depending on the plan, it can be used for job searching with a competitive edge (Career), growing professional networks and business presence (Business), or identifying and engaging sales prospects at scale (Sales Navigator). At its core, Premium removes the restrictions of the free tier and provides intelligence tools that help professionals achieve their goals faster.
How can i access Linkdin Premium online?
Can i swtich between Linkdin Premium plans?
Yes, LinkedIn allows subscribers to upgrade or downgrade their plan at any time. If you start with LinkedIn Career and later need the business intelligence features of LinkedIn Business or the sales tools of Sales Navigator, you can switch from within your account settings. Billing adjustments are typically applied on a prorated basis for the remaining billing period.