Searching LinkedIn without an account is possible, but with some limitations. As a non-member, you can only access limited profile information and search results. To gain full access to profiles, postings, groups, and advanced search filters, you need to join LinkedIn.
What Can You See on LinkedIn Without Joining?
Here’s what you can view on LinkedIn without creating an account:
- Limited profile information – You can see a preview of member profiles including name, job title, company, location, connections, and snippets of experience/education.
- Company pages – You can access basic information about companies like descriptions, locations, # of employees, website, etc.
- Job postings – You can browse job listings that are publicly available but can’t apply without an account.
- News articles – You can read articles published on LinkedIn without logging in.
- LinkedIn Learning courses – You can view some sample preview videos for free courses without an account.
However, as a non-member your access is very restricted. You can only see a few lines of profile summaries, titles and snapshot information. You won’t be able to view full profiles, contact info, recommendations, accomplishments, volunteer experience, education details, publications, certifications, and other sections.
What’s Not Accessible Without an Account?
Here are some key things blocked for non-logged in users:
- Searching profiles by name or keyword – Only very limited search is available.
- Advanced filters like location, company, job title, skills, etc.
- InMail for contacting members directly.
- Viewing your full network of connections.
- Joining groups and participating in discussions.
- Commenting and liking posts.
- Posting content and updating your own profile.
- Following companies, influencers, schools to customize your feed.
- Applying for jobs.
- Viewing salary data and who’s viewed your profile.
- Paid services like LinkedIn Premium to unlock additional features.
As you can see, LinkedIn blocks access to many of its core features for non-members. You miss out on the benefits of networking, relationship-building, and accessing rich professional insights.
Why Does LinkedIn Restrict Access for Non-Members?
LinkedIn limits what non-members can see and do on the platform to encourage more people to sign up for accounts. Here are some of the main reasons:
- Drive user growth – Restricting functionality incentivizes people to create accounts to gain fuller access.
- Deliver more value to members – Members get enhanced features, data and search capability not available to the public.
- Monetization – Accounts allow LinkedIn to serve targeted ads, generate sales leads, and offer paid subscriptions.
- Build trusted community – Requiring identity helps maintain professional standards between real qualified individuals.
- Protect user privacy – Members control what information they share publicly vs with their networks.
Overall, the limitations for non-logged in visitors aim to grow LinkedIn’s engaged user base and craft a uniquely beneficial platform for professional networking and development.
How to See Full LinkedIn Profiles Without an Account
If you want to unlock more LinkedIn profile details without joining, here are some options:
- Use LinkedIn’s Share Profile feature – Members can generate a public link to share their full profile.
- View Google search results – Google indexes and caches some profile info.
- Use LinkedIn Profile Downloader – Browser extensions like this download public profiles.
- Try a LinkedIn recruiter account – Paid recruiter accounts can fully access profiles.
However, the share feature ultimately depends on the user, and workarounds like browser extensions violate LinkedIn’s terms of service. The only guaranteed way to freely search and view complete profiles is to create a standard LinkedIn account.
How Much of LinkedIn is Free?
LinkedIn offers both free and paid membership options. Here’s an overview of what you can access with a free account:
| Free Account Features |
|---|
| Create a profile with experience, education, skills, etc. |
| Make up to 300 connections in your network |
| Join groups to connect with professionals in your industry |
| Follow companies to receive key updates |
| Search jobs, people, groups, companies, and content |
| Build your network by inviting colleagues and classmates |
| Connect with others by liking, commenting, and sharing posts |
With a free account you can build an extensive professional network and profile. But LinkedIn does limit some functionality around messaging and profile views to incentivize premium paid memberships.
LinkedIn Premium plans
For fuller access, LinkedIn offers these paid subscription options:
- Premium Career – $29.99/month billed annually – Focused on job seeking andcareer development. You get unlimited profile views, ability to see who viewed your profile, advanced insights on who’s searching for you, expert resume and interview prep tools, and additional InMail messages.
- Premium Business – $64.99/month billed annually – Tailored for sales, recruiting, and business development. Includes unlimited searches of profiles and contact info, lead and company recommendations, Mail Merge messaging, expert company research tools, and additional InMails.
- Sales Navigator – $64.99/month billed annually – LinkedIn’s flagship sales tool. Gives detailed company/lead insights, TeamLink collaboration, auto-saving of leads and accounts, PointDrive sales presentation builder, and additional InMails.
- Recruiter Lite – $119.95/month billed annually – Entry-level recruiting features. Lets you message InMail anyone, see who’s viewed profiles, get visibility into hiring funnel, and post jobs.
- Recruiter – $239.95/month billed annually – Pro-level recruiting capabilities. Adds automated candidate matching, pipeline management, talent pool organization, recruiting analytics, and more.
Premium memberships remove restrictions around messaging and profile views while offering robust tools tailored for job seeking, sales, recruiting, and overall business relationship building.
Pros and Cons of Having a LinkedIn Account
Should you join LinkedIn? Here are some key pros and cons to evaluate:
Pros
- Build an professional online presence and portfolio
- Extend your reach for networking, jobs, clients, partnerships
- Showcase credentials, accomplishments, recommendations
- Gain insights on companies, leads, recruiters, candidates
- Access job postings and be found for opportunities
- Engage in industry forums, groups and discussions
- Stay updated on news, trends, and best practices
- Enhance credibility and personal brand
Cons
- Time investment to create and maintain a strong profile
- Learning curve to use platform effectively
- Potential for distraction from constant notifications
- Overwhelming volume of content and messages
- Pressure to amass followers, likes, connections
- Difficulty separating professional and personal lives
- Privacy and security concerns sharing so much data
- Recruiters poaching you from your current job
Ultimately, a LinkedIn account can amplify your professional reach and opportunities if managed actively and strategically. But it requires time to cultivate and care not to let it become a burden.
Conclusion
While LinkedIn allows limited access to some features without an account, joining is necessary to fully harness its capabilities for networking, career advancement, sales, and recruiting. Weigh the pros and cons to determine if the benefits are worth your time and data. But resist the temptation to use workarounds – abusing terms of service often comes with risks. If you want to tap into the full power of LinkedIn, the proper way is creating your own free or paid member account.
