LinkedIn Premium is LinkedIn’s paid subscription service that provides users with additional features and benefits beyond the free LinkedIn account. Some of the key features of LinkedIn Premium include being able to see who has viewed your profile, advanced search filters, InMail messages, access to online courses, and increased profile views and connections.
One question that often comes up with LinkedIn Premium subscribers is whether it is possible to temporarily pause or hibernate a LinkedIn Premium account for a period of time. There are a variety of reasons why someone may want to temporarily hibernate their Premium account, such as an extended vacation, parental leave from work, sabbatical, or other long absence where they will not be actively using their account.
In this article, we’ll take an in-depth look at whether LinkedIn allows users to hibernate Premium accounts, the pros and cons of doing so, as well as some alternative options to consider.
Does LinkedIn Allow Hibernating Premium Accounts?
Unlike some other subscription services, LinkedIn does not have an official hibernation feature for Premium accounts. According to LinkedIn’s billing and payments policies, if you want to temporarily pause your Premium subscription, you will need to fully cancel your account.
Once canceled, your Premium features will be deactivated until you resume your subscription. LinkedIn does not allow members to temporarily disable certain Premium features or place an account into hibernation status where it can easily be reactivated later.
This is an important distinction for those considering hibernating a LinkedIn Premium account. It means that if you do cancel your subscription, you will need to sign up and pay again once you are ready to resume using Premium features. You won’t be able to simply reactivate your old subscription.
The Pros of Canceling Your Premium Subscription
Although not the same as an official hibernation feature, canceling your LinkedIn Premium subscription can still be a good option if you plan on being away from LinkedIn for an extended period of time. Here are some of the key pros to canceling your subscription:
- Stop automatic billing – Cancelling your Premium account will immediately stop LinkedIn from charging your payment method for ongoing subscriptions fees. This can help you save money during time periods when you won’t use Premium features.
- No need to remember to cancel later – By proactively canceling ahead of time, you don’t run the risk of forgetting to disable auto-renew prior to being charged again down the road.
- Premium features disabled – With Premium canceled, all of your Premium privileges will be turned off. This can give you peace of mind that nobody can view your full profile analytics or send you InMail messages while you’re away.
- Flexibility to resume anytime – LinkedIn allows you to resume a paid subscription even after canceling previously. So you can signup again for Premium with the same account whenever you’re ready.
If you want to fully pause your Premium access and billing during a long absence from actively using LinkedIn, canceling your subscription accomplishes this goal. The main downside is that you’ll have to manually sign up again later rather than seamlessly reactivating an existing subscription.
The Cons of Canceling Your Premium Subscription
On the other hand, fully canceling your LinkedIn Premium subscription can also come with some drawbacks:
- Lose Premium features immediately – All of your Premium features and settings will be lost as soon as you cancel, rather than maintaining access until a set reactivation date.
- No guarantee of subscription price – LinkedIn occasionally adjusts their Premium subscription pricing. When you resume your subscription later, there is a chance the price may have increased.
- Lose Premium badge on profile – Your account will revert back to a free LinkedIn profile without the Premium subscriber badge displayed.
- Possible SEO impact – If you’ve built up your LinkedIn presence and search optimization over time, canceling Premium could result in a decline in your profile’s search visibility.
- Must pay and signup again later – Canceling means having to manually pay and signup for Premium again when you return, rather than pause/unpausing an existing subscription.
As you can see, the loss of your Premium features and settings, unpredictability of pricing, and need to manually signup again in the future are key aspects to consider. For some LinkedIn users, these cons may outweigh the pros of canceling.
Alternative Options Besides Canceling
Given that LinkedIn does not offer an official hibernation option, are there any alternatives besides fully canceling your Premium subscription? There are a few other choices to consider:
Downgrade to a Basic Account
Rather than canceling entirely, you can downgrade from a Premium account to LinkedIn’s free Basic account. This allows you to maintain your account and connections while losing access to Premium features during your absence. When ready to resume Premium, you can then upgrade your account subscription again.
Change Billing Cycle to Annual
LinkedIn allows Premium subscribers to pay either monthly or annually. If you change to an annual cycle prior to your absence, you can prepay for the year and not have to worry about being billed again until the next annual term.
Use Premium “Pause Billing” Workaround
Some users have reported success contacting LinkedIn customer support and requesting to “pause billing” for a set period of time, even though this is not an official policy. However, success often depends on the specific support representative.
Cancel and Use Free Account
Another option is to simply cancel Premium entirely and use LinkedIn with the limited free account capabilities during your absence. When you return, you can then resume Premium. The con is losing access to those features in the meantime.
Step-by-Step Guide to Canceling LinkedIn Premium
If you ultimately decide that canceling your LinkedIn Premium subscription is the best approach for your situation, here is a step-by-step walkthrough of how to cancel:
- Log into your LinkedIn account on desktop or mobile.
- Go to your account settings via the “Me” icon at the top of your LinkedIn feed.
- Select “Manage premium” or “Premium” depending on your interface.
- Under your active subscription, click “Cancel premium.”
- On the cancellation page, select your reason for canceling from the dropdown menu.
- Choose to confirm cancellation immediately or cancel at the end of your current billing period.
- Agree to any applicable Terms of Service when prompted.
- Your Premium subscription will now be cancelled and scheduled to deactivate at the time you specified.
- LinkedIn will send you a confirmation email once your cancellation is processed.
Following these steps allows you to proactively cancel Premium and stop auto-renewal billing until you are ready to consider resuming your Premium membership.
How to Resume LinkedIn Premium After Cancellation
When you are ready to activate Premium again after a cancellation, follow these steps to resume your subscription:
- Login to your LinkedIn account that previously had a Premium membership.
- Navigate to the Premium upgrade page from your account settings.
- Select your desired Premium monthly or annual subscription package.
- Enter your payment method and billing details.
- Agree again to LinkedIn’s Terms of Service.
- Your Premium subscription will instantly be reactivated.
Resuming Premium is a quick and simple process. The key drawbacks are needing to pay again upfront versus unpausing an existing subscription, and potentially paying a higher price if rates increased during your cancellation.
Frequently Asked Questions
Here are answers to some common questions about hibernating and canceling LinkedIn Premium accounts:
Does canceling Premium remove your profile and connections?
No, canceling Premium will not remove your LinkedIn profile or any of your 1st-degree connections. You will still maintain the same profile and network.
Can you get a refund if you cancel partway through your billing cycle?
LinkedIn does not offer prorated refunds if you cancel in the middle of the billing period. You will retain access until the end of the full period you already paid for.
Who sees if you cancel your Premium subscription?
No one will be notified or see anything different if you cancel Premium. Your profile will simply revert to a free account version.
What happens to InMails that were already sent if I cancel now?
Any InMails you already sent before canceling will still be delivered to recipients. But you will be unable to send new InMails until resuming Premium.
Can I give my Premium subscription to another LinkedIn user?
No, Premium subscriptions are not transferrable. Each member would need to purchase their own individual subscription.
Is my cancellation effective immediately?
Cancellation can be either immediate or effective at the end of your current billing cycle, depending on the option you choose.
Conclusion
While LinkedIn currently does not allow members to officially hibernate Premium accounts, canceling your subscription accomplishes a similar effect of pausing Premium access and billing during an extended absence. If you plan on taking a break from proactively using LinkedIn for professional networking or job seeking, cancellation may be the right approach to save money and lockdown your dormant account. Just be aware of the administrative hurdle of needing to signup and pay all over again when your return versus seamlessly unpausing a subscription. With the proper planning and understanding of the cancellation/reactivation process, you can successfully pause and resume your LinkedIn Premium membership as needed.