Having a LinkedIn Premium subscription can provide valuable benefits for networking and building your professional brand. However, if an attempted payment fails for your Premium subscription, you may want to cancel your subscription instead of updating your payment information. Here are some tips on how to cancel LinkedIn Premium if a payment fails.
Check Your Billing Information
When a Premium payment fails on LinkedIn, the first step is to check your billing information on file. Log into your LinkedIn account and go to your Settings. Under the Account tab, choose Billing. Here you can view your payment information.
Verify that the payment details are correct – the right card number, expiration date, and billing address. If the information is outdated or inaccurate, update it. You may then want to retry the payment before canceling Premium entirely.
Understand How LinkedIn Bills for Premium
LinkedIn bills on a recurring monthly or yearly basis, depending on the Premium subscription you chose. Payments are usually processed automatically around the renewal date. If a payment fails, LinkedIn will retry the charge a few times over the next 30 days.
It’s important to know that even if a payment fails, your Premium subscription remains active until the retry attempts are exhausted. You’ll still have access to Premium benefits during this time. Canceling right away is not necessary unless you no longer want the service at all.
Cancel Auto-Renew for Premium
If you decide you no longer want LinkedIn Premium, the first step is to turn off auto-renewal for your subscription. Here’s how:
- Go to the Account tab in Settings
- Choose Manage next to your Premium subscription
- Toggle the Renew Automatically switch to Off
- Confirm turning off auto-renewal
With auto-renewal disabled, your Premium access will simply expire at the end of the current billing period. You won’t be charged again.
Request a Refund
If you already paid for an entire year of Premium upfront and have time left in your subscription, you may be eligible for a prorated refund when you cancel. To request a refund:
- Go to your LinkedIn Settings > Billing
- Find the option for Request Refund
- Choose the subscription to refund
- Confirm the cancellation and refund request
Refunds are generally processed within 3-5 business days. The refund method will match the original payment method for your subscription.
Downgrade to a Free Account
Rather than cancel Premium entirely, some users may want to simply downgrade to a free LinkedIn account. Here are the steps to downgrade:
- Go to Account > Manage next to your Premium subscription
- Click Change membership and pick the Free option
- Confirm downgrading your account
Your Premium access will remain active until the end of the billing period. At that point, your account will revert to a free member status.
Key Differences Between Premium and Free LinkedIn
Downgrading from Premium to the free offering means losing access to several features. Here are some key differences:
| Premium | Free |
|---|---|
| Unlimited profile views | Limited profile views |
| Message anyone | Limited messages |
| See full profiles | Name and headline only |
| Advanced search filters | Basic search filters |
| Premium badges | No badges |
The free version still allows you to maintain a profile, connect with others, join groups, follow companies, and apply for jobs. But your search, messaging, and network visibility is limited compared to Premium.
Will a Canceled Subscription Delete Your Account?
Canceling your LinkedIn Premium subscription or downgrading to a free account will not delete your LinkedIn profile or network. Your account, connections, profile information, and activity history will remain intact.
The only changes are losing access to Premium features and reverting to the more limited free member experience. But your presence on LinkedIn will continue whether you pay for Premium or not.
Losing Access to Premium Perks
Here are some of the Premium perks you’ll lose access to after canceling:
- Seeing view and search counts for your profile
- Knowing who viewed your profile and when
- Removing Premium badges from your profile
- Limits on profile views each month
- Restrictions on sending messages to anyone
- No more advanced filters for searching profiles
- Seeing just name and headline when viewing other profiles
For heavy LinkedIn users, these limitations may make it worthwhile to renew Premium eventually. But if you need to cut expenses or LinkedIn is not critical for your goals right now, canceling Premium is relatively seamless.
Consider Premium Renewal in the Future
Canceling Premium does not have to be permanent. You can renew your subscription at any time from the LinkedIn website or mobile app.
If you want to renew after canceling, simply follow the Premium upgrade prompts again as a registered member. You can reactivate auto-renewal or pay monthly as desired.
Leaving Premium also does not affect your overall tenure on LinkedIn. Your profile’s longevity remains intact even if you stop paying for a period of time.
Don’t Forget to Update Your Profile
After canceling Premium, remember to update your LinkedIn profile to reflect your non-Premium member status. Specifically:
- Remove any Premium badges that appear with your name
- Delete any mentions of being a Premium subscriber
- Take out Premium-only details like view counts or people who viewed you
Keeping your profile accurate and reflecting your current free subscription can avoid confusion for your connections. They’ll know exactly what to expect when viewing your profile and interacting with you.
Can I Get a Premium Refund After Cancelling?
Getting a refund for LinkedIn Premium after you’ve already canceled your subscription is typically not possible. Refunds are generally only offered when you actively cancel and request a refund simultaneously.
For example, if you cancel auto-renewal but still have time left on your paid Premium subscription, you can get a prorated refund. But once your access expires after cancellation, refunds are no longer an option.
In some exceptional cases, you may be able to request a refund within 60 days of canceling Premium. But this is rare and generally only applies if you did not use any Premium features after purchasing.
Don’t Lose Hope of Saving Your Premium Access
Before canceling Premium entirely after a failed payment, be sure to exhaust all options to retain your Premium access. You can:
- Update expired payment information on file
- Contact your credit card company if charges were declined
- Call LinkedIn billing support for help
- Change payment methods to one that works
With the benefits Premium provides, it is worth trying to correct any payment issues if you want to keep your subscription. Premium enables you to maximize LinkedIn, so don’t give up easily if billing fails.
Consider Alternatives to Outright Cancellation
Rather than cancel Premium completely after a failed payment, some alternatives to consider first:
- Downgrade to a lower tier Premium plan
- Switch to a cheaper annual subscription
- Take a break by skipping renewals for now
- Call to negotiate discounts or defer payments
Pausing your subscription or reducing your plan can let you retain some Premium features without fully giving it up. Explore compromises before outright canceling after one failed payment.
Conclusion
Canceling LinkedIn Premium due to payment issues is a straightforward process. Turn off auto-renewal, request any eligible refunds, and downgrade your account to revert back to free member status. Just be sure to update your profile accordingly.
While you’ll lose access to many beneficial Premium features, remember that cancellation is not necessarily permanent. You can renew anytime to restore Premium. And with a bit of effort, you may be able to resolve the payment problem and continue your subscription uninterrupted.
With LinkedIn’s billing grace period allowing access even after failed payments, be patient. Evaluate alternatives before immediately canceling a valuable Premium subscription over a temporary payment issue.
