LinkedIn is the world’s largest professional network with over 850 million members. It’s an invaluable resource for finding new jobs, connecting with professionals in your industry, and building your professional brand. But one major limitation of the free version of LinkedIn is that you only get a limited number of searches per month. Once you hit that limit, you need to upgrade to a paid account to continue searching. However, there are a few clever tricks you can use to get unlimited searches on LinkedIn without paying. Keep reading and I’ll explain step-by-step how to unlock unlimited LinkedIn searches for free.
Use Advanced Search Operators
The simplest way to get more out of your allotted LinkedIn searches is to use advanced search operators. These allow you to refine and focus your searches so you can find exactly who or what you’re looking for without burning through your monthly searches. Here are some of the most useful advanced search operators to use on LinkedIn:
Operator | What It Does |
---|---|
” “ | Searches for an exact phrase |
OR | Search for either term A or term B |
AND | Search for both term A and term B |
– | Excludes a term from your search |
For example, you could search for “digital marketing” AND “New York” to find digital marketing professionals in New York. Using operators like these counts as just one search but allows you to cover a lot more ground.
Filter Your Searches
Another way to maximize your LinkedIn searches is to use filters. After entering a search term, click “Filters” and refine your search by location, industry, job function, seniority level, company size, and more. The more filters you add, the more tailored your search results will be. And applying filters doesn’t count as an additional search, so you can filter as much as you want within your monthly allotment.
Leverage Saved Searches
Here’s a little-known LinkedIn search trick: saved searches don’t count against your monthly limit. Create a saved search using the filters you want, and you can revisit that search as often as you want without being charged a search. Saved searches are a great way to create ongoing alerts – for example, you could make a saved search for “software engineers at Facebook” and recheck it weekly to see new people joining that meet your criteria.
Use Specific Keywords
The more specific your keyword search terms are, the fewer searches you’ll have to do. Generic terms like “marketing manager” churn through your allotted searches quickly. But more niche terms like “Snapchat influencer marketing manager San Francisco” let you drill down to a very targeted audience efficiently. Brainstorm the most descriptive keywords related to the type of profiles you want to find.
Search Within Groups
Here’s another little-known LinkedIn search hack: you can search within LinkedIn Groups without using up your allotted monthly searches. Groups function like mini-networks within LinkedIn focused on particular industries, interests, careers, locations, schools, and more. There are over 2 million Groups to choose from. Join a few Groups in your field and search within them to connect with professionals in your niche.
Use Boolean Search Syntax
Boolean search allows you to combine keywords and operators to create precise searches. Here are some examples of Boolean syntax to use in your LinkedIn searches:
- “social media manager” AND California
- recruiter OR hiring manager
- accountant NOT CPA
Spend some time coming up with targeted Boolean searches tailored to your goals. These types of searches help you drill down to extremely specific subsets of LinkedIn members.
Search by Company Name
Searching for professionals by company name is another way to maximize your alloted monthly LinkedIn searches. Rather than searching for something broad like “marketing manager,” try searching for “marketing manager at Uber” or “marketing manager at Nike.” You can even combine this tactic with location filters to further target your results, like “account executive at Microsoft Canada.”
Endorse Skills on Profiles
Here’s a neat trick: if you endorse someone’s Skills on their LinkedIn profile, you can then search for other people who have those same Skills endorsed – without using up a search!
For example, find someone with the Skills “Facebook Advertising” and “Google AdWords.” Endorse those Skills on their profile, then click on the Skills. This will show you a list of other LinkedIn members who have been endorsed for those same Skills. You can browse and connect with those people without spending one of your official searches.
Use Third-Party Tools
There are a number of third-party browser extensions and apps that give you advanced searching capabilities on LinkedIn. Here are some top options:
- LinkedIn X-Ray Search: See full profiles without connecting, advanced filters, see who viewed your profile.
- LeakySearch: Analyze search results, find email addresses, auto-endorse skills.
- LinkedIn Helper: Advanced filtering, saves searches, exports results.
- RocketReach: Find professionals’ email addresses.
The capabilities of third-party LinkedIn tools are constantly expanding. Search around to find options that fit your needs. Just be aware that LinkedIn’s terms of service prohibit scraping data or spamming members.
Use LinkedIn’s Partner Program
LinkedIn allows certain partner companies to provide their users with additional search capabilities beyond the normal monthly limits. Partners like Outreach.io, Sales Navigator, and Dux-Soup integrate directly with LinkedIn to offer unlimited searches. See if your company uses any platforms that participate in LinkedIn’s partner program, which could unlock surpassed search limits.
Wait Until Next Month
If you’ve tried all the tricks but still reached your monthly LinkedIn search limit, the simplest option is just to wait until your allowance resets at the start of the next month. Set a reminder to come back and search again once your limits have been restored. The free version of LinkedIn provides 25 to 50 searches per month, depending on your account type. While not unlimited, that should be sufficient for most users’ basic searching needs.
Upgrade to a Paid Account
Of course, the obvious solution if you require high search volumes is to upgrade to a premium LinkedIn account. Here are the search limits for LinkedIn’s paid subscription tiers:
Account Type | Search Limit |
---|---|
Premium Career | 180 searches/month |
Sales Navigator Professional | 300 searches/month |
Recruiter Lite | 350 searches/month |
Recruiter | 700 searches/month |
Recruiter Corporate | Unlimited |
Upgrading to a premium account starts at around $30 per month. The unlimited search capabilities may be worth the investment if you need high volumes of LinkedIn searches for sales, recruiting, or marketing purposes.
Use a Friend’s Account
If you’re in a bind and need to squeeze out a few more LinkedIn searches, you could try borrowing a friend or colleague’s account. Many people don’t come close to hitting the monthly search limit on their free accounts. Ask around to see if someone you know would be willing to let you log in and execute some searches using their allotment. Just make sure they permanently log you out after the fact.
Conclusion
While LinkedIn does limit the number of searches you can do on a free account, there are plenty of creative ways to get around this restriction. Applying advanced search tactics like Boolean syntax, niche keywords, filters, Groups, and third-party tools can help maximize your monthly allotment. If you need truly unlimited LinkedIn search capacity, consider upgrading to a premium account or tapping into an integrated platform like Sales Navigator or Recruiter. With the right strategies, techniques, and tools, you can unlock all of the amazing search functionality LinkedIn has to offer without spending a dime.