LinkedIn is the world’s largest professional network with over 800 million members worldwide. While anyone can create a basic LinkedIn profile for free, LinkedIn also offers several premium membership options that provide additional benefits.
LinkedIn Premium Career
LinkedIn Premium Career is LinkedIn’s most popular paid subscription. It offers the following key features:
- See who’s viewed your profile – You can see the names and titles of viewers of your profile in the last 90 days.
- Get insights on your profile visitors – Understand what drew viewers to your profile so you can improve it.
- Advanced profile filtering – Filter and sort search results by location, company, job title, and more.
- InMail messages – Send unlimited direct messages to anyone, even if you’re not connected.
- Salary data – View salary ranges for various job titles.
- Interview preparation – Get tips on preparing for job interviews.
- Premium badge – Display a gold Premium badge on your profile.
LinkedIn Premium Career costs $29.99 per month when paying monthly or $239.88 per year ($19.99 per month) when paying annually.
LinkedIn Premium Business
LinkedIn Premium Business targets small business owners and sales/recruiting professionals. It includes all the features of Premium Career plus:
- Unlimited InMail messages
- Three free Job Postings per month
- See all candidate applications on a job post
- Employee Engagement and Team Collaboration tools
- Advanced analytics and reporting
LinkedIn Premium Business costs $59.99 per month when paying monthly or $479.88 per year ($39.99 per month) when paying annually.
LinkedIn Sales Navigator
LinkedIn Sales Navigator is designed for sales professionals. It provides:
- Lead recommendations – Get recommendations for the best leads to target.
- Advanced search filters – Find prospects by company, job title, location, and more.
- Saved leads and accounts – Easily save and organize your prospects.
- Notable updates on leads – Get real-time alerts when prospects get promoted, change jobs, etc.
- Teamlink – Collaborate on leads with colleagues.
- PointDrive presentations – Create customized presentations to share with prospects.
LinkedIn Sales Navigator pricing starts at $64.99 per month when paying monthly or $779.88 per year ($64.99 per month) when paying annually.
LinkedIn Recruiter
LinkedIn Recruiter is designed for corporate recruiting and staffing professionals. Key features include:
- Candidate search – Search the entire LinkedIn network plus external resume databases.
- Candidate insights – View work history, skills, and recommendations for prospects.
- InMail messages – Contact passive candidates that aren’t actively job searching.
- Pipeline and process management – Track candidates through the hiring process.
- Team collaboration – Share candidates and collaborate with other recruiters.
- Talent pool management – Organize prospects for future openings.
LinkedIn Recruiter pricing starts at $239.95 per month when paying monthly or $2,159.56 per year ($179.96 per month) when paying annually.
Comparison of Features
Here is a table summarizing the key features included with each LinkedIn premium subscription plan:
| Feature | Premium Career | Premium Business | Sales Navigator | Recruiter |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Profile views | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ |
| InMail messages | Limited | Unlimited | ✔ | Unlimited |
| Job postings | X | 3 per month | X | ✔ |
| Advanced search filters | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ |
| Talent pool management | X | X | X | ✔ |
Who should get LinkedIn Premium?
Here is a breakdown of who can benefit most from each premium LinkedIn plan:
- Premium Career – Individual professionals looking to advance their careers, find new job opportunities, and build their network.
- Premium Business – Small business owners and sales/recruiting professionals who need additional tools for lead generation, recruiting, and company branding.
- Sales Navigator – Sales professionals who want to source promising leads, build relationships, and close more deals.
- Recruiter – Corporate recruiters, HR professionals, staffing agencies, and headhunters looking to find and engage top talent.
Conclusion
LinkedIn Premium provides a range of benefits for different professional needs. The increased search filters, network insights, communications tools, and branding features can be well worth the monthly or annual fee, depending on your goals.
For most individual professionals, Premium Career likely offers the best value and features. Sales Navigator or Recruiter are ideal for salespeople and recruiters needing specialized tools for lead and talent sourcing. Premium Business serves growing businesses and teams looking for complete branding, lead generation, and recruiting capabilities.
With four premium options to choose from, LinkedIn aims to provide premium value to professionals across many industries and roles. The paid services can significantly expand your reach and effectiveness on the world’s largest professional network.
So in summary, here is what LinkedIn Premium members get:
- Enhanced profile – with premium badges and expanded features
- Increased search ability – more filters to find the right people and info
- Network insights – see who viewed your profile and improve it
- Wider connections – reach beyond your network with InMail messages
- Job seeking tools – find the right postings and get interview tips
- Data analytics – Premium Business insights for lead generation, recruiting, etc
- Sales prospecting – Sales Navigator tools for lead recommendations and organization
- Recruiting capabilities – Recruiter platform for candidate sourcing and talent pools
The additional capabilities from LinkedIn’s premium subscriptions can take your career, business, sales, and recruiting to the next level. Leverage LinkedIn’s professional network and tools even further with a paid membership tailored to your professional needs.