LinkedIn is the world’s largest professional networking platform with over 722 million users as of April 2021. Founded in 2002, LinkedIn connects professionals around the world to expand their networks, access job opportunities, stay updated on industry news, and enhance their careers. With a mission to create economic opportunity for every member, LinkedIn has become an invaluable resource for professionals and organizations globally.
However, LinkedIn does have its competitors. While no other professional networking platform comes close to LinkedIn’s user base size, there are alternatives out there aiming to disrupt the space and offer differentiated value propositions. Understanding LinkedIn’s major competitors provides insight into the professional networking landscape and how other players are evolving to meet the needs of modern professionals.
Key LinkedIn Competitors
Here are some of the major competitors to LinkedIn:
Founded in 2003, Xing is a European professional networking platform based in Hamburg, Germany. With over 18 million members, Xing has a strong presence in German-speaking countries as well as other European markets. The platform offers job listings, profile building tools, corporate networking options, and recruitment services. Xing is LinkedIn’s biggest competitor in Europe.
Viadeo
Viadeo was founded in 2004 in Paris, France and also competes with LinkedIn in Europe. The platform has around 10 million members, predominantly in France, the UK, Spain, Italy, India, Canada, Mexico, and China. Viadeo focuses on helping members build meaningful connections and presents opportunities tailored to international markets.
While not a dedicated professional networking platform, Facebook has many of the same features and continues evolving its profile building and networking tools for career and business purposes. Facebook rolled out a new professional profile in 2019 to help members represent their professional identities, list work experience, showcase skills, find jobs and connect with employers. With over 2.5 billion monthly active users, Facebook’s massive reach dwarfs LinkedIn’s membership base.
Google Hire
Part of the G Suite family, Google Hire is the tech giant’s applicant tracking and hiring platform. Launched in 2017, Google Hire helps employers post job openings, accept applications, screen candidates, schedule interviews, and make hiring decisions all in one tool. While not a direct LinkedIn competitor, Google Hire does overlap with LinkedIn’s talent solutions products for recruiters.
Dribbble
Dribbble is a community of designers and creative professionals with over 5 million members. Founded in 2009, it is the leading platform for designers from around the world to share work, get feedback, build their portfolios, land clients, and find job opportunities. Dribbble competes with LinkedIn as an influential networking and personal branding platform within the creative industry.
Comparing Key Features
Here is an overview comparing some of the key features across LinkedIn and its major competitors:
| Platform | User Profiles | Job Listings | Networking Tools | Recruiting & Hiring Tools |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Robust profile building with position history, skills, education, projects, recommendations. | Millions of job postings searchable by industry, location, company. | Groups, direct messaging, content feeds, influencer content. | Recruiter accounts, integrated hiring and applicant tracking system. | |
| Detailed member profiles with employment history, education, skills, accomplishments. | European-focused job board. | Interest-based groups, company profiles, messaging. | Premium recruiter accounts, recruiting tools and services. | |
| Viadeo | Profile building with positions, skills, education, recommendations. | Mostly French/European jobs. | Groups, messaging, news. | Recruiting services for employers. |
| Professional profiles with work history, education, skills, recommendations. | Allows employers to post jobs. | Large global network, groups, company pages, messaging. | Job ads, applicant tracking, talent partnerships. | |
| Google Hire | No member profiles or networking. | Integrated with G Suite, employer driven. | None, purely an applicant tracking system. | Job posting, applicant screening and tracking, interview scheduling, offers. |
| Dribbble | Designer profiles with work samples and skills. | Some job listings focused on design roles. | Community, skills assessments, mentorship. | Minimal – more focused on portfolio building. |
LinkedIn’s Competitive Advantages
Despite competition from major platforms, LinkedIn still maintains some key advantages:
Largest Professional Network
With over 722 million members, LinkedIn has unmatched reach and ubiquity as the world’s largest professional networking platform. The extensive size of its member base gives LinkedIn a competitive edge.
Trusted Brand Identity
LinkedIn has established itself as the go-to professional networking solution. It is a mature platform with strong brand recognition and loyalty.
Robust Profile Building Tools
LinkedIn offers best-in-class profile building features to highlight skills, experience, education, accomplishments and recommendations.
Targeted Recruiting and Job Search
Advanced targeting, filtering and AI gives LinkedIn an advantage in connecting the right members to the right opportunities.
Valuable Insights and News
Members look to LinkedIn not just for connections but also for business intelligence, industry trends and career advice.
Key Takeaways
Here are some key points to summarize LinkedIn’s competitive landscape:
- Xing and Viadeo are LinkedIn’s main competitors in Europe.
- Facebook is making a big push into professional networking.
- Google Hire competes with LinkedIn’s talent solutions products.
- Dribbble is the professional network for creative careers.
- LinkedIn still maintains advantages in size, brand, profiles and targeting.
- Competition forces LinkedIn to innovate and provide more value.
The Future of the Professional Networking Industry
Looking ahead, here are some predictions for the future of the professional networking space:
Continued International Expansion
All major platforms will look to grow their global user bases, especially in high growth markets like India, China, Southeast Asia, South America and Africa.
Integration with Job Sites
Expect deeper integration and partnerships between networking platforms and traditional job boards like Monster, CareerBuilder and Indeed.
Video-Based Networking
Platforms will provide more options for video introductions, interviews and messaging as personalized video becomes more in-demand.
Virtual Reality Applications
Imagine VR spaces where users can network, share experiences and learn together in immersive environments.
Artificial Intelligence Matching
Smarter AI could help platforms provide hyper-targeted recommendations and invaluable matchmaking capabilities.
Mobile-First Experience
Mobile will become the dominant platform for professional networking on-the-go as users increasingly connect via smartphones.
The Rise of Independent Professionals
More skilled workers are opting for freelance and contract roles outside of traditional employment, driving demand for networking tools to find work.
Conclusion
In summary, LinkedIn is the undisputed leader in professional networking today but faces increasing competition from both established and emerging alternatives. To maintain its dominance, LinkedIn must continue innovating features and enhancing value for users while fending off threats from hungry challengers. The company that best evolves to meet the needs of tomorrow’s professionals will come out on top. But in the growing global market for online professional connections and opportunities, there is plenty of room for multiple thriving platforms to each carve out a valuable niche.
