If you recently noticed an unexpected charge or subscription fee from LinkedIn on your credit card or bank statement, you’re probably wondering why. LinkedIn is a popular social networking site used primarily for professional networking and job searching. While having a basic LinkedIn account is free, they do offer several paid subscription options that could result in charges to your payment method on file.
LinkedIn Premium Subscriptions
The most likely reason for an unexpected LinkedIn charge is that you signed up for one of their Premium subscriptions. LinkedIn offers three tiers of paid memberships – Career, Business, and Sales – that provide additional features and benefits beyond the free account. The costs for these subscriptions range from $29.99 to $79.99 per month depending on the plan.
Some of the key features unlocked with a Premium subscription include:
- Unlimited access to full profiles and contact info for people outside your network
- InMail messages to contact anyone on LinkedIn
- Advanced profile management and analytics
- Ad-free browsing experience
- Premium business, talent and educational insights
If you signed up for a paid subscription but later forgot about it, your credit card on file would continue to be charged monthly or annually based on your plan. Check your account settings to confirm if you have an active Premium membership.
How to Cancel a LinkedIn Premium Subscription
If you wish to cancel a LinkedIn Premium subscription, follow these steps:
- Click on the “Me” icon in the top navigation bar and select “Settings & Privacy”
- Under the “Account” section, choose “Premium”
- Click on “Manage premium settings”
- Select “Cancel Premium”
- Confirm the cancellation
After canceling, your Premium membership will remain active until the end of the current billing period, at which point it will be downgraded to a free account.
LinkedIn Learning and Lynda Subscriptions
LinkedIn also offers paid access to LinkedIn Learning, which was formerly known as Lynda.com. This provides access to thousands of online video courses taught by industry experts on topics like software, creative skills, business strategy and more.
An individual membership costs $19.99 per month. Some companies also provide their employees with access to Lynda as a corporate training benefit, which would be paid for by the employer.
If you signed up for LinkedIn Learning but no longer wish to pay the monthly fee, you can cancel directly on the LinkedIn Learning website or app to stop future charges.
How to Cancel a LinkedIn Learning Subscription
To cancel LinkedIn Learning, follow these steps:
- Go to the LinkedIn Learning website and log in
- Click on your profile icon at the top right
- Click “Settings” and go to the “Account” section
- Scroll down and click “Cancel subscription”
- Confirm the cancellation
LinkedIn Job Seeker Subscriptions
LinkedIn also offers several tiers of paid subscriptions for job seekers to access premium features for finding and applying to jobs. This includes benefits like being able to filter jobs by salary, location and date posted, being able to apply with your full LinkedIn profile, and gaining access to interview preparation resources.
The job seeker paid subscriptions range from $29.99 to $59.99 per month depending on the plan. As with the Premium account subscriptions, recurring monthly or annual charges would occur until you actively cancel the paid job seeker membership.
Incorrect Billing
In some cases, you may see an unexpected, inaccurate or unrecognized charge from LinkedIn that is not related to any paid subscriptions on your account. This could occur due to:
- Incorrect billing: If LinkedIn made a billing error on their end, such as charging you twice accidentally.
- Fraudulent activity: If someone got ahold of your credit card information and used it to sign up for LinkedIn services without your authorization.
- Free trial conversion: Some Premium or job seeker subscriptions offer a free trial period that converts to a paid membership after the trial ends. You may have forgotten about the eventual charges after signing up for a trial offer.
If you see any charges that you are absolutely certain did not originate from your own subscriptions, you should contact LinkedIn customer support right away to dispute the charges. They will investigate the source of the charge and provide a refund if it was made in error.
How to Get LinkedIn Charges Refunded
If you want to request a refund on charges you incurred accidentally or unknowingly, here are the steps to take:
- Open a support ticket with LinkedIn describing the problem and requesting a refund
- For recurring subscription fees, make sure to also cancel any Premium, Learning or job seeker memberships you do not want renewed
- Provide LinkedIn support with your account information, billing details, and clarification on which charges specifically you would like refunded
- Wait for their response. LinkedIn will determine if a refund is applicable based on their policies and issue one if appropriate.
- If your refund request is denied, you can reiterate why you believe you deserve an exception or refund escalation
Here are some tips for getting Premium subscription refunds approved by LinkedIn:
- Request a refund quickly within a few weeks of the charge
- Mention if you did not actively confirm or use the paid subscription
- Be polite when communicating with support representatives
- Provide clear documentation showing the charges
- Follow up if your initial refund request is denied
How to Prevent Unexpected LinkedIn Charges
To avoid surprise LinkedIn fees in the future, here are some best practices to follow:
- Be selective when signing up for paid offerings: Only subscribe to Premium or job seeker memberships that you are sure you will frequently utilize and value.
- Note free trial terms: If redeeming a free trial, be aware of the eventual billing that will occur and set a calendar reminder to cancel before the trial is up if you do not plan to continue.
- Remove payment methods: Delete any credit card or PayPal account attached to your LinkedIn account if you want to ensure you never incur any accidental charges.
- Adjust notification preferences: Turn on billing notifications within your LinkedIn account settings to receive alerts about upcoming subscription renewals or payments.
- Monitor statements routinely: Review your credit card and bank account transactions regularly so you quickly catch any LinkedIn charges you were not expecting.
Conclusion
Unexpected LinkedIn charges are most often the result of forgotten about Premium or job seeker account subscriptions. But other possibilities include accidental double billing, payment errors, fraudulent activity, or free trial conversions. If you find any charges that seem suspicious, reach out to LinkedIn support right away to dispute them and request refunds on invalid fees. Keeping payment information up to date, adjusting account notifications, and monitoring statements routinely can help minimize the chances of being surprised by LinkedIn billing in the future.