How much does LinkedIn cost to use? – A detailed overview with all the facts
Spoiler:Read to the end, because you’ll get Sales Navigator free for a full 2 months, then permanently at half price. And this package is the most powerful tool LinkedIn offers for sales and new customer acquisition.
If you're wondering “How much does LinkedIn Premium cost?” or “Which LinkedIn Premium price is right for me?”, you'll find a detailed overview of the current plans, what they offer, and what you should keep in mind when using them. This is based on the German market.
1. Free basic version vs. Premium
First: You can generally use LinkedIn for free. With a free account, you can create your profile, make connections, and publish posts.
But: If you want to specifically build networks, generate leads, or position yourself in your field, the free account quickly reaches its limits, for example:
- You can send no longer see who has visited your profile without limits.
- Search functions are limited (e.g. number of results, filters) for people you are not connected with.
- Messages to people you are not connected with (“InMail”) are limited or not possible at all.
Conclusion: If your goal is simply to “be present”, the free account may be enough. But if you actively pursue new customer acquisition, recruitment or sales via LinkedIn then an upgrade often makes sense.
2. LinkedIn Premium price 2026 – an overview of all plans
LinkedIn offers different Premium plans aimed at different target audiences. Depending on whether you want to win new customers, develop professionally, or find employees, LinkedIn Premium costs vary significantly. Here is a detailed description of the most important plans (as of 2026):
LinkedIn Premium Career
This plan is aimed at people starting their careers, employees, and job seekers who want to be found more quickly.
The price is around 20 to 30 euros per month, if you pay annually. Monthly billing is slightly more expensive.
You get access to LinkedIn Learning, can see who has visited your profile, receive 5 InMails per month and gain additional insights into how you compare with other applicants.
Linkedn Premium Carrer
LinkedIn Premium Business
This plan is for self-employed professionals, business owners, and consultants who want to actively use LinkedIn for networking and outreach.
The cost is around 50 to 60 euros per month (depending on the payment method).
It includes all features from the Career plan, plus 15 InMails per month, an unlimited search for people and companies, as well as Business Insights, which you can use to access company data and industry information.
LinkedIn Premium Business
LinkedIn Sales Navigator Core
Ideal for salespeople, agency owners, or founders who use LinkedIn for lead generation and sales.
The price is around 80 to 100 euros per month field.
You receive 50 InMails per month, can search for target customers using advanced search filters, save leads, receive notifications about your contacts' activity, and get automatic lead suggestions based on your previous searches.
LinkedIn Sales Navigator Core
LinkedIn Sales Navigator Advanced
This plan is intended for sales teams that generate leads together and manage their results as a team.
It costs between 110 and 150 euros per month field.
You get all the features of the Core plan plus TeamLink, which lets you see which contacts give your team access to new customers, as well as Smart Links for personalised presentations and detailed reports on your sales activities.
LinkedIn Sales Navigator Advanced
LinkedIn Recruiter Lite
This plan is aimed at HR managers or small recruiting teams.
The price is around 120 to 140 euros per month field.
You can send 30 InMails per month, use advanced search filters, save and manage candidates, receive alerts when profiles change, and see who has viewed your profile.
LinkedIn Recruiter (Corporate)
This is the Enterprise version for larger HR departments and headhunters.
The price starts at around 800 to 900 euros per month per user field.
You receive 150 InMails per month, can work with multiple users at the same time, share candidate lists within the team, automatically send messages to multiple people, and have ATS integrations, allowing you to connect LinkedIn directly to your applicant tracking system.
LinkedIn LinkedIn Learning
This plan is aimed at professionals, students, or teams who want to develop their skills.
It costs between 20 and 40 euros per month field.
You get access to more than 21,000 online courses, receive certificates for completed courses, which you can display on your profile, and can complete entire learning paths on specific topics.
In summary:
- The cheapest entry point is around 15 euros per month (Premium Career).
- For business owners who use LinkedIn strategically for networking or sales, costs between 30 and 100 euros per month are realistic.
- For specialised sales or recruiting teams, costs can reach 900 euros per month per user.
The choice therefore depends heavily on whether you use LinkedIn for your career, your sales or your recruiting – and how intensively you use the additional features.
3. What exactly do you get for your money?
To help you assess whether the relevant LinkedIn Premium price is worth it, here is an overview of the key features – and how they differ depending on the plan.
LinkedIn Premium Career
- Access to courses via LinkedIn Learning – you can develop your skills in a targeted way.
- See who has visited your profile (e.g. the last 90 or 365 days, depending on the source).
- InMail messages (e.g. 5/month) to people you are not yet connected with.
- Insights into application status and comparisons with other applicants (primarily relevant for job searching).
LinkedIn Premium Business
- All Career features, plus expanded access to business insights: for example, analysis of companies, competitors, and trends.
- More InMail credits (e.g. 15/month).
- More unlimited searches for people and company profiles (fewer restrictions on search queries).
LinkedIn Sales Navigator Core
- Focus on lead generation: complex search filters (industry, position, company size, etc.).
- Automatic lead recommendations, alerts when target contacts change (company, role), etc.
- Far more InMails (e.g. 50/month) compared with the basic Premium version.
Sales Navigator
LinkedIn Recruiter Lite
- Special plan for HR/recruiting: search filters specifically for candidates, identifying and approaching talent.
- More InMails, candidate insights, talent recommendations, etc.
LinkedIn Recruiter Lite
4. When is each package worth it?
To help you decide specifically which LinkedIn Premium price makes sense for you, use your objective as a guide:
- If you mainly want to be present, post occasionally, and make connections: The free account may be sufficient.
- If you are actively applying for jobs or want to accelerate your career, Premium Career is a good choice. It gives you more visibility and tools that go beyond the free account.
- If you are self-employed or a business owner and want to use LinkedIn specifically to win customers or partnerships, Premium Business offers an entry point with useful features at a moderate price.
- If you systematically manage sales through LinkedIn (e.g. new customer acquisition, Social Selling), Sales Navigator Core is the more sensible next step – both the price and features increase significantly here.
- If you work in recruiting, are looking for and approaching candidates: Recruiter Lite or an even higher-tier recruiting plan is appropriate.
Important: The price alone (LinkedIn Premium costs) does not guarantee success. What matters is how actively and purposefully you use the features.
5. What should you consider before buying?
To avoid falling into a trap and paying unnecessary costs:
- Pay attention to the billing method: Annual payment is often significantly cheaper than monthly payment.
- Use the trial version: Many plans can be tested for free (e.g. for 30 days). This lets you check whether the added value is there for you.
- Check the cancellation terms: So that you are not automatically tied into another year if you do not want to continue.
- Do not only measure the costs (“LinkedIn Premium price”) – measure the value: How many new contacts, leads, or applications do you gain?
- Make sure you use the Premium features: If, for example, you receive 15 InMails per month, but do not use them, you are paying for features that remain unused.
- Compare alternatives: Sometimes another platform or approach may be more affordable if your goal is different.
6. Specifically for you – with a focus on new customer acquisition and LinkedIn
Because you work with your offering (e.g. LinkedIn outreach automation, contact generation tools), the following points are important:
- If you use LinkedIn for new customer acquisition (meaning you specifically identify and contact leads and work with analysis), then you need more than just a profile, you need tools for systematic use – and a Premium plan can be a sensible foundation.
- A basic plan (e.g. Premium Career) may then be enough no longer, if you generate leads through LinkedIn on a large scale. In this case, a higher-tier plan or additional tools (e.g. automation) are better suited to the task.
- Even if your goal no longer is primarily job searching, Premium Business or Sales Navigator can make sense – because they give you advanced search and contact options that are useful when building new customer relationships.
- Even if the LinkedIn Premium price initially seems higher (e.g. around €90/month for Sales Navigator), consider the value it creates: for example, how many meetings do you generate? How many contacts are qualified? If this results in, for example, one customer, the investment is justified.
7. Conclusion – What speaks for it and what do you need to consider
- The LinkedIn Premium costs start at around €15 per month (with annual payment) and increase to >€100/month (e.g. for recruiting/sales), depending on the plan.
- It is not a question of “whether”, but of “which plan” – based on your objective. The price alone says little – the value you get matters.
- Use the trial period, review your usage, and set clear goals: for example, “I want to generate x contacts per month”, “I want to win y leads through LinkedIn”.
- If you want to actively use LinkedIn for new customer acquisition, then a higher-tier plan (Business or Sales) and a well-thought-out strategy may make sense – not just an upgrade “because Premium sounds better”.
- If you are still getting started and only use LinkedIn occasionally, the free account may also be sufficient – and you can upgrade later when it makes strategic sense.
8. Get Sales Navigator at a lower price
Register with CompLeadly now. To do so, click “Start free trial” in the top right.
Only as a CompLeadly customer do you get access to a 2-month free Sales Navigator trial (if you have not had a Premium membership in the last 12 months).
And only as a CompLeadly customer do you get access to a 50% discount on Sales Navigator.
