A LinkedIn Open Profile is a Premium feature that lets any LinkedIn member message you for free, even if you are not connected and without the sender spending an InMail credit. That cuts both ways. As a sender, you can reach Premium members with an Open Profile without touching your credits. As a Premium member, one toggle on your profile decides whether strangers can write to you.
This guide covers what LinkedIn itself says about Open Profiles, how to enable the setting, who should switch it on, and how to message Open Profiles with purpose, including four templates. Last updated: 28 September 2026.
What is a LinkedIn Open Profile?
LinkedIn puts it this way: “The Open Profile Premium feature allows anyone on LinkedIn to contact a Premium member for free, even if they're not in the sender's network.” And: “In order to be an Open Profile, you must have a Premium subscription.” Source: LinkedIn Help: Open Profile and messages, retrieved 28 September 2026.
Three things follow from that:
- Only Premium members can have an Open Profile. A free account cannot turn the setting on.
- Anyone can send, free accounts included. There is a cap, though: “Members with basic or free accounts can only send a limited number of open profile messages each month.” LinkedIn does not publish the number. Source: LinkedIn Help: Manage your Open Profile settings as a Premium subscriber, retrieved 28 September 2026.
- No credits needed. The feature lets members message you “for free, without using InMail messages” (same source). LinkedIn calls these Open Profile messages. In the mobile app the button is labelled InMail, which is why most people just say “free InMail”.
There is a visibility side too: “All LinkedIn members can see the full profiles of Premium members who have enabled Open Profile.” (Open Profile and messages).
Why InMail credits run out so fast
A regular InMail costs a credit, and LinkedIn hands out few of them. According to the InMail FAQ, you get per month:
Subscription | InMail credits according to LinkedIn |
|---|---|
Premium Career | 5 per month |
Premium Business | 15 per month |
Sales Navigator Core | 50 per month |
LinkedIn Hiring Pro | 5 per job |
Premium All-in-One | 30 per month, up to 90 total |
Credits expire after 90 days, and you only get one back when the recipient accepts your InMail. An InMail can have up to 200 characters in the optional subject line and up to 2,000 in the body. Source: LinkedIn Help: InMail messages FAQ, retrieved 28 September 2026.
Fifteen credits a month will not build a pipeline. Open Profiles are the part of your target audience you can reach directly at no credit cost. Save your paid InMails for the people who do not have one.
Three ways to message someone on LinkedIn
Route | Who can send | Cost | Requirement on the recipient's side |
|---|---|---|---|
Message to a 1st-degree connection | Any member | free | You are connected |
InMail with credits | Premium members only | 1 credit, returned if accepted | Has not opted out of InMail in their settings |
Open Profile message | Any member; free accounts limited per month | no credit | Premium member with Open Profile enabled |
Sources: LinkedIn Help: InMail messages plus the pages cited above, retrieved 28 September 2026.
How to tell whether someone has an Open Profile
LinkedIn describes the sending process like this: go to the Premium member's profile, click Message in their introduction section (on mobile, tap InMail), type your message and send it. LinkedIn also notes that it limits the number of Open Profile messages you can send in a given time period. Source: LinkedIn Help: Send an Open Profile message on LinkedIn, retrieved 28 September 2026.
LinkedIn Help does not describe a separate Open Profile marker. A Premium badge alone tells you nothing either, because showing Premium and accepting Open Profile messages are controlled separately. For a handful of profiles, you try the button by hand. For a whole target audience you do not check profile by profile; CompLeadly does that while sending (see below).
How to enable Open Profile on LinkedIn
You need a Premium subscription. LinkedIn also says you need to turn on your Premium profile visibility first. The setting sits in the dropdown next to your gold Premium badge.
On desktop
- Click the Me icon at the top of your LinkedIn homepage.
- Click View Profile.
- Click the Edit icon in the introduction section.
- In the Edit intro window, click the dropdown icon next to the gold Premium badge.
- Switch the toggle under Open Profile to the right.
- Click Save.
In the mobile app
- Tap your profile picture, then tap your profile photo again.
- Tap the Edit icon in your introduction section.
- Tap the dropdown icon next to the gold Premium badge.
- Switch the toggle under Open Profile to the right and tap Save.
To turn it off, switch the toggle to the left. LinkedIn adds: “You can still show your Premium membership without accepting Open Profile messages.” Source: LinkedIn Help: Manage your Open Profile settings, retrieved 28 September 2026.
Should you turn on Open Profile?
If you pay for Premium and your business depends on people reaching out to you: yes. The only cost is a busier inbox. Specifically:
- Sales and founders: Prospects who find your profile can write to you straight away instead of waiting for a connection.
- Consultants and freelancers: Enquiries arrive without a detour, and your full profile is visible to everyone.
- Recruiters: Candidates who want to reach out about a role can do so without Premium of their own.
- Job seekers on Premium Career: Recruiters and hiring managers can message you without spending a credit on you. That lowers the bar for contacting you.
Turn it off if your inbox is already full and you no longer read messages from people you do not know. An open door with nobody answering helps no one.
Finding Open Profiles
Sales Navigator's filter definitions do not list an “Open Profile only” filter (Sales Navigator Help: Lead and account filter definitions, retrieved 28 September 2026). So you build a relevant target audience as usual, through People search or Sales Navigator, and filter out the Open Profiles at the sending stage.
How to shape your audience so it contains as many Open Profiles as possible, and what to do when too many profiles come back without one, is covered step by step in our CompLeadly knowledge base.
Open Profile InMail templates
An Open Profile message lands with someone who does not know you. It needs a subject line that says what it is about, a reason you are writing to this particular person, and a question they can answer in one sentence. Names are examples.
Sales
Subject: Quick question about your sales team in the Nordics
Hi Erik, I saw you recently posted two field sales roles for the Nordics. We help sales teams at that stage get to their first meetings faster. Would a short exchange on that be useful, or have you already got it covered?
Recruiting: to a candidate
Subject: Data Engineering Team Lead, Hamburg
Hi Laura, your profile is a strong match for a role I am filling: Data Engineering Team Lead, Hamburg, hybrid, team of six. May I send you the key details? If the timing is wrong, a quick no is completely fine.
Job seeker to a recruiter
Subject: Your Product Owner opening, one question first
Hi Priya, I saw your Product Owner posting and bring five years of B2B SaaS experience. Before I apply: does the role lean more towards discovery or delivery?
Networking
Subject: Your post on usage-based pricing
Hi Daniel, your post about moving to usage-based pricing showed me a flaw in our own model. May I ask how long the switch took on your side?
For more message ideas aimed at candidates, see our LinkedIn recruiting message templates.
How CompLeadly helps
CompLeadly is a desktop app for Windows and macOS that runs locally on your computer through your own IP. It has a dedicated InMail feature for Open Profiles:
- Send InMails to Open Profiles only: With this setting, CompLeadly only messages the Premium members in your audience who accept free InMails. Your credits stay untouched. You can also check your remaining InMail credit and decide separately when to spend it.
- Skip Open Profiles when connecting: If you also run connection requests on the same audience, CompLeadly can leave Open Profiles out, so they stay available for a free InMail and your invitations go to the people you cannot reach any other way.
- InMail reply collector: Replied, declined and unanswered InMails are sorted into separate target audiences. The unanswered ones are ready for a follow-up.
- Pace: You set a daily limit for every feature. With warm-up (Premium), daily volumes on new accounts rise step by step. Our knowledge base explains why you raise your InMail volume slowly and how to build up your Open Profile InMails step by step.
- Placeholders: First name, company and other details go into your messages via placeholders. Replies land in one inbox, the Smart Chat.
You build the target audience from a LinkedIn People search, a Sales Navigator search or, with Recruiter access, from Recruiter searches. The setup guide is in the knowledge base.
After the 10-day trial with every feature, you can keep using CompLeadly for free with the basic features and daily limits, for example 2 connection requests, 1 opener and 1 follow-up per day, each step started individually; full workflows start with Basic. InMails are capped at 5 per day on the free plan. All plans are on the pricing page.
Open Profiles for recruiting and job hunting
In recruiting the maths is the same as in sales: credits are scarce, Open Profiles cost none. Build your audience in CompLeadly from a People, Sales Navigator or Recruiter search, and InMails go out to candidates with an Open Profile at no credit cost. The rest you connect with, followed by an opener and follow-ups. Anyone who does not answer the InMail ends up, via the reply collector, in a separate audience for your follow-up. More on the recruiters page.
As a job seeker you use Open Profiles in both directions. If you have Premium, switch Open Profile on so recruiters can message you without spending a credit. And you write to recruiters, hiring managers or people at your target employer who have an Open Profile: in CompLeadly you create an audience from a People search and send a short InMail like the template above. On the free plan that is up to 5 InMails a day. More tips in 10 common LinkedIn mistakes when job hunting and our guide to Open to Work.
FAQ
What does a message to an Open Profile cost?
Nothing. According to LinkedIn it does not use an InMail credit. With a free account, though, you can only send a limited number of Open Profile messages per month.
Do I need Premium to have an Open Profile?
Yes. An Open Profile requires a Premium subscription. Any member can message an Open Profile, however.
How do I enable Open Profile on LinkedIn?
On your own profile, click Edit in the introduction section, open the dropdown next to the gold Premium badge, switch the toggle under Open Profile to the right and save.
Can I show Premium without enabling Open Profile?
Yes. LinkedIn controls the Premium badge and Open Profile messages separately.
How do I find Open Profiles in my target audience?
Sales Navigator does not list a dedicated filter. Build your audience as usual and let CompLeadly message the right profiles with the “Open Profiles only” setting.
How many Open Profile InMails can I send per day?
LinkedIn does not publish a fixed number and limits the volume per time period. In CompLeadly you set a daily limit and raise it gradually; the free plan allows up to 5 InMails a day.
