LinkedIn Premium is often the first thing you see when you log in – an upgrade prompt that’s hard to miss. But, is it useful? With several plans, a mix of networking and analytics tools, and monthly costs that add up fast, it’s easy to wonder if you’ll see a real return.
Below, we’ll break down exactly what each LinkedIn Premium plan offers, who actually benefits, and when it makes sense to stick with the free version. By the end, you’ll know if LinkedIn Premium deserves a place in your workflow, or if you’re better off investing elsewhere.
What is LinkedIn Premium?
LinkedIn Premium is a paid upgrade that sits on top of a free LinkedIn account. The following Premium plans are available as of August 2025:
#1 Premium Career
Starts at: $29.99 per month; 5 InMail credits that can roll for up to three months
Built for: Job seekers, recent graduates, and professionals who want deeper job‑search data and more visibility.
#2 Premium Business
Starts at: $59.99 per month; 15 InMail credits with the same rollover window.
Built for: Entrepreneurs and sales‑minded professionals who need wider network access, firmographic research, and better outreach tools.
#3 Premium Company Page
Starts at: $69.99 per month; no personal InMail credits because messaging happens through the page
Built for: Small and mid‑sized businesses that want faster follower growth, stronger branding, and clearer page‑level insights.
There are also two non-Premium (but paid) versions of LinkedIn:
- LinkedIn Sales Navigator (we talk about it in more detail in another article)
- LinkedIn Recruiter Lite (which we won't talk about today)
Core features offered in all Premium plans
- InMail credits: Message people outside your network: five per month with Career, fifteen with Business. Unused credits roll over for up to three months.
- Full profile viewer list: See everyone who’s viewed your profile, plus weekly trends. Career shows 90 days; Business keeps a full year.
- Advanced search filters: Unlock unlimited profile browsing and deeper search options, especially useful for prospecting and research.
- LinkedIn Learning access: Every plan includes unlimited courses, progress tracking, and certificates you can share.
- Salary insights: See estimated pay ranges and where you rank against other applicants, right on job posts.
- AI career tools: Get personalized job suggestions and draft tailored applications using LinkedIn’s built-in AI coach.
Premium Business: what you get that Career doesn’t offer
- 15 monthly InMail credits: Reach more prospects, with a higher cap for unused credits.
- Unlimited profile searches: No daily limits, ideal for outbound sales or market research.
- Company insights dashboards: See growth trends, recent hires, and funding activity for any company you’re targeting.
- AI-powered outreach tools: Get writing assistance for InMail and connection requests to save time and boost response rates.
Premium Company Page: features for brands and teams
- Gold badge for your page: Stand out in search results and add instant credibility to your business profile.
- Deeper visitor analytics: Track who’s visiting your page, compare against competitors, and view detailed demographic data.
- Custom call-to-action buttons: Guide visitors toward key actions and auto-invite recent post engagers to follow your page.
- Testimonial carousel and AI post ideas: Highlight customer feedback and get AI-powered suggestions to keep your content calendar full.
LinkedIn Premium vs. Free: what’s the real upgrade?
Thinking about upgrading? Here’s exactly what you gain, and what’s just window dressing.
Profile Insights
With a free LinkedIn account, you can only see the last five people who viewed your profile – with no trend data, and no way to track interest over time. Premium gives you access to every profile viewer (up to 90 days for Career, a full year for Business) and offers trend charts that show how your visibility changes week to week.
If you’re doing active outreach, messaging new prospects, or applying for jobs, it can be genuinely useful to see which contacts are checking you out after you connect or send an InMail. It’s a handy way to spot warm leads or follow up when someone’s shown interest.
Our verdict:
Profile insights are helpful if you’re prospecting at scale, hiring, or tracking the impact of a visibility campaign. But for most users, it’s more of a curiosity than a critical tool. Unless you’re actively using this data to shape your outreach or content strategy, it’s unlikely to justify the Premium price on its own.
There’s one workaround you might want to test out, though. Activate LinkedIn’s free 30-day Premium trial during your busiest periods – like a job search, a major outreach campaign, or any time you’re ramping up activity. You’ll get the full benefit of advanced insights when it matters most, but without the ongoing monthly cost.
Outreach
Free users can only message their existing connections and add a short note when requesting to connect, but you’re limited on how often you can do this.
Premium loosens those restrictions, giving you 5 (Career) or 15 (Business) InMail credits per month, so you can contact anyone directly… even if you’re not connected.
InMail isn’t a magic bullet, though. Just because you can message someone doesn’t mean they’ll reply. Most decision-makers get flooded with cold outreach, and many ignore unsolicited messages entirely. If you want to build genuine relationships or spark a real conversation, warm introductions or thoughtful engagement on posts are far more effective than relying on InMail alone.
Our verdict:
Unless your strategy relies on constant outbound prospecting or you’re in a field where cold outreach genuinely works, Premium’s outreach tools are nice to have, but rarely game-changing. For most small businesses, investing in personal connections (and tracking those touchpoints in your CRM) is a smarter, more sustainable way to grow your network.
Search and browsing
On a free LinkedIn account, your search options are limited. You get basic filters (location or industry), and after a relatively small number of profile views, you’ll hit LinkedIn’s “commercial use limit.” Once that happens, you’re locked out of additional profile browsing until the following month.
Premium lifts these restrictions. You gain access to advanced filters (such as company size, years of experience, and more) and can view as many profiles as you need, with no daily cap. For anyone in sales, recruiting, or competitive research – especially if you’re running targeted outreach or building prospect lists – these expanded search tools can save hours and help you work much more efficiently.
Our verdict:
If your LinkedIn use is mostly casual – occasional lookups, a bit of networking, or staying in touch with your field – you’ll probably never run into the search cap. But if you’re prospecting daily or rely on LinkedIn as a core part of your workflow, Premium’s unlimited browsing and deeper search filters quickly become essential.
Learning
With a free LinkedIn account, you can access LinkedIn Learning – but you’ll need to pay for each course individually. Premium unlocks unlimited access to the entire library, including thousands of courses on business, tech, management, and more. You can track your progress, earn certificates, and tap into new content as it’s released.
For people who are intentional about upskilling or want structured learning paths, this is a genuine perk. It’s especially useful if you’re focused on career growth, making a role change, or developing your team.
Our verdict:
Unlimited LinkedIn Learning is only as valuable as the time you put into it. If you know you’ll carve out time for regular learning and have specific skills in mind, Premium can be a smart investment. But if you’re already subscribed to other training platforms – or you’re unlikely to actually finish a course – it’s easy to forget this feature even exists.
Company insights
LinkedIn’s Business plan adds dashboards for tracking company growth, recent hires, and funding events – ideal if you’re selling B2B, recruiting, or running targeted account research. You get quicker access to decision-maker info and can spot market shifts without scouring multiple sources.
The Premium Company Page brings extra brand-building tools: a gold badge for credibility, advanced visitor analytics, custom call-to-action buttons, and AI post suggestions. If lead generation is your bread and butter, these features can help sharpen your content and attract more of the right followers.
Our verdict:
These tools are genuinely useful if LinkedIn is a core sales or marketing channel for your business, or if you’re managing outreach at scale. But if you’re a small team with a quiet page, or you’re not doing high-frequency prospecting, it’s probably more firepower than you need.
Other perks
Not everything in LinkedIn Premium is headline news, but there are a handful of subtle upgrades that can make your experience a touch more polished.
- Rotating profile banners: Premium Business users can swap out that static background photo for up to five rotating images. It’s a mini-carousel on your profile – great for showcasing different projects or just adding a bit of personality.
- Premium badge: That subtle gold “IN” icon next to your name tells visitors you’re a Premium user. It’s minor, but if you’re in a credibility-driven field, it might nudge a few extra profile views your way.
- Open Profile: With Premium, anyone on LinkedIn (not just your connections) can message you for free. If you’re in a networking-heavy role or want to appear more accessible, this is an underrated little door-opener.
- Applicant insights (Career): Premium Career members get to see how they stack up against other applicants for jobs – skills, experience, education – plus access to extra salary info on many job listings.
- Interview prep: Some Premium tiers unlock sample interview questions and tips for many job postings – handy if you’re brushing up or jumping into a new industry.
- Who’s hiring now: Extra job market insights, especially for Career and Business plans, can help you spot hiring surges, layoffs, or trending employers.
Our verdict:
These extras rarely tip the scale on their own, but they do add up to a slightly richer experience – especially if you like your profile looking fresh or want every bit of edge in your job hunt. For most business users, they’re nice-to-haves rather than must-haves. But if you’re the kind of person who enjoys tinkering with every profile setting, you’ll appreciate having a few more toys to play with.
How to know if LinkedIn Premium is worth it (and which version to purchase)
If you’re still unsure whether LinkedIn Premium is a worthwhile investment, here’s how to tell if a specific plan fits your needs:
LinkedIn Premium Career is worth it if:
- You apply to many jobs at once and need applicant insights to see how you rank, so you can focus on roles where you have a higher chance of success.
- You want direct outreach to recruiters, with five monthly InMail credits for messaging hiring managers.
- You appreciate AI help for resumes and cover letters, saving time and improving your applications.
- You track profile interest closely and value having a complete viewer list and weekly trend charts for a full year.
- You plan to reskill or upskill quickly, using unlimited access to the LinkedIn Learning library.
LinkedIn Premium Business is worth it if:
- You prospect beyond your immediate network every day; unlimited profile browsing removes search limits, and advanced filters help you find the right leads fast.
- You rely on InMail to start sales conversations, with fifteen monthly credits letting you pitch or nurture new contacts without waiting for a connection request.
- You need company growth and hiring insights for account research, with dashboards showing headcount trends, funding news, and leadership changes.
- You value AI-drafted messages that save time and keep outreach consistent across your team.
- You pair learning with prospect data, as LinkedIn Learning courses and firmographic analytics sit under one subscription to support continuous improvement.
If you use LinkedIn for prospecting but prefer to keep your workflow centered around your CRM, you may get more value from tools like Capsule combined with regular LinkedIn use, unless you ’re doing heavy outbound.
LinkedIn Premium Company Page is worth it if:
- You manage a company page and need deeper visitor analytics, including demographic breakdowns and competitor benchmarks, to refine your content strategy.
- You want to grow followers faster with automatic invites, converting people who engage with your posts into followers in one click.
- You want a LinkedIn Premium badge that stands out in search, boosting your credibility and helping prospects trust your brand at a glance.
- You publish often and appreciate AI post suggestions, using them to keep your content calendar full without writer fatigue.
- You need custom call-to-action buttons and testimonial carousels to turn your page into a stronger lead generation asset.
Wrapping up
LinkedIn Premium isn’t a silver bullet – but it does unlock a few shortcuts if you’re actively prospecting, hiring, or looking to grow your reach fast. For most small businesses, the free version covers the essentials. Premium Career can be a smart move if you’re deep in a job search. Premium Business is most useful for teams running steady outbound or research-heavy sales.
But for ongoing relationship-building, lead management, and tracking your growth, investing in a CRM like Capsule typically delivers more lasting value – especially when paired with LinkedIn’s free tools.
Want to see the difference? Try Capsule’s for yourself – free.
