Understanding LinkedIn Limits: Comprehensive Overview
When using Linked API, it's necessary to understand the limitations of your LinkedIn account to avoid potential account restrictions or blocks. While LinkedIn doesn't publish official limits, this guide combines community knowledge and our hands-on expertise.
Account limits primarily depend on two factors: subscription type (Premium, Sales Navigator, Recruiter etc.) and reputation level.
Throughout the article, we divide reputation into 3 virtual levels:
| Reputation Level | Account Characteristics |
|---|---|
| New | Recently created with minimal activity and engagement. |
| Established | Active for 3–12 months with growing engagement and network size. |
| Trusted | Long-established with a strong presence and proven activity patterns. |
While we use these division for simplicity, think of reputation as a continuous gradient rather than fixed categories. Consider Social Selling Index (SSI) as one of the indirect metrics to assess your account's reputation.
Connection request limits
Connection requests are limited on a rolling weekly basis:
| Reputation Level | Daily Limit | Weekly Limit | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| New | ~10-15 | ~50-75 | Start with 5-10/day and gradually increase. |
| Established | ~20-25 | ~100 | Standard LinkedIn weekly cap. |
| Trusted | ~30-40 | Up to 200 | Requires high acceptance rate. |
Good to know:
- Keep outgoing (pending) connection requests under 500 (700 is hard cap) by withdrawing unaccepted requests.
- Personal notes don't increase limits. Free accounts are limited to ~10 noted invites monthly, while any paid plan removes this restriction.
- Monitor acceptance rates – higher acceptance rates may increase your limits.
Direct message limits
There is no strict limitation, but high volumes trigger spam flags. Here are our recommended limits:
| Reputation Level | Daily Limit | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| New | ~50 | Monitor closely for spam flags. |
| Established | ~100 | Moderate and steady pace recommended. |
| Trusted | ~100-150 | Requires high engagement rates. |
Good to know:
- Personalize messages to maintain higher allowed volumes.
- Monitor response rates – ignored messages can lower limits.
- Consistent engagement is better than irregular bulk sending.
InMail massage limits
InMail messages allow you to reach LinkedIn members you're not connected with. Unlike direct messages, InMail limits depend on subscription type rather than account reputation:
| Subscription Type | Monthly Credits | Daily Limit |
|---|---|---|
| Free | 0 | 0 |
| Premium Business | 15 | ~15 |
| Premium Career | 5 | ~5 |
| Sales Navigator (Core, Advanced, Advanced Plus) | 50 | ~25 |
| Recruiter | 150 (can purchase more) | Up to 1000 |
| Recruiter Lite | 30 (can purchase more) | Up to 1000 |
| Recruiter Professional Services | 100 (can purchase more) | Up to 1000 |
Good to know:
- Spread your InMails across days even if you have available credits.
- Monthly credits accumulate over time on most paid plans, and you can purchase extra credits when you run out.
Open profile message limits
LinkedIn allows free messaging to users who have enabled "Open Profile" status on their accounts. These message limits scale based on account reputation:
| Reputation Level | Weekly Limit | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| New | ~100 | Start with lower volumes. |
| Established | ~150 | Maintain steady sending pace. |
| Trusted | ~200 | Monitor response rates. |
Good to know:
- While open profile messages don't consume your InMail credits, you still need any paid LinkedIn plan to use this feature.
- After reaching limits, switch to InMail for continued outreach.
Company page view limits
LinkedIn sets different limits for viewing company pages based on subscription type:
| Subscription Type | Daily Views | Weekly Views |
|---|---|---|
| Free | ~100 | ~700 |
| Premium (all plans) | ~200 | ~1400 |
| Sales Navigator (all plans), Recruiter (all plans) | ~200 / 1000 * | ~1400 / 7000* |
Good to know:
- Sales Navigator and Recruiter higher limits (1000/day) apply only when using their respective interfaces.
- While there's no direct correlation with account reputation, your actual limits may slightly increase or decrease depending on the reputation level.
Person profile view limits
LinkedIn sets different limits for viewing person profiles based on subscription type:
| Subscription Type | Daily Views | Weekly Views |
|---|---|---|
| Free | ~80 | ~560 |
| Premium (all plans) | ~150 | ~1050 |
| Sales Navigator (all plans), Recruiter (all plans) | ~150 / 1000* | ~1050 / 7000* |
Good to know:
- Sales Navigator and Recruiter higher limits (1000/day) apply only when using their respective interfaces.
- While there's no direct correlation with account reputation, your actual limits may slightly increase or decrease depending on the reputation level.
Search query limits
LinkedIn officially defines Commercial Use Limit (CUL) for search operations, regardless of whether you're searching for people, companies, or other content.
| Subscription Type | Monthly Limit | Daily Recommended | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Free | 300 | ~10 | Resets on 1st day of calendar month. |
| Premium Career | 300 | ~10 | Resets on 1st day of calendar month. |
| Premium Business | Unlimited | - | No monthly cap. |
| Sales Navigator (all plans), Recruiter (all plans) | Unlimited | - | No monthly cap. |
Good to know:
- When Commercial Use Limit (CUL) is reached, users receive a notice to wait until the next calendar month (resets on the 1st).
- Only business-oriented subscriptions (Premium Business, Sales Navigator, Recruiter) remove the Commercial Use Limit.
- Certain search types don't count towards CUL, such as viewing 1st-degree connections, job searches, or searching by specific names.
Search results limits
LinkedIn limits the number of search results displayed within one search session based on the interface used, not subscription type. Here's a comparison between LinkedIn interfaces:
| Interface | People Search | Companies Search |
|---|---|---|
| Standard LinkedIn | 1000 (100 pages × 10) | 1000 (100 pages × 10) |
| Sales Navigator | 2500 (100 pages × 25) | 1000 (40 pages × 25) |
| Recruiter | 1000 (100 pages × 10) | 1000 (100 pages × 10) |
Good to know:
- To bypass search results limit, break your search into narrower segments (e.g. by region or industry) so each query shows fewer than the limit maximum.
- Viewing search results doesn't count towards profile/company view limits. These limits only restrict how many results are displayed per search query.
Likes and comments limits
LinkedIn monitors your likes and comments, focusing on frequency and quality of interactions rather than strict numerical limits. Here are approximate daily thresholds based on account reputation:
| Reputation Level | Daily Likes | Daily Comments |
|---|---|---|
| New | ~20-30 | ~10-15 |
| Established | ~40-60 | ~20 |
| Trusted | ~100 | ~30 |
Good to know:
- Regardless of your reputation level, start with lower volumes and gradually increase interactions over time to reach your limit organically.
Post publishing limits
While LinkedIn doesn't enforce strict posting limits, excessive posting may trigger spam filters or diminish overall reach. Here are recommended daily posting frequencies:
| Reputation Level | Recommended Posts per Day |
|---|---|
| New | 1-2 |
| Established | 3-5 |
| Trusted | 5-7 |
Good to know:
- Focus on content quality over quantity: one engaging post typically generates better results than multiple average-quality posts.
Other LinkedIn limits
| Category | Limit |
|---|---|
| Total network connections | 30,000 |
| Outgoing (pending) connection requests | 700 |
| Group memberships | 100 |
| Connection request note length | 200 characters (Free), 300 (Premium) |
| Standard message length | 8,000 characters |
| InMail/Sales Navigator subject length | 200 characters |
| InMail/Sales Navigator message length | 2,000 characters |
| Daily job applications | 50 |
Enforcing limits with Linked API
Linked API allows you to configure action limits for each connected LinkedIn account directly from the platform. Limits are organized by action category (profile views, connection requests, messages, etc.) and time period (daily, weekly, monthly).
When a workflow contains an action that would exceed a configured limit, the action will return a limitExceeded error instead of executing. This helps you stay within safe boundaries automatically, without needing to track usage manually.
For more details on how errors are returned, see the documentation.
This guide reflects common LinkedIn limits based on community knowledge and hands-on experience. It should be used as a reference point rather than official guidance, as actual limits vary by account and may change over time. Experiment carefully with your own limits while monitoring account health and engagement metrics.