Advanced LinkedIn search filters (2026 ultimate guide)

Are you using LinkedIn search but still not finding the right prospects?

With the right LinkedIn search filters, you can narrow millions of profiles down to the few that actually matter by role, company size, industry, and more.

In this article, I’ll go one by one over LinkedIn’s advanced search filter and explain:

1. What are LinkedIn advanced search filters?
2. How to use LinkedIn advanced search filters?
3. Best practices to refine searches in LinkedIn
4. How to Use LinkedIn Search Filters to find Leads Faster in 2026?

TL;DR Advanced LinkedIn search filters

• LinkedIn advanced search filters help you narrow millions of profiles into a short, high-intent list
• Use People filters to target roles, seniority, connections, and hiring signals
• Use Companies filters to think in accounts, not individual leads
• Jobs, Events, and Courses reveal intent—what companies and people are doing right now
• Groups and Schools add warm context for networking and outreach
• Products and Services help with competitive research and buying-ready signals
• Start broad, narrow step by step, and avoid over-filtering early
• Prioritize intent signals over demographics
• Save searches and revisit them weekly for timing advantages

What are LinkedIn advanced search filters?

LinkedIn has one of the most powerful search engines in B2B most people just don’t use it properly.

At its core, LinkedIn search filters help you narrow a massive pool of people and companies into a short, relevant list you can actually act on.

Instead of scrolling endlessly or clicking profiles one by one, filters let you tell LinkedIn exactly what you’re looking for.

You can start broad people, companies, jobs, posts, groups and then layer in more detail. Job titles. Industries. Company size. Geography. Seniority. Keywords. Each filter reduces noise and increases intent.

Think of it like this:

Basic search shows you everyone.

Advanced search filters show you the right ones.

These filters aren’t just for one use case either. Sales teams use them to find buyers who match their ICP.

Marketers use them to study audiences and competitors. Recruiters use them to source candidates without relying on inbound applications.

As you go deeper, LinkedIn introduces sub-filters that let you refine even further. This is where most people stop but this is also where results improve dramatically.

One underrated advantage? You can filter by connection degree. That means finding 2nd-degree connections people you don’t know yet, but can reach through warm introductions or smart outreach.

For networking and outbound, this is gold.

Bottom line: LinkedIn advanced search is a lead-generation and opportunity-finding machine.

But only if you know how to use it. Without understanding the filters, you’re guessing.

With them, you’re intentional and intent is what turns searches into results.

Types of LinkedIn Search filters

There are 9 main filters on LinkedIn search plus an all filter section.

• People
• Companies
• Jobs
• Groups
• Products
• Schools
• Post
• Event
• services

All filters allows you to customise your LinkedIn search results.

People Filters

The People filter is the most commonly used and most misunderstood LinkedIn search filter.

At a high level, this filter helps you find individuals, not companies or content. But the real power comes from the internal filters layered inside it.

Here’s how each one works and when to use it.

Connection degree

Filter by 1st, 2nd, or 3rd-degree connections. 2nd-degree is the sweet spot for outreach close enough for trust, far enough for growth.

Locations

This lets you narrow results by country, region, or city. Useful when selling into specific markets or building local networks. Always set this early it removes a massive amount of noise.

Current company

Filter people who currently work at specific companies. This is ideal for account-based selling or targeting competitors, partners, or customers.

Active hiring

This filter shows people working at companies that are actively hiring. Hiring activity is a strong buying signal it usually means growth, budget, and urgency. If you sell B2B, this filter is underrated.

Companies filter

The Companies filter is how you stop thinking in terms of leads and start thinking in terms of accounts.

Instead of searching for individual people, this filter helps you identify which companies are worth your time in the first place. Once you get this right, everything downstream becomes easier.

Here’s how the main company-level filters work.

Location

This lets you filter companies by country, region, or city. Useful if you sell into specific geographies or operate within compliance or timezone constraints.

Industry

LinkedIn categorizes companies by industry. This is a fast way to narrow your search to businesses that resemble your ICP. Like people industries, it’s directional not perfect but still effective.

Company size

One of the most important filters. You can segment companies by employee count (e.g., 1–10, 11–50, 51–200, 201–500, etc.). This directly correlates with budget, buying complexity, and sales cycles.

Company name

If you already have a target list, you can search for exact companies here. This is the foundation of account-based marketing and sales.

Jobs filter

The Jobs filter is built for job seekers but it’s far more useful than most people realize.

Yes, it helps you find open roles. But it also helps you understand which companies are hiring, what roles they’re prioritizing, and how urgently they’re hiring. That insight matters whether you’re applying, recruiting, or selling.

Here’s how the main job filters work.

Date posted

This filter shows how recently a job was posted. Newer listings usually mean less competition and higher response rates. If timing matters, this filter matters.

Company

Narrow roles to specific companies. Useful if you’re targeting a shortlist of employers or researching hiring patterns at accounts you care about.

Easy Apply

Shows jobs that allow applications directly on LinkedIn. Great for speed, but also a signal of high volume. These roles attract more applicants, faster.

Under 10 applicants

One of the most underrated filters. Fewer applicants usually means less competition and a higher chance of getting noticed. For sellers, it can also signal early-stage hiring.

In my network

This surfaces jobs where you have connections at the company. That means potential referrals, warm intros, or insider context before applying.

Groups filter

The Groups filter is simple but don’t mistake simple for useless.

When you search using the Groups filter, LinkedIn shows you communities built around specific interests, industries, roles, or topics. Think: founders, recruiters, marketers, SaaS operators, job seekers, niche professionals.

Groups tell you where conversations are already happening. They show you how people describe their problems, what they care about, and which topics get engagement.

For networking, Groups help you enter conversations without cold outreach. For job seekers, they surface unposted roles and referrals. For marketers and sales teams, they’re a goldmine for language, objections, and content ideas.

Another underrated benefit: group members often feel more approachable than random search results. You’re no longer a stranger you’re part of the same room.

Schools filter

The Schools filter is one of LinkedIn’s most overlooked search options.

When you search using the Schools filter, LinkedIn shows educational institutions universities, colleges, and training programs and the people associated with them. This makes it incredibly useful for alumni-based networking.

Shared education creates instant context. People are more likely to respond when there’s a common background even if they graduated years apart or studied different subjects.

For job seekers, this filter helps you find alumni who work at companies you’re targeting.

For founders and sales teams, it’s a warm way to break into organizations without relying purely on cold outreach. For recruiters, it’s an efficient way to map talent pipelines.

Schools also give you insight into where companies hire from and which institutions dominate certain roles or industries.

Products filter

The Products filter is one of LinkedIn’s newest and least used search options.

Which is exactly why it’s interesting.

Instead of searching for people or companies, this filter lets you search for products that companies actively promote on LinkedIn. Think software tools, platforms, and B2B solutions.

Here’s how the main product filters work.

Product category

This lets you browse products by category (e.g., CRM, marketing automation, analytics, HR software). It’s useful for market research and competitive analysis especially if you want to understand how a category positions itself.

Product company

Filter products by the company that owns or sells them. Helpful when you already know the brand and want to explore its product lineup.

Courses filter

The Courses filter is designed for learning but it quietly doubles as a signal of intent.

This filter pulls from LinkedIn Learning and helps you discover courses tied to specific skills, roles, or career paths. On the surface, it’s for upskilling. Underneath, it reveals what professionals are actively trying to learn.

Here’s how the main course filters work.

Level

This lets you filter courses by difficulty beginner, intermediate, or advanced. Useful for matching your current skill level or understanding how mature a topic is within a role or industry.

Time to complete

Filter courses based on duration. Short courses signal quick skill gaps. Longer courses usually indicate deeper, career-level investment.

Events filter

The Events filter is simple but highly tactical.

When you use the Events filter, LinkedIn shows live, upcoming, and past events related to your search term webinars, conferences, virtual meetups, workshops, and panels.

The real value of this filter isn’t discovery.

It’s intent.

People who attend events are raising their hand. They’re learning, exploring solutions, or evaluating trends in real time.

That makes event participation one of the strongest buying and networking signals on LinkedIn.

For sales teams, events show you which topics prospects care about right now. For marketers, they reveal messaging, speakers, and angles that resonate. For job seekers and founders, events are low-friction ways to meet people without cold outreach.

Another advantage: events cluster people with shared interests in one place. Conversations are warmer, and follow-ups feel natural.

Services filter

The Services filter is built for one thing: finding people who actively offer services on LinkedIn.

This includes freelancers, consultants, agencies, and independent operators who’ve enabled LinkedIn’s “Providing Services” feature on their profile.

Here’s how the main service filters work.

Service categories

This lets you filter by the type of service offered marketing, software development, design, consulting, recruiting, and more. It’s the fastest way to narrow results to relevant providers.

Locations

Filter service providers by geography. Useful when location, timezone, or local regulations matter or when you prefer working with nearby teams.

Connection degree (1st / 2nd / 3rd+)

This filter shows how closely connected you are to the service provider. 2nd-degree connections are often ideal: close enough for warm intros, wide enough to explore options.

Best practices to refine searches on LinkedIn

LinkedIn search works best when you stop treating it like Google and start treating it like a system.

The goal isn’t to find more results.

It’s to find better ones.

Here are three best practices that consistently improve search quality.

Start broad, then narrow intentionally

Most people over-filter too early.

They stack job titles, industries, company sizes, locations then wonder why LinkedIn shows 17 results.

Start with one or two high-signal filters first (like job title or company size). Review the results. Then add constraints one layer at a time.

This approach helps you understand which filter is actually doing the work. It also prevents you from accidentally filtering out ideal prospects because of messy LinkedIn data.

Precision comes from sequencing, not stacking.

Use intent signals, not just demographics

Demographics tell you who someone is.

Signals tell you what they’re doing right now.

Prioritize filters like:

• Active hiring
• Recent job changes
• Events attended
• Under 10 applicants (jobs)

These indicate momentum, budget movement, or openness to change.

Two people can look identical on paper but behave very differently in real life. Intent filters help you spot the difference.

Save searches and revisit them regularly

Great LinkedIn searches aren’t one-time tasks.

Save your searches and revisit them weekly. New people enter roles. Companies start hiring. Markets shift.

By reusing the same refined search, you build pattern recognition. You notice trends. You spot timing opportunities before others do.

Real-world use cases: how different roles refine LinkedIn searches

LinkedIn search filters become powerful when they’re applied with a clear goal. Below are three expanded, real-world case studies showing how founders, marketers, and sales teams use search filters differently—but effectively.

Case study 1: Founder validating a new market before building

A B2B SaaS founder is considering launching a new product feature but doesn’t want to rely on gut instinct.

They start with the Companies filter to define their ICP:

• Company size: 11–50 and 51–200
• Industry: SaaS and Technology

Next, they switch to the People filter:

• Job titles: Head of Operations, COO, Operations Manager
• Seniority: Manager+, Director+
• Active hiring: Enabled

This combination surfaces operators at growing companies—exactly the people who feel scaling pain most acutely.

The founder then studies:

• Job descriptions to see what companies are struggling with
• Posts from these leaders to identify repeated themes
• Events related to operations and scaling

Outcome:

Instead of building blindly, the founder confirms that the problem is urgent, widespread, and budget-backed. Messaging is shaped using real language pulled directly from LinkedIn—not assumptions.

Case study 2: Marketer researching audience pain points for content

A B2B marketer wants to improve LinkedIn content performance and generate inbound demand.

They begin with the Posts filter:

• Keywords: “pipeline quality,” “lead scoring,” “demand gen”

Then they layer context using the People filter:

• Function: Marketing
• Seniority: Manager, Director, VP

They also explore the Events filter to see which webinars and panels marketers are actively attending.

Instead of guessing content ideas, the marketer analyzes:

• Which posts get comments vs. likes
• The exact wording used in complaints and questions
• Topics that consistently appear in event titles

Outcome:

Content becomes sharper, more specific, and more relatable. Engagement increases, and inbound leads reference posts directly—because the content reflects real pain, not generic advice.

Case study 3: Sales rep improving outbound relevance and timing

An SDR targeting mid-market CTOs wants to increase reply rates without sending more messages.

They refine their search using:

• People filter → Job title: CTO
• Company size → 51–200
• Active hiring → Enabled
• Connection degree → 2nd-degree

This narrows the list to technical leaders at companies that are actively growing.

Before reaching out, the SDR checks:

• Hiring activity to infer urgency
• Recent job changes or posts
• Shared connections for soft personalization

Outcome:

Outreach references what’s happening now, not generic value props. Replies improve because messages feel timely, relevant, and informed.

Key takeaway:

LinkedIn search filters don’t replace thinking.

They amplify it.

When used with intent, they turn roles into insights and insights into results.

Conclusion

LinkedIn search filters are not a feature problem. They’re a usage problem.

Most people treat LinkedIn like a directory—type a title, scroll a bit, send a few messages, and hope for the best. That’s why results feel random and inconsistent.

But when you understand how LinkedIn’s advanced search filters actually work, the platform changes completely.

Filters help you move from guessing to targeting. From volume to relevance. From “spray and pray” to intentional outreach.

Whether you’re a founder validating demand, a marketer researching real pain points, or a salesperson trying to improve reply rates, the principle is the same:

context beats scale.

People, companies, jobs, products, events, and services all tell different parts of the same story. When you connect those signals—hiring activity, role changes, event attendance, learning intent—you stop chasing leads and start identifying opportunities.

The biggest mistake is trying to use every filter at once. The biggest advantage comes from sequencing them thoughtfully, revisiting saved searches, and watching how behavior changes over time.

LinkedIn is constantly updating its search experience. New filters appear. Old ones evolve. But the fundamentals stay the same: find the right audience, at the right time, with the right signal.

If you take one thing away from this guide, let it be this:

LinkedIn search isn’t about finding more people.

It’s about finding why now.

And once you see that, LinkedIn stops being a social network—and starts becoming a predictable growth engine.

FAQs about LinkedIn search filters

What are LinkedIn advanced search filters?

LinkedIn advanced search filters are tools that help you narrow search results by specific criteria like job title, company size, industry, location, seniority, hiring activity, and more. Instead of browsing profiles manually, filters let you quickly surface people, companies, and opportunities that match your exact requirements.

Are LinkedIn search filters free to use?

Yes—basic LinkedIn search filters are available on free accounts. However, paid plans like LinkedIn Premium and Sales Navigator unlock additional filters, deeper insights, and larger result limits. Even with a free plan, using filters correctly can significantly improve results.

Which LinkedIn search filter is the most important?

There’s no single “best” filter—it depends on your goal. For sales and outbound, job title, company size, and active hiring are high-signal filters. For marketing research, posts and events reveal real-time interests. For job seekers, jobs posted recently and in-network roles are often the most effective.

How do I avoid over-filtering on LinkedIn?

Start broad and apply filters gradually. Begin with one or two high-impact filters, review the results, then add more constraints only if needed. Over-filtering too early can hide ideal prospects due to incomplete or inaccurate LinkedIn profile data.

Can LinkedIn search filters help with lead generation?

Absolutely. LinkedIn search filters are one of the most effective tools for B2B lead generation. By combining role-based filters with intent signals like hiring activity, events, or recent job changes, you can identify prospects who are more likely to engage and buy.

How often should I revisit saved LinkedIn searches?

Weekly is ideal. LinkedIn data changes constantly—people switch roles, companies start hiring, and new events appear. Revisiting saved searches helps you spot timing opportunities before others do.

Are LinkedIn search results always accurate?

Not always. LinkedIn relies on self-reported profile data, which can be outdated or incomplete. That’s why it’s important to use multiple filters together and sanity-check results rather than relying on a single data point.

Who benefits most from LinkedIn search filters?

Founders, marketers, sales teams, recruiters, job seekers, and consultants all benefit—but only if they use filters with intent. The more clearly you define your goal, the more powerful LinkedIn search becomes.