Sales Navigator is the better buy for B2B prospecting: Core costs $119.99 a month and adds 50+ lead and account filters, saved lead lists, alerts and 50 InMail credits on top of everything in Premium Business. Premium Business, at $69.99 a month with 15 InMails, is the better buy if you mostly network, post and send the odd message to a prospect.
I compared both on LinkedIn's own plan pages and help articles, read on November 5, 2026, plus the G2 reviews of each. Several comparisons on page one still quote $59.99 and $99.99, so every price below comes from LinkedIn on that date, and there's a third plan most of them skip: Premium All-in-One at $89.99.
In short
- Choose Sales Navigator if: you prospect every week, need to filter by role, seniority, headcount and more, and want saved lead lists with alerts and 50 InMails a month.
- Choose Premium if: you want a stronger profile, profile-view insights and 15 InMails for occasional outreach, and $69.99 a month (or $44.99 billed yearly) is your ceiling.
Sales Navigator vs Premium at a glance
| Sales Navigator (Core) | Premium Business | |
|---|---|---|
| Core focus | Finding and tracking buyers | Profile, network and insights |
| Best for | Sellers who prospect weekly | Founders, consultants, networkers |
| Data coverage | LinkedIn's member data, 50+ sales filters | LinkedIn's member data, standard search |
| Starting price | $119.99 a month or $1,079.88 a year | $69.99 a month or $539.88 a year |
| Main weakness | Price per seat, no emails or export | Limited sales filters, 15 InMails |
Prices checked on November 5, 2026 on LinkedIn's plan pages, in US dollars, per license.
What is LinkedIn Sales Navigator?
Sales Navigator is LinkedIn's prospecting tool, with its own search, lists and inbox on top of your LinkedIn account. It comes in three plans (Core, Advanced and Advanced Plus), and all three include every Premium Business feature (LinkedIn).
Features
- 50+ lead and account filters: find buyers by function, seniority, headcount, geography and more, then save the search.
- Lead and account lists with alerts: follow accounts and get told about job changes and new posts.
- Account IQ and Lead IQ: AI summaries of a company or a person before you reach out.
- 50 InMail credits a month: the most of any LinkedIn plan, with up to 150 saved up (LinkedIn Help).
- Team and CRM features on higher plans: TeamLink, Buyer Intent and Smart Links on Advanced; CRM sync with Salesforce, HubSpot and Microsoft Dynamics on Advanced Plus.
Who it is for
Sales reps, founders and agencies who send cold outreach every week and need to narrow LinkedIn's members down to a list. If you contact five people a month, it's more tool than you need.
Pricing
Core is $119.99 a month or $1,079.88 a year per license ($89.99 a month billed yearly). Advanced is $159.99 a month or $1,799.88 a year. Advanced Plus is quote-only (LinkedIn, checked November 5, 2026).
What it actually costs: one founder on Core billed yearly pays $1,079.88. A team of five on Advanced billed yearly pays $8,999.40, and five is the most you can buy online. My sales navigator pricing guide breaks down every plan and the free trial rules.
What is LinkedIn Premium?
Premium is a paid upgrade to your normal LinkedIn account, in three tiers you'd consider for selling or job hunting: Career, Business and All-in-One. It keeps the standard LinkedIn interface and adds insights, InMail credits and profile tools.
Features
- Premium Business: 15 InMail credits a month, who viewed your profile over 365 days, business insights, a custom profile button and AI message drafts (LinkedIn).
- Premium All-in-One: 30 InMails, up to 15 prospect suggestions a day, advanced search filters and a $50 monthly post-boosting credit (LinkedIn).
- Premium Career: 5 InMails, job-seeker tools and LinkedIn Learning (LinkedIn).
Who it is for
Consultants, founders and business owners who sell through their network and their posts, plus job seekers on Career. All-in-One sits in between: it's built for small-business owners who prospect a little, hire a little and promote a little.
Pricing
Premium Business is $69.99 a month or $539.88 a year ($44.99 a month billed yearly). All-in-One is $89.99 a month or $899.88 a year. Career is $39.99 a month or $239.88 a year (LinkedIn's Premium pages, checked November 5, 2026).
What it actually costs: one person on Premium Business billed yearly pays $539.88, half of a yearly Core seat. The Duo option covers two people for $917.98 a year, according to LinkedIn's Premium Business page.
Sales Navigator vs Premium: feature breakdown
Search filters
Sales Navigator: 50+ lead and account filters, the main reason people buy it. LinkedIn's own comparison rates its sales filters "Advanced". My guide to linkedin sales navigator search filters covers which ones are worth learning. Premium: LinkedIn rates Premium Business filters "Limited", and its help table lists advanced search only for All-in-One, Sales Navigator and Recruiter Lite (LinkedIn Help). The verdict: Sales Navigator, clearly. All-in-One is the cheaper middle ground if you need some filters.
Lead lists, alerts and recommendations
Sales Navigator: custom lead and account lists, saved searches and real-time alerts on job changes and posts. Premium: Business has none of these. All-in-One adds lead recommendations and saved leads, and a free account can save three searches with weekly alerts. The verdict: Sales Navigator. Lists and alerts are what turn a search into a weekly routine.
InMail credits
Sales Navigator: 50 a month, up to 150 saved up. That's $2.40 per InMail on a monthly Core seat. Premium: 15 a month on Business (up to 45 saved), 30 on All-in-One, 5 on Career. Business works out at $4.67 per InMail, All-in-One at $3.00. The verdict: Sales Navigator gives the most InMails and the lowest price per InMail. LinkedIn also returns a credit when the recipient accepts, declines or replies within 90 days, which makes careful targeting cheaper on any plan.
Search limits on a free account
Sales Navigator: lifts the monthly people search limit that free accounts hit when their activity looks like lead generation. Premium: Business lifts it too. LinkedIn's help page says "Our Job Seeker plans still include the search limit", so Career doesn't (LinkedIn Help, last updated 4 years ago by LinkedIn's own label). The verdict: a tie between Business and Sales Navigator; Career loses.
Team and CRM features
Sales Navigator: seat management, TeamLink, Buyer Intent and team reporting on Advanced; CRM sync and lead creation on Advanced Plus. Premium: none. Each Premium plan is tied to one person's profile. The verdict: Sales Navigator, if you sell as a team.
Profile tools, interface and LinkedIn Learning
Sales Navigator: includes every Premium Business feature (custom button, Featured section, profile insights) and adds its own interface for search, lists and messages. LinkedIn's help table also lists LinkedIn Learning for Sales Navigator Core. Premium: stays in the normal LinkedIn interface, with the same profile tools and LinkedIn Learning on every tier (LinkedIn Help). The verdict: a tie on profile tools. Premium is simpler if you don't want a second interface; G2's summary of Sales Navigator reviews ties 18 complaints to the separate inbox and the AI message prompts.
Free trials
Sales Navigator: Core and Advanced have a free trial for members who aren't on a paid plan and haven't had a LinkedIn trial in the past 365 days. LinkedIn asks for a card and emails you 7 days before the trial ends. Premium: LinkedIn says Premium plans "may be available to try free for one month" for eligible members. The verdict: a tie, with one catch: the Sales Navigator trial is only open if you haven't used any LinkedIn free trial in the past 365 days, so trying Premium first can rule it out for a year.
Price per seat
Sales Navigator: $119.99 a month for Core, $159.99 for Advanced. Premium: $69.99 a month for Business, $89.99 for All-in-One. The verdict: Premium. Business costs $50 a month less than Core, or $540 a year less billed yearly.
Contact data and export
Sales Navigator: no email addresses or phone numbers, and LinkedIn's plans page lists no lead export on any plan. Most teams add a second tool; see how to get emails from linkedin sales navigator and how to export leads from sales navigator. Premium: no email addresses, phone numbers or export either. The verdict: a tie. Neither plan hands you a list you can take elsewhere.
What real users say
Sales Navigator
Pros: "I like the quality of LinkedIn Sales Navigator’s professional data and how it helps me pinpoint the right decision makers within target accounts." (Prem S., G2, November 2026) Cons: "The pricing can be a bit high, and some advanced features have a learning curve. It would also be helpful to have more direct contact information available for prospects." (anil g., G2, July 2026)
Sales Navigator has 4.4 out of 5 from 2,215 reviews on G2, and the most common complaint G2 finds is price (53 reviews).
Premium
Pros: "LinkedIn premium is one's direct access to C-level suites, founders, key stakeholders by giving exclusive features of sending in-mails upto 15/month." (Kanika M., G2, undated) Cons: "It’s quite expensive compared to the benefits. Many features feel similar to the free version." (Abdul R., G2, undated)
LinkedIn Premium has 4.1 out of 5 from 270 reviews on G2, which lumps the Premium tiers together. Price is the top complaint there too (14 reviews), followed by limited InMail credits.
Sales Navigator or Premium: which should you choose?
Choose Sales Navigator if you:
- Send cold outreach to new people every week
- Need to filter by seniority, function and headcount, and save the search
- Want lists, alerts and 50 InMails, or sell as a team
Choose Premium if you:
- Sell mainly through your network, posts and referrals
- Want profile insights and 15 InMails at $69.99 a month (Business)
- Prospect a little and want some filters for $89.99 (All-in-One)
If neither fits because you don't want a LinkedIn seat at all, my roundup of linkedin sales navigator alternatives compares seven other ways to build a prospect list.
Final verdict
For an SDR or a sales team: Sales Navigator Advanced, for TeamLink, Buyer Intent and team seats. Core if you're on your own.
For a founder doing their own outbound: Sales Navigator Core billed yearly ($89.99 a month). If you send fewer than 30 InMails a month, Premium All-in-One covers most of it for $74.99 a month billed yearly ($89.99 monthly).
For a consultant or business owner who sells through their network: Premium Business. You get the profile tools and enough InMails for warm follow-ups.
For a job seeker: Premium Career. Its job tools, 5 InMails and LinkedIn Learning fit a job search, and Sales Navigator's filters are built for finding buyers.
Before you buy either: build the list first
Both plans keep your prospects inside LinkedIn, and neither exports what you find. If what you need first is a list of companies that fit and the people to talk to, describe your ideal customer in Openlead: it finds the companies and the right people at each from a sentence, with their profile links, without a Navigator seat.
Frequently asked questions
Does LinkedIn Premium come with Sales Navigator?
No, LinkedIn Premium doesn't come with Sales Navigator. It works the other way round: every Sales Navigator plan (Core, Advanced and Advanced Plus) includes all Premium Business features, so you don't need both.
How much does LinkedIn Sales Navigator cost in 2026?
LinkedIn Sales Navigator costs $119.99 a month or $1,079.88 a year per license for Core, and $159.99 a month or $1,799.88 a year for Advanced. Advanced Plus is priced by LinkedIn's sales team (checked November 5, 2026).
How much is 1 year of LinkedIn Premium?
One year of LinkedIn Premium costs $539.88 for Premium Business, $899.88 for Premium All-in-One and $239.88 for Premium Career, each per license. Yearly billing saves 36% on Business, 17% on All-in-One and 50% on Career against paying monthly.
Is LinkedIn Premium worth it for a business?
LinkedIn Premium is worth it for a business owner who sells through their network and sends 15 InMails a month or fewer. If you prospect cold every week, Sales Navigator's filters and lists are worth the extra $50 a month.
Can I have Sales Navigator and Premium at the same time?
You don't need to, because Sales Navigator already includes Premium Business. LinkedIn says you switch between the two in Admin Center, and you may have to cancel your current plan first; moving from Sales Navigator to Premium removes the sales search, alerts, TeamLink and CRM features.
About the author
Julian KrethFounder, Openlead
