LinkedIn Search People API
Returns LinkedIn members matching a name or filters, each with handle, headline, location, follower count, profile URL, and member id.
GET /v1/linkedin/search/peopleLast updated November 2026Maintained by the SocialCrawl team
When to use the LinkedIn Search People API
Use it to build a prospect list by job title, company, school, or location; use company/people to list one employer's staff.
From the API reference
Searches LinkedIn members by name and B2B filters (title, current/past company, school, industry, location, language). Returns a paginated list of matching profiles with handle, headline, location, follower count, and the member URN for follow-up enrichment calls. Each page is 10 members. On a plain call author.followers is LinkedIn's rounded display bucket, and only on the rows that show one (flagged author.ext.followers_approximate: true), and author.following is null on every row. Send include=profile and every row is joined, in the same call, to the member's profile lookup (/v1/linkedin/profile): author.followers becomes the exact follower count and author.ext.followers_approximate reads false on every row the lookup filled, whether the row arrived with LinkedIn's rounded bucket or with no count at all, author.following is filled with the member's connection count (on LinkedIn a member's following is the number of connections), and the location, the joined date (author.joined_at), and the country, website, cover image and profile flags on author.ext land where the row lacks them. Cost: 10 credits for the list; include=profile holds 4 credits per row and keeps only the rows filled from a fresh lookup, so a call costs at most 50; rows already in cache are free and unfilled rows are refunded. Pass limit (1 to 10) to join only the top rows: limit=3&include=profile costs at most 22. Time: the lookups run in parallel, about 1 second for 10 rows, up to 3 on a slow second, and never more than 8 seconds. The response carries a hydration block itemising rows, lookups, cache hits, credits and milliseconds.
Searching 69 platforms in parallel
What can you do with the Search People API?
The Search People endpoint gives you structured LinkedIn data with computed fields in a single request. No scraping infrastructure to build or maintain.
Example Request
# GET /v1/linkedin/search/people: Metered: holds 10 credits per page up front and refunds what the call does not use. Cache hits are free and failed calls are refunded.
# Check the price first for 0 credits: add dry_run=1 to the query. Nothing is fetched or charged.
# --max-time 60: the API's own time limit for this endpoint.
# --retry 3: retries timeouts, 429 and 5xx, honoring Retry-After.
# -o response.json keeps only the final attempt's body.
# One Idempotency-Key per request, reused on every retry, so a retried call is never charged twice.
# Next page: send pagination.next_cursor back as cursor until pagination.has_more is false.
IDEMPOTENCY_KEY=$(od -An -N16 -tx1 /dev/urandom | tr -d ' \n')
curl -sS --max-time 60 --retry 3 -o response.json \
-H "x-api-key: YOUR_API_KEY" \
-H "Idempotency-Key: $IDEMPOTENCY_KEY" \
"https://www.socialcrawl.dev/v1/linkedin/search/people?query=Bill+Gates¤t_company=1035&past_company=1035&school=1792&industry=4&geocode_location=103644278&service_category=1&follower_of=ACoAAA8BYqEBCGLg_vT_ca6mMEqkpp9nVffJ3hc" && cat response.json# GET /v1/linkedin/search/people: Metered: holds 10 credits per page up front and refunds what the call does not use. Cache hits are free and failed calls are refunded.
# Check the price first for 0 credits: add dry_run=1 to the query. Nothing is fetched or charged.
import os
import random
import time
import uuid
import requests
API_KEY = os.environ.get("SOCIALCRAWL_API_KEY", "YOUR_API_KEY")
TIMEOUT_S = 60 # the API's own time limit for this endpoint.
MAX_RETRIES = 3
URL = "https://www.socialcrawl.dev/v1/linkedin/search/people"
def backoff(attempt):
# Exponential backoff with jitter: about 1 s, 2 s, then 4 s.
return 2 ** attempt * (0.5 + random.random() / 2)
def socialcrawl(params):
# One Idempotency-Key per request, reused on every retry, so a retried call is never charged twice.
idempotency_key = str(uuid.uuid4())
for attempt in range(MAX_RETRIES + 1):
try:
res = requests.get(
URL,
params=params,
headers={"x-api-key": API_KEY, "Idempotency-Key": idempotency_key},
timeout=TIMEOUT_S,
)
body = res.json()
except (requests.RequestException, ValueError):
# A timeout, a dropped connection or a non-JSON gateway page: retry with the same key.
if attempt == MAX_RETRIES:
raise
time.sleep(backoff(attempt))
continue
if body["success"]:
return body
error = body["error"]
# Branch on error["type"], never on the message text.
if error["type"] == "RESOURCE_NOT_FOUND":
return None # refunded: nothing to read
retry_after = res.headers.get("Retry-After")
# SERVICE_UNAVAILABLE without Retry-After is a withdrawn endpoint: permanent.
permanent = error["type"] == "SERVICE_UNAVAILABLE" and retry_after is None
if not error.get("retryable") or permanent or attempt == MAX_RETRIES:
raise RuntimeError(f"{error['type']}: {error['message']} (request_id {body['request_id']})")
# Retry-After (seconds) wins; otherwise back off.
time.sleep(float(retry_after) if retry_after else backoff(attempt))
params = {
"query": "Bill Gates",
"current_company": "1035",
"past_company": "1035",
"school": "1792",
"industry": "4",
"geocode_location": "103644278",
"service_category": "1",
"follower_of": "ACoAAA8BYqEBCGLg_vT_ca6mMEqkpp9nVffJ3hc",
}
# Walk the list: send pagination.next_cursor back as cursor until has_more is false.
MAX_PAGES = 10 # each page is one call
items = []
for _ in range(MAX_PAGES):
body = socialcrawl(params)
if body is None:
break
items.extend(body["data"]["items"])
page = body.get("pagination") or {}
if not page.get("has_more") or not page.get("next_cursor"):
break
params["cursor"] = page["next_cursor"]
print(f"{len(items)} items")// GET /v1/linkedin/search/people: Metered: holds 10 credits per page up front and refunds what the call does not use. Cache hits are free and failed calls are refunded.
// Check the price first for 0 credits: add dry_run=1 to the query. Nothing is fetched or charged.
const API_KEY = process.env.SOCIALCRAWL_API_KEY ?? "YOUR_API_KEY";
const TIMEOUT_MS = 60_000; // the API's own time limit for this endpoint.
const MAX_RETRIES = 3;
type Page = { next_cursor: string | null; has_more: boolean };
type SocialCrawlResponse =
| { success: true; data: any; pagination?: Page; credits_used: number; request_id: string }
| { success: false; error: { type: string; message: string; retryable: boolean }; request_id: string };
const sleep = (ms: number) => new Promise((resolve) => setTimeout(resolve, ms));
// Exponential backoff with jitter: about 1 s, 2 s, then 4 s.
const backoffMs = (attempt: number) => 2 ** attempt * 1000 * (0.5 + Math.random() / 2);
async function socialcrawl(url: URL) {
// One Idempotency-Key per request, reused on every retry, so a retried call is never charged twice.
const idempotencyKey = crypto.randomUUID();
for (let attempt = 0; ; attempt++) {
let res: Response;
let body: SocialCrawlResponse;
try {
res = await fetch(url, {
headers: {
"x-api-key": API_KEY,
"Idempotency-Key": idempotencyKey,
},
signal: AbortSignal.timeout(TIMEOUT_MS),
});
body = (await res.json()) as SocialCrawlResponse;
} catch (error) {
// A timeout, a dropped connection or a non-JSON gateway page: retry with the same key.
if (attempt >= MAX_RETRIES) throw error;
await sleep(backoffMs(attempt));
continue;
}
if (body.success) return body;
// Branch on error.type, never on the message text.
if (body.error.type === "RESOURCE_NOT_FOUND") return null; // refunded: nothing to read
const retryAfter = res.headers.get("Retry-After");
// SERVICE_UNAVAILABLE without Retry-After is a withdrawn endpoint: permanent.
const permanent = body.error.type === "SERVICE_UNAVAILABLE" && retryAfter === null;
if (!body.error.retryable || permanent || attempt >= MAX_RETRIES) {
throw new Error(`${body.error.type}: ${body.error.message} (request_id ${body.request_id})`);
}
// Retry-After (seconds) wins; otherwise back off.
await sleep(retryAfter ? Number(retryAfter) * 1000 : backoffMs(attempt));
}
}
const url = new URL("https://www.socialcrawl.dev/v1/linkedin/search/people");
url.searchParams.set("query", "Bill Gates");
url.searchParams.set("current_company", "1035");
url.searchParams.set("past_company", "1035");
url.searchParams.set("school", "1792");
url.searchParams.set("industry", "4");
url.searchParams.set("geocode_location", "103644278");
url.searchParams.set("service_category", "1");
url.searchParams.set("follower_of", "ACoAAA8BYqEBCGLg_vT_ca6mMEqkpp9nVffJ3hc");
// Walk the list: send pagination.next_cursor back as cursor until has_more is false.
const MAX_PAGES = 10; // each page is one call
const items: unknown[] = [];
for (let page = 0; page < MAX_PAGES; page++) {
const body = await socialcrawl(url);
if (!body) break;
items.push(...body.data.items);
const next = body.pagination?.next_cursor;
if (!body.pagination?.has_more || !next) break;
url.searchParams.set("cursor", next);
}
console.log(`${items.length} items`);Parameters
| Parameter | Required | Description |
|---|---|---|
| query | Yes | Name or display-name keyword to search for (e.g. 'Bill Gates'). |
| page | No | Page number for pagination (default 1). |
| first_name | No | Filter by first name. |
| last_name | No | Filter by last name. |
| title | No | Filter by job title or headline. |
| current_company | No | Filter by current company, using a numeric company id from /v1/linkedin/company (`author.id`). Comma-separated for multiple. |
| past_company | No | Filter by a previously-worked company, using a numeric company id from /v1/linkedin/company (`author.id`). |
| school | No | Filter by school, using a school id from /v1/linkedin/search/schools (`id`). |
| industry | No | Filter by industry, using an industry id from /v1/linkedin/search/industry (`industry_id`). |
| geocode_location | No | Filter by location, using a geocode id from /v1/linkedin/search/location (`geocode`). |
| profile_language | No | Filter by profile language (ISO 2-letter code, e.g. 'en'). |
| service_category | No | Filter by service category, using a numeric service-category id. No endpoint resolves these, so pass one you already hold. |
| follower_of | No | Return people who follow a specific member, using the member's URN from /v1/linkedin/profile (`author.ext.urn`). This one is a URN and not a numeric id. |
| include | No | Set to `profile` (one token only) to join every row to the member's profile lookup in this one call: `author.followers` becomes the exact count and `author.ext.followers_approximate` reads false on every row the lookup filled, `author.following` is filled with the member's connection count, and the location, joined date, country, website, cover image and profile flags land where the row lacks them. Holds 4 credits per row and keeps only the rows filled from a fresh lookup; rows already in cache and rows that could not be filled are refunded, so a call costs at most 50 (10 + 4 per row) and the usual bill is lower. Adds about 1 second for 10 rows, up to 3 on a slow second and never more than 8, and nothing when the members are already cached; read `data.hydration` for the rows, the credits held and kept, and the time. (profile) |
| limit | No | Take the top N rows of this page (1 to 10). With `include=profile` it caps both the rows joined and the extra credits: `limit=3&include=profile` costs at most 22. The page cursor still advances past the full page of 10, so the rows past your limit are skipped, not carried to the next page. Without `include=profile` the call stays 10 credits. |
| max_pages | No | 1 to 50 (default 1, or 50 when `max_items` or `max_credits` is sent). Walk up to this many pages in one call and return the rows from all of them. Each page walked is billed exactly as one call to this endpoint (a cached page is free) and counts against your rate limit; its charge and any refund are recorded under the page's own request id, listed in `data.walk.request_ids`. The walk stops early at the last page, or when the request's time budget runs low; `data.walk.stopped` says why (`end`, `max_pages`, `max_items`, `max_credits`, `time_budget`, `page_error`) and `pagination.next_cursor` continues from where it stopped. |
| max_items | No | 1 to 5000. Get more in one call: keep walking pages until the response holds at least this many rows, then stop with `data.walk.stopped: "max_items"`. The last page is returned whole (it was billed), so `data.items` can hold up to one page more than this, and `pagination.next_cursor` resumes right after it without skipping a row. Walks up to 50 pages unless `max_pages` says fewer; each page is billed as one call (a cached page is free). Add `max_credits` to cap the spend. A long walk can stop on the time budget first (`"time_budget"`): send the returned cursor with the same params to continue. |
| max_credits | No | 1 to 100000. The most this call may spend, across every page it walks. A page starts only while the credits already spent plus that page's price (or, when higher, the most any page of this walk has cost) still fit, so the call never goes past it; the walk then stops with `data.walk.stopped: "max_credits"` and the cursor to resume. Sent alone, it walks as far as the budget goes (up to 50 pages). A value below the price of one page is a free 400 whose `error.details.page_credits` names that price. Credits a row join (`include=`) adds are known only once a page has run, so page 1 is checked against its own price. |
What does the LinkedIn Search People API return?
Every response follows one unified schema. Here is a real, unmodified response body, so you can see the exact fields you get back before spending a credit.
Example response
{
"success": true,
"platform": "tiktok",
"endpoint": "/v1/tiktok/search/users",
"data": {
"items": [
{
"author": {
"id": "user_0e9522",
"username": "user_759369",
"display_name": "user_f0b019",
"avatar_url": "https://example.com/avatars/user_0ab01c.png",
"bio": null,
"verified": null,
"followers": 4214875,
"following": 1,
"posts_count": 2341,
"likes_count": 62731828,
"url": null,
"location": null
}
},
{
"author": {
"id": "user_d26411",
"username": "user_1f51ed",
"display_name": "user_1f51ed",
"avatar_url": "https://example.com/avatars/user_a81e65.png",
"bio": null,
"verified": null,
"followers": 1780390,
"following": 1,
"posts_count": 995,
"likes_count": 10060260,
"url": null,
"location": null
}
},
{
"author": {
"id": "user_679d13",
"username": "user_c5d687",
"display_name": "user_8803ea",
"avatar_url": "https://example.com/avatars/user_67de4c.png",
"bio": null,
"verified": null,
"followers": 338243,
"following": 374,
"posts_count": 464,
"likes_count": 2140124,
"url": null,
"location": null
}
}
],
"next_cursor": "30",
"total": 30,
"dropped": 0
},
"credits_used": 1,
"credits_remaining": 9999,
"request_id": "req-8Kq2ZmR4vT9xLb3P",
"cached": false,
"pagination": {
"next_cursor": "sc.eyJ2IjoyLCJjIjoiMzAiLCJwIjoiY3Vyc29yIn0",
"has_more": true,
"page_size": 30
},
"redacted": true
}Example captured from the TikTok API. Every SocialCrawl endpoint returns this same unified schema, so your LinkedIn Search People response has the same fields.
How does the LinkedIn Search People API work?
Send a GET request with your API key and get back clean, structured JSON in our unified schema. Supported computed fields are populated when the source provides the required inputs.
Method
GET
Response
JSON
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import requests
response = requests.get(
'https://www.socialcrawl.dev/v1/tiktok/profile',
params={'handle': 'charlidamelio'},
headers={'x-api-key': 'sc_YOUR_API_KEY'}
)
data = response.json(){
"success": true,
"platform": "tiktok",
"data": {
"author": {
"username": "charlidamelio",
"followers": 152400000
},
"engagement": {
"likes": 12400000000,
"engagement_rate": 0.087
},
"metadata": {
"language": "en",
"content_category": "lifestyle"
}
}
}Have a question? We got answers
Find answers to frequently asked questions about SocialCrawl's API, pricing, and capabilities.
Contact usHow do I search for LinkedIn people with an API?
What B2B filters can I use to narrow the search?
What fields come back for each person?
How do I get exact LinkedIn follower counts on a people search?
How much does LinkedIn people search cost?
How do I paginate through people search results?
Can I use this for recruiting and prospecting?
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