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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/people

Last 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

·TikTok logoTikTok·Instagram logoInstagram·YouTube logoYouTube·Facebook logoFacebook·X logoX·LinkedIn logoLinkedIn·Reddit logoReddit·Threads logoThreads·Pinterest logoPinterest·Twitch logoTwitch·Truth Social logoTruth Social·Snapchat logoSnapchat·Kick logoKick·Bluesky logoBluesky·Kwai logoKwai·Rumble logoRumble·Spotify logoSpotify·Apple Music logoApple Music·TikTok Shop logoTikTok Shop·Amazon Shop logoAmazon Shop·Google Shopping logoGoogle Shopping·Trustpilot logoTrustpilot·TripAdvisor logoTripAdvisor·Yelp logoYelp·Linktree logoLinktree·Komi logoKomi·Pillar logoPillar·lnk.bio logolnk.bio·Facebook Ads logoFacebook Ads·Google Ads logoGoogle Ads·LinkedIn Ads logoLinkedIn Ads·Google Search logoGoogle Search·Google News logoGoogle News·Finance logoFinance·Polymarket logoPolymarket·Tavily logoTavily·Hacker News logoHacker News·GitHub logoGitHub·Perplexity logoPerplexity·Naver logoNaver·Utility logoUtility·Universal Search logoUniversal Search
·TikTok logoTikTok·Instagram logoInstagram·YouTube logoYouTube·Facebook logoFacebook·X logoX·LinkedIn logoLinkedIn·Reddit logoReddit·Threads logoThreads·Pinterest logoPinterest·Twitch logoTwitch·Truth Social logoTruth Social·Snapchat logoSnapchat·Kick logoKick·Bluesky logoBluesky·Kwai logoKwai·Rumble logoRumble·Spotify logoSpotify·Apple Music logoApple Music·TikTok Shop logoTikTok Shop·Amazon Shop logoAmazon Shop·Google Shopping logoGoogle Shopping·Trustpilot logoTrustpilot·TripAdvisor logoTripAdvisor·Yelp logoYelp·Linktree logoLinktree·Komi logoKomi·Pillar logoPillar·lnk.bio logolnk.bio·Facebook Ads logoFacebook Ads·Google Ads logoGoogle Ads·LinkedIn Ads logoLinkedIn Ads·Google Search logoGoogle Search·Google News logoGoogle News·Finance logoFinance·Polymarket logoPolymarket·Tavily logoTavily·Hacker News logoHacker News·GitHub logoGitHub·Perplexity logoPerplexity·Naver logoNaver·Utility logoUtility·Universal Search logoUniversal Search
·TikTok logoTikTok·Instagram logoInstagram·YouTube logoYouTube·Facebook logoFacebook·X logoX·LinkedIn logoLinkedIn·Reddit logoReddit·Threads logoThreads·Pinterest logoPinterest·Twitch logoTwitch·Truth Social logoTruth Social·Snapchat logoSnapchat·Kick logoKick·Bluesky logoBluesky·Kwai logoKwai·Rumble logoRumble·Spotify logoSpotify·Apple Music logoApple Music·TikTok Shop logoTikTok Shop·Amazon Shop logoAmazon Shop·Google Shopping logoGoogle Shopping·Trustpilot logoTrustpilot·TripAdvisor logoTripAdvisor·Yelp logoYelp·Linktree logoLinktree·Komi logoKomi·Pillar logoPillar·lnk.bio logolnk.bio·Facebook Ads logoFacebook Ads·Google Ads logoGoogle Ads·LinkedIn Ads logoLinkedIn Ads·Google Search logoGoogle Search·Google News logoGoogle News·Finance logoFinance·Polymarket logoPolymarket·Tavily logoTavily·Hacker News logoHacker News·GitHub logoGitHub·Perplexity logoPerplexity·Naver logoNaver·Utility logoUtility·Universal Search logoUniversal Search
·TikTok logoTikTok·Instagram logoInstagram·YouTube logoYouTube·Facebook logoFacebook·X logoX·LinkedIn logoLinkedIn·Reddit logoReddit·Threads logoThreads·Pinterest logoPinterest·Twitch logoTwitch·Truth Social logoTruth Social·Snapchat logoSnapchat·Kick logoKick·Bluesky logoBluesky·Kwai logoKwai·Rumble logoRumble·Spotify logoSpotify·Apple Music logoApple Music·TikTok Shop logoTikTok Shop·Amazon Shop logoAmazon Shop·Google Shopping logoGoogle Shopping·Trustpilot logoTrustpilot·TripAdvisor logoTripAdvisor·Yelp logoYelp·Linktree logoLinktree·Komi logoKomi·Pillar logoPillar·lnk.bio logolnk.bio·Facebook Ads logoFacebook Ads·Google Ads logoGoogle Ads·LinkedIn Ads logoLinkedIn Ads·Google Search logoGoogle Search·Google News logoGoogle News·Finance logoFinance·Polymarket logoPolymarket·Tavily logoTavily·Hacker News logoHacker News·GitHub logoGitHub·Perplexity logoPerplexity·Naver logoNaver·Utility logoUtility·Universal Search logoUniversal Search
LinkedIn API

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&current_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

ParameterRequiredDescription
queryYesName or display-name keyword to search for (e.g. 'Bill Gates').
pageNoPage number for pagination (default 1).
first_nameNoFilter by first name.
last_nameNoFilter by last name.
titleNoFilter by job title or headline.
current_companyNoFilter by current company, using a numeric company id from /v1/linkedin/company (`author.id`). Comma-separated for multiple.
past_companyNoFilter by a previously-worked company, using a numeric company id from /v1/linkedin/company (`author.id`).
schoolNoFilter by school, using a school id from /v1/linkedin/search/schools (`id`).
industryNoFilter by industry, using an industry id from /v1/linkedin/search/industry (`industry_id`).
geocode_locationNoFilter by location, using a geocode id from /v1/linkedin/search/location (`geocode`).
profile_languageNoFilter by profile language (ISO 2-letter code, e.g. 'en').
service_categoryNoFilter by service category, using a numeric service-category id. No endpoint resolves these, so pass one you already hold.
follower_ofNoReturn 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.
includeNoSet 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)
limitNoTake 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_pagesNo1 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_itemsNo1 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_creditsNo1 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.
Example Response

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.

API Details

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

Why SocialCrawl

Why use SocialCrawl for LinkedIn Search People data?

We handle the complexity of LinkedIn data extraction so you can focus on building. Unified schema, AI enrichment, and zero platform logic in your code.

Developer First

How do you scrape social media data in seconds?

The fastest social media scraping API for developers. Scrape profiles, posts, comments, and analytics from 69 platforms covering 10B+ monthly active users.

One schema, every platform

Query 69 platforms with identical response structures. Write your integration once.

Computed fields, not just scraped

When an endpoint supports these metrics and the source provides the required inputs, the normalized record includes engagement_rate, estimated_reach, content_category, and language. Ready to use.

See your data before you code

Visual Data Explorer. Paste any URL, get rich result cards, sortable tables, CSV export.

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()
[ .JSON ]
{
  "success": true,
  "platform": "tiktok",
  "data": {
    "author": {
      "username": "charlidamelio",
      "followers": 152400000
    },
    "engagement": {
      "likes": 12400000000,
      "engagement_rate": 0.087
    },
    "metadata": {
      "language": "en",
      "content_category": "lifestyle"
    }
  }
}
+ 69 platforms
FAQ

Have a question? We got answers

Find answers to frequently asked questions about SocialCrawl's API, pricing, and capabilities.

Contact us
How do I search for LinkedIn people with an API?
Send a GET request to /v1/linkedin/search/people with a query keyword (a name or role). SocialCrawl returns a paginated list of people, each with handle, headline, location, follower count, and member URN. Add include=profile for exact counts, or page to walk deeper.
What B2B filters can I use to narrow the search?
Combine query with optional filters: title, current_company, past_company, school, industry, geocode_location, and profile_language. Stack them to build a precise prospecting list without a Sales Navigator seat.
What fields come back for each person?
Each result includes the public handle, headline, location, follower count, and member URN. Add include=profile and every row is joined to that member's profile in the same call, which fills the exact follower and connection counts plus location, joined date, country, website, cover image, and the creator, influencer, open to work, hiring, top voice and premium flags.
How do I get exact LinkedIn follower counts on a people search?
Pass include=profile. LinkedIn publishes a rounded bucket on a search row, so a member on 39,278 followers shows as 39,000 and some rows carry no count at all. The join returns the exact number on every row it fills, and author.following carries that member's connection count.
How much does LinkedIn people search cost?
A plain page costs 10 credits on the premium tier, regardless of how many people come back. With include=profile the page costs 10 credits plus four credits per row filled, never more than 50 credits. Cached rows are free, unfilled rows are refunded, and limit (1 to 10) caps both the rows and the credits. data.hydration explains the bill.
How do I paginate through people search results?
Add the page query parameter (integer) and increment it to fetch more results. Start at page 1 and continue until the response returns an empty list, which signals the end of the matches.
Can I use this for recruiting and prospecting?
Yes, sourcing and prospecting are the main use cases. Filter by title, current_company, and geocode_location to build a targeted candidate or lead list, then add include=profile to the same call rather than running a profile lookup per row.

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