LinkedIn Job Posting
A LinkedIn job posting is a free or paid listing that an employer publishes on LinkedIn to advertise an open role to the platform's members. Job seekers find it through LinkedIn search, job recommendations, and email alerts. The posting itself is separate from LinkedIn's other hiring products, such as Recruiter, InMail, and promoted ads, though employers often run those alongside a posting.
LinkedIn has more than 1.2 billion members as of 2026, with around 310 million active each month. That reach is why job postings on the platform sit at the center of most white-collar hiring plans.
Why recruiters post jobs on LinkedIn
A LinkedIn posting reaches candidates inside a professional network rather than on a standalone job board. The algorithm matches your role to members by skill and location, including people who are not actively searching.
About 72% of the global workforce is passive talent, meaning they would consider a move but are not browsing job boards. And LinkedIn's distribution can put your role in front of some of them.
Postings also tie back to your company Page, so candidates see your brand and team in the same place as the role. You can add screening questions to filter applicants before they reach your inbox.
How much does a LinkedIn job posting cost?
LinkedIn offers free and promoted postings.
Free job posts
It costs nothing but has carry limits that most teams hit quickly. You can keep one free job active at a time. A free post stays visible for about 14 days, then pauses and drops out of search results. And it closes automatically at 30 days unless you promote or renew it.
Free posts also cap applications, usually between 10 and 30, and you cannot repost the same title from the same company for free within 7 days. For a single, non-urgent hire, the free tier works, but for anything recurring or time-sensitive, it runs out fast.
Promoted job posts
They run on a pay-per-click auction. You set a daily or total budget and pay when a qualified candidate clicks your listing. Daily budgets start around $7 to $10, US cost-per-click averages roughly $1.50 to $4.50, and the average cost per applicant lands near $2.83. All of these vary by role, location, and competition.
LinkedIn reports that promoted posts reach about 3x more qualified applicants than free ones. On billing, LinkedIn charges you every 30 days from your first post, or sooner if your account balance reaches $500 or all your jobs close. Unused daily budget rolls into the next day instead of being lost. You can prepay your budget to save up to 35%.
Do you have to include a salary range?
Increasingly, yes. As of 2026, LinkedIn requires a salary range on postings that target candidates in the EU and EEA, and it demotes listings that leave one out. The change follows the EU Pay Transparency Directive.
In the US, 16 states and Washington DC now require salary ranges in job ads, including California, New York, Colorado, and Washington. A posting visible to applicants in those states generally has to comply, even if your company is based elsewhere.
How to write an effective LinkedIn job posting
1. Write a Clear, Engaging Job Title
2. Craft an Impactful Job Description
3. Leverage Employer Branding
4. Use LinkedIn’s Screening Questions
5. Promote Your Posting
Use a clear, searchable title. "Software Engineer" gets found, but "Coding Rockstar" does not.
Lead the description with the role's actual responsibilities and required skills, written as short bullets. Include the salary range, and add a few screening questions matched to your must-haves.
LinkedIn job posting vs. outcome-based recruiting
A job posting is an inbound channel. You publish a role and wait for candidates to come to you, which works well when the talent you need is actively searching. It works less well for senior or specialized technical roles, where the strongest candidates are usually employed and do not check job boards.
That gap is where a recruiting partner fits. For deep technical and AI/ML hiring in India, Recrew sources and pre-validates passive candidates directly and charges only when you make a hire, rather than billing per click or per post. Many teams run both: a posting for active applicants, and outbound sourcing for the roles that a posting cannot reach.
Frequently asked questions
1. Can you post a job on LinkedIn for free?
Yes, you can keep one free job active at a time. It stays visible for about 14 days, caps applications at 10 to 30, and closes at 30 days unless you promote it.
2. How much does it cost to promote a job on LinkedIn?
Promoted posts use a pay-per-click model. Daily budgets start around $7 to $10, and you pay when a qualified candidate clicks. Cost per applicant averages near $2.83 but varies by role and location.
3. Do LinkedIn job postings require a salary range?
For roles targeting EU and EEA candidates, yes, and LinkedIn demotes listings without one. In the US, 16 states and DC require ranges, so most postings with national reach should include one.
4. How long does a LinkedIn job posting stay active?
A free post is visible for about 14 days and closes at 30. A promoted post stays active until you close it or reach its budget, and it expires after 6 months.
