LinkedIn InMail
By Federico Donatone · Updated October 15, 2026LinkedIn InMail is a paid LinkedIn message that lets you write to a member who is not one of your first-degree connections. InMail comes with LinkedIn's paid plans for job seekers, businesses, sales teams and recruiters, which include a monthly allowance of credits. Sales teams use LinkedIn InMail to reach decision makers before any connection exists.
How LinkedIn InMail works
A normal LinkedIn message only goes to people you are already connected with. InMail removes that limit, at a cost. Each InMail you send uses one credit from your plan.
- Credits come with a paid plan and are added each month. The number depends on the plan.
- LinkedIn gives the credit back when the recipient responds within the window its help pages state, so ignored messages are the expensive ones.
- Members with an Open Profile can receive messages from anyone without using a credit.
- Some members limit who can message them, so not every profile can be reached this way.
- An InMail has a subject line and a body, like a short email, and lands in the recipient's LinkedIn inbox.
InMail vs connection request vs cold email
InMail is one of three ways to start a conversation with a stranger on LinkedIn or outside it. Each has a different cost and job.
| InMail | Connection request | Cold email | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Need a connection? | No | No, it asks for one | No |
| Cost | Paid credits | Free, with sending limits | Domains and inboxes |
| Room for a message | Subject and full message | A short note | Subject and full message |
| Best for | Senior buyers on a short list | Building a network over time | Follow-ups and detail at scale |
Many teams combine them: a connection request first, an InMail for senior buyers who do not accept, and email for the follow-up with the detail a buyer asked for.
How to write a LinkedIn InMail that gets a reply
- Use a subject that names something about them, such as their company, their new role or a post they wrote.
- Open with one fact about the person or the account, not with your company.
- Name the problem that fact usually creates, as a pattern you see in similar companies.
- Ask one small question that is easy to answer.
- Send it from the profile of the person who will own the conversation, and reply fast.
Keep it short enough to read on a phone without scrolling. An InMail that lists every service reads like a broadcast, and the recipient can tell it was not written for them.
When InMail is worth the credits
Credits are limited, so spend them where a connection request is unlikely to work. InMail earns its cost with senior buyers who rarely accept requests from strangers, with accounts on a short target list, and right after a timing signal such as a new role or a funding round. Our guide to sales trigger events shows how to spot those moments.
Measure InMail like any outbound channel: replies, meetings booked, meetings held and opportunities accepted by sales. If replies come from peers and vendors instead of buyers, fix the list before you buy more credits. A LinkedIn lead generation agency can run the channel for you when nobody on the team has the hours to answer every reply.