HOW MUCH DOES IT COST TO ADVERTSIE ON LINKEDIN?

At Lillian Purge, we specialise in Local SEO Services and have produced a transparent breakdown on how Much Does it Costs to Advertise on Linkedin? so you can plan budgets efficiently and get the best ROI from your campaigns.

Whenever I speak to business owners who are exploring paid advertising for the first time, I often notice a particular theme when LinkedIn enters the conversation. Many people feel confident discussing Facebook or Google because those platforms have been mainstream for years, but LinkedIn is still something of an unknown territory. In my experience LinkedIn advertising feels more intimidating because it is tied to professional audiences, higher value services and business decision makers. This naturally gives the impression that LinkedIn Ads must be complicated or expensive. I believe this uncertainty stops many businesses from taking advantage of the opportunities LinkedIn offers. The truth is that LinkedIn Ads are more costly compared with other platforms, but they are also one of the most targeted advertising systems available which makes them uniquely powerful when used correctly.

Understanding the real cost of LinkedIn advertising is essential because not every business needs this platform and not every sector gets value from it. Some industries get better returns from Google search because users already have established intent. Others see more impact from Meta Ads because their audience is broader, more consumer driven and more responsive to short form content. LinkedIn sits in a very different place. The platform is designed for professionals, executives, HR teams, decision makers, B2B buyers and individuals who are actively thinking about their career or industry. This means that although LinkedIn Ads cost more per click or per lead you are paying for a much narrower, higher value audience.

In this guide I want to break down how LinkedIn advertising costs actually work, how budgets influence performance, what affects the price you pay, how to choose the right campaign type and what results you can realistically expect. Most importantly I will share how I would personally run a LinkedIn Ads campaign with a £500 budget because I know that many businesses want clarity before they spend anything at all. By the time you finish reading this guide, you should feel confident about whether LinkedIn is the right platform for your business and exactly how to use it without wasting your budget.

Understanding How LinkedIn Pricing Works

LinkedIn uses a bidding system similar to Google Ads but with a stronger focus on audience quality. You are not judged purely on who bids the most, but rather on relevance, predicted engagement, audience match and the niche you are targeting. In my opinion LinkedIn is one of the few ad platforms where cost and quality are directly linked. If you target a highly competitive industry such as finance, consultancy, software or recruitment you should expect higher clicks and higher lead costs because you are competing with companies that typically have larger budgets and higher customer lifetime value.

LinkedIn lets you pay in several ways including cost per click, cost per thousand impressions, cost per send for InMail campaigns and cost per lead for certain formats. Understanding each pricing model helps you avoid paying for results you do not care about. For example cost per click is usually a good option for campaigns designed to drive site visits, whereas cost per thousand impressions is more suited to brand exposure. Lead gen forms work well if you prefer automation and higher intent leads.

The reality is that LinkedIn generally costs more than Meta or Google Display because the audience itself is more specialised. In my opinion this is not a weakness but a strategic advantage for businesses selling professional services, B2B products, training, consultancy or high value offers.

The Typical Cost of LinkedIn Advertising

LinkedIn provides ballpark figures rather than exact pricing because your costs depend heavily on your audience targeting, your content quality and the competitiveness of your industry. However based on consistent patterns I have seen in campaigns and industry benchmarks, the average LinkedIn advertising costs look something like this.

Cost per click often falls between £3 and £7 for most industries. Highly competitive sectors such as finance, legal services, recruitment technology, SaaS or B2B consulting may see cost per click reach £8 to £15. Cost per thousand impressions usually sits between £25 and £75. This is higher than Meta but normal for LinkedIn because the impressions you pay for are being shown to business decision makers who are often much harder to reach on other platforms.

Lead costs vary the most. Some businesses may achieve leads for £20 to £40 using strong lead gen forms, while others may see £60 to £150 depending on the niche. If you are selling services that carry high value such as coaching, consultancy, training or B2B solutions even a £100 lead cost can be profitable if the conversion rate is strong. In my opinion lead cost only becomes meaningful when you compare it against the value of a sale and your internal conversion rate.

Factors That Influence Your LinkedIn Advertising Costs

Your LinkedIn costs are not random. They increase or decrease depending on several factors that you control through strategy, structure and optimisation. Understanding these factors helps you avoid inflated costs and wasted budget.

Audience Targeting

LinkedIn offers incredibly precise targeting which is one of its strengths. You can target users by job title, seniority level, skills, industries, company size or professional interests. However the more detailed and competitive the audience, the higher the cost. If you target senior decision makers in large companies you pay more than targeting early career professionals or local industries. I believe many businesses overspend by narrowing targeting too quickly. Broader audiences often reduce cost without reducing lead quality if you structure your messaging well.

Industry Competitiveness

Some industries simply attract higher bids. Legal services, finance, accounting, consultancy, software and recruitment are consistently among the most expensive sectors on LinkedIn because these industries rely heavily on professional audiences who are difficult to reach elsewhere. If you work in a competitive field you need to accept a higher cost but you can compensate for this with better messaging and content.

Ad Creative and Relevance

Just like Meta, LinkedIn rewards ads that receive high engagement. If your visuals, headlines or descriptions resonate with your audience LinkedIn lowers your cost. If your content is boring, unclear or irrelevant costs rise because your ad will not win placements as effectively. In my experience strong creative on LinkedIn usually includes people centred images, concise headlines, credibility statements and a clear professional tone.

Campaign Objective

LinkedIn gives you choices such as brand awareness, website visits, engagement, video views or lead generation. The objective you choose affects your pricing. Lead gen campaigns tend to cost more but produce higher intent users. Awareness campaigns cost less but may attract lower value engagement. In my opinion your objective should directly support your overall business goal not simply the cheapest cost metric.

Bidding Strategy

You can choose manual bidding or automated bidding. Automated bidding often works well for beginners because LinkedIn automatically adjusts your bids to achieve the best possible results. Manual bidding can save money if you know what you are doing, but it also risks underbidding and stalling your campaign.

Choosing the Right LinkedIn Campaign Type

Your campaign objective determines both your cost and your results. Choosing the wrong objective is one of the most common mistakes I see. Below is a breakdown of each campaign type so you can match your objective to your intended outcome.

Brand Awareness Campaigns

These focus on impressions rather than clicks. They are ideal if you want to get your name in front of decision makers but not necessarily drive traffic immediately. Awareness campaigns usually have the lowest cost on LinkedIn although they do not guarantee engagement.

Website Visit Campaigns

These optimise for link clicks. They are useful for driving traffic to landing pages, blogs or service pages. Costs per click are typically mid range and depend heavily on the competitiveness of your industry.

Video View Campaigns

These focus on reaching people likely to watch your video content. In my experience video performs well on LinkedIn when the messaging is educational rather than promotional. Video campaigns often cost less than lead gen campaigns but more than basic awareness.

Engagement Campaigns

These optimise for likes, comments or shares. They can warm up your audience and create familiarity with your brand but they do not necessarily generate leads.

Lead Generation Campaigns

Lead gen ads use LinkedIn’s built in forms which autofill user data making lead submission extremely easy. These campaigns often produce the highest quality leads because users respond in platform. However they are also one of the more expensive options in terms of cost per lead. In my opinion this is the best option for professional services and B2B businesses because the intent level is high.

Budget Planning for LinkedIn Ads

LinkedIn requires higher budgets than Meta or Google Display because the audience is more specialised. However this does not mean you need thousands to begin. What you need is a budget that allows LinkedIn to gather enough data so the algorithm can optimise your campaign.

Daily budgets often begin at £10 to £20 for awareness and £20 to £40 for website visit campaigns. Lead generation often requires between £30 and £60 daily depending on your targeting. Monthly budgets usually begin at £300 to £500 for basic exploration and £600 to £1500 for structured campaigns.

In my opinion the key is consistency. LinkedIn data improves over time. Starting too small and running ads sporadically will often produce weak results. It is better to run one well structured campaign consistently than several small campaigns inconsistently.

If I Had £500 to Spend on LinkedIn Ads, Here Is Exactly How I Would Use It

I know many businesses want to test LinkedIn Ads without risking a large budget. £500 is a realistic entry point, but it must be managed carefully because LinkedIn clicks are more expensive than other platforms. Below is the exact structure I would use to get the most value.

Step 1: Allocate Your Budget Wisely

I would spend the £500 across one month. This gives LinkedIn enough time to optimise. I would allocate:

  • £350 towards a lead generation campaign

  • £150 towards a supporting website visit campaign

The lead generation campaign captures high intent leads while the traffic campaign feeds the algorithm with engagement signals and warms up your audience.

Step 2: Target a Broader but Relevant Audience

One of the biggest mistakes with small budgets is narrowing targeting too much. If your audience is overly specific LinkedIn raises your costs. With £500 I would choose a broader but still relevant audience. For example instead of targeting “senior finance directors at companies with 200 plus employees”, I would target “finance professionals with relevant skills and job titles in selected industries”.

This reduces cost without weakening lead quality.

Step 3: Use a Single Strong Offer

LinkedIn users respond to clarity and value. I would create one strong offer such as:

  • A free downloadable guide

  • A free audit

  • A free consultation

  • A free industry report

The offer must feel professional and not salesy because LinkedIn users are cautious of overt advertising.

Step 4: Use LinkedIn Lead Gen Forms

I always use LinkedIn’s native lead forms for small budgets because they convert significantly better than external landing pages. LinkedIn autofills user information which reduces friction and increases submission rates.

With £350 allocated to lead gen at an estimated cost per lead of £30 to £60 you can expect between 6 and 12 leads. If your niche is expensive you may get fewer but higher value leads.

Step 5: Use the Website Visit Campaign for Retargeting

The £150 traffic campaign warms up your audience. I would drive traffic to a high quality blog or case study relevant to your offer. The goal is not sales but familiarity. Once these users engage, they become ideal candidates for your lead gen ads.

Retargeting this warm audience usually reduces lead costs.

Step 6: Evaluate Results and Reinvest

After 30 days I would analyse:

  • which audiences produced leads

  • how many leads converted

  • which ads had the highest engagement

  • which messaging performed best

Based on this I would refine the next £500 round by narrowing audiences, improving creative and focusing on the best performing offer.

In my opinion this approach gives realistic expectations while maximising the limited budget.

How Your Industry Affects LinkedIn Costs

LinkedIn is not equal across industries. Costs vary dramatically depending on how competitive your niche is. High value sectors such as software, consultancy, recruitment, finance, legal services and B2B technology consistently attract the highest costs. This happens because these industries naturally bid more since the value of a single lead or client is high.

On the other hand industries such as training, wellness, education, property or local services sometimes see lower costs because their bidding competition is more moderate. Understanding your industry landscape helps set expectations. In my experience some businesses expect Meta level lead costs and become discouraged too quickly. LinkedIn leads are more expensive but they are also higher intent and usually higher value.

Improving Your LinkedIn Ad Results Without Increasing Costs

Costs can be lowered through strategy not just budget. These are the levers I believe offer the biggest impact.

Improve Your Creative

Ads with clear visuals, professional tone and concise messaging perform far better. LinkedIn users do not respond well to overly promotional language. They prefer clarity, authority and value.

Refine Your Offer

The offer is the foundation. If your lead magnet is weak costs rise. Offers that solve a specific problem or deliver a measurable benefit work best.

Strengthen Your Targeting

Too broad and you attract irrelevant clicks. Too narrow and LinkedIn increases your cost. The perfect audience is a balance between relevance and affordability.

Optimise Your Campaign Structure

Do not run multiple campaigns at once with a small budget. Focus on one strong lead gen campaign supported by a small warm traffic campaign.

Analyse Your Data Weekly

Look at click through rates, relevance scores, impressions and lead quality. Make changes early rather than wasting your entire budget.

How Long It Takes to See Results

LinkedIn campaigns do not behave like Meta campaigns where results appear quickly. The platform often requires one to two weeks of learning before performance becomes stable. Your first five to ten days may look expensive or inconsistent. This is normal. After the learning phase LinkedIn begins to optimise based on audience behaviour.

In my opinion many businesses give up too soon. LinkedIn ads work best with consistency and patience. One strong campaign run for eight to twelve weeks often outperforms several short experiments.

When LinkedIn Advertising Is Worth the Cost

LinkedIn advertising is most effective when:

  • your audience includes professionals or decision makers

  • your service or product has a high value

  • your customer journey includes research or comparison

  • you have strong content or thought leadership

  • your sales process benefits from qualified leads

If your business model relies on local consumers or impulse purchases LinkedIn will likely feel expensive. If your business relies on professional interest or B2B relationships LinkedIn becomes incredibly powerful.

When LinkedIn Advertising Is Not Worth the Cost

LinkedIn may not be the right platform if:

  • your customer lifetime value is low

  • your audience is purely consumer based

  • you cannot produce professional content

  • you have no clear offer

  • you have no sales process to follow up leads

In these cases Meta or Google often deliver better returns.

Bringing Everything Together

When I look at LinkedIn advertising as a whole I believe it is a premium platform that offers premium opportunities. It is more expensive than Meta but also far more targeted. It is slower to optimise but more predictable once you find the right audience. It requires better content but rewards clarity and professionalism. In short LinkedIn advertising works brilliantly when it is aligned with a professional audience and a thoughtful offer.

If you approach LinkedIn Ads with realistic expectations, strong creative and a data driven plan the platform can deliver high quality leads consistently. If I were starting with £500 I would follow the structure I outlined earlier because it balances risk with opportunity. A well crafted lead generation campaign supported by strategic traffic warming is one of the most reliable ways to extract value from a limited budget.

We have also written in depth articles on How to Advertise on Linkedin and Common mistakes businesses make with LinkedIn Ads as well as our Linkedin Advertising Guidance Hub to give you further guidance.