How to Use LinkedIn Advanced Search?

Written By Alex Blackburne

Latest in Tech News, Reviews & Education

LinkedIn has several features that allow users to find and connect with potential customers, partners, and employees. One of the most powerful features of LinkedIn is its advanced search.

An Advanced Search can help you find the right people and companies for your business. You can use LinkedIn Advanced Search to discover people who work at a specific company, people with a certain job title, or those in a specific city. Moreover, it also allows you to search for companies by name or keyword.

If you are new to LinkedIn Advanced Search, you may be wondering how to use it effectively, and this guide will help you just do that.

How to effectively use LinkedIn Advanced Search – The Boolean Search

First, let’s start with a little bit of background on Boolean operators. Boolean operators are logical operators that allow you to combine multiple search terms to narrow or broaden your search results.

The three most common Boolean operators are AND, OR, and NOT.

  • AND: The AND operator is used to narrow your search results. When you use the AND operator, all of the terms that you specify must be present in the results for them to be included. 
  • OR: The OR operator is used to broaden your search results. When you use the OR operator, any of the terms that you specify can be present in the results for them to be included.
  • NOT: The NOT operator is used to exclude certain terms from your search results. When you use the NOT operator, any results that contain the term that you specify will be excluded.

Using the Advanced Search Operator: OR

People use various phrases to describe their professions and skills. The OR Boolean operator on LinkedIn allows you to search for people who have either of two specific keywords in their profile. A Java engineer’s profile might say “Java,” for instance, but they might also have “J2EE” or “JSP.” The idea of OR is supported by LinkedIn search, allowing you to have LinkedIn return users who have any one of those terms in their profiles.

Because for this reason, we need to search for “Java OR J2EE OR JSP” when looking for a Java engineer.

(Note that the word “OR” must be capitalized.)

Using the Advanced Search Operator: AND

Boolean search is a powerful way to find information on LinkedIn. The AND operator can be used to connect keywords in a search string. For example, the following search will return all profiles that contain both the words “marketing” and “sales”:
“marketing” AND “sales.”

AND is a powerful operator when it comes to Advanced Search. In the above JAVA engineer example, we can use it in various ways. For example, if I want to search for a JAVA engineer with five years of experience, I can use the following query: JAVA engineer AND 5 years. This will return results for JAVA engineers with five years of experience.

Using the Advanced Search Operator: NOT

The third and last Boolean search function is NOT, which is a challenging but effective operator. It cannot be used alone, but when combined with other terms, it will remove anyone with that term in their profile from your search results.

Here’s a quick rundown of how the “NOT” operator works on LinkedIn.

When you use this operator, it allows you to exclude certain keywords from your search. For example, if you’re looking for a job in the marketing field, you might use the following search: “marketing NOT entry-level” to exclude any entry-level marketing jobs from the results.

You can also use the “NOT” operator to exclude people with certain job titles, companies, or skills. To use the “NOT” operator, simply type the word “NOT” in capital letters followed by the keyword you want to exclude.

Some other examples of how you can use the “NOT” operator: 

  • “job NOT entry level”
  • “company NOT XYZ”
  • “skill NOT XYZ”

Related Questions

Does LinkedIn Basic have advanced search?

LinkedIn Basic does have advanced search functionality. The search bar can find specific people, groups, or companies. The feature also allows you to use filters to narrow your search results.

How do I run a Boolean search on LinkedIn?

To run a Boolean search on LinkedIn, you’ll need to use the advanced search features. To do this, go to the LinkedIn search bar and enter your search terms. You can also specify which LinkedIn members you want to search for, such as those in your network or in a particular location. Make use of Boolean operators like “and,” “or” and “not” to create more specific queries. Boolean searches can be a great way to find specific members or to find members with specific skills or interests. 

Key Takeaway

There are a few different ways that you can use LinkedIn Advanced Search to your advantage. You can use it to find old colleagues, research potential employers, or create new business connections. Linkedin Advanced Search is also great for finding experts from your field, or even new job openings. Whatever your reason for using LinkedIn Advanced Search, it is a powerful tool that can help you find the information or connections you are looking for.

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