How To Use LinkedIn Sales Navigator To Generate Leads (2025 Guide)
You want to know how to use Sales Navigator to find and reach qualified leads?
You're in the right place!

In this guide, you’ll learn:
What Sales Navigator is
What Sales Navigator Plans is the best for you
How to find qualified leads
How to find warm leads quickly
Best Practices on LinkedIn Sales Navigator
👉 Want the video version instead?
What Is LinkedIn Sales Navigator?
LinkedIn Sales Navigator is a paid tool for to source your leads.
It helps you find, filter, and contact your ideal leads faster than with regular LinkedIn.

What Can You Do With Sales Navigator?
Here’s what makes Sales Navigator useful:
Search with 30+ advanced filters (location, role, company size, etc.)
Get alerts when they change jobs or post
See who viewed your profile
Send InMails to people outside your network
Differences Between Free LinkedIn and Sales Navigator
Free LinkedIn is for networking.
Sales Navigator is for sales.
Here’s how they compare:
Feature | Free LinkedIn | Sales Navigator |
Advanced Search Filters | ❌ | ✅ |
Lead Recommendations | ❌ | ✅ |
InMail Credits | ❌ | ✅ |
Account and Lead Lists | ❌ | ✅ |
CRM Integration | ❌ | ✅ |
What Sales Navigator Plan Is Best for You?
LinkedIn offers three plans: Core, Advanced, and Enterprise.
If you're serious about lead gen on LinkedIn, this is the best database out there. Better than any B2B list.
And most importantly:
You have the freshest data on the market with Sales Navigator (99% of the B2B data comes from LinkedIn Sales Navigator)
You can leverage intent data to get warm leads
Here are the different Sales Navigator plans.

Sales Navigator Core
Price: ~$99/month
Annual pricing: $959.88/year ($79.99/month)
You get:
Advanced lead and company search
Lead and account saving
Alerts on job changes, posts, etc.
50 InMails/month
✅ For 99% of users, Sales Navigator Core is more than enough.
Sales Navigator Advanced
Price: ~$179/month
Annual pricing: $1,679.88/year ($139.99/month)
You get everything in Core, plus:
Shared lead lists
CRM integrations
TeamLink to see shared connections
✅ Sales Navigator advanced is best for sales teams with multiple reps.
Sales Navigator Enterprise
Price: Custom (usually $1,000+ / year per seat)
You get everything in Advanced, plus:
Enterprise-grade integrations
API access
Admin controls and advanced reporting
✅ Sales Navigator Enterprise is ideal for large companies with big sales orgs.
Plan Feature Comparison
Plan | Best for | InMails/month | Lead & Account Lists | CRM & Integrations | Advanced Features |
Core | 99% of users | 50 | Basic lists | Limited integrations | – |
Advanced | Big sales teams | 50 | Shared lead lists | CRM integrations | TeamLink (shared connections) |
Advanced Plus | Enterprises | Custom | Scalable lead management | Full CRM sync + API access | Admin tools, access control, custom features |
👉 If you want more details, you can check the video about the best Sales Navigator plans:
How To Use LinkedIn Sales Navigator To Find High-Quality Leads
Sales Navigator isn't just about more filters. It's about using them smartly.
Here's how to find the exact people you want to sell to:
Use the Lead Filters
Sales Navigator gives you 30+ filters to laser-focus your search.

Here are the details of all the lead filters:
Filter | Usefulness | What It Does / Why It’s Useful | Example |
---|---|---|---|
Current company | ★☆☆ | Target leads working at a specific company | Find all employees at HubSpot |
Company headcount | ★★★ | Filter by company size (helps qualify budget) | Target companies with 51–200 employees |
Past company | ★☆☆ | Find leads who used to work at a specific company | Former Google employees |
Company type | ★☆☆ | Choose between public, private, non-profit, etc. | Target only public companies |
Company HQ location | ★★☆ | Filter by where the company is based | Target companies headquartered in Paris |
Function | ★☆☆ | Filter by job function (Marketing, Sales...) | Find all leads in the "Operations" function |
Current job title | ★★★ | Target by job title (ideal for decision-makers) | "CMO", "Head of Sales", "Founder" |
Seniority level | ★☆☆ | Target C-level, Managers, Entry level... | Target only VP and above |
Past job title | ★☆☆ | Useful for career path targeting | Former SDRs now in leadership |
Years in current company | ★★☆ | Spot newcomers or loyal employees (Decision Makers) | Less than 1 year = Newcomer = Open to change |
Years in current position | ★★☆ | Identify recently promoted leads | New Head of Marketing |
Geography | ★★★ | Filter by where the person is located | France, US, Dubai... |
Industry | ★★☆ | Qualify based on company’s industry | Target only Fintech or SaaS companies |
First name | ★☆☆ | Rarely used unless personal targeting | Leads named "John" |
Last name | ★☆☆ | Same as above, very niche targeting | Leads named "Smith" |
Profile language | ★★☆ | Useful for multilingual targeting | French-speaking leads in Canada |
Years of experience | ★★☆ | Qualify by total work experience | More than 10 years = senior profile |
Groups | ★☆☆ | Filter by LinkedIn groups joined | Members of "B2B SaaS Leaders" |
School | ★☆☆ | Alumni-based targeting | Target HEC or Stanford alumni |
Following your company | ★★★ | Shows interest—warm lead signal | Prospects already following your page |
Viewed your profile recently | ★★★ | Hot signal—reach out fast | They saw you = they’re curious |
Connection | ★★★ | 1st, 2nd, or 3rd degree connection | Prioritize 1st and 2nd for better reply rate |
Connections of | ★★★ | Great to mine competitors’ or clients’ networks | “Connections of John from Agency X” |
Past colleague | ★☆☆ | Build rapport via shared past experience | Used to work at the same company as you |
Share experiences | ★☆☆ | Shared school, group, or past company | Build trust with shared background |
Changed jobs | ★★★ | New role = New budget = New opportunities | Prospect just became Head of Ops |
Posted on LinkedIn | ★★★ | Active users = more likely to reply | Engaged leads = warm leads |
Persona | ★☆☆ | Predefined buyer persona filter | Filter all "Tech decision-makers" persona |
Account lists | ★★★ | Filter leads based on saved companies | Show only leads from my “Top 100 targets” |
Lead lists | ★★★ | Focus outreach on saved contacts | Show only people in "Q2 CMO list" |
People in CRM | ★★☆ | Sync CRM data (Advanced/Enterprise only) | Show leads already in Salesforce |
People you interacted with | ★☆☆ | Keep track of people you’ve messaged | Follow up with warm contacts |
Saved leads and accounts | ★☆☆ | Segment and prioritize your targets | Re-engage saved leads from last campaign |
It's a lot, but most of them are not useful. You will see later what filters are the best to find qualified leads.
How to Identify a CEO or Founder
In the "Current job title" filter, the best way to identify a CEO or founder is to use a boolean search.

You can use this boolean search to use this job title filter trick:
"CEO" OR "Founder" OR "Co-Founder" NOT "Assistant"
✅ This boolean search finds founders whether they write “CEO”, “Founder” or "Co-Founder".
👉 We made a video on how to identify CEO or founder on LinkedIn Sales Navigator:
How to Identify Chief Marketing Officer
In the "Current job title" filter, you can use this boolean in the job title filter to find Chief Marketing Officer:
"Chief Marketing Officer" OR "CMO" NOT "Part Time" NOT "Fractional"
✅ This boolean search finds founders whether they write “CMO”, “Chief marketing officer”.
👉 We made a video on how to identify CMO on LinkedIn Sales Navigator:
How to Identify Head of Sales
In the "Current job title" filter, you can use this boolean in the job title filter to find Head of sales:
"Head of sales" OR "Sales Director" NOT "Marketing"
✅ This boolean search finds founders whether they write “Head of sales”, “Sales Director” or "Co-Founder".
👉 We made a video on how to identify Head of Sales on LinkedIn Sales Navigator:
How to Save Your Lead Search
Once you’ve set your filters, don’t lose them. Click on “Save Search to get notified of new results".
When new leads match your criteria, Sales Navigator notifies you.

You can manage your saved searches by clicking on "Manage saved searches".

📺 If you want an in-depth video on how to save your search on LinkedIn Sales Navigator, you can check this video:
How to Use Boolean Search
One of the best ways to target your leads with Sales Navigator is to use the boolean operators.
You can use Boolean operators in:
Job title
Keywords search

Here's how they work:
Operator | What It Does | Example |
---|---|---|
| Includes both terms |
|
| Includes either term |
|
| Excludes specific terms |
|
| Searches for an exact phrase |
|
| Groups terms for complex searches |
|
👉 You can see a video tutorial on how to use boolean operators on LinkedIn Sales Navigator:
How to Create a Lead List
You’ve found good leads? It's time to save them in a lead list.
You can save specific leads in a list by clicking on the box next to the lead:

Or you can click on "Select all" to select the 25 leads of the page:

Then, you click on "Save to list", "Create new list":

To create a lead list, choose a List name, list description and click on "Create and save":

If you want to add leads in the list, you just need to select the leads and select your list.
You will have the number of leads in it.

You have to go on the next page to add the next 25 leads.
Unfortunately, you have to repeat this process page by page :/
👉 If you want to have a video tutorial on how to create a lead lists, you have this video:
How to Export Your Competitors' Leads
On Sales Navigator, you can target people connected to your competitors.
Here's how:
Use the “Connections of” filter
Add your competitor’s profile
Add filters like "Current job title" or "Geography"
⚠️ Pro tip: You must be 1st-degree connected with the competitor. Otherwise, it won’t work.

👉 If you want to have a video tutorial on how to create a list of leads from your competitors, you can watch this video:
How to Export Your Profile Viewers
Sales Navigator can show you who viewed your profile recently (last 90 days). These are warm leads because they might have a good idea of who you are and what you do.
If you want to identify them:
click on "Viewed your profile recently"
Add filters like "Current job title"
Oh and by the way, it's one of the quickest way to book sales calls with qualified leads.

👉 If you want to have a video tutorial on how to export your profile viewers, you can watch this video:
How to Exclude Clients & Competitors From Search Results
You want a clean lists? A best practice is to exclude people you already work with. Or your competitors.
Here’s how:
Create a list with your clients or competitors
When searching, click “Exclude from lists”
Select the list you created


👉 If you want to learn how to exclude your competitors or clients, you can watch this video:
How to Export Leads From Sales Navigator
Follow the 7 steps to export your leads from LinkedIn Sales Navigator with their verified emails:
Create a GiveMeLeads account
Download the Chrome Extension
Select your target on LinkedIn Sales Navigator
Add Intent Data (Optional)
Launch your export
Schedule Your Leads Export (Optional)
Download your leads file
Let's dive in!
Step 1: Create a GiveMeLeads account
Go on GiveMeLeads. Then click on "Get first 10 leads for free".
Then, you have to write your:
First Name
Last Name
Email
Password
And click on "Create account".

Step 2: Download the Chrome Extension
The GiveMeLeads Chrome extension allows you to export your LinkedIn Sales Navigator leads with one click.
It's not mandatory to use it — you can also copy and paste the Sales Navigator search URL directly into the platform.
However, using the extension makes the process faster and easier, especially if you're just getting started.

Step 3: Select your target on LinkedIn Sales Navigator
Go to LinkedIn Sales Navigator.
Use filters to find your ideal leads (like job title, company size, or location).
Then click “Extract leads” using the GiveMeLeads extension or paste the search URL on the platform.

Step 4: Add Intent Data (Optional)
Depending on your GiveMeLeads plan, you can add intent data to your searches.
It’s a great way to find warm leads — people who are more likely to reply or book a call.
Let’s say your LinkedIn Sales Navigator filters are:
Company size: 51–200 employees
Job title: “Head of Sales”
Location: San Francisco Bay Area
On top of that, GiveMeLeads will look for people who match these filters and show intent, such as:
1st-degree connections
People in your competitors’ network
People who follow your company page
People who viewed your LinkedIn profile
Once you’ve selected your intent data sources, click “Save Changes”

💡 Pro tip: You can set priorities for each source. For example, you can give more weight to 1st-degree connections than profile viewers.
💡Pro tip #2: If you work with multiple sales reps (or co-founders), you can use all of their LinkedIn accounts to get more and better leads. Each account brings its own network, 1st-degree connections, and profile viewers — which means more warm leads for your team.
Step 5: Launch your export
You target is set up. Now it's time to export your leads.
For that, click on "New Leads Export".

You will get a pop-up where you can select:
The number of leads you want to export
If you want to schedule this export on a weekly basis.
Then click on "Export Leads".

Step 6: Schedule Your Leads Export (Optional)
GiveMeLeads lets you schedule lead exports. Pick the day you want, and you’ll receive fresh leads weekly.
Once set up, you'll get a fresh list of leads every week — automatically.
Each lead is unique, and the system ensures there are no duplicates. This saves you time and keeps your CRM clean, so you can focus on outreach, not data cleaning.

Then, you’ll automatically receive new leads every week — no manual work needed.
You can focus 100% on what really matters: sending emails, starting LinkedIn conversations, and booking meetings.

💡 Pro tip: With scheduled exports, you can easily build lead files with more than 2,500 fresh, qualified contacts delivered straight to your inbox every week.
Step 7: Download your leads file
When your export is finished, you’ll receive an email with a download link.

You can also download your file directly by clicking the "Download" button in your dashboard. You’ll see two options.

"Open in Sheets"
This gives you a simple version of your lead list.
You have:
Source (Sales Navigator, 1st-degree, profile viewers…)
First Name
Last Name
Profile picture
Company name
Job title
Headline
LinkedIn URL
Email
It doesn’t include all the data, but it’s perfect if you just want to import leads into your CRM or outreach tool like Lemlist or Expandi.

"Download CSV"
This gives you the full file with all available data. For each lead, you’ll see extra info like:
Whether they have LinkedIn Premium
Their total years of experience
Company details like size, industry, and location
Etc
Here's all the informations you can have:
filters | source | source_info | first_name | last_name | linkedin_url | linkedin_id | email_status | job_title | location | profile_picture_url | recent_posts_count | connection_degree | is_premium | is_open | headline | summary | current_companies_count | company_name | company_linkedin_id | company_website | company_location | company_industry | company_employee_count | company_employee_count_range | company_type | company_year_founded | company_specialties | company_description | duration_in_company | duration_in_role | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
VALID | Sales Navigator | John | Smith | ACwAAAEXAMPLE1 | Verified | CEO | New York, United States | 2 | FIRST_DEGREE | TRUE | TRUE | Helping SaaS startups scale faster | CEO at NovaTech | Experienced CEO passionate about B2B SaaS, growth marketing, and building winning sales teams. | 1 | NovaTech | 123456 | New York, United States | Information Technology | 45 | 11-50 | PRIVATELY_HELD | 2015 | B2B SaaS;Sales Automation;CRM Tools | NovaTech builds modern tools to help sales teams close more deals, faster. | 36 months | 36 months | |||||
VALID | Sales Navigator | Emily | Johnson | ACwAAAEXAMPLE2 | Verified | CMO | Chicago, Illinois, United States | 3 | SECOND_DEGREE | TRUE | FALSE | Marketing Leader at BrightWave | Helping brands grow with storytelling | I lead the marketing team at BrightWave, combining creative storytelling with strategy. | 1 | BrightWave | 654321 | Chicago, Illinois, United States | Marketing and Advertising | 85 | 51-100 | PRIVATELY_HELD | 2012 | Brand Strategy;Content Marketing;Digital Ads | BrightWave helps businesses shine with strategic marketing and bold storytelling. | 60 months | 48 months |
💡 Pro tip: Don’t forget to scroll horizontally — there's a lot of valuable data in your lead file, including job titles, company size, verified emails, and even intent signals.
On top of that, GiveMeLeads automatically cleans your data:
Fixes capital letters in names and job titles
Removes emojis from job titles
Removes legal suffixes in company names (like LLC, GmbH, etc.)
Field | Before | After |
---|---|---|
First Name | john | John |
Job Title | 🚀 CEO & Founder | CEO & Founder |
Company Name | Stripe GmbH | Stripe |

GiveMeLeads also checks if each lead matches your LinkedIn Sales Navigator filters.
If a lead doesn’t fit — for example, they have:
An invalid job title
Invalid location
Wrong company size work
Etc
We tag them in the column "filters" with the reason they’re invalid (like “Invalid job title” or “Wrong company size”).
That way, you keep full control of your data and don’t waste time guessing why a lead doesn’t match your targeting.

👉 If you want to have a video tutorial on how to get emails from LinkedIn Sales Navigator, you can check this video:
What Data Can You Export from LinkedIn Sales Navigator?
You can get 3 types of data you can get when your export leads from LinkedIn Sales Navigator.
Profile information
Company details
Verified emails
Let's dive in!
Profile Information
With GiveMeLeads, every export includes essential profile data:
Data | Example |
---|---|
Source | Competitor's network |
Source Info | Marc Dupont |
First Name | Emily |
Last Name | Clark |
LinkedIn URL | https://www.linkedin.com/in/emilyclark |
LinkedIn ID | ACoAAAXyz123 |
emily@company.com | |
Email Status | Verified |
Job Title | VP of Sales |
Location | San Francisco Bay Area |
Profile Picture URL | https://media.licdn.com/pic.jpg |
Recent Posts Count | 3 |
Connection Degree | 2nd-degree |
Premium Profile | Yes |
Open Profile | Yes |
Headline | Driving growth at B2B SaaS companies |
Summary | 15 years in B2B sales & marketing |
# of Current Companies | 1 |
Duration in Company | 2 years 3 months |
Duration in Role | 1 year 6 months |
This information identifies each lead clearly.
Company details
GiveMeLeads goes beyond basic LinkedIn profile scraping.
It also pulls detailed company data for every lead, giving you both personal and business-level insights in a single export.
Data | Example |
---|---|
Company Name | SaaSify |
Company LinkedIn ID | 12345678 |
Company Website | https://www.saasify.com |
Company Location | New York, NY |
Company Industry | Software Development |
Company Employee Count | 120 |
Company Size Range | 51-200 employees |
Company Type | Private |
Year Founded | 2016 |
Specialties | CRM, Automation, Lead Gen |
Company Description | We help B2B teams close more deals |
Verified emails
On LinkedIn, you can sometimes find a lead’s email by clicking on their Contact Info — but that only works if they’re a 1st-degree connection. And even then, most people don’t add their email to their profile.

So if you’re doing outreach at scale, you’ll need another solution.
With GiveMeLeads, you get the verified professional email of every lead — even if they’re in your 2nd or 3rd-degree connections.

💡 Pro tip: No need to use separate tools to find or verify emails. Everything’s already cleaned, verified, and ready to go.
Best Practices on LinkedIn Sales Navigator
Here are the top strategies to get qualified leads from LinkedIn Sales Navigator.
The 5 Best Filters to Use
These five filters give you the most qualified results, fast:
"Company Headcount"
Target companies based on size.
You won’t pitch a 10-person startup the same way you pitch a 500-employee enterprise"Current job title"
This is your go-to for finding decision-makers.
Pro tip: use Boolean logic to catch all job title variations (like “VP Sales,” “Head of Sales,” etc.)"Posted on LinkedIn"
Want leads that are active and responsive?
This filter shows people who’ve posted in the last 30 days."Geography"
Useful for local prospecting or targeting specific regions with better buying power."Company Industry"
Not all industries are created equal. Some are cash-rich. Others aren’t.
Target Leads Who Have Money
If you're tired to reach out to leads who don't have money, it's time to target leads who can afford your product or service.
Here’s the best LinkedIn Sales Navigator filters to find them:
"Current job title":
C-level execs = decision-makers + budget holders.
Also target professions with high income (lawyers, dentists, consultants)."Geography":
Focus on countries or regions with higher average salaries (e.g., US, UK, Switzerland)."Company Headcount":
Bigger companies tend to have bigger budgets."Company Industry":
Some industries just pay better. Like finance, insurance, legal, tech or banking.
For that, select these filters on the "Lead page":

Then, select this filter on the "Account page":

The idea: Don’t just look for leads. Look for leads with money.
👉 If you want to watch a tutorial on how to target leads who have money, here is a video:
Target Companies That Have Money
Sometimes it’s not about the person. It’s about the company.
Here’s how to spot companies that are likely to spend:
"Company Headcount"
Larger orgs often have more budgets and resources to buy."Company Industry"
Target cash-rich industries: banking, insurance, tech, law, healthcare."Company Headcount Growth"
If the company is growing fast, chances are they’re investing heavily. So it means they have money."Job Opportunities (Hiring on LinkedIn)"
If a company is actively hiring, they’re scaling. And likely open to buying new tools or services.
These signals = these companies have money.
👉 If you want to watch a tutorial on how to target companies who have money, here is a video:
Leverage Intent Data
Here’s where Sales Navigator becomes a game-changer.
It's one of the only place where you can real intent data.
Use these filters and alerts to catch leads at the right moment:
"Following your company"
Someone’s showing interest. Maybe they’re interested by what you do."Viewed your profile recently"
They checked you out. Time to check them out. These are warm leads."Connections (1st-degree network)"
Your existing connections are more likely to reply.
You can also leverage mutual connections for warm intros."Connections of [a person]"
A killer way to mine your competitor’s network or a past client’s contacts."Changed jobs recently"
When people start new roles, they often have budget and are open to change."Posted on LinkedIn"
If they’re active, they’re more likely to see your message.
Engage with their post before sending a DM for a natural entry point.
Use these triggers to send messages at the perfect time.
It’s not just about who you reach out to. It’s when you do it.
FAQ
Is LinkedIn Sales Navigator worth it?
Yes. If you're sourcing leads regularly.
The advanced filters, saved searches, and alerts make it the best tool for find qualified leads.
If you’re serious about outbound, it’s a the best investment.
How much does LinkedIn Sales Navigator cost?
It depends on the plan:
Core ($99/month or $959.88/year)
Advanced ($179/month or $1,679.88/year)
Enterprise (Custom but usually $1,000+ / year per seat)
💡 Good news: You can start with a free 1-month trial to test it out.
How can I export leads from Sales Navigator?
LinkedIn doesn’t let you export leads directly.
But you can use GiveMeLeads to extract your lead lists in seconds. And get the verified emails of your leads.
👉 Click here to export your leads from LinkedIn Sales Navigator