By the tiswa editorial team, from the official sources listed at the end of this guide. How we write our guides
You open LinkedIn the night before a CV deadline and a screen offers a free month. You tap, add your card, and two weeks later you forget all about it. A month on, a charge shows up on your statement under a name you do not recognise. This happens with almost any digital subscription, and it usually comes down to two questions nobody asked before tapping: where will I cancel, and when does it renew?
How does a LinkedIn subscription work and how often does it renew?
LinkedIn’s FAQ page says you can pay monthly, quarterly or annually, that your membership renews at the end of each cycle, and that due dates appear on your account management page. It adds that quarterly billing is being rolled out gradually, so you may not see it.2 The same page lists the plans: Premium Career, Premium Business, an all-in-one plan, and plans for sales and recruiting. A student looking for an internship will usually care about the first one only. The rest are for people who sell or hire.
Free trials are for eligible members only, so a trial is not guaranteed on every account.2 If you buy on the LinkedIn site, LinkedIn emails your primary address before the trial ends. Do not rely on that email alone, since it can land in an inbox you never open.
Where do I cancel a LinkedIn subscription, depending on where I bought it?
Cancelling follows the place of purchase. Bought directly from LinkedIn, you cancel inside your account. Bought through Apple on a phone, you cancel in Apple settings. Bought through Google Play, you cancel there. Deleting the app does nothing, and Google Play says so plainly.4
| Where you bought it | Where you cancel | Note from the source |
|---|---|---|
| LinkedIn directly (computer) | Me icon, Premium features, Manage subscription, then Purchases and Cancel subscription | Steps from the LinkedIn Help page1 |
| LinkedIn directly (phone) | Your photo, Premium features, Manage your subscription, Cancel subscription | Labels can change between versions |
| Apple App Store | Settings, your name, Subscriptions, Cancel Subscription | If the button is missing, it is already cancelled3 |
| Google Play | Your subscriptions page in Google Play, then Cancel subscription | Uninstalling does not cancel4 |
Open the management page on the day you subscribe, not on the day you want out. That way you know the route, and you confirm that you bought where you think you bought.
When should I set the cancellation date for a LinkedIn subscription?
The cancellation page says to cancel at least one day before your next billing date to avoid another charge.1 Put your own deadline two days earlier, not a few hours, because outages and holidays happen. A paid plan stays active until the end of your current cycle, so cancelling early costs you nothing you paid for. A free trial is different: the features stop immediately on cancellation.1 Someone who cancels a trial on day one throws away the rest of the free days.
- Copy the renewal date at once
Open the subscription page, copy the next billing date into your calendar, and set a reminder two days before.
- Write your goal in one line
Example: I want to see who viewed my profile and message three firms in two weeks. With no goal, do not pay.
- Use the feature in week one
Every day you postpone using it is a day you pay for nothing.
- Decide two days before the date
If you reached the goal, cancel now. A cancelled paid plan keeps working to the end of the cycle.1
- Check afterwards
Open the management page and confirm it shows an end date rather than a renewal date.
Is a paid LinkedIn subscription worth it for a student?
It depends on your goal. If you are still building your profile, a paid plan will not fix a thin one, and you are better off starting free. Our guide to LinkedIn Premium for students covers what is free and how to use a trial. If your profile is ready and you have a list of firms to contact, a short paid period may save you time. First run the profile review to be sure the profile deserves to be seen.
| Question before paying | If yes | If no |
|---|---|---|
| Is my profile complete and reviewed? | Go to the next question | Finish it first, free of charge |
| Do I have a list of firms to apply to? | A short paid period may help | Postpone paying |
| Have I put the cancellation date in my calendar? | Start the trial | Do not start |
This table is our own decision aid, not a LinkedIn rule. We quote no price here because prices change and differ by country and plan. Read the price on the payment screen itself before you confirm.
What if I was charged after the trial ended?
For someone who forgot to cancel a trial, the LinkedIn cancellation page points to LinkedIn’s refund policy.1 Read that policy in full before you write to support, and keep a screenshot of the payment email and the charge date. If you bought through Apple or Google, the refund goes through them, not LinkedIn, and each has a support page for it.34 We do not quote a refund window here because it varies by plan and place of purchase. The policy page is the reference.
How do I keep my student subscriptions cheaper?
A LinkedIn plan rarely works alone. Next to it usually sit a CV tool and a design tool. Put every subscription in one list with its renewal date, and drop what you do not use. The student budget guide shows how to give subscriptions a small line of their own, and student discounts on software and services are in student deals.
What are the common mistakes with a LinkedIn subscription?
- Buying in the app, then hunting for the cancel button on the LinkedIn site, or the reverse.
- Trusting the reminder email instead of your calendar.
- Cancelling a trial on day one and losing its free days.1
- Deleting the app and assuming the plan has ended.4
- Subscribing with no written goal, then forgetting the paid features exist.
