LinkedIn Ad Library: how to search it and use it for competitor research

The LinkedIn Ad Library (opens in a new tab) is LinkedIn’s free, public search of the ads that have run on LinkedIn. LinkedIn says anyone can use it, with or without a LinkedIn account, so it is the quickest way to see what a competitor advertises, how they word it and which formats they use. Here is how to search it, what it shows and leaves out, and a simple routine for turning what you find into better ads of your own.

How to search the LinkedIn Ad Library

1. 1Open linkedin.com/ad-library (opens in a new tab). You do not need to sign in.
2. 2Type a company or advertiser name, a payer name or a keyword.
3. 3Choose a country, or leave it on all countries.
4. 4Choose a date range.
5. 5Click Search, then open any ad to see its details.

LinkedIn’s help page on the Ad Library (opens in a new tab) lists the same filters: company or advertiser name, payer name, keyword, country and date range. For ads aimed at the European Union, the More button adds filters for impressions and targeting.

Search by company name first. Type the name as it appears on the competitor’s LinkedIn page. If nothing comes up, try a keyword from their offer instead, such as “GST software” or “industrial valves”: it also turns up advertisers you did not know about.

What the LinkedIn Ad Library shows

According to LinkedIn’s help page (opens in a new tab), each entry includes:

• a preview of the ad,
• the ad format,
• the advertiser’s name,
• the payer’s name,
• whether the ad is restricted.

For restricted ads, LinkedIn’s page (opens in a new tab) says the preview, advertiser name and payer name are not shown, to comply with the law. For ads targeted to the European Union, it adds information about impressions, targeting and the dates the ad ran.

How long ads stay. LinkedIn says an ad typically appears shortly after its first impression and remains in the Ad Library for one year after its last impression (LinkedIn Help (opens in a new tab)). Advertisers cannot opt out: the library’s own questions say so plainly (Ad Library (opens in a new tab)).

What it does not show

• Results. Nothing in LinkedIn’s list above covers spend, clicks or leads (what an entry includes (opens in a new tab)). You cannot tell from the library whether an ad worked.
• Targeting outside the EU. Who an ad was aimed at is shown only for ads targeted to the European Union.
• Brand partnerships as ads. The library also lets you search posts that creators labelled as brand partnerships, but its questions page says these “are organic member posts labeled by the creator, not LinkedIn ads” (Ad Library (opens in a new tab)).
• Job ads. Paid job posts are searched in LinkedIn’s separate Job Library.

How to use the LinkedIn Ad Library for competitor research

A short routine, once a month, is enough for most small businesses:

1. 1List five competitors and the two or three phrases buyers use for what you sell.
2. 2Search each competitor by name with the country set to India, then each phrase as a keyword.
3. 3Note the format of each ad: a single image, a video, a document, a carousel, or a message ad. The format tells you what they expect buyers to read.
4. 4Note the offer and the button. A free audit, a price list, a webinar, a demo, a catalogue download. The offer is usually the most useful thing you will learn.
5. 5Keep a swipe file: a sheet with the date, advertiser, format, offer and a screenshot of each ad worth remembering.
6. 6Write your own version. Do not copy words or pictures. Use what you saw to choose your format and sharpen your offer, then make the ad in your own voice.

Check your own ads too. Search your own company’s name now and then. You see what a buyer or a competitor sees, and you catch an old ad still running with last year’s price or a wrong phone number. Since advertisers cannot opt out, treat anything you run on LinkedIn as public for a year after its last impression.

Search the Ad Library from Fliok

With the LinkedIn add-on, LinkedIn → Ad Library in Fliok searches LinkedIn’s Ad Library through LinkedIn’s official API with your connected account, so the research sits next to your own ads (LinkedIn ads in Fliok).

• Three kinds of result: ads, job posts and brand partnerships.
• Filters: a keyword, the advertiser’s name (or the company’s, for job posts) and a country. The country list has 25 countries, starting with India.
• Periods: for ads and job posts, past 7 days, past 30 days, past 90 days or past year; for brand partnerships, past 24 hours, past 7 days, past 30 days or past year.

From the same place, LinkedIn ads in Fliok shows your own campaigns’ results for a period: spend, impressions, clicks, leads and conversions per campaign, next to the LinkedIn leads in your CRM and how many you won, and who saw the ads. You can pause or resume a campaign there, and create a Sponsored Content ad (a single image, a video, a document or a lead form ad) as a paused draft in your own Campaign Manager. Nothing spends until you publish it in LinkedIn. Reading results works for any LinkedIn ad account you can open. To create ads in an account, our team adds your ad account first, while LinkedIn reviews Fliok’s access to its ads tools: write to hello@fliok.com and we will add it.

If you want to start conversations rather than send people to a page, read LinkedIn conversation ads: Fliok AI can write one whose button opens a WhatsApp chat.

What it costs

The LinkedIn Ad Library itself is free. LinkedIn in Fliok is a paid add-on on the Basic plan and above: ₹499 a month in India, excluding 18% GST, or $9 a month outside India, about 10% less when paid yearly. Tick it while choosing your plan, or later in Plan & billing, under Add-ons; see the LinkedIn add-on on the pricing page. Then connect in Settings → Integrations → LinkedIn with LinkedIn’s own sign-in (how to connect LinkedIn). See LinkedIn for business for everything in the add-on.

Frequently asked questions

Is the LinkedIn Ad Library free to use?

Yes. LinkedIn’s Ad Library is a free, public page at linkedin.com/ad-library, and LinkedIn says anyone can use it, with or without a LinkedIn account.

How do I see a competitor’s ads on LinkedIn?

Open linkedin.com/ad-library, type the competitor’s company name, choose a country and a date range, and click Search. If nothing comes up, search a keyword from their offer instead.

Can I see how much a competitor spends on LinkedIn ads?

No. The library shows the ad, its format, the advertiser and the payer. For ads aimed at the European Union it adds impressions, targeting and the dates the ad ran, but it shows no spend, clicks or leads.

How long do ads stay in the LinkedIn Ad Library?

LinkedIn says an ad typically appears shortly after its first impression and stays for one year after its last impression on LinkedIn.

Can I hide my own ads from the LinkedIn Ad Library?

No. LinkedIn says advertisers are not able to opt out of ads showing in the Ad Library. Write every ad as if your competitors will read it, because they can.