Most LinkedIn statistics pages recycle numbers with no date and no source. This one doesn't. Every figure below is quoted exactly as published, says what it measures, gives the date of the page it comes from, and links to that page. We checked every link on 31 October 2026.
Our sourcing rule: statistics published by LinkedIn itself (its Pressroom, marketing blog, engineering blog and B2B Institute research), plus Forrester, Edelman and Factors.ai figures as reported on LinkedIn's or Factors.ai's own pages. If a figure wasn't on a page we could load, it isn't here.
Reach and audience
- More than 1.3 billion: professionals served by the LinkedIn Feed. Source: LinkedIn Engineering Blog, 12 March 2026 (link).
- More than 100 million: verified professionals on LinkedIn. Source: LinkedIn Marketing Blog, NewFronts 2026 recap, 31 March 2026 (link).
- 70%: growth in the number of founders on LinkedIn. Source: LinkedIn Pressroom, 2026 (link).
- 26%: increase since 2019 in the share of members reporting more than one ongoing position. Source: LinkedIn Pressroom, 2026 (link).
- More than 80%: of LinkedIn creators are building content alongside another role. Source: LinkedIn Pressroom, 2026 (link).
- 1.5×: how much more likely directors and above at Fortune 500 companies are to watch events on LinkedIn than other members (LinkedIn internal data, 2025). Source: LinkedIn Marketing Blog, 31 March 2026 (link).
What this means for founders
Your buyers are already on the platform, and so are a growing number of founders competing for their attention. Being present isn't enough; you need a reason to be remembered. See Does LinkedIn Content Actually Generate Leads for B2B Founders?.
Buyer behaviour
- 5%: of potential customers in a category are actively in market at any time (the 95-5 rule). Source: LinkedIn Marketing Blog, LinkedIn and Edelman research, 29 February 2024 (link).
- 68% and 80%: 68% of B2B buyers start their purchase process with a vendor they already prefer, and 80% go on to buy from that vendor (Forrester). Source: LinkedIn Marketing Blog, 7 October 2026 (link).
- 20 times: how much more likely vendors are to be chosen when the entire buying group knows and trusts the brand at the start, compared with only the technical champion (LinkedIn and Bain). Source: LinkedIn B2B Institute, 11 June 2026 (link).
- 81% vs 4%: 81% of purchases were from vendors almost everyone in the buying group already knew; 4% came from vendors known only to the recommending function. Source: LinkedIn B2B Institute, 11 June 2026 (link).
- 40%: of deals stall because the buying group cannot agree, not because a competitor won. Source: LinkedIn B2B Institute, 11 June 2026 (link).
- 49% and 51%: share of buying group decision influence held by hidden buyers (finance, legal, procurement) and by target buyers respectively (B2B Institute with NewtonX and Bain). Source: LinkedIn Marketing Blog, 21 April 2025 (link).
- 3 times: how much more likely buyers are to choose a vendor heavily recommended by peers or customers over one promising a better product or lower price. Source: LinkedIn B2B Institute, 11 June 2026 (link).
What this means for founders
Most buyers aren't in market today, and they buy from names the whole committee already knows. Content that reaches the wider buying group early is how you get onto the shortlist. See How to Turn LinkedIn Posts Into Sales Calls.
Content and thought leadership
- 52% and 54%: of decision-makers and C-suite executives respectively spend an hour or more each week reading thought leadership. Source: LinkedIn and Edelman research, 29 February 2024 (link).
- 75%: of decision-makers and C-suite executives say a piece of thought leadership led them to research a product or service they were not previously considering. Source: LinkedIn and Edelman research, 29 February 2024 (link).
- 70%: of C-suite leaders say thought leadership has at least occasionally led them to question whether to keep an existing supplier. Source: LinkedIn and Edelman research, 29 February 2024 (link).
- 15%: of respondents described the overall quality of thought leadership they read as very good. Source: LinkedIn and Edelman research, 29 February 2024 (link).
- 95%: of hidden buyers say compelling thought leadership makes them more open to sales and marketing outreach. Source: LinkedIn Marketing Blog, 29 September 2026 (link).
What this means for founders
Decision-makers read thought leadership, and most of what they read isn't very good. That gap is the opportunity. A clear, specific point of view from the founder stands out. See The Influx Authority Engine.
Video
- 78% and 56%: of B2B marketers already use video, and plan to increase their use in the next year, respectively (LinkedIn 2025 B2B Marketing Benchmark). Source: LinkedIn Marketing Blog, 6 January 2026 (link).
- 20x: how much more likely videos are to be shared than any other post on LinkedIn. Source: LinkedIn Marketing Blog, 6 January 2026 (link).
- 130% and 23%: higher video completion rate and higher view rate for BrandLink ads compared with standard video ads, on average (platform data, July 2024 to January 2025). Source: LinkedIn Pressroom, 30 April 2025 (link).
- Up to 18%: how much more likely members who view BrandLink ads are to become a lead. Source: LinkedIn Pressroom, 30 April 2025 (link).
What this means for founders
Video is growing, but it isn't the only route to authority. If camera time isn't realistic for you, written posts built on your expertise still do the work. See What Is Influx?.
AI search
- 94%: of buying groups use large language models such as ChatGPT or Gemini before talking to sales. Source: LinkedIn B2B Institute, 19 June 2026 (link).
- 94%: of buyers use AI during their buying process (Forrester). Source: LinkedIn Marketing Blog, 29 September 2026 (link).
- 90%: of B2B marketing and enterprise leaders say AI search is a top priority (Forrester). Source: LinkedIn Marketing Blog, 11 August 2026 (link).
- Up to 60%: decline in non-branded search traffic to LinkedIn's own marketing sites. Source: LinkedIn Marketing Blog, 11 August 2026 (link).
What this means for founders
Buyers now ask AI for a shortlist before they ask a salesperson. Clear, specific, well-sourced posts on your profile give those tools something to cite. See LinkedIn's October 2026 Update: What the Network Feed, Pinned Comments and Creator Dashboard Mean for Founders.
Sales cycle
- 124 days: average time sustained LinkedIn engagement starts before deal creation. Source: Factors.ai, 14 October 2026 (link).
- 17 percentage points: lift in win rates from reaching 6 or more contacts before a deal is created in the CRM (Factors.ai). Source: LinkedIn Marketing Blog, 24 September 2026 (link).
- 2.4x: higher win rates for companies pairing LinkedIn Ads with organic LinkedIn activity than for paid campaigns alone (Factors.ai). Source: LinkedIn Marketing Blog, 24 September 2026 (link).
- 34% and 1.6x: higher average contract value for LinkedIn-sourced deals, and LinkedIn return on ad spend of 1.6x against 1.18x for Google (Factors.ai). Source: LinkedIn Marketing Blog, 24 September 2026 (link).
- 55.6%: of closed deals engaged zero new contacts during the active sales cycle. Source: Factors.ai, 14 October 2026 (link).
- 27.1% and 49.5%: share of documented lost deal value caused by account disengagement, overall and on deals between $250K and $1M. Source: Factors.ai, 14 October 2026 (link).
What this means for founders
LinkedIn influence starts months before a deal shows up, so judge it over quarters, not weeks. See How Long Does LinkedIn Content Take to Get Clients? and How to Measure the ROI of LinkedIn Content.
How we sourced these statistics
- Each statistic was read on its source page on 31 October 2026, and the page loaded at the time.
- Figures are quoted as published. We haven't rounded, combined or extrapolated them.
- Where LinkedIn reports another firm's research (Forrester, Edelman, Bain, Factors.ai), we name both.
- Dates are the publication dates of the linked pages, with the data period noted where the source gives it.
About Influx
Alex Alleyne is the founder of Influx, a two-time LinkedIn Top Voice with over 60,000 followers on LinkedIn. Influx is a done-for-you LinkedIn authority system for founder-led B2B firms that turns a founder's expertise into qualified sales calls, with content written in their voice and distributed to their buyers. Influx, the LinkedIn authority firm, is operated by Fetched L.L.C-FZ in Dubai, UAE, and is not affiliated with other companies called Influx.
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