LinkedIn Sales & Navigator MCP Server

A Model Context Protocol (MCP) server that connects AI assistants to LinkedIn and LinkedIn Sales Navigator using cookie-based authentication. Provides 17 tools for viewing profiles, searching people & companies, messaging, managing connections, and full Sales Navigator access — all through LinkedIn's internal Voyager API.

Built with TypeScript, @modelcontextprotocol/sdk, Zod, undici, and Puppeteer with stealth plugin.

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Table of Contents

• Features
• Prerequisites
• Installation
• Getting Your LinkedIn Cookie
• Configuration
  • Claude Desktop
  • Claude Code (CLI)
  • Environment Variables
• Tools Reference
  • Profile Tools
  • Search Tools
  • Company Tools
  • Sales Navigator Tools
  • Messaging Tools
  • Connection Tools
  • Utility
• Architecture
• Development
• Troubleshooting
• Disclaimer
• License

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Features

• 17 tools — Profiles, search, companies, messaging, connections, and full Sales Navigator
• Cookie-based auth — No LinkedIn Developer account or OAuth app required
• Dual-engine architecture — Fast HTTP (undici) for reads, headless Puppeteer with stealth plugin for messaging & Sales Navigator
• Anti-bot bypass — Puppeteer-extra with StealthPlugin bypasses LinkedIn's automation detection
• Clean responses — Deeply nested LinkedIn Voyager API responses are parsed into readable JSON
• Type-safe — Written in strict TypeScript with Zod schema validation on all tool inputs
• MCP standard — Works with any MCP-compatible client (Claude Desktop, Claude Code, etc.)

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Prerequisites

• Node.js >= 18.0.0
• npm >= 8.0.0
• A LinkedIn account with an active session in your browser
• A Sales Navigator subscription (for Sales Navigator tools only)

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Installation

# Clone the repository
git clone https://github.com/aditya-ai-architect/Lindin-Sales-and-Navigator-MCP.git
cd Lindin-Sales-and-Navigator-MCP

# Install dependencies
npm install

# Build
npm run build

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Getting Your LinkedIn Cookie

The server authenticates using the li_at cookie from your logged-in LinkedIn session:

1. Open linkedin.com in your browser and log in
2. Open Developer Tools (F12 or Ctrl+Shift+I)
3. Go to the Application tab (Chrome/Edge) or Storage tab (Firefox)
4. In the left sidebar, expand Cookies and click on https://www.linkedin.com
5. Find and copy the li_at cookie value

Cookie	Required	Description
li_at	Yes	Your session authentication token
JSESSIONID	No	CSRF token (auto-generated if not provided)

Important: The li_at cookie expires periodically. If you get authentication errors, extract a fresh cookie from your browser.

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Configuration

Claude Desktop

Add to your Claude Desktop config file:

Windows: %APPDATA%\Claude\claude_desktop_config.json macOS: ~/Library/Application Support/Claude/claude_desktop_config.json

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "linkedin-sales-navigator": {
      "command": "node",
      "args": ["/absolute/path/to/Lindin-Sales-and-Navigator-MCP/dist/index.js"],
      "env": {
        "LI_AT_COOKIE": "your_li_at_cookie_value_here"
      }
    }
  }
}

Claude Code (CLI)

claude mcp add linkedin-sales-navigator -- node /absolute/path/to/Lindin-Sales-and-Navigator-MCP/dist/index.js

Set the environment variable before launching, or use a .env file.

Environment Variables

Variable	Required	Description
LI_AT_COOKIE	Yes	Your LinkedIn li_at session cookie
JSESSIONID	No	Your LinkedIn JSESSIONID cookie (auto-generated if not provided)

Running Directly

LI_AT_COOKIE="your_cookie" node dist/index.js

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Tools Reference

Profile Tools

validate_session

Validate that the LinkedIn session cookie is still active.

get_own_profile

Get the authenticated user's own LinkedIn profile information.

get_profile

Get a LinkedIn profile by public identifier (vanity URL slug).

Parameter	Type	Description
public_identifier	string	The LinkedIn vanity URL slug (e.g. john-doe-123)

get_profile_details

Get detailed profile information including experience, education, and skills.

Parameter	Type	Description
public_identifier	string	The LinkedIn vanity URL slug

get_profile_contact_info

Get contact information for a LinkedIn profile.

Parameter	Type	Description
public_identifier	string	The LinkedIn vanity URL slug

Note: LinkedIn has deprecated the contact info API. Returns basic profile info with a note about the deprecation.

get_profile_skills

Get the skills listed on a LinkedIn profile.

Parameter	Type	Description
public_identifier	string	The LinkedIn vanity URL slug

Note: LinkedIn no longer includes skill entities in the Voyager API. Returns profile summary which may mention skills.

get_profile_experience

Get work experience (positions) from a LinkedIn profile.

Parameter	Type	Description
public_identifier	string	The LinkedIn vanity URL slug

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Search Tools

search_people

Search for people on LinkedIn with various filters.

Parameter	Type	Description
keywords	string?	Search keywords
current_company	string[]?	Filter by current company IDs
past_company	string[]?	Filter by past company IDs
industries	string[]?	Filter by industry codes
regions	string[]?	Filter by geo region URNs
schools	string[]?	Filter by school IDs
title	string?	Filter by job title
network_depths	("F"|"S"|"O")[]?	Network depth: F=1st, S=2nd, O=3rd+
start	number?	Pagination start (default 0)
count	number?	Results per page (default 10)

search_companies

Search for companies on LinkedIn.

Parameter	Type	Description
keywords	string?	Search keywords
industries	string[]?	Filter by industry codes
regions	string[]?	Filter by geo region URNs
company_size	string[]?	Filter by company size codes
start	number?	Pagination start (default 0)
count	number?	Results per page (default 10)

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Company Tools

get_company

Get detailed information about a company by its universal name.

Parameter	Type	Description
universal_name	string	Company vanity URL slug (e.g. google)

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Sales Navigator Tools

Requires an active LinkedIn Sales Navigator subscription.

sales_search_leads

Search for leads using Sales Navigator. Uses Puppeteer browser to scrape Sales Navigator UI.

Parameter	Type	Description
keywords	string?	Search keywords
title	string?	Filter by job title
company	string?	Filter by company name
geography	string?	Filter by location
industry	string?	Filter by industry
seniority_level	string?	Filter by seniority (VP, Director, Manager)
function_area	string?	Filter by department (Engineering, Sales)
start	number?	Pagination start (default 0)
count	number?	Results per page (default 25)

sales_search_accounts

Search for accounts (companies) using Sales Navigator.

Parameter	Type	Description
keywords	string?	Search keywords
geography	string?	Filter by location
industry	string?	Filter by industry
start	number?	Pagination start (default 0)
count	number?	Results per page (default 25)

get_sales_profile

Get a lead's profile from Sales Navigator.

Parameter	Type	Description
lead_id	string	The Sales Navigator lead/profile ID

get_saved_leads

Get your saved leads from Sales Navigator.

Parameter	Type	Description
start	number?	Pagination start (default 0)
count	number?	Results per page (default 25)

get_lead_lists

Get all lead lists from Sales Navigator.

Parameter	Type	Description
start	number?	Pagination start (default 0)
count	number?	Results per page (default 25)

get_lead_list_members

Get leads within a specific lead list.

Parameter	Type	Description
list_id	string	The lead list ID
start	number?	Pagination start (default 0)
count	number?	Results per page (default 25)

get_lead_recommendations

Get AI-recommended leads from Sales Navigator.

Parameter	Type	Description
start	number?	Pagination start (default 0)
count	number?	Results per page (default 25)

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Messaging Tools

send_message

Send a message to a LinkedIn member. Uses Puppeteer browser.

Parameter	Type	Description
recipient_urn	string	Profile URN (e.g. urn:li:fsd_profile:ACoAAB...)
body	string	The message body text
subject	string?	Message subject (required for InMail)

get_conversations

Get recent conversation threads from the LinkedIn inbox. Uses Puppeteer browser.

Parameter	Type	Description
start	number?	Pagination start (default 0)
count	number?	Results per page (default 20)

get_conversation_messages

Get messages from a specific conversation thread. Uses Puppeteer browser.

Parameter	Type	Description
conversation_id	string	The conversation thread ID
start	number?	Pagination start (default 0)
count	number?	Results per page (default 20)

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Connection Tools

send_connection_request

Send a connection request with an optional personalized message.

Parameter	Type	Description
profile_urn	string	Profile URN (e.g. urn:li:fsd_profile:ACoAAB...)
message	string?	Optional personalized message (max 300 chars)

get_pending_connections

Get pending outgoing connection requests.

Parameter	Type	Description
start	number?	Pagination start (default 0)
count	number?	Results per page (default 20)

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Architecture

┌─────────────────┐     stdio      ┌─────────────────┐
│   MCP Client    │ <────────────> │  linkedin-mcp   │
│ (Claude, etc.)  │   JSON-RPC     │  MCP Server     │
└─────────────────┘                └────────┬────────┘
                                            │
                              ┌─────────────┴─────────────┐
                              │                           │
                      ┌───────▼───────┐          ┌────────▼────────┐
                      │  undici HTTP  │          │   Puppeteer +   │
                      │  (Read ops)   │          │   Stealth       │
                      │  Fast, direct │          │   (Write ops)   │
                      └───────┬───────┘          └────────┬────────┘
                              │                           │
                              └─────────────┬─────────────┘
                                            │
                                   ┌────────▼────────┐
                                   │  LinkedIn       │
                                   │  Voyager API    │
                                   └─────────────────┘

How it works:

The server uses a dual-engine approach to handle LinkedIn's API restrictions:

• HTTP engine (undici): Profile lookups, people/company search, company details, connections, and session validation use fast direct HTTP requests. Uses undici instead of native fetch because Node.js blocks the Cookie header as a "forbidden header" in native fetch.

• Puppeteer engine (stealth): Messaging and Sales Navigator tools use a headless Chromium browser with puppeteer-extra-plugin-stealth to bypass automation detection. LinkedIn has locked down the messaging and Sales Navigator API endpoints, but the browser UI still works.

The stealth browser launches lazily on the first messaging or Sales Navigator call and stays alive for subsequent operations.

Key technical details:

• LinkedIn's Voyager API uses decorationId parameters to control what data is returned
• Search uses REST-li format: search/dash/clusters?decorationId=...&q=all&query=(...)
• Profile data uses: identity/dash/profiles?decorationId=...&q=memberIdentity&memberIdentity=...
• Sales Navigator results are scraped using data-anonymize attribute selectors for stability

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Development

# Watch mode
npm run dev

# Build once
npm run build

# Run directly
npm start

# Test with MCP Inspector
npx @modelcontextprotocol/inspector node dist/index.js

Project Structure

linkedin-mcp/
├── src/
│   ├── index.ts              # MCP server entry, tool registration
│   └── linkedin-client.ts    # LinkedIn API client (HTTP + Puppeteer dual-engine)
├── dist/                     # Compiled JavaScript output
├── package.json
├── tsconfig.json
└── README.md

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Troubleshooting

"LI_AT_COOKIE environment variable is required"

The LI_AT_COOKIE env var must be set. Check your Claude Desktop config or shell environment.

HTTP 401 / 403 errors

Your cookie has expired. Extract a fresh li_at cookie from your browser.

Profile returns 403 "This profile can't be accessed"

Some profiles have privacy restrictions that block API access. This is a LinkedIn-side restriction, not a bug.

Sales Navigator returns "SALES_SEAT_REQUIRED"

Your LinkedIn account needs an active Sales Navigator subscription. The tool will automatically fall back to Puppeteer browser scraping if the API returns this error.

Browser launch failures

The first messaging or Sales Navigator call launches a Chromium browser. Ensure you have enough memory and that Puppeteer's bundled Chromium was downloaded during npm install. On Linux servers, you may need additional system libraries — see Puppeteer troubleshooting.

Navigation timeout

LinkedIn's pages are heavy with background requests. The server uses domcontentloaded instead of networkidle2 and waits for specific content selectors to appear.

Skills / Contact Info returning empty

LinkedIn has permanently removed skills and contact info from their Voyager API. The tools return informative notes about this deprecation.

Server won't start in Claude Desktop

• Ensure the path in your config uses absolute paths
• On Windows, use forward slashes (C:/Users/...) or escaped backslashes (C:\\Users\\...)
• Check Claude Desktop logs for error messages

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Disclaimer

This server uses LinkedIn's internal, undocumented Voyager API through cookie-based session authentication. This is not the official LinkedIn API.

• LinkedIn may change endpoints, decorationIds, or authentication requirements at any time
• Automated use of LinkedIn via cookies may violate LinkedIn's Terms of Service
• Use at your own risk and responsibility
• This project is intended for personal use and educational purposes

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License

MIT