Upload lead list to Sales Navigator: why only companies go in, and how to turn an account list into the leads you wanted.

Can you upload a lead list to Sales Navigator?

No. You cannot upload a lead list to Sales Navigator. LinkedIn's help article on CSV uploads says it directly: CSV uploads can only be used for account lists, not lead lists.

What you can do is upload a list of companies as an account list, then find the people at those companies with a lead search filtered to that list. For most people searching how to upload a lead list, that two-step route gets them to the same place.

There is a second condition. The upload feature is only available with Sales Navigator Advanced and Advanced Plus. On Core, you build account lists by saving companies one search at a time.

What you can upload to Sales Navigator, by plan

The plan column comes from LinkedIn's own account types overview. If you only need a few target companies inside Sales Navigator now and then, saving them by hand on Core may be enough.

If your team works from a spreadsheet or a CRM export of hundreds of accounts, the upload is one of the features the Advanced plans are for. What each plan includes is covered in the LinkedIn Sales Navigator guide.

What an account list is, and why you upload one

An account list in Sales Navigator is a saved group of companies. It is the list your team has already agreed to work, whether that is a target account list, a territory, a set of customers to expand, or companies showing interest.

Uploading it saves you from finding each company again inside LinkedIn. It also turns the list into a filter: every lead search, alert and saved search can be limited to the companies on it.

• Account-based work: a named list of accounts that sales and marketing both work, as in ABM plays.
• Territories: the companies assigned to a rep, uploaded so their searches stay inside the territory.
• Book of business: current customers, uploaded to follow changes at the accounts you already serve.
• Event or intent lists: companies that attended, downloaded or showed interest, ready for outreach.

How to prepare the CSV file

Most failed uploads fail in the spreadsheet, before Sales Navigator sees them. LinkedIn's guidelines for account list CSV files cover the rules, and they are short.

LinkedIn recommends downloading its template CSV, because it includes every mandatory header and reduces formatting errors. Copy your data into the template instead of mapping your own spreadsheet from scratch.

Upload account list to Sales Navigator: the steps

These are the steps from LinkedIn's help article, on an Advanced or Advanced Plus seat.

1. Step 1: Open Accounts

   Sign in to Sales Navigator and go to Accounts.

2. Step 2: Pick the list

   Use the Account list dropdown in the top left to select the list you want to upload into, or create a new one.

3. Step 3: Click Upload accounts

   The Upload accounts button is in the upper right corner.

4. Step 4: Download the template

   Download LinkedIn's CSV template, paste your companies into it, and save it as a comma separated file.

5. Step 5: Upload and map the columns

   Upload the file and map each column header in your CSV to the matching LinkedIn account field.

6. Step 6: Review the match report

   Matched accounts appear in the list. Open the match report to see the companies that did not match.

How long matching takes varies. LinkedIn says the wait depends on how many other lists are being matched and uploaded at the same time, so a large file can take a while to appear.

Match confidence scores and the match report

Sales Navigator does not import your rows as they are. It tries to match each one to a company on LinkedIn and gives the match a confidence score.

A matched company is not always the right company. Businesses with common names, or with several regional Pages on LinkedIn, can match to a sibling. Before you run outreach on the list, open the accounts you care most about and confirm they are the company you meant.

Why companies do not match, and how to fix them

• A trading name that differs from the LinkedIn Page. Use the name on the company's LinkedIn Page, which is often not the legal entity name in your CRM.
• A URL in the name column. LinkedIn's guidelines ask for official company names there, not web addresses.
• Typos and spacing. One extra space or letter can produce a different result or none.
• Missing fields. A name on its own is the minimum; every extra field you fill in helps the match.
• Semicolon separators. The whole file fails, not one row.
• More than 1,000 accounts. Split the list and upload the parts into the same account list.

From an account list to a lead list: finding the people

This is how you get the lead list you came for. Once the accounts are uploaded, the Account lists filter in lead search limits every search to people at those companies.

LinkedIn defines that lead filter as filtering by leads who work at accounts within your account lists. Add the other lead filters on top, such as job title, function and seniority, and the result is the buying group at each target company.

1. Start a lead search

   Open lead search, not account search.

2. Apply the Account lists filter first

   Select the account list you uploaded, so nothing outside it can appear.

3. Add role filters

   Add function, seniority and job title filters for the people who buy what you sell.

4. Save the people who fit

   Save the right people into a lead list as you review them, one account at a time.

5. Save the search

   Save the search so new people who join those companies show up later.

Every filter, and how to combine them, is covered in the guide to Sales Navigator search filters. For titles that vary between companies, Boolean search keeps the search tight.

Working through the lead results

The filtered lead search returns people, not a finished list. The data you uploaded decided which companies are in; the next step is deciding which people at each company are worth a message.

• Work one account at a time. Sort or scan the results by company, so you see the whole buying group before you save anyone.
• Click into the profile. The title in the results is a summary; the profile shows what the person actually does and how recently they changed roles.
• Save only the people who fit. A lead list full of maybes is harder to work than a short one you trust.
• Note why you saved them. A line in the notes about the reason is what makes the first message specific later.

Some people look for a way to import profiles straight from a spreadsheet of names. Sales Navigator does not offer that. Third-party tools that claim to do it work by automating searches in your account, which is what section 8.2 of LinkedIn's User Agreement prohibits; the LinkedIn automation guide explains the risk.

If you are on Sales Navigator Core

Without the upload, the account list still works; you build it by hand. Search for each company in account search, or open its Page in Sales Navigator, and save it to a named account list.

The Account lists filter in lead search works with lists you saved by hand as well as uploaded ones. For a list of a few dozen accounts, saving them manually takes less time than upgrading. For hundreds, it is the main reason teams move to Advanced.

Upload vs export: two different questions

Uploading and exporting are often searched together and work very differently. Uploading brings a list of companies into Sales Navigator. Exporting would take accounts and leads out, and LinkedIn states it currently does not offer an option to export account and lead information into a CSV or XLS file.

The export side, and why most export tools risk the account, is covered in the guide to exporting lists from Sales Navigator.

When CRM sync replaces the upload

On Advanced Plus, Sales Navigator can bring CRM information in and send Sales Navigator information to the CRM. Teams with a supported CRM often let the sync keep accounts current instead of uploading files.

The CSV upload still has a place on Advanced Plus. It is the quickest way to load a list that lives outside the CRM, such as an event attendee list or a one-off research list.

What to do with the list once it is in

An uploaded account list is a starting point, not a campaign. The next steps decide whether it turns into meetings.

• Map the buying group at each account before you message anyone, so you do not pitch the wrong person first.
• Prioritize the accounts with recent activity, such as new hires in the team you sell to.
• Write per account. The list tells you who; the note still has to say why this company, now.
• Pace the requests. A full list does not change LinkedIn's invitation limits.

Turning a list into conversations is the subject of Sales Navigator lead generation, and building the list in the first place is covered in how to make a prospect list.

Upload list to Sales Navigator, or import it: the same feature

Searches for how to import a list into Sales Navigator and how to upload a list to Sales Navigator are asking about one feature. LinkedIn calls it uploading accounts, and it only accepts companies.

If what you want to import is data about people, such as a list of names and emails from an event, there is no import into a lead list. Use the company column from that file to build the account list, and find the people through the filtered search above.

Common mistakes when uploading lists to Sales Navigator

• Trying to upload people. A CSV of contacts will not become a lead list; only companies can be uploaded.
• Buying Core for the upload. The CSV upload is only on Advanced and Advanced Plus.
• Uploading the CRM export as it is. Legal names, URLs in the name column and duplicates lower the match rate.
• Skipping the match report. The companies scored 0 are silently missing from the list.
• Trusting every match. Common names can match to the wrong company.
• One giant file. More than 1,000 accounts has to be split.

The first message to someone you found this way

A lead found through an account list is someone you chose because of their company. The note should say so. The template below was written for this page.

Hi {{firstName}}, {{company}} is on the short list of {{segment}} companies I follow, because {{reasonForTheAccount}}. I work with {{roleType}} teams on {{problem}}. Would be good to connect.

Frequently asked questions