How to export LinkedIn followers: what LinkedIn allows and what is scraping

LinkedIn lets a Page admin see the current followers of a Page, with their employer and follow date, and export Page analytics as a spreadsheet. We found no help page that documents a button to download a named follower list, and LinkedIn's Pages Data Portability API only shares a member's data if that member has turned on a setting that is off by default. Scraping followers with bots breaks the User Agreement.

"How to export LinkedIn followers" attracts a lot of tutorials, and many of them are about tools that scrape. This post goes the other way. It sets out what LinkedIn's own help pages say you can see and download, where the line to scraping is, and what is worth doing with followers once you can see them. Everything about LinkedIn comes from its help pages and the User Agreement, read on 25 October 2026. LinkedIn changes its screens often, so check the live version before you rely on a menu path.

Is a follower the same as a connection?

No, and the difference decides what you can export. A connection is a two way relationship, and LinkedIn's help page on exporting connections describes a data archive you can request under Settings and Privacy, then Data privacy, then "Get a copy of your data". That archive covers your connections. The page we read does not mention followers.

A follower is someone who chose to see your posts without connecting. On a personal profile or a company Page, followers are visible inside LinkedIn in different ways, and the export options differ.

What can a Page admin see and export?

For a company Page, three things are documented.

1. The All followers list. In the follower analytics, admins see current Page followers with their current place of employment and when they followed, newest first. LinkedIn notes that counts are approximately rounded. The help page does not describe a download for this list.
2. The analytics export. Page admins can export analytics as an XLS file. The help article lists report types including visitors, content, followers, competitors, leads and employee advocacy. The follower report is an analytics summary, not a named contact list.
3. The Pages Data Portability API. LinkedIn lets Page owners, including admins and their authorized third party developers, export Page related data this way. Whether it returns a complete follower list is not stated on the pages we read.

Why does member consent matter?

LinkedIn's help page "Allow LinkedIn Page owners to export your data" explains that a setting called "Page owners exporting your data" controls whether the owners of Pages a member interacts with can export information from the member's profile and interactions. It is turned off by default. So even with the API, a Page owner sees only members who opted in. That is a deliberate privacy design, not a gap you should try to work around.

What counts as scraping?

LinkedIn's User Agreement, section 8.2, effective 3 November 2025, lists prohibited conduct. It includes developing, supporting or using "software, devices, scripts, robots or any other means or processes" to scrape or copy the Services, including profiles, and using "bots or other unauthorized automated methods to access the Services". It also bars copying, using or distributing information obtained from the Services without the owner's consent.

In practice that covers browser extensions and tools that crawl a follower list and save it to a spreadsheet. We do not recommend them. The risk lands on your account, which can be restricted, and no tool can guarantee otherwise. There are also data protection duties for the personal data you collect. Our post on LinkedIn's terms of service and automation draws the line in more detail. This is not legal advice.

What can you do with followers, then?

Followers are interested in your content. That is worth acting on, in the open and at a human pace.

• Look at who they are. The All followers view shows employer and date. Skim it weekly and note the ones who match your ideal customer.
• Engage. Reply to their comments, react to their posts, and answer their questions.
• Send a connection request with a reason. "Saw you follow our page after the pricing post. Happy to connect." A note that names the real reason is honest and short.
• Do not pitch on the first message. A follower asked to see your content, not to be sold to. Our post on pre invite engagement covers the warm up.
• Watch for the stronger signals. People who comment on your posts are a clearer signal than people who follow. See LinkedIn buying signals.

What does Sellinger do?

Sellinger has no follower export and no follower template. Its intent signals watch engagement instead: people who like or comment on your posts, a founder's posts or a competitor's posts, among 26 templates in 8 categories. Matching people appear as leads an agent can contact with a message that fits the signal. To bring in a list you have built yourself, Sellinger imports from a LinkedIn search link, up to 2,500 leads in one run, as the LinkedIn search import guide explains. Our post on competitor engagers shows one way to use engagement.

What about the followers of a personal profile?

The help pages we read describe follower tools mainly for Pages. For a personal profile, LinkedIn shows follower information inside the app, and the data archive help page we read lists connections, not followers. We could not confirm a documented download of a personal follower list, so we do not describe one. If you find one in your settings, it is worth using, because it is the supported route. Treat any third party promise of a one click export as a reason to read the tool's terms first.

A 15 minute review of a follower list (invented example)

Imagine you manage a Page for a firm that sells scheduling software to clinics and 40 people followed this month. In the All followers view you read each line: name, employer, date.

The numbers are invented. The method is the point: followers are a long list of mixed interest, and most are not buyers. Reading by employer takes minutes and turns forty names into a handful worth a note.

How should you ask for a follow in the first place?

If followers are valuable to you, give people a reason. Post something specific to your buyers, ask a question in the comments, and answer every reply. A follower who came for a useful post is more likely to reply to a note than a stranger. Do not buy followers or run engagement pods: LinkedIn's Professional Community Policies tell members not to artificially increase engagement.

A short checklist

1. Decide what you need: a count, an analytics report or a named list.
2. Use the in-app views and the analytics export for what they provide.
3. Do not use scrapers.
4. Respect the member setting that controls Page data exports.
5. Reach out with a real reason and no pitch.
6. Check the current LinkedIn screens before you plan around a menu.