How to Connect Cursor to LinkedIn

Short answer: add LinkMCP to Cursor's mcp.json, then click Connect to sign in. Cursor can call tools from MCP servers. Add LinkMCP, a hosted LinkedIn MCP server, and the Cursor agent can look up profiles, search people and draft messages while it works on your code and files. The Cursor CLI reads the same setup.

Step by step

1. Open ~/.cursor/mcp.json for all your projects, or .cursor/mcp.json in one project. Create the file if it does not exist.
2. Add LinkMCP to mcpServers and save. If the file already lists other servers, add only the linkmcp entry:

   {
     "mcpServers": {
       "linkmcp": {
         "url": "https://app.linkmcp.io/api/mcp"
       }
     }
   }

3. Open Customize in the sidebar, or restart Cursor. Next to LinkMCP, Cursor shows Needs authentication. Click Connect.
4. A browser window opens. Sign in to LinkMCP with your email (you get a 6-digit code) or with Google, and approve the access. A new LinkMCP account starts with the 7-day free trial.
5. Ask the agent a question. Cursor asks for your approval before it uses an MCP tool, unless you allowed it. Click the arrow next to the tool name to see the arguments before you approve a write, such as linkedin_send_message.

You can also start on our side: start a free trial, pick Cursor, and the setup screen shows the same entry with the address to copy.

Prompts to try first

These work in the free trial, before you connect your own LinkedIn account:

Use linkmcp to look up [profile URL] and summarize the current role and the last two jobs.

contacts.json has LinkedIn profile URLs. Look them up with linkedin_bulk_get_profiles, ten at a time, and add headline and location fields.

Get the recent posts of [company page URL] with linkedin_get_company_posts and write a summary to notes/company.md.

These need your LinkedIn account connected (a paid plan):

Use linkedin_search_jobs to find open React developer roles in Amsterdam and list company, title and link in a table.

List my unread LinkedIn conversations and write a draft reply to each in replies.md. Do not send anything.

If it does not work

• Connect does not open a browser window: in some Cursor versions, click the Needs authentication text under LinkMCP instead, or run agent mcp login linkmcp in the Cursor CLI.
• LinkMCP is missing in another project: you added it to one project's .cursor/mcp.json. Add it to ~/.cursor/mcp.json to have it everywhere.
• Your team limits MCP servers: on an Enterprise team, an admin can allow only some MCP servers. Ask your admin to allow https://app.linkmcp.io/api/mcp.
• A tool says it needs a connected LinkedIn account: that tool acts through your own LinkedIn account. The message links to the plan page and to the LinkedIn connection.

Use an access key instead of the sign-in

If the browser sign-in cannot work, for example on a remote machine, use an access key. Sign in at LinkMCP, open API Keys → New access key, put the key in an environment variable called LINKMCP_TOKEN, and use this entry instead:

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "linkmcp": {
      "url": "https://app.linkmcp.io/api/mcp",
      "headers": {
        "Authorization": "Bearer ${env:LINKMCP_TOKEN}"
      }
    }
  }
}

Can this put my LinkedIn account at risk?

Yes, it can. Any automated use of LinkedIn can put an account at risk, and an agent can call a tool many times in a loop. LinkMCP puts daily limits and pacing on every action through your account, a warm-up limit on connection requests for new or quiet accounts, and a hard monthly usage cap on every plan. That lowers the risk. It does not remove it. The limits are on our security page. Our guide on LinkedIn automation risk explains what can trigger a restriction.

What it costs

LinkMCP starts with a 7-day free trial, and you do not need a credit card. In the trial, profile and company lookups, posts and post comments, and email and phone lookups work. Searches, messages, posting and Sales Navigator act through your own LinkedIn account, and connecting it needs a paid plan. Starter costs $19 per month. New trials get their first month of Starter for $9.50.

Other AI tools

The same server address works in other coding tools. See How to Connect Claude Code to LinkedIn and How to Connect OpenAI Codex to LinkedIn. To compare LinkedIn MCP servers, read Best LinkedIn MCP Server: 9 Options Compared.

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