LinkedIn is a professional networking platform designed for B2B marketing and career development, while Facebook is a social networking platform focused on personal connections and B2C engagement. LinkedIn generates 2-3x higher conversion rates for B2B sales, whereas Facebook's 3 billion+ users make it ideal for broad consumer reach.
LinkedIn vs Facebook — Side-by-side comparison on A Versus B
Professional social network and recruitment platform with 930M+ users.
Global social network with 3.07 billion users focused on content sharing, messaging, groups, and advertising.
Primary Purpose. Monthly Active Users. B2B Lead Conversion Rate. Carousel Ad Engagement Rate. Target Audience Demographic. Organic Engagement Trends (2026). Annual Member Growth Rate. Best For Advertising ROI
Both platforms serve distinct but complementary purposes in 2026. LinkedIn excels for B2B marketing with superior conversion rates and professional targeting, making it essential for enterprise sales teams. Facebook dominates in reach and consumer engagement, with recent algorithm improvements supporting organic content growth, making it superior for B2C brands and mass-market campaigns.
LinkedIn: $5 billion | Facebook: Part of Meta's $116.6B annual revenue
LinkedIn: 2-3x higher than Facebook | Facebook: Baseline (1x)
LinkedIn: 6.60% | Facebook: Varies by content (typically 3-5%)
LinkedIn: Declining trend | Facebook: 7% lift in feed and video views
LinkedIn: ~9% year-over-year | Facebook: Steady growth (estimated 2-3%)
LinkedIn: B2B and professional services | Facebook: B2C and consumer products
LinkedIn: Slower organic reach, algorithm-dependent | Facebook: N/A
LinkedIn: 1.3 billion members | Facebook: N/A
LinkedIn: Smaller community | Facebook: N/A
LinkedIn: Not publicly specified | Facebook: 1,900+ million
LinkedIn: Standard engagement rates | Facebook: N/A
LinkedIn: 8x more engagement | Facebook: N/A
LinkedIn: 150% YoY growth, 450M+ subscribers | Facebook: N/A
LinkedIn: $5 billion quarterly | Facebook: N/A
LinkedIn: 930 average connections | Facebook: Variable (friends list average)
Personal Profile Engagement vs Company Pages
LinkedIn: 8x personal > company | Facebook: N/A
LinkedIn: 25-50 years old | Facebook: N/A
LinkedIn: Limited by visibility | Facebook: N/A
LinkedIn: 450K employers | Facebook: N/A
LinkedIn: High - optimized for recruiter sourcing | Facebook: N/A
LinkedIn: Limited (integrated feature) | Facebook: N/A
LinkedIn: Not primary feature | Facebook: N/A
LinkedIn: 200+ countries | Facebook: N/A
LinkedIn: 930 million | Facebook: 3.07 billion
LinkedIn: Microsoft (acquired 2016 for $26.2B) | Facebook: N/A
LinkedIn: 35+ major integrations | Facebook: N/A
LinkedIn: Limited; 1st-degree network messaging | Facebook: N/A
LinkedIn: $40 (Premium individual) | Facebook: N/A
Paying Organizations/Enterprise Customers
LinkedIn: ~67,000 (LinkedIn Sales Navigator customers) | Facebook: N/A
LinkedIn: Unlimited (via third-party APIs) | Facebook: N/A
LinkedIn: $9,950/month (recruiter flat rate) | Facebook: N/A
LinkedIn: Weeks to months (profile building) | Facebook: N/A
LinkedIn: N/A | Facebook: Millennials, Gen X, broad age range
LinkedIn: N/A | Facebook: Limited public documentation
LinkedIn: N/A | Facebook: In-stream ads, brand deals, bonuses
LinkedIn: N/A | Facebook: Higher competition, wider reach per dollar
LinkedIn: N/A | Facebook: Real name policy enforced
LinkedIn: N/A | Facebook: Targeted advertising based on user data
LinkedIn: N/A | Facebook: Centralized, AI-assisted with human oversight
LinkedIn: N/A | Facebook: 25-64 (median 40)
Video Content (Reels/Stories) Engagement Share
LinkedIn: N/A | Facebook: $114.9 billion
LinkedIn: N/A | Facebook: $1,340 billion
LinkedIn: N/A | Facebook: 0% (experimental in select regions)
LinkedIn: N/A | Facebook: Mixed (posts, photos, videos, reels)
Algorithm Content Discovery Effectiveness
LinkedIn: N/A | Facebook: 25-54 (majority demographic)
LinkedIn: N/A | Facebook: Text, images, stories, reels, live video, long-form (60-90 min)
LinkedIn: N/A | Facebook: Moderate (US regulation, GDPR compliant)
LinkedIn: N/A | Facebook: Follower/connection-dependent; low for new creators
LinkedIn: N/A | Facebook: Approved; operating normally
LinkedIn: N/A | Facebook: 27% of social media usage
LinkedIn: N/A | Facebook: Poor (heavy data collection and tracking)
LinkedIn: N/A | Facebook: High (personalized algorithm drives 60% of engagement)
LinkedIn: N/A | Facebook: $114 billion (Meta total)
LinkedIn: N/A | Facebook: Real-name policy (enforced)
LinkedIn: N/A | Facebook: 190+ data points
LinkedIn: N/A | Facebook: 25-34 (peak); 13% under 18, 45% age 25+
How to choose between LinkedIn and Facebook
LinkedIn vs Facebook — Structured Comparison Data
Machine-readable comparison dataset for LinkedIn vs Facebook. Contains 132 attribute comparisons, 4 FAQ pairs.
LinkedIn vs Facebook — Attribute Category Vocabulary
Taxonomy of attribute categories used to classify comparison data for LinkedIn vs Facebook.
Is LinkedIn better than Facebook for job searching?
LinkedIn is significantly better than Facebook for job searching. LinkedIn Jobs lists 50+ million open positions at any time, with AI-powered matching that delivers personalized job recommendations based on your skills, experience, and job search history. LinkedIn's Easy Apply feature lets you submit applications in seconds using your profile data. LinkedIn provides visibility into who viewed your profile (for Premium subscribers), warm introduction paths through your network to hiring managers, and direct InMail messaging to recruiters. Company research is built in — LinkedIn profiles show who works at a company, their seniority, and often provide behind-the-scenes employee satisfaction signals. Facebook does have a Jobs feature (Facebook Jobs), which is useful for hourly and local jobs, retail, and service roles that smaller businesses post through their pages. Facebook is genuinely effective for finding local opportunities that small businesses post through their Facebook pages. For professional, corporate, or skilled roles, LinkedIn has no serious competition. For hourly, retail, or gig work at local businesses, Facebook is a legitimate search channel.
Which is better for business marketing, Facebook or LinkedIn?
It depends on your target customer. Facebook wins for B2C (business-to-consumer) marketing at scale: 2.9 billion reachable users with the most sophisticated demographic, interest, and behavioral targeting available — combined with the lowest CPMs in digital advertising. If you're selling consumer products, running a local business, or driving e-commerce conversions, Facebook Ads' combination of reach and targeting make it extremely efficient. LinkedIn wins for B2B (business-to-business) marketing: the ability to target by job title, company size, industry, seniority level, and professional skills is unique to LinkedIn and invaluable for reaching business decision-makers. LinkedIn ads cost 3-5x more per click than Facebook, but B2B buyers who see LinkedIn ads are 6x more likely to convert and the lead quality (matching your ideal customer profile) is dramatically higher. Most B2B companies use LinkedIn for top-of-funnel awareness and lead gen, then use LinkedIn Lead Gen Forms or targeted landing pages for conversion. Consumer brands rarely find LinkedIn's higher CPMs justified. Rule of thumb: if your customer is a job title (CTO, CFO, HR director, marketing manager), LinkedIn. If your customer is a demographic or interest group, Facebook.
Do people actually use Facebook anymore?
Yes — Facebook's active user base continues to grow globally despite perception in younger demographics that it's declining. Facebook reached 3.27 billion monthly active users in Q1 2026, the highest in the company's history. However, the demographic composition has shifted dramatically: the heaviest Facebook users in the US and Western Europe are now 35-65+, while 18-24 year olds spend most social media time on TikTok, Instagram, and Snapchat. Facebook Groups and Facebook Marketplace have become the platform's most engaged features — people who don't post personal updates often remain active Facebook users specifically for Groups (neighborhood communities, hobby groups, buy-sell-trade groups) and Marketplace commerce. For anyone targeting audiences over 40, Facebook remains essential. For anyone targeting Gen Z primarily, other platforms offer higher engagement. The most accurate framing: Facebook didn't lose users; it gained many older users while younger users' attention migrated to Instagram and TikTok (both of which Meta also owns).
Should I use LinkedIn or Facebook for personal branding?
Use LinkedIn for professional personal branding and Facebook for personal/community branding — they serve different brand contexts. LinkedIn is the standard platform for building professional credibility: your LinkedIn profile serves as a public resume and professional bio, your content reaches industry peers, recruiters, and potential clients, and LinkedIn's algorithm rewards expertise-sharing (industry insights, professional lessons, career advice). A strong LinkedIn presence directly supports career advancement, consulting opportunities, and B2B business development. Facebook personal branding is more appropriate for community leadership, local business owners, creators with a personal audience, or anyone whose brand is built on personal relationships rather than professional expertise. Facebook Groups and Pages allow you to build communities around your interests or local influence. Many professionals use both: LinkedIn for professional reputation and career network, Facebook for personal community and engagement with fans/customers at a more human, personal level.
How to Choose Between LinkedIn and Facebook
Primary Purpose: LinkedIn has Professional networking and B2B marketing, while Facebook has Social networking and personal connections.
Monthly Active Users: LinkedIn has 930 million, while Facebook has 3+ billion.
B2B Lead Conversion Rate: LinkedIn has 2-3x higher than Facebook, while Facebook has Lower for B2B purposes.
Carousel Ad Engagement Rate: LinkedIn has 6.60%, while Facebook has Varies by content type.
Target Audience Demographic: LinkedIn has Professionals and businesses, while Facebook has General population, millennials core.
Consider: Organic Engagement Trends (2026)
Organic Engagement Trends (2026): LinkedIn has Declining (likes -13%, comments -17%), while Facebook has Improving (7% lift in feed/video views Q4 2025).
Annual Member Growth Rate: LinkedIn has ~9% YoY (70 million new members annually), while Facebook has Steady growth in core markets.
Best For Advertising ROI: LinkedIn has B2B and professional services, while Facebook has B2C and consumer products.
LinkedIn is a professional networking platform designed for B2B marketing and career development, while Facebook is a social networking platform focused on personal connections and B2C engagement. LinkedIn generates 2-3x higher conversion rates for B2B sales, whereas Facebook's 3 billion+ users make