How to Export Your LinkedIn Connections
A step-by-step guide to uploading your network to CareerOnTrack
Why Upload Your LinkedIn Connections?
70–80% of jobs are filled through networking and referrals, not cold applications. Your existing LinkedIn connections are the fastest path to interviews, introductions, and offers you will never see on a job board.
When you upload your connections CSV, CareerOnTrack can:
- Discover warm paths: identify connections who work at your target companies or know someone who does
- Activate your network: surface dormant contacts who could make valuable introductions
- Draft personalized outreach: generate authentic messages tailored to each contact’s background
- Track referral progress: manage your networking pipeline from first outreach to referral received
Referral hires happen 15x more often than cold applications and 47% faster. Your connections CSV is the fuel for your network-powered campaign.
Export Your Connections from LinkedIn
Follow these steps to download a CSV file of your LinkedIn connections. The entire process takes about 2 minutes, though LinkedIn may need up to 10 minutes to prepare your file.
Open LinkedIn Settings & Privacy
Go to linkedin.com/mypreferences/d/download-my-data, or navigate manually: click your profile photo in the top-right corner, then select Settings & Privacy.
Select “Get a copy of your data”
Under the Data privacy section, find and click Get a copy of your data. LinkedIn will show you a list of data categories you can download.
Choose “Connections” only
Select the option to Want something in particular?, then check only Connections. You do not need to download your full archive. Selecting only Connections keeps the file small and the download fast.
Click Request archive to start the export.
Wait for the email from LinkedIn
LinkedIn will send you an email when your data export is ready. This usually takes about 10 minutes, but can occasionally take up to 24 hours for very large networks. Check your inbox (and spam folder) for an email from LinkedIn with the subject line “Your LinkedIn data archive is ready.”
Download the ZIP and extract the CSV
Click the download link in the email from LinkedIn. You will receive a .zip file. Extract (unzip) it, and look for a file named Connections.csv inside the extracted folder.
Basic_LinkedInDataExport_xx-xx-xxxx/
Connections.csv ← This is the file you need
Upload Your CSV to CareerOnTrack
Once you have the Connections.csv file, uploading it to CareerOnTrack takes just a few clicks:
Go to Dashboard → Network
Log into CareerOnTrack and navigate to the Network page from the sidebar menu.
Click “Upload CSV”
Click the Upload CSV button and select your Connections.csv file. CareerOnTrack will parse it automatically.
Review the import summary
After the upload completes, you will see a summary showing how many connections were imported, including names, companies, and titles. CareerOnTrack will immediately begin identifying warm paths to your target companies.
What Data Does CareerOnTrack Use?
CareerOnTrack only reads the following fields from your LinkedIn Connections CSV:
| Field | How It Is Used |
|---|---|
| First Name / Last Name | Identify contacts and personalize outreach messages |
| Company | Match connections to your target companies for warm path discovery |
| Position (Title) | Assess relevance and seniority to prioritize outreach |
| Connected On | Determine recency and warmth of the connection |
| Email Address | Enable direct outreach when LinkedIn messaging is unavailable |
Any other columns in the CSV are ignored. CareerOnTrack does not access your LinkedIn account, read your messages, or view your activity feed.
Your Privacy and Your Contacts' Privacy
CareerOnTrack never contacts your connections on your behalf. You draft and send every single message yourself.
- Your connection data is stored securely with Row-Level Security (RLS) so only you can access it
- Connection data is never shared with other users, third parties, or used for marketing
- AI-drafted outreach messages are suggestions only. You review, edit, and approve every message before sending
- You can delete all imported connections at any time from the Network page
- Deleting your CareerOnTrack account permanently removes all imported connection data
For full details, see our Privacy Policy.
Troubleshooting
I uploaded the wrong file / it says 'invalid format'
Make sure you are uploading the Connections.csv file, not the .zip archive itself or another file from the archive. The file must be a .csv file. If you accidentally uploaded a different file (such as messages or profile data), extract the zip again and look specifically for Connections.csv.
My CSV file is empty or has no data
This can happen if your LinkedIn data export did not complete properly. Try requesting a new export from LinkedIn. If your account is very new or has very few connections, the file may be legitimately small. CareerOnTrack requires at least 1 connection in the CSV to process the upload.
I never received the email from LinkedIn
Check your spam or junk folder for an email from LinkedIn. The export usually takes about 10 minutes but can take up to 24 hours. You can also go back to the LinkedIn data download page to check if your export is ready for direct download.
Some connections are missing company or title information
This is normal. LinkedIn only includes data that your connections have added to their own profiles. If a connection has not listed their company or title, those fields will be blank. CareerOnTrack will still import the contact and you can manually update the information later.
I want to update my connections after uploading
You can upload a new CSV at any time. CareerOnTrack will merge new contacts with existing ones, avoiding duplicates. Existing contacts will be updated with any new information from the latest CSV.
I do not have a LinkedIn account
You can still use CareerOnTrack’s Network Activation features by manually adding contacts. Go to Dashboard → Network and use the “Add Contact” button to enter connections individually.
Still need help?
Contact us at support@careerontrack.com and we will walk you through it.