Creator account on LinkedIn: what replaced creator mode

A creator account on LinkedIn is not a separate account type. It is the name people give to the sharing tools, follower count and analytics that used to sit behind a creator mode toggle, and that toggle no longer exists.

LinkedIn removed the on/off switch in March 2024, and most of what creator mode unlocked is now on for every member by default. By the end of this page you will know what changed, how to set up the closest equivalent on desktop and mobile, and whether it is worth doing for your goal.

What creator mode changed on your LinkedIn profile

Creator mode changed five things on a profile: the primary button (Follow instead of Connect), a visible follower count, access to Live, Newsletter and Audio Events, a dedicated analytics panel, and hashtags describing what you post about. LinkedIn's official "Updates to Creator Mode" notice confirms the on/off toggle left the Resources section in March 2024, one month after profile hashtags were removed in February 2024.

Only the hashtags disappeared for good. Everything else stopped being a toggle and became either a setting or a default. The table below maps each old creator mode feature to where it lives today.

LinkedIn Creator Marketplace and Creator program are not the same thing

Neither LinkedIn Creator Marketplace nor the LinkedIn Creator Accelerator Program is a profile setting. Both share the word "creator" with the old toggle, and neither is what you need if you want the Follow button and analytics.

LinkedIn Creator Marketplace is a discovery tool inside Campaign Manager, launched on June 10, 2026, that lets B2B brands find and contact creators for paid partnerships such as Thought Leader Ads. Access is by invitation, and it changes nothing on your profile.

The LinkedIn Creator Accelerator Program is a separate cohort program: a fixed-length coaching initiative with an application window that opens periodically, for a small group of selected creators. It is not a status you switch on. To look and function like a creator on LinkedIn, the settings in the next section are all you need.

How to set up the creator account equivalent today (and how to turn it off)

There is no single switch anymore, so the setup means three separate changes: the primary button, a Featured section, and the sharing tools. On desktop:

1. Click the Me icon (your photo) in the top navigation and open Settings and Privacy.
2. Go to Visibility, then Followers.
3. Turn on "Make follow primary" to show Follow instead of Connect as your main button.
4. Back on your profile, add a Featured section from the "Add profile section" menu to pin your strongest posts or a newsletter.
5. Publish a newsletter or go Live from the post composer if you meet LinkedIn's access criteria.

On mobile, the setting is the same under a different entry point: tap your profile photo, tap the Settings gear, then Visibility, then Followers, and switch "Make follow primary" on.

To turn it off, reverse step 3: return to Settings and Privacy, Visibility, Followers, and switch "Make follow primary" off. Connect becomes your primary button again. Nothing else on your profile moves, because the other features were never behind a switch.

Should you set your profile up as a creator?

Set Follow primary if you publish regularly, keep Connect primary if you are job hunting or selling. The right answer depends on what the profile has to do for you, not on whether "creator" sounds appealing.

If you are job searching, keep Connect as your primary button. Recruiters and hiring managers expect to connect directly, and a public follower count adds nothing to an application.

If you publish content every week, Follow primary makes sense. Readers can follow your posts without waiting for you to accept a connection request, which matters once your network outgrows what you can review by hand.

If you are in sales, use a hybrid: keep Connect primary because it starts a direct relationship, then add a Featured section and a custom button pointing to a booking link or your capabilities deck.

What a creator profile does not do

A creator setup does not boost your posts in the feed. LinkedIn's own notice describes a display and access change: buttons, follower count, tool access. Nothing in it mentions distribution or ranking.

It also does not write, schedule or improve your posts. Follow primary and a Featured section only change what a visitor sees on your profile. They do nothing for a post that has already gone out, and they cannot replace a publishing habit.

Consistency and post format matter more than any setting

The setting change takes five minutes; what moves results is what you publish and how often. Taplio's LinkedIn Benchmark measures 54,000+ real posts a month by format, length and posting slot, and it finds one format earning more than double the engagement of another. No profile button produces a gap like that.

Two starting points beat any settings change: optimizing your LinkedIn profile so the Featured section and headline carry your positioning, and using a LinkedIn post generator to hold a steady cadence instead of posting in bursts. Taplio is built for individual creators who want the analytics and the consistency without guessing at what a "creator account" was supposed to unlock.

If your goal is personal branding rather than one setting, pair that cadence with real LinkedIn analytics, so you can see which format works for your audience instead of assuming Follow primary is doing that job.

Frequently asked questions

Is creator mode on LinkedIn still available?

No, not as a toggle. LinkedIn removed the on/off switch for creator mode in March 2024. Most of what it unlocked, Follow as a primary button, analytics, Live and Newsletter, is now open to every member by default rather than behind a setting you turn on.

Is LinkedIn Creator Mode paid?

No. Creator mode was free, and so are the settings that replaced it: LinkedIn does not charge for Follow primary, the Featured section or the analytics panel. LinkedIn Creator Marketplace involves paid brand partnerships, but it is a separate program unrelated to your profile settings.

How do I turn Creator mode off?

Since the toggle was removed, "turning it off" means switching "Make follow primary" off under Settings and Privacy, then Visibility, then Followers. That restores Connect as your primary button, and nothing else on your profile changes.

How do you become a creator on LinkedIn?

There is no application or approval step. Turn on "Make follow primary," add a Featured section to your profile, and publish on a schedule you can hold. LinkedIn's Creator Accelerator Program is a separate application-based cohort, not a requirement for any of these features.

Do creators make money on LinkedIn?

Some do, mainly through brand partnerships arranged via LinkedIn Creator Marketplace, launched in June 2026, through sponsorships negotiated directly with brands, or by using LinkedIn as a channel that drives paid work elsewhere. LinkedIn does not pay per post or per follower for using Follow primary or the analytics panel.