How to create a LinkedIn Ads account
This guide walks you through creating a LinkedIn Campaign Manager ad account, connecting your company’s LinkedIn Page, adding a payment method, and giving the right people access.
LinkedIn ads are built and run in Campaign Manager, LinkedIn’s free advertising platform. Your ad account lives there. It holds your campaigns, your billing, your Insight Tag, and the list of people allowed to work in it.
Two other pieces connect to it. Your LinkedIn Page is your company’s presence on LinkedIn, and LinkedIn requires one to run Sponsored Content and Sponsored Messaging. Business Manager is an optional layer above ad accounts that helps organizations with several ad accounts, several Pages, or an agency partner manage access and billing in one place.
Confirm you can manage your LinkedIn Page
Sign in to LinkedIn with your personal account. Ad accounts are always created by a person, not by a company login. Check that you are an admin on your company’s LinkedIn Page. If the company has no Page yet, create one from the Create a LinkedIn Page link on LinkedIn’s business site. LinkedIn checks that you are eligible to create a Page for that company.
TipFill out the Page logo, description, and website before you advertise, because people who see your ads often click through to it.
Open Campaign Manager
Go to LinkedIn’s marketing site at business.linkedin.com and select Sign in to Campaign Manager or Create ad. If you have never advertised, LinkedIn guides you into creating your first Campaign Manager account. If someone at your company already created one, ask them to add you to it instead of creating a second account for the same business.
Name the account and choose a currency
Enter an account name that makes the business obvious, such as your company name. Anyone you add later will see it in their account list. Choose the currency you want to be billed in. Currency affects every budget and bid you set, and LinkedIn publishes its minimum budgets in US dollars.
Watch outCheck LinkedIn's supported currencies article before you pick a non-USD currency, and treat the choice as permanent.
Associate your LinkedIn Page
During setup, LinkedIn prompts you to associate a LinkedIn Page with the ad account. Search for and select your company’s Page. If you do not have one yet, you can create it from this step. The associated Page is what your Sponsored Content and Message Ads run as, so pick the Page your customers recognize.
Add a payment method
LinkedIn requires a payment method before a campaign can launch. For most new advertisers that is a credit card, added in the account’s billing settings or during your first campaign’s review step. Enter the card and the billing address exactly as they appear on the card statement. Monthly invoicing is available to some advertisers through Business Manager, but it is not the default starting point.
Add your team with the right roles
Open the account settings and manage access to add people by their LinkedIn profile. Ad account roles control what each person can do. They include account manager, campaign manager, creative manager, and viewer, and LinkedIn also has a billing admin role for managing payment. Read each role’s description in the access screen before you assign it.
Give each person the lowest role that lets them do their job.
TipKeep at least two people at the account manager level so access never depends on one person.
Decide whether you need Business Manager
If you have one ad account and one Page, you can skip this for now. If you run several ad accounts, several Pages, or work with an agency, create a Business Manager account from LinkedIn’s Business Manager page with Create Business Manager. You then add your ad accounts and Pages, invite people as Admin, Employee, or Contractor, and share access with partners without handing over personal logins.
Check the account before your first campaign
Open the new account and confirm the name, currency, associated Page, and payment method are correct. Confirm everyone who needs access can see it. At this point you have an empty ad account. The next steps are installing the LinkedIn Insight Tag on your website and building your first campaign.
Before you move on
- You are an admin on your company's LinkedIn Page
- The ad account name and currency are correct
- Your LinkedIn Page is associated with the ad account
- A valid payment method is on file
- At least two trusted people hold the account manager role
Official resources
- Sign in to LinkedIn Campaign Manager
- What you need to create your first campaign
- LinkedIn Business Manager
- Create an ad account in Campaign Manager
Ad platforms update their tools often. This guide was last reviewed against the official documentation above in October 2026. If your screen looks different, the official help pages have the latest steps.
At a glance
- Level
- Beginner
- Time
- About 20 minutes
- What you need
- A personal LinkedIn account with a verified email address
- Admin access to your company's LinkedIn Page, or permission to create one
- A credit card for ad charges
- Your business's legal name and billing details
- A list of who needs access and at what level
Rather have it done for you?
Active Digital Marketing builds and manages LinkedIn ad accounts for businesses doing $25,000+ a month in revenue.
Apply to work with usOr get an ad account auditWhere DIY setups go wrong
The most common problems with self-built LinkedIn Ads setups, and what they cost.
Creating duplicate ad accounts
When a new employee or contractor cannot find the existing account, they often create another one. Spend, conversion data, audiences, and history then split across accounts, which makes reporting and optimization harder.
Tying everything to one person
If the only account manager is a former employee or a freelancer who moved on, recovering access takes time. Add a second senior admin and use Business Manager for partners.
Associating the wrong Page
Agencies and multi-brand companies sometimes connect a parent or test Page. Ads then run under a name customers do not recognize.
Handing out admin rights by default
Giving everyone the highest role is convenient on day one, but it means anyone can change billing, remove users, or edit live campaigns.
What this guide doesn't cover
An ad account is the container, not the strategy. What decides whether LinkedIn pays off is who you target, what you offer them, how you measure results, and how spend moves between campaigns as you learn. LinkedIn audiences are expensive to reach, so these choices matter more here than on most platforms.
Active Digital Marketing builds and manages LinkedIn programs for established brands, starting from the account structure and measurement plan before money is spent.
- Account and campaign structure that matches your sales funnel
- Account-based targeting with company and contact lists
- Lead Gen Form strategy and CRM handoff
- Insight Tag and Conversions API measurement
- Offer and creative testing for B2B buyers
- Budget allocation across awareness and conversion
Common questions
Is it free to create a LinkedIn ad account?
Yes. Creating a Campaign Manager account costs nothing. You pay only for ad delivery once campaigns run.
Do I need a LinkedIn Page to advertise?
LinkedIn requires a Page for Sponsored Content and Sponsored Messaging, which covers most ad formats. You are prompted to associate one when you create the ad account.
What is the difference between Campaign Manager and Business Manager?
Campaign Manager is where you build, run, and report on campaigns. Business Manager is an optional layer for managing several ad accounts, Pages, people, and partner access in one place.
Can an agency get access without my password?
Yes. Add the agency's people to your ad account with a role, or connect through Business Manager so the agency's business can be granted or removed in one step.
Keep learning
How to Create a LinkedIn Ads Campaign
Build your first LinkedIn ads campaign in Campaign Manager: objective, audience, ad format, placements, budget, ads, and launch, step by step.
Read the guideHow to Set a LinkedIn Ads Budget
How LinkedIn ads budgets work: daily vs lifetime, campaign budgets, minimums, bidding strategies, pacing, and how to change budgets safely.
Read the guideHow to Install the LinkedIn Insight Tag
Install the LinkedIn Insight Tag, set up conversion tracking, confirm the tag is active, and learn how the Conversions API fits in.
Read the guideHow to Create a Meta Ad Account
Set up a Meta business portfolio, create an ad account, add a payment method, and give your team the right access, step by step.
Read the guideHow to Create a Google Ads Account
Step-by-step: sign up for Google Ads without a forced campaign, set billing and time zone, add users, and complete advertiser verification.
Read the guideHow to Create a TikTok Ads Manager Account
Set up TikTok Ads Manager step by step: sign-up, business details, payment method, account approval, Business Center, and team access.
Read the guideRather have it built right the first time?
If your business does $25,000+ a month in revenue, apply and Mitch will review your accounts personally. Earlier than that? An ad account audit gives you a senior-level fix list you can work through yourself.