LinkedIn reply rate by continent, and how much of it is positive
The easiest accept, the coolest reply.
Upscale Outreach ·
North America replied most once messaged, at 31%, and the Middle East least, at 23%. The share of replies that were positive ran the opposite way to acceptance: Asia, which accepts the fewest requests, had the most (30%), and South America, which accepts the most, sat at the bottom with Europe (19%).
Outscale benchmarks, from 115,160 prospects reached in real campaigns.
Acceptance and replies, continent by continent
- South America65%
- Middle East40%
- North America39%
- Europe37%
- Oceania36%
- Asia33%
- Every continent together39%
- North America31%
- Oceania29%
- Asia28%
- South America25%
- Europe24%
- Middle East23%
- Every continent together26%
South America accepted most and Asia least. North America replied most and the Middle East least. Compared with the same campaigns, both gaps shrink: 14% between the highest and lowest acceptance, and every continent’s reply rate within 9% of its campaigns’ usual. Most of a continent’s rates are the campaigns aimed at it. More in LinkedIn acceptance rate by continent.
How much of the reply is good news
- Asia30%
- North America24%
- Middle East23%
- Oceania20%
- Europe19%
- South America19%
- Every continent together23%
It runs the opposite way to acceptance. Asia, which accepts the fewest requests, had the most positive replies: 30%. South America, which accepts the most, sat at the bottom with Europe, at 19%.
It held against the same campaigns. Asia accepted the furthest under its campaigns’ usual and had positive replies the furthest over, by 10%. South America accepted the furthest over and had 12% fewer positive replies than its campaigns usually get.
Where accepting is good manners, more of the accepts are manners. So are the replies. Where people are choosy about who they connect with, the ones who accept mean it.
Inside the replies that weren’t positive
The rest were a plain no, a thanks, a “not now” or a pushback. A plain no was 37% of all replies. Asia and the Middle East had the fewest, at 27%. Only Asia stayed low against its own campaigns, with 15% fewer than they usually get. In much of Asia a blunt no to a stranger is bad manners, so the uninterested stay quiet.
Europe and Oceania had the most, at 42% each: more than two noes for every positive reply. In Europe, that’s right on its campaigns’ usual mix. A wall of noes feels like the market telling you to go away. In Europe, it was the campaigns.
What to do today
- Judge a market on its positive replies. A high acceptance rate can sit on top of a cool inbox.
- Give Asia more requests. Fewer accept, and more of the replies are good news.
More in benchmarks
What LinkedIn prospects actually say when they reply
Most replies are a way in.
59% of first replies were an opening for a meeting: a yes, a thanks, a “not now”, a question, an objection or a pointer to somebody else. Those six opened 92% of the meetings that followed. 37% were a plain no, and just 1% were annoyed.
Read itLinkedIn acceptance rate by continent
A continent is too big to target by.
South America accepted LinkedIn connection requests most and Asia least: 65% against 33%, with every continent together at 39%. But within the same campaigns, the gap shrinks to 14%: most of a continent’s rate is the campaigns aimed at it.
Read itLinkedIn reply rate by department
The board and the sales team talk. Operations is busy.
Board members and salespeople replied most, 30% of them once messaged, against 26% overall. Operations replied least, at 20%. All three held within the same campaigns.
Read itWhat’s a good LinkedIn acceptance rate?
Above 47% is top quarter. And it barely buys you replies.
Anything above 47% puts a campaign in the top quarter. In real campaigns, the middle one had 37% of its connection requests accepted, the bottom quarter fell below 29%, and the top tenth beat 60%.
Read it