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LinkedIn Top Startups (United States)

LinkedIn's annual ranking of the 50 U.S. startups growing and attracting talent fastest, based on LinkedIn member activity. It is useful to founders and job seekers as a hiring-momentum signal rather than a measure of financial performance.

Visit the LinkedIn Top Startups site

Reliability
Grade B · 9/12
Publisher
LinkedIn News
Ranks
Startups, United States
Editions
9 since 2017
Method
Data
How items get in
Compiled by the publisher
Status
Active
LinkedIn Top Startups (United States)
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Editions

EditionPublishedTop of the listOn record
2025October 2025Perplexity4 of 50
20242024Perplexity6 of 50
2023September 27, 2023Ramp8 of 50
2022September 2022Discord10 of 50
2021September 22, 2021Better10 of 50
2020September 22, 2020Better.com10 of 50
2019September 4, 2019Snowflake10 of 50
2018 Method changedSeptember 5, 2018Lyft10 of 50
2017 Method changedNovember 1, 2017Uber5 of 50

How the ranking works

LinkedIn scores eligible startups on four pillars derived from its platform data: employment growth, engagement with the company and its employees, job-seeker interest, and ability to attract talent from LinkedIn Top Companies. Eligibility (2020 and 2021): independent, privately held, at least 50 employees, no more than seven years old, U.S. headquarters, and at least 15% employee growth over the measurement window.

The measurement window is roughly the prior 12 months (July 2020 to June 2021 for the 2021 list). Pillar weights are not published.

Ranked positions: Each item has a position (1, 2, 3), with ties allowed. Companies cannot apply or pay; LinkedIn ranks eligible companies from its own member data. CB Insights was a data partner for the 2017 list only (per LinkedIn's 2017 announcement).

Read the publisher’s methodology

How far to trust it

Superscout grades every ranking on six criteria, each scored 0 to 2. LinkedIn Top Startups (United States) scores 9 of 12, grade B.

Transparency 1/2
Pillars and eligibility published; weights not.
Independence 2/2
Census of eligible companies; no applications or fees.
Evidence 1/2
Platform behavioral data is proprietary and not verifiable externally.
Stability 1/2
Method changed after the 2017 debut; pillars stable since 2018.
Coverage 2/2
All eligible U.S. startups are considered.
Track record 2/2
9 editions.

History

First published in November 2017 as 'LinkedIn Top Companies: Startups', using CB Insights data and requiring 100+ employees and up to 10 years of age. From 2018 it became 'LinkedIn Top Startups' with the four-pillar method, and LinkedIn later added city and country editions (for example India, Boston, Seattle). The 2025 list was billed as the ninth annual U.S. list.

How it is received

The list is covered by CNBC, Inc., Forbes and others each year, and honorees publicize their rank. Because it measures LinkedIn activity (hiring and interest), it rewards fast headcount growth and brand buzz rather than revenue or profitability; LinkedIn itself frames it as a guide to where people want to work. No independent critique was found in the sources reviewed.

Strengths

  • Data-driven from LinkedIn's member activity; no applications or fees.
  • Ranked, with consistent eligibility rules.
  • Annual since 2017 with city and country spin-offs.
  • Captures hiring momentum early.

Weaknesses

  • Measures hiring and attention, not revenue or durability.
  • Weights and exclusion decisions are not published.
  • Relies on data only LinkedIn can see, so results cannot be replicated.
  • Full lists are hosted on LinkedIn pages that block automated access.

Open questions

Facts not verified yet. They stay visible so they are not mistaken for settled facts.

Superscout describes LinkedIn Top Startups (United States) independently from the publisher’s own pages and outside coverage, linked below. The rankings belong to LinkedIn News.

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Sources and known limits

Last reviewed .