Networking is one of the most talked-about parts of building a career, and one of the most misquoted. You have probably seen claims that 85% of jobs are filled through networking or that 70% of jobs are never posted. Some of those numbers hold up. Some don’t.
We went back to the original sources for every statistic below. Each one links to where it came from and notes the year, so you can judge how much weight to give it.
Key networking statistics at a glance:
• Almost 80% of professionals say networking is important to career success (LinkedIn).
• 70% of people hired in 2016 joined a company where they already had a connection (LinkedIn).
• Referred candidates are 7x more likely to be hired than job board applicants (Pinpoint, 4.5 million applications).
• Referral interviews were 35% more likely to end in a job offer than interviews from online applications (Glassdoor, 2025).
• The popular “85% of jobs are filled through networking” figure comes from an informal 2016 online survey, not a scientific study.
What Percentage of Jobs Are Found Through Networking?
There is no single, reliable number, and the answer depends on how you define networking. Here is what the actual research says.
- 70% of professionals hired in 2016 were hired at a company where they had a connection. This comes from a LinkedIn survey of 15,905 members across 17 countries, published in 2017.
- The “85% of jobs are filled through networking” figure comes from an informal survey. Recruiting author Lou Adler asked people how they found their most recent job over a 12-month period. About 3,000 people responded, most of them in staff or management roles. It is useful as a signal, but it was not a random sample of all workers.
- Estimates for jobs filled through networking range from about half to 80%. CNBC (2019) summarizes the research this way, and reports that some estimates put the share of jobs never published on public job sites at up to 70%.
- About 60% of job hunters find their new job with help from friends and family, according to the U.S. Department of Labor’s networking guide for young job seekers.
- Online applications still produce the most job offers. They accounted for 60% of job offers reported on Glassdoor in 2025, down from 73% in 2023 (CNBC, reporting Glassdoor data, January 2026).
- Referrals made up about 10% of job offers reported on Glassdoor between July 2024 and July 2025. So referrals are a small share of all hires, but a very effective one.
- Recruiter-sourced hiring is growing fast. The share of job offers that came from being recruited rose 72% since 2023, to nearly 15% (Glassdoor).
The takeaway: most people still get hired by applying. But when you have a connection, your odds of getting the job go up sharply, as the next section shows.
Networking and Referral Statistics for Job Seekers
A referral is networking at its most direct: someone inside the company vouches for you. (For more on this, see our employee referral statistics.)
- Interviews that came from a referral were 35% more likely to result in a job offer than interviews that started with an online application (Glassdoor data via CNBC, 2026).
- Referred candidates are 7 times more likely to be hired than candidates who apply through job boards, based on Pinpoint’s analysis of 4.5 million applications (2023).
- In logistics and supply chain, referred candidates were more than 11 times more likely to be hired than job board applicants. In food and beverage, they were 9 times more likely (Pinpoint).
- Referral hires move through the hiring process 11% faster than hires from other sources (Pinpoint).
- People who are referred for a job are 9 times more likely to get it, according to LinkedIn data cited by CNBC.
Networking also helps after you are hired. People who change careers often lean on their network to make the jump. Our career change statistics cover this in more detail.
The Strength of Weak Ties: What 20 Million LinkedIn Users Show
Many people assume their closest contacts are the most helpful in a job search. The largest study on the topic suggests otherwise.
- A five-year experiment covered about 20 million LinkedIn users. Between 2015 and 2019, researchers from LinkedIn, MIT, Harvard and Stanford changed LinkedIn’s “People You May Know” suggestions and tracked the results. The findings were published in Science in 2022.
- Participants created about 2 billion new connections, submitted over 70 million job applications and accepted 600,000 new jobs during the study (MIT News).
- Weak ties were better for job mobility than strong ties, on average. In the researchers’ words, “the stronger the newly added ties were, the less likely they were to lead to a job transmission.”
- The weak-tie effect was strongest in more digital industries, such as tech. That matters for anyone working in software, IT or engineering.
In practice, this means the former coworker you haven’t spoken to in three years, or a friend of a friend, may be more useful than your closest colleagues, because they know about opportunities you don’t.
Online Networking Statistics
LinkedIn’s 2017 global survey is still one of the most widely cited sources on online networking.
- 35% of professionals say a casual conversation on LinkedIn Messaging led to a new opportunity.
- 25% have established a new business partnership through a conversation on LinkedIn Messaging.
- 61% agree that regular online interaction with their network can lead to job opportunities.
- Saving time (92%) and saving money (88%) were the top reasons executives preferred technology-enabled meetings, according to a Forbes Insights survey of 760 executives (2009). Other reasons included location flexibility (76%), multitasking (64%) and productivity (55%).
In-Person Networking Statistics
Online networking is efficient, but face-to-face contact still carries weight when trust and big decisions are involved.
- 84% of executives prefer in-person meetings over technology-enabled meetings (Forbes Insights, 2009).
- Executives who prefer meeting in person say it builds stronger, more meaningful business relationships (85%), lets them read body language and facial expressions (77%), and allows more social interaction (75%) (Forbes Insights).
- Executives said face-to-face meetings are best for persuasion (91%), leadership (87%), engagement (86%) and decision-making (82%) (Forbes Insights).
- About 40% of prospective customers become new customers after an in-person meeting, compared with 16% without one, according to an Oxford Economics study reported by Reuters (2009).
- Executives and business travelers estimated that 28% of current business would be lost without in-person meetings (Oxford Economics, 2009).
These business studies are older, but they are still the most-cited research on face-to-face meetings. Treat the exact percentages as a snapshot, not a current benchmark.
Networking, Promotions and the Gender Gap
Networking matters for moving up, not just for getting hired. The figures below come from research described in CNBC correspondent Julia Boorstin’s book When Women Lead, excerpted by Chief (2022).
- 57% of men credited personal connections for their most recent promotion, compared with 48% of women.
- 83% of men said who you know counts at least as much as how well you do your job. By contrast, 77% of women said promotion is a result of hard work, long hours and education credentials.
- 42% of women who attended a Conferences for Women event were promoted within a year, compared with 18% of a control group who had signed up but not yet attended.
- Women who attended were three times as likely to have earned a raise.
Challenges of Networking Statistics
Most professionals agree networking matters. Far fewer do it consistently. These figures come from the same LinkedIn survey.
- 79% of professionals agree that networking is valuable for career progression.
- Only 48% keep in touch with their network when things are going well in their career.
- 38% say they find it hard to stay in touch with their network.
- 49% say the main reason is that they don’t have enough time.
The gap between belief and behavior is where the opportunity is. People who stay in touch before they need something are the ones whose network is ready when they do. For more on what keeps people happy once they land a role, see our job satisfaction statistics.
Final Thoughts
The data doesn’t support the idea that networking is the only way to get a job. Most offers still come from applications. But it clearly supports this: a referral or a connection makes you far more likely to get hired, and the people you know only loosely are often the ones who open the door.
If you do one thing after reading this, reconnect with a few people you haven’t spoken to in a while. Don’t wait until you need a job.
Frequently Asked Questions About Networking
What percentage of jobs are found through networking? It depends on how networking is defined. A 2017 LinkedIn survey found that 70% of people hired in 2016 joined a company where they had a connection. The widely repeated 85% figure comes from an informal 2016 online survey of about 3,000 people. Glassdoor data shows referrals made up about 10% of job offers in 2024–2025, while online applications made up 60%.
Is the 85% networking statistic true? It is not a reliable figure for all jobs. It comes from a 2016 survey by recruiting author Lou Adler, in which about 3,000 people, mostly in staff or management roles, said how they found their most recent job. It was not a random sample, so it shouldn’t be treated as a national statistic.
Are referred candidates more likely to get hired? Yes. Pinpoint’s analysis of 4.5 million applications found referred candidates were 7 times more likely to be hired than job board applicants. Glassdoor data found interviews from referrals were 35% more likely to end in a job offer than interviews from online applications.
What are weak ties in networking? Weak ties are people you know loosely, such as former coworkers, acquaintances or friends of friends. A five-year LinkedIn experiment with about 20 million users, published in Science in 2022, found that weak ties were better for job mobility than strong ties, on average.
What is the biggest challenge professionals face with networking? Time. In LinkedIn’s survey, 49% of professionals said they don’t have enough time to stay in touch with their network, and only 48% keep in touch when their career is going well.
Is online networking as effective as in-person networking? They serve different purposes. LinkedIn found 35% of professionals got a new opportunity from a casual LinkedIn Messaging conversation. In-person meetings still matter for building trust: an Oxford Economics study found about 40% of prospects became customers after an in-person meeting, compared with 16% without one.
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