How I Built AI Powered LinkedIn X-ray Search Tool with Lobstr.io

But LinkedIn’s internal search hides a ton of these LinkedIn profiles behind network connections, daily search limitations, and that sneaky Premium paywall.

That’s where the magic of LinkedIn X-ray search comes in.

But what’s LinkedIn X-ray search?

What Is LinkedIn X-Ray Search?

Why do it?

1. Bypass LinkedIn search limits
2. To find contact info
3. Anonymous or low-footprint research
4. Reach hidden or niche talent pools

1. Bypass LinkedIn search limits

LinkedIn’s internal search comes with two big limits.

1. Commercial use limit lets you run only 300 searches and 80 profile visits per month
2. Search results display limit shows just 100 pages (about 1000 results)

X-ray search lets you bypass these search limitations.

2. To find contact info

Adding bits like “@gmail.com” or “email” to your boolean search string can give you publicly available emails from LinkedIn profiles right in the Google search snippets.

Plus, LinkedIn allows you to visit 80 profiles per day. Which means you can see a maximum of 80 emails.

But with X-ray search, there’s literally no limit.

3. Anonymous research

Because you’re searching off LinkedIn, you stay under the radar.

Many users don’t want to sign up for a LinkedIn account due to privacy issues. LinkedIn X-ray search solves this problem.

You can find talent, leads, or do LinkedIn research without actually making an account.

But how can I do X-ray search?

How to do LinkedIn X-Ray Search?

To learn how to do a proper LinkedIn X-ray search, you should know how LinkedIn profiles are structured and how to use Google’s advanced search operators.

Let’s understand them one by one.

Understanding LinkedIn URL structure

LinkedIn uses different URL slugs for different pages:

1. linkedin.com/in/ — personal LinkedIn profiles
2. linkedin.com/pub/ — older style public profiles (still indexed)
3. linkedin.com/company/ — company pages
4. linkedin.com/jobs/ — job postings
5. linkedin.com/pulse/ — LinkedIn articles or blogs

But how do I use them in LinkedIn X-ray search?

For that, you need to understand some Google search operators.

Google Advanced Search Operators

Here are some popular and working Google search operators you can try:

P.S. I have only mentioned the ones that are relevant to LinkedIn X-ray search. You can access the full list of Google search operators here:

How to create LinkedIn Xray search strings with Boolean operators?

Boolean operators are AND, OR, and NOT. They help you combine or exclude keywords in your search strings.

When you build a LinkedIn X-ray search string, you can use Boolean operators to cover every possible keyword to get the perfect match results.

For example, say you want to find software engineers in Berlin who know Python. Your LinkedIn X-ray search string could be:

site:linkedin.com/in ("software engineer" OR developer) "Python" "Berlin" -jobs
f

Here’s how it works:

1. site:linkedin.com/in tells Google to show only LinkedIn profiles.
2. ("software engineer" OR developer) covers different job titles so you don’t miss anyone.
3. "Python" and "Berlin" lock in the exact skill and location.
4. -jobs removes job postings that might sneak in.

The result looks something like this:

When you build a boolean string like this, always list your must-have job title, key skill, and location.

If there are similar terms, group them with OR and put them inside parentheses. This tells the search engine you want profiles matching any of those terms.

Also, throw out words that add noise like “jobs”, “hiring”, or “freelance”, if you want real LinkedIn profiles instead of postings.

Building a good boolean search string can be confusing, especially if you’re not a boolean search nerd.

But these tools come with limits.

1. You’re stuck with fixed fields
2. You can’t batch multiple search queries at once
3. Sometimes their syntax is completely outdated

Want my advice?

Use ChatGPT for smarter strings.

How? Well, I did the hard work for you and made a custom GPT that returns exactly what you need.

This GPT gives you a ready-to-copy boolean string and even the search URL.

How to use it?

Tell the GPT what kind of LinkedIn profiles you need in plain English.

If key details are missing it will ask follow-up questions, otherwise it replies with a table containing a copy-ready Boolean string and a clickable Google link.

And that’s it. You’ve cracked the LinkedIn X-ray search.

Feels good, right? But there’s still a snag.

Google throttles frequent searches, so you’ll see CAPTCHAs if you’re doing too many Google searches in a short period of time.

And doing manual copy-paste for hundreds of LinkedIn profiles is a pain. It’s not efficient to dump all those URLs into Sheets by hand.

You need something that handles that grunt work for you.

Well… I’ve got a solution for that too.

This is where Lobstr.io makes your LinkedIn X-ray search so much easier.

How to collect Google search results at scale with Lobstr.io

You can use Lobstr.io’s Google Search Scraper to pull search results from any query at scale.

1. Cloud-based, fast scraper.
2. Handles unlimited search queries easily.
3. Deals with captchas so you don’t get blocked.
4. Auto-exports data to Google Sheets or S3.
5. Offers an API for custom workflows.

I have already written a detailed step-by-step tutorial on how to use Lobstr.io to collect all Google search results from a query:

But for this specific tutorial, let me give you a quick walkthrough again. (P.S. For a detailed tutorial, I recommend reading the article I mentioned above.)

1. Create Squid
2. Add tasks
3. Tweak settings
4. Launch

1. Create Squid

1. Sign up or login
2. Click New Squid button
3. Search “Google”
4. Choose Google Search Scraper from the list

And our Squid is ready to take input.

2. Add tasks

Now we need to add the search queries we want to collect data from.

First, let’s get the search queries from the GPT I created for you earlier.

3. Tweak settings

There’s not much to tweak. You can:

1. Select total results to collect per query
2. Select mobile or desktop search results
3. Choose location and language of search results

I don’t want to tweak the first 2 settings as they’re irrelevant in this use case.

4. Launch

Well, we’re all set. Save the settings and launch the scraper.

It’ll start collecting data in real-time.

And within minutes… it collects all the results from Google.

And that’s it.

That’s how you do LinkedIn X-ray search without getting banned, without manual captcha solving, and download results hundreds of queries in minutes.

But, still lots of manual work here.

Let’s automate the entire process.

How to make a smart LinkedIn X-ray bot to automate the entire workflow?

For this step, we need 3 things:

1. Lobstr.io API
2. OpenAI API
3. A workflow automation tool

And lastly, we need a workflow automation tool.

I have already compared the best workflow automation tools with AI agent support.

You can read this article and choose the one that suits your needs.

I personally prefer n8n because:

1. It works great with APIs
2. It’s super customizable
3. It can be self-hosted
4. It’s completely free

Now let me show you my workflow and step by step process of building a similar one.

Let’s break this down step by step.

1. Get Squid hash

First, log in to Lobstr.io and create a new Squid.

Now look at your browser’s address bar.

https://app.lobstr.io/dashboard/squids/

Copy that alphanumeric string somewhere safe. You’ll need it later to connect your tasks.

2. Set up credentials in n8n

Let’s add Lobstr.io API first.

And save it.

For OpenAI, repeat the process.

Pick OpenAI from the drop-down, paste your secret key, and click Save.

I like sending my results to Discord, so I added a Discord webhook too.

If you’d rather use Slack, email, or push straight to Google Sheets, you can connect that instead.

3. Import my ready-made workflow template

You don’t have to build your LinkedIn X-ray search agent from scratch. I already did the heavy lifting for you.

Then, back in n8n:

1. Click the three dots ... next to the Save button.
2. Choose Import from File.
3. Upload the workflow template JSON file.

Now you’ve got a full working blueprint for your smart LinkedIn X-ray bot.

4. Update placeholders and customize

Before you hit Run, you need to swap out some placeholders with your real info.

Update the authentication headers for Lobstr.io and OpenAI with the real credentials you created earlier.

If you want your results on Discord, just add your own server's webhook. Prefer Slack, email, or a different app? Just add or swap nodes. n8n is super flexible.

5. Run your LinkedIn X-Ray search agent

Everything you just set up is one-time. No need to repeat this process unless you want to create a new workflow or improve the existing one.

That’s it! Run the workflow.

Just type your search query in the Chat and hit enter.

From now on, every LinkedIn X-ray search runs automatically, scrapes your Google search results, and drops the final list in Discord, Sheets, or any other app you choose.

And that’s it.

Now let me answer some FAQs before wrapping it up.

FAQs

What are the best practices for performing a LinkedIn Xray search on Google?

Here are a few practical ways to get better results fast:

1. Run multi-site X-ray searches to find profiles on LinkedIn plus GitHub or blogs.
2. Exclude noise with -intitle:job -hiring -freelance to skip junk pages.
3. Use wildcards and filetype:pdf to spot public resumes and extra details.

How can I find profiles on LinkedIn using Xray search techniques?

Yes, you can use it to search for the right people in your LinkedIn network.

You can also run X-ray searches with Sales Navigator for more detailed LinkedIn search results and extra search filters.

Can I use X-ray search for outreach?

Yes you can use it for outreach and lead generation. Once you’ve scraped your list of LinkedIn profiles, you can plug those leads straight into your outreach tool or CRM.

Can I do the same X-ray search method on Bing?

Yes. Bing’s algorithm works just like Google X-ray searches. Sometimes it even picks up LinkedIn profiles that Google misses, so it’s worth testing both search engines.

What is LinkedIn Recruiter and how much does it cost?

LinkedIn Recruiter is LinkedIn’s premium tool for talent acquisition teams who want to find the right candidates faster.

It’s packed with advanced filters and search features to help you source top talent way beyond your normal network.

Conclusion