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LinkedIn advertising MCP server

LinkedIn Advertising provides programmatic access to B2B advertising campaigns on the world's largest professional network. An AI agent with access to LinkedIn Ads can create and optimize campaigns, manage budgets, target professional audiences with precision, and generate performance reports without manual campaign management.

Setting up an MCP server

This article covers the standard steps for creating an MCP server in AI Gateway and connecting it to an AI client. The steps are the same for every integration — application-specific details (API credentials, OAuth endpoints, and scopes) are covered in the individual application pages.

Before you begin​

You'll need:

  • Access to AI Gateway with permission to create MCP servers
  • API credentials for the application you're connecting (see the relevant application page for what to collect)

Create an MCP server​

Find the API in the catalog​

  1. Sign in to AI Gateway and select MCP Servers from the left navigation.
  2. Select New MCP Server.
  3. Search for the application you want to connect, then select it from the catalog.

Configure the server​

  1. Enter a Name for your server — something descriptive that identifies both the application and its purpose (for example, "Zendesk Support — Prod").
  2. Enter a Description so your team knows what the server is for.
  3. Set the Timeout value. 30 seconds works for most APIs; increase to 60 seconds for APIs that return large payloads.
  4. Toggle Production mode on if this server will be used in a live workflow.
  5. Select Next.

Configure authentication​

Enter the authentication details for the application. This varies by service — see the Authentication section of the relevant application page for the specific credentials, OAuth URLs, and scopes to use.

Configure security​

  1. Set any Rate limits appropriate for your use case and the API's own limits.
  2. Enable Logging if you want AI Gateway to record requests and responses for auditing.
  3. Select Next.

Deploy​

Review the summary, then select Deploy. AI Gateway provisions the server and provides a server URL you'll use when configuring your AI client.

Connect to an AI client​

Once your server is deployed, you'll need to add it to the AI client your team uses. Select your client for setup instructions:

Tips​

  • You can create multiple MCP servers for the same application — for example, a read-only server for reporting agents and a read-write server for automation workflows.
  • If you're unsure which OAuth scopes to request, start with the minimum read-only set and add write scopes only when needed. Most application pages include scope recommendations.
  • You can edit a server's name, description, timeout, and security settings after deployment without redeploying.

Authentication​

LinkedIn Advertising uses Bearer token authentication. You'll need to request access to the Advertising API from the LinkedIn Developer Portal, then generate OAuth 2.0 credentials. The authorization endpoint is https://www.linkedin.com/oauth/v2/authorization and the token endpoint is https://www.linkedin.com/oauth/v2/accessToken. Required scopes include r_ads (read advertising campaigns), w_ads (create and manage campaigns), r_ads_leadgen_automation (access lead generation data), and w_ads_leadgen_automation (manage lead generation campaigns). Your API requests should include the header LinkedIn-Version: 202511 and X-Restli-Protocol-Version: 2.0.0 for compatibility with the current API version.

Available tools​

This MCP server enables campaign creation, audience targeting, creative management, lead generation, and performance tracking for LinkedIn advertising operations.

ToolDescription
Create campaignCreate a new advertising campaign with budget, targeting, and scheduling
Update campaignModify campaign settings including budget, bids, and targeting criteria
List campaignsRetrieve all campaigns in an account with status and performance data
Get campaign statusCheck current spend, performance metrics, and budget utilization
Pause campaignStop a campaign from running and accruing charges
Delete campaignRemove a campaign from the account
Create ad groupCreate an ad group within a campaign with creative and targeting
Update ad groupModify ad group settings and performance parameters
List ad groupsRetrieve all ad groups in a campaign
Create creativeUpload ad creative including images, headlines, and copy
Update creativeModify creative assets and messaging
List creativesRetrieve available creatives in an account
Target by professionApply professional demographic targeting by job title and function
Target by companyReach employees at specific companies or company sizes
Create lead gen formBuild a lead generation form for capturing contact information
Export leadsDownload leads captured from lead gen campaigns
Get analyticsRetrieve campaign performance metrics including impressions, clicks, conversions
Generate reportCreate performance reports for campaigns and ad groups

Tips​

Use your latest account ID — LinkedIn Advertising requires your correct account ID for all operations. Verify this in LinkedIn Campaign Manager before configuring the MCP server.

Combine multiple targeting dimensions (profession, company, geography) to reach your ideal audience — test targeting combinations on a small budget first to optimize cost per result.

Use LinkedIn Lead Gen Forms for higher conversion rates than click-through campaigns for B2B — use pre-filled fields like email and company to reduce friction.

Monitor your daily spend to avoid pausing ads unexpectedly at critical times — LinkedIn accounts have daily spend limits by region.

Always include LinkedIn-Version: 202511 and X-Restli-Protocol-Version: 2.0.0 headers in requests — requests without these headers will fail with version mismatch errors.