How to Add a User to Shopify (Staff and Collaborator Accounts)

Giving another person access to your Shopify admin is a five-minute job, but the choices you make while doing it matter. The wrong account type can eat into your plan's seat limit, and overly broad permissions are one of the easiest ways to end up with an accidental price change or a deleted theme.

Staff account or collaborator account?

Shopify has two ways to let someone into your store.

If the person you're adding runs their own agency or freelance business on Shopify, ask them to send a collaborator request. It costs you nothing in seats and the access is clearly separated from your internal team.

How to add a staff account

1. From your Shopify admin, open Settings (bottom left).
2. Click Users.
3. Click Add users (the label may read "Add staff" on older admin layouts).
4. Enter the person's first name, last name and email address.
5. Pick their permissions. You can tick individual areas such as Orders, Products, Customers, Analytics, Marketing, Discounts, Online Store and Settings.
6. Click Send invite.

The invite email is valid for a limited time. The new user creates their own password, and if your store enforces two-step authentication they'll need to set that up before they get in.

Choosing permissions sensibly

Start narrow and widen later. A customer-service assistant usually needs Orders, Customers and maybe Draft orders, but not Themes, Apps or Payments. A product uploader needs Products and Inventory, not Finances. Two areas deserve extra caution:

• Settings and payments: Anyone with these can change payout details or plan settings.
• Apps and channels: App installs can add recurring charges to your bill.

Only the store owner can transfer ownership or change certain billing details, which is a useful safety net.

How to add a collaborator

1. Ask the partner for their Shopify Partner account email or have them search for your store's myshopify.com address in their Partner dashboard.
2. They select Stores > Add store > Request access and choose the permissions they need.
3. You get an email and a notification in Settings > Users under collaborators.
4. Review the requested permissions, remove anything unnecessary, then approve.

You can require a collaborator request code under Settings > Users so that random partners can't ping you with requests. Share the code only with people you've hired.

How plan limits work

Shopify's 2026 pricing page lists staff seats as part of each plan: Grow includes 5 additional staff accounts, Advanced 15, and Plus unlimited, while Basic is designed for solo owners and has very limited room for extra staff. If you hit the cap, you can remove inactive users, convert outside contractors to collaborator accounts, or upgrade. Checking the plan comparison before you hire is worth it, since the jump from Basic to Grow also changes your card processing rates and reporting features. Our breakdown of what Shopify takes per sale covers those differences.

Good habits for multi-user stores

• Use named accounts, never shared logins. Shopify logs actions by user, which makes it possible to trace who changed a price or refunded an order.
• Audit access every quarter. Remove people who left and trim permissions that are no longer needed.
• Turn on two-step authentication for everyone. Shopify Payments requires it for the owner, and it's sensible for staff too.
• Remove agency access when a project ends. Collaborator accounts tend to linger for years after the work is finished.

Troubleshooting

The invite never arrived. Check spam, confirm the address, then resend from the user's page in Settings > Users.

The "Add users" button is greyed out. You've likely reached your plan's limit, or you aren't logged in as the owner or a user with permission to manage staff.

A collaborator can't see a section. Their request didn't include that permission. Edit their access from Settings > Users rather than asking them to submit a new request.

If you're bringing in outside help for the first time, it's worth reading whether hiring a Shopify expert is worth it and how to change your Shopify store name if you're mid-rebrand and want the new team working on the right identity from day one.

Frequently asked questions

How many staff accounts can I add to Shopify?

It depends on your plan. Shopify's pricing page lists 5 additional staff accounts on Grow, 15 on Advanced and unlimited on Plus, with Basic offering very limited staff seats. Collaborator accounts do not count toward the staff limit.

What is the difference between a staff account and a collaborator account?

Staff accounts are for employees and are tied to your plan's seat limit. Collaborator accounts are for Shopify Partners such as developers and agencies, are requested from the Partner dashboard, and don't use a staff seat.

Can I remove a user later?

Yes. Open Settings > Users, select the person and either change their permissions or remove them. Removing access takes effect immediately.

Sources and further reading

• help.shopify.com/en/manual/your-account/users
• shopify.com/pricing

Platform features, prices and policies change. Check the official help pages linked above before you act on a detail that matters to your store.