---
title: Understanding user roles in Collage
slug: user-roles-explained
category: account-admin
tags: user-roles, permissions, admin, manager, viewer, portal-users
summary: Collage has three workspace roles — Admin, Manager, and Viewer — plus Portal Users who only have access to your brand portals.
updated: 2026-07-07
url: https://support.collage.inc/articles/user-roles-explained
---

# Understanding user roles in Collage

Collage has two kinds of access: *workspace roles* for the people who manage and work with your library, and **Portal Users** for people who only need to reach content through a brand portal. Inviting each person at the right level keeps your content secure and your account tidy.

## Workspace roles

Everyone who works inside your Collage workspace has one of three roles, from most to least access:

- **Admin** — full control of the workspace: manage assets, folders, and Collages; configure account settings, users, and the brand portal.
- **Manager** — manage and organize content day to day: upload, tag, curate, move, delete, and share assets, folders, and Collages. Managers focus on the library rather than account-level settings, and unlike Admins, they can't permanently empty Trash.
- **Viewer** — browse, download, and share content within the workspace, without editing it.

You assign a role when you invite someone — see [Managing account members](https://support.collage.inc/articles/managing-account-members). Reserve **Admin** for the people you trust with settings and users.

## Portal Users

**Portal Users** don't work inside the workspace at all — they have access only to one or more of your brand portals, where they can find and download the content you've approved. They can create share links for that content from within the portal, but they can't create share links from the workspace itself — that requires a workspace role. This is the right level for partners, resellers, franchisees, or internal teams who only need to pull approved assets. Add them from your brand portal — see [Adding brand portal users](https://support.collage.inc/articles/adding-brand-portal-users).

## Capabilities at a glance

This table compares the four roles — **Admin**, **Manager**, **Viewer**, and **Portal Users** — across common tasks.

| Capability | Admin | Manager | Viewer | Portal Users |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| View and download assets | ✅ | ✅ | ✅ | ✅ (portal only) |
| Upload, tag, and organize content | ✅ | ✅ | ❌ | ❌ |
| Move and delete assets, folders, Collages | ✅ | ✅ | ❌ | ❌ |
| Permanently empty Trash | ✅ | ❌ | ❌ | ❌ |
| Create share links | ✅ | ✅ | ✅ | ✅ (portal only) |
| Manage users and account settings | ✅ | ❌ | ❌ | ❌ |
| Configure brand portal branding | ✅ | ❌ | ❌ | ❌ |

## Choosing the right level

- Someone who **runs the account** (settings, users, portal) → **Admin**.
- Someone who **manages content** but not the account → **Manager**.
- Someone who only needs to **view, download, and share** inside the workspace → **Viewer**.
- Someone outside your team who only needs *approved content through a portal* → **Portal Users**.

> Note: When in doubt, start people lower and grant more later. It's easy to raise a role, and it keeps account control with a small, trusted group.