If you're running paid ads on Facebook and Instagram, eventually someone else needs access to your ad account. Maybe it's an agency handling your campaigns, a freelancer helping with creative, or a team member taking over management. Sharing ad account access is different from sharing page access, and it requires its own process.
Here's exactly how to grant ad account access safely through Meta Business Manager.
Why Ad Account Access Is Different
Your Facebook page and your Facebook ad account are separate things in Meta's system. Giving someone access to your page doesn't automatically give them access to your ad account. You need to grant each type of access separately.
This separation is actually useful. It means you can have different people handling different parts of your marketing. Your content manager can have page access without touching your ad budget. Your paid media specialist can have ad account access without being able to post organic content.
Understanding this distinction avoids the common mistake of giving everyone full access to everything.
Before You Start
You need a few things in place before granting ad account access.
A Meta Business Manager account. If you don't have one, create it at business.facebook.com.
Your ad account added to Business Manager. This happens automatically when you create a new ad account through Business Manager, but existing accounts might need to be added manually.
The email address of the person you want to grant access to.
An understanding of which role is appropriate for them.
Step One: Open Business Manager
Log into business.facebook.com. You should see your Business Manager dashboard with links to pages, ad accounts, and other assets.
Click the settings icon or navigate to business settings.
Step Two: Navigate to Ad Accounts
In the left menu under accounts, click ad accounts. You'll see a list of all ad accounts connected to your Business Manager.
If your ad account isn't listed, click add and follow the prompts to add it. You'll need the ad account ID, which you can find in your Ads Manager dashboard.
Click on the specific ad account you want to share.
Step Three: Add People to the Ad Account
With the ad account selected, you'll see tabs for ad account details, ad account roles, and people. Click add people or the people tab.
Enter the email address of the person you want to grant access to. They need to either be already in your Business Manager as a user, or they'll be added in this step.
If the person isn't in your Business Manager yet, you'll be prompted to add them as a user first, then assign them to the ad account. Follow the prompts.
Step Four: Choose the Right Role
Meta offers three main roles for ad account access, each with different permissions.
Ad account admin has full control. They can manage campaigns, spend money, change billing details, add or remove other users, and see all reporting. Only trusted agencies or senior team members should have this level.
Ad account advertiser can create and edit campaigns, manage ads, and view reporting, but can't change billing information or add other users. This is the right level for most agencies and freelancers.
Ad account analyst can view campaigns and reporting but can't make changes. Appropriate for people who need data for reporting purposes but don't actively manage campaigns.
For most agency relationships, advertiser access is the right choice. It gives them what they need to run your campaigns without exposing billing or user management.
Step Five: Confirm and Send the Invitation
Review the role and click confirm or save. The person will receive a notification and email about the new access.
They'll need to accept the access through Business Manager. Once accepted, they can begin managing your ad account at the level you granted.
Setting Up Billing Separately
Billing information stays with you, not the agency. The person with advertiser access can spend money from your account, but they can't change how you pay or add new payment methods.
Make sure your billing is set up correctly before granting access. Go to ad account settings in Business Manager and verify your payment method, billing threshold, and spending limits.
You can also set a spending limit on the ad account itself, which caps how much can be charged to your payment method in a given period. This is a useful safety measure when working with new agencies.
Understanding Ad Account Structure
If your restaurant runs ads across multiple locations or brands, you might have multiple ad accounts. Each one needs to be granted separately.
You can also create child ad accounts or partner with agencies that run ads from their own accounts on your behalf. These more complex setups are usually only needed for larger operations. For most restaurants, a single ad account is enough.
Monitoring Activity
Business Manager logs activity on your ad accounts. You can see who created campaigns, who made edits, and when changes happened. This audit trail is useful for understanding what's happening with your ads and verifying that access is being used appropriately.
Check your ad account activity periodically. If you notice unusual spending or campaigns you didn't approve, address it immediately.
Setting Spending Limits
To protect yourself when giving ad account access, consider setting a spending limit on the account. This caps the total amount that can be spent in a given period.
In ad account settings, look for spending limit options. Set a reasonable cap based on your planned monthly budget. If an agency tries to exceed it, they'll be blocked until you approve more spending.
This is one of the most useful protections available when working with new agencies whose work you haven't validated yet.
Removing Access
When your relationship with an agency ends, remove their access immediately.
Go to business settings in Business Manager. Navigate to the ad account they had access to. Click on people and find them in the list. Click remove.
Their access is revoked instantly. They can no longer create campaigns, make changes, or see your data.
Don't forget to also remove them from any other assets they had access to, like your Facebook page, Instagram account, or other ad accounts.
Common Mistakes
A few errors show up when restaurant owners manage ad account access for the first time.
Giving admin access instead of advertiser access. This exposes billing and user management unnecessarily.
Forgetting to remove access when ending an agency relationship. Old access is a security risk.
Not setting spending limits. This leaves you exposed if an agency makes mistakes or acts badly.
Sharing credentials instead of using role based access. This creates all the security problems proper access is designed to solve.
Not verifying billing is correctly set up before granting access. You should always know exactly how your ad spending is being charged before anyone else can create campaigns.
What Agencies Actually Need
Most agencies running ads for restaurants need the following access.
Advertiser role on your ad account, to create and manage campaigns.
Editor or content creator role on your Facebook page and Instagram account, to use your existing posts and create new ad creative.
Read access to your pixel or analytics if you're tracking conversions.
They don't usually need admin access, access to your business settings, or access to billing information. Keep it limited.
The Pixel Question
If you use the Meta Pixel for conversion tracking, you may need to grant access to that separately. The pixel is managed in the events manager section of Business Manager.
Go to events manager, select your pixel, and add the agency as a user. The same role assignment process applies. Most agencies only need read access or standard access to view and use the pixel for targeting.
Documentation and Communication
When granting access, keep records of who has access to what. A simple spreadsheet listing each person, their role, and the date access was granted makes it easy to review and update.
Also communicate expectations clearly. What should the agency do with the access? What shouldn't they touch? When should they ask before making changes? Clear communication prevents misunderstandings.
The Long View
Proper ad account access management is part of running a professional paid marketing operation. It protects your budget, your data, and your relationships with agencies and partners.
Take the time to set it up correctly the first time, and you'll save hours of frustration and potential security issues later. When the process becomes routine, onboarding new partners takes minutes rather than creating new risks each time.