Find out how to add and manage custom roles in QuickBooks Online Advanced.
With custom roles, you can manage user access in QuickBooks and give users only the access needed for their role. Choose what users can see and do within different areas of QuickBooks like banking, sales, payroll, expenses, reports, and inventory.
When you set up a new role, you have the choice to:
- Create a new role and choose what the role can access.
- Choose a predefined custom role, like Sales Manager or Expense Manager.
- Choose from the list of QuickBooks roles, like Company admin or time tracking only.
Note: Only the primary admin can manage users. If you need to be the new primary admin, find out how the current primary admin can transfer the role to you.
How to add a new role
If you’d like to create a new custom role, you’ll just need to add the role and choose the different areas the role can access.
- Go to Settings ⚙, then select Manage users.
- Select the Roles tab, then select Add role.
- Choose what the user role can access in QuickBooks, then select Next.
- Enter a role name and description, then select Save.
How to assign a role to a new user
If you have a new user, you’ll need to add them in QuickBooks and assign a role.
- Go to Settings ⚙, then select Manage users.
- Select Users tab, then select Add user.
- Select Custom role, then choose from the existing roles you created. Or select + Add New to create a new custom role.
- Enter the user’s name and email address, then select Save.
The user will get an email invite from quickbooks-email@intuit.com, and will need to select Let’s go! to sign in.
Note: If your users forgot their password, they can reset their own password.
How to edit access for a role
Once the user accepts your email invite, you can edit the access of the roles you created at any time. Here’s how.
- Go to Settings ⚙, then select Manage users.
- Select the Roles tab. In the Action column, select Edit.
- Select access for a role, then select Next.
- Enter a role name and description, then select Save.
How to edit a user’s role
Sometimes your user’s roles will change or you may need to allow a user more access. Here’s how to edit a user’s role.
- Go to Settings ⚙, then select Manage users.
- Select the Users tab, then find the user you want to edit.
- Select Edit from the Action column.
- Choose from the existing custom or QuickBooks roles. Or select + Add New to create a new custom role.
- Enter a role name and description, then select Save.
How to activate or deactivate a user’s role
You can activate or deactivate a user role if needed. But before you can make a role inactive, you have to assign any associated users to a different role.
Note: Before you can make a role inactive, you have to assign any associated users to a different role.
- Go to Settings ⚙, then select Manage users.
- Select the Roles tab, then find the role you want to edit.
- In the Action column, select the small arrow▼ next to Edit button.
- Select Make active or Make inactive.
If you need to reduce your users, you can delete them so you won’t reach your usage limit. Learn more about usage limits.
Learn about user roles
Here are the roles you can assign to your users and how they work.
Sales
For user with location restrictions
- This user is limited to the Sales role only.
- This user can’t receive payments and create weekly timesheets.
- This user can’t import a CSV file.
For user without location restrictions
All sales transactions & customers
If this user is also responsible for receiving customer payments, we suggest giving them permission to record bank deposits too.
This user can:
- Enter estimates, invoices, sales receipts, credit memos, and refunds
- Enter charges and credits
- Create and delete statements
- Receive payments from customers
- Fill out timesheets for anyone
- Add, edit, and delete customers, products, and services
- View tax rates and agency settings
- Use and adjust tax in sales transactions and general journal entries, including manually overriding calculated tax amounts
- Add, edit, and delete currencies
- Edit exchange rates
This user can't:
- Print check (including refunds)
- Make bills and purchases billable to customers
- Add, edit, and delete accounts and quantity on hand
- View bank registers
- See total income and expense amounts on Home, Vendor, and Customer pages
- Run tax reports or view tax history
- Prepare or file a sales tax return or record sales payments
- Set up new or change existing tax agencies or settings
- Set up multicurrency
- Perform home currency adjustments
- View all reports
Invoices
- This user can only create, edit, and send invoices.
- This user has access to all products and services and customers.
- This user can’t apply billable time, expenses, or delayed credits and charges with invoice-only access.
Estimates
- This user can only create, edit, and send estimates.
- This user can access all products and services and customers.
Expenses
All expense transactions & vendors
This user can:
- Enter bills from vendors
- Enter cash and credit card purchases
- Pay bills, write checks, and view check detail reports
- Print check (except refunds)
- Add, edit, and delete vendors, products, and services
- View tax rates and agency settings
- Use and adjust sales tax in purchase, credit card, and banking transactions, including manually overriding calculated sales tax amounts
- Prepare or file a sales tax return or record sales tax payments
- Add, edit, and delete currencies
- Edit exchange rates
This user can't:
- Add, edit, and delete accounts and quantity on hand
- View bank registers
- Set up new tax agencies or change tax settings
- Set up multicurrency
- Perform home currency adjustments
- See total income and expense amounts on home, vendor, and customer pages
- View all reports
Checks
This user can:
- Write, print, and order checks
- Create transactions through checks
- View,copy,edit, and void checks
- View records with type as checks under expenses. Can also view Bill Payment (check) records in the expenses list
- View vendors page
This user can’t:
- View or update details of Bill Payment (check) records
- View the sidebar on the create check page to link it to an existing bill
- View other transaction types under expenses
- Update Vendor details
- Make the vendor Inactive
- Prepare 1099 form for a vendor
Bills
This user can:
- Create bills
- Order checks
- Create transactions through bill
- View, copy, edit, and void bills
- View records with type as bill under expenses
- View vendors page
This user can’t:
- Pay bills
- View other transaction types under expenses
- Update Vendor details
- Make the vendor inactive
- Prepare 1099 form for a vendor
Banking
All Banking
You can give your user access to all banking transactions. This role will also get access to sales, expenses, and lists.
Note: To help keep your books in order, we recommend giving this user access to sales transactions too.
This user can:
- Connect a bank or credit card to bring in transactions (Only if the admin created an account in Chart of Accounts)
- Create a new rule and edit existing rules
- Upload and export receipts
- Set up receipt forwarding
- View bank registers (checking, savings, and credit cards only)
- Add, match, and record transactions
- Create, edit, and delete bank deposits
This user can’t:
- View Chart of Accounts
- Edit bank registers
- Create a journal entry
- View Reconcile, Budgeting, and Audit Log
- Adjust inventory
- View all reports
Bank deposits
You can let your user view the bank deposit screen only. They can’t see any other banking screen or view banking transactions.
This user can:
- Create bank deposits
- Order checks
This user can’t:
- Connect a bank account or credit card
- View banking transactions
- View and edit bank registers
- View rules and receipts
Inventory
Inventory Management
This user can:
- View and edit existing Product and Services list
- Manage categories
- Adjust inventory
- View existing inventory asset account, income account, and expense account
- View and update vendor details
This user can’t :
- Add new inventory asset account, inventory adjustment account, income account, or expense account
- Run report
- Do batch actions for Email and Pay bills
- Prepare 1099
- Create new transactions for a vendor
Workers
Payroll, employees and contractors, workers' comp and benefits
If you have a payroll subscription, you have to complete prerequisite steps to let your user run payroll. This role will also get access to expenses and lists.
This user can:
- Add employees and run payroll
- Change payroll schedule
- View payroll reports
- View paycheck list
- Fill out timesheets for anyone
- View and edit payroll settings
- Pay contractors
This user can't:
- View bank registers and bank information
- Create journal entries
- Enter estimates, bank deposits, invoices, sales receipts, credit memos, and refunds
- View all reports (except payroll)
- Set up multicurrency
- Perform home currency adjustments
Reports
Sales and customer reports
This user can view common sales and customer reports, such as:
- Sales Performance
- Product/Service List
- Terms List
Note: This doesn't include access to advanced reports or company financial reports, like Balance Sheet and Profit and Loss.
Expense and vendor reports
This user can view common sales and customer reports, such as:
- Accounts Payable
- Bill Payment List
- Vendor Balance
- Check Detail
- Expenses by Vendor Summary
- Purchases by Product/Service Detail
- Purchases by Vendor Detail
- Transaction List by Vendor
- Vendor Contact List
Note: This doesn't include access to advanced reports or company financial reports, like Balance Sheet and Profit and Loss.
Account Management
Custom roles can’t be saved with account management access only. You need to select any different access for this role.
Edit company info
This user can make changes to your company name, type, contact info, and address.
Access subscription
This user can either view or manage your company’s subscription in QuickBooks.