How to Add a New Administrator in WordPress

When someone needs to work on your WordPress website, the safest approach is to give them their own login. Sharing your password makes it impossible to tell who changed what, and you cannot take access back without changing your own password. A separate account solves both problems.

Steps to add a new user

1. Log in to your WordPress dashboard (usually yourwebsite.com/wp-admin).
2. In the left menu, go to Users and click Add User. (On older versions of WordPress this may say Add New.)
3. Fill in the Username and Email. The username cannot be changed later, so something simple like the person’s name or company works well.
4. First name, last name, and website are optional.
5. Leave the suggested strong password in place. The person will set their own.
6. Leave Send the new user an email about their account checked. They will get a secure link to set their password. Your password is never shared.
7. Choose a Role (see below).
8. Click the Add User button at the bottom.

Which role should you choose?

• Administrator: full control of the website, including plugins, themes, settings, and other users. Your web developer usually needs this to handle updates and technical work.
• Editor: can publish and edit all posts and pages but cannot change plugins or settings. A good fit for a content writer.
• Author: can write and publish their own posts only.
• Contributor: can write posts but cannot publish them.
• Subscriber: can only log in and manage their own profile.

A good rule: give each person the lowest role that lets them do the job.

Keeping your site secure

• One login per person. Never share accounts, even inside your own business.
• Remove access when the work is done. Go to Users, hover over the person’s name, and click Delete. WordPress will ask you who should keep any posts they wrote.
• Turn on two-factor authentication. WordPress does not include it out of the box, but a security plugin or your web host can add it. It is one of the simplest ways to stop someone from logging in with a stolen password.

Need a hand? If a step looks different on your screen, submit a support ticket and we will walk you through it.