How to Add Someone to Manage an Instagram Account

Handing over the reins to your Instagram account can feel like a massive leap of faith, but it's a necessary step for growing your brand. If you're ready to bring on help but are tangled in the logistics of sharing access safely, you’ve come to the right place. This guide walks you through the different ways to add someone to manage your Instagram account, from the simple password share to the secure and professional methods that protect your brand and give you peace of mind.

Why Let Someone Else Manage Your Instagram Account?

Before getting into the "how," let's touch on the "why." Delegating Instagram management isn't just about offloading tasks, it's a strategic move to scale your efforts and get better results. When you bring someone else in, you unlock several key advantages:

• You Reclaim Your Time: The daily grind of content creation, scheduling, engaging with comments, and answering DMs is a full-time job. Handing this off frees you up to focus on the bigger picture of your business.
• You Gain Specialized Expertise: A social media manager brings strategic knowledge to the table. They understand trends, analytics, hashtag strategy, and audience engagement in ways that can supercharge your growth. You can also hire specialists for specific tasks, like a copywriter to nail your captions or a graphic designer to elevate your visuals.
• You Achieve Greater Consistency: A dedicated manager ensures your content pipeline never runs dry. They keep the posting schedule consistent, even when you’re on vacation or swamped with other work, which is vital for appeasing the Instagram algorithm and keeping your audience engaged.
• You Can Scale Content Production: Want to post a Reel every day and three Stories? That’s tough for one person to handle. A manager or a small team can ramp up your content output without sacrificing quality.

The Big Hurdle: Instagram Wasn't Built for Teams

The main challenge with sharing Instagram access stems from its design. Unlike a Facebook Page, where you can easily assign "Admin" or "Editor" roles, an Instagram account is tied to a single login. There is no built-in feature to add multiple users with different permission levels.

This design creates an immediate security problem. The most obvious way to grant access - sharing your username and password - is also the riskiest. It means giving someone the literal keys to your digital kingdom. They have the power to change your password, delete content, send DMs as you, and potentially lock you out of your own account. This lack of a secure, multi-user system is why alternative methods have become essential for businesses and creators.

Method 1: Sharing Your Password (The High-Trust, High-Risk Option)

Let's be realistic: for very small teams, co-founders, or a partnership built on immense trust, password sharing happens. While we don't recommend this as a long-term strategy, if you absolutely must go this route, you need to take every precaution to protect your account.

Think of this as giving someone the key to your house. You'd only do it for a person you trust implicitly, and you'd want to know exactly what they’re doing while they’re inside. Here’s a safety checklist to follow if you choose this method.

Safety Checklist for Password Sharing:

1. Enable Two-Factor Authentication (2FA)

Two-factor authentication adds a critical layer of security. When someone tries to log in from an unrecognized device, Instagram will send a verification code to your phone number or an authentication app. This means even if they have the password, they can't get in without your assistance, preventing unauthorized access. To turn it on: Go to your Instagram profile &rarr, Settings and privacy &rarr, Accounts Center &rarr, Password and security &rarr, Two-factor authentication.

2. Use a Secure Password Manager

Never, ever send a password via text message, email, or a messaging app. These methods are not secure and leave a searchable record of your credentials. Instead, use a password manager like 1Password, LastPass, or Bitwarden. These tools allow you to securely share a login with another person without exposing the password in plain text.

3. Set Clear Ground Rules and Expectations

Before you hand over access, get on the same page about everything. What are they responsible for? What are they not allowed to do? Define the scope of work clearly and put it in writing. This includes brand voice, engagement policies (how to respond to comments and DMs), and what types of content are approved for posting.

4. Have an Offboarding Plan

Things change. When your working relationship ends, you need to be able to revoke access immediately. Your very first step should be to change your Instagram password. With 2FA enabled, this will log out all other users and secure your account again.

Method 2: The Official Way for Admins via Meta Business Suite

If you're running a business, the proper way to grant managed access to your Instagram account is through Meta Business Suite (formerly Facebook Business Manager). This method is far more secure because it allows you to assign specific permissions to team members without ever giving them your Instagram password. They log in with their own Facebook credentials to get the access you’ve granted them.

Prerequisites:

Before you start, you need two things in place:

1. An Instagram Professional Account: Your Instagram profile must be switched to either a "Business" or "Creator" account. You can do this in your settings under "Account type and tools."
2. A Linked Facebook Page: Your Instagram Professional Account must be connected to a Facebook Page that you manage.

Once you have that set up, you’re ready to add a manager.

Step-by-Step Instructions:

1. Navigate to Meta Business Suite: Go to business.facebook.com and select the Business Account that manages your Facebook Page and linked Instagram account.
2. Go to Settings: In the bottom-left menu, find and click on the "Settings" gear icon.
3. Add People: In the expanded Settings menu, under "Users," click on "People." Here, you'll see a list of everyone who has access. Click the blue "Add people" button in the top right.
4. Enter Their Email: Type in the business email address of the person you want to invite. It’s important to use the email associated with their Facebook account. Click "Next."
5. Assign Assets and Permissions: This is the most important step. You'll see a list of all your assets (Facebook Pages, Instagram accounts, ad accounts, etc.).
   • First, select the Instagram account you want them to manage from the list.
   • Then, on the right side of the screen, you’ll see toggles for different levels of access. You can grant partial or full control.
6. Choose Their Instagram-Specific Permissions:
   • Content: Turn this on to allow them to create, publish, manage, or delete posts, Stories, Reels, and live video. You can get even more granular by choosing only specific content functions.
   • Messages: This gives them permission to view and respond to Direct Messages in the inbox.
   • Community Activity: Allow them to review and respond to comments, as well as delete unwanted comments.
   • Ads: This permission lets them create, manage, and delete ads targeting your Instagram account.
   • Insights: Lets them view your profile and post analytics to see what’s working.
7. Send the Invitation: After configuring their permissions, click "Next" once more. Review the invitation and click "Send request." The person will receive an email invitation to join your Business Account. Once they accept, they’ll have the access you assigned.

The beauty of this method is the control. You can revoke or change permissions at any time with just a few clicks, and your personal account information remains completely private and secure.

Method 3: The Smartest Way for Teams - Using a Social Media Management Tool

While Meta Business Suite is the official, secure method, it can also feel clunky and overly complicated for everyday tasks. Its interface isn't always intuitive, and it keeps you tethered to Meta's ecosystem. For most businesses, brands, and agencies, the best approach is using a third-party social media management platform.

These tools act as a secure, central command center for all your social marketing efforts. You connect your Instagram account to the tool once, and then you invite your team members to collaborate within that platform. They never need your Instagram login details.

Why This Method Works So Well:

• No Password Sharing, Ever: Your credentials stay safe with you. Team members get their own unique login to the management tool.
• Superior Role Management: You can create custom roles with highly specific permissions. For example, a content creator can be given permission to draft and schedule posts for approval, but not publish them live or respond to DMs. An approver can edit and publish, while a community manager can only access the inbox.
• Streamlined Workflows: Everything happens in one place. Content calendars, comment and DM inboxes, and performance analytics are all integrated. This eliminates the need to constantly switch between spreadsheets, apps, and Meta Business Suite itself.
• Clear Accountability: These platforms often include activity logs, so you can see exactly who scheduled which post, who responded to a comment, and when. This helps keep everyone on the same page.

Final Thoughts

Scaling your Instagram presence requires teamwork, and managing your team's access should be secure and straightforward. You can opt for sharing your password with extreme caution for a highly trusted partner, use the robust (but sometimes complex) Meta Business Suite for official assignments, or adopt a third-party tool for ultimate security, scalability, and simplified workflows.

At Postbase, we built our platform to make team collaboration completely seamless. We found legacy tools made simple tasks feel difficult, especially when managing multiple team members and platforms. With our system, you can connect your accounts once and invite your team to a clean, shared dashboard with a visual calendar for planning, a unified inbox for collaborative engagement, and analytics that show the whole team what’s working, all without the need for shared passwords or complex business manager settings.