Airtable permissions overview
  • 01 Mar 2024
  • 4 Minutes to read
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Airtable permissions overview

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Article Summary

Plan availability

All plan types 

Permissions

  • Admins - Can perform the actions noted below in workspaces/bases where they are added as collaborators. Otherwise, admins can manage user permissions from Admin Panel

  • All users - Can take various actions throughout Airtable as discussed in the article below. 

Platform(s)

Web/Browser, Mac app, Windows app, and mobile apps 

Collaboration at a glance

Airtable collaborators can be given specific permissions that determine what they can and cannot edit in a workspace or base. Permissions are an important part of healthy team collaboration. With the right permissions, you can ensure that only certain people are permitted to change the information in your bases. This article outlines the different actions that can be taken by collaborators on each permissions level.

There are two ways to add collaborators: on the workspace level, and on the base level. If you add a workspace collaborator, they will have access to every base in the workspace at the permission level they are assigned. If you add a base collaborator, they will only have access to that specific base at the permission level they are assigned.

Note

For information about how adding collaborators to your workspace affects your billing, see this FAQ.

Base actions

General actions


Owner/Creator

Editor

Commenter

Read-Only

Access/view the entire base at your assigned permission level

Invite users at or below your permission level

Create or remove a view share link



Create or remove a base collaborator invite link




Rename the base




Record actions


Owner/Creator

Editor

Commenter

Read-Only

Comment on records

 

Add, delete, or modify records

 

 

View actions


Owner/Creator

Editor

Commenter

Read-Only

Download a CSV of the view

Print a view

Copy data in a view

Add, delete, or modify views


 *personal views only

 

Lock and unlock views

 

 

 

Delete other collaborators' personal views

 

 

 

Field actions


Owner/Creator

Editor

Commenter

Read-Only

Add, delete, duplicate, rename, and customize fields

 

 

 

Table actions


Owner/Creator

Editor

Commenter

Read-Only

Add, delete, duplicate, and rename tables

 

 

 

Import CSV as a new table




Airtable Automations


Owner/Creator

Editor

Commenter

Read-Only

Create, delete, or duplicate an automation

 

 

 

Configure an automation (turn on/off, edit trigger type, edit action type, or add actions)

 

 

 

Rename an automation

 

 

 

Edit an automation description

 

 

 

View automation configuration

Copy automation URL

Airtable Sync


Owner/Creator

Editor

Commenter

Read-Only

Create or remove a syncable view share link

 

 

Manually sync ("Sync now")

 

 

Create or delete a synced table

 

 

 

Update sync configuration

 

 

 

Airtable Extensions


Owner/Creator

Editor

Commenter

Read-Only

Create an extension

 

 

 

Configure an extension's settings

 

 

Rename, edit an extension's description, or move an extension to a different dashboard

 

 

 

Delete, disable, duplicate, or share an extension

 

 

 

Add, delete, or rename an extension dashboard

 

 

 

Airtable Interface Designer


Owner/Creator

Editor

Commenter

Read-Only

Create an interface or an interface page

 

 

 

Edit, preview, or publish an interface

 

 

 

Add/edit/remove elements in an interface

 

 

 

Delete, duplicate, or rename an interface

 

 

 

Restrict interface sharing




Update records via editable inline records or editable record details.

 

 

Create/delete new records in interfaces (When enabled)



Add new records via interface form submissions



View an interface

✅ 

Workspace actions

Workspace actions for workspace-level collaborators

Workspace-level collaborators at the Owner and Creator levels have extra permissions regarding the workspace itself, which are outlined below.

 

Owner

Creator

Editor

Commenter

Read-Only

Access all bases within the workspace at your assigned permission level

Invite users at or below your permission level

Rename the workspace

 

 

 

Add and delete bases in the workspace

 

 

 

Rearrange bases within the workspace

 

 

 

Move a base from the workspace to another workspace 


( restrictions apply)

 

 

 

Adjust the billing settings, upgrade the workspace

 

 

 

 

Grant owner permissions

 

 

 

Owner permission level dependencies 

Owner dependencies

  • Workspaces can have multiple owners.

  • Only owners can grant owner permissions.

  • By default, the person who created the workspace is the owner.

    • The workspace creator is the only individual with permissions who can update that workspace's owner—after those changes are implemented, either owner can update the original owner's permissions. 

  • If you are the sole owner of a workspace with multiple members, you will need to transfer ownership to another member before deleting your account.

  • Only account owners receive notifications when potential collaborators request access to a particular base.

Inviting collaborators on paid workspaces

When inviting workspace or base collaborators, it’s always a good idea to invite the collaborators in with Read-only permissions. By first inviting in your collaborators with read-only permissions, you can avoid incurring billable collaborator charges. Once invited, you can then determine the necessary permissions to provide to the collaborator.

Considerations for larger organizations

When managing a larger team of collaborators within a workspace, it’s best to consider having at least two workspace owners. The reason for this is that if one workspace owner is on leave, the workspace is not stuck in a position of not being able to perform workspace administrative duties.

Note

Enterprise Admins have additional user management tools available in Admin Panel. 

Managing and updating collaborator permissions

General tips on changing permission levels:

  • You cannot change permission levels for a base collaborator from the workspace share dialog. 

  • Similarly, you cannot change permission levels for a workspace collaborator from a base share dialog. However, in a base share modal, you'll see an arrow icon 6766240368023ScreenShot2022-06-14at82918AM.png to click from the base share management into the appropriate workspace share management modal to change that workspace collaborator's permissions.

  • You cannot change permission levels for yourself (or anyone else) if doing so would grant you greater edit access to the data. For example: if you are an editor, you cannot grant yourself or anyone else creator permissions; if you are a read-only collaborator, you cannot grant yourself or anyone else editor permissions.

Accessing and updating workspace collaborator permissions

To view or change the permission settings of a workspace collaborator, go to the workspace share dialog, which can be accessed by clicking on the big green share button next to a workspace's name on the homepage.

6766474715543collaborationWorkspaceModal06142022.jpg

You can update any collaborator's permissions level by using the dropdown to the right of their name, or click the X to remove them from the workspace entirely.

6766673111703collaborationWorkspacePermissionsRemove061452022.jpg

Accessing and updating base collaborator permissions

To view or change the permission settings of a base collaborator, go to the relevant base share dialog, which can be accessed by clicking the share button in the top right corner of the base.

6765841123479collaborationShareFind06102022.jpg

The base share dialog includes a "Manage" button. Clicking on this button will show you which collaborators with access to the base are workspace collaborators and which are base collaborators.

6765843199767collaborationShareModal06132022.jpg

To change a collaborator's permission level, select the permission level you want from the dropdown menu next to that collaborator's name.

6766134480407collaborationManagePermissions06132022.jpg

To remove a collaborator, click the checkbox next to their name and click the "Remove x collaborator(s)" button.

6766140088087collaboratorRemove06132022.jpg

FAQs

How can I view who owns base(s) shared with me?

  1. Visit your Airtable homepage

  2. Open the base shared with you. 

  3. Click Share in the top right corner. 

  4. Click Manage access

  5. Click Permission to sort users by permission level (creator, owner, editor). 

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