Pinterest Ads User Management | OpsBlu Docs

Pinterest Ads User Management

Complete guide to Pinterest Ads permission model including Business Hub roles, ad account-level permissions, tag and catalog access, and API credential.

Pinterest Ads Permission Model

Pinterest uses a two-layer access system: Business Hub (organization level) and ad account (asset level). A Business Hub is the container that holds ad accounts, Pinterest Tags, catalogs, and audiences. Users are first added to the Business Hub, then granted specific permissions on individual assets.

The key distinction:

  • Business Hub roles control what a user can do at the organizational level -- managing settings, inviting other users, creating new ad accounts.
  • Ad account roles control what a user can do within a specific ad account -- running campaigns, viewing reports, managing billing.

A user can be a Business Member at the org level but hold Admin access on a specific ad account. These layers are independent.

Available Roles

Business Hub Roles

Role User Management Create Assets Org Settings Billing
Business Admin Add/remove all users, assign asset access Create ad accounts, tags, catalogs Full settings control View and manage
Business Employee Cannot manage users Cannot create top-level assets No settings access No access

Ad Account Roles

Role Campaign Management Reporting Billing User Management
Ad Account Admin Full create/edit/delete campaigns Full reporting access View and manage payment methods Add/remove ad account users
Campaign Manager Create and edit campaigns, manage budgets Full reporting access No access No access
Analyst No campaign access View reports and export data No access No access

Asset-Level Permissions (Non-Ad Account)

Beyond ad accounts, Business Hub assets have their own permission grants:

  • Pinterest Tag -- users can be granted Manage (edit tag settings, create events) or View (see tag status and event data) access per tag.
  • Catalogs -- users can be granted Manage (upload feeds, edit product groups) or View (browse catalog data) per catalog.
  • Audiences -- audience access follows ad account access. Users with Campaign Manager or higher on an ad account can create and use audiences within that account.

Admin UI Paths

Business Hub user management:

Business Hub (business.pinterest.com)
  > Members (left sidebar)
    > Invite member (top right)
    > [Existing member] > Edit role / Remove

Ad account user management:

Business Hub
  > Ad accounts (left sidebar)
    > [Select ad account]
      > Members tab
        > Assign member / Edit role / Remove

Asset access management:

Business Hub
  > [Tags / Catalogs] (left sidebar)
    > [Select asset]
      > Members tab
        > Assign member with Manage or View permission

Viewing all access for a specific user:

Business Hub
  > Members
    > [Click member name]
      > Shows Business role + all asset assignments

API Access Management

Pinterest Ads API access is managed through Pinterest Developer Apps, separate from Business Hub roles.

  • App creation -- requires Business Admin role. Apps are created at business.pinterest.com/apps and tied to the Business Hub.
  • Access tokens -- generated per app. Tokens inherit the permissions of the app, not the creating user. Scopes include ads:read, ads:write, catalogs:read, catalogs:write, pins:read.
  • Conversion API (CAPI) -- server-side event tracking requires an access token with ads:write scope and a valid ad account ID. The token must be associated with a user who has Campaign Manager or higher on the target ad account.
  • Rate limits -- apply per app, not per user. A single app token shared across team members shares the same rate limit pool.
  • Sandbox vs. Production -- new apps start in sandbox mode. Production approval requires Business Admin review.

To audit API access: Business Hub > Apps > review all active apps, their scopes, and which team members have access to the app credentials.

Analytics-Specific Permissions

How Pinterest Ads roles affect analytics and measurement access:

  • Conversion reporting -- requires at least Analyst role on the ad account. Conversion data includes Pinterest Tag events and Conversion API events.
  • Pinterest Tag debugging -- the Tag Helper browser extension works independently of roles, but viewing tag event data in the Pinterest Ads UI requires Tag View or Manage access.
  • Audience insights -- viewing audience composition and overlap reports requires Campaign Manager or higher on the ad account.
  • Conversion lift studies -- requesting and viewing lift studies requires Ad Account Admin access.
  • Pinterest Analytics (organic) -- this is separate from Ads reporting. Organic analytics access is tied to the Pinterest profile, not the Business Hub. A user can have Ads access without organic analytics access and vice versa.
  • Data export -- all roles with reporting access (Analyst and above) can export CSV data. API export requires appropriate token scopes.
  • Attribution settings -- modifying attribution windows (click-through, view-through, engagement) requires Campaign Manager or higher. Analysts see data under the current attribution settings but cannot change them.

Agency and Multi-Business Access

Pinterest supports structured agency-client relationships:

  • A Business Hub can request partner access to another Business Hub's ad accounts. The client Business Admin must approve.
  • Partner access grants the agency's users access to the client's ad account with a role assigned by the client.
  • Agency users see the client's ad account in their own Business Hub sidebar, alongside their own accounts.
  • Revoking partner access removes all agency user access to the client's ad accounts in one action.

Step-by-Step Guides

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