Add a User to Hotjar | OpsBlu Docs

Add a User to Hotjar

Step-by-step guide to inviting team members and granting access to Hotjar sites and organizations.

Overview

Adding users to Hotjar allows team members, clients, or contractors to access recordings, heatmaps, surveys, and other insights. You can grant access at the Organization level (all sites) or Site level (specific site only).

This guide covers how to invite users, assign appropriate roles, and troubleshoot common issues.

Prerequisites

Before inviting a user, ensure:

  • You have the right permissions:
    • Organization Owner or Admin (to invite organization-level users)
    • Site Admin (to invite site-level users)
  • You know the user's email address
  • You've determined the appropriate role based on their responsibilities

Choosing Access Level

Organization-Level Access

When to use:

  • User needs access to all sites in the organization
  • User will manage sites and team members (Admins)
  • User should see data across multiple properties

Example:

  • Internal analytics team
  • Operations managers
  • Multi-site UX researchers

Site-Level Access

When to use:

  • User needs access to one specific site only
  • Segmenting access by project or client
  • External stakeholders or contractors

Example:

  • Client viewing their own site (agency scenario)
  • Product manager for a specific product
  • Contractor working on a single project

Adding an Organization-Level User

Follow these steps to invite a user to your entire organization:

Step 1: Navigate to Organization Settings

  1. Log in to Hotjar
  2. Click your profile icon (top right)
  3. Select Organization settings
  4. Go to the Team tab

Step 2: Invite User

  1. Click Invite Team Member button
  2. Enter the user's email address
  3. Select Organization role:
    • Admin: Full access to all sites, can manage team (recommended for internal team leads)
    • User: Access to view/create insights across all sites
  4. Click Send Invitation

Step 3: Confirmation

  • User receives an invitation email from Hotjar
  • Email contains a link to accept the invitation
  • User must click the link to activate access
  • Once accepted, user appears in your team list

Note: Invitations expire after 7 days. If not accepted, you'll need to resend.

Adding a Site-Level User

Follow these steps to invite a user to a specific site only:

Step 1: Navigate to Site Settings

  1. Log in to Hotjar
  2. Click Sites & Organizations (top navigation)
  3. Select the site you want to grant access to
  4. Click Settings (gear icon)
  5. Go to the Team tab

Step 2: Invite User

  1. Click Invite Team Member button
  2. Enter the user's email address
  3. Select Site role:
    • Admin: Full control over this site (can manage settings and team)
    • User: Can create and view insights (recommended for team members)
    • Viewer: Read-only access (recommended for stakeholders and clients)
  4. Click Send Invitation

Step 3: Confirmation

  • User receives invitation email
  • Email specifies which site they've been invited to
  • User clicks link to accept
  • User gains access only to that specific site

Assigning the Right Role

Decision Tree

Use this guide to choose the appropriate role:

Does the user need to manage billing?

  • Yes → Organization Owner (very limited, only trusted individuals)
  • No → Continue

Does the user need to manage all sites and team members?

  • Yes → Organization Admin
  • No → Continue

Does the user need to access multiple sites?

  • Yes → Organization-level User
  • No → Continue

Does the user need to manage site settings or invite others?

  • Yes → Site Admin
  • No → Continue

Does the user need to create recordings, heatmaps, or surveys?

  • Yes → Site User
  • No → Site Viewer

Role Recommendations by Job Function

Job Function Recommended Role Access Level
Company Owner/CEO Owner Organization
Operations Manager Admin Organization
UX Research Lead Admin Organization
Product Manager Admin Site
UX Designer User Site
Marketing Analyst User Site
Developer User Site
Executive Stakeholder Viewer Organization or Site
Client (Agency) Viewer Site
Freelance Contractor Viewer or User Site

Best Practices for Adding Users

Do:

Use the principle of least privilege

  • Grant the minimum access needed for the user's role
  • Start with Viewer or User; upgrade if needed

Verify email address

  • Double-check for typos before sending invitation
  • Confirm it's a work email (not personal) for team members

Communicate expectations

  • Let the user know they'll receive an invitation
  • Explain what access they'll have
  • Share relevant documentation or training materials

Document access grants

  • Keep a log of who was granted access and when
  • Note the business reason for access
  • Set reminders to review access for temporary users

Onboard new users

  • Share key recordings or dashboards to get them started
  • Explain your team's naming conventions for recordings/surveys
  • Provide context on what insights matter most

Don't:

Grant Admin access by default

  • Admin should be limited to users who truly need it
  • Over-privileged users create security risks

Share organization owner credentials

  • Each person should have their own account
  • Never share login credentials

Forget to remove access later

  • Contractors and temporary users should be removed when done
  • Set a calendar reminder to review access

Invite to organization when site-level is sufficient

  • Limit exposure to only necessary sites
  • Especially important for clients or external parties

Skip role explanations

  • Make sure users understand what they can and can't do
  • Avoid frustration from insufficient permissions

Adding Users via Email Domain (Enterprise Plans)

Some Hotjar enterprise plans support automated user provisioning based on email domain.

How It Works

  1. Configure your organization's email domain (e.g., @yourcompany.com)
  2. Any user with that email domain can self-register
  3. They're automatically granted a default role (you configure this)
  4. Useful for large teams with frequent onboarding

Setup

  1. Go to Organization Settings > Team
  2. Click Domain Management
  3. Add your email domain
  4. Set default role for auto-provisioned users
  5. Save changes

Note: This feature is typically only available on Scale/Enterprise plans. Contact Hotjar support to enable.

Managing Invitations

Resending an Invitation

If a user didn't receive the invitation:

  1. Go to Organization or Site Settings > Team
  2. Find the user in Pending Invitations section
  3. Click Resend Invitation
  4. User receives a new email

Canceling an Invitation

If you invited the wrong person or need to revoke an invitation:

  1. Go to Organization or Site Settings > Team
  2. Find the user in Pending Invitations
  3. Click Cancel Invitation
  4. Invitation is immediately revoked

Note: User won't be able to use the original invitation link after cancellation.

Bulk User Invitation (Enterprise)

For large teams, some enterprise plans support bulk invitations via CSV upload.

Steps

  1. Prepare a CSV file with columns:

    • Email
    • Role
    • Site (if site-specific)

  2. Go to Organization Settings > Team

  3. Click Bulk Invite

  4. Upload your CSV

  5. Review and confirm

Note: Contact Hotjar support to confirm if your plan supports this feature.

Post-Invitation Checklist

After inviting a user, complete these steps:

  • Verify invitation was sent (check pending invitations list)
  • Notify user to check email (and spam folder)
  • Confirm user accepted invitation and can log in
  • Share onboarding materials or key dashboards
  • Add user to relevant Slack/Teams channels for updates
  • Document access grant in internal systems (if required)
  • Set review date for temporary access (if applicable)

Troubleshooting

Invitation Email Not Received

Possible Causes:

  • Email in spam/junk folder
  • Typo in email address
  • Email server blocking Hotjar

Solutions:

  1. Ask user to check spam/junk folder
  2. Verify email address is correct (check for typos)
  3. Resend invitation from Hotjar
  4. Try inviting with a different email address
  5. Whitelist Hotjar's email domain (@hotjar.com)

User Can't Accept Invitation

Possible Causes:

  • Invitation expired (7 days)
  • User already has a Hotjar account with different email
  • Browser issues or cached data

Solutions:

  1. Resend invitation
  2. Clear browser cache and cookies
  3. Try a different browser or incognito mode
  4. Ensure user is logging in with the correct email

User Accepted but Can't See Site

Possible Causes:

  • User was invited to organization, not the specific site
  • Site permissions not synced yet
  • User looking in wrong organization (if they have multiple)

Solutions:

  1. Verify user was invited to the correct site (not just org)
  2. Wait a few minutes for permissions to sync
  3. Ask user to refresh Hotjar dashboard
  4. Re-invite user to the specific site

"You've Reached Your User Limit"

Possible Causes:

  • You're on an older plan with user limits (rare)

Solutions:

  1. Remove inactive users to free up slots
  2. Contact Hotjar support to confirm your plan
  3. Upgrade plan if necessary

User Has Wrong Role

Possible Causes:

  • Selected wrong role during invitation
  • Misunderstanding of role permissions

Solutions:

  1. Update user's role (see Update Access)
  2. Verify role matches user's needs
  3. Communicate role change to user

Security Considerations

Email Validation

  • Only invite users with verified work email addresses
  • Avoid personal email addresses (Gmail, Yahoo, etc.) for team members
  • Verify email domain matches your organization (prevents phishing)

Access Reviews

  • Review pending invitations weekly
  • Cancel any old or unrecognized invitations
  • Remove accepted users who haven't logged in after 30 days

Data Sensitivity

  • Consider data sensitivity when granting Viewer access
  • Recordings may contain user behavior that reveals PII
  • Ensure external users sign NDAs if required

Audit Trail

  • Hotjar logs all invitation and access changes
  • Review activity logs periodically
  • Investigate any suspicious access grants

Example Scenarios

Scenario 1: Adding a Client (Agency)

Goal: Let client see insights for their site only, read-only

Steps:

  1. Navigate to client's site settings > Team
  2. Click "Invite Team Member"
  3. Enter client's email
  4. Select Viewer role
  5. Send invitation
  6. Follow up with email explaining how to access

Result: Client can view recordings and heatmaps but can't change anything or see other clients' data.

Scenario 2: Onboarding a New UX Designer

Goal: Give new designer access to create insights for their product

Steps:

  1. Navigate to product site settings > Team
  2. Invite user with User role
  3. Share onboarding doc with:
    • How to access Hotjar
    • Key recordings to review
    • Survey templates to use
    • Team naming conventions

Result: Designer can analyze recordings and create surveys for their product.

Scenario 3: Adding Analytics Lead to All Sites

Goal: Give analytics lead visibility and management across all properties

Steps:

  1. Navigate to Organization settings > Team
  2. Invite user with Admin role
  3. Notify user they have access to all sites
  4. Share org-wide reporting dashboard

Result: Analytics lead can manage all sites, invite users, and view all data.

Next Steps:

Additional Resources:

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