Introduction
Fathom Analytics provides straightforward user management for team collaboration. Whether you're sharing analytics with clients, granting access to team members, or managing agency dashboards, Fathom keeps it simple with clear roles and permissions.
This guide covers everything you need to know about managing user access in Fathom Analytics.
User Management Fundamentals
Access Levels
Fathom offers two primary access levels:
1. Owner
- Full account access
- Billing and subscription management
- Add/remove sites
- Manage all team members
- Access all settings
- Cannot be removed (account owner)
2. Team Member
- View analytics for assigned sites
- Cannot access billing
- Cannot add/remove sites
- Cannot manage other users
- Read-only dashboard access
Site-Level Access
Team members are granted access to specific sites (domains):
- Access can be granted per-site
- One user can have access to multiple sites
- Each site can have multiple team members
- Access is either granted or not - no granular permissions per site
Key Concepts
Multi-Site Access
Team members can be granted access to:
- Single site: Access to one domain only
- Multiple sites: Access to selected domains
- All sites: (Owner only) Access to all domains on the account
Example:
Account has 3 sites:
- marketing.com
- blog.marketing.com
- app.marketing.com
Team Member A: Access to marketing.com only
Team Member B: Access to marketing.com and blog.marketing.com
Owner: Access to all sites plus billing and settings
Email-Based Invitations
Fathom uses email invitations for user management:
- Owner sends invitation to email address
- Recipient receives invitation email
- Recipient clicks link and creates/logs into Fathom account
- Access is granted automatically upon acceptance
Shared Dashboards (Public Access)
For external sharing without user accounts:
- Create shareable dashboard link
- Anyone with link can view analytics
- No login required
- Read-only access
- Can be disabled anytime
Note: This is different from team member access.
User Management Workflow
Adding Users
Process:
- Navigate to Site Settings
- Click "Team" or "Share"
- Enter user's email address
- Select sites to grant access to
- Send invitation
- User accepts invitation via email
Invitation States:
- Pending: Invitation sent, awaiting acceptance
- Accepted: User has accepted and has access
- Expired: Invitation expired (after 7 days)
Updating Access
Process:
- Go to Site Settings > Team
- Find user in team member list
- Add or remove sites from their access
- Changes take effect immediately
No re-invitation needed when updating existing user's access.
Removing Users
Process:
- Navigate to Site Settings > Team
- Find user to remove
- Click "Remove" or "Revoke Access"
- Confirm removal
- User immediately loses access
User's Fathom account remains active - they just lose access to your sites.
Use Cases
Agency Managing Client Sites
Scenario: Marketing agency manages analytics for 10 clients
Setup:
- Create one Fathom account (agency owns it)
- Add each client domain as separate site
- Invite each client with access to their site only
- Agency owner has access to all sites
Benefits:
- Centralized billing (agency pays)
- Client gets read-only dashboard access
- Easy to add/remove clients
- Professional client reporting
Team Collaboration
Scenario: Internal team needs analytics access
Setup:
- Owner invites team members
- Grant access based on role:
- Marketing team: All sites
- Product team: App sites only
- Content team: Blog sites only
Benefits:
- Appropriate access per role
- No accidental changes (read-only)
- Easy onboarding/offboarding
White-Label Reporting
Scenario: Provide branded analytics to clients
Setup:
- Use Fathom's custom domain feature
- Share dashboard with client
- Client sees analytics on your branded domain
- Optional: Grant team member access for deeper insights
Benefits:
- Professional appearance
- Maintains your branding
- Client doesn't see "Fathom" branding
Temporary Access
Scenario: Consultant needs short-term access
Setup:
- Invite consultant as team member
- Grant access to relevant sites
- Consultant works on project
- Remove access when project completes
Benefits:
- Quick to grant access
- Easy to revoke when done
- No account cleanup needed
Best Practices
Security
1. Use Work Email Addresses
Good: john@clientcompany.com
Avoid: john.personal@gmail.com
Work emails make it easier to:
- Track who has access
- Identify users in dashboard
- Remove access when people leave companies
2. Regular Access Audits
Quarterly review:
- Who has access to each site?
- Are all users still relevant?
- Remove former employees/contractors
- Update access levels as needed
3. Principle of Least Privilege
Grant access only to sites users need:
Good: Content manager → Blog site only
Avoid: Content manager → All sites including internal tools
Organization
1. Document User Access
Maintain a simple spreadsheet:
User Email | Sites Accessed | Role | Added Date
john@company.com | All sites | Owner | 2023-01-01
sarah@company.com | marketing.com | Team Member | 2023-03-15
mike@agency.com | marketing.com | Team Member | 2023-06-01
2. Naming Conventions for Sites
Use clear site names in Fathom:
Good: "Main Website - marketing.com"
Good: "Blog - blog.marketing.com"
Avoid: "Site 1"
Avoid: "Test"
Makes it easier to grant appropriate access.
3. Onboarding Process
Create standard onboarding for new users:
- Send invitation from Fathom
- Include welcome email with:
- Link to Fathom dashboard
- Quick start guide
- Contact for questions
- Follow up to ensure access working
4. Offboarding Process
When removing users:
- Remove from Fathom immediately
- Document removal date
- Update access tracking spreadsheet
- Review if additional cleanup needed
Communication
1. Set Expectations
When granting access, explain:
- What they can see (read-only)
- What they cannot do (no settings access)
- How to get help
- Any reporting schedules
2. Training Resources
Provide new users with:
- Link to Fathom documentation
- Internal guide to your analytics setup
- Contact person for questions
- Overview of key metrics to watch
Limitations & Considerations
What Team Members CANNOT Do
Team members have read-only access and cannot:
- Access billing information
- Change account settings
- Add or remove sites
- Manage other users
- Create or modify goals
- Change site settings
- Delete data
- Export data (in some plans)
Invitation Expiration
Invitations expire after 7 days:
- Recipient must accept within 7 days
- After expiration, resend invitation
- No penalty for expired invitations
Account Limits
Check your plan for user limits:
- Starter plans: Limited team members
- Growth plans: More team members
- Business plans: Unlimited team members
Upgrade plan if you need more users.
Email Deliverability
Ensure invitations reach recipients:
- Check spam/junk folders
- Whitelist
@usefathom.comemails - Use business email addresses
- Verify email address is correct before sending
Troubleshooting
Common Issues
Invitation not received:
- Check spam/junk folder
- Verify email address correct
- Whitelist Fathom emails
- Resend invitation
User can't see data:
- Verify invitation accepted
- Check site access granted
- Ensure user logged into correct account
- Clear browser cache
User sees wrong sites:
- Review granted access in settings
- Update access to correct sites
- Ask user to refresh dashboard
Cannot remove user:
- Verify you're account owner
- Check user isn't already removed
- Contact Fathom support if issue persists
Next Steps
Detailed guides for specific user management tasks:
- Add User Access - Step-by-step guide to inviting team members
- Update Access - Modify existing user's site access
- Remove Access - Revoke user access to sites
Summary
Fathom's user management is straightforward:
- Two roles: Owner and Team Member
- Email-based invitations: Simple to send and accept
- Site-level access: Grant access per domain
- Read-only for team members: No accidental changes
- Easy to add, update, and remove: Full control
This simplicity makes it easy to collaborate with teams, share analytics with clients, and manage access across multiple sites.
Additional Resources: