CMS: Changing Your Collection Permissions | Help Center

Set collection permissions in the CMS (Content Management System) to control who can view, add, update, or delete collection content. You can customize access levels for each collection and role, ensuring your site's data remains secure and properly managed.

For example, you might allow site members to contribute to one collection while restricting access to other sensitive collections. Permissions can also be customized for collaborators, item creators, and custom roles, giving you control over what each role can do with specific collections.

Collection permissions let you decide if site visitors and members can access or add content on the live site through input elements and the Data API. By default, collaborators with CMS access have full control from within the CMS, including viewing, adding, updating, and deleting content. However, with advanced permissions, you can set specific access levels for custom collaborator roles to limit who can manage or modify collections.

Important:

Collaborators with admin roles always maintain full access to your collections. Admins can perform all actions, including viewing, adding, updating, and deleting collection content, whether from the live site or the CMS itself.

Screenshot of the Permissions and Privacy settings in a CMS collection.

Changing your collection permissions

To change the permissions for a collection, go to the collection's settings and access the Permissions & privacy tab. Then choose the relevant option to show content, collect content, or create advanced permissions.

Important:

Setting collection permissions to 'Everyone' means that any site visitor can access the collection by using an API, even if the content is not presented on the live site. Learn more about using authorization suppression with the Data API to bypass permissions.
If your collection has encrypted PII fields and anyone can view it, a warning appears in the Permissions & privacy tab. To clear the warning, restrict who can view the collection. For example, click the Who can view this content? dropdown and select Members only.

To change your collection permissions:

Go to CMS in your site's dashboard. Alternatively, you can click the CMS icon in your editor, then click Your Collections.
Click the More Actions icon next to the relevant collection and select Permissions & privacy.
Choose which permissions you want the collection to have:

Show content

Collect content

Allow visitors to add content as new collection items via input elements on the live site or API. This permission does not allow visitors to update the contents of existing items. Use the Advanced permissions if you want to allow visitors to edit existing items. See the FAQ section below for more information.

Click Collect content.
Click the Who can add content to this collection? drop-down and choose an option:
- Everyone: Any site visitor can add new items to the collection from the live site. Collaborators with CMS access roles and admins can also add items from within the CMS.
- Members only: Only site members, collaborators with CMS access roles, and admins can add new items to the collection from the live site. Collaborators with CMS access and admins can also add items from within the CMS.
Click the Who can view this content? drop-down and choose an option:
- Collaborators: Admins and collaborators with CMS access roles can view the collection content in the CMS and the live site.
  Tip: To assign permissions for a specific collaborator role, use the Advanced collection permissions and click + Set permissions for specific roles.
- Members only: Only site members, collaborators with CMS access and admins can view the collection content on the live site. Collaborators with CMS access and admins can also view it within the CMS.
- Item's creator: Site members can only view items on the live site that they themselves added to the collection. Collaborators and admins can still view all the items on both the live site, and in the CMS.
- Everyone: Any site visitor can view the collection content on the live site. Collaborators with CMS access and admins can also view it within the CMS.
Click Save.

Note: With these 'Collect content' collection permissions, admins and collaborators with CMS access maintain full access to the collection. They can perform all actions, including viewing, adding, updating, and deleting collection content, whether from the live site or the CMS itself.

Advanced

With the 'Advanced' permissions, you can select different permissions for viewing, adding, updating, and deleting content for each role. This lets you control what people with each access level can do with your site's collection content.

For each user role, select the checkboxes to choose whether they can view content, add new items, update existing items, or delete items. You can also create permissions for specific collaborator roles for greater control over which collaborators can view, add, update, or delete items.

Click Advanced.
(Optional) Set permissions for specific collaborator roles:
Note: By default, all collaborators with CMS access roles share the same permissions unless you create permissions for specific collaborator roles.
1. Click + Set permissions for specific roles.
2. Click the checkbox next to each collaborator role that you want to set specific permissions for. Only roles that allow for CMS access are available. Click Roles & Permissions at the bottom if you need to create or modify any collaborator roles.
3. Click Done.
Click the relevant checkboxes next to each role to choose whether users with the role can view, add, update, or delete collection items:
- Everyone: This role applies to everyone who can access your live site. Selecting a permission for this role also selects it for the other roles in the table.
- Members: This role applies to site members only. Selecting a permission for this role also selects it for the 'Item's creator' role, the 'Collaborators' role, and any specific roles you add to the table.
- Item's creator: This role's permissions only apply to the specific items that a member creates themselves. For example, you can set permissions to allow the item's creator to update or delete only the items that they create. Selecting a permission for this role also selects it for the 'Collaborators' role and any specific roles you add to the table.
- Collaborators: This role applies to all collaborator roles with CMS access. Selecting a permission for this role also selects it for any specific collaborator roles you've set permissions for.
- Admin: This role applies to site owners and collaborator roles with CMS admin permissions. You cannot change the permissions of this 'Admin' role.
- Specific roles: If you add roles to the table, they apply to collaborators with specific CMS access roles. If you set permissions for a specific role, then deselect a permission in that role, the permission is also deselected in the main 'Collaborators' role.
Click Save.

In the table, you can choose from the following access levels for each role:

View: People with the relevant role(s) can view the collection content.
Add: People with the relevant role(s) can add new items to the collection.
Update: People with the relevant role(s) can edit existing collection items.
Delete: People with the relevant role(s) can remove existing collection items.

Note: With these 'Advanced' collection permissions, admins and collaborators with CMS access maintain full access to the collection. However, you can set permissions for specific collaborator roles to restrict them from having view, add, update, or delete access to the collection.

Note:

When a collection is set to Save changes as draft first, an extra Collaborators & specific roles permissions table appears below the Advanced permissions table. Use it to control who can view items, create and edit drafts, publish, and delete.

Learn more about saving collection changes as drafts before publishing.

FAQs

Click below for answers to common questions about setting collection permissions.

Why do I see a warning about sensitive fields?

What access levels do each of the 'Advanced' permissions represent?

What makes a collaborator an admin?

How can I control which collections are visible to my site collaborators in the CMS?

Does the 'Collect content' permission allow visitors to update existing content?

What is the difference between custom roles and admin roles?

Can I restrict admin roles from accessing the CMS?

How do my site's collaborator roles and permissions work with collection permissions?

Can I edit permissions for Wix app collections like Wix Stores or Wix Bookings?

Can I edit permissions for Wix Blocks collections?

What default permissions do newly created collections have?