If you're running a sales team on Apollo.io, managing who can see what — and who can do what — is not a nice-to-have. It's a must. Without proper user permissions, you risk data leaks, accidental list deletions, or reps accessing accounts that aren't theirs to touch.
The good news? Apollo.io gives you solid control over user roles and permissions. Here's exactly how to set them up.
Why User Permissions Matter in Apollo.io
User permissions control what each person on your team can access, edit, export, or delete inside your Apollo workspace.
In growing sales organizations, this matters because:
- SDRs shouldn't have access to billing or admin settings
- AEs should only see their own sequences and lead lists
- Managers need visibility across their team without being able to accidentally modify other reps' data
- Admins need full control to configure integrations and manage the account
Getting permissions right protects your data, your workflow, and your team's efficiency.
Apollo.io User Roles: What You Need to Know
Apollo.io currently offers several access levels depending on your plan.
The primary roles are:
- Admin — Full access to all Apollo features, settings, billing, team management, integrations, and data
- Manager — Can view and manage team members' sequences, lists, and activity but has limited access to billing and account-level settings
- Member/User — Standard access to search, sequences, and their own lists; cannot access admin settings or other users' private data
Each role is designed to match a specific function within a sales org, so assigning the right role from the start saves a lot of headaches later.
How to Set User Permissions in Apollo.io
Here is the step-by-step process for adjusting user permissions:
- Log into your Apollo.io account as an Admin
- Click on your profile icon or name in the bottom-left corner of the screen
- Navigate to "Settings"
- In the Settings menu, click on "Users" under the Team section
- You'll see a list of all current team members in your Apollo workspace
- Find the user whose permissions you want to update
- Click the dropdown next to their name under the "Role" column
- Select the appropriate role: Admin, Manager, or Member
- Changes save automatically — no confirmation button required
That's the core flow. But there's more nuance depending on your plan.
Permission Settings for Sequences and Lists
Beyond global roles, Apollo also lets you control access at the asset level — specifically for sequences and lists.
For Sequences:
- When creating or editing a sequence, you can set it as Private (only visible to you) or Shared (visible to the whole team)
- Admins and Managers can view all shared sequences
- Members can only access sequences shared with them or created by them
For Lists:
- Lists can also be set to private or shared
- Shared lists are visible to all team members with access to that workspace
- Only the list creator or an Admin can delete a shared list
This granular control means your prospecting lists stay safe from accidental edits or deletions.
Managing Permissions for CRM and Integration Access
If your Apollo account is connected to Salesforce, HubSpot, or another CRM, permission settings become even more important.
You can control:
- Which users can push contacts from Apollo to the CRM
- Which users can sync sequences with the CRM
- Whether members can override CRM field mappings
These settings live under Settings > Integrations and are typically restricted to Admins by default. Be very intentional about who gets CRM write access — a bad push from Apollo to Salesforce can corrupt your pipeline data.
Tracking Team Activity and Auditing
Apollo provides some level of activity tracking so Admins can see what team members are doing inside the platform.
This includes:
- Emails sent per user
- Credits used per user
- Sequences created and launched
- Contacts added to lists
This audit capability is crucial for quota accountability and for identifying if any team member is burning through credits inefficiently.
Using Notion to Document Your Team's Permission Structure
As your team grows, it's easy to lose track of who has what access. Building a simple permission matrix in Notion keeps everyone aligned. You can create a table that maps each team member's role, their Apollo permission level, their CRM access, and any special exceptions.
This becomes especially valuable during onboarding, team restructures, or audits.
👉 Try Notion free here and build a permissions tracker your whole ops team will thank you for.
Best Practices for Setting Apollo Permissions
- Follow the principle of least privilege — give each user the minimum access they need to do their job
- Review permissions quarterly — as roles change, so should access levels
- Don't give Admin access liberally — limit it to 1–2 operations or RevOps leads
- Use Manager roles for team leads who need visibility without full admin control
- Document your permission decisions so new hires inherit a clear structure
Permissions aren't glamorous — but they're foundational to running a professional, secure sales operation in Apollo.