I created this video to walk through how to add and manage users in WordPress, including assigning roles, setting permissions, and keeping your site secure.

Whether you’re running a solo blog or managing a multi-author site, understanding how WordPress user roles work is critical. You don’t want to give full admin access when someone only needs to edit a post or upload an image.

Here’s how I handle it.

Step 1: Go to the “Users” section

Log into your WordPress admin panel, then click “Users” > “Add New.”

From here, you’ll enter the new user’s:

  • Username (must be unique)
  • Email address
  • First and last name (optional but helpful)
  • Password (you can auto-generate or set your own)
  • Role (this is the big one — more on that next)

You can also choose to send the user a notification with their login credentials.

Step 2: Choose the right user role

WordPress comes with five main user roles:

  • Subscriber – Can only read content and manage their own profile
  • Contributor – Can write and manage their own posts but can’t publish
  • Author – Can publish and manage their own posts
  • Editor – Can manage and publish everyone’s posts
  • Administrator – Full control over the site

In the video, I show how I typically give:

  • Authors access to blog contributors
  • Editors access to a content manager
  • Admins only to co-owners or developers

Step 3: Managing existing users

Once added, users appear under the “All Users” tab. You can:

  • Edit user profiles
  • Reset passwords
  • Change roles
  • Remove or delete users entirely

If you’re running a membership or WooCommerce site, this panel also shows all customers and subscribers.

Step 4: Optional plugins for better control

If you want more granular control, I recommend:

  • User Role Editor (custom roles & capabilities)
  • Members by MemberPress (easy UI for role editing)
  • Audit Log plugins to track changes

This is especially helpful if you’re onboarding writers, VAs, or developers and want to control access tightly.

Are you managing users manually right now, or looking to automate onboarding with roles and permissions?