What is a collaborator in Flywheel?

Updated on January 15th, 2021

A collaborator in Flywheel is someone that has access to a site with their own username and password. This is a great feature for granting access to freelancers or other contractors who are working on a site, and removes the need from sharing passwords with other people. You simply add them as a collaborator, and they log into Flywheel with their username and can see any sites they’re collaborating on.

Note

This is also the mechanism by which Flywheel enables transfer of ownership. When you transfer billing to a client, you remain active on the site as a collaborator. You still have full access, even though your client is paying the bill. For more info on transferring billing, see the help article: How do I forward payment to my client?

Collaborators have full access to the site in Flywheel and via SFTP, and can do everything an owner can do except manage billing. Specifically, collaborators on a site can:

View the site in Flywheel

Collaborators see the site in their Flywheel dashboard, and can add/remove other collaborators, add domains, change settings, and anything else an owner could do (except manage billing).

Access the site via SFTP

Collaborators can log into the Flywheel SFTP server using their own username and password, and will see all of the sites they’re collaborators on.

Manage the Database

As part of having access the site in Flywheel, collaborators can manage the database via the Flywheel Database Manager.

Access the wp-admin

Sites with Seamless Login enabled will allow collaborators to access the WordPress admin area directly from the Flywheel dashboard. Site owners can opt their sites out of this feature by contacting support.

Collaborators cannot manage the billing of the site, and cannot delete or cancel a site.

Adding and removing collaborators

Collaborators can be easily added and removed when viewing a site in Flywheel. To do so, simply click the “+” button next to “Collaborators,” or the “Add collaborators” button beneath the collaborator list:

This will bring up a dialog window where you can add and remove collaborators:

To invite someone to collaborate, simply type in their name, Flywheel username, or email address. They will receive an email letting them know that they’ve been invited to collaborate on that site. Once they accept, the site will show up on their dashboard in Flywheel, and will also show up when they log into the SFTP server.

To remove access for a collaborator, simply click “Remove.” The user will no longer have access to view or manage the site, and won’t be able to make changes in the SFTP server.

Getting Started

New to Flywheel? Start here, we've got all the information you'll need to get started and launch your first site!

View all

Account Management

Learn all about managing your Flywheel user account, Teams and integrations.

View all

Billing

Everything about billing, invoices and payments can be found here.

View all

Features

Flywheel hosting plans include a ton of great features. Learn about how to get a free SSL certificate, set up a staging site, and more!

View all

Platform Info

All the server and setting info you'll need to help you get the most out of your Flywheel hosting plan!

View all

Site Management

Tips and tricks for managing your sites on Flywheel, including going live, troubleshooting issues and migrating or cloning sites.

View all

Developer Hub

Learn how to connect, deploy, and more with SSH on Flywheel's platform.

View all

Local

View the Local help docs

All help articles