---
title: "How to update a user"
description: "Change a user's name, email, role, and access groups in one save from the Users tab. A role change applies to all maps and datasets they reach through groups."
sidebar:
  label: "Update a user"
---

<a href="https://mangomap.com/pricing" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" class="no-underline">
Enterprise and Agency only

</a>

`Update user` changes a user's name, email, role, and groups in one save. A role change takes effect on every map and dataset they access through groups. Only owners can use this form, and `Owner` is not assignable (one owner per account, set at account creation); for users to change their own name, email, or password, they use their own [User profile](/docs/profile/update-your-profile) instead.

## Before you start

- You need to be the account owner. Only the user with the `Owner` role can update users. `Admin`, `Editor`, and `Viewer` users cannot.
- Know what you want to change. The form saves role and group changes together.
- The owner's role cannot be changed from this form. The role selector offers `Admin`, `Editor`, and `Viewer`.

## Open the update form

In the navigation, under `Global settings`, click `Team`. On the user's row, click the pencil icon. The form opens with the user's current values filled in:

<img src="/_assets/managing-team/update-a-user--form.png" alt="Update user form for Phyllis Pearsall: Name and Email address in User information, the Admin, Editor (selected), and Viewer roles with a Free chip on Viewer, the Groups table with Editors ticked and Engineers and Team not ticked, and the Cancel and Update user buttons" width="1600" height="960" />

## Change the name or email

In `User information`:

- Edit `Name` to change the displayed name.
- Edit `Email address` to change the sign-in email. The email must be a valid address.

`Name` is optional. `Email address` is required.

## Change the role

In `User information`, select a role: `Admin`, `Editor`, or `Viewer`.

Changing a role takes effect as soon as you click `Update user`. A user moved to a role without edit permission immediately loses the ability to edit the maps and datasets they previously had `Edit` access to through their groups.

## Change access group memberships

In `Groups`, the user's current groups are ticked.

- Tick a checkbox to add the user to that group.
- Untick a checkbox to remove the user from that group.

Use the `Select all` column header to add or remove the user from every group at once.

For what each group's `View` and `Edit` access actually grants, see [How map access works in MangoMap](/docs/map-access/concepts-map-access) and [How dataset access works in MangoMap](/docs/dataset-access/concepts-dataset-access).

## Save changes

Click `Update user`. Every change in both sections — name, email, role, group memberships — saves together.

If you change your mind before saving, click `Cancel` to leave the form without applying any changes.

## Updating a pending user

A user who shows `PENDING ACTIVATION` can still be updated. Their email, role, and group memberships save the same way. When they accept the invitation and complete `Join`, your changes apply immediately.

## Limits on updates

| Symptom | Cause | Fix |
| --- | --- | --- |
| The role radio does not show `Owner`. | The team UI offers `Admin`, `Editor`, and `Viewer`; `Owner` is set when the account is created and is not assignable from this form. | Account ownership transfer is not available from this form. |
| The submit shows an upgrade prompt. | The role you selected exceeds your subscription's seat limit for that role. | Upgrade the subscription or pick a role with seats available. |
| Group changes save but the user still cannot view a map or dataset. | The map or dataset's own access settings have not granted that group `View` or `Edit`. | See [How to share a map with groups](/docs/map-access/share-map-with-groups) and [How to share a dataset with groups](/docs/dataset-access/share-dataset-with-groups). |

## Troubleshooting

**The Users page is blocked.** You are not the account owner. See [The Users or Groups page is blocked](/docs/managing-team/troubleshoot-team-page-access).

**A user has the right role and groups but still can't edit a dataset.** Confirm the dataset's `Internal Access` card has `Edit` on for one of the user's groups. See [A teammate can't edit a dataset I shared with their group](/docs/dataset-access/troubleshoot-cant-edit-dataset).

## Related

- [Users page](/docs/managing-team/users-page-reference)
- [How team management and account roles work in MangoMap](/docs/managing-team/concepts-team-and-roles)
- [How to invite a user](/docs/managing-team/invite-a-user)
- [How to remove a user](/docs/managing-team/remove-a-user)
- [How to update your profile](/docs/profile/update-your-profile) - users change their own name, email, and password from `Profile`. Use this page only to change another user's role or group memberships.
- [How to share a map with groups](/docs/map-access/share-map-with-groups)
- [How to share a dataset with groups](/docs/dataset-access/share-dataset-with-groups)