How to Get Access to Meta Business Portfolio

Trying to manage a Facebook Page or Ad Account but can't find it in your settings? You probably need access to the Meta Business Portfolio that owns it. This guide will walk you through exactly how to get invited and accept access, or how to request it yourself if you're managing assets for a client.

What is a Meta Business Portfolio Anyway?

Before we jump into the steps, let's quickly clarify what we're talking about. The Meta Business Portfolio is the new-ish name for what most people still call Facebook Business Manager. It’s a central hub designed to help businesses and agencies manage all of their marketing assets securely and efficiently.

Think of it as a digital briefcase that holds:

• Your Facebook Pages and Instagram accounts
• Your Meta Ad Accounts
• Your Meta Pixels and conversion data
• Product catalogs for e-commerce
• Audiences, payment methods, and more

Using a Business Portfolio is a best practice because it separates your personal Facebook profile from your business activities. It allows business owners to grant access to employees, partners, or agencies without having to share login credentials or making them full personal "friends" on Facebook. This is the professional, secure way to collaborate on Meta’s platforms.

The Two Ways to Get Access: Invitation vs. Request

Getting access to a Business Portfolio generally happens in one of two ways. Understanding which situation you're in will tell you exactly what you need to do.

1. Accepting an Invitation: This is the most common scenario. The administrator of the Business Portfolio sends an invitation directly to your email address. You just have to find the email and accept it. This is typically used for bringing new employees or freelancers into your team.
2. Requesting Access: This is what agencies, consultants, or partner companies usually do. Instead of waiting for an invitation, you use your own Business Portfolio to request access to a specific asset (like a client's Page or Ad Account). The client then gets a notification and approves your request.

Below, we’ll cover the step-by-step process for both methods.

How to Accept an Invitation to Join a Business Portfolio

If someone has told you "I've sent you an invitation," this is the section for you. This is the simplest way to get connected, as long as you follow the steps correctly.

Step 1: Check Your Email for the Invitation

The first step is to find the email from Meta. It will come from an address like notification@facebookmail.com. The subject line will typically be something like, "[Admin Name] has invited you to work on their business."

Heads up: The email will be sent to the address the administrator entered when they invited you. Make sure you know which email address they used. If you don't see it in your inbox, check your Junk or Spam folders. It’s also wise to check your "Promotions" or "Social" tabs if you use Gmail.

Step 2: Start the Process

Inside the email, you'll see a clear blue button that says "Get Started." Click it. This will open a new tab in your web browser and begin the acceptance process.

If the link doesn’t work or you get an error, it might mean the invitation has expired (they are only valid for 30 days). In that case, you'll need to ask the administrator who invited you to cancel the pending invitation and send a new one.

Step 3: Confirm Your Name

Meta needs to know what name to display for you inside the Business Portfolio. It will ask you to enter your name. Your colleagues and the portfolio administrators will see this, so use your real, professional name. This helps everyone keep track of who has access to what. Once you've entered your name, click "Continue."

Step 4: Review and Accept the Invitation

The next screen will show you what you're getting access to. It will confirm the email address the invitation was sent to and the specific pages, ad accounts, or other assets you've been granted permissions for. Take a moment to review this to make sure it looks correct.

Click "Continue." You may be prompted to log in to your personal Facebook account at this stage. This is a normal security measure. Meta uses your personal profile to verify your identity but does not give your employer or client access to your personal information, photos, or posts. Your business and personal lives remain entirely separate.

Step 5: Welcome to the Portfolio!

That's it! After accepting, you'll be redirected to the Meta Business Portfolio, which you can access anytime by going to business.facebook.com. You should now see the business you were invited to on your main dashboard, and you’ll be able to access the Pages and Ad Accounts that were assigned to you.

How to Request Access to an Asset (for Agencies and Partners)

If you're an agency or contractor managing a client's advertising, you probably won't be "invited" to their entire portfolio. Instead, you'll use your own portfolio to request access to the specific assets you need to work on. Here's how to do that.

Step 1: Go to Your Business Settings

First, log in to your own Meta Business Portfolio at business.facebook.com. In the left-hand navigation menu, find the cog icon labeled "Business Settings." This is your command center for managing all assets and permissions.

Step 2: Navigate to the Right Asset Type

In the Business Settings menu, you’ll see sections for "Accounts," "Data Sources," and more. Decide what you need access to.

• To manage their Page (comment, post, check messages), go to Accounts > Pages.
• To run ads, go to Accounts > Ad Accounts.

Step 3: Start the Request

Once you are in the correct section (e.g., Pages), you’ll see a blue "Add" button. Click it, and you'll get a dropdown with a few options. It's important to choose the right one:

• Add a Page/Ad Account: This means you want to claim the asset and move ownership of it into your business portfolio. You should almost never do this for a client, as it makes you the owner. Only use this for assets your business actually owns.
• Request Access to a Page/Ad Account: This is the correct option for agencies and partners. It lets you manage the asset while the client retains full ownership.
• Create a new Page/Ad Account: This is for creating a brand new asset from scratch.

Select "Request Access..." for the asset you need.

Step 4: Find the Asset

A new window will pop up. You'll need to provide some information so Meta can find the client's asset.

• For a Facebook Page: You can simply type in the name of the page or paste its full URL.
• For an Ad Account: You will need the client's Ad Account ID number. The client can find this number by going to their Ads Manager. The ID is usually visible in the URL of their browser or in the top-left dropdown menu. Ask your client to provide this to you.

Step 5: Choose Your Permissions

Next, you’ll be asked to select what level of access you need. This is a critical step. Don't just request full control if you don't need it. The options will vary depending on the asset, but they generally fall into two categories:

• Standard Access (Partial Access): This allows you to perform specific tasks, like creating ads, publishing content, or viewing performance reports. You can often toggle individual permissions on or off.
• Admin Access (Full Control): This gives you permissions to do everything, including managing permissions for other users, changing settings, and adding payment methods. Only request this if you're responsible for the full management of the asset.

Select the roles you need and click "Request Access."

Step 6: Wait for Approval

Your work is done for now. An approval request has now been sent to the administrators of your client's Business Portfolio. They will need to log in, go to their Business Settings, look for "Requests" in the left-hand menu, and approve your request. Once they do, the asset will appear in your own Business Portfolio and you can get to work.

Troubleshooting Common Access Issues

Sometimes things don't go as smoothly as they should. Here are a few common hiccups and how to fix them.

"I never got the invitation email!"

This is the most frequent problem. First, double-check your spam, junk, and other filtered folders (like Gmail's Promotions tab). If it’s still not there, confirm with the person who sent it which email address they used. It’s possible they made a typo. Ask them to cancel the pending invite and resend it to be safe.

"The invitation link is expired or says it's invalid."

An invitation link is only valid for 30 days. If you click an old link, it won't work. The solution is simple: ask the administrator to send you a fresh invitation.

"My access still says 'Pending' after I sent a request."

If you've requested access to a client’s asset and it's stuck in "Pending" status, it means the administrator on their end hasn't approved it yet. You need to follow up with your client directly. Often, they just don't know where to look. You can guide them to their Business Settings > Requests page to find and approve your access.

Final Thoughts

Getting access to a client or team member's Meta assets is a fundamental first step for effective collaboration. Whether you're accepting an email invitation or formally requesting access as a partner, following the official process through Meta Business Portfolio keeps everyone's accounts secure and organized.

Once you’ve finally gained access to all of your different marketing and sales platforms - like Facebook Ads, Google Analytics, Shopify, and Salesforce - the next challenge is making sense of it all. Instead of manually exporting CSVs and wrestling with spreadsheets every week, we created Graphed to do the heavy lifting for you. We connect to all your data sources and let you build real-time, automated dashboards just by asking questions in plain English. Now you can focus on insights, not on data prep.