User Access controls

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Introduction

Managing who can access your Zoho Books account and what they can see or do is key to keeping your financial data secure and organised. Zoho Books lets you add users, assign roles, customise permissions, and control access with ease. Whether you’re a growing business or a well established company, user access controls ensure the right people have the right access at the right time. 

In this guide, we’ll walk you through how to set up users and roles in Zoho Books, including how to create custom roles, edit user info, and manage user access. 

Step-by-Step Instructions:

1. Understanding Users and Roles

  • User: Anyone you’ve granted access to your Zoho Books organisation.
  • Role: The level of access a user has (e.g., Admin, Staff, Timesheet Staff).

Zoho Books comes with default roles that can’t be edited or deleted but you can create your own Custom Roles too. 

2. How to Add a New User

Only Admin users can invite others to Zoho Books. 

To invite a new user: 

  • Click the gear icon (Settings) in the top right.
  • Go to Users under Users & Roles.
  • Click Invite User.
  • Enter their email address, name, and assign a role.
  • Click Save.
  • An email invitation will be sent to the user. Once they accept, they can create a password and log in.

3. How to Edit a User’s Details

To update a user’s name, role, or other details: 

  • Go to Settings > Users under Users & Roles.
  • Click Edit next to the user
  • Make the required changes.
  • Click Save.

4. Creating Custom Roles in Zoho Books

  • Go to Settings > Roles under Users & Roles.
  • Click + New Role.
  • Choose which modules they can access (e.g. Invoices, Reports).
  • Click More Permissions to fine tune.
  • Click Save.

5. Adding Custom Fields for Users

If you want to store extra information (like employee ID or department): 

  • Go to Settings > User Preferences under Users & Roles.
  • Click the Field Customisation tab.
  • Select + New Custom Field.
  • Add a label, choose a data type, and complete the required fields.
  • Tick "Is this PII?" if it’s personally identifiable info.
  • Click Save.

These custom fields appear when adding or editing a user. 

6. How to Mark a User as Inactive

If you don’t want to delete a user but need to revoke access temporarily: 

  • Go to Settings > Users under Users & Roles.
  • Select the user.
  • Click Mark as Inactive

You can reactivate them later. 

7. How to Reactivate a User

To grant access again to an inactive user: 

  • Go to Settings > Users under Users & Roles.
  • Find the inactive user.
  • Click Mark as Active.

8. How to Delete a User

When a user no longer needs access: 

  • Go to Settings > Users under Users & Roles.
  • Select the user.
  • Click Delete.

Tips:

  • Use descriptive role names for custom roles (e.g. “Finance Viewer”, “Project Manager”).
  • Limit Admin access to only those who absolutely need it.
  • Keep your user list up to date by regularly deactivating or deleting users no longer with your organisation.
  • Use custom fields to capture key user details for internal tracking.
  • Test custom roles by assigning them to yourself before applying them to others.

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