What it is
Team access lets you add other people as users on your Tide account with their own login, rather than sharing your credentials or being the sole person who can see transactions, raise invoices or approve payments. Permission levels typically range from view-only access — useful for a bookkeeper or accountant — up to fuller access that can include making payments, depending on the role assigned.
Who can access it and on which plans
A basic level of team access, often for one or two additional users, is commonly available even on lower plans, with a larger number of team members and more granular permission levels typically reserved for higher plan tiers. If you run a business with several people needing account access — co-founders, an office manager, an external accountant — check the current per-plan user limits on our plans and fees page before assuming your plan covers your team size.
How it works step by step
- From account settings, invite a team member by email.
- Assign a permission level — commonly view-only, or a level that allows initiating or approving payments.
- The invited person accepts and sets up their own login and security details, separate from yours.
- They see the transaction feed, invoices or expense cards according to their permission level.
- You can revoke or downgrade access at any time from the app if a role or relationship changes.
Current cost and allowances
Team access is generally included as part of the plan fee rather than charged per user, though the number of users included scales with plan tier, and adding users beyond your plan's allowance may not be possible without upgrading. There isn't typically a standalone per-seat fee in the way some SaaS products charge, but check current allowances on our plans and fees page since these numbers vary by tier and can change.
A worked example
A two-director limited company gives both directors full access to make payments, and gives their externally contracted bookkeeper view-only access so she can reconcile the books each month without being able to move money. When one director goes on parental leave for three months, the other temporarily adjusts her permission level rather than needing to remove and re-add her account entirely.
Limitations and exclusions
Team access is not the same as a joint account with equal, undifferentiated ownership — the primary account holder typically retains ultimate control and can revoke others' access, which suits most small businesses but may not suit a genuine 50/50 partnership expecting fully equal standing. Permission granularity is also simpler than dedicated enterprise banking platforms, which offer more complex approval chains for larger organisations.
How it compares with alternatives
Traditional business bank accounts often support 'additional signatories' via a paper-based or branch process that can take days to set up or change. Tide's team access is instant and app-based, which suits a small business needing to move quickly. Larger organisations needing formal multi-level approval chains (e.g. one person raises a payment, another must approve above a threshold) may find dedicated corporate banking platforms offer more structure than Tide's tiers.
Relationship to the REFER200 offer
Team access itself has no direct bearing on the offer, but it interacts with expense cards: if you give a team member card access alongside account access, their spend can count towards the £100 qualifying spend step. Adding a bookkeeper with view-only access has no effect on the offer either way.
Setting up a team properly, step by step
- Decide roles before inviting anyone — who needs to see transactions only, who needs to raise or approve payments, and who needs card spending.
- Invite each person by email from account settings and assign the appropriate permission level immediately, rather than defaulting everyone to full access.
- Check current per-plan user limits on our plans and fees page before inviting more people than your plan includes.
- Agree internally who is responsible for reviewing and revoking access when someone leaves or changes role.
- Review the full user list periodically — a former contractor or ex-employee with lingering access is a genuine, avoidable risk.
A worked scenario
A three-person landscaping partnership gives each partner full payment access, plus a part-time office administrator view-only access to reconcile invoices weekly. When one partner takes a sabbatical, the remaining two temporarily downgrade his permission level to view-only rather than removing him from the account entirely, restoring full access on his return. The administrator, notably, never needed card or payment access at all — view-only covered everything her role required.
Who this suits, and who needs more
Team access suits small partnerships, family businesses and limited companies with a handful of people who need visibility or spending ability without every person holding the primary login. It's less suited to a business needing formal, layered approval chains — for example, a payment initiated by one person requiring sign-off from another above a set value — since Tide's permission levels are simpler than dedicated corporate banking approval workflows.