Integrations · Meta
Get partner access to a client's Meta ad account
Your client signs in with Facebook on your onboarding link and picks the ad account. Agency Pilot assigns your agency's business portfolio as a partner on that account with the permissions you chose — the same partner access they could set up in Business settings, without them needing to find your Business ID or the right menu.
Meta ad accounts at a glance
- How access is granted
- Automatically. Your business portfolio becomes a partner on the ad account the client picks.
- Permissions you can request
- Manage campaigns (default) or View performance. Full control is never requested.
- What your client needs
- Full control of the ad account inside a Meta business portfolio. Personal ad accounts can't have partners.
- What you need
- Your agency's Meta Business ID, set once under Onboarding → Connected accounts → Your Meta setup (Detect finds it for you).
- Feeds into Agency Pilot
- Spend, impressions, clicks, campaigns and placements in the client dashboard and Mission Control.
- Instagram and Pages
- Add Facebook Pages to the same link; the client picks both in one Meta dialog.
What your client does
On the onboarding link you send. No password is ever asked for or shared.
- 1
Opens the link and sees that your agency is asking for Manage campaigns (or View performance) on their ad account.
- 2
Clicks Connect next to Meta and continues with Facebook. Meta's own dialog lists the business assets they can share.
- 3
Ticks the ad account (and Page, if the link asks for one) and confirms.
- 4
Sees Meta marked Connected — the partner assignment has already happened.
What happens on your side
- Your business portfolio is assigned as a partner on the ad account with the permission you picked. You'll see it under Business settings → Accounts → Ad accounts in your own portfolio.
- If you listed more than one Business ID, each becomes a partner on the same account; a failure shows Partly added with the reason.
- A personal ad account (not in a portfolio) gets a clear message telling the client how to move it into one.
- Meta Ads spend and delivery start syncing to the client's dashboard.
Meta partner permissions on an ad account
When a business shares an ad account with a partner it chooses what the partner can do. Meta labels these as full control or partial access with specific tasks.
| Role | What it allows | On an Agency Pilot link |
|---|---|---|
| Full control (manage ad account) | Everything, including settings, payment methods and permissions. | Never offered |
| Manage campaigns | Create, edit and publish campaigns, ad sets and ads; see performance. | Offered — the default on manage links |
| View performance | See campaign performance. No changes. | Offered — view links and audits |
Adding a partner by hand in Meta Business settings
- 1
Go to business.facebook.com and open Settings (Business settings) for the portfolio that owns the ad account.
- 2
Under Accounts, choose Ad accounts and select the account.
- 3
Click Assign partner (or Partners → Share).
- 4
Enter the agency's Business ID and choose the permissions.
- 5
Save. The agency sees the account in its own portfolio straight away.
The agency then assigns its own people to the account inside its portfolio. A personal ad account must be claimed into a business portfolio before it can be shared with a partner.
What the Meta connection feeds
- Meta ad spend, impressions and clicks on the client dashboard and in Mission Control, next to Google Ads.
- Campaigns and placements for the period.
- Blended cost per lead and ROAS across Google and Meta.
- Sold jobs sent to Meta as Purchase events through the Conversions API, when you connect the client's dataset.
Exactly what we ask Meta ad accounts for
A link only requests the permissions the platforms on it need. Nothing here is used for anything other than the reason next to it. More on how we handle access.
| Permission | Why |
|---|---|
| ads_read | Reads spend and delivery for the ad account the client shared, for reports and the portal. |
| ads_management | Manage links only: assigns your business portfolio as a partner on the ad account at the permission shown to the client. Nothing else is written. |
| business_management | Manage links only: Meta requires it to assign a partner on an asset owned by a business portfolio. Also lets you detect your own Business ID. |
| pages_show_list | Lists the Pages the person manages so they can choose one, when the link includes a Page. |
Removing access later
- 1
Partner access: Business settings → Accounts → Ad accounts → the account → Partners → remove the agency.
- 2
Reporting connection: the agency uses the trash icon under Onboarding → Connected accounts, or the client removes Agency Pilot under Facebook Settings → Business integrations. Meta tells us immediately and the connection shows revoked.
- 3
Either side can request deletion of the data Agency Pilot received from Meta; the request gets a status page you can check.
If something doesn't work
It says the ad account is personal
Personal ad accounts can't have partners. In Business settings, the client adds the ad account to their business portfolio (Add → Add an ad account), then reopens the link.
The client doesn't see the ad account in Meta's dialog
They don't have full control of it in the portfolio, or the ad account belongs to a different portfolio. Whoever administers that portfolio should open the link.
Your Business ID isn't set
Open Onboarding → Connected accounts → Your Meta setup, connect your own Meta login and click Detect. Links created after that will use it.
The partner assignment says it needs a higher permission
The client has partial access to the ad account. Someone with full control needs to connect, or give the client full control first.
Meta ad accounts: common questions
- What's the difference between partner access and adding a person?
- Partner access shares the ad account with your whole business portfolio, and you decide which of your people can use it. It survives staff changes on your side and is what Meta recommends for agencies.
- Do I need my client's Business ID?
- No. The client picks the ad account in Meta's dialog; you only set your own Business ID once.
- Does Agency Pilot keep access if we stop working together?
- Your partner access lives in Meta and stays until the client removes it. Agency Pilot's reporting connection is separate and can be ended by either side at any time.
- Can I see Meta and Google Ads side by side?
- Yes. Mission Control and the client dashboard show both, with channel filters, and blended cost per lead across them.
- Can I send sold jobs back to Meta?
- Yes. Paste the client's dataset ID and access token on their Attribution settings, send a test event, and new sales go to Meta as Purchase events.
Keep going
Related integrations
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Plan Meta Ads partner access around the delivery work
An access request is easiest to approve when the client understands the work it enables. For Meta Ads, start with the client ad account owned by the appropriate Meta business portfolio. Write down the first task your team will perform and the person responsible for it. A reporting review, a configuration change and ongoing management can require different permissions. Put that purpose in the onboarding brief before sending the link, so the client has a concrete reason to approve the request and knows who to contact if something is unclear.
The intended recipient is the agency business portfolio identified by its Meta Business ID. Check that identity with the person who will actually do the work. An account name alone can be ambiguous when an agency has several teams or the client has several businesses. Record the intended asset and recipient together. This small preparation step makes a later missing-access question much easier to resolve because both parties can compare what was requested with what was granted. It also helps the next account manager understand why the connection exists.
A practical Meta Ads handover example
Illustrative example: A paid social team could obtain View performance for an audit, then Manage campaigns for the accounts it will operate. Before launch, confirm the Page identity, creative approval and conversion measurement separately. A visible ad account alone does not establish that every campaign dependency is available.
For the audit-to-management example, record the client ad-account ID, the agency Business ID and the campaign permission actually granted. Verify that the assigned media buyer can open the account from the agency portfolio. Then list any Page, Instagram or dataset access still needed for the intended campaign. Give creative approval and budget approval their own owners. This makes a partial setup visible: the ad-account partnership can be complete while an asset required for the campaign or its measurement still needs a separate client action.
Separate account access from a successful implementation
Partner access to an ad account does not automatically share every Page, Instagram account, dataset or business asset. A personal ad account needs the appropriate business-portfolio arrangement first.
After access is available, agree a small, observable first task in Meta Ads. For a review engagement, that might be opening the expected account information and documenting what will be assessed. For implementation work, it might be locating the intended setting without changing it yet. Do not test a permission by making an unnecessary live change. If a real change is required, use the client’s agreed approval process and record what you changed, why it was needed and how the result will be checked.
Keep the Meta Ads connection useful after onboarding
Compare date ranges and the platform metric being discussed when a client checks reported results. Distinguish ad delivery, captured leads and recorded sales rather than describing each as the same conversion.
Revisit the access arrangement when the scope changes, the client adds another business asset or the delivery team changes. Ask whether the existing permission still matches the work and whether someone who no longer serves the client still has access. Keep the review proportionate: a small one-off project may need only a clear closing check, while ongoing management benefits from a repeatable review point. The useful outcome is a current record of who can do what on the intended Meta Ads asset, with the business owner able to understand that record.
Frequently asked questions
What should I confirm before requesting Meta Ads access?
Confirm the client ad account owned by the appropriate Meta business portfolio. Ask the client to identify the account they actually use for the work in scope, rather than choosing from a familiar-looking name. Also agree whether the immediate objective is assessment, configuration or ongoing delivery. These details determine which permission is reasonable and what your team will check afterward. If the client is unsure which asset belongs to the project, resolve that ownership or account-selection question before they approve access to an unrelated account.
Who should complete the client side of the request?
The request needs a client with full control of the ad account inside its owning business portfolio. Send the instructions to that person or ask the client to involve them. A staff member who can read a dashboard may still lack permission to invite an agency. Repeating the same request with the same insufficient role will not fix that distinction. The authorized person should review the requested asset, recipient and permission before proceeding, and retain their own independent access after the agency is added.
Which Meta Ads permission is appropriate for the work?
View performance supports reviewing results; Manage campaigns supports campaign delivery. The link does not request full control of the ad account. Start by naming the actions the agency must carry out, then match the role to those actions. If the team only needs to inspect Meta Ads, explain why a viewing role may be sufficient. If a later task requires more authority, make that a deliberate scope decision with the client. Avoid requesting the broadest available role simply to prevent a possible future question; the current engagement should explain the permission being requested.
Is this an automatic grant or a guided client step?
The client chooses the ad account in Meta’s dialog and Agency Pilot assigns the agency portfolio as a partner. The agency then manages which of its own people can use the shared asset. Read the status in the context of that workflow. An invitation, a client confirmation and usable Meta Ads access are related milestones, but they do not always happen at the same moment. Assign responsibility for the next step before marking delivery as ready. This prevents an agency teammate from arriving at a scheduled task and discovering that a required acceptance or platform action is still outstanding.
Which agency identity should receive access?
Use the agency business portfolio identified by its Meta Business ID. Verify it before creating or sending the onboarding request, especially when the agency works through more than one account. Ask the actual recipient to confirm the identity they will sign in with. A forwarded email or a similar display name is not reliable proof that the correct account has been added. For a staffing change, arrange the replacement person’s appropriate access and remove obsolete assignments through the relevant platform process.
How do we verify that onboarding is complete?
After the platform action, check that the ad account appears in the intended agency portfolio, compare its ID with the client brief, and verify that the assigned teammate can reach it. Record who performed that check and whether any required work remains blocked. Prefer a harmless viewing check over an unnecessary live edit. If a teammate cannot reach the asset, compare the actual recipient and role with the original request before asking the client to start again. Completion should mean the right person can reach the intended asset with the agreed capability, rather than only that a message or notification was received.
Does connecting Meta Ads also connect reporting?
Meta ad spend, impressions, clicks, campaigns and placements support the dashboard and Mission Control. Revenue events require the separate attribution and dataset setup described in the product. Keep the client’s reporting expectation explicit in the service brief. If a metric is needed for a report, identify its source, date range and definition before promising that it will appear. A successful access step establishes only the capabilities described for this particular integration. It should not be used as evidence that another platform, a separate dataset or an unrelated source of business results has also been connected.
What should we check if the requested account is unavailable?
If the account is absent, check the client’s full-control permissions and owning portfolio. If the wrong agency portfolio receives access, review the Business ID configured for the onboarding request. Start with account identity and authority because those determine what the client can share. Write down the exact stage where the flow stopped rather than repeatedly recreating the same request. If Meta Ads shows an account-specific restriction, the appropriate platform administrator may need to resolve it first. Avoid broadening permissions or switching to another asset just to make a completion indicator appear; verify the intended account instead.
Why can a personal ad account block partner sharing?
The described partner flow expects an ad account in a business portfolio. A personal account needs the appropriate portfolio arrangement before it can be shared with an agency partner. The authorized client should resolve that account-organization question in Meta. Do not select a different ad account just to complete onboarding, because that would leave the agency connected to the wrong campaigns and reporting history.
Who assigns individual agency employees after the partner grant?
The agency manages its own people assignments inside its portfolio. Verify both layers: the client asset must be shared with the correct agency Business ID, and the intended teammate must be assigned appropriately on the agency side. A successful partnership can coexist with a staff member who cannot yet open the account. That situation calls for an internal assignment check before another client request.
Does ad-account access include the client’s Facebook Page?
The Page is a separate asset. Add the Page to the onboarding request when it belongs to the campaign scope, and verify its task permissions independently. Linked Instagram access is also a separate consideration. A complete launch checklist should identify the assets the campaign actually needs rather than assuming the ad-account partnership gives the agency everything associated with the brand.
Are Purchase events enabled by connecting the ad account?
The documented sold-job workflow requires separate attribution settings and the client dataset connection. Confirm that setup and the meaning of recorded sales before expecting Purchase events to be sent. Ad reporting and revenue-event delivery are distinct parts of the implementation. Explain which one has been verified when giving the client a progress update, especially if campaign access is ready but measurement work remains.
What is the difference between removing a partner and disconnecting reporting?
Removing the partner ends that agency portfolio’s asset access in Meta. Ending the reporting authorization stops the Agency Pilot connection. Review both actions during offboarding because one should not be assumed to accomplish the other. Include any Page or dataset arrangements made separately, and agree who will own ongoing campaign work before removing the agency permissions required for that handover.
How do we end access when the engagement finishes?
Remove the agency partner from the ad account and end the reporting connection separately. Review related Page, Instagram and dataset permissions individually during offboarding. Agree a handover point before removing access that is still needed to finish approved work. Confirm the business retains the people and permissions it needs after the agency leaves. Keep permission removal separate from decisions about delivered work or historical reporting data; those are different questions. Record which Meta Ads assignments were removed and which, if any, remain for an explicitly agreed support period, with a clear owner for the final review.
What is a sensible next step after verifying Meta Ads access?
Review the intended ad account’s existing campaigns and reporting context, then verify the additional assets needed for the next approved campaign. Page access, Instagram access and a dataset connection should each have a clear purpose and completion check. If sold-job Purchase events are planned, handle that attribution setup separately. The media buyer’s first recommendation should distinguish delivery performance, captured leads and recorded sales so the client understands the evidence behind a proposed campaign change.