Folder-level access lets you invite users or groups to specific folders in a library or project, without granting access to the full library. Invited users can only see and work within their assigned folders through a dedicated Shared folders view.
​

This is useful for collaborating with external partners, regional teams, or any contributor who only needs access to a defined part of a library.

Frontify uses two layers of access: library-level roles and folder-level permissions.

For example, if a user has Viewer access to the library but is invited to a specific folder with Can edit, they have edit rights within that folder and its subfolders while remaining read-only everywhere else.
​

Folder-level access can be granted by users with Admin, Owner, or Editor rights at the library level, as well as folder-level users who have Can edit permission on a folder.

To invite a user or group to a specific folder:

Invited users receive an email notification (if enabled) and can access the folder from their Shared folders view.

​

When inviting a user or group, an access period can be set to limit how long they have access. When the period expires, access is removed automatically. The access period can also be edited later from the folder's access management view.
​

A few things to know about expiring access:

Users invited to one or more folders access their content through the Shared folders entry point, not through the main library navigation. Within their folders, they can:

They cannot navigate above the top-level folder they were invited to or access any other part of the library.
​
​Note: Users who only have folder-level access and no library-level access will see an empty state when navigating to Libraries. Their shared folders are accessible through the Shared folders tab in the Libraries navigation bar.

When invited to a folder, users can receive an email notification with the folder name and a direct link. The email includes a View Folder button that takes them straight to the shared folder.
​

Email notifications are optional when inviting groups and can be toggled on or off in the invite dialog. For individual invites, a personalized message can be included to give the recipient context about the folder or what they need to do. Personalized messages are not available for group invites.
​

Some library features are not available to folder-level users, regardless of their permission level:

There are three permission levels for folder-level access:

Folder-level users may see custom metadata on assets, depending on how each property is configured in the library. Each property for 'Can edit' users can be set to:

For "Logged-in users" their settings can be configured to "Can view" and "Can review" permissions.

Folder-level viewers and reviewers follow the "Everyone" permission level configured on each property.

Users with Can edit permission on a folder can view and manage who has access to it.

To manage folder access:

Changes to permission levels take effect immediately. When access is removed, the user loses access on their next page load.

Note: The ability to invite users and change permissions at folder level also depends on account-level permission settings. To check or adjust these settings, go to your profile in the bottom left of the page → Account → scroll down to Required permissions. Under Invite and change user permissions and Invite and change group permissions, the setting must be set to Editor (in that project) and "Can edit" (in that folder) for folder-level permission management to work as described above. More in this help article.