Understanding Coachful user roles and permissions

What are Coachful user roles — and why do they matter?

If you've ever wondered who can see what inside your Coachful workspace, or why a team member can't access a certain setting, the answer almost always comes down to user roles and permissions. Coachful uses a two-layer role system — one for the platform level and one for your organization — so you have precise control over what every person on your team (and every client) can do.

Getting your roles right from day one saves you from accidental edits, support headaches, and awkward conversations with clients who stumbled into your coach dashboard. This guide walks through every role, what it can do, and how to assign them correctly.

TL;DR — Quick answer

• Platform (user) roles: user, editor, coach, admin, super_admin — control access to Coachful features at the system level.
• Organization (org) roles: super_coach (owner), coach, member, virtual_assistant — control access within your specific coaching workspace.
• Most coaches only need to worry about org roles day-to-day. Platform roles are set automatically based on how someone joins.
• Assigning the wrong role is the most common cause of "I can't see that page" support tickets.

The two-layer role system explained

Coachful is a multi-tenant platform, meaning many coaches run independent businesses from the same infrastructure — each with their own subdomain (yourname.coachful.co) or custom domain. To make that work securely, roles operate at two distinct levels that stack on top of each other.

Think of platform roles as your building-access pass and org roles as your key to a specific office suite inside the building. A person can have a low-level platform role (like user) and still have full authority inside your organization (as a super_coach). The two dimensions work together, not in competition.

Layer 1 — Platform (user) roles

Platform roles are assigned at the Coachful system level. In most cases, they're set automatically when an account is created or upgraded. You won't be changing these often, but understanding them helps you debug unexpected permission errors.

• user — The default role for anyone who signs up. Can enroll in programs, join squads, book sessions, and use the client-facing side of Coachful. This is what your clients have.
• editor — Can create and edit content (programs, pages, blog posts) inside an organization they belong to. Useful for content collaborators who aren't full coaches.
• coach — Can create and manage their own coaching workspace. Unlocks the full coach dashboard, program builder, scheduling, billing via Stripe Connect, and all coach-side features.
• admin — Has elevated platform-level privileges. Can manage multiple workspaces and access admin tooling. Typically reserved for agency or enterprise accounts.
• super_admin — Full platform access. Reserved for Coachful staff and is never assigned to end users.

Layer 2 — Organization (org) roles

Org roles define what a person can do within your specific Coachful workspace. These are the roles you'll manage most actively as you grow your team.

• super_coach (Owner) — Full control over the organization. Can manage billing, team members, branding, custom domains, and every feature in the workspace. There is exactly one super_coach per organization — this is the account that created the workspace.
• coach — Can run programs, manage their own clients, host sessions, and use the coach dashboard. Cannot access workspace-level billing or remove other team members. Perfect for associate coaches or co-coaches you bring onto your roster.
• member — The standard client role inside your org. Can access enrolled programs, squad chats, session bookings, and their personal goal/habit tracker. Cannot see other clients' data or any coach tooling.
• virtual_assistant — A support role for admin-only tasks. A VA can handle scheduling, moderate squads, and assist with client communication, but cannot create programs or access billing. Great for hiring help without giving away ownership.

Pro tip: When you invite a team member via Coach Dashboard → Team → Invite member, choose their org role carefully. A virtual_assistant who accidentally gets assigned the coach org role gains access to all client records in your workspace.

How to view and change roles in Coachful

You can manage org roles directly from your Coachful dashboard without contacting support. Here's how:

Inviting a new team member

1. Go to Dashboard → Team (visible to super_coach and admin).
2. Click Invite member.
3. Enter their email address.
4. Select the appropriate org role from the dropdown: coach, member, or virtual_assistant.
5. Click Send invite. They'll receive an email prompting them to accept.

Changing an existing member's role

1. Go to Dashboard → Team.
2. Find the member in the list and click their name or the ⋯ (more options) menu.
3. Select Change role.
4. Pick the new org role and confirm.

Role changes take effect immediately — no page refresh or re-login required for the affected user in most cases, though for security-sensitive downgrades (e.g., coach → member) you may want to ask them to refresh their session.

Removing a member from your workspace

1. Go to Dashboard → Team.
2. Open the ⋯ menu next to the member's name.
3. Select Remove from workspace.
4. Confirm the action. The person's Coachful account is not deleted — they simply lose access to your specific workspace.

Need help deciding which role to assign? Sign in to your Coachful workspace and ask Michelle, the built-in AI co-pilot, to walk you through the right setup for your team structure. Michelle can answer questions and execute actions across the platform directly from your dashboard.

Role permissions at a glance

The table below summarizes what each org role can and cannot do inside your Coachful workspace. Use it as a quick reference when onboarding new team members.

• super_coach: Create/edit/delete programs ✓ | Manage billing ✓ | Invite/remove team ✓ | Host sessions ✓ | View all client data ✓ | Access squad moderation ✓
• coach: Create/edit programs ✓ | Manage billing ✗ | Invite/remove team ✗ | Host sessions ✓ | View assigned client data ✓ | Access squad moderation ✓
• virtual_assistant: Create/edit programs ✗ | Manage billing ✗ | Invite/remove team ✗ | Host sessions ✗ | Manage scheduling ✓ | Moderate squads ✓
• member (client): View enrolled programs ✓ | Participate in squads ✓ | Book sessions ✓ | Track goals/habits ✓ | Access coach tooling ✗

Real-world scenarios: picking the right role

Abstract permission tables are useful, but concrete examples are better. Here are the most common team structures coaches build on Coachful and how to role them out.

Solo coach with a VA

You run all the coaching yourself but hire a virtual assistant to handle scheduling, reply to squad messages, and manage client onboarding. Assign your VA the virtual_assistant org role. They can reschedule bookings, moderate your community squad, and help with admin — without ever touching your billing or program content.

Coaching practice with multiple coaches

You're the business owner with two associate coaches delivering sessions. You hold the super_coach role. Each associate gets the coach org role, giving them their own program management and client access. Only you can see the full financial dashboard and adjust the workspace's Stripe Connect settings.

Group program with cohort clients

You launch a 12-week group coaching program. Every client who enrolls automatically gets added to a cohort squad and receives the member org role. They can participate in the squad chat, complete weekly tasks, and book their 1:1 check-in calls — but they can't see each other's private progress data or anything in your coach dashboard.

Agency or white-label setup

If you're running a coaching agency where multiple coaches each serve their own client base under one brand, each coach gets the coach org role. The agency owner retains super_coach. This keeps client data siloed per coach while giving you, as the owner, oversight of the whole operation.

Pro tips for managing roles effectively

Getting roles right is a one-time setup that pays dividends for months. A few practices that experienced coaches on Coachful follow:

• Audit your team list quarterly. People leave, projects end. Remove stale team members from your workspace to keep your permissions clean and your billing accurate.
• Never share the super_coach login. If you need someone to have broad access, give them the coach or admin role rather than sharing your credentials. Every action in Coachful is tied to an individual account for accountability.
• Use the virtual_assistant role for contractors. Freelance community managers, onboarding coordinators, and scheduling assistants all fit neatly into the VA role — they get just enough access to do their job without unnecessary exposure to sensitive data.
• Test as a member before launching. Before your program goes live, create a test account with the member role and walk through the client experience. You'll catch permission issues before your paying clients do.

"The best role structure is the most restrictive one that still lets everyone do their job." — A simple rule that prevents 90% of permission headaches.

Troubleshooting common role problems

"My team member says they can't access the program builder"

Check their org role under Dashboard → Team. The program builder is only available to coach and super_coach org roles. If they're listed as virtual_assistant or member, update their role to coach. Also confirm their platform-level role is coach or higher — if they signed up as a regular user, they may need a platform role upgrade (contact Coachful support for this).

"A client can see things they shouldn't"

This almost always means the client was accidentally invited with a coach org role instead of member. Go to Dashboard → Team, find the client, and change their role to member immediately. Their view will restrict to client-only features on their next page load.

"I transferred ownership but still can't remove the old super_coach"

The super_coach role can only be transferred — not duplicated. If you need to move ownership (e.g., selling your coaching business), go to Dashboard → Settings → Workspace → Transfer ownership and follow the confirmation flow. Once transferred, the previous owner can be downgraded to coach or removed entirely.

"My VA accidentally deleted a squad message"

Virtual assistants have moderation permissions on squads, which includes deleting messages. This is by design — but if you want to limit that, consider whether member is a more appropriate role for that contractor, or restrict their squad access via the squad settings under Coach → Squads → Manage.

"I can't find the Team section in my dashboard"

The Team management section is only visible to super_coach and admin org roles. If you don't see it, you're likely logged into a workspace where you hold the coach role rather than ownership. Check that you're in the correct workspace — use the workspace switcher in the top-left of your dashboard.

"A new coach I invited didn't get the right access"

Invitations expire after 7 days. If the invite expired before your coach accepted it, resend it from Dashboard → Team → Pending invites. Also double-check that you selected the coach org role (not member) before sending — the role is set at invite time, not acceptance time.

How roles interact with programs, squads, and billing

Roles don't exist in isolation — they govern exactly what each person can do inside Coachful's core features. A few specifics worth knowing:

Programs: Only coach and super_coach org roles can create, edit, or publish programs. Clients with the member role see only the programs they're enrolled in, and only the content that's been unlocked based on the program schedule. Learn more in Create and manage programs.

Squads: All org roles can participate in squads they've been added to. Moderation (pinning, deleting, muting) is available to coach, super_coach, and virtual_assistant. For cohort squads that auto-generate when clients enroll in a program, membership is managed automatically — no manual invites needed. See Understanding squads for the full picture.

Billing: Only the super_coach can access Stripe Connect settings, view payout history, create offers, and manage coupons. No other role — not even coach — can see your financial dashboard. This is intentional and cannot be changed at the org level.

Ready to get your team set up correctly?

User roles and permissions are one of those foundational settings that are easy to get right once and then forget about. A few minutes spent assigning the correct org roles today will prevent confusion, protect client data, and let every person on your team do their best work without friction.

If you're just getting started, start your free trial on Coachful and walk through the team setup wizard — it'll prompt you to assign roles as you invite people, so nothing falls through the cracks. Already have a workspace? Sign in and head to Dashboard → Team to audit your current role assignments right now. And if you hit a snag, Michelle — your AI co-pilot — is one click away inside the dashboard.