How to give and request access to Yelp

Did you know that 96% of customers on Yelp use it to compare their options before making a purchasing decision? Similar to Google Maps, Yelp is for any local business where customer experiences affect buying decisions.

In this guide, we'll show you how to share Yelp business account access with your marketing agency or freelancer, including both manual and automated methods. For agencies, this article has step-by-step instructions, including updated screenshots, which you can share with your new clients.

The TL;DR:

1. Learn the difference between personal and business Yelp accounts 
2. Steps to give someone access to your Yelp account (with updated screenshots)
3. See the methods to request account access as an agency 
4. Discover how to manage user permissions and roles effectively

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What is a Yelp business account?

Yelp is a crowd-sourced review platform where customers share their experiences with local businesses. You can also share important information like updated hours or highlight new products. 

Yelp has three main benefits for businesses:

1. Enable discoverability: Potential customers can discover your business through searches like “Chinese restaurant near me” or “Cleaning service in Boston.” These customers may not have found you otherwise. 
2. Build trust: Photos, social proof from other customer reviews, and brand engagement like review responses help customers trust that they’ll have a positive experience with your business.
3. Influence purchases: Customers can get the information they need like store hours or parking options and available products to make a purchasing decision. 

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Difference between a Yelp personal and business account

There are two types of Yelp accounts: personal accounts and business accounts. 

• Personal accounts are for individuals who want to discover businesses, write reviews, and connect with other Yelp users. If you're just browsing restaurants for dinner or warning others about that terrible car repair experience, a personal account is all you need.

• Business accounts, meanwhile, are essential for anyone managing a business's online reputation. This includes business owners, marketing managers, agencies, and anyone responsible for maintaining a professional presence on Yelp. 

If you need to respond to reviews, update business information, or access performance metrics, you need a business account to create or claim your business profile.

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Roles in business accounts

There’s only one type of access you can share with other users. This means that all invited users can:

• Respond to reviews and messages
• Update your business information
• Upload photos
• Use existing payment information to make new purchases
• Add or remove payment information associated with your business
• Grant and revoke others' access to your business’s Yelp page

💡 Pro tip: Only give account access to those that you trust, and ideally with a clear contract in place that protects you. You can remove users at any time, which we’ll discuss later on.

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Part 1: How to give access to your Yelp business account

Step 1: Go to your Yelp business page. Click on your profile picture in the top right corner, and then click “Account Settings.”

Step 2: Find “User Management” in the left navigation bar and click on it. Then, click “Invite user.” 

Step 3: Add the email address of the user you want to invite, and select the Yelp business profile you want to invite them to help manage.

Step 4: They’ll receive an email inviting them to manage your business page. They can log in if they already have an account, or they can create one.

Step 5: Once they accept the invitation, you’ll see them under the “User Management” page. This is also where you'll add or remove users from your Yelp account.

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Part 2: How to request access to a Yelp business account 

You have two options for requesting access to a Yelp business account.

💡 Note: Up to 15 users can manage a single Yelp business profile.

1. Requesting access manually 

Yelp does not have a feature for users or agencies to request access to an account that they don’t own or that has already been claimed by someone else.

This means you’ll need to ask the Yelp account owner to add you as a user manually from the “User Management” page (see instructions above)

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2. Automating access requests with Leadsie 

Yelp doesn’t offer streamlined, native solutions to request account access. You’ll have to ask your client or teammate to give you access using the manual method, and this has to be repeated with each new hire.

💡 Fortunately, Leadsie can help. 

Leadsie is the ultimate agency client onboarding hack which gets you Yelp account access (and 13+ other social platforms) in just a few clicks— making it easy, even for non-tech-savvy clients. Just send them a Leadsie link, and clients can grant you access to multiple accounts at once. Try Leadsie for free for 14 days, no credit card needed.

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📹 Prefer a video? See how Leadsie works here: 

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Adding and removing users

You can remove users from your account at any time. 

Step 1: Click on your profile picture in the top right corner, then select “Account Settings.” 

Step 2: Find “User Management” in the left navigation bar to see a list of the users who currently have access to your account.

‍Step 3: Click “Remove” next to the name of the user whose access needs to be revoked.

Because Yelp only has a single permission type, we strongly recommend that business owners and agencies both audit who has access to their accounts regularly. 

💡 Pro tip: Immediately remove access for the people or agencies you no longer work with to revoke the full permissions they have to your business profile.

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How to create a Yelp business account 

If you need to create a Yelp business account for your business or a client, follow these steps:

‍Step 1: Go to Yelp for Business to sign up. Enter your business name. If it already exists, you’ll see the option to claim it, and if not, you can create a new business page.

Steps 2 to 4: Enter your business email address, phone number, and website. These will be publicly visible on your business page.

Step 5: Select a business category that accurately represents the services or products your business offers.

Step 6: Add your business address. You don’t have to add a street address if you’re a virtual business, but you will be asked for your town, state, and zip code. You also need to confirm whether your business has between one and nine locations, or 10 and more.

‍Step 7: Share your first name, last name, and email address. You’ll also be asked to choose a password. Click “Continue” or the “Continue with Google” option if you want to use a Google sign-in.

Step 8: The last step is to complete your claim to a business. You can receive a code to your business email, get a text at the business phone number, or answer a call at the business phone number. Enter the code you receive, and you’ll be all set.

Frequently asked questions 

Is Yelp free for businesses?

Setting up a Yelp business profile is completely free. For businesses looking to expand their reach, there are optional paid features like Yelp Ads.

Can I have more than one Yelp business account?

Yes, you can have more than a single Yelp business account! You can create accounts for up to nine different businesses—or business locations—using the same login information. If you have 10 or more accounts, take a look at Yelp for Brands. 

How do I merge accounts (including duplicate accounts)? 

Unfortunately, it isn’t possible to merge your accounts. You can, however, copy and download content from one account and upload it to another.  

How to delete a Yelp business account

To close your business account, you’ll need to submit a request with Yelp here. However, note that while Yelp will “close” the account, it does not remove the business page from the platform. In some cases, they may not be able to close the account immediately. 

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⚡ Agency hack: Automating access requests with Leadsie

Leadsie is a client onboarding software that simplifies requesting and giving access to marketing assets, social media, and ad accounts with one secure link. Get access to your clients' Yelp, Facebook, Instagram, Google, TikTok, Shopify, LinkedIn, and other platform accounts without sharing passwords.

For agencies managing multiple channels, getting access to each client's account can be migraine-inducing for everyone involved, especially when you're juggling review management, business updates, and Yelp Ads across dozens of clients.

Leadsie automates access management to deliver a fast, secure, and seamless onboarding experience— helping you impress clients and showcase professionalism from day one.

✅ Minimize frustrating chaser emails and calls for Yelp access 

✅ Reduces your agency's turnaround time by over 50%

 ✅ Scales with your agency as you grow beyond onboarding 5-10 new clients a week 

✅ Makes it possible to get access to 13+ social, marketing, and analytics platforms at once (including Yelp!)

✅ Start managing reviews and updating business profiles for your new clients without delays

🎁 Try a free 14-day trial on us—no credit card needed!

P.S. It's risk-free and you get to keep the account connections after the trial ends – including all those Yelp business accounts you've been trying to access! 🙌