How to set up Meta Business Manager (now a business portfolio)

If you run Facebook or Instagram ads, or have staff and agencies helping with your social media, you need somewhere to manage all of it properly. For years that place was called Facebook Business Manager. Meta has since renamed and reorganised it, which is why so many guides now look out of date.

This guide explains what the current setup is called, why it matters, and how to set up Meta Business Manager (now a business portfolio) step by step: creating it, adding your assets, giving people access and locking it down.

Business Manager, Business Suite and business portfolio: what changed?

Meta's naming has shifted several times, so it is worth clearing up before you start.

In short: you create and manage a business portfolio through Meta Business Suite, and most of the admin work happens in Business settings. Meta does update its menus regularly, so the exact labels you see may differ slightly from the ones below.

Why use a business portfolio?

Plenty of small businesses run a Page from the owner's personal profile and pay for boosts with a personal card. It works until something goes wrong. A business portfolio fixes the common problems:

• Your business owns its assets. The Page, Instagram account and ad account belong to the portfolio, not to whichever employee set them up.
• Access without sharing passwords. Staff, freelancers and agencies get their own access, which you can change or remove at any time.
• Separation of work and personal. Colleagues cannot see your personal profile, and you keep business activity in one place.
• Proper tracking. Datasets (the Meta Pixel and Conversions API) live in the portfolio and can be shared with the right ad accounts.
• A clearer audit trail of who has access to what.

Before you start

You will need:

• A personal Facebook profile (or a managed Meta account if your organisation uses one). Meta uses this to confirm who you are; your profile is not shown to colleagues.
• Your official business name, as customers know it.
• A business email address you will keep long term, ideally on your own domain rather than a personal inbox.
• Admin access to your existing Facebook Page, Instagram account and any ad accounts you want to bring in.
• Your business details, such as address, phone number and website, for verification later.

Note that each person can create up to two business portfolios themselves, though they can be added to many more. A given Page, ad account or Instagram account can only belong to one portfolio at a time, so check whether one already exists before creating a new one.

Step 1: Create your business portfolio

1. Go to business.facebook.com and log in.
2. Open the account menu at the top left (below "Home" in the navigation) and choose Create a business portfolio.
3. Enter the portfolio name. Use your public business name, because it is visible to people you work with across Meta, and avoid special characters.
4. Add your first and last name and your business email address.
5. Click Create.
6. Check your inbox and confirm the email address using the message Meta sends.

You now have full control of the portfolio. You can find its settings through the settings (gear) icon in Meta Business Suite, or by going directly to business.facebook.com/settings.

Step 2: Add your Facebook Page

1. In Business settings, go to Accounts and then Pages.
2. Click Add.
3. Choose the right option:
   • Add an existing Facebook Page if your business owns it and you have full control of it. The portfolio becomes the owner.
   • Request access to a Facebook Page if it belongs to someone else, such as a client. They keep ownership and approve your request.
   • Create a new Facebook Page if you do not have one yet.
4. Search for the Page name or paste its URL, then confirm.

If you are already an admin, the Page connects straight away. If not, a request goes to the current admins.

Step 3: Connect your Instagram account

1. Make sure your Instagram account is a professional (business or creator) account.
2. In Business settings, go to Accounts, then Instagram accounts.
3. Click Add and log in to Instagram when prompted.
4. Choose which ad accounts can use it, so ads can run under your Instagram name.

You may also be asked to link the Instagram account to your Facebook Page, which keeps messages and insights together in Business Suite.

Step 4: Add or create an ad account

1. Go to Accounts, then Ad accounts, and click Add.
2. Pick one of the options:
   • Add an ad account that your business already owns, using its ad account ID.
   • Request access to an ad account owned by another business.
   • Create a new ad account.
3. If creating one, set the name, time zone and currency carefully. These are difficult or impossible to change later, so choose the currency you will be billed in (usually GBP for UK businesses) and the time zone your reports should follow.
4. Choose whether the account is for your own business or a client, and assign yourself access.
5. Add a payment method in the billing section.

New portfolios can only create a limited number of ad accounts at first; the limit can rise as you build a spending history.

Step 5: Add people and assign access

1. Go to Users, then People, and click Invite people (or Add).
2. Enter their work email addresses.
3. Choose their level of access to the portfolio:
   • Full control lets someone manage everything, including people, settings and deleting the portfolio. Keep this for owners and senior staff.
   • Partial access limits them to the specific assets and tasks you assign.
4. Assign assets and permissions: for example, content and messaging tasks on the Page for a social media assistant, or ad management on the ad account for a marketer.
5. Send the invitation. They accept by email and join with their own login.

A sensible access plan

Step 6: Add partners such as your agency

Agencies and freelancers who work from their own business portfolio should be added as partners, not as people.

1. Ask the agency for their business portfolio ID (a long number shown in their Business info section).
2. Go to Users, then Partners, and click Add.
3. Choose Give a partner access to your assets and enter their ID.
4. Select which assets they need and the tasks they can perform on each.

The agency then assigns its own team members. You keep ownership, and you can remove the partner in one step when the relationship ends. This is how we work with clients on our Meta Ads management service.

Step 7: Connect tracking with datasets

To measure results from your ads, connect your website using a dataset, which covers the Meta Pixel and the Conversions API.

1. In Business settings, go to Data sources, then Datasets (you may also see this via Events Manager).
2. Create a new dataset or add the existing Pixel you already use.
3. Assign it to the right ad accounts and give access to the people or partners who need it.
4. Install the Pixel code or use a platform integration (Shopify, WordPress and similar), and consider setting up the Conversions API for more reliable tracking.
5. Verify your website domain under Brand safety then Domains, so you can manage which events are used and who can edit links in ads pointing to your site.

Step 8: Secure and verify your portfolio

Business portfolios are a popular target for scams, so spend ten minutes on security.

• Turn on two-factor authentication for everyone. In the Security Centre, you can require it for all people in the portfolio.
• Watch for phishing. Meta will not ask for your password through Messenger or by email. Fake "policy violation" messages are a common trick.
• Review access regularly. Remove people who have left and partners you no longer work with.
• Consider business verification. In the Security Centre, Meta may let you verify your business with official documents such as a utility bill or company registration details. It can unlock some features and higher limits, and it adds credibility.

Common setup problems and fixes

• "This Page already belongs to another business portfolio." Ask the owning portfolio to remove it, or request access as a partner instead.
• Cannot create another portfolio. You have probably reached the creation limit. Another colleague can create it and add you with full control.
• Invite not received. Check spam folders and confirm the email address. Invitations expire, so resend if needed.
• Ad account disabled straight away. Check the payment method, business details and that nothing in the account breaches Meta's advertising policies, then use the request review option.

FAQs

Is Meta Business Manager still available?

The functionality still exists, but Meta now calls the container a business portfolio and manages it mainly through Meta Business Suite and Business settings. Older links to Business Manager generally redirect there.

Is a Meta business portfolio free?

Yes. Creating and managing a business portfolio costs nothing. You only pay for advertising you run through your ad accounts.

Do I need a personal Facebook profile to create a business portfolio?

Usually yes, or a managed Meta account where your organisation uses one. Meta uses it to confirm your identity, but colleagues in the portfolio cannot see your personal profile content.

How many business portfolios can I create?

Meta lets each person create up to two business portfolios. There is no limit on how many portfolios you can be added to by others.

Can I move a Page from one business portfolio to another?

Yes, but the current owning portfolio has to remove it first. Once released, you can add it to the new portfolio as an existing Page.

Need help untangling an existing setup or getting your first campaigns live? Book a call with our team, or ask for a free audit of your Meta accounts.