Setting User Permissions
Configure access levels and feature toggles for each WordPress user role in UiChemy's Role Manager.
Configuring a role means setting its access level in the Role Manager (No Access, Content Only, or Full Access), and choosing which specific features are available to users with that role. Changes take effect immediately, no cache flush needed.
Opening the Role Manager
Go to UiChemy → Role Manager. You'll see a list of every WordPress user role on your site. Each role shows its current status and slug directly under the role name (for example Content Only · author), with the access buttons on the right.
Access Level
Every role has three access level options, displayed as buttons on the right of its row. Click one to apply it, the status under the role name updates immediately:
No access. The user can't open or interact with the UiChemy editor at all. The editor UI is completely hidden, they won't see any UiChemy controls, menus, or edit options on the front end or inside Elementor. Use this for roles with no reason to build or edit pages, Subscribers, Customers, or any front-end-only user.
Content only. The user can open existing Composer widgets and edit their content, text, images, and other values, but they can't:
- Add new Composer widgets.
- Delete existing Composer widgets.
- Regenerate output using AI prompts.
- Change layout or structure.
This is the safest option for clients or junior contributors who need to update content but shouldn't be able to change the design or structure of a page.
Full access. Full editor, subject to the feature toggles below. The user can add and remove Composer widgets, write AI prompts, regenerate sections, and control layout. Three specific advanced features are still individually controlled by the feature toggles. Use this for trusted editors, designers, and site managers who need to do real page building work.
Feature Toggles
These three toggles appear inline in the role's row as soon as you set it to Full Access, marked Full access only. They let you grant or restrict specific advanced capabilities even within full access. All three default to On as soon as a role is set to Full Access.
| Toggle | What it does | Turn on for | Keep off for |
|---|---|---|---|
| Theme Builder | Create and edit header/footer/404 templates. When on, the user can access UiChemy → Theme Builder to create, edit, and delete site-wide templates. | Senior editors or designers who manage global site structure. | Content writers and page editors who should only work on individual pages. |
| Design System | Edit global CSS, variables, and classes. When on, the user can edit global CSS variables, custom classes, and site-wide style settings. Changes affect every page on the site that uses those variables or classes. | Developers and designers responsible for the site's global visual style. | Anyone who should only edit content and layout on individual pages, changes here can unintentionally break the look of the entire site. |
| AI Chat | Use the built-in AI assistant in the Composer. When on, the user can open Chat AI inside the Composer widget to write prompts, refine sections, and generate content from a chat interface. This toggle only controls who can reach Chat AI, the feature itself still requires UiChemy Pro to be active site-wide, see Free vs Pro. | Editors and builders you trust to use AI-assisted tools for page building. | Roles where you want to control or limit AI usage, or where Chat AI would create confusion for less technical users. |
Common Configurations
| Configuration | Access Level | Theme Builder | Design System | AI Chat |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Content writer | Content only | Off | Off | Off |
| Senior editor | Full access | On | Off | On |
| Page builder (no global access) | Full access | Off | Off | On |
- Content writer, a user who only updates text and images on existing pages.
- Senior editor, a trusted editor who builds pages and manages templates but shouldn't touch global CSS.
- Page builder (no global access), a designer who builds individual pages with AI but doesn't manage global templates or styles.
Saving Changes
A bar at the bottom of the page tracks your edits. It reads "All changes saved." until you change something, then switches to "You have unsaved changes." with two options:
- Save changes, applies your edits.
- Discard, throws them away and restores the last saved state.
Changes apply immediately, users with that role don't need to log out and back in, the updated permissions take effect on their next page load.
Administrators always have full access to all UiChemy features regardless of Role Manager settings. The Administrator role is listed for reference with a locked Full access badge, and can't be restricted.