Approve HubSpot content

Require content to be reviewed and approved by designated users before it can be published or scheduled. Request approval from one or more groups of approvers. When multiple groups are added, each group reviews the content in a specific order.

After an approval request is submitted, approvers can review and take action in the content editor on desktop or in the HubSpot mobile app. Approvers can request changes and include a note describing what needs to be updated before the content is reviewed again.

Before you get started

Before you set up approvals and approve HubSpot content, review these requirements and considerations.

Understand limitations and considerations

• Super Admins can skip approvals.
• Content that's pending approval can only be published by assigned approvers.
• Only one approval request can be submitted at a time.
• An approval can have up to 10 stages and up to 10 approvers total. Each stage requires at least one approver.
• Approval stages and request changes aren't available for pages in the new content editor (BETA).
• Approval settings for deals and quotes are managed within their respective tools and don't appear on the Approvals settings page.
• When requesting an approval for an RSS or blog subscription email, the email only needs to be approved once. Any subsequent updates to the email can be published immediately without the need to regain approval.

Set up content approval

Set up content approval requests in your Approval settings, then assign the proper permissions to users who should review and approve content.

Turn on content approval requests

1. In your HubSpot account, click the settings icon in the top navigation bar.
2. In the left sidebar menu, click Approvals.
3. On the Approvals page, toggle the switches for the applicable content type on.
4. On the Choose who can skip approvals page, select an option for which users don't need approval to publish or schedule content:
   • Only Super Admins can skip approvals: only Super Admins can publish content without requesting approval.
   • Everyone can skip approvals: all users can publish content without requesting approval.
   • Only users I choose can skip approvals: specific users can publish content without requesting approval. When selecting this option, select the checkbox next to each user who can skip approvals. Super Admins can't be selected because they always have the ability to skip approvals.
5. In the bottom right, click Next.
6. Review the selected approvers, then click Done.

Give approval permission to other users

After content approvals are turned on, Super Admins automatically have permission to approve content. Assign Approval permission to more users as needed.

1. In your HubSpot account, click the settings icon in the top navigation bar.
2. In the left sidebar, click Users & teams.
3. Hover over a user, then click Edit permissions.
4. To give users approval permissions for marketing emails, blog posts, landing pages, website pages, and social posts:
   • In the left panel, click the Marketing tab.
   • Toggle the Marketing Access switch on.
   • In the Approvals section, toggle the Approve [content type] switch on for each type of content the user should approve.
5. To give users approval permission for knowledge base articles:
   • In the left panel, click the Service tab.
   • Toggle the Service Access switch on.
   • In the Knowledge base articles section, toggle the Approve switch on for knowledge base articles.
6. In the top right, click Save.

Request approval

Request approval from one or more groups of approvers. To use a single group of approvers, add approvers to Stage 1 only. To route content through multiple groups of approvers in a specific order, add additional stages.

1. Navigate to your content:
   • Website pages: In your HubSpot account, click More, then navigate to Content > Website Pages. If More doesn't appear in your account, navigate to Content > Website Pages directly.
   • Landing pages: In your HubSpot account, click More, then navigate to Content > Landing Pages. If More doesn't appear in your account, navigate to Content > Landing Pages directly.
   • Knowledge base: In your HubSpot account, click More, then navigate to Service > Knowledge Base. If More doesn't appear in your account, navigate to Service > Knowledge Base directly.
   • Blog: In your HubSpot account, click More, then navigate to Content > Blog. If More doesn't appear in your account, navigate to Content > Blog directly.
   • Marketing emails: In your HubSpot account, click More, then navigate to Marketing > Email. If More doesn't appear in your account, navigate to Marketing > Email directly.
   • Social posts: In your HubSpot account, click More, then navigate to Marketing > Social. If More doesn't appear in your account, navigate to Marketing > Social directly.
2. Click the name of your content.
3. In the top right of the content editor, click Request approval.
4. In the dialog box, in the This asset needs approval from section, select an option:
   • All approvers: every approver in each stage must approve before the stage is complete.
   • One approver per stage: only one approver in each stage needs to approve before the stage is complete. This selection applies to every stage.

5. In the Approval process section, click Add approver for Stage 1, then select the approvers for the first stage.
6. To add another group of approvers, click the  add icon below the last stage, then select at least one approver for the new stage.
7. Enter a due date and time.
8. In the Request note field, enter an optional message for the approvers.
9. Click Request approval.

Please note: each stage must be completed before the next one begins. Only Stage 1 approvers are notified when an approval is first requested. When a stage is complete, approvers in the next stage are notified.

Approve content or request changes

Review content and submit a decision from the approval sidebar.

1. Navigate to your content:
   • Website pages: In your HubSpot account, click More, then navigate to Content > Website Pages. If More doesn't appear in your account, navigate to Content > Website Pages directly.
   • Landing pages: In your HubSpot account, click More, then navigate to Content > Landing Pages. If More doesn't appear in your account, navigate to Content > Landing Pages directly.
   • Knowledge base: In your HubSpot account, click More, then navigate to Service > Knowledge Base. If More doesn't appear in your account, navigate to Service > Knowledge Base directly.
   • Blog: In your HubSpot account, click More, then navigate to Content > Blog. If More doesn't appear in your account, navigate to Content > Blog directly.
   • Marketing emails: In your HubSpot account, click More, then navigate to Marketing > Email. If More doesn't appear in your account, navigate to Marketing > Email directly.
   • Social posts: In your HubSpot account, click More, then navigate to Marketing > Social. If More doesn't appear in your account, navigate to Marketing > Social directly.
2. In the top right of the content editor, click View approval.
3. In the approval sidebar, click Approve or Request changes below your name:
   • Approve: in the dialog box, enter an optional message, then click Approve. Approved content can be published by any user with Publish permission for the relevant content type.
   • Request changes: in the dialog box, enter a message describing what needs to change, then click Request changes. A message is required and is included in the requester's notification. The approval status changes to Changes requested.

Make changes and ask for another review

When an approver requests changes, you'll receive a notification with their note. After making your edits, ask the approver to review the content again.

1. Navigate to your content:
   • Website pages: In your HubSpot account, click More, then navigate to Content > Website Pages. If More doesn't appear in your account, navigate to Content > Website Pages directly.
   • Landing pages: In your HubSpot account, click More, then navigate to Content > Landing Pages. If More doesn't appear in your account, navigate to Content > Landing Pages directly.
   • Knowledge base: In your HubSpot account, click More, then navigate to Service > Knowledge Base. If More doesn't appear in your account, navigate to Service > Knowledge Base directly.
   • Blog: In your HubSpot account, click More, then navigate to Content > Blog. If More doesn't appear in your account, navigate to Content > Blog directly.
   • Marketing emails: In your HubSpot account, click More, then navigate to Marketing > Email. If More doesn't appear in your account, navigate to Marketing > Email directly.
   • Social posts: In your HubSpot account, click More, then navigate to Marketing > Social. If More doesn't appear in your account, navigate to Marketing > Social directly.
2. In the top right of the content editor, click View approval.
3. In the approval sidebar, review the approver's note below the approver's name.
4. Make your edits to the content.
5. In the approval sidebar, click Ask to review again below the approver's name.

Please note: once all approvers who requested changes have been asked to review again, the approval status returns to Pending. Approvals already given by other approvers stay in place.

Manage an approval in progress

Reassign approvers, add and remove stages that haven't started, or cancel an approval from the More dropdown menu in the approval sidebar.

Reassign approvers

1. Navigate to your content:
   • Website pages: In your HubSpot account, click More, then navigate to Content > Website Pages. If More doesn't appear in your account, navigate to Content > Website Pages directly.
   • Landing pages: In your HubSpot account, click More, then navigate to Content > Landing Pages. If More doesn't appear in your account, navigate to Content > Landing Pages directly.
   • Knowledge base: In your HubSpot account, click More, then navigate to Service > Knowledge Base. If More doesn't appear in your account, navigate to Service > Knowledge Base directly.
   • Blog: In your HubSpot account, click More, then navigate to Content > Blog. If More doesn't appear in your account, navigate to Content > Blog directly.
   • Marketing emails: In your HubSpot account, click More, then navigate to Marketing > Email. If More doesn't appear in your account, navigate to Marketing > Email directly.
   • Social posts: In your HubSpot account, click More, then navigate to Marketing > Social. If More doesn't appear in your account, navigate to Marketing > Social directly.
2. In the top right of the content editor, click View approval.
3. In the approval sidebar, click the More dropdown menu, then select Reassign approvers.
4. In the right panel, click the X icon next to an approver to remove them. To add a new approver, click Add approver.
5. When finished, click Save.

Please note: approvers who have already approved can't be changed. A stage can't be added before a stage that has already started.

Add or remove stages

1. Navigate to your content:
   • Website pages: In your HubSpot account, click More, then navigate to Content > Website Pages. If More doesn't appear in your account, navigate to Content > Website Pages directly.
   • Landing pages: In your HubSpot account, click More, then navigate to Content > Landing Pages. If More doesn't appear in your account, navigate to Content > Landing Pages directly.
   • Knowledge base: In your HubSpot account, click More, then navigate to Service > Knowledge Base. If More doesn't appear in your account, navigate to Service > Knowledge Base directly.
   • Blog: In your HubSpot account, click More, then navigate to Content > Blog. If More doesn't appear in your account, navigate to Content > Blog directly.
   • Marketing emails: In your HubSpot account, click More, then navigate to Marketing > Email. If More doesn't appear in your account, navigate to Marketing > Email directly.
   • Social posts: In your HubSpot account, click More, then navigate to Marketing > Social. If More doesn't appear in your account, navigate to Marketing > Social directly.
2. In the top right of the content editor, click View approval.
3. In the approval sidebar, click the More dropdown menu and select Reassign approval. 
4. To remove a stage that has not started, click the delete icon.
5. To add a new stage, click the add icon. 

Cancel approval

1. Navigate to your content:
   • Website pages: In your HubSpot account, click More, then navigate to Content > Website Pages. If More doesn't appear in your account, navigate to Content > Website Pages directly.
   • Landing pages: In your HubSpot account, click More, then navigate to Content > Landing Pages. If More doesn't appear in your account, navigate to Content > Landing Pages directly.
   • Knowledge base: In your HubSpot account, click More, then navigate to Service > Knowledge Base. If More doesn't appear in your account, navigate to Service > Knowledge Base directly.
   • Blog: In your HubSpot account, click More, then navigate to Content > Blog. If More doesn't appear in your account, navigate to Content > Blog directly.
   • Marketing emails: In your HubSpot account, click More, then navigate to Marketing > Email. If More doesn't appear in your account, navigate to Marketing > Email directly.
   • Social posts: In your HubSpot account, click More, then navigate to Marketing > Social. If More doesn't appear in your account, navigate to Marketing > Social directly.
2. In the top right of the content editor, click View approval.
3. In the approval sidebar, click the More dropdown menu, then select Cancel approval.
4. In the dialog box, enter a message to notify the approvers that the approval request is canceled.
5. Click Cancel approval.

View approval activity

The approval activity log is on the Activity tab at the top of the approval sidebar. Use it to review the full history of an approval, including stage completions, change requests, and approvals given.

1. Navigate to your content:
   • Website pages: In your HubSpot account, click More, then navigate to Content > Website Pages. If More doesn't appear in your account, navigate to Content > Website Pages directly.
   • Landing pages: In your HubSpot account, click More, then navigate to Content > Landing Pages. If More doesn't appear in your account, navigate to Content > Landing Pages directly.
   • Knowledge base: In your HubSpot account, click More, then navigate to Service > Knowledge Base. If More doesn't appear in your account, navigate to Service > Knowledge Base directly.
   • Blog: In your HubSpot account, click More, then navigate to Content > Blog. If More doesn't appear in your account, navigate to Content > Blog directly.
   • Marketing emails: In your HubSpot account, click More, then navigate to Marketing > Email. If More doesn't appear in your account, navigate to Marketing > Email directly.
   • Social posts: In your HubSpot account, click More, then navigate to Marketing > Social. If More doesn't appear in your account, navigate to Marketing > Social directly.
2. In the top right of the content editor, click View approval.
3. Click the Activity tab.

Manage approvals on mobile devices

Requesting approvals on mobile is supported for marketing emails and social posts only. Users can cancel and approve content, including social posts, marketing emails, blog posts, landing pages, website pages, and knowledge base articles, using the HubSpot mobile app.

Please note: approval stages and request changes are available in the content editor on desktop. Mobile approval remains limited to the actions described below.

Request marketing email or social post approvals on mobile devices

1. Open the HubSpot mobile app on your device.
2. Navigate to your content:
   • Marketing email: In the top left, tap the Menu icon, then tap Marketing email.
   • Social posts: In the top left, tap the Menu icon, then tap Social Publish.
3. Tap the content that needs approval.
4. In the top right, tap the three vertical dots icon, then tap Request approval.
5. In the Request approval section, tap Approvers, then select the checkbox next to each user whose approval is requested.
6. Select an approval threshold:
   • All selected approvers: all selected approvers must approve the content before it can be published or scheduled.
   • One approver: only one selected approver must approve the content before it can be published or scheduled.
7. Tap Send.

Cancel approvals on mobile devices

1. Open the HubSpot mobile app on your device.
2. In the top left, tap the Menu icon, then tap Approvals.
3. Tap an approval.
4. At the bottom of the screen, tap Cancel approval.
5. In the field, enter the reason for the cancellation, then tap Cancel approval. A notification is sent to all of the approvers.

Approve content on mobile devices

1. Open the HubSpot mobile app on your device.
2. In the top left, tap the Menu icon, then tap Approvals.
3. Tap an approval.
4. To approve the content:
   • At the bottom of the screen, tap Approve.
   • In the field, enter any comments, then tap Approve.
5. To request changes to the content:
   • At the bottom of the screen, tap Request changes.
   • In the field, enter comments detailing the changes that need to be made, then tap the Send icon.