# Who can open this bid

Project Collaborators is who can open this bid. Invite by email. Guests see that Project, not the org. Share is named people, not a public link.

**Project → Collaborators** is who can open *this* bid. **Organization → Members** is the company directory: [organization members](/guides/organization-members). Mixing those is how a guest ends up in payroll, or a shop estimator never sees the hospital set.

Everyone signs in as themselves. You invite by email. You do not create their login.

## Where this lives

**Projects → that Project → Collaborators** is Share: people, [Teams](/guides/organization-teams) granted on it, guests, Request access. **Share** in the project header opens the same people list. Role meanings: [who can open a Project](/guides/project-access).

<figure class="product-figure">
  <img class="product-shot" src="/images/product/desk-share.webp" width="534" height="850" alt="Share Project with Owner, an Estimator who can edit, and a Reviewer who can view." />
  <figcaption>Named people. Edit can measure. View can open the sheet.</figcaption>
</figure>

## Project collaborators

On the Project, **Collaborators** is Share: people, [Teams](/guides/organization-teams), pending invites, access requests.

Roles on that page are **View / Comment / Edit / Full control**. Give the role that matches the job. A PM who only reads the qty wants View, not Edit. The org default is a floor (shop: every org member inherits Edit). Grants only go up. Full list: [who can open a Project](/guides/project-access).

Invite by email. That covers people already in the Organization and guests who aren't. Grant a Team from Project → Teams.

Project invites last **seven days**. **Revoke** before they accept.

## Guests

A Project invite **may** target an email that is not in the Organization. They sign in and see **granted Projects only**. They do not get:

- the org member directory
- org settings
- Projects they weren’t granted
- inherit from “all members”
- a seat on a [Team](/guides/organization-teams)

That’s the outside estimator, the GC PM, the detailer you don’t want in the company roster. If you later want them on Estimating, invite them to the [Organization](/guides/organization-members) first, then add them to the Team.

Do not invite a client into the Organization just to show them one set. Under All members can edit, that is Edit on every Project. Share the [Project](/guides/projects) as a guest instead. Two setups (they come onto your Project, or you join theirs): [Working together](/guides/working-together-collaboration).

Share is named people. There is no anyone-with-the-link.

## Request access

If someone lands on a Project they can’t open, they can ask. You approve or deny from Project → Collaborators. Same as a grant after you decide. Existence of a Restricted Project still doesn’t leak to people who were never invited. Guessed URLs look like a miss.

## Evaluating this

| Shop | GC / large office |
| --- | --- |
| Ignore Collaborators until the second hire or a guest. | Org **Members** is employees. Project **Collaborators** is the bid. |
| First outside estimator: Project invite. Guest, not payroll. | Restricted org. Guests for subs. [Teams](/guides/organization-teams) for repeating casts. |

Kick someone and they lose the Project on their devices. [Cloud sync](/guides/project-cloud-sync), not a USB hunt. They can open the Project in the [browser](/guides/browser-desk-app) with no install. Two people measuring at once: [Working together](/guides/working-together-collaboration).

Next: [Teams](/guides/organization-teams) so you stop granting forty emails by hand, then [who can open a Project](/guides/project-access). Archived work: [delete and restore](/guides/delete-and-restore-archived).


## FAQ

### Can I invite an estimator without adding them to the company?

Yes. Project invite by email creates a guest: they see that Project, not the org directory, not ungranted Projects. They are not in All members inherit. Guests cannot sit on a Team. Prefer this for a GC or a client. Org membership under All members can edit would list other bids.

### How long is a Project invite good?

Seven days. Pending invites sit on Project → Collaborators until they accept or you Revoke. After it expires, send a new invite to the same email.

### Who can share a Project?

Edit or Full control can share. Only Full control can assign Full control. Org members invite to the company directory separately.

### What is Request access?

Someone with the Project URL who isn’t granted yet can ask. Edit+ on the Project approves or denies. It is not a public link. Named people only.

### What’s the difference between a collaborator and a guest?

Collaborator is anyone with a named grant on this Project. Guest means they are not in the Organization. Same four roles. Guests do not inherit All members, and they cannot sit on a Team.