Permission & Access Issues

How to Add a User to All SharePoint Online Sites Using PowerShell

Amos Gikunda Oct 10, 2026 868 views

Question details

The user needs to programmatically assign a specific user or administrator account to all SharePoint Online site collections.

Add a User to All SharePoint Online Sites with PowerShell

Product: Microsoft SharePoint Online
Device & OS: not provided
Scenario: Assigning site collection administrator or user permissions in bulk across a SharePoint Online environment.
Observed behavior: Global administrator rights do not automatically grant direct access permissions to every individual SharePoint site collection.

Before you start

Ensure you have installed the SharePoint Online Management Shell and possess SharePoint Administrator or Global Administrator credentials to connect to your tenant via PowerShell.

Solution 1Recommended

Enumerate and Assign Users via PowerShell Script

Use a custom PowerShell script to loop through all SharePoint site collections and assign the designated user as a Site Collection Administrator.

Because Global Admin rights do not inherently provide access to all site collections, administrators rely on custom PowerShell loops to grant access. Community-tested scripts, such as those found on SharePoint Diary, can effectively automate this process.

Please note that Microsoft does not officially support or guarantee third-party scripts. Always review the code carefully and execute it in a staging or test environment before running it in production.

Launch PowerShell

Open the SharePoint Online Management Shell on your computer with Administrator privileges.

Connect to SharePoint Admin Center

Execute the command Connect-SPOService -Url https://[yourtenant]-admin.sharepoint.com and log in with your global admin credentials.

Retrieve All Site Collections

Use the Get-SPOSite -Limit All cmdlet to fetch a list of all site collections within your tenant.

Apply Permissions in a Loop

Iterate through the retrieved sites and use the Set-SPOUser -Site $site.Url -LoginName "user@domain.com" -IsSiteCollectionAdmin $True command to grant access to the target account.

Enumerate and Assign Users via PowerShell Script

Need Help Customizing Scripts?: If a standard community script does not meet your specific requirements, post your question in Microsoft Q&A under the SharePoint Development tag for custom scripting assistance.

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Frequently Asked Questions

Why doesn't a Global Administrator have access to all SharePoint sites by default?

In Microsoft 365, Global Administrator rights allow you to manage administrative settings at the tenant level. However, for security and privacy reasons, this role does not automatically grant explicit permissions to view content or manage individual SharePoint site collections.

Is it safe to use third-party PowerShell scripts from blogs for SharePoint administration?

While scripts from reputable community sources like SharePoint Diary are widely used by IT professionals, Microsoft does not officially support them. You should always read through the script to understand what each command does and test it on a few non-critical sites before applying it to your entire tenant.

What PowerShell module do I need to manage SharePoint Online permissions?

You must install the SharePoint Online Management Shell. This official Microsoft module contains the specific cmdlets (like Connect-SPOService, Get-SPOSite, and Set-SPOUser) required to remotely administer your SharePoint environment.

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