You cannot share a single report directly with another user in Salesforce — sharing is always at the folder level. The workaround is to move the report into a folder you share with the user, or share an existing folder with them.
Why it works this way
Salesforce models reports and dashboards as assets inside folders. Folders are the sharing unit. This keeps permissions manageable at scale — sharing 1,000 reports individually would be unmanageable; sharing 50 folders is sane.
How to share with a single user
| Option | When to use |
|---|---|
| Move the report into a dedicated folder, share it with the user | One-off request — a report just for this person |
| Add the user (or their role/group) to an existing folder’s access list | The user belongs to a team that already gets a set of reports |
| Email the report (subscription) | The user just needs the data, not access to edit |
| Export to PDF / CSV and email | One-time data share, no ongoing access needed |
| Add the user to a public group, share the folder with the group | Recurring access pattern — many users may need it |
Folder-share access levels
- Viewer — can run and view
- Editor — can run, view, edit
- Manager — can run, view, edit, and change folder sharing
For “share this one report with one user”, grant Viewer on a folder that contains just that one report.
Recommended pattern: “personal share folder”
For ad-hoc sharing:
- Create a folder called “Reports — Shared with [Person]”
- Move the specific report into it
- Share the folder with the user as Viewer
Or for a team that already exists:
- Add the user to a relevant public group (e.g. “Sales Operations”)
- The group already has access to the right folders
- The user now sees all reports in those folders automatically
Subscription as a sharing alternative
If the user just needs scheduled email delivery of a report, not live access:
- Subscribe yourself to the report
- Add the user as a recipient
- The user gets emailed snapshots; they don’t need folder access
Note: subscription delivery sends the report as content embedded in the email, run as the subscriber. The recipient’s permissions don’t apply — what you see is what they get.
API / programmatic sharing
You can SOQL Folder and FolderShare records to inventory and adjust sharing in code. There’s no UI for “share this one report”; the same model applies at the API level.
Common follow-ups
- Can I share a report directly with one role? — Via folder share, yes. Direct one-report-one-role isn’t supported.
- Can I send a report URL? — Yes, but the recipient must have folder access to view it; otherwise they hit an access error.
- Subscription respects sharing? — Subscription emails are run by the subscriber. The recipient sees what the subscriber sees.
Verified against: Salesforce Help — Sharing Reports and Dashboards. Last reviewed 2026-05-17 for Spring ‘26.