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This guide focuses on SharePoint Online (Microsoft 365) and the typical locations where page editing permission comes from: site permissions, the Pages library, and page-level access.
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What it really means to prevent page editing in SharePoint
In SharePoint, users can edit a page when they have the ability to manage or contribute content in the scope where that page lives. That scope is often the site permissions group, the Pages library, and sometimes the individual page’s item permissions.
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Prerequisites and what to confirm first
Before changing permissions, confirm where the page is stored and which SharePoint experience you’re using (modern pages are most common in Microsoft 365).
- Page type: a standard site page (stored in the site’s Site Pages library) or a publishing page (often associated with a publishing site).
- Site access model: Are users members of a SharePoint group (e.g., Members, Owners)?
- Where does editing come from? Site-level permission vs library-level permission vs page-level permission.
If you’re not sure, the quickest test is to check the user’s effective permissions for the page (or the library). That tells you what scope is granting edit access.
Method 1: Remove edit rights at the site level (most reliable)
If your goal is “everyone should only view pages,” the simplest solution is to change group memberships so users no longer have Contribute or higher at the site level.
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Step-by-step (SharePoint Online)
- Open the SharePoint site.
- Click Settings (gear icon) > Site permissions.
- Select the relevant group (commonly Members) and review its members.
- Remove users from the group that grants editing (often Members).
- Add users to Visitors (or another view-only group), or reduce their role to read-only.
In most organizations, “Members” can create and edit site content. Moving users to “Visitors” prevents editing across typical modern site assets.
Common gotcha
If a user is directly added as a site member/owner or has a separate permission grant (like a SharePoint group with edit rights), they’ll still be able to edit even if you “fix” a different group.
Method 2: Change permissions on the Pages library (site pages vs publishing pages)
When you want different rules for pages than for other lists and documents, set permissions on the library that stores the pages.
Identify the right library
- Standard modern site pages: typically stored in Site Pages.
- Publishing pages: can be tied to a publishing page library depending on your tenant and site setup.
Step-by-step: update “Site Pages” library permissions
- On the SharePoint site, open the Site Pages library (often from Settings > Site contents).
- Click Settings (library gear icon) > Library settings.
- Under Permissions and Management, choose Permissions for this document library.
- If it uses inheritance, click Stop inheriting permissions (this is where page editing rules can diverge from site-wide rules).
- Remove the users/groups that can edit, and grant Read (or equivalent) permissions to view-only users.
- For safety, verify Remove doesn’t replace permissions unexpectedly—then confirm the user can open the page but cannot edit.
Library-level control is often the sweet spot: users can still use the site, but can’t modify the pages stored in that library.
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If you only need to lock a handful of pages, you can change permissions on those individual page items by breaking inheritance at the page level.
Step-by-step (lock a specific page)
- Go to the Site Pages library.
- Find the page you want to lock.
- Use the … menu next to the page > choose Manage access (or open its permissions options depending on your UI).
- If you see inheritance, click Stop inheriting permissions.
- Remove the groups/users that should not edit.
- Grant Read to the rest.
This approach prevents edits for specific pages even if users still have contribute rights elsewhere on the site.
Gotcha to watch
If you later change the site or library permissions, the page’s broken inheritance may not update automatically. You’ll need to manage those page-level permission changes deliberately.
Method 4: Use the Page approval/publishing pattern (when you still need contributions)
Sometimes you don’t truly want “no edits,” you want edits but only via approval—especially for communications, policy pages, or marketing content.
Common pattern
- Give a smaller group permission to edit pages.
- Give broader audiences read-only access.
- Use approval workflows so changes go live only when authorized.
SharePoint publishing features and modern page workflows depend on how your site is configured (publishing site, page layout, and versions). If your org uses templates or an approval pipeline, this is the least disruptive model.
Practical steps to set expectations
- Keep contributors in a dedicated group (e.g., Page Editors), not in Members.
- Move the rest of the site to Visitors.
- Ensure the editor group has access to the relevant Pages library.
- Document the approval process your team follows (so “edits” become “submissions”).
Method 5: Control editing of specific web parts (what you can and can’t lock)
Web parts are often the reason people say “the page is editable.” However, locking a web part doesn’t replace the need to control who can edit the page itself.
In modern pages, many editing capabilities are controlled by page edit permission. If a user can edit the page, they usually can rearrange web parts and change configuration depending on permissions.
What you can do
- For some web parts and experiences, users can be prevented from editing by removing their permissions in the page/library scope.
- If your organization uses custom solutions, some web parts can be built to be read-only for certain users.
What you generally can’t count on: a reliable “make only this web part read-only” switch for every built-in scenario. For consistent enforcement, prefer permissions on the page/library.
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Modern SharePoint pages (the typical experience) rely heavily on site/library permissions. Classic pages (depending on legacy setup) may rely more on traditional SharePoint page library and classic publishing settings.
If you’re working with a classic wiki page library or legacy pages, the safest approach is still the same: verify effective permissions and lock it at the library (and/or item) level.
Common mistakes that still allow editing
- Users are in multiple groups: removing a user from “Members” but leaving them in another group that has Contribute.
- Permission inheritance wasn’t stopped where you needed it: editing remains possible because the library still inherits from the site.
- Direct access grants: someone was given access to a page or library directly, bypassing expected group rules.
- Owner overrides: site owners almost always retain full control. Don’t expect UI-level restrictions to override owner permissions.
- Editing through connected experiences: users may be able to edit pages via associated page libraries, or they might be granted access to authoring features.
Troubleshooting checklist when users can still edit
If a user can still edit after you changed permissions, don’t guess—check the source of their effective permissions.
Step-by-step troubleshooting
- Verify the exact location: confirm the page is in Site Pages (or another library you actually modified).
- Check whether permissions are inherited: confirm Stop inheriting permissions was applied where intended (library or item).
- Use effective permissions: in the relevant site/library, find the option for Check permissions / Effective permissions (UI text can vary).
- Look for unexpected groups: check group membership and any nested groups.
- Search for direct grants: check Manage access on the page and library—direct permission grants can override expectations.
- Test with a fresh account: if you changed only a group membership, verify with a different user who should have read-only access.
When the UI refuses to behave
Sometimes the library/page permission model is correct, but the user is seeing edit controls because their account still has permission elsewhere (or because they’re using an account with broader access). The fastest fix is to compare effective permissions for a “shouldn’t edit” user vs a confirmed reader.
FAQs
Can I hide the Edit button on modern SharePoint pages?
You can’t reliably “hide the Edit button” with a global setting. The correct way is to remove the ability to edit by changing permissions at the site, library, or page level. If the user can edit, the UI typically exposes editing controls.
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What permissions should read-only users have?
Most organizations grant Read at the site/library/page scope. In practice, that means users should not have Contribute, Edit, or any role that includes content management for the relevant scope.
Will breaking inheritance on a page library affect other libraries?
No. Breaking inheritance at the Site Pages library affects only that library scope (unless you later change site-level permissions or grant overlapping access through groups).
Do SharePoint site owners always have edit rights?
Typically, yes. Site owners usually retain full control by design. If you truly need strict read-only for everyone, ensure you’re not relying on owners to be restricted, and consider using dedicated editing groups instead.
What if users can edit via a different workflow or connected app?
Check permissions for the destination library and any integration points (like document sets, page libraries, or approval/workflow destinations). The user may not be editing “the page UI,” but they may still have authoring rights to the underlying content.
Bottom Line
The dependable way to prevent users from editing SharePoint pages is to remove Contribute-level rights where the page lives—start with site permissions, then lock the Site Pages library, and only break inheritance for individual pages when you need exceptions.
If edits still happen, don’t chase UI settings. Use effective permissions and confirm inheritance and direct grants for the specific page’s library scope.
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