Updated October 2026. I first wrote this post in 2014, and Pinterest has changed a lot since then. Here’s how it works now.
When I first started using Pinterest, I had one personal account where I saved things I was interested in, much the way I used Evernote to keep design ideas. I’d read about using Pinterest for business, but I couldn’t picture what I would post.
Then I built WoodBadgeAlabama.com to help promote Wood Badge, an advanced leadership course for adult Scout leaders. The site had course photos, patches, and historical images, and it occurred to me to share them on Pinterest. I wasn’t thinking about traffic. I just wanted another way to share. Within a month, Pinterest was the third largest source of visitors to the site, behind Google and direct traffic.
That’s when the problem started. I had a personal account and a Wood Badge account, and I was about to add a business account. Every time I found something worth pinning, I was logged into the wrong one. Logging out, digging up a password, and logging back in was enough to make me lose my mind.
Back then, the fix was a workaround with shared boards. Since then, two things have changed. Pinterest now has a much better way to handle multiple accounts, and I eventually decided I didn’t need them at all. I’ll cover both.
Connect your accounts and switch with one click
Pinterest lets you connect your accounts so you can move between them without logging out.
On a computer:
- Log in to one of your accounts.
- Click the down arrow in the top-right corner.
- Select Add Pinterest account, then under Existing account, click Connect account.
- Log in to your other account.
To switch, click the down arrow again and pick the account under Your accounts.
In the app:
- Tap your profile picture, then the gear icon. On a business account, tap the three dots and choose Settings.
- Tap Add account, then Connect existing account, and log in.
To switch, go to the same menu and tap Switch account.
Two things to know:
- Each account needs its own email address. You can set up extra addresses that forward to your main inbox.
- Switching only remembers your accounts in the same browser or app. On a new device, or after clearing your browser history, you’ll need to connect them again.
When you need more than switching
Working with other people on one board? Use a group board. Open the board, invite collaborators by name or email, and everyone can pin to it from their own account.
Managing several business accounts, or sharing access with a team? Pinterest’s Business Manager lets you organize multiple business accounts in one place and give employees or partners access without sharing passwords.
Do you really need more than one account?
After years of juggling accounts, I simplified to one. Every account needs fresh pins, attention, and a reason to exist, and most people don’t have time to feed several. Before you open a second account, ask whether boards within one account would do the job. A business can keep separate boards for different services, products, or audiences without the extra logins.
Separate accounts make sense when the audiences truly don’t overlap, like a business and an unrelated volunteer project. Even then, you may find one well-kept account beats two neglected ones.
Is Pinterest right for your business?
Pinterest works best when your work is visual and your audience is planning something, like a project, a purchase, or an event. Your images do the talking, so they need to look their best: clear photos, consistent colors, and graphics that match your brand.
That’s where I come in. If your pins, graphics, or website need to look as good as the work behind them, let’s talk.