Overview of SharePoint Online’s “out-of-the-box” permissions:
| Permission | Restricted View | Read | Contribute | Edit | Design | Full Control |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Can view pages | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Can view list items and documents | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Download documents | No | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Can add, update and delete list items and documents | No | No | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Can add, edit and delete lists | No | No | No | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Can approve and customize | No | No | No | No | Yes | Yes |
| Has full control | No | No | No | No | No | Yes |
SharePoint Online permissions, listed in reverse order:
- Restricted View
View pages and documents, but not historical versions or user permissions - Read
View pages and items in existing lists and document libraries and download documents - Contribute
View, add, update, and delete list items and documents - Edit
Add, edit, and delete lists; view, add, update, and delete list items and documents. By default, this permission level is assigned to the Members group - Design
Create lists and document libraries, edit pages and apply themes, borders, and style sheets on the site. There is no SharePoint group that is assigned this permission level automatically - Full Control
Contains all available SharePoint permissions. By default, this permission level is assigned to the Owners group. It can’t be customized or deleted.
For more information, see Microsoft pages: