Your guide to the best affiliate programs offering consistent passive earnings.
If you are looking for affiliate programs that pay recurring commissions, you have come to the right place. Here is a list of 60+ affiliate programs along with steps on how to pick the one best for you.
Recurring commissions allow for passive income, as you don't need to do any work to keep receiving commissions from the program. As long as the person who signed up with your affiliate link has a subscription to the service, you get paid.
This list contains affiliate programs only and no affiliate networks. Affiliate networks are platforms that connect many different brands, while affiliate programs are just made by a brand to promote their own products. If you are looking for affiliate networks, check out our article on the best affiliate networks for beginners.
| Name | Commission | Cookie Life | Recurring Duration | Industry |
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The most important factor when choosing an affiliate program is your audience. Find programs that they would find useful or have already considered using. For example, someone who reads a guide for running a marathon would not be interested in gardening supplies. Instead, offer them what they are already looking for, such as a new pair of running shoes.
Make sure the products that you are promoting are actually good. You don’t want to have people waste money on bad products just so you can make a commission. Look for quality products that have positive customer reviews.
Try promoting products that you like and use yourself. This will make the content creation around the product much easier, as you will have your own experience with it to talk about.
The commission structure and rates are an important part of an affiliate program, as they decide how much you can make from your actions as an affiliate. However, they shouldn't play much into the deciding factor. Promoting a product that your audience wants is much more important than picking one with high payouts. Here are the main commission structures that you will find in affiliate programs:
Recurring: You get paid each month when someone that you refer stays with the business. This model is pretty much revenue share but paid each month. These are common with subscription-based businesses.
Pay-Per-Lead: You get paid a fixed amount for every lead you get. This could be a free trial sign-up or account creation.
Examples: Home Depot, Semrush, Temu, Freshbooks, Buildium, and Grammarly.
Revenue Share: Businesses pay you a set percentage of the sales that you make. This model is used a lot for physical product businesses.
Examples: Amazon, Bluehost, Clickfunnels, Nike, Ebay, and LEGO.
It would suck if you spent a while getting customers on recurring commissions for a program only to have the business fail. Make sure that the businesses that you are affiliated with are stable and will be around for a while before you commit time to them.
When you hear "cookies" in affiliate programs, it's not about a snack! Cookies are pieces of text that are stored in someone's browser. They can be used for a variety of purposes, but they are especially important for affiliate marketing. Let's break down what they do and why they matter.
When someone clicks on your affiliate link, a cookie gets saved on their device. It’s like leaving a tiny digital footprint. This cookie tells the affiliate program, "Hey, this person came from your link!" If they buy something, the cookie makes sure you get credit for the sale.
Most affiliate programs have an average cookie length ranging from 30 to 90 days. This means that after someone clicks your affiliate link, the cookie stays on their device for this period.
If the person you referred makes a purchase within this time frame, you get credit for the sale and earn a commission. If they buy after the cookie expires, unfortunately, you won't get that commission. So, when choosing affiliate programs, consider those with longer cookie durations, as they give you a better chance to earn from your referrals over a more extended period.
Commission rates are the percentage of the sale that the affiliate program pays you for each conversion. For example, if I make a sale for $100 with an affiliate program that has a commission rate of 20%, I will receive $20.
With that example in mind, it is easy to see that high commission rates mean more money for the affiliate. However, high commission rates don't always mean high payouts. If a company sold a $10 item and gave affiliates 50%, you would earn $5. But if that same company charged $100 with a 5% commission rate, you would also make $5.
These examples show us that product price is just as important as the commission rate for affiliate marketing. Keep in mind that it may be easier to sell cheaper-priced offers than expensive ones.
Identifying the most profitable affiliate program isn't just about looking for the highest commission percentage. The key to real success in affiliate marketing lies in finding an offer that resonates deeply with your audience. It's about discovering a program that provides products or services your audience genuinely needs and values.
The most effective strategy involves striking a balance between the commission rate and the relevance of the offer to your audience.
A program with a high commission rate might seem attractive, but it won't lead to significant earnings if it doesn't align with your audience's interests and needs. On the other hand, a program with a lower commission rate but high relevance to your audience can result in more conversions and, ultimately, more profit.
Hopefully, by now you have realized the power of recurring affiliate programs. It is the best commission structure to build passive income. All of these programs are found in companies that use a subscription-based model. This is how they can keep paying you each month.
With that said, the affiliate program you choose is just one small part of the journey to becoming a successful affiliate marketer. Now you have to bring the right people to your link. This can be done with social media, blogging, ads, and more.
