With a decent following on any or several online platforms and a niche to be passionate about, just about anybody can participate in an affiliate marketing campaign. Today’s rising stars, the influencers with massive followings across social media, can bring life to any affiliate program and make a good job of convincing people to buy the products they are promoting.
While influencer marketing is an entirely different marketing strategy from affiliate marketing, it is undeniable that an influencer has the charm and wit to promote any affiliate program. Thus, influencers have become indispensable personalities for brands and enterprises engaged in affiliate marketing.
Just like affiliate marketers can’t replace influencers, influencers also can’t outdo affiliate marketers in their specialty. Rather, influencers take inspiration from marketers who use subtle and natural hints of product promotion to convince their audience to check out the product, without outwardly saying so. In affiliate marketing, an influencer’s goal is to influence the audience into clicking on the monetized content and generate traffic.
This article explores our personal ranking of the 10 best influencer affiliate marketing networks. We explore their suitability for influencers, accessibility and diversity of merchants, and customers on the network. Tools for data analysis and other key features are also taken into consideration in ranking the best of the best affiliate marketing networks.
The 10 Best Influencer Affiliate Marketing Networks to Supercharge Your Affiliate Marketing Strategy in 2024
Best Overall: CJ Affiliate
Best for Quick Payouts: Awin
Best SaaS Affiliate Network: 2Checkout
Best Health Affiliate Network: MoreNiche
Best for Writers and Bloggers: Skim Links
Best for Retail: ShareASale
Best for Premium Affiliate Programs: FlexOffers
Best for Social Integration: OSI Affiliate
Best for International Marketplace: Rakuten
Best for Experienced Affiliates: Affiliaxe
Best Overall: CJ Affiliate
| Pros | Cons |
| Advanced affiliate marketing tools | Non-influencer affiliates have limited opportunities to participate in programs |
| Real-time reporting and performance tracking for quick and easy filtering of profitable programs | Approval responses can take a while |
| An evergreen marketplace of big and small brands | |
| Influencers are highly preferred to work with by many brands |
CJ Affiliate, formerly Commission Junction, is a well-rounded affiliate marketing network where influencers can feel at home. Big and established brands gather at CJ Affiliate, and, most of the time, they are on the lookout for the next best influencer to become the face of their affiliate program.
CJ Affiliate has long been in the affiliate marketing industry. With more than 20 years in service, the network has amassed a billion users on a monthly basis and more than 3,000 products to choose from and promote.
Aside from its diverse marketplace, CJ Affiliate also provides professional affiliate marketing tools to help affiliates make efficient work of filtering through affiliate programs. Merchants, on the other hand, also have a nice and easy onboarding on the network. Launching programs are under the guidance of the network’s internal team.
What You Need to Know About CJ Affiliate:
Niche/product types sold: Broad range of big and small brands from all industries
Average commission rate: Depends for every merchant an affiliate signs up with, but typically ranges between 5% to 10%
Cookie duration: Depends per merchant
Best for Quick Payouts: AWIN
| Pros | Cons |
| Broad selection of digital and physical products | Highly competitive environment |
| Straightforward interface | $5 sign-up fee |
| Comes with a WordPress plugin for easy import of files and product listings | Most programs originate from the UK and the EU |
| Accelerated payments reduce waiting time | |
| In-house ecommerce tools |
AWIN, formerly Affiliate Window, is among the biggest affiliate networks. At present, it caters to over 21,200 advertisers and more than 241,000 publishers. AWIN has a diverse demographic of publishers, including tech partners, content creators, website owners, bloggers, and influencers.
AWIN offers products from affiliate programs from virtually any industry, so any brand or publisher is welcome to onboard themselves on this vast affiliate marketing network.
AWIN also boasts a fast payment system. Advertisers offer accelerated payments to publishers, cutting back waiting time for the payout schedule. For influencers interested in receiving their payments as soon as possible, AWIN is your best option.
What You Need to Know About AWIN:
Niche/product types sold: Broad range of brands from fashion, home and gardening, beauty, travel, and finance
Average commission rate: Depends for every merchant an affiliate signs up with; usually ranges anywhere from $5 to $15
Cookie duration: Depends per merchant, average of 30 days
Best SaaS Affiliate Network: 2CheckOut
| Pros | Cons |
| Varied software affiliate programs and digital products to choose from | Minimum payout is $100, higher than most affiliate networks |
| Merchants offer high-paying commissions | |
| Payout options include PayPal |
2CheckOut has gone through several name changes, yet the affiliate network’s core remains the same. Back then, 2CheckOut was known as Avangate. After acquiring 2CheckOut in 2017, the network rebranded to 2CheckOut. Today, it also goes by the name Verifone. 2CheckOut still operates by Avangate’s monetization tiers.
2CheckOut is an affiliate marketing network dedicated to promoting software and other digital products. Influencers with a passion for technology may find brands they want to work with at 2CheckOut. The network is home to more than 22,000 software solutions from big tech companies.
Influencers and content writers with a knack for writing may find their opportunities to market monetized traffic here at 2CheckOut. The network is especially accommodating for bloggers writing reviews and articles on tech.
What You Need to Know About 2CheckOut:
Niche/product types sold: Software and digital products
Average commission rate: Default commission rate of 25%, can increase up to 75%
Cookie duration: Default of 30 days, but a longer duration of 120 days is also available
Best Health Affiliate Network: MoreNiche
| Pros | Cons |
| Selective with merchants, works with very niche brands | Works with less than 30 brands, affiliates may run out of programs to promote immediately |
| Merchants offer high-paying commissions | |
| Lifetime cookies for recurring commissions | |
| Access to promotional assets | |
| Bonuses and sales incentives | |
| Multiple payout processes |
Proclaimed the #1 Health network online, MoreNiche has been in the affiliate marketing industry since 1999. It boasts over $56 million paid in commissions, having onboarded the biggest and most trusted brands in health and wellness across the globe.
MoreNiche offers generous commission rates because it only works with brands whose quality and service are highly moderated. Products range from health supplements and vitamins to herbal tonics. Influencers invested in their health will particularly enjoy signing up for affiliate programs with MoreNiche.
MoreNiche provides real-time statistics for marketers to keep track of their progress on the network. Payments are also done on a bi-weekly basis.
What You Need to Know About MoreNiche:
Niche/product types sold: Health and wellness; health supplements and vitamins
Average commission rate: 40%, can go up to 80%
Cookie duration: Lifetime
Best for Writers and Bloggers: Skimlinks
| Pros | Cons |
| A lot of advertisers to work with | Payouts are scheduled at every end of the month |
| Free signup and onboarding | |
| Automated affiliate links | |
| Full suite of analytics tools |
If you are the type of influencer who makes bold and impactful moves through writing, then you might want to check out Skimlinks. Skimlinks is an affiliate marketing network targeted especially at bloggers who can whip up posts to promote products to their audience. A dedicated plugin is downloadable for affiliates to create affiliate links and insert them in their content.
Skimlinks engages with 48,500 merchants and 60,000 publishers worldwide. Every day, the affiliate network generates about $2.5 million in sales. In joining Skimlinks, influencers and affiliates have access to the network’s 50 demand partners.
What You Need to Know About Skimlinks:
Niche/product types sold: Writing, blogging, and media publishing
Average commission rate: 35%
Cookie duration: 7 days
Best for Retail: ShareASale
| Pros | Cons |
| A wide variety of merchants and programs to choose from | Shares merchants and publishers with AWIN, only 1,000 ShareASale exclusive advertisers |
| Regular payments on every 20th of the month (if balance is at least $50) | Tight competition between ShareASale and AWIN publishers |
ShareASale is another revenue-sharing affiliate marketing network and a part of AWIN. ShareASale hosts more than 21,200 advertisers with more than 4,000 products to promote, enabling influencers to choose the affiliate program that is relevant or valuable to their niche.
ShareASale makes itself distinct from other networks with its payment scheme. For as long as you have a balance worth at least $50, affiliates can receive their pay every 20th of the month. While they offer other modes of payment, PayPal isn’t among the choices.
What You Need to Know About ShareASale:
Niche/product types sold: Retail goods
Average commission rate: Depends for every merchant
Cookie duration: Varies for every merchant and affiliate program
Best for Premium Affiliate Programs: FlexOffers
| Pros | Cons |
| More than 12,000 big brands to choose from | Long payout times |
| Affiliates are assigned a personal affiliate manager | |
| Higher commission rates than directly applying to brand affiliate programs |
FlexOffers is another affiliate marketing network brimming with big brands from every industry imaginable, such as food chains, electronics, footwear, and more. FlexOffers is a simple and straightforward platform that influencers can easily get the hang of.
Rather than directly applying to brands to join their affiliate programs, FlexOffers takes over as the middleman. With higher commission rates, affiliates can access all affiliate programs in a single place. However, payments can take up to months due to the platform’s payment model. Affiliates who urgently need extra income may have to look for another affiliate network to earn more money.
What You Need to Know About FlexOffers:
Niche/product types sold: Various brands from various industries
Average commission rate: 20% one-time referral buy; depends on the brand the affiliate signs up with
Cookie duration: Average of 30 days
Best for Social Integration: OSI Affiliate
| Pros | Cons |
| Easy for influencer affiliates to navigate | Support for multiple affiliates per account is limited |
| Easy and accessible social sharing on Twitter, Facebook, and LinkedIn | Not ideal for managing complex affiliate marketing campaigns |
| Zero transaction fees | |
| Free 15-day trial |
OSI Affiliate is light and easy to set up, integrating easily into ecommerce platforms like Squarespace, WooCommerce, and Shopify. The ease of integration makes it ideal for influencer affiliates to work with and manage their active programs.
OSI Affiliate is a good fit no matter the industry. It is equipped with a range of marketing tools and features to streamline a program effectively. Influencers who are used to sharing pre-written content on social media can adopt the same routine with OSI Affiliate. It allows users to draft posts, save them, track referral sales, generate reports, and more.
What You Need to Know About OSI Affiliate:
Niche/product types sold: Various brands from various industries
Average commission rate: 20%, recurring commissions
Cookie duration: 30 days
Best for International Marketplaces: Rakuten Advertising
| Pros | Cons |
| Provides access to an international marketplace of affiliate programs | Application for every brand is done individually |
| Accommodates influencers | Fewer options for affiliate programs to participate in |
| Offers consistent customer support | |
| Partners with established brands and Fortune 500 companies |
Rakuten Advertising remains to be an underdog among the likes of Amazon and eBay, but its quickly growing marketplace of advertisers and publishers says there is no better time than today for influencer affiliates to join Rakuten Advertising.
Rakuten is an affiliate marketing network with products from US and Japan. Affiliate programs vary greatly in Rakuten, from wristwatches to pet care and flowers. It has won #1 Affiliate Marketing Network 8 years in a row, delivering more than 110 million orders internationally.
Rakuten offers some distinct brands, but several are rather unknown due to their exclusive nature. Influencer affiliates with a keen eye for exclusive, out-of-the-box products may enjoy working with brands featured on Rakuten.
What You Need to Know About Rakuten:
Niche/product types sold: Various brands from various industries
Average commission rate: More than 30%
Cookie duration: No set duration
Best for Experienced Affiliates: Affiliaxe
| Pros | Cons |
| Offers affiliate programs from around the world | Minimum payout is $100 |
| Affiliates are provided guidance from a dedicated affiliate manager | Most suitable for influencer affiliates with a solid following; stiff admission |
| Rigorous screening process to ensure brand protection | |
| Influencer affiliates receive a welcome bonus of $1,000 | |
| Bi-weekly payouts |
Active in more than 170 countries, Affiliaxe is another affiliate marketing network that boasts a global reach. The network makes it easy for influencers of various niches to search for the best products to promote by allowing them to filter affiliate programs by vertical, country, and type of traffic.
Influencer affiliates get a dedicated affiliate manager that provides guidance on effective traffic optimization. They also receive a $1,000 welcome bonus. Meanwhile, payouts are available every 15th and end of the month.
Brands, on the other hand, benefit from the network’s anti-fraud system, ensuring that they get the best traffic possible. Affiliaxe promotes brands like GoDaddy, Ubisoft, Avon, Groupon, Riot Games, Agoda, and more. The network features offerings from 25 verticals, including fashion, digital subscriptions, education, entertainment, wellness, and pets.
What You Need to Know About Affiliaxe:
Niche/product types sold: Various products from various industries, such as skincare, retail, VPN, home improvement
Average commission rate: Depends on the merchant an affiliate signs up with; usually from 5% to 20%
Cookie duration: Varies, usually 30 days or 60 days
Which Affiliate Network Is Most Ideal for Influencer Affiliates?
Dedicated influencer affiliate networks have yet to exist, but the charisma and demand of influencers are strongly felt in the affiliate networks discussed above. While every affiliate network accommodates influencers warmly, the ideal platform would be that which caters to the niche audience of the influencer.
Promoting an affiliate program must come naturally to an influencer. If an influencer’s niche involves beauty and makeup, for instance, they must go for an affiliate marketing program related to their interests. This ensures that the audience will also be interested to learn more about the new products.
Additionally, the ideal affiliate marketing platform meets the influencer’s requirements: reasonable payment schedules, decent commission rates, flexible payouts, functional marketing tools, and more. It differs for every individual, but the ideal affiliate marketing platform is one that does not cause trouble for a supposedly passive income stream.
Is Affiliate Marketing Better Than Influencer Marketing?
Whether affiliate marketing is better or worse than influencer marketing depends on the type of business you’re going for. Affiliate marketing is ideal for businesses with tight budgets. Rather than employing a bigger marketing team, brands can mobilize affiliate marketers to spread the word about the brand through monetized traffic.
On the other hand, influencer marketing is fitting for businesses that are ready to scale their sales and put a recognizable face to their name. It is important that both the brand and influencer are in complete understanding of the brand’s value, voice, and goals.
The Cost of Affiliate Marketing
Most, if not all, affiliate marketing networks offer free signup and onboarding. However, this does not mean either brand or affiliate is free from spending more than expected. The dedicated affiliate marketing and analysis tools provided by most affiliate networks are competent enough to analyze daily reports and campaign performance, but some may find these tools lacking. Thus, investing in dedicated affiliate tracking and management software will add to your total expenses for affiliate marketing.
FAQ
How do influencers choose the right affiliate network from the options listed based on their specific needs and audience demographics?
Influencers should choose the right affiliate network by carefully evaluating each network’s focus, the types of products they promote, and the demographics of the audience they cater to. It’s essential for influencers to align their choice with their followers’ interests and their own brand identity to ensure the partnership feels authentic and engaging.
What strategies can influencers use to maximize their earnings through these affiliate marketing networks?
To maximize earnings through affiliate marketing networks, influencers should focus on promoting products that genuinely interest them and their audience. This authenticity leads to higher engagement and trust, which in turn can boost click-through and conversion rates. Regularly analyzing performance data to refine strategies and experimenting with different types of content can also help increase earnings.
How do these networks handle conflicts or disputes between influencers and merchants?
Regarding conflicts or disputes between influencers and merchants within these networks, it’s important for influencers to understand the mediation processes available before joining. Many networks offer support services and have clear guidelines and procedures for handling disputes to ensure fair resolutions. Checking these policies can help influencers choose networks that provide adequate support in conflict situations.
