How Much Do SaaS Affiliates Make?

SaaS affiliates make anywhere from nothing to six figures a year, and published averages sit much closer to nothing.

According to PartnerStack, the network paid nearly $25M to over 115,000 commission-earning partners in the first half of 2025, a mean near $215 per partner. The same company reported that its top 100 partners earned over $21M in 2023.

Earnings follow a formula: audience, click rate, conversion rate, price, commission rate and months retained.

First, the guide works the formula with hypothetical arithmetic for a recurring commission, for example 20% of a $50 plan billed through Stripe after a 2% paid conversion rate on 6 customers.

Second, the guide compares four published program offers and explains why income concentrates in a few partners. Finally, the guide covers what a founder should offer.

We built TrackRev, SaaS affiliate software, so the founder sections draw on our own product and our research into the published terms in 2026.

How much do affiliate marketers make?

Platforms publish totals and means, and almost none publish the income of a typical affiliate.

According to PartnerStack's June 2025 research chart, the network paid nearly $25M in commissions through PartnerStack during the first half of 2025 and counts over 115,000 commission-earning partners.

Dividing one number by the other gives about $215 per partner over six months. According to a PartnerStack chart from April 2024, the top 100 partners earned over $21M in 2023.

Finally, vetting changes the odds: a May 2024 chart found 43% of Network-approved partners earned a commission, against 3% of non-Network partners.

Neither earnings figure is a median, and a median sits below any mean lifted by a few large earners.

For example, our analysis of the two charts puts the top-partner average at $210,000, roughly 490 times the annualized all-partner mean of $430, although the two years differ.

Both datasets cover one B2B SaaS network, so affiliate marketers in other niches will see other results.

Sources: partnerstack.com/resources · partnerstack.com/resources · partnerstack.com/resources

What is the formula for affiliate earnings?

Affiliate earnings equal audience times click rate times conversion rate times price times commission rate times months retained. An affiliate can estimate each factor before joining a program. First, take a hypothetical newsletter with 10,000 subscribers in 2026.

A 3% click rate sends 300 visitors, and a 2% paid conversion rate turns the visitors into 6 customers.

Second, a $50 plan billed through Stripe at a 20% commission pays $10 per customer each month, so 6 customers produce $60 a month, or $720 by month 12.

Finally, the factors multiply, so one weak factor drags down the product.

A program paying 5% instead of 20% cuts the same audience's income to a quarter, from $720 to $180.

For example, doubling the conversion rate to 4% doubles the result to $1,440, which is why a well-matched audience often beats a larger one.

How does retention change recurring earnings?

Retention is the share of customers still paying each month. First, a recurring commission stops when the subscription stops.

Using the 6 hypothetical customers at $10 a month, a 5% monthly churn rate cuts 12-month earnings from $720 to about $552. A 10% monthly churn rate cuts the total to about $431.

Second, a refund issued through Stripe or Paddle Billing reverses the matching commission, as our clawback guide explains.

The arithmetic uses expected paid months per customer, which equal (1 - (1 - c)^12) / c for monthly churn c. The formula gives roughly 9 paid months at 5% and 7 at 10%.

For example, 6 customers x $10 x 7 months is $420, close to the $431 from unrounded months. Lifetime programs keep paying past month 12, while a 12-month cap ends the stream on schedule in 2026.

What do published SaaS affiliate programs pay?

Published SaaS offers range from 10% for life to 60% for life, with several in between. According to HubSpot's affiliate page, the program pays 30% recurring for up to one year with a 180-day cookie.

According to Webflow's affiliate page, the program pays 50% on a new customer's first subscription for up to 12 months, with first-touch attribution and a 90-day cookie.

Kinsta pays lifetime monthly commissions of 10% plus a one-time bonus of $50 to $500. Per its affiliate page, systeme.io pays 60% lifetime recurring and reports over $5,000,000 in commissions.

Our analysis of the five offers in November 2026 shows the cumulative total says nothing about a typical affiliate. For example, 100 customers on a $50 plan pay $3,000 a month at 60% and $1,500 at 30%.

Our commission benchmarks post breaks rates down by industry.

Sources: systeme.io/affiliate-program

Why do most affiliates earn so little?

Most affiliates earn little because revenue concentrates in a small group of partners.

According to TrackRev's affiliate program benchmarks, the top 10% of affiliates capture 71% of program revenue in the median program, the top 1% capture 34% and the bottom 50% capture 2%.

First, activation is low: the same page puts median 30-day activation at 18%, so 82 of every 100 recruited affiliates drive no paid conversion in the first month.

Second, early momentum predicts income, because affiliates with no conversion in 60 days have under a 4% lifetime chance of ever converting.

For example, a program with $10,000 a month in affiliate revenue pays the top 10% of affiliates about $7,100 and splits $200 across the bottom half. The top-quartile activation rate of 31% is about 5 times the bottom quartile's 6%.

The benchmark page rests on our research into network reports from Impact, PartnerStack and Awin, Q2 2026. Read each figure as a median, not a promise.

How long until an affiliate earns a first commission?

The median affiliate earns a first commission 14 days after approval, according to TrackRev's benchmark page, and the top quartile takes 5 days. The strongest programs reach 31% activation against 18% at the median. Cash arrives later than the commission.

A hold keeps the balance pending through the refund window, and a payout minimum delays the transfer further. In our product, the hold is set per program from 0 to 180 days, and the minimum payout defaults to $100.

Per its affiliate page, systeme.io sets a $30 minimum and pays monthly on the 10th through PayPal or wire transfer, as of April 2026. For example, 6 customers at $10 a month reach a $100 balance in month 2.

A single customer needs 10 months. Finally, a 180-day hold on a first sale in 2026 pushes the first transfer back by half a year.

How many customers does an affiliate need for $1,000 a month?

An affiliate needs 100 active customers for $1,000 a month on a $50 plan at 20%, and 67 customers at 30%.

The calculation divides the income goal by the monthly commission per customer, which is $10 at 20% and $15 at 30%. A $5,000 goal needs 500 customers at 20% or 334 at 30%.

Our analysis of the arithmetic shows the higher rate saves 33 customers at the $1,000 goal. First, count only customers still paying, because a 12-month term ends each referral's stream after a year. Second, steady income needs continuous new referrals.

For example, holding 100 customers on a 12-month term, billed through Paddle Billing, takes about 8 new paying referrals a month in 2026.

Finally, a lifetime offer at 60% reduces the treadmill, and a higher percentage reduces the customer count directly.

Do affiliates pay tax on commissions?

Yes, in the United States an affiliate who works as a sole proprietor usually owes self-employment tax once net earnings reach $400.

According to the IRS in tax topic 554, the taxable base is generally 92.35% of net earnings from self-employment, and the combined rate is 15.3%, covering Social Security and Medicare.

Net earnings are gross income minus ordinary and necessary business expenses. First, the IRS figures the tax on Schedule SE (Form 1040). Second, the IRS lets a filer deduct one-half of self-employment tax when figuring adjusted gross income.

For example, $5,000 of hypothetical net affiliate earnings gives a base of $4,618 and self-employment tax of about $706. Income tax is separate and not shown.

Finally, collect paperwork early, using Form W-9 for US payees: our guide to paying affiliates covers payout methods and tax forms. Rules differ outside the US, so a tax professional should confirm the details for 2026.

What should a founder offer to attract high earners?

A founder attracts high earners with a rate near the market top, a long enough term and a fast start. According to PartnerStack's research chart, the best-performing offers among its top 25 vendors were 20%, 25% and 30% in 2023.

The average payout was nearly 24%. TrackRev's benchmark page puts the median B2B SaaS rate at 20%, with 12 months of recurring payments as the most common structure.

Our analysis of the published terms suggests four moves. First, pay 25% to 30% recurring for 12 months. Second, set a cookie of 60 to 90 days.

Third, keep the hold close to the refund window and the minimum payout low, because a $100 minimum takes 10 months to reach at $10 a month.

Finally, onboard every approved partner: top-quartile programs combine a welcome sequence with ready-made creative. For example, 100 recruits yield 31 active partners in the top quartile and 6 in the bottom, a gap of about 5 times.

Sources: partnerstack.com/resources

How much commission can a SaaS founder afford?

A founder can afford any commission which leaves customer payback intact, and a recurring commission costs nothing until the customer pays. Take a hypothetical $50 plan with an 80% gross margin.

First-year revenue is $600, and margin before commission is $480. A 30% commission for 12 months costs $180 and leaves $300. A 20% commission costs $120 and leaves $360. For 100 customers, the 30% rate costs $18,000 in year one.

Compare the cost with Google Ads, where spend lands before any customer arrives. Commission scales with revenue, so a refunded or canceled customer stops costing money.

Our customer acquisition cost guide shows how to set a partner commission beside other channels. For example, a 60% lifetime rate costs $30 a month, so a customer staying 24 months costs $720 on $1,200 of revenue.

How does TrackRev show partners what they earn?

TrackRev is SaaS affiliate software for indie hackers and small SaaS teams: run your SaaS affiliate program with no limit on tracked revenue. We built TrackRev so each partner click ties to the real charge it produced.

In our product, partners sign in to a branded portal and see clicks, attributed conversions and pending commissions. Recurring, one-time and multi-tier commissions are supported, and refunds reverse the matching commission.

For example, a $50 sale at a 20% commission becomes a $10 pending commission.

The affiliate program runs on Indie at $29 a month for 1 site or Growth at $299 a year for up to 10 sites, and TrackRev takes 0% of revenue.

First, billing connects through Stripe, Paddle Billing, Polar, Lemon Squeezy, Creem or Dodo Payments. Second, payouts go out as batches: export one CSV for PayPal or Wise, pay, then mark each payout paid with a reference.

The Free plan covers link tracking only and cannot run a program in 2026. See pricing.