Set your affiliate commission so the total you pay per customer stays below what you'd spend to win that customer through other channels, then check the rate against the market. For SaaS, that check is 30%: the median top rate across 155 software programs in our directory that publish a percentage, with most between 20% and 35% (checked October 2026).
The rate is the easy part. The decisions that change what you actually pay are how long the commission lasts, what counts as a referral, and what happens when a customer refunds. This guide works through them in order, with the arithmetic shown.
The answer in one table
These are our starting points, not rules. They sit inside the ranges published programs use, and you should adjust them with your own numbers in step 1.
| Your product | Model we'd start with | Starting rate | Why |
|---|---|---|---|
| Self-serve, under $50/month | Recurring, capped at 12 months, or lifetime at a lower rate | 25 to 30% for 12 months, or 20% lifetime | Small payments need recurring to be worth an affiliate's effort |
| Self-serve, $50 to $500/month | Recurring for 12 months | 20 to 30% | Large enough that a capped offer pays well |
| Sales-assisted, annual contracts | Flat fee per closed deal, or a share of first-year value | 10 to 20% of first-year contract value | Partner introduces; your team closes |
| Resold by partners | Discount off list price (margin) | 20 to 30% | Reseller bills and supports the customer |
| Agencies managing client accounts | Recurring revenue share | 20 to 30% | Agency keeps influencing retention |
For context from the directory: programs accepting affiliates have a median top rate of 30% (n=171), referral partner programs 25% (n=54), reseller programs 22% (n=27) and integrator or MSP programs 20% (n=19). The full breakdown is in our commission rate benchmarks.
Step 1: find your maximum payout per customer
Start with two numbers you probably already track.
Lifetime gross profit per customer. Monthly price × gross margin × expected months as a customer. If you don't know expected months, 1 ÷ monthly churn is a usable estimate: 5% monthly churn means about 20 months.
What you pay to acquire a customer today. Your blended customer acquisition cost from paid search, paid social or sales. If affiliates cost more per customer than these channels, you're paying for growth you could buy cheaper elsewhere.
Your ceiling is the lower of two numbers: your current acquisition cost, and the share of lifetime gross profit you're willing to give away. We'd start that share at a quarter to a third, so the partner channel still pays back.
Then turn the ceiling into a rate:
rate = ceiling ÷ (monthly price × months you'll pay commission)
Say your plan is $49/month, gross margin is 80%, customers stay 20 months on average, and paid search costs you $180 per customer. Lifetime gross profit is $49 × 0.80 × 20 = $784. A third of that is $261. Your ceiling is $180, the lower number. Paid for 12 months, that's $180 ÷ ($49 × 12) = 30.6%. A 30% rate for 12 months fits.
Step 2: pick a model
There are four common shapes, and the directory shows how often each is used. Among the 288 software and SaaS programs we list, 39.9% pay recurring commission, 13.5% a revenue share, 10.4% a one-time commission and 8.7% a flat fee; 27.4% don't say.
One-time commission pays once, usually a percentage of the first payment. It's simple and cheap, and it's unattractive on low-priced plans. 100% of a $29 first month is $29.
Capped recurring pays a share of each payment for a set period. 12 months is by far the most common cap: of 135 recurring programs in the directory, 42 cap at 12 months and 5 at 24.
Lifetime recurring pays for as long as the customer stays. 36 of those 135 programs do this. It costs more on your best customers, and it's the offer affiliates value most.
Hybrid combines a flat bonus with a recurring share, for example a cash bonus on the first sale plus a lower lifetime rate. It rewards the affiliate early without a big long-tail liability.
We'd choose capped recurring for most self-serve SaaS, because the cost is predictable and you can promise it publicly. Choose lifetime if your churn is low and you're competing for the same affiliates as bigger brands. Skip one-time unless your plan is expensive or your product is a one-off purchase. For the trade-off in detail, see recurring vs one-time commission.
Step 3: check the rate against the market
Your step-1 number is what you can afford. Now check whether it's enough to get affiliates to choose you.
Show the numbers
| Group | Programs | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Under 10% | 11 | 5.7% |
| 10–19% | 24 | 12.5% |
| 20–29% | 61 | 31.8% |
| 30–39% | 51 | 26.6% |
| 40–49% | 15 | 7.8% |
| 50% or more | 30 | 15.6% |
Of the 192 programs in our directory that state a percentage, 61 (31.8%) are in the 20 to 29% band and 51 (26.6%) in the 30 to 39% band. 30 programs (15.6%) state 50% or more, usually as a top tier or a share of the first payment only.
How to read your position:
- Below 20% puts you in the bottom quarter of software programs. That can still work for an expensive product, because affiliates compare dollars per customer, not percentages.
- 20 to 35% is the middle of the market. You won't stand out on rate, so compete on cookie length, conversion rate, and how quickly you pay.
- Above 35% is a statement. Make sure step 1 supports it on your cheapest plan, since that's where most affiliate signups land.
Tiers are less common than you'd think. Only 24 of 287 programs with commission text (8.4%) describe tiers or volume steps. If you add tiers, publish the entry rate clearly. Affiliates plan on the rate they'll actually get.
These programs show the common patterns in the market:
| Program | Partner types | Terms | Model |
|---|---|---|---|
| HubSpot | Affiliate | 30% recurring commission for up to one year (up to $1,000+ per sale); custom commission at Elite tier | Recurring |
| Kit | Affiliate | 50% for 12 months, plus 10-20% recurring after 12 months at Bronze/Silver/Gold tiers | Recurring |
| MailerLite | Affiliate | 30% recurring for the lifetime of the customer | Recurring |
| GetResponse | Affiliate | 40% for 12 months, rising to 50% (50+ sales/yr) or 60% (100+ sales/yr) | Recurring |
| Pipedrive | Affiliate | 20% revenue share for first 12 months (Rising); 30% (Growth, 2-5 sales/month for 6 months); custom (Power, 6+ sales/month) | Recurring |
| Kinsta | Affiliate, Referral partner | Up to $500 one-time bonus plus 10% lifetime monthly recurring commission | Recurring |
| Teachable | Affiliate | 30% recurring for 12 months | Recurring |
| Deel | Affiliate, Referral partner | $500 per sales-qualified referral + $1,000 per new paying customer | Flat fee / bounty |
Step 4: set the cookie and attribution window
The commission rate decides how much you pay; the attribution window decides how many sales you pay it on. Among the 82 programs in our directory that state a cookie window, the median is 90 days and the shortest is 30. Recurring programs have a median of 90 days (n=44), one-time programs 45 days (n=17).
Set yours to cover your trial plus your typical time to decide. If you run a 14-day trial and most customers convert within a month of first visiting, 60 days covers them with room to spare. If you sell annual plans with a demo, use 90 days or more. Our cookie duration benchmarks have the full distribution.
Decide your tie-break rules now, too: whether the first or the last affiliate click before signup gets the credit, what happens if a referred visitor signs up through a sales rep, and whether a coupon code counts as a referral.
Reseller margins and referral fees
Resellers and referral partners are paid differently from affiliates, because they do different work.
Referral partners introduce a prospect and let your team sell. They're usually paid a share of first-year contract value or a flat fee per closed deal. Programs accepting referral partners have a median top rate of 25% (n=54). Flat-fee programs in the directory have a median of $205 per conversion (n=38), and the B2B deals at the top end pay thousands per closed customer.
Resellers buy at a discount and sell at list, owning billing and first-line support. The discount is their margin. Programs accepting resellers state a median of 22% (n=27), but 57.5% of the 87 reseller programs in our directory publish no terms. Expect to negotiate. The middle half of reseller programs that do state a rate sit at 20 to 30%; go higher only if the reseller also handles support and renewals.
Agencies that manage client accounts are often paid a recurring revenue share, because they keep influencing retention. Programs accepting agencies have a median of 30% (n=37).
If you run more than one of these, write separate terms for each. A reseller margin and an affiliate commission on the same customer is the fastest way to pay twice. The affiliate vs referral vs reseller guide compares the models side by side.
Clawbacks, refunds and holds
Commission should only be final once the customer's money is. Three rules cover most of it.
Hold commission through your refund window. If you offer a 30-day refund, approve commission after day 30, not at signup. Paying first and clawing back later works, but it creates negative balances and a lot of support email.
Reverse commission on refunds and chargebacks. State it in the terms. For recurring commission, reverse only the refunded payment, not the whole history.
Pay on a fixed schedule with a stated minimum. Of the 56 programs in our directory that mention payout frequency, 45 pay monthly. Of the 17 that state a numeric minimum payout, the median is $50. Monthly with a $50 minimum is the safe default.
Write down what voids a commission: self-referrals, coupon-site traffic, bidding on your brand name. Our brand bidding rules guide covers the paid-search part, and how partner payouts work covers the payout cycle from the affiliate's side.
Worked examples
All three are hypothetical, with round numbers so the arithmetic is easy to follow. Swap in your own.
A $29/month self-serve tool
Say gross margin is 80%, monthly churn is about 5.5% (customers stay roughly 18 months), and paid acquisition costs $150 per customer.
Lifetime gross profit: $29 × 0.80 × 18 = $417.60. A third of that is $139.20, which is below the $150 acquisition cost, so the ceiling is $139.20.
| Offer | Expected cost per customer |
|---|---|
| 30% for 12 months | $29 × 0.30 × 12 = $104.40 |
| 20% lifetime | $29 × 0.20 × 18 = $104.40 |
| 100% of first month | $29 × 1 = $29 |
Both recurring offers cost the same on an average customer and fit under the ceiling. We'd pick 20% lifetime here: it's easier to sell to affiliates, and on a cheap plan the extra cost for long-staying customers is small. The one-time offer is cheap and nobody will promote it.
A $299/month team plan
Say gross margin is 80%, customers stay 24 months, and you pay about $1,200 to acquire a customer through paid channels.
Lifetime gross profit: $299 × 0.80 × 24 = $5,740.80. The ceiling is $1,200.
At 25% for 12 months, the cost is $299 × 0.25 × 12 = $897 per customer, under the ceiling with room for a launch bonus. At 30% lifetime, it would be $299 × 0.30 × 24 = $2,152.80 on an average customer, well above it. Here the cap matters more than the rate. We'd offer 25% for 12 months and keep lifetime off the table.
A $20,000-a-year contract sold by sales
Say first-year contract value is $20,000, renewals average three years, and your sales-and-marketing cost per new customer is $6,000.
A referral fee of 15% of first-year value is $20,000 × 0.15 = $3,000, half your current acquisition cost, paid only on closed deals. A flat $2,500 per closed deal is simpler to administer and close to the same cost.
A reseller selling the same contract at a 25% margin keeps $20,000 × 0.25 = $5,000 a year, every year they renew it. That's $15,000 over three years, which is fair only if they carry the support and renewal work your team would otherwise do.
You can run these scenarios with your own churn and price in our ROI calculator. If you're setting up payouts and tracking for the first time, our commissions and payouts features show how we handle it in PartnersWatch, our own product.
FAQ
How much commission should a SaaS company pay affiliates?
Most SaaS programs pay 20% to 35%, and the median is 30% across 155 software programs in the PartnersWatch directory that publish a percentage (October 2026). Work out your own ceiling first: the total paid per customer should stay below your acquisition cost through other channels.
Should affiliate commission be recurring or one-time?
Recurring, for most subscription products. 39.9% of the 288 software programs in our directory pay recurring commission, against 10.4% one-time. Recurring keeps affiliates interested in customers who stay. One-time works for expensive plans or one-off purchases, where a single payment is large enough to motivate.
How long should recurring affiliate commission last?
12 months is the most common stated cap: 42 of 135 recurring programs in our directory use it, against 36 that pay for the customer's lifetime. Choose 12 months if your margins are tight or your price is high. Choose lifetime if churn is low and you're competing for experienced affiliates.
What margin do SaaS resellers get?
Usually a 20% to 30% discount off list price: that's the middle half of reseller programs that state a rate. Programs in our directory that accept resellers state a median of 22% (n=27), though most reseller programs (57.5% of 87) don't publish terms. We'd keep the upper end for resellers that also handle support and renewals.
Do I need a cookie window if I track by account?
Yes, for the gap between the click and the signup. Once the referral is stored on the customer account, the window stops mattering. Among 82 programs that publish a window, the median is 90 days; 30 days is the shortest any of them state.
When should I pay affiliate commissions?
After your refund window closes, on a fixed monthly schedule. 45 of the 56 programs in our directory that mention a payout frequency pay monthly, and the median minimum payout among the 17 that state a number is $50.