Typical commission rates by industry
Commission rates commonly run from about 5% to 30%, and higher for high-margin digital goods. The ranges below are the ones most widely reported across the industry. Treat them as a starting reference, not a rule. The rate you can sustain comes from your own margins, which the framework further down shows how to calculate.
| Category | Typical range | Common model |
|---|---|---|
| Digital products, courses, ebooks | 20% to 50% | One-time percent |
| SaaS and subscriptions | 20% to 30%, often recurring | Recurring percent |
| Ecommerce and Shopify (physical) | 5% to 15% | Percent or flat CPA |
| Beauty and personal care | 10% to 18% | One-time percent |
| Health and wellness | 8% to 15% | One-time percent |
| Electronics | 1% to 4% | One-time percent |
| Travel and hospitality | 2% to 10% | Percent or flat CPA |
| Web hosting | $50 to $150+ per sale | Flat CPA |
| Finance and fintech | $50 to $200+ or 30%+ | Flat CPA or percent |
| iOS apps (subscriptions and IAP) | 15% to 30% recurring, or a first-period bounty | Recurring percent or CPA |
Commission models compared
Pick the structure that fits your economics, then set the number.
| Model | Strength | Best for |
|---|---|---|
| Percentage of sale | Scales with order value | Most ecommerce |
| Flat fee or CPA | Predictable cost per action | Lead-gen, finance, hosting, apps |
| Recurring percent | Aligns affiliates to retention | SaaS, memberships, subscriptions |
| Tiered | Rewards volume, retains top affiliates | Mature programs |
| Hybrid (bounty plus recurring) | Recruitment hook plus long-term value | SaaS with long payback |
| Per-lead or per-click | Cheap traffic, low commitment | Lead-gen and media (fraud-prone) |
A margin-first way to set your rate
Start with revenue you actually retain. Subtract product or service delivery, payment costs, expected refunds, support, taxes you bear, and the profit you need to keep. The remainder is the maximum combined acquisition budget, and the affiliate rate is a slice of that, not all of it.
A common guardrail is to target a lifetime-value to acquisition-cost ratio of at least 3 to 1, and to keep a healthy net margin after fees. Worked example: a SaaS plan at $99 per month with a 30% recurring rate pays the affiliate about $29.70 every month the customer stays, so recurring rates compound into real cost over a subscription's life. Model that before you commit to recurring.
- Define the commissionable revenue base (net, excluding tax, shipping, discounts, refunds).
- Reserve non-affiliate acquisition and operating costs.
- Choose percent, flat bounty, recurring share, or a capped hybrid.
- Apply a validation hold that matches your reversal risk.
- Model low, expected, and high order values with your own inputs.
Rates by surface: ecommerce, SaaS, and iOS apps
The surface changes both the rate and how you attribute it.
- Shopify and ecommerce: a practical starting point is 10% to 15% of the sale, or a flat $10 to $15 on new-customer orders, attributed from Shopify order and checkout webhooks.
- Web and SaaS: 20% to 30% recurring is common; decide whether to time-box the recurring commission so long-term cost stays modeled.
- iOS apps: pay 15% to 30% recurring on the subscription or in-app purchase, or a one-time bounty on the first paid period. Attribute it with StoreKit 2 and App Store Server Notifications rather than a cookie. Under Apple guideline 3.2.2, the reward must attach to a post-install action such as subscribing, never the install itself.
Tiered structures and incentives
Tiers reward volume and retain your best affiliates. Two common shapes:
- Marginal tiers: 10% under $100 in monthly sales, 12% from $100 to $500, 15% above $500.
- Retained lifetime tiers: 10% up to $5,000 lifetime, 15% to $10,000, 20% beyond, with the affiliate keeping the tier once reached.
- A 2% to 5% bump for top creators who hit a revenue target, plus seasonal or launch incentives.
Common mistakes
The recurring failures are avoidable.
- Copying a benchmark your margin cannot afford.
- Ignoring refunds and chargebacks, with no reversal hold.
- Committing to lifetime recurring commission you cannot forecast.
- Setting a rate before you know customer lifetime value.
- Defining commission on gross, so tax and shipping inflate payouts.
Disclosure and platform rules
Whatever the rate, the promotion has to be compliant. Affiliates must disclose the paid relationship under FTC rules, and AI or synthetic endorsers must disclose that too. For apps, Apple guideline 3.2.2 means a redeemer reward attaches to a post-install action, not the install. See the FTC disclosure guide for exact wording.