How much commission should you pay affiliates?

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 remaining amount is the maximum combined acquisition budget, not automatically the affiliate rate.

• Define the commissionable revenue base.
• Reserve non-affiliate acquisition and operating costs.
• Choose percent, flat bounty, recurring share, or a capped hybrid.
• Apply a hold that matches your reversal risk.
• Model low, expected, and high order values with your own inputs.

Physical goods, digital products, web subscriptions, and iOS subscriptions have different cost and refund shapes. New-customer-only rewards, product exclusions, renewal commissions, and agency overrides also change the ceiling.

A competitor's rate can be unaffordable for your margin or too weak for your offer. Publish the calculation, exclusions, hold, and change process so affiliates can evaluate the real terms.