Affiliate Networks make it easy for new marketers to build affiliate partnerships with brands. But what are the best networks and how do they work? Want access to thousands of the best affiliate programs, get paid on time, and get the support you need to grow your affiliate marketing business? Affiliate networks can be a great solution, especially for those new to affiliate marketing. This guide will help you understand what an affiliate network is, how it differs from a standalone program, and the benefits it offers to brands and publishers.

What is an Affiliate Network?

An affiliate network is a service that connects brands and publishers (affiliate marketers who create content for blogs, social media, podcasts, and other channels). The network acts as an intermediary, making it easy for publishers and brands that offer affiliate marketing programs to find each other. Brands can recruit affiliates to promote their products and open up new sales channels.

Brands often use affiliate networks when:

• When you need more outbound sales support
• When you want to use your marketing budget efficiently
• When you want to reach a new audience

Affiliate networks are also useful for publishers, as they provide a way to find programs and manage affiliate commission payments systematically. Instead of signing up for multiple programs individually, publishers can discover and join dozens of programs and work with affiliate partners at scale.

How do affiliate networks work?

Affiliate networks exist to help marketers and brands manage their affiliate activities.

As an affiliate, you can access the programs available to you simply by joining the network. Some networks have entry criteria for publishers. For example, networks like AvantLink and ShareASale require affiliates to have an active website or social media channels, and perform human reviews of their content.

Unlike affiliate programs, which are created and managed by individual brands, affiliate networks allow publishers to connect with multiple brands in one place.

11 Best Affiliate Networks for Marketers

1. Shopify Collabs
2. ShareASale
3. AWIN
4. CJ Affiliate
5. ClickBank
6. FlexOffers
7. Avangate Affiliate Network
8. Rakuten Advertising
9. Impack
10. affiliaXe
11. GiddyUp

As more and more businesses rely on affiliate marketing to promote their products, affiliate networks have evolved their offerings to meet the demand. Each affiliate network differs in the benefits it offers to affiliate marketers and brands. Take a look at the top affiliate networks and the marketing tools and resources they offer.

1. Shopify Collabs

Shopify Collabs is an affiliate network that helps content creators and influencers connect with successful brands that use Shopify. Through this network, eligible creators with a minimum of 1,000 social media followers can find relevant brands, form partnerships, and receive affiliate links, automatic payouts, gifts, and discount codes that they can promote to their audience.

• Creators have easy access to their favorite brands, the ability to create their own affiliate links without approval, and can start earning commissions immediately upon onboarding.
• Brands can offer community-building opportunities like affiliate surveys or brand discovery experiences to strengthen their relationships with affiliates, giving them access to thousands of affiliates.

Affiliate Network Details:

• Payment method : Automatic payment after 30 days of holding
• Payment method : PayPal or bank transfer
• Affiliate Support : Yes

2. ShareASale

ShareASale is a free and trusted affiliate network with over 1 million publishers and 30,000 brands to choose from. The network hosts a variety of product categories and affiliate products, and offers a variety of commission rates. Some programs offer 1% commissions, while high-end affiliate programs offer up to 150% commissions.

Publishers can sign up with their website or social media accounts, making them a great option for beginner bloggers or influencers.

Affiliate Network Details:

• Payment method : Payment is made on the 1st or 15th of each month, depending on the commission verification date.
• Payment method : Bank account via Payoneer
• Affiliate Support : Yes

3. AWIN

AWIN is the owner of ShareASale, and hosts over 25,000 brands on their network. According to Robin Young of affiliate marketer Fitness Savvy, “AWIN’s site is easy to navigate, and creating product feeds and custom links is a breeze. They have a lot of major advertisers worldwide, but are particularly strong in the UK market, and their customer service is excellent.”

Similar to ShareASale, you can sign up with a website or social media account, and you will need to pay a small deposit of $5 to join the network. You will get your deposit back once you meet the first payout criteria.

Affiliate Network Details:

• Payment Method : Commissions for the previous month are paid on the 1st and 15th of each month, and the minimum payment amount is $20.
• Payment Methods : BACS (British Direct Debit Service), International Wire Transfer, or ACH (Automated Clearing House).
• Affiliate Support : Yes.

4. CJ Affiliate

CJ Affiliate is another large affiliate network. Founded in 1998, CJ has over 3,800 brands worldwide on its affiliate marketing platform.

To create an account and become an active member, you'll need to complete several steps, including entering your contact information and adding "promotional assets" such as a website or social media accounts.

CJ Affiliate provides an open developer portal for API (Application Programming Interface) access, providing publishers with the technical resources and tools they need to get things done, including custom offers, access to credit card information, and target link search by keyword or category.

Affiliate Network Details:

• Payment Method : Commissions are typically paid on the 20th or 28th of each month, depending on your currency.
• Payment method : Direct deposit or Payoneer.
• Affiliate Support : Yes.

5. ClickBank

ClickBank is one of the oldest and most trusted affiliate marketing networks, paying out over $6 billion in commissions since 1999.

You don’t need to provide a website or social media accounts to sign up and get verified with ClickBank. Instead, you can simply provide your contact information and start browsing the affiliate marketplace and generating links right away.

ClickBank has a wide range of digital and physical products, with over 4,000 verified products to choose from, giving you a wide range of product categories to choose from. ClickBank also offers revenue tracking tools and a resource center for affiliate support, giving you the opportunity to increase your revenue through upsales.

Affiliate Network Details:

• Payment method : Weekly or biweekly.
• Payment Methods : Check, Direct Deposit, Wire Transfer or Payoneer.
• Affiliate Support : Yes.

6. FlexOffers

FlexOffers offers an extensive affiliate network with over 10,000 advertisers, including well-known brands like Samsung, Sephora, and Wayfair. It also includes partnerships with other platforms and affiliate networks like AWIN, ClickBank, and ShareASale.

Similar to other affiliate networks, FlexOffers accepts blogging websites like WordPress, Wix, Blogger, BlogSpot as traffic sources. Cookies last for 30 days.

FlexOffers is a great option for those looking to promote big brands, but it’s also a good choice if you want to maximize partnership opportunities by including smaller brands as part of your marketing strategy.

Affiliate Network Details:

• Payment Methods : Standard payment is due within 60 days; advance payment options are available but may incur fees.
• Payment Methods : Bank Transfer, Wire Transfer, ACH, Check or PayPal.
• Affiliate Support : Yes.

7. Avangate Affiliate Network

Founded in 2006 , Avangate Affiliate Network has over 1,200 affiliates. If you are focusing on a niche that focuses on software or digital products, this network can help you generate passive income by promoting your products. However, Avangate requires affiliates to have a website.

What sets Avangate Affiliate Network apart from its competitors is that it offers publishers the ability to use geo-targeted shopping carts, meaning that when you’re trying to reach a specific market location, you can “deep link” directly to a localized cart.

Affiliate Network Details:

• Payment method : Monthly, paid 20 days after the last day of the month in which the commission was accrued.
• Payment Methods : Wire Transfer, Check, PayPal, or Avangate Mastercard (via Payoneer) — after meeting the $100 payout threshold.
• Affiliate Support : Yes.

8. Rakuten Advertising

Rakuten Advertising is an affiliate network with over 25,000 advertisers, publishers, and marketing agencies. When brands set up their affiliate programs, Rakuten offers innovative tools like Affiliate Conversion Journey, which provides a transparent view of the user journey through funnels and conversions. Publishers have access to tools like Audience Engine, which helps personalize audiences to drive more sales.

Participating brands:

• Hilton
• Ashley Furniture
• JanSport
• ASICS
• AllSaints

Affiliate Network Details:

• Payment method : 60 days.
• Payment Methods : Direct Deposit, Check, or PayPal.
• Affiliate Support : Yes.

9. Impact

Impact was named the best " cost-per-sale " affiliate network in North America in 2024, and offers the opportunity to partner with brands like Adidas, Fabletics, L'Oréal, American Express, and more. You can also find partnerships with tech brands like Shopify.

The network has over 800 reviews on G2 and is rated positively for partnership development. Another advantage of Impact and its network is that it offers a Mobile App Partner Marketplace to help publishers optimize their mobile traffic and increase revenue. It also offers a set of automated tools to help affiliates manage their partnerships.

Affiliate Network Details:

• Payment Method : Customizable by date or criteria, or paid on the 1st or 15th of every month.
• Payment methods : Direct deposit, BACS (bank transfer), or PayPal.
• Affiliate Support : Yes.

10. affiliaXe

affiliaXe is a global marketing affiliate network that provides affiliates with tools to boost their rankings and gain insights into their traffic. The affiliate dashboard tracks clicks, conversions, invoices, and more.

Approved affiliates also have access to a dedicated affiliate manager who can recommend the best programs for their audience. Brands can also work with experienced affiliates, while the network’s extensive anti-fraud systems and screening tools ensure campaign integrity.

affiliaXe offers a variety of traffic monetization options including pay per click, cost per click, social media, and email marketing/feed.

Affiliate Network Details:

• Payment method : Biweekly, paid on the 15th and last day of each month, with a payment threshold of $100.
• Payment Methods : PayPal, Payoneer, ACH, check, or bank transfer via Tipalti.
• Affiliate Support : Yes.

11. GiddyUp

GiddyUp is an affiliate network platform that helps you make money online through your website or social media platforms. Since 2013, GiddyUp has paid out over $200 million in commissions to its affiliate partners.

As a new affiliate, GiddyUp will help you maximize your revenue with innovative tools and real-time data. Plus, your affiliate partner manager will answer all your digital marketing questions. No matter what channel you use to drive traffic, you will have access to the latest assets (videos, images, campaign copy, etc.).

GiddyUp has completed over 150 direct-to-consumer (DTC) product launches across a variety of verticals, so if you’re interested in promoting physical products, GiddyUp could be a good choice for you.

Affiliate Network Details:

• Payment Method : Contact GiddyUp directly for information.
• Payment Methods : ACH, check, or international bank transfer.
• Affiliate Support : Yes.

Launching an affiliate network

Try out these top affiliate networks to see if they fit your content or brand. These networks offer affiliate marketers a variety of options to find the right partnership for their audience. Affiliate marketing can be a lucrative opportunity, but it’s a good idea to spread your options across multiple affiliate networks and programs to maximize your chances of success.

Affiliate Network FAQs