Welcome to the second and concluding part of this interesting hunt for great affiliate marketing platform.
Today, I'll begin with...
5. Awin (Formerly Affiliate Window)
Awin, rebrand of the original Affiliate Window, is another popular affiliate network that gives you access to over 13,000 different merchants.
Awin actually acquired ShareASale back in 2017, though the two are still run as separate entities and have different merchants.
With 13,000+ merchants, you’ll find a lot of options for both physical and digital products at Awin.
Some of the notable big names are:
- Etsy
- AliExpress
- HP
- XE (money transfer)
- StubHub
- Under Armour
- Gymshark
You’ll also find lots of smaller merchants across a range of niches.
Awin was founded in Germany, so you’ll find a little bit more of a European tilt to the merchant list, though there are also plenty of US/global companies.
Like ShareASale and CJ, you’ll need to individually apply to merchants within the network. Then, you can generate your links and start tracking statistics.
Here's what you need to know about Awin
- Niche/product types: With over 13,000 merchants, you’ll find both physical and digital products for almost every niche.
- Average commission rate: Depends on the specific merchant you sign up with.
- Cookie duration: Depends on the specific merchant you sign up with.
- Minimum payout: $20
Awin pros and cons
Pros:
- Lots of merchants to choose from
- Dedicated WordPress plugin to help you import products
- Low minimum payout (only $20)
Cons:
- $5 sign up fee (it’s refunded if you’re approved, but you’ll lose it if you’re not approved) for a Nigerian, not cool especially when you get turned down.
6. CJ Affiliate (Formerly Commission Junction)
CJ – it now sounds like the pet name of a loving son, formerly known by the lengthier name of Commission Junction – is another affiliate network that brings together thousands of different merchant together (a lot like ShareASale).
Along with ShareASale, CJ is one of the biggest affiliate networks out there, which means that you’ll be able to connect with thousands of both big and small merchants. Currently, they have over 2,696 different merchants.
Some of the big physical and digital companies using CJ are:
- Lowes
- Overstock
- Office Depot
- Priceline
- GoPro
- IHG (Hotels)
- Grammarly
You’ll also find lots of smaller merchants, as well.
Like ShareASale, you’ll individually apply to these merchants from the CJ dashboard. Then, you’ll be able to generate links and view statistics.
I think CJ’s affiliate dashboard has a bit of a higher learning curve than ShareASale, but I prefer it to ShareASale once you figure out how everything works.
Here's what you need to know about CJ
- Niche/product types: Like ShareASale, CJ covers a range of niches and both physical and digital products.
- Average commission rate: Depends on the specific merchant you sign up with.
- Cookie duration: Depends on the specific merchant you sign up with.
- Minimum payout: $50 for direct deposit or $100 for check.
CJ pros and cons
Pros:
- Huge range of big and small merchants to choose from
- A nice back-end dashboard to help you manage your affiliate marketing efforts
- Has a deep link generator bookmarklet that makes it really easy to generate links
Cons:
- The dashboard is a little complicated when you’re just getting started (though I like it overall).
7. Rakuten Marketing (Formerly LinkShare)
Rakuten Marketing (formerly known as LinkShare) is a popular affiliate network that includes a lot of big merchants. Notable merchants are:
- Walmart
- Best Buy
- Macy’s
- Papa Johns
They also have some smaller merchants, though their network isn’t as large as ShareASale, CJ, or Awin (it’s “only” around 1,000 merchants).
So if you want access to a huge variety of merchants, you might be better off with one of the other networks. But Rakuten is a good option for getting access to the big guns, and they also have some nice features like the ability to rotate ads without the need for an external solution like Advanced Ads by wordpress.org and many other variations out there.
Here's what you need to know about Rakuten Marketing
- Niche/product types: With 1,000+ merchants, you can probably still find offers in most niches.
- Average commission rate: Depends on the specific merchant you sign up with.
- Cookie duration: Depends on the specific merchant you sign up with.
- Minimum payout: $50
Rakuten Marketing pros and cons
Pros:
- Gives you access to big-name merchants like Walmart and Best Buy
- A trusted name (Rakuten is a billion dollar company)
- Nice-to-have features like easy ad rotation
Cons:
- Not as big a selection as some other affiliate networks
8. Avangate Affiliate Network
Avangate Affiliate Network is an affiliate network that’s focused on digital goods and software, rather than physical products.
For example, you’ll get access to popular software merchants like:
- Bitdefender
- Kaspersky
- Hide My Ass (the VPN)
- Awario
In total, Avangate Affiliate Network gives you access to 22,000+ pieces of software, so if your site promotes a lot of digital products, you’ll definitely want to join this one.
Note: Avangate acquired 2Checkout back in 2017, so you’ll see some confusion between the names. The original Avangate tool was merged into 2Checkout, while Avangate Affiliate Network is the affiliate platform that you’ll want to join.
Here's what you need to know about Avangate Affiliate Network
- Niche/product types: Avangate Affiliate Network focuses on digital goods and software products. You can browse the full merchant marketplace without needing to sign up.
- Average commission rate: Depends on the specific merchant you sign up with, but Avangate advertises up to an 85% commission rate and Avangate Affiliate Network’s digital products usually have a higher commission rate than the physical products you’ll find at other networks.
- Cookie duration: Depends on the specific merchant you sign up with. Avangate Affiliate Network lets merchants set their cookie length anywhere between 30 to 180 days, so you’re guaranteed at least 30 days at a minimum.
- Minimum payout: $100
Avangate Affiliate Network pros and cons
Pros:
- You can opt to be paid via PayPal
- Lots of unique software products to choose from
- Most merchants offer pretty high commissions. It’s not uncommon to see 50%+ commissions
Cons:
- The $100 minimum payout is higher than most other affiliate networks
9. FlexOffers
FlexOffers is a long-standing, popular affiliate platform that gets you access to 12,000+ different advertisers/merchants.
It has one of the better-looking dashboards, in my opinion, and FlexOffers adds 50+ new merchants per day, so you can always find new offers.
FlexOffers has lots of offers from both small brands and big brands, including well-known names like priceline.com, Macy’s, Skechers, Lenovo, and more. You can browse a full directory of all the merchants before signing up if you want to see what’s available.
Like the other big affiliate platforms,
FlexOffers has been around for years, so you can trust that they aren’t going anywhere.
Additionally, FlexOffers assigns every publisher a dedicated account manager, which is a nice touch. Your account manager can help you find the best offers to promote and otherwise work to improve your affiliate marketing. How cool is that!
Here's what you need to know about FlexOffers
- Niche/product types: With over 12,000 merchants, you can find physical and digital products across all niches.
- Average commission rate: Depends on the specific merchant you sign up with.
- Cookie duration: Depends on the specific merchant you sign up with.
- Minimum payout: $50 within the USA or $100 outside the USA.
FlexOffers pros and cons
Pros:
- Huge selection – 12,000+ merchants to choose from
- Nicely designed backend dashboard
- You get a dedicated affiliate manager
Cons:
- If you’re outside the USA, the only payment option is PayPal (unless the payment exceeds $5,000 – then you can use a wire transfer) this is sad news especially for Nigerians because we cannot receive PayPal payments and getting $5,000 isn't a joke.
10. Peerfly
Peerfly is a rapidly growing affiliate network that gets you access to 3,300+ merchants.
The selection isn’t as big as something like Awin or FlexOffers, but 3,000+ merchants means that you can still probably find something that fits your needs.
Peerfly has both smaller merchants – like Loot Crate – as well as big names like Target, Uber, Agoda, and more.
They also have a nice-looking backend dashboard that makes it easy to see your earnings.
Here's what you need to know about Peerfly
- Niche/product types: Peerfly offers a range of both physical and digital products.
- Average commission rate: Depends on the specific merchant you sign up with.
- Cookie duration: Depends on the specific merchant you sign up with.
- Minimum payout: $50
Peerfly pros and cons
Pros:
- Well-designed dashboard
- Has a good mix of big and small merchants
- Weekly payments if you hit $5,000 earnings per week
- “Cash Flow” feature lets you get faster payments (for a fee, though)
Cons:
- The application process takes ~3 days
11. Walmart Affiliates
Walmart’s affiliate program is technically part of Rakuten Marketing, but I’m still giving it its own section because I think it makes a valuable contrast to Amazon Associates.
If you’re selling physical products, Amazon Associates is definitely the biggest name in the affiliate game. And yeah – there’s a reason for that. Amazon holds almost 50% of the US eCommerce market.
Compared to that, Walmart has just 3.7% of the online retail market (eBay, which you’ll see next, is actually in second place at 6.6%).
However, when Amazon Associates switched from its old commission structure to its new category-based approach, the Walmart affiliate program became a little more attractive because it offers higher commissions than Amazon in some categories.
For example, Walmart will give you a 4% commission on toys, while Amazon only gives 3%.
Additionally, Walmart’s tracking cookie lasts for three days, whereas Amazon’s only lasts for one day (24 hours).
In the end, this is something you really just need to test if you sell a lot of physical products.
If you’re already using Amazon, and Walmart offers higher commissions in your category, see if switching to the Walmart affiliate program moves the needle on your revenue (in either direction).
Here's what you need to know about Walmart Affiliates
- Niche/product types: Anything sold on Walmart’s website (which includes some third-party vendors)
- Average commission rate: Ranges from 1% to 18%. Most categories are 4% or 1%.
- Cookie duration: Cookies last for three days.
Walmart Affiliates pros and cons
Pros:
- Huge product selection
- Higher commissions than Amazon in some categories
- A well-known, trusted brand
- Longer cookie than Amazon
Cons:
- $50 minimum payout, which is higher than Amazon
- While the product selection is bigger than almost every other store, it still doesn’t come close to Amazon.
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