Best Affiliate Programs For Beginners | Top Affiliate Programs | Free Affiliate Programs | Best Affiliate Marketing Programs

What Is Affiliate Marketing?

Affiliate marketing is the activity of selling another person's product and getting a commission in return for the efforts put in. If you are a complete beginner then do watch all the video tutorials given below before you start.

How Does Affiliate Marketing Work

First you have to open an account on the website of the party owning the product. In most cases this is free to do. Then you are given a unique link called referral link. You have to promote this link on the internet. When somebody clicks on this link and buys the product you will get the agreed commission.

Best Affiliate Programs For Beginners

We scout the top affiliate programs on the internet and present them to you. We focus only on free affiliate programs. We believe that the best affiliate marketing programs do not require an investment. Websites that charge up front fees for joining are usually frauds. Find below listed for your ease the best affiliate programs for beginners.

If you have any query post a comment on our Facebook Page

Top Affiliate Programs

Affiliate Program #1 - Simplified

This is a company that offers a many in one platform to create, collaborate and scale your work. Get the best content creation tools online powered my latest AI technology. Get tools like auto article writer, video maker, image designer, etc. and create content for blogs, social media sites and advertisements. Other features include options to collaborate with clients from within the workspace.

And there is a lot more on offer. A limited version is FREE for use for beginners and students. Every person who joins gets a FREE 6 days trial of all the paid features. No credit card required. This program gets top place in our rankings as it offers a recurring income. When you lead a person to this site you will get 20% commission on whatever this member buys during his entire lifetime.

Register as an affiliate now for FREE: CLICK HERE

IMPORTANT

Checkout More Affiliate Programs Below After Video Tutorials

Affiliate Marketing Tutorial Part 1

What Is Affiliate Marketing

Affiliate Marketing Tutorial Part 2

How Affiliate Marketing Works

Affiliate Marketing Tutorial Part 3

How To Start Affiliate Marketing

Affiliate Marketing Tutorial Part 4

Importance Of Integrity

Affiliate Marketing Tutorial Part 5

How To Find And Promote Affiliate Link

Affiliate Marketing Tutorial Part 6

Affiliate Marketing Reality

Affiliate Marketing Tutorial Part 7

Types Of Affiliate Marketing Commissions

Affiliate Marketing Tutorial Part 8

Affiliate Marketing Opportunities

Affiliate Marketing Tutorial Part 9

Best Niche For Affiliate Marketing

Affiliate Marketing Tutorial Part 10

How To Create Facebook Page

Affiliate Marketing Tutorial Part 11

How To Join Amazon Affiliate Program

Affiliate Marketing Tutorial Part 12

How To Get Amazon Affiliate Link

Affiliate Program #2 - Amazon

Amazon is the best place to start for beginners. Do you know you can earn up to 8% commission on every product your family members and friends buy from your Amazon affiliate link? You have to just register as an Amazon affiliate. Registration is absolutely free. Anyone can join. No qualifications required. Once you register you can get your unique affiliate product link. Watch video tutorial part 12 to know how. You have to just encourage your family members and friends to start their shopping from your link. That’s it. Anyone can do it.

However if you want to earn more you will have to promote your link in other places like social media sites (Facebook, Instagram, YouTube etc.) and on Whatsapp. You can also create unique links for specific products you like right from your dashboard and promote them.

Amazon has a global affiliate platform for shopping on amazon.com as well as some country specific platforms.

If you are in a place where you buy from amazon.com website then you should register at Amazon Associates Central

If you are in India then you should register at Amazon Affiliate - Amazon.in

If you have friends and family members all over the world you can register with both separately.

You don't need to have a website to register with Amazon Affiliates. You can use you Facebook profile URL or a Facebook page URL. Watch tutorial number 10 given below on how to create a Facebook page. Its very easy. We recommend using a Facebook page as you can later use it to promote your chosen Amazon products.

Watch video tutorial part 11 given below on how to register on Amazon affiliate platform.

Most online shopping sites have an affiliate program like this. If you want your income to grow you will have to join more programs. For those in India Flipkart.com is another good option.

Affiliate Program #3 - ShareASale

ShareASale is one of the most popular affiliate networks out there.

Whereas Amazon Associates is focused entirely on Amazon products, ShareASale houses affiliate programs for 4,500+ merchants, both big and small.

From one spot – the ShareASale dashboard – you can sign up to all these merchants, generate links, and view your statistics.

Note, you’ll need to individually apply to merchants and be approved by each merchant, which is a pretty standard approach for an affiliate network like this.

Overall, ShareASale is a great option for both digital and physical products.

For example, on the digital side, you’ll find plenty of WordPress theme and plugin shops, hosting providers, etc.

And on the physical side, you’ll find plenty of big and small merchants. For example, there’s Warby Parker (sunglasses), Sun Basket, Wayfair, Reebok, NFL Shop, plus thousands of other small and large businesses.

Basically – no matter what niche your website or blog is in, you can probably find some offers worth promoting.

What you need to know about ShareASale

Niche/product types: A little bit of everything, including 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

ShareASale Pros & Cons

Thousands of merchants for both physical and digital products, including lots of well-known merchants

Trustworthy – They’ve been around for many years and work with lots of big brands

Lots of exclusive merchants. Over 1,000 of the merchants at ShareASale only work with ShareASale

Has a bookmarklet that makes it easy to generate custom affiliate links

The dashboard design is a little clunky, though it’s gotten a lot better

JOIN shareAsale

Affiliate Program #4 - CJ Affiliate (Formerly Commission Junction)

CJ – formerly known by the lengthier name of Commission Junction – is another affiliate network that brings together thousands of different merchants under one roof (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, the exact number is 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.

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 & Cons

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

The dashboard is a little complicated when you’re just getting started (though I like it overall).

JOIN CJ Affiliates

Affiliate Program #5 - 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 a WordPress advertising management plugin).

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 & Cons

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

The back-end dashboard looks a little dated in my opinion

Not as big a selection as some other affiliate networks

JOIN Rakuten Marketing

Affiliate Program #6 - 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.

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 & Cons

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

The $100 minimum payout is higher than most other affiliate networks

JOIN Avangate Affiliate Network

Affiliate Program #7 - ClickBank

Like Avangate Affiliate Network, ClickBank is another affiliate network that has a lot of digital products, though it also offers physical products as well.

Whereas platforms like ShareASale and Awin have a lot of big, nationally known merchants, ClickBank is definitely more on the “smaller” end of merchants.

For example, you’ll find a lot of merchants who are selling eBooks, online courses, or membership sites. These merchants might not have the name recognition of a national or international brand, but they can be great offers if they fit your niche.

There’s also a downside, though – some of the ClickBank products just aren’t very high-quality products. And while ClickBank has gotten better with its review process to filter out the bad merchants, you’ll still want to be careful about which merchants you choose to promote.

What you need to know about ClickBank

Niche/product types: ClickBank definitely leans towards digital products, but you’ll find some physical products as well (and ClickBank makes it easy to filter between the two).

Average commission rate: Depends on the specific merchant you sign up with, but usually pretty high. You’ll find both percentage and flat-rate commissions.

Cookie duration: Depends on the specific merchant you sign up with, but usually ~60 days.

Minimum payout: $10

ClickBank Pros & Cons

Lots of smaller niche offers that you won’t find at other affiliate platforms

Pretty high commissions for most merchants

$10 minimum payout makes it easy to get paid

Offers weekly payments

ClickBank’s generous refund policy means you might lose commissions after the fact

You have to wade through some low-quality products

Presently does not allow registration to most third world countries inclucing India

JOIN ClickBank

Affiliate Program #8 - 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.

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 & Cons

Huge selection – 12,000+ merchants to choose from

Nicely designed backend dashboard

You get a dedicated affiliate manager

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)

JOIN FlexOffers

Affiliate Program #9 - 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).

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 & Cons

Huge product selection

Higher commissions than Amazon in some categories

A well-known, trusted brand

Longer cookie than Amazon

$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

JOIN Walmart Affiliates

Affiliate Program #10 - eBay Partner Network

As the name suggests, eBay Partner Network is eBay’s own affiliate network. With it, you can earn a commission for promoting eBay listings.

Yes – anything that’s listed on eBay, which is obviously going to give you access to a huge selection.

The only downside is that many of eBay’s products are transient due to the auction approach (though you can also find plenty of permanent listings).

What you need to know about the eBay Partner Network

Niche/product types: Mostly physical products, though you can earn for anything on eBay so you’ll find digital products as well.

Average commission rate: The exact commission depends on the product category, but you’ll earn anywhere from 50%-70% of eBay’s revenue. Note: This is not the total purchase price of the product – you’re earning a percentage of eBay’s own commission.

Cookie duration: 24 hours, but you can still earn a commission even if the auction takes up to 10 days to end (as long as the person placed a bid within the first 24 hours).

Minimum payout: $10

eBay Partner Network pros and cons

Huge variety of products because you can promote anything on eBay

Can sell used products, which is unique

Low payout – just $10

The cookie only lasts for 24 hours

JOIN eBay Partner Network

Which affiliate network should you use?

Here’s the great thing about affiliate platforms and networks – you don’t have to choose just one!

So this is kind of a trick question…

Rather than choosing a single network, sign up for all the ones that interest you so that you can find the best advertisers and payouts.

Really, the only reasons to limit the number of platforms that you use are:

Convenience – You probably don’t want to have to log in to 11 different dashboards on a regular basis.

Minimum payouts – If you spread your traffic too thin, it might be hard to regularly hit each platform’s minimum payout.

Other than that, have at it and find some awesome offers to promote to your site’s visitors!