An affiliate platform is where you will find the affiliate programs you are going to want to promote. There are many different affiliate platforms on the market and this lists includes the best and most reputable platforms in the industry.
These are:
- ShareaSale
- ClickBank
- CJ – Commission Junction
1. 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 and cons
Pros:
- 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
Cons:
- The dashboard design is a little clunky, though it’s gotten a lot better
2. 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 and cons
Pros:
- 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
Cons:
- ClickBank’s generous refund policy means you might lose commissions after the fact
- You have to wade through some low-quality products
3. 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 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).
Which is the Best Affiliate Network?
Here’s the great thing about affiliate platforms and networks – you don’t have to choose just one! There is no such thing as one best network. Each network has its own specific vendors and some networks may have the products you want to promote which may not be on another network.
When deciding on an Affiliate Network, take into consideration:
- 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!
