Word of mouth and referrals have always been key components of successful marketing, but until recent years, this aspect of marketing got little or no part of the incredible amounts that companies invest in their promotions every year. However, thanks to the internet revolution, these days anyone can earn money just by getting other people to sign up for a product or service. It is called affiliate marketing, and it is, in fact, a billion-dollar industry that is some people’s primary source of income.

The good thing is you don’t have to be a marketing expert to get in on this gig. You don’t even need to have any knowledge of marketing at all. Simply be able to convince other people to get on a good or service that pays affiliate bonuses. Usually, the companies offering these bonuses will provide you with your own affiliate links, which anyone coming through you can use to sign up.

Whether you choose to create a business around this or simply round up the people in your circle is up to you, but be aware that in a December 2022 survey by Refersion, some respondents were said to have earned annual affiliate income of as much as $74,000 in 2022, with the average being $54,123.

This article puts together ten of the most lucrative affiliate programs that you might want to explore in 2024, as follows:

Amazon associates

This is one of the most extensive affiliate marketing programs out there. To join, you have to register on the Amazon Affiliate Program's website, filling in personal information including your tax and payment details, as well as links to your website, social media, and the like. With these, you can set up a profile and await a review of your application by the Amazon Associates team.

If accepted, payments are made via direct transfer, cheque, or Amazon gift voucher. Accepted users can earn up to 10% commissions on relevant purchases, but the program also provides a predetermined standard commission rate for specific product categories. For example, Amazon Games pays a standard commission of 20%.

Etsy affiliate program

The Etsy Affiliate Program is a very flexible and accessible one as anybody with a digital presence can participate. All you need to do to earn commissions here is to generate links for qualifying products from the Etsy website and promote them on your social media accounts or website. For each sale that occurs through your unique link, you will earn a fixed percentage of the revenue (excluding tax, delivery, refunds, and cancellations), all within a 30-day cookie period.

Etsy’s referral program is, however, in two different categories. The first is for media, editorial publications, and bloggers, while the second is a co-creator program designed specifically for social media content creators. Another exemplary feature is the language options, as Etsy offers support in five languages: English, French, Italian, Spanish, and German.

Hostinger

Hostinger is regarded as one of the best affiliate programs for beginners due to the fact that it provides you with personal affiliate managers whose job it is to assist you with anything you might need as a Hostinger affiliate partner. Another important factor is the simplicity of the Hostinger platform, with everything broken down for an easy-to-work-with user experience, evidently with newcomers in mind.

Hostinger offers a 60% sales commission on their web hosting services only, as this does not extend to renewals, email accounts, domains, or upgrades. Payouts are done through PayPal and direct transfers, whereby PayPal users must maintain a minimum payout threshold of $100 while direct transfer users must maintain a minimum payout threshold of $500.

eBay partner network

Unlike other affiliate programs, eBay's qualifying products are not restricted by zones and regions, meaning that a person based in Nigeria can share links to products being sold in the USA and make money off the resulting sales from those links. Also, eBay's program offers a wide range of categories, including electronics, fashion, cosmetics, and more, so the available options are abundant.

The commission rate varies from 1-4%, with a 24-hour referral period. Depending on the business models, the rate cards differ for each partner. To begin receiving your commission from eBay's affiliate program, you must first present a verified PayPal account. A direct bank transfer may also be an option in some cases.

AWeber

AWeber’s affiliate program creates a unique win-win opportunity for its affiliate partners, and this is what truly sets it apart from many other affiliate programs out there. Affiliate partners on AWeber earn a 50% referral commission after setting up an AWeber account and successfully onboarding 50 new paid accounts each month.

To lay the figures bare, an AWeber subscription costs $29.99 per month, so the commission on 50 accounts monthly will be a total of $9000 for successful affiliate partners! Generally, Aweber is a trusted leader with one of the highest payment rates in the affiliate business.

Shopify

Shopify boasts one of the highest-paying affiliate programs around, with the potential to earn up to $150 for each full-priced plan referral. To be accepted as a Shopify affiliate partner, however, you must own and operate active websites with good traffic. You would be tasked with creating and posting original content in the form of blogs, videos, digital courses, seminars, etc.

It is free to sign up, and once your application has been approved, you will gain access to Shopify’s resource library, where you will find content development support. As a Shopify affiliate partner, you would be provided with various guides to help you grow your referral traffic and commission potential.

Refersion marketplace

Refersion Marketplace is another excellent platform for newcomers, as it has a streamlined process with numerous tools, tracking methods, and centralized reporting. The platform inspires a lot of trust from its affiliate partners, with one example being its open approach to letting partners know what they are being compensated for when generating sales.

The commissions on Refersion Marketplace vary per brand, and partners are paid via bank transfer, PayPal, or gift cards. The platform offers a user-friendly and robust interface, reliable trading, large sales commissions, and much more.

Rakuten

Rakuten provides three types of commission structures: Dynamic, Coupon, and Multitouch. Dynamic commissions are customizable and vary per category. Coupon allows brands to choose which affiliates may give a discount code, when the codes may be used, and for what items, as well as the commission conditions. Multitouch focuses on first click marketing attribution along the user's journey through the funnel towards a sale, and some companies may extend private offers to top-performing affiliates who have a track record of early interactions in the conversion process.

Commission rates are determined by the individual advertiser. Payouts require a minimum commission balance of $50, and payment options include direct deposit, PayPal, and cheque.

Clickbank

ClickBank is one of the oldest affiliate networks around, with over 100,000 affiliates globally and over $6 billion in commissions paid out over the past twenty years. Creating a Clickbank account does not involve a lengthy verification procedure, and you may generate affiliate links and begin earning money as soon as your account goes live.

ClickBank's affiliate program offers a wide range of digital and physical items. The commission rate varies, and you can promote as many goods as you like to boost your revenue. There is a default payment threshold of $100, but you may pick between $10 and $1 million. Payment options include cheque, direct deposit, wire transfer, and Payoneer.

ShareASale

ShareaSale is another veteran of the affiliate marketing industry, having been in business for over two decades. During that period, the platform has successfully built a network of over 270,000 publishers and thousands of merchants. For influencers, content producers, website owners, and sponsored or technology partners, ShareaSale offers profitable partnerships.

ShareaSale's core features include trustworthy partner development, extensive data reporting, and great strategic control. Partner benefits include custom short links, eCommerce plugins, product discoveries, integrations, bookmarkets, and a lot more. Payments are made by direct transfers, paychecks, or Automated Clearing House (ACH).