TL;DR: High commission rates are great at grabbing attention… but terrible at predicting whether you'll actually get paid. This guide walks through 7 things to research before you hit apply—so you're not stuck writing content for a program that never delivers.
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When researching affiliate programs, commission rates tend to be the headliner. They're the first thing most program directories sort by, the first number that catches the eye, and are assumed to be the easiest way to compare earning potential from one program to another.
But I'm here to tell you that commission percentage can be one of the most misleading numbers when you're deciding what (in this case who) to promote.
This is what I mean by that: A 50% commission sounds incredible until you realize the product doesn’t convert, the checkout process is clunky, and the payout threshold sits at $500. The math stops working pretty fast.
The programs worth building content around convert consistently, pay reliably, and fit your audience well enough that promoting them feels like a natural extension of your content.
If you've already picked your niche and you're starting to research affiliate programs, this is how to figure out which ones are actually worth your time and which ones to pass on—no matter how good the commission looks.
7 Things to Look for in an Affiliate Program Before Applying
Finding affiliate programs is easy. Finding the right ones takes a bit more digging.
Let’s walk through what to evaluate before you apply, working through the details that separate programs that actually pay from ones that waste your time.
1. Start With the Sales Page
Before anything else, visit the sales page as if you were a customer. This sounds obvious, but most beginner affiliates overlook it. They see a good commission, sign up, grab their link, and start writing content. Then they wonder why nobody's buying.
The sales page is where your traffic either converts or doesn't. You can write the best blog post in the world, but if you're sending people to a confusing checkout process or a landing page that looks like it was last updated in 2012, they're not buying.
Before signing up for any affiliate program, run through these sales page checks:
- Is it clear what the offering is?
- Can you find the price without digging?
- Does the checkout process feel simple?
- Would you trust this site with your credit card?
- Would you buy this product or service? Honestly?
If the answer is no on any of these (especially that last one) move on. There are too many programs out there to waste time promoting one with a broken front door.
2. Make Sure What They Offer Fits Your Audience
Not every brand belongs in your affiliate strategy—even good ones. A company can have a great reputation, impressive sales numbers, and generous commissions, but if its products or services don't serve your readers, none of that matters.
The best affiliate content doesn't feel like a pitch. It feels like a recommendation you'd make anyway, because what the brand offers genuinely helps your readers do something they're already trying to do.
Evaluating fit starts with knowing your buyer persona, such as what your readers are trying to do, what would actually help them do it, and what they can realistically afford.
For example: if your niche is gaming, your audience probably wants the latest releases, the gear people are using to play, and accessories that improve their setup.
So promoting a retro console bundle or an outdated graphics card isn't going to land—not necessarily because those products are bad, but because they don't match what your readers are actively looking for today.
Stretching to make a connection work is a sign to move on. Poor fit wastes everyone's time—you create content that doesn't convert, your readers get recommendations that don't help them, and the brand gets traffic that was never going to buy.
💡When affiliate links are organized by category (such as budget, product type, or brand), it’s easier to stay aligned with what your audience actually wants. ThirstyAffiliates link categories let you group offers, so the right recommendation is always quick and easy to find.
3. Understand the Payout Structure Before You Promote
Your affiliate dashboard can show hundreds of dollars in commissions, but that doesn't mean much until the money actually hits your account. How and when that happens depends entirely on the program's payout structure.
Every program handles payouts differently, and it's the small details that often make a difference between how you get paid, when you get paid, or whether you get paid at all.
Here's what to look at before you commit:
- Payment methods: Popular affiliate payment methods typically include PayPal, direct deposit, and sometimes mailed checks. Some programs also offer payment in the form of discounts or store credit instead of cash. If the available options don't work for you or match your financial needs, that should be factored into whether the program makes sense to join.
- Minimum payout threshold: Some programs release payment once you've earned $50, others hold out until $500. A high threshold paired with small commissions means most affiliates never see a check, and they churn out before they ever hit the minimum.
- Payment frequency: A monthly pay period is pretty standard, but some programs pay weekly, while others stretch to quarterly. If affiliate income is part of how you manage cash flow, make sure the schedule works for how you operate.
- Refund holdback: Many programs hold commissions for 30–60 days to account for refunds and chargebacks. Until that window closes, the earnings on your dashboard aren't guaranteed—they're provisional.
There's nothing worse than watching your affiliate dashboard show $300 in commissions while you're stuck waiting to hit some arbitrary threshold—or worse, watching half of it disappear to refunds you didn't anticipate.
A strong affiliate program is transparent about all of this. If payout rules are vague, hard to find, or difficult to confirm, that uncertainty is part of the cost of promoting it.
💡ThirstyAffiliates reports make it easy to spot links that get clicks but never convert into meaningful payouts, so you can focus on what’s working and stop spending energy on what isn’t.
4. Evaluate the Support Before You Need It
The best affiliate programs invest in their affiliates because they understand that your success drives their revenue too. That investment shows up in the resources they provide and how they treat you when you need help.
Here's what quality affiliate program support looks like:
- A dedicated affiliate manager or point of contact, not just a generic support email
- Creative assets like banners, images, and email templates ready to use
- Onboarding materials that explain how the program works and how to get started
- Responsive communication when you reach out with questions or issues
Before applying to a program, send their affiliate support a simple question just to see how they handle it. Fast, helpful response? Good sign. Slow, generic, or no response? That tells you what working with them will actually be like.
Programs with absent or unhelpful support leave you stuck troubleshooting alone—and sometimes losing commissions in the process. A program that's easy to reach before you apply is more likely to be reliable once you're earning.
5. Look for Signs the Program is Actually Stable
Affiliate programs shut down. They change terms. They slash commissions overnight with no warning. Sometimes they stop paying affiliates entirely and hope nobody notices.
Before investing time building content around a program, you want some confidence it'll still be around in a year.
Here are a few tips on how to evaluate whether a program is built to last:
- Search for complaints. Conduct simple “[program name] affiliate reviews” and “[program name] affiliate complaints” searches in Google, Reddit, and LinkedIn. One complaint is noise. Ten complaints about the same issue(s) is a pattern worth paying attention to.
- Look at the company behind it. Is this an established brand with a track record, or a startup that launched last year? Programs tied to reputable companies tend to be more stable because they have more to lose if affiliates start talking. That doesn't mean new programs are bad, but it does mean there's less history to evaluate.
- Check how long the program has existed. A program that's been running for five years with consistent terms is a safer bet than one that just launched with aggressive payouts. New programs sometimes offer high commissions to attract affiliates, then quietly reduce them once they've built momentum.
- Read the terms of service. Some programs reserve the right to change commission rates at any time without notice. Others lock in rates for active affiliates. Knowing the difference helps you understand how much risk you're taking on.
This research takes less than ten minutes and gives you a clearer picture of whether a program is stable enough to work with (and plan to work with for a long time)—or whether you're better off looking elsewhere.
💡 When programs change terms, pause campaigns, or shut down, broken links can quietly pile up. ThirstyAffiliates’ 404 Link Checker automatically scans your site and alerts you before dead links cost you clicks and commissions.
6. Watch for “Too Good to Be True” Signals
Some affiliate programs are designed to recruit affiliates, not serve customers. The commissions are unusually high, the marketing promises overnight results, and everything about the program feels engineered to get you to sign up fast and promote hard—before you realize what you've gotten into.
These are the programs that give affiliate marketing a bad reputation, and they're not hard to spot if you know what to look for, such as:
- Landing pages built entirely around income claims, testimonials about “life-changing” earnings, or countdown timers pressuring you to sign up now.
- Products that promise results they can't realistically deliver—i.e., get rich quick, lose weight instantly, fix everything overnight.
- Commission structures that seem unsustainable, like 70% payouts on low-priced digital products with no clear business model behind them.
If the whole thing feels like it's designed to extract money from buyers rather than deliver value, trust that instinct. These programs might pay out for a while, but they tend to collapse—and when they do, your commissions disappear along with them.
7. Think Beyond the First Sale
Pocketing your first commission check is exciting—it's proof the program actually works. But the real earning potential of a program depends on what it offers beyond one-off sales and whether it's structured to reward you as your affiliate marketing business grows.
Here's what to consider when thinking long-term:
- Does the program offer multiple products you can promote? A brand with a full product lineup gives you more to work with. You can recommend different products based on what your audience needs, offer alternatives at different price points, and continue promoting as the brand releases new products that excite your readers—rather than maxing out after a single review.
- Does the program offer recurring commissions or upsells? Programs with subscription products or logical upsells can turn one referral into ongoing revenue. A single customer who subscribes at $50/month with a 20% recurring commission earns far more over time than a one-time $100 payout.
- Is this a brand you'd want to be associated with long-term? Your affiliate partnerships reflect on you. A brand that delivers quality and treats customers well is one you can confidently promote for years. One that cuts corners or generates complaints will eventually cost you credibility—and the commissions won't be worth it.
The affiliates who earn consistently aren't chasing the highest commissions. They're picking solid programs, creating useful content around them, and letting that content work for months and years. That only happens when you choose programs built for the long game, not quick wins.
Ready to Start Researching Affiliate Programs?
While commission rates might be what first catches your attention, by now you know there's a lot more that determines whether a program actually pays off.
With this framework in hand, you can evaluate the full picture before you commit. The next time you find a program that looks promising, be sure to run through these questions before you hit apply:
- Does the sales page convert, or are you sending traffic into a wall?
- Does what they offer actually fit your audience and niche?
- Is the payout structure clear—how you get paid, when, and how much you need to earn first?
- Does the program offer quality support and resources for affiliates?
- Is the program stable, with a solid track record and transparent terms?
- Does the program avoid the red flags that signal it's too good to be true?
- Is this a program built for the long game—multiple products, recurring commissions, a brand worth partnering with?
If you'd rather skip the guesswork, we've already done the vetting for you. Our Affiliate Program Guide features programs that meet these criteria—organized by niche and ready for you to explore. Find one that fits your audience and start applying today!
