Affiliate marketing is a key monetization method for many bloggers. But not all affiliate programs are created equal. Some pay a one-off commission while others offer a recurring payout.
And while both types of relationships can produce significant revenue, recurring affiliate programs — which typically pay monthly or annually for as long as a customer maintains their relationship with the affiliate — can diversify your monetization strategy by providing a source of passive income.
For example, with a one-off affiliate program, a 20% payout on a $50 monthly subscription would result in a $10 commission. But under a recurring payment structure, that same customer-affiliate relationship can generate $10 per month indefinitely.
Consider this; to make $10K a month through a recurring affiliate program that pays $10 per month, you would need just 1,000 sales of that product. It’s no wonder why recurring affiliate programs are a compelling passive income idea.
Of course, there are many ways to monetize a blog. I cover 10 of the best in my guide to starting a blog that actually makes money. But if you’re interested in going the affiliate route, you should make sure to evaluate whether there are recurring opportunities that align with your content strategy.
For this article, we’ve rounded up a few of the top recurring affiliate offers for bloggers and categorized them by their types of product or service.
How to Leverage Recurring Affiliate Programs
The best way to make more affiliate sales is to promote products and services you actually use. Your content will be more authentic, and that will make it more compelling.
Some of the most common and most effective ways to promote these affiliates include:
- Emails: If you write a regular email newsletter, sprinkle in affiliate offers where appropriate. (And if you don’t, consider starting one, as this can be a great way to reach engaged, high-value readers.)
- How To Guides: The internet is teeming with readers hungry for step-by-step solutions. For instance, when someone’s looking to kickstart their blogging journey, they might need a detailed guide on how to set up a WordPress blog with Bluehost. If you can write authoritatively about a product or process that bridges the gap between their problem and solution, you’re not just offering value – you’re setting the stage for high-converting recommendations.
- Resources Page: Aggregating all your affiliate products on a resources page provides readers a convenient place to look for tools they may find helpful.
Below are 33 recurring affiliate programs with products or services useful for bloggers. Some even supplement your recurring earnings with one-off commissions on the initial purchase.
Web Hosting Affiliates
Before you even decide on your blog niche, there’s one fundamental step you can’t skip: choosing a web hosting service. It’s the backbone of every successful blog.
The beauty of it? Most hosting companies have affiliate programs. This allows you to recommend their services, which you’ll use firsthand and earn a commission. The best part? People are generally reluctant to change their hosting providers. This means a consistent and recurring commission income for you.
Here are some of the best web hosting affiliates.
#1. Cloudways
Cloudways offers managed hosting packages for digital agencies, small and mid-sized businesses, and web developers. With its hosting, users can easily scale WordPress blogs and Woocommerce stores. Plus, the company offers 24/7 tech support. As an affiliate, you’ll earn $30 per sale and 7% monthly recurring commissions (or up to $125 per sale).
#2. Kinsta
Kinsta has 10 subscription tiers so that a business or blog of any size can find the right plan. It’s beginner-friendly, yet has features suitable for advanced web developers. Kinsta boasts a low 4% churn rate (the percentage of customers who cancel their subscriptions each month), making its affiliate program a powerful source of recurring income. Pays up to $500 per initial purchase, then a 10% monthly recurring commission.
#3. Nestify
Nestify offers hosting plans for WordPress and Woocommerce users. The company provides 24/7 tech support and monitors sites for hacks (and fixes them for free if they occur). Pays $50 per sign up, then an undisclosed monthly recurring commission rate.
Pro Tip: As your blog’s audience grows in size and you have the ability to drive more traffic to your partners, don’t be afraid to negotiate for higher commission rates and better terms.
#4. Rose Hosting
Rose Hosting offers fully-managed cloud-based web hosting solutions. Their web hosting plan starts at $7.95 per month, but users can upgrade to Linux VPS or cloud-based hosting if they need more memory and customization. Pays a 10% monthly recurring commission (which increases to 15% after 30 referrals) and monthly performance bonuses.
#5. JixHost
JixHost is an affordable web hosting option with excellent customer service and several plans available. They specialize in e-commerce sites, but blogs can use their hosting as well. JixHost also has a website builder with several templates in case users don’t want to utilize WordPress. Pays a 20% monthly recurring commission.
If you’re looking for ways to make money as a blogger, or you’re having trouble figuring out how to monetize your existing blog, sign up for my free 14-lesson email course. It covers a wide range of topics, including everything from the basics (like how to choose a good domain name) to advanced monetization strategies.
Affiliate Networks
Affiliate networks are middlemen that connect bloggers (publishers) with companies looking to sell products (merchants). Through these networks, you have access to dozens or even hundreds of affiliate programs in one place.
Each merchant on an affiliate network pays a different commission rate, but they’ll either pay you a percentage commission or a flat fee for each sale.
#1. FlexOffers
FlexOffers is one of the largest affiliate networks, with over 12,000 merchants in several niches using their services. It has detailed reporting features to help affiliate marketers monitor their performance and identify ways to improve. FlexOffers also has a referral program where you can refer new publishers to the platform and earn up to 50% of the revenue they earn. This can add up to a large income stream fast.
#2. MaxBounty
To join MaxBounty, you’ll have to participate in a phone interview to discuss your website. It’s what’s known as a cost-per-action network, meaning you can earn for actions other than sales (such as generating a lead), depending on the affiliate program. It also offers free training to help you learn the ropes of affiliate marketing and increase your sales.
By referring an affiliate to their program, you’ll get 5% of their first-year sales.
#3. CJ Affiliate
CJ Affiliate is one of the oldest and largest affiliate networks. Through its network, you can become an affiliate for large brands like Barnes & Noble and Office Depot. Qualified influencers gain access to higher commission rates and more prestigious brands. If being an influencer is your aim, CJ Affiliate can help you earn a healthy income.
#4. JV Zoo
Every product on JVZoo lists its conversion and earnings-per-click stats so that you save time picking the best offers. Plus, JVZoo keeps you on top of your earnings, notifying you of each sale and paying commissions to your affiliate account the moment you earn them. You can also refer other affiliates to JVZoo and earn a portion of their commissions.
#5. Rakuten Advertising
Rakuten Advertising works hard to help you make more affiliate sales. It sends out insight-filled newsletters, holds webinars, creates video tutorials and offers 24/7 affiliate support. Advanced automation and reporting features help you work less and personalize your content to your audience.
WordPress-Related Affiliates
WordPress is a dominant force in the content management system (CMS) market. The software powers not only blogs, but over 35% of all sites on the web.
Consequently, there are several WordPress-related affiliate programs for themes, plugins and technical support. If your site is on WordPress, you may already be using some of these products.
#1. Thrive Themes
To become an affiliate, you have to complete an application quiz, and Thrive must accept you into the program. Thrive Themes is a suite of conversion-focused WordPress themes. They are renowned for their intuitive theme builder and drag-and-drop editor, which can be used to enhance a blog’s look without coding knowledge.
They also have a full suite of products to enhance a website and its marketing, from quiz builders to online course creation to landing page A/B testing tools and more. Pays 35% per sale, then a 25% recurring commission for annual memberships.
#2. Elegant Themes
Elegant Themes is most well-known for Divi, its industry-leading drag-and-drop page builder. Divi also offers over 1,000 pre-made templates for websites in several niches. One Elegant Themes subscription gains users access to all of these products and features. Pays 50% per sale, then a 50% recurring commission for annual subscriptions.
#3. Zen WP
Zen WP provides consulting and support for all things WordPress. They can help with configuring a website, fixing technical problems, improving SEO, strengthening website security and more. Affiliate commissions accrue within a day. Pays an 8% monthly recurring commission, and there’s a $3,000 bonus for every 100th referral.
#4. Access WP
Access WP offers unlimited WordPress support to its customers, starting at $99 per month. Customers just have to send Access WP an email describing what needs to be fixed. An upgraded subscription provides updates for WordPress and plugins, as well as malware removal and website security services. Pays a 10% monthly recurring commission.
#5. MemberMouse
MemberMouse is a comprehensive WordPress plugin for managing an online business. Features include customer management, upsells/downsells, members-only content creation, customer support automation and reporting and analytics tools. Affiliate commissions are paid through PayPal. The rate is 25% monthly recurring for one year.
Social Media Management Affiliates
Around 3 billion people are on at least one form of social media — meaning you also need to be there to maximize revenue.
But managing your presence across every social media platform can be a challenge. That’s where social media management tools come into play. Use these to drive traffic to your blog, then leverage their affiliate programs to earn commissions.
#1. Tailwind
Tailwind is a Pinterest and Instagram scheduling tool. On Instagram, Tailwind’s SmartSchedule feature finds the best times to schedule posts for optimal engagement. As for Pinterest, users can schedule a week’s worth of pins in 20 minutes to ensure pins get the most traffic. The visual natures of Instagram and Pinterest can catch readers’ eyes and draw them to a blog, and Tailwind makes it possible to publish more visual content on these platforms in less time. Pays a 15% monthly recurring commission.
#2. Crowdfire
Crowdfire is a one-stop tool for scheduling and publishing content across all your social media channels. You can tailor one post to each social media channel to fit that channel’s format and feel. Additionally, you can create a custom newsfeed to find and share articles your audience will love. With Crowdfire, you can take advantage of social media’s traffic potential without logging into each of your accounts. Pays 35% of customer billings for one year.
#3. AgoraPulse
AgoraPulse not only lets you bulk schedule posts across all your social media accounts, but you can manage comments, mentions, messages and other forms of communication with your brand. Plus, project management tools let you assign responsibility for any of these to up to six team members. Reporting and CRM features make tracking your growth easy.
The affiliate program is technically available by invitation only, and you typically must be a brand partner or influencer with a clear audience in order to qualify. However, the link above takes you to a form where you can apply if you think you’d be an exceptional fit for the program. Pays 20% monthly recurring commissions.
#4. SocialPilot
SocialPilot has intuitive tools for scheduling and publishing posts, but it shines in the analytics department. Their PDF reports display content performance, find the best times to post, and even identify influencers. You can send these reports directly to teammates or employees so that everyone can make data-driven social media decisions that can lead to blog growth. Pays a 30% monthly recurring commission.
#5. SocialOomph
SocialOomph lets you schedule and upload posts for Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, Pinterest, Discord and more. The best part for bloggers, though, is that you can schedule blog posts across Shopify, Tumblr and WordPress. Pays 40% of all customer billings for one year.
SEO Affiliates
SEO is generally more cost-effective than paid ads, making it a great marketing strategy for bloggers. The SEO tools below can help you improve your position in Google’s index, drive more traffic to your site, and in turn drive more traffic to your partners.
#1. SEMRush
SEMrush offers an all-in-one SEO package for any business with a web presence. Features include keyword research, domain analytics, lead generation, project management, content creation and more. SEMrush also provides free online courses in their Academy that teach you how to use its tools — helpful for marketing their paid subscription to your readers. The affiliate program, which is called BeRush, pays a 40% monthly recurring commission.
#2. LongTail Pro
LongTail Pro is a keyword research tool that’s used for finding long-tail keywords that you can rank for with relative ease on Google, Bing and Yahoo. Pays a 30% monthly recurring commission.
#3. SEOPressor
Being a WordPress plugin, SEOPressor makes it easy to manage your website and monitor your SEO efforts on one screen. With SEOPressor, you can analyze on-page SEO and implement advanced tactics like schema markup and crawler control. That makes it an excellent plugin to promote to digital marketers and bloggers. The affiliate program, which is operated via ClickBank, pays a 50% monthly recurring commission.
#4. SpyFu
SpyFu helps you identify the best keywords for both organic and paid search traffic by spying on the competition. You can analyze your competitors’ most successful keywords, avoid paid keywords that don’t provide a high ROI, track your keyword rankings, manage backlinks and more. Pays a 40% monthly recurring commission.
#5. Linkody
Linkody helps you build quality links to your site to improve your SEO rankings. Aside from its dashboard, which allows for easy link and domain management, Linkody can analyze your links, notify you when you gain or lose links, monitor competitor links, and help you avoid bad links that could harm SEO. Pays a 30% monthly recurring commission.
Email Marketing Affiliates
Email marketing platforms let you manage your email list through list segmentation, automated emails, autoresponders and more. Plus, many now let you build landing pages, pop-up forms, and other parts of a sales funnel. In many cases, they provide a full-fledged marketing automation solution.
Plus, email marketing tools usually scale up in price with subscribers. That means you can make more money if you refer larger businesses.
#1. Aweber
Aweber offers several prebuilt email templates but also features an AI-powered assistant to help you craft custom email templates for your brand. Its powerful features, combined with a high recurring affiliate commission, make Aweber one of the best affiliate programs for bloggers. Pays a 30% monthly recurring commission.
#2. Benchmark
Benchmark is known for its automation features. You can set triggers for Benchmark to send emails based on a variety of customer actions, such as subscribing to your list. Additionally, Benchmark has helpful walkthroughs for each tool. Benchmark’s brand name makes it easy to sell potential customers on signing up. Pays 25% monthly recurring commissions.
#3. GetResponse
You can build an entire sales funnel with GetResponse, from landing pages to email automation to payment processing integration and more. If you don’t want to do the work yourself, GetResponse has several prebuilt campaign templates you can use. Pays a 33% monthly recurring commission and provides a 120-day cookie to help you maximize conversions.
#4. MailerLite
With MailerLite, you can craft beautiful emails using a drag-and-drop editor, HTML editor and a lot of templates, then send those emails to the right people with advanced targeting features. And if you blog about e-commerce or run a store, MailerLite has a suite of tools dedicated to selling online. Pays a 30% monthly recurring commission.
#5. Sendloop
Sendloop has email and other marketing solutions for marketing agencies, corporations, e-commerce stores and events/shows. It provides over 100 email templates and integrates with over 1,000 third-party applications. Sendloop customers can either opt for a monthly subscription or pay per 1,000 emails sent. The affiliate program pays a 10% monthly recurring commission.
Content Marketing Affiliates
Content marketing is the process of creating and distributing content via multiple online channels to educate your audience, build brand loyalty, and drive customers to buy. You and your readers may both be able to use some of the following tools to expand your respective businesses.
#1. Sumo
Sumo has a suite of tools for building your email list and marketing to it effectively, as well as for analytics and reporting. Their Shopify plugin has additional marketing features for e-commerce stores. If you run an e-commerce store alongside your blog, Sumo can boost your readership and sales. Pays a 30% monthly recurring commission.
#2. Ninja Outreach
Businesses can earn a lot through the strategic use of influencers. Ninja Outreach is an influencer marketing application that lets you browse a database of millions of influencers across several niches and use templates for easier influencer outreach. Using Ninja Outreach, you can find the right influencer to put your blog in front of more people. Pays a 20% monthly recurring commission.
#3. Get Site Control
Get Site Control is a collection of widgets and templates you can use to maximize your blog’s conversion rate. Features include opt-in forms, surveys, announcement pop-ups and feedback contact forms. You can create custom forms to notify readers of unique offers and reduce the number of customers that abandon purchases. Pays a 30% commission for one year.
Summary
Remember that trust is a core component of maximizing your affiliate sales. Pick one or two products from each category you like best, use them to grow your blog, and show your readers why they should become customers.
You’ll be able to speak authentically to your readers about the products you use. And, over time, your audience’s trust in you will grow.
When that happens, so will your passive income.
