- Startup cost
- $0 to $6 a month
- Income type
- Commission per sale
- Amazon commission
- 0% to 10% by category
- Amazon tracking window
- 24 hours after the click
- Skill level
- Beginner
- Amazon pays a fixed rate by category: 10% for luxury beauty, 3% for headphones and home, 1% for grocery and consoles, 4% for categories not listed1.
- An Amazon click earns only if the viewer orders within 24 hours, or adds the product to the cart in that time and orders within 89 days2.
- Software pays more per sale: HubSpot publishes 30% recurring for up to a year, Kit 50% for 12 months, Semrush $100 to $300 a sale121314.
- In the worked example, 10,000 views earn $1.80 to $28.80 on a $60 Amazon product at 3%, and $25 to $400 on a $100-a-sale software offer.
How affiliate marketing with video works
A merchant runs an affiliate programme. You join, receive a link that carries your identifier, and place it next to a video that helps someone decide what to buy. When a viewer clicks and orders inside the tracking window, the merchant pays you a share of the sale or a fixed amount. You hold no stock, and the viewer pays the normal price.
The study, published by the Performance Marketing Association in June 2025, also found retail’s share of affiliate spending falling from 76% to 63%15. To compare commission with advertising income, read how much YouTube pays; to be paid a fee for the video itself, read how to become a UGC creator.
What affiliate programmes pay: the published rates
These figures come from each company’s own programme page, read in October 2026. Terms change, so check the source first.
| Programme | Published commission | Tracking window |
|---|---|---|
| Amazon Associates | 0% to 10% of the order by category1 | 24 hours; 89 days for a product added to the cart in that time2 |
| YouTube Shopping affiliate program | Set by each brand or retailer, per product7 | Set by the brand or retailer7 |
| TikTok Shop affiliate | Set by the seller, from 1% to 80%10 | Check the product page |
| Shopify | Up to $150 per qualified referral11 | 30 days11 |
| HubSpot | 30% recurring for up to one year12 | 180 days12 |
| Semrush | $100 to $300 per sale, $10 per free trial13 | 120 days13 |
| Kit | 50% of the customer’s payments for 12 months14 | Not stated |
Amazon Associates commission by category
| Product category | Standard rate |
|---|---|
| Luxury Beauty | 10% |
| Music, handmade, digital videos | 5% |
| Physical books, kitchen, automotive | 4.5% |
| Apparel, shoes, watches, luggage, Amazon devices | 4% |
| All other categories | 4% |
| Toys, furniture, home, pets, headphones, beauty | 3% |
| Outdoors, tools, sports, baby, musical instruments | 3% |
| PC, PC components | 2.5% |
| Televisions, digital video games | 2% |
| Grocery, health, physical games and consoles | 1% |
| Gift cards, wireless plans, alcohol | 0% |
On a $100 order, a console review earns $1 and a luxury beauty review $10. Check the category before you choose a niche.
Source: Amazon Associates Program Standard Commission Income Statement, read October 20261
The rate follows the category of what the viewer buys. Amazon pays about 60 days after the end of the month, once you reach $10 for a bank deposit2. A new account needs at least three qualified sales in its first 180 days, and personal orders do not count4.
YouTube Shopping and TikTok Shop
To tag other brands’ products on YouTube, as of October 2026 you must be in the YouTube Partner Program, meet its subscriber threshold and be based in the United States, South Korea, Indonesia, India, Thailand, Vietnam, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore, Brazil, Taiwan or Japan6; YouTube’s page on the programme’s earnings also lists Argentina and Mexico7. The eligibility page gives no subscriber number. YouTube’s page on programme changes says YouTube Shopping opens at 500 subscribers plus 3,000 watch hours in a year or 3 million Shorts views in 90 days, without saying whether that includes the affiliate side22, so check the Earn tab in YouTube Studio. Ad revenue needs 1,000 subscribers plus 4,000 hours or 10 million Shorts views today8, and 8,000 hours or 20 million for channels applying from 1 February 202722. YouTube pays 60 to 120 days after the purchase and reverses the commission on a return7.
TikTok Shop in the United States asks affiliate creators to be at least 18 with at least 1,000 followers9. The seller chooses the commission for each product10.
From views to commission: a worked model
A video earns through four steps: views, clicks on the link, orders, and the commission on each order. The sources cited here publish no measured benchmark for the middle two, so this model uses labelled assumptions. Replace them with your own numbers after a month.
| Step | Low | Middle | High |
|---|---|---|---|
| Views | 10,000 | 10,000 | 10,000 |
| Viewers who click (assumption) | 0.5% | 1% | 2% |
| Clicks | 50 | 100 | 200 |
| A: clicks that order on Amazon (assumption) | 2% | 4% | 8% |
| A: orders at $60 each (assumption) | 1 = $60 | 4 = $240 | 16 = $960 |
| A: commission at 3%, the headphones rate1 | $1.80 | $7.20 | $28.80 |
| B: clicks that buy software (assumption) | 0.5% | 1% | 2% |
| B: sales | 0.25 | 1 | 4 |
| B: commission at $100 a sale13 | $25 | $100 | $400 |
Amazon bars are $240 of sales at each category rate; the software bar is one sale. The click and order rates are assumptions, not benchmarks.
Arithmetic from the middle case in the table; rates from Amazon1 and Semrush, lowest published amount13
Make videos that people find by searching months later. And reach viewers who are ready to buy within Amazon’s 24 hours, such as people comparing two named products2.
Video formats that convert, and where the link goes
| Format | The viewer’s question | Shape | Where the link goes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Review | Is it good after real use? | 16:9 | Top of the description and a pinned comment |
| Comparison | Which of these two? | 16:9 | Both links, in the order you discuss them |
| Tutorial | How do I do this job with it? | 16:9 | Description, above the chapter list |
| Best X for Y | What suits someone like me? | 16:9 | One numbered link per pick |
| Unboxing | What arrives, and how does it look? | 16:9 or 9:16 | Description, or the product link on a TikTok Shop video9 |
| Short | What is the one reason to care? | 9:16 | Related video link to the full review21, product tag or profile link |
On YouTube Shorts, a related video appears as a clickable link below your channel handle and needs advanced feature access21. Use it to send each short to the full review. Say where the link is and show it: a text call-out near the verdict, and a QR code for viewers on a television.
What you need and what it costs
- The product. Buy it, borrow it or use the free trial. The FTC says you cannot describe an experience with a product you have not tried16.
- A camera, a microphone and a computer. The editor runs in desktop Chrome, Edge, Brave and Firefox.
- Programme accounts. Amazon accepts YouTube, TikTok and Instagram pages and expects, in most cases, at least 500 organic followers4.
The Free plan covers recording, the editor, templates and charts, and exports 1080p with a small watermark. Starter at $6 a month removes the watermark and includes 300 minutes of AI time. See pricing.
The workflow in CutLuma: record and edit one review
Before you record, write the verdict in one sentence, three things you liked, two you did not, and who should not buy. Score every product on the same four or five criteria.
- Record the opening to cameraOpen the teleprompter, or go to the Record tab, choose Camera and tick Teleprompter. Paste the script, set the speed and text size, and record. Say the disclosure straight after the hook.
- Record the demoFor software, choose Studio recording in the Record tab, leave Camera bubble and Microphone on, pick 16:9 and click Choose what to record. After you press Stop, smart zoom follows your clicks and long pauses are cut. For a physical product, film on your phone and drop the files in. The screen recorder and webcam recorder are free.
- Trim to the argumentPress S to split at the playhead, select what you do not need and press Shift+Delete. Keep the verdict in the first minute.
- Put the disclosure on screenOpen the Text tab, click a style and type the line from the disclosure section. Place the clip over the seconds where you say it. See add text to video.
- Show the scores as a chartOpen the Elements tab, go to Charts and pick a bar chart. Type the scores or press Paste from a spreadsheet. Five rows read well on a phone. See animated charts.
- Add the link call-out and a QR codeAdd a text clip that says where the link is. In the Elements tab, click QR code, type the link, pick the colours and scan it on the preview. The link can be changed later.
- Add captionsIn the Text tab, open Auto captions (paid plans), choose the language and a style, and generate. Correct product names. Auto captions use about one AI minute per minute of speech.
- ExportClick Export and download the MP4. CutLuma does not post for you: upload it to YouTube yourself.
For a comparison or a “best X for Y” video, open the Templates tab and search for Top 5 ranking, Pros & cons or “review”, or browse the list and tips templates.
- Claims. Every statement is something you measured or the maker can prove16.
- Disclosure. Spoken, on screen, before the first recommendation.
- Link. It opens the right product in a private window.
Turn the review into shorts and publish it
- Find the moments with Magic ClipsIn the AI tools tab, click Turn a long video into short clips. Choose how many clips (3, 5, 8, 10 or 12), a length (15–35, 30–60 or 55–90 seconds, or Any) and the spoken language, then click Find the best clips. Open the highest-scored clips as 9:16 projects. Magic Clips is on paid plans and uses about one AI minute per minute of speech.
- Disclose again on every shortA short is seen without the long video. Add a text clip with the disclosure in the first seconds.
- Make a product short from a shop pageFor a product on a brand’s own shop, click Make an ad from a product link in the AI tools tab, paste the page and click Fetch product. Rewrite the Opening line and the benefits as your own opinion, then click Build my video. If the shop blocks it, start from a template with your own photos. See product link to video ad.
- Resize for each platformClick an empty part of the timeline and choose 9:16, 1:1, 4:5 or 16:9 under Format, then Fill or Fit. Resize video is free.
- Write the description with the publish kitClick the share icon next to Export, pick YouTube and copy the title, the description with chapters and the hashtags. Paste your disclosure line and links above it yourself. A publish kit uses about one AI minute.
- Translate for another marketIn the AI tools tab, click Translate the whole video and choose A copy per language. Translate video covers 17 languages at about a minute or two of AI time each. Check that the programme pays for sales in that country.
Post the shorts over the following days; see short video monetization for what platforms pay for them.
Disclosure wording you can copy
The FTC says a financial relationship with a brand must be disclosed with the endorsement itself, and in a video that means in the video, not just in the description16. A spoken and shown endorsement needs a spoken and shown disclosure, and the words “affiliate link” alone may not tell viewers you are paid17.
| Where | Wording to copy | Note |
|---|---|---|
| Spoken, in the first 30 seconds | I earn a commission if you buy through the links below. The opinions are mine. | If the product was free, say so too |
| On screen, while you say it | I earn a commission from the links | Large type, long enough to read16 |
| First line of the description | I earn a commission if you buy through the links below. | Above the links |
| Amazon: channel page and description | As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases. | Required by the Operating Agreement3 |
| Next to each Amazon link | (paid link) | Accepted by Amazon, as is #ad5 |
| Shorts, Reels and TikTok | Ad: I earn a commission from this link | Each short needs its own line |
- YouTube. In the video details, open Show more and tick the paid promotion box when a video contains endorsements or other commercial relationships; YouTube adds a label at the start19. If you are unsure whether an affiliate video counts, tick it.
- The platform label is not enough. The FTC says a platform’s tool is no guarantee of an effective disclosure17.
- United Kingdom. The ASA treats an influencer who uses an affiliate link or code as an advertiser, prefers a label such as “Ad” upfront, and says “aff”, “sp” and “spon” are likely to be insufficient20.
Getting the first viewers and the first sales
Buying questions are typed into a search box, so use the buyer’s words in the title: the full product name, the model, the year and the job.
- Review: “[Product] review after 30 days: what I would change”
- Comparison: “[Product A] vs [Product B]: which one for [job]”
- Best X for Y: “Best [category] for [person or budget] in 2026 (tested)”
Start with one niche where you already use the products, and publish several videos around one buying decision. A faceless channel can follow the same plan.
A 30-day plan
| Week | What you do | Output |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Pick one niche and five products you can test. Join Amazon Associates and one programme with a higher payout. Add Amazon’s sentence to your channel page3. | 2 accounts, 5 products |
| 2 | Publish the first review with captions, a score chart, a link call-out and a publish kit description. Cut three shorts. | 1 review, 3 shorts |
| 3 | Publish a comparison with the closest rival and a tutorial. Cut three shorts from each. | 2 videos, 6 shorts |
| 4 | Publish a “best X for Y” list that links to all three. Read clicks, orders and commission per video in the programme reports. | 1 list, 3 shorts, your own rates |
After a month you have four long videos, about twelve shorts and your own click and order rates. Put them into the worked model before you plan the next month.
Risks, rules and mistakes
- Commission cuts. Amazon can change its terms at any time3. YouTube says its current commission share is an incentive that may be reduced with 30 days’ notice7. A TikTok Shop seller’s rate change takes effect 30 days after the edit10.
- One programme. One rate change can remove your income; add a second programme early.
- Claims. You cannot make claims that need proof the advertiser does not have16. Take most care with health, finance and earnings.
- Country limits. YouTube Shopping affiliate and TikTok Shop are open only in listed countries69.
- Tax. Commission is income; declare it under your country’s rules.
FAQ
How much does Amazon pay affiliates for a video review?
A percentage of the order that depends on the category: 0% for gift cards, 1% for grocery and consoles, up to 10% for luxury beauty, and 4% for categories not listed1. A $100 pair of headphones at 3% pays $3.
How long does an Amazon affiliate link last?
One click can earn for 24 hours. If the viewer adds the product to the cart in that time, the order can count for up to 89 days2.
Do I need subscribers to start affiliate marketing on YouTube?
Not for links in a description. Amazon expects a social page with, in most cases, at least 500 organic followers4. YouTube’s own Shopping affiliate program requires the YouTube Partner Program and a listed country6; YouTube Shopping opens at 500 subscribers plus a watch-time threshold22.
Do I have to say that my links are affiliate links?
Yes. The FTC expects a clear disclosure in the video itself, not only in the description16. Amazon requires its own sentence3, and the UK’s ASA expects a label such as “Ad” upfront20.
What does it cost to make affiliate videos in CutLuma?
Recording, editing, templates and charts are free, with a small watermark on exports. Starter at $6 a month removes it and includes 300 AI minutes; the 10-minute review in the example above uses about 25.
Sources
- Amazon Associates — Associates Program Standard Commission Income Statement (read October 2026)
- Amazon Associates — Associates Program Policies: sessions, payment, participation requirements (read October 2026)
- Amazon Associates — Operating Agreement, updated 15 October 2025
- Amazon Associates Help — Application Review Process (read October 2026)
- Amazon Associates Help — Why do I have to identify myself as an Associate? How should I do this on social media? (read October 2026)
- YouTube Help — YouTube Shopping eligibility, including the affiliate program (2026)
- YouTube Help — Understand commission rates & earnings in the YouTube Shopping affiliate program (2026)
- YouTube Help — YouTube Partner Program overview & eligibility (2026)
- TikTok Shop Academy (US) — What You Need to Know Before Becoming a TikTok Shop Creator (2026)
- TikTok Shop Academy (US) — Setting Up Affiliate Collaborations (July 2026)
- Shopify — Shopify Affiliate Program (read October 2026)
- HubSpot — HubSpot Affiliate Program (read October 2026)
- Semrush — Semrush Affiliate Program (read October 2026)
- Kit — Kit Affiliate Program (read October 2026)
- Performance Marketing Association — PMA Study: Affiliate Marketing Industry Grows 49.8% (18 June 2025, data for 2024)
- US Federal Trade Commission — Disclosures 101 for Social Media Influencers
- US Federal Trade Commission — FTC’s Endorsement Guides: What People Are Asking
- US Federal Trade Commission — FTC Publishes Inflation-Adjusted Civil Penalty Amounts for 2025 (11 February 2025)
- YouTube Help — Add paid product placements, sponsorships & endorsements (2026)
- UK Advertising Standards Authority / CAP — Recognising ads: Social media and influencer marketing (6 August 2026)
- YouTube Help — Add a related video to your YouTube Shorts (2026)
- YouTube Help — Changes to the YouTube Partner Program (thresholds from 1 February 2027)
The figures on this page are published ranges and worked examples, not promises of income. What you earn depends on your niche, your skills and how consistently you work. Platform rules and rates change: check the linked sources before you rely on a number.
