9 Best B2B Affiliate Programs In 2024 (Top Offers)

On the face of it, B2B affiliate programs might not sound as enticing as their B2C counterparts.

Because business products are boring, right? Factor in longer sales cycles, and it’s not hard to see why some affiliate marketers are put off.

But here’s something that might change your mind: in the US alone, business-to-business ecommerce sales are expected to reach $1.8 trillion by the end of 2023. That’s a considerable sum. And it’s just a fraction of total B2B sales.

Moreover, because B2B products and services tend to be expensive, commission rates are generally (much) higher than the average B2C affiliate program.

Do you have a business-friendly audience? Looking to turn your affiliate traffic into clicks and cash? Dive into our data-driven review of the best affiliate programs in the B2B world…

B2B Affiliate Programs

1. Shopify
2. Cloudways
3. MailerLite
4. QuickBooks
5. Notion
6. HubSpot
7. Time etc
8. FreshBooks
9. Semrush

1 Shopify

There are an estimated 12 – 24 million ecommerce stores worldwide, and the numbers keep growing every day. By 2026, those stores are expected to generate revenues of $8.1 trillion. 

With so much business floating around, online retailers need a robust ecommerce platform. About one in four have selected Shopify, making it the second-most popular solution on the market.

Millions of ecommerce merchants across 170+ countries use Shopify to power their online stores, with the platform generating over $444 billion of global economic activity to date.

Shopify’s affiliate program pays commissions of $150 – $500, depending on the type of service you sell (learn more about commission rates in our Shopify affiliate program review). Its 30-day EPC is $12.36, higher than any other program in Impact’s B2B category.

But heads up – Shopify won’t just accept any affiliate marketer. To get in, you’ll need an active website with an established audience, create original and relevant content, and have experience using Shopify or another ecommerce platform.

• URL: Shopify affiliate program
• Managed by: Impact
• Commission rate: $150 – $500 per sale
• Cookie duration: 14 days
• Products/Services sold: Ecommerce software
• Payment methods: PayPal, direct deposit
• Market(s): Global
• Additional resources: Deep linking, creative assets, lead magnets, 

2 Cloudways

It’s hard to imagine a business that could thrive today without a website, which explains why the global web hosting market is expected to be worth $183.05 billion by 2027.

One of the industry’s leading players is Cloudways, a cloud hosting provider trusted by 80,000+ agencies, developers, and businesses. G2 rates it as the #1 hosting provider for small and medium businesses and has an industry-leading NPS of 73, so it’s clearly good at keeping customers happy.

Cloudways operates one of our favorite recurring affiliate programs, with its “Hybrid” model offering a $30 bounty payment plus 30% lifetime commissions. Cloudways cites an “industry beating” churn rate of <3%, so there’s a good chance your referrals will keep paying — which means more recurring commissions.

Alternatively, affiliates can choose the “Slab” model, which pays $50 – $125 per sale, based on volume. 

Experienced affiliate marketers who are confident of consistently driving high numbers of referrals (like 50+ per month) will be slightly better off with the Slab approach. But for everyone else, Hybrid looks the better option.

• URL: Cloudways affiliate program
• Managed by: In-house
• Commission rate: Up to $125, or $30 per sale + 7% lifetime commission
• Cookie duration: 90 days
• Products/Services sold: Cloud hosting plans
• Payment methods: Unlisted
• Market(s): Global
• Additional resources: Promotional banners, exclusive deals, seasonal campaigns, dedicated affiliate manager, onboarding emails and guides, monthly affiliate marketing newsletters, landing pages

3 MailerLite

Email is a key element of almost every B2B marketing strategy. And it’s easy to see why, with the channel delivering an average ROI of 36:1. 

That explains the popularity of tools like MailerLite, an email marketing platform that helps businesses create emails, landing pages, signup forms, and automation to supercharge their audience and revenue growth.

The good people at EmailToolTester rate MailerLite 5/5 for ease of use and also named it “one of the more affordable email providers on the market,” making it ideal for businesses with smaller marketing budgets and limited technical expertise.

Join the company’s in-house affiliate marketing program to earn a 30% recurring commission on every sale. This will allow you to turn consistent monthly sales into a decent passive income stream.

• URL: MailerLite affiliate program
• Managed by: In-house
• Commission rate: 30% recurring commissions
• Cookie duration: Unlisted
• Products/Services sold: Email marketing tools
• Payment methods: Paypal
• Market(s): Global
• Additional resources: Professional branding and marketing assets, dedicated partner support, affiliate dashboard

4 QuickBooks

Small business owners spend almost five hours per pay period calculating, filing, and paying payroll taxes — equivalent to 21 days a year. So it’s easy to see why many businesses seek more efficient alternatives.

QuickBooks is one such alternative. With a 28% market share, it’s America’s most popular accounting platform. It also owns QuickBooks Payroll, an affordable payroll service used by more than one million businesses.

This is one of our favorite B2B affiliate programs because it allows you to earn commissions for free trials. That’s right: you get $5 per trial of the company’s payroll software, even if your referrals never pay QuickBooks a single cent. Of course, higher earnings are available if those free trialists convert into paying customers.

Speaking of which, QuickBooks boasts excellent conversion rates of up to 7% and a sky-high three-month EPC of $204, placing it firmly in the top five “productivity tools” on the CJ Affiliate network regarding potential earnings.

• URL: QuickBooks affiliate program
• Managed by: CJ Affiliate
• Commission rate: $5 per free trial signup, $50 per sale
• Cookie duration: 45 days
• Products/Services sold: Accounting and payroll software
• Payment methods: Check, direct deposit, Payoneer
• Market(s): US only
• Additional resources: Affiliate-exclusive discount codes

5 Notion

If you spend as much time in front of screens as we do, you’ll have noticed that practically every task requires a different tool (and a different browser tab). You might use Slack for communication, Google Drive for writing, and Trello for project management… and that’s just for starters.

Enter Notion, a productivity tool that aims to combine many of those elements into an “all-in-one workspace,” incorporating product roadmaps, design repositories, task lists, and more. It’s been backed by prominent investors like AngelList founder Naval Ravikant and has even become an unlikely viral sensation on TikTok.

Notion is another brand operating a recurring affiliate program. It offers affiliate partners a generous 50% cut of their referrals’ spending for the first 12 months.

With business plans starting at $15 per user per month, selling a 10-person Notion package will earn you monthly commissions of $75+ for a year.

• URL: Notion affiliate program
• Managed by: PartnerStack
• Commission rate: 50% recurring revenue for 12 months
• Cookie duration: 90 days
• Products/Services sold: Project management and productivity software
• Payment methods: PayPal, Stripe
• Market(s): Global
• Additional resources: Promotional best practices, guides, videos

6 HubSpot

The global marketing automation niche is expected to be worth over $12 billion by 2030 — and HubSpot is the single biggest player, with a market share of 37.35%.

But automation is only one of many feathers in HubSpot’s metaphorical cap. The platform also helps business users run email marketing campaigns, manage information on leads and customers through its CRM suite, and deliver better customer service.

HubSpot’s sales, marketing, customer service, CMS, and operations tools can be purchased as standalone products. But they really come into their own when bought as a package, which means lots of upselling and cross-selling opportunities.

Like CloudWays, HubSpot’s B2B affiliate program offers two payment models: 100% of the first month’s revenue or 15% recurring commissions for 12 months.

With price plans ranging from $50 – $3,000+ per month, HubSpot boasts an average payout of $276, making this one of the highest-paying B2B affiliate programs.

• URL: HubSpot affiliate program
• Managed by: Impact
• Commission rate: 100% of first month’s revenue or 15% recurring commissions for 12 months
• Cookie duration: 90 days
• Products/Services sold: Email marketing software, marketing automation, CRM
• Payment methods: PayPal, check, wire transfer, direct deposit, ACH transfer
• Market(s): Global
• Additional resources: Deep product linking

7 Time etc

According to Asana, the average business leader loses almost two-thirds of each workday to repetitive, mundane tasks.

That’s where Time etc comes in, connecting business owners and entrepreneurs with US-based executive assistants who can handle all those distracting, low-value activities — at a fraction of the cost of a full-time assistant.

To date, the company claims to have helped 22,000+ customers save over 1.5 million hours of lost productivity, freeing them up to play golf (or whatever executives actually do with their time).

For each customer you refer through Time etc’s affiliate program, you’ll earn $250. Best of all, payments are instant: you get your commission when someone becomes a paying client.

• URL: Time etc affiliate program
• Managed by: ShareASale
• Commission rate: $250 per sale
• Cookie duration: 90 days
• Products/Services sold: Virtual assistants
• Payment methods: Check, direct deposit, international direct deposit, wire transfer, Payoneer
• Market(s): Global
• Additional resources: Banners, bonus campaigns, coupons and deals, affiliate marketing newsletters, dedicated affiliate and publisher support team

8 FreshBooks

Like QuickBooks, FreshBooks is one of the leading service providers in the accounting software market, with over 30 million customers using its tools to save up to $7,000 in billable hours per year.

FreshBooks prides itself on customer service, with its support team achieving a rating of 4.8/5 from more than 120,000 reviews.

The platform’s tools integrate with more than 100 other apps, helping businesses improve collaboration and streamline accounting and invoicing processes. 

Want a helpful “hook” for your sales messaging? FreshBooks offers a free trial of its services, making it easier to close the deal. Best of all, you earn up to $10 for each trial you refer — and if those trialists go on to become paying customers, you’ll receive up to $200 per sale.

FreshBooks boasts one of the highest EPCs of any B2B affiliate program we’ve seen, at $258.32, so there’s plenty of earning potential here. It also offers a super-long 120-day cookie window, allowing plenty of time for your clicks to convert into sales.

• URL: FreshBooks affiliate program
• Managed by: ShareASale
• Commission rate: Up to $10 for free sign-ups, up to $200 per sale
• Cookie duration: 120 days
• Products/Services sold: Accounting software
• Payment methods: Check, direct deposit, international direct deposit, wire transfer, Payoneer
• Market(s): Various
• Additional resources: Creative assets, affiliate marketing newsletters

9 Semrush

Last up is another digital marketing platform, Semrush. 

Whereas MailerLite and HubSpot are built around automation and email marketing, Semrush is (largely) about search engine optimization, having won 21 international awards for “best SEO software suite.”

However, it also offers social media, PPC, content marketing, and competitive analysis tools, leading one reviewer to describe it as “like a keyword research tool, Google Trends, Moz, Hootsuite, and SimilarWeb in one.” Over 10 million marketing pros, including 30% of Fortune 500s, use Semrush as their go-to marketing tool.

Semrush’s affiliate program theoretically boasts one of the longest cookie windows we’ve seen in any niche at 370 days, putting most affiliate programs to shame. In other words, even if someone takes a full year to convert after clicking your unique affiliate link, you still get paid.

Its commission rates are pretty generous too, at $10 per free trial and $200 per sale.

The only “catch” is that your referrals must sign up for a free account within 120 days — otherwise, you’re ineligible for free trial or paid subscription commissions.

• URL: Semrush affiliate program
• Managed by: Impact
• Commission rate: $10 per free trial sign-up, $200 per subscription sale
• Cookie duration: 370 days
• Products/Services sold: Digital marketing tools
• Payment methods: PayPal, check, wire transfer, direct deposit, ACH transfer
• Market(s): Various
• Additional resources: Dedicated account managers, unique promo codes, deep product linking, detailed product catalog

Conclusion

B2B sales are complex affairs.

For instance, Gartner research found the average buying team spends over 16 months planning and completing a new IT purchase. 

To succeed in B2B affiliate marketing, you need to be seen as a trustworthy (and impartial) subject-matter expert who understands the needs and pain points of your target audience. In short, you need to build an affiliate website packed full of the types of information B2B buyers are searching for.

Sure, that takes time, effort, and money. But we can help.

Sign up for our free training to learn seven secrets for creating high-converting affiliate websites — including one tried-and-trusted tactic for building fast sites that rank quickly.

See you there!