Amazon is the world’s biggest online retailer and the most popular affiliate network, with 58.5% of affiliate marketers using it, according to our affiliate marketing statistics.
Despite its popularity, there are plenty of great Amazon affiliate alternatives you can use to increase your commissions beyond what you’re getting from Amazon.
We’ve spent the past decade building affiliate sites in countless niches, and leaned heavily on Amazon at times.
But we’ve also made money from hundreds of other advertisers, so we’re qualified to recommend alternative affiliate programs and networks that match Amazon’s product selection and brand recognition.
Read on to discover which Amazon affiliate alternatives will work best for your website.
Amazon Affiliate Alternatives
- eBay
- Etsy
- The Home Depot
- AliExpress
- Kohl’s
- Walmart
- Target
- Lowe’s
- Wayfair
- ShareASale
- CJ Affiliate
- Awin
- Rakuten
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1 eBay
Not many ecommerce sites can rival Amazon’s sheer range of products, but eBay is definitely a contender, with an eye-watering 1.4 billion product listings across dozens of categories.
While eBay made its name as an auction site for “pre-loved” items, things have changed. Today, 80% of products sold on the platform are brand new, and 90% can be bought immediately (that is, without an auction). That makes eBay a genuine Amazon affiliate alternative.
The company’s affiliate program — the eBay Partner Network — has the same lousy 24-hour cookie window as the Amazon Associates Program. However, its commission rates differ, paying more than Amazon in certain categories and less in others. For instance:
| Product category | eBay commission | Amazon commission |
|---|---|---|
| Alcohol | 3% | 0% |
| Health | 4% | 1% |
| Physical books | 3% | 4.5% |
Check your niche’s commissions before making a decision.
- URL: eBay affiliate program
- Commission rate: 1% – 4% per sale
- Cookie duration: 24 hours
- Payment methods: PayPal, electronic funds transfer
- Payout threshold: $10
- Products/services sold: Consumer electronics, collectibles, home & garden, fashion, toys, health and beauty products, and more
👉 Read more: eBay Affiliate Program Review
2 Etsy
While it can’t compete with Amazon and eBay on product volume, Etsy stands out by focusing on one-of-a-kind creative goods. This has helped it become the go-to destination for unique gifts.
Note: Etsy still has a vast range by the standards of most online retailers, with 60+ million products available across 40+ categories, including jewelry, clothing, and party supplies.)
Etsy’s affiliate program is managed through Awin and pays a standard 4% commission on online sales, which matches or beats most comparable commission rates from Amazon.
Where Etsy really stands out is its 30-day cookie duration (or seven days for in-app referrals). This provides more leeway for visitors to consider a purchase and still land you a commission.
- URL: Etsy affiliate program
- Commission rate: 4% per sale
- Cookie duration: 30 days (or 7 days for in-app sales)
- Payment methods: SEPA, BACS, ACH, domestic payments, international wire transfer
- Payout threshold: $20
- Products/services sold: Unique and creative goods
👉 See also: Etsy Affiliate Program Review
3 The Home Depot
Sure, Amazon stocks more products across more categories than anyone else.
But if you’re specifically looking for home improvement goods or services, The Home Depot is the clear winner. Its online store carries over one million DIY-related products, and it controls one-third of the market share in online and offline home improvement sales:
The Home Depot has two Amazon alternative programs. Both are managed through the Impact affiliate network.
The “standard” version offers 1% on appliances and 8% on home decor and improvement products, while the other pays fixed cash amounts for appointments and leads related to The Home Depot’s home improvement services (such as HVAC and cabinet makeovers).
| Program | Commission | Payout threshold | Cookie duration |
|---|---|---|---|
| The Home Depot (standard) | 1% – 8% per sale | $50 | 1 day |
| The Home Depot services | $10 – $15 per appointment, $10 – $30 per lead | $50 | 30 days |
- Payment methods: PayPal, check, wire transfer, direct deposit, ACH transfer
- Products/services sold: Home decor products, tools, home improvement services
👉 See also: Best Home Improvement Affiliate Programs
4 AliExpress
Of all the Amazon affiliate program alternatives out there, AliExpress is the closest match. The China-based online retailer stocks a massive selection of items across dozens of product categories, from health and beauty to tools and home improvement.
Many of those products are available at shockingly low prices (although the best deals are rarely available on household name brands).
There are pros and cons to using the AliExpress affiliate program as an alternative to Amazon Associates.
On the plus side, it has a longer cookie length (three days) and generally higher commission rates than Amazon, with the chance to earn up to 90% per sale on “hot products” — although average commissions work out at around 4% per sale.
But there’s also a lack of consumer trust in AliExpress, as demonstrated by Google’s “People also ask” questions:
By contrast, Amazon is one of the most trusted brands in the US, so we’d expect it to see higher conversion rates than AliExpress.
- URL: AliExpress affiliate program
- Commission rate: Up to 90% per sale (4% average)
- Cookie duration: 3 days
- Payment methods: PayPal, bank transfer
- Payout threshold: $16
- Products/services sold: Fashion, electronics, jewelry, accessories, tools & home improvement, and more
👉 See also: AliExpress Affiliate Program Review
5 Kohl’s
As America’s largest department store chain, Kohl’s is one of the few retailers that can go toe to toe with Amazon on brand awareness. You shouldn’t have trouble persuading people to buy from Kohl’s.
It targets many of the same product categories as Amazon — think fashion, homeware, toys, beauty products, and the like — making it a good fit for a wide range of B2C affiliate niches.
Perhaps the biggest differentiator is Kohl’s focus on selling household names. Two-thirds of its sales come from national brands, whereas almost anyone can sell on Amazon. The Kohl’s affiliate program is a good fit if your audience loves big brands.
Sign up through the Impact affiliate network to earn a flat 3% per sale, with a seven-day cookie length (that’s seven times longer than Amazon’s).
- URL: Kohl’s affiliate program
- Commission rate: 3% per sale
- Cookie duration: 7 days
- Payment methods: PayPal, check, wire transfer, direct deposit, ACH transfer
- Payout threshold: $50
- Products/services sold: Clothing, shoes, bedding, kitchen products, toys, beauty, and more
6 Walmart
Walmart is best known as a brick-and-mortar retailer, but its online business has expanded dramatically in recent years. So much so that it’s now America’s third-biggest ecommerce site in terms of traffic, only behind eBay and — you guessed it — Amazon.
There’s little difference between Amazon and Walmart; even their homepages look pretty similar. Both sell every product under the sun, offer affordable prices, and are highly trusted brands.
So, which should you promote?
The Walmart affiliate program has a longer cookie window, giving you three days (rather than 24 hours) to close the deal. But its commissions are capped at 4%, whereas Amazon offers higher rates on some categories (like 4.5% on physical books and 10% on luxury beauty).
You might as well join both affiliate programs to see which earns you the most money.
- URL: Walmart affiliate program
- Commission rate: 1% – 4% per sale
- Cookie duration: 3 days
- Payment methods: PayPal, check, wire transfer, direct deposit, ACH transfer
- Payout threshold: $50
- Products/services sold: Groceries, fashion, home decor, electronics, baby products, and more
👉 See also: Walmart Affiliate Program vs. Amazon Affiliate Program
7 Target
Like Walmart, Target is an offline retail behemoth making a serious ecommerce play against Amazon.
It sells over one million products across a broad range of consumer categories, all made by recognizable brands. Coupled with its vast brand awareness, Target should be a pretty easy sell.
This brings us neatly to Target Partners, the retailer’s affiliate program. Is it one of the best alternatives for Amazon affiliates?
Maybe.
Target offers volume-based commissions on certain categories, giving high-performing affiliates the chance to significantly boost their earnings. For instance, commissions in the “Home & Outdoor Living” category start at 5% and climb to 8% on monthly net orders of 10,001+.
It also has a seven-day cookie window, which is much better than Amazon’s affiliate program, and solid EPCs of $12 – $13.
However, it pays a big, fat 0% on many popular categories, including sporting goods, video games, and toys.
- URL: Target Partners affiliate program
- Commission rate: Up to 8% per sale
- Cookie duration: 7 days
- Payment methods: PayPal, check, wire transfer, direct deposit, ACH transfer
- Payout threshold: $50
- Products/services sold: Groceries, fashion, furniture, kitchen & dining, and more
👉 See also: Target Affiliate Program Review
8 Lowe’s
Lowe’s is locked in a perpetual battle with Amazon to become The Home Depot’s biggest rival in the US home improvement market, with both having occupied the #2 spot multiple times in recent years.
It stocks about two million home improvement-related products, from paint and tools to appliances and furniture. So, if you’re searching for DIY or home improvement affiliate programs, Lowe’s is a credible Amazon alternative.
You can join the Lowe’s affiliate program through two affiliate networks — CJ Affiliate and FlexOffers.
| Network | Commission | Payout threshold | Cookie duration |
|---|---|---|---|
| CJ Affiliate | 2% | $50 | 1 day |
| FlexOffers | 2% | $25 | 1 day |
Unfortunately, both offer lower commissions than Amazon’s home improvement category (which pays 3%) and have the same stingy one-day cookie window. Most affiliate marketers will be better off with Amazon.
- Products/services sold: Home improvement and home decor products
9 Wayfair
Furniture might just be Amazon’s Achilles heel. Sure, it sells tens of thousands of furniture products, but those products tend to be more functional than aesthetic.
Enter Wayfair, one of the world’s biggest online furniture retailers, which consistently showcases desirable products:
With 22+ million items across home furnishings, decor, home improvement, and homeware, Wayfair stocks products to satisfy even the fussiest interior designers.
Their affiliate program — available through FlexOffers and CJ Affiliate — offers more generous terms than Amazon Associates, paying up to 6% per sale (Amazon only pays 3% on furniture).
Plus, it has a much longer cookie duration: seven days through FlexOffers and up to 45 days through CJ Affiliate (although the CJ program isn’t available in the US).
| Network | Commission | Payout threshold | Cookie duration |
|---|---|---|---|
| FlexOffers | 5.6% | $25 | 7 days |
| CJ Affiliate | 6% for new customers, 4% for returning customers | $50 | 30 – 45 days |
- Products/services sold: Furniture and home decor
10 ShareASale
Because Amazon sells so many products and offers category-based commissions, comparing it to a “regular” affiliate program is almost unfair.
Therefore, it’s worth considering an affiliate platform like ShareASale (and other affiliate networks) in your search for Amazon affiliate alternatives.
ShareASale works with 25,000 brands across 39 mostly consumer-facing sectors, which aligns with the types of products sold on Amazon.
The vast majority of those brands aren’t household names. But that’s not necessarily bad, because smaller advertisers almost always offer more attractive affiliate terms, like longer cookie windows and higher commission rates.
The network paid $1.3 billion in commissions in 2022 and has 270,000+ active publishers on its books, so they’re clearly doing something right.
- Payout threshold: $50
- Payment frequency: Monthly
- Payment methods: Check, direct deposit, international direct deposit, wire transfer, Payoneer
- Brands: Allbirds, Etsy, Reebok
👉 See also: ShareASale Review
11 CJ Affiliate
Of course, ShareASale isn’t the only affiliate network. There are many other affiliate networks, and CJ Affiliate — formerly known as Commission Junction — is one of the biggest.
Whereas other networks tend to focus on lesser-known brands, CJ Affiliate has a ton of big names on its books. In fact, it works with twice as many IR500 advertisers as its nearest competitor.
CJ is arguably a better fit than Amazon if your audience favors household names.
They let you filter advertisers by EPC and network earnings, making it easy to find high-paying affiliate programs. It apparently works, because the network pays $1.8+ billion in annual publisher commissions.
- Payout threshold: $50
- Payment frequency: Monthly
- Payment methods: Check, direct deposit, Payoneer
- Brands: Barnes & Noble, J.Crew, Office Depot
👉 See also: CJ Affiliate Review
12 Awin
As well as being ShareASale’s parent company, Awin runs its own affiliate network, offering affiliate programs across four top-level niches: finance and insurance, retail and shopping, telcos and services, and travel.
The retail category is the closest match to the type of stuff you’ll find on Amazon, and it includes plenty of attractive brands, including Burton Snowboards, Under Armour, and Warby Parker.
But it also works with brands selling many other physical and digital products, allowing you to diversify your affiliate revenue stream. And that’s never a bad thing.
There’s just one downside: Awin is the only network we can think of that isn’t 100% free to join, charging a $5 fee during the application stage (although this will be refunded with your first commission payment).
- Payout threshold: $20 / £20 / €20
- Payment frequency: Twice a month
- Payment methods: SEPA, BACS, ACH, domestic payments, international wire transfer
- Brands: Etsy, HP, Under Armour
13 Rakuten Advertising
Last of the affiliate networks is Rakuten Advertising, which specializes in financial services, retail, and travel affiliate programs.
With approximately 1,000 brands, Rakuten has a much smaller client list than some other networks. But those brands are impressive, representing some of the biggest names in consumer luxury, fashion, technology, travel, and finance.
Impressively, 95% of those advertisers are exclusive to Rakuten, so you’ll often be competing with a (slightly) smaller pool of affiliates.
- Payout threshold: $50
- Payment frequency: Four times per month
- Payment methods: Direct deposit, PayPal, check
- Brands: Ashley Furniture, Hilton, Lancome
Conclusion
Its commission rates aren’t as attractive as they used to be, but Amazon Associates is still one of the best affiliate programs for most consumer-facing niches. But that’s not to say there aren’t many compelling Amazon affiliate alternatives out there.
Some pay higher commissions. Most have longer cookie durations. And all give you a way to diversify your earnings.
However, it doesn’t matter which other affiliate programs or networks you join if your affiliate website isn’t up to scratch — you still won’t make enough money online.
That’s where we can help.
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