Amazon Affiliate Program Review 2025 (w/input from real affiliates)
Mention the words ‘affiliate marketing’ to almost anyone who does business online, and they’ll almost certainly mention ‘Amazon’. It’s the biggest affiliate marketing program on the planet, and has been around for well over a quarter of a century, earning those signed up to the Amazon Associates scheme many millions of dollars.
But a lot has happened since 1996, and the scheme has seen many changes, including a number of significant changes very recently. So how relevant is the Amazon affiliate program in 2025? We’ve asked that question to a number of professional business people, including CEOs, CTOs and business founders who have worked with a number of different affiliate programs, to find out.
An Ideal Scheme For Those Entering The Affiliate Marketing Industry
A number of people felt that the Amazon scheme was still very much a relevant and attractive program to sign up to if you happened to be finding your feet within that industry. This certainly makes sense, since most of us already have an Amazon account, and becoming an Associate is as simple as clicking a couple of buttons, and filling in a short form. It’s a five-minute task you can complete while the coffee brews.
Darcy Ogdon-Nolan, Founder & Owner of The Bircher Bar commented that,
“I still believe that the Amazon Associates program is the best place for new affiliate site owners to get started in 2022 as its product offering and general conversion rate is second to none. If you’re brand new to affiliate marketing, it’s important to get a few quick and easy wins to boost your confidence and motivation.”
The idea of the Amazon affiliate scheme being suitable for those new to the market, and just beginning to find their feet was echoed by Jenny Abouobaia, SEO consultant & Search Awards judge, who said,
“Although it may not offer commissions as high as some private affiliates, for people just getting started in affiliate marketing, it is one of the only platforms that have no prerequisites.”
This of course is a valid point since anyone can sign up and get started, even if they have no established website or social media presence. As long as they make at least three sales in the first 180 days, then anyone can join. That certainly provides plenty of room to breathe and get to grips with the scheme, and as Jenny pointed out, it is one of the only schemes where this is still the case.
Amazon Still Provides Reassurance And Convenience
Many of those we spoke to felt that one of the reasons that the scheme had so much relevance to those just getting started is its convenience, and not just for the affiliate marketer themselves. Trying to persuade visitors to click the ‘Buy’ button isn’t easy, especially when the supplier is a relative (or complete) unknown.
But since so many people have an Amazon account, and are familiar with the name, and its reputation, this instantly removes a huge hurdle for the marketer.
John Frigo, eCommerce Manager at Best Price Nutrition said,
“…the positive about the Amazon Associates program is that people trust Amazon, [the] majority of households have a Prime account and like their free shipping, and Amazon has almost every product under the sun so you’re not having to jump around dozens of programs to find a product to promote.”
Meg Marrs, founder of Safer Senior Care agreed, saying that,
“The benefits are that buyers are more comfortable shopping online than ever before, and people trust Amazon. Buyers are obsessed with the convenience of Amazon, and many shoppers already have their credit card information stored on Amazon, eliminating a lot of shopping cart friction you’ll find with other sellers.”
This is certainly very true, and with more of us being increasingly cautious about entering credit card or bank details into a website, especially once we’re not familiar with it, it’s often much more comforting to stick with what we know, and trust. And as Amazon does already have all of our details, it saves time too. Convenience, reassurance, and security are all bundled up into one name, which certainly gives beginner marketers a solid start. But even for those who have been involved in the scheme for some time, the argument is still a valid one.
Michelle Thomas, founder of My Spiritual Guidance also agreed with this view, saying that,
“Although in past years commissions may have been higher than they are now, especially since the pandemic, more people are shopping online, and as Amazon is such a trusted platform (not to mention [offering] benefits like next-day delivery and Amazon prime) we find that the conversion rates are still significantly higher than with private affiliates we have used.”
The next-day delivery, or even free delivery option for those Amazon Prime customers, is another huge benefit, and a real selling point for affiliates. But as Michelle mentions, commission rates have caused something of a stir, and others we spoke to agreed with this.
Challenging Commission Rates
One such person who talked about this was Alec Rose, founder of Golfible, who reminded us that,
“In early 2017, the change from the volume-based fee structure towards the category-based fee structure really weakened Amazon’s offering. This change was coined ‘Amazonaggedon’ by people in the affiliate marketing industry, as we now got the same rate whether we sold 1 product or 5 million products.”
Of course for those new to the scheme, this won’t be something that they’ll probably be aware of, but clearly, a number of those who have been actively involved with the Amazon affiliate program for several years have felt the cuts in commission rates as a significant issue.
Meg Mars also added that,
“Amazon’s commission rates continue to drop, making other affiliate programs seem much more appealing,”
and Tom Kelly, CTO of Life Part 2 also felt that,
“…the commission for digital products is significantly lower than for physical products. This may be due to the rise of other affiliate programs that offer higher commission rates.”
Of course with Amazon’s commission rates varying widely from one category to another (10% for women’s fashion, down to 1% for video games) your perspective is very likely going to be influenced by which niche market you’re focused on.
Oliver Douglas, from Almost On Time initially echoed this idea, but reminded us of another fact:
“Firstly, commissions are at an all-time low – which is obviously a bad thing for affiliate marketing. However, this is a silly way to look at it as it only shows one perspective. If you compare it to eBay for example, being able to insert product pictures and links is vastly superior.”
This highlights another benefit of using the Amazon affiliate scheme – the ease with which it is possible to get links that look good, and include quality images, and formatted product boxes, all of which certainly leaves many other programs standing.
Joanna Stephens, owner & founder of She’s Your Friend agrees with this point, adding that,
“As far as usability [is concerned], the Amazon Associates program makes it very easy to create affiliate links, whereas other programs require more work to create a custom html code for an affiliate image.”
But of course, it’s not just the convenience of being able to create attractive product boxes which sets the Amazon scheme apart from many of its would-be rivals. One recent change many people have shown appreciation for is the Product Links option. Ryan Stewart, Managing Partner of The Blueprint Training told us that,
“I think the biggest change for the program has been in how many different ways you can monetize your site with it. For example, there’s now an option to use Product Links, which will show a product image and description directly on your site instead of linking out to Amazon.”
With Product Links, if a visitor clicks one of your links, visits the Amazon product page, and then goes on to purchase a different, recommended, or similar product, you will still be able to receive a commission. This option, which many feel is one that very much sets Amazon apart, is a strong selling point in 2022.
But returning to the idea of commission rates within certain niche markets, Oliver Douglas also commented that,
“Amazon only starts to become worse if you have a deal with a niche-specific affiliate which is superior. So for example, in the world of watches, you have other affiliates such as Jomashop which offer significantly higher commissions than Amazon. The drawback of these programs is that not everyone is comfortable buying from a site like Jomashop compared to Amazon.”
This brings us back to our earlier point about customer confidence, and it’s certainly going to remain the case for a long time yet, that confidence in the Amazon brand shows no sign of wavering, and remains a powerful selling point for affiliates.
Caitriona Maria, a private online teacher and founder of TPR Teaching, agreed with Oliver Douglas, saying that,
“If you could find a site that pays a higher commission and fits your website’s niche, then it is worth considering other affiliate programs. There are also some niches where other affiliate programs excel, and Amazon may not be the best option; for example, RewardStyle might be an excellent option for the latest fashion and top brands. Target may also be a suitable option for brands that have a US-based audience.”
Joanna Stephens was another who agreed with this feeling, adding that,
“…for some products though, it still makes sense to use a different affiliate program as their commissions (and cookie period) far exceed that of Amazon.”
Some people may worry about Amazon’s view of having competing affiliate products listed on your site, but this is perfectly within their terms, so shouldn’t cause any concern. However, on the subject of rivalry, Jeff Neal, from The Critter Depot did raise one concern with us that we hadn’t heard before. He said that,
“It seems our more affiliate-focused web pages keep losing rankings every time Google does a core update. Makes you wonder if Google is trying to snuff out affiliate marketers from their SERPs.”
Unsurprisingly there’s no official word from Amazon on this!
On balance, it would seem that the general feeling is that the Amazon affiliate scheme is the easiest one to get started in, offers customers the confidence and security to go ahead and place orders, and can provide decent commission rates in certain niche markets. But perhaps it may be worth broadening your reach as an affiliate after a while, and considering integrating other, more niche schemes, to bolster revenue in the future.
But as Joanna mentioned, cookie duration was another issue a few people felt they wanted to raise.
Cookie Duration And Commission Payments
It was certainly interesting to hear different impressions of Amazon’s cookie policy. With their affiliate scheme, cookies are stored for 24 hours. This means that if any visitor clicks on an affiliate link, any purchase of that product that they make over the next 24 hours will still be counted.
Daniel Chan, CTO of Marketplace Fairness felt that this was a positive aspect of the program:
“Amazon Associates is still a popular affiliate marketing program. It has many features that make it attractive to affiliates, including a large selection of products, a variety of commission structures, and a generous cookie duration.”
However, John Frigo was less positive, about both the commissions and the cookie duration, stating that,
“Amazon’s commissions are terrible and you can almost always find an affiliate program of an independent website selling that product offering 5x or more commissions with longer cookie periods.”
Joanna Stephens agreed, adding,
“…for some products though, it still makes sense to use a different affiliate program as their commissions (and cookie period) far exceed that of Amazon.”
However, commission rates and cookie durations aside, Michelle Thomas did point out a very strong aspect of Amazon’s affiliate scheme, saying,
“we can still always rely on the fact commissions will be paid promptly, which, unfortunately, is not always the case with less established partners.”
This is certainly a very fair point, and we know that in some cases getting paid from affiliate schemes can be very challenging. With Amazon that is another headache and worry that can be safely done away with.
Final Thoughts And Verdicts
In general, most people we spoke to were positive about the Amazon Associates scheme in 2022 and felt that it still offered a huge number of benefits, both to new affiliates and to those who have been in the game for a while. Meg Marrs added,
“I still think Amazon is a great, easy affiliate option for marketers due to how comfortable the general public is with Amazon, and how seamless their checkout experience is. There’s just no other game in town quite like it!”
And she was far from being alone in this view, with Caitriona Maria agreeing, saying,
“Overall, I believe that the Amazon affiliate program is here to stay and offers a convenient option for publishers.”
What did come out of our conversations with SEO and marketing experts was that while the Amazon scheme has a great deal still to offer, it may be wise to consider supplementing it in the future with other affiliate schemes which may more closely match your niche market, and in some cases offer better commission rates on those products. Darcy Ogdon-Nolan felt that this was definitely the case, stating,
“Amazon Associates is great to get started, but don’t be afraid to seek out more lucrative affiliates once you’re up and going.”
Daniel Chen echoed this sentiment, telling us that,
“…there are some newer programs that have been popping up that may be tempting to affiliates. These programs offer more flexibility and higher commissions, and they may be more appealing to affiliates who are looking for a program that offers more control and a higher payout.”
Jenny Abouobaia was another expert who felt that this was the case, but she added another point that may be easily overlooked. She told us that,
“I advise my clients that if they do want to move towards a private affiliate in the future (most of which require proof that you will actually help sell their products) reports from Amazon Associates Central can be the perfect way to tip the scales in your favor when your application is being considered.”
This highlights the real value that the Amazon affiliates scheme has, especially for those breaking into the affiliate world for the first time. So for anyone wondering how relevant or valuable the Amazon affiliate program is in 2022, it certainly seems from talking to a large number of industry experts that it very much still offers value and benefits, perhaps especially for those setting up new affiliate businesses, but also for those looking to expand and embrace other opportunities too.
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