How to Start an Affiliate Program for Your Online Course
Affiliates sell your course for a share of each sale. How to set commission rates, cookie windows and refund holds, find good affiliates and keep them compliant.
An affiliate program pays people a commission for sales they refer through their own link. For course creators it turns happy students, peers and complementary businesses into a sales team that's paid only when it delivers.
This guide covers the settings that matter, who to recruit, how to pay, and the disclosure rules affiliates must follow.
The short answer
To start an affiliate program for your course, set a commission (a percentage of each sale), a cookie window (how long after a click a sale still counts), and a refund hold (how long you wait before a commission is payable). Recruit students and complementary creators, give them links and copy, pay them on a schedule, and require them to disclose that they earn a commission.
Key takeaways
- There's no standard commission; platforms let you set your own. Gumroad allows 1% to 75%, for example.
- Hold commissions until your refund window has passed, and void them on refunded sales.
- Your best affiliates are usually past students and creators who serve the same audience.
- Give affiliates swipe copy, images and launch dates to make promoting easy.
- The FTC requires affiliates to clearly disclose that they earn from recommendations.
Disclosure: we make Klasira, an online course platform, and show where it fits. Everything here works on any platform. Figures from other organizations come from their public pages, checked in October 2026 and linked at the end.
What settings does a course affiliate program need?
| Setting | What it means | Things to weigh |
|---|---|---|
| Commission | Share of each referred sale (or a fixed amount) | Your margin, your price, and what affiliates in your niche expect |
| Cookie window | How long after a click a purchase still counts | Longer windows credit affiliates for slower decisions |
| Refund hold | Days before a commission becomes payable | At least as long as your refund window |
| Payout schedule | When and how you pay | Monthly by PayPal or bank transfer is common |
| Per-offer rates | Different commissions per course or tier | Higher on entry products, lower on high-touch tiers |
What commission should you pay affiliates for a course?
There isn't an official standard; course platforms leave it to you. Gumroad lets creators set 1% to 75%. Teachable and Thinkific let you set a rate per affiliate, and Kajabi lets you set a percentage or fixed amount per offer, paid for the customer's lifetime by default.
Because a course costs little to deliver once it's made, creators can usually afford a larger share than a physical-product seller. Work it out from your margin: what you keep after fees and any support costs, and what a new customer is worth to you over time.
Who should you recruit as affiliates?
- Past students who got results and talk about it anyway.
- Complementary creators: someone teaching photography to a crowd your editing course serves.
- Newsletter and podcast hosts in your niche.
- Tool makers whose users need your skill.
A handful of committed affiliates usually beats a long list of inactive ones.
How do you support and pay affiliates?
- A dashboard with their link, clicks, sales and earnings.
- Swipe emails, social posts and images, with your launch dates. See how to launch a course.
- Payment on a fixed schedule once the refund hold has passed, with a CSV for your records.
What disclosure rules apply to affiliates?
In the US, the FTC's Endorsement Guides require a clear disclosure when someone recommending a product has a material connection to the seller, and an affiliate commission is one. The disclosure should be clear and close to the recommendation ("I earn a commission if you buy through my link"), not buried in a footer. Put this rule in your affiliate terms and remind affiliates of it.
Frequently asked questions
What is a good affiliate commission for an online course?
There's no official standard; platforms let you choose. Base it on your margin and the value of a new customer, and check what similar courses in your niche offer.
How long should an affiliate cookie last?
Long enough to cover a typical buyer's decision time. Longer windows are fairer to affiliates when buyers take weeks to decide.
When should I pay affiliates?
After your refund window has passed, on a regular schedule such as monthly. Void the commission if the sale is refunded.
Do affiliates need to disclose their commission?
Yes. The FTC requires a clear disclosure of a material connection, such as earning a commission, close to the recommendation.
Where Klasira fits
Klasira's affiliate program sets a commission per offer, a cookie window and a refund hold, gives affiliates a dashboard, and voids commissions on refunds; you pay affiliates yourself, by PayPal or bank transfer, and export to CSV. Start your school or see pricing.
Related: how to launch a course, order bumps and upsells, Klasira's affiliate program, all guides on pricing and selling.
Sources
Details about other companies in this post were checked against these public pages in October 2026. Products, prices and rules change, so confirm with each source before you decide.
More on pricing and selling courses
How to Write an Online Course Refund Policy (Template)
Membership vs One-Time Course: Which Pricing Model Wins?
Order Bumps and Upsells for Online Courses
How to Write a Course Sales Page That Sells
VAT and Sales Tax on Online Courses: What Creators Owe
