What should affiliate software for a mobile app do?
Any affiliate software will hand out links and count clicks. The part that matters for an app comes after the click, and it is where tools made for websites stop working.
- Follow the user through the app store. A link has to survive the trip to the App Store or Google Play and still know who sent the user when they open the app for the first time.
- See the real purchase. In-app purchases and subscriptions are sold by Apple and Google. The software has to confirm the sale actually happened before anyone is paid for it.
- Keep up with subscriptions. Renewals, upgrades, cancellations and refunds all change what an affiliate has earned. Commission should follow them without anyone editing a spreadsheet.
- Work without a link. Podcast hosts and video creators often cannot give their audience something to tap. A short code the user types into your app does the same job.
- Show affiliates their own numbers. Creators promote more when they can see their clicks, sales and earnings for themselves.
- Pay people. Working out who is owed what, sending the money and producing the paperwork is where most programmes stall.
How is this different from affiliate software for websites?
Website affiliate software relies on the visitor staying in a browser from click to checkout. An app sale breaks that chain twice: once when the user leaves for the app store, and again when Apple or Google takes the payment.
| Affiliate software for websites | Insert Affiliate | |
|---|---|---|
| Web checkout sales | Yes | Yes, through Stripe |
| App Store and Google Play purchases | No | Yes |
| Subscription renewals in apps | No | Yes |
| Short codes entered inside the app | No | Yes |
| Refer a friend screen inside the app | No | Yes |
| Works with RevenueCat, Adapty, Apphud and Iaptic | No | Yes |
If your product is sold only on the web, a website affiliate tool will serve you well. If any of your revenue comes through the app stores, you need software that can see those sales.
What does Insert Affiliate include?
- Affiliate links and short codes for every partner, with Insert Links built in. If you already use Branch or AppsFlyer links, those work too.
- Purchase tracking for subscriptions and one-off in-app purchases on iOS and Android, and for Stripe purchases on the web.
- Flexible commission: percentage or fixed amount, first purchase or renewals, one rate for all or a rate per affiliate. Growth and Enterprise plans add commission for affiliates who recruit other affiliates.
- A dashboard for each affiliate showing their clicks, sales and earnings in real time.
- Payouts through Stripe Connect, either when you choose or automatically, with an invoice for each one.
- In-app referrals, which add a ready-made Refer a friend screen so your own users can invite friends and earn rewards.
- Creator Discovery on Enterprise plans, to search TikTok, Instagram and YouTube for creators in your niche and contact them.
- Messaging and email to keep in touch with affiliates from the same place.
- Team access and multiple apps, so a studio can run several programmes from one account.
Setup guides for each store and subscription platform are on the integrations page.
Who is it for?
Insert Affiliate is built first for mobile apps that sell subscriptions or in-app purchases: fitness, wellbeing, productivity, education, dating, finance, games and more. There is a page for each on affiliate marketing by app category.
It also suits software businesses that sell through Stripe on the web, including those with both an app and a web checkout, because sales from every source are credited to the same affiliate.
It is not designed for online shops that sell physical products.
How does it compare with other affiliate software?
The comparison pages set Insert Affiliate beside other affiliate, referral and attribution tools one at a time, with what each is built for and where each is the better choice.
