Earning Commissions by Referring Merchants
As a Shopify Affiliate, when you refer a merchant to Shopify, they may start on a Free or Paid Trial. After the trial period, they can choose to become a full-priced store (“Online Sale API” action in Impact reporting).
Please note that for Merchant Referrals, commissions are only earned once the merchant converts to a full-price paid plan. We do not pay commissions while merchants are still on a Free Trial or the $1 Paid Trial.
Please see this visual example:
For more information on program earnings, please refer to this help page: https://help.shopify.com/en/affiliates/earnings
Referral types eligible for commission
The following table indicates which plan referrals are eligible for commission earnings:
Store plan |
Commission |
Terms |
● Shopify Starter ● Shopify Lite ● Shopify Plus |
Not eligible for commission |
Not applicable |
● Basic Shopify ● Shopify ● Advanced Shopify |
Eligible for commission according to merchant location |
Full price plan referrals are eligible for commission, as detailed in the agreed-upon contract terms in Impact |
POS Pro Plan |
Eligible for commission according to merchant location |
Referred merchants that additionally subscribe at least one of their retail locations to a full-price POS Pro subscription are eligible for commission, as detailed in the agreed-upon contract terms in Impact |
Store plan referral commission
Referrals earn commission payments if the merchant signs up by using your referral link. The amount of the commission depends on the merchant's location, and is paid after a merchant signs up for a store plan at full price.
Affiliate earning by merchant location for store plan referrals
Commission varies by location: The amount of the commission that's earned for a store plan referral is based on the merchant's location. Countries and regions are listed in Impact reports in ISO 3166-1 alpha-2 country code format. Referrals for the POS Pro plan have a different payout amount.