Amazon Affiliate Program: How to Get Started and Earn Money

Amazon Associates is one of the oldest affiliate programs on the internet. It’s also one of the most misunderstood. People sign up expecting passive income to roll in, then quit three months later when their dashboard shows $4.32 in commissions.

I’ve been doing affiliate marketing for over a decade. Amazon was one of the first programs I joined, and I still use it on several of my niche sites. But I’ve also learned the hard way that Amazon affiliate income alone won’t sustain a content business. The commissions are low, the cookie window is tiny, and Amazon changes its terms whenever it feels like it.

That doesn’t mean it’s not worth joining. It means you need a strategy. And that’s what this guide is about.

What Is the Amazon Associates Program?

Amazon Associates is Amazon’s affiliate marketing program. You sign up, get special tracking links, and earn a commission when someone clicks your link and buys something on Amazon within the next 24 hours.

The concept is simple. You recommend a product on your blog, YouTube channel, or social media. Someone clicks your link and lands on Amazon. If they buy anything (not just the product you linked), you get a percentage of that sale. The “anything in their cart” part is what makes Amazon interesting. I’ve earned commissions on refrigerators when all I linked to was a $15 book.

The 24-hour cookie window is the biggest limitation. If someone clicks your link today but buys tomorrow, you don’t get credit. Compare that to programs like ShareASale merchants that offer 30-day or even 90-day cookies. Amazon gives you one day. That’s it.

But Amazon converts like crazy. People trust Amazon. They already have their payment info saved. They don’t need convincing to buy from Amazon. They just need convincing to buy the product. And that’s your job.

How to Sign Up for Amazon Associates

The signup process is straightforward, but there are a few things most guides don’t tell you.

Step-by-Step Application Process

Go to the Amazon Associates website and click “Sign Up.” You’ll need an Amazon account (your regular shopping account works). Fill in your website URLs, choose your preferred store ID, and describe what your sites are about.

Amazon asks how you drive traffic, what topics you cover, and how you plan to monetize. Be honest. Don’t claim millions of pageviews if you’re just starting out. Amazon checks, and getting rejected for misrepresentation is worse than getting rejected for being new.

The 180-Day Qualification Period

After approval, you have 180 days to make at least 3 qualifying sales. This is where most new affiliates fail. Not because they can’t sell, but because they don’t have enough traffic yet. If you don’t hit 3 sales in 6 months, your application gets rejected and you have to reapply.

My advice: don’t apply until you have at least 20-30 published articles and some organic traffic coming in. Even 500 monthly visitors is enough if your content is targeted. Applying with a brand-new site that has 5 posts and zero traffic is setting yourself up for rejection.

Tips to Get Approved on First Try

Your site needs to look like a real website, not a half-built placeholder. That means:

• At least 15-20 published articles (Amazon reviewers check)
• A clear About page and Contact page
• An affiliate disclosure page (you need this anyway for FTC compliance)
• No broken pages or “coming soon” sections
• Original content, not scraped or AI-generated filler

Amazon has gotten stricter about approvals. I’ve seen established bloggers get rejected because their site “didn’t have enough original content.” Make sure you have substance before applying.

Commission Rates by Product Category

Amazon’s commission rates have been cut multiple times over the years. The biggest slash happened in April 2020 when categories like furniture dropped from 8% to 3%. It hurt. A lot of affiliates I know pivoted entire sites after that change.

Current Commission Structure (2026)

Here’s what you’re working with:

Product Category	Commission Rate
Amazon Games	20%
Luxury Beauty, Luxury Stores Beauty, Amazon Explore	10%
Digital Music, Physical Music, Handmade, Digital Videos	5%
Physical Books, Kitchen, Automotive	4.5%
Amazon Fire Tablet Devices, Amazon Kindle Devices, Amazon Fashion (Women’s, Men’s & Kids), Apparel, Amazon Cloud Cam, Fire TV Edition Smart TVs, Amazon Ring Devices, Watches, Jewelry, Luggage, Shoes, Handbags & Accessories	4%
Toys, Furniture, Home, Home Improvement, Lawn & Garden, Pets, Pantry, Headphones, Beauty, Musical Instruments, Business & Industrial, Outdoors, Tools, Sports, Baby	3%
PC, PC Components, DVD & Blu-Ray	2.5%
TVs, Digital Video Games	2%
Amazon Fresh, Physical Video Games & Video Game Consoles, Grocery, Health & Personal Care	1%
Gift Cards, Wireless Service Plans, Alcoholic Beverages, Amazon Appstore (Digital)	0%

Categories Worth Focusing On

The math is simple but people ignore it. A 3% commission on a $25 product earns you $0.75. You need 1,333 sales per month to make $1,000. But a 4.5% commission on a $150 kitchen appliance earns you $6.75 per sale. Now you need 148 sales for the same $1,000.

I focus on mid-range products in the $50-$300 range with decent commission rates. Kitchen products, automotive accessories, and physical books have been consistent earners for me. Consumer electronics pays low commissions but the average order values are high, so it can work with enough volume.

Special Bounty Programs

Amazon also pays flat bounties for certain signups. Getting someone to start an Audible trial, sign up for Amazon Prime, or create a Baby Registry pays a fixed fee, usually $3-$15 per signup. These bounties change frequently, but they’re worth keeping an eye on. I’ve earned more from Audible bounties on some sites than from product commissions.

Best Strategies for Promoting Amazon Products

There are five content types that consistently convert for Amazon affiliates. I’ve tested all of them across multiple sites over the years.

Product Review Articles

Single product reviews work best for high-ticket items. Nobody searches for a review of a $12 phone case. But they absolutely search for reviews of $200 headphones, $500 espresso machines, and $1,000 standing desks.

Structure your reviews around what the buyer actually wants to know: Is it worth the money? What are the downsides? Who shouldn’t buy this? The honesty is what converts. If you only say nice things, people don’t trust you.

Comparison Posts

“Product A vs Product B” posts are conversion machines. Someone searching for “AirPods Pro vs Sony WF-1000XM5” is deep in the buying process. They’ve narrowed it down to two options and need help deciding. Your job is to help them pick one.

I format comparison posts with a clear recommendation at the top (“If you want X, get A. If you want Y, get B.”), then break down the differences. Don’t fence-sit. Pick a winner and explain why.

Best-of Lists

“Best X for Y” posts are the bread and butter of Amazon affiliate content. Best wireless earbuds for running. Best monitors for programming. Best kitchen knives under $100.

The key is being specific. “Best headphones” is too broad and too competitive. “Best noise-cancelling headphones for open-office work under $200” is specific enough to rank and specific enough to convert. If you’re starting a new blog, check out my guide on starting a blog for the foundational steps.

Tutorial Content with Product Recommendations

“How to set up a home recording studio” naturally leads to microphone, headphone, and audio interface recommendations. This content ranks for informational keywords with lower competition, and the product recommendations feel natural because they’re part of the tutorial.

I’ve found tutorial content earns less per article than pure product reviews, but it brings in more traffic and builds authority. It’s the long game.

Seasonal and Trending Product Content

Black Friday deals posts, back-to-school guides, and Christmas gift guides can spike your earnings dramatically. I’ve made 40% of my annual Amazon income in November and December alone. The competition is fierce, but the buying intent is through the roof.

Start creating seasonal content 2-3 months before the event. Google needs time to index and rank your pages. Publishing a Black Friday deals post on November 28th is too late.

Amazon Affiliate Tools and Plugins

You need tools to manage affiliate links at scale. Copying and pasting raw Amazon URLs into every post isn’t sustainable.

Amazon Associates SiteStripe

SiteStripe is Amazon’s built-in tool. It adds a toolbar to Amazon’s website when you’re logged into your Associates account. You can generate text links, image links, and text+image links directly from any product page. It’s basic but functional for beginners.

AAWP Plugin for WordPress

If you run a WordPress site, AAWP is the tool I recommend for Amazon affiliates. It creates comparison tables, product boxes, and bestseller lists that pull data directly from Amazon’s API. Prices and availability update automatically, so you don’t end up linking to out-of-stock products.

AAWP costs around $49/year for a single site. It pays for itself quickly if you publish product content regularly.

Lasso for Affiliate Link Management

For managing links across multiple affiliate programs (not just Amazon), Lasso and ThirstyAffiliates are both solid options. They let you cloak non-Amazon links, track clicks, and manage everything from one dashboard.

Important note: you cannot cloak Amazon affiliate links. It’s against their Terms of Service. Amazon requires that the link destination is clearly identifiable as Amazon. Use link management tools for your other affiliate programs, but keep Amazon links as direct URLs.

Auto-Inserting Affiliate Disclaimers

The FTC requires you to disclose affiliate relationships. Amazon requires it too. You need a disclaimer on every page that contains affiliate links. Plugins like WPForms can help with compliance pages, but for disclaimers I just add them to my theme’s template so they appear automatically on every post.

A simple disclaimer works: “This article contains affiliate links. If you buy through these links, I earn a small commission at no extra cost to you.” Keep it visible. Don’t bury it at the bottom of the page.

Common Mistakes to Avoid

I’ve made most of these mistakes myself. Here’s what I’ve learned.

Not Disclosing Affiliate Relationships

The FTC is serious about disclosure. Amazon is serious about it too. I know bloggers who’ve had their accounts terminated for inadequate disclosure. Put your disclaimer at the top of every post with affiliate links. Not at the bottom. Not hidden in a footer. At the top, before any affiliate links appear.

Cloaking Amazon Links

I mentioned this already, but it’s worth repeating because people still do it. Amazon’s Operating Agreement specifically prohibits link cloaking. If you’re using a plugin like ThirstyAffiliates or PrettyLinks, exclude Amazon links from cloaking. Use direct Amazon URLs only.

Low-Quality Thin Content

Publishing 200-word “reviews” that just list Amazon features won’t rank and won’t convert. Google’s helpful content update punishes thin affiliate content specifically. Write from experience. Include photos if you can. Share actual opinions, not regurgitated spec sheets.

Not Diversifying Beyond Amazon

This is the biggest mistake I see. Relying 100% on Amazon for affiliate income is risky. Amazon cut commission rates in 2020 with zero notice. Some affiliates lost 60% of their income overnight.

I keep Amazon as one income source among several. Direct affiliate programs from brands often pay 10-30% commission compared to Amazon’s 1-4.5%. ShareASale, Impact, and direct brand partnerships are where the real money is. If you’re building an affiliate marketing business, treat Amazon as a starting point, not the destination.

Getting Your Account Closed

Amazon closes accounts for: using affiliate links in emails, using links in offline materials, including links in ebooks or PDFs, incentivizing clicks (“click here to support us”), and violating their trademark guidelines. Read the Operating Agreement. It’s dry, but understanding it prevents costly mistakes.

I’ve heard from at least a dozen bloggers who lost their accounts because they included Amazon links in their email newsletters. Amazon specifically prohibits this. Use your links on your website only.

Is the Amazon Affiliate Program Worth It in 2026?

Yes, but with caveats. Amazon pays low commissions and changes its terms regularly. But it also converts better than almost any other affiliate program because of the trust factor. People buy from Amazon. Your job is just to get them there.

The smart approach: use Amazon Associates for products people naturally buy on Amazon (books, electronics, home goods). Use direct brand partnerships for digital products and services where commissions are 3-10x higher. Build your content around solving real problems, not just pushing products.

If you’re running WordPress and want to track your affiliate performance properly, setting up Google Analytics with affiliate link tracking is non-negotiable. You need to know which content converts, which products sell, and where your revenue actually comes from.

Amazon Associates is a starting point. A good one. But the bloggers and content creators earning serious affiliate income have diversified far beyond Amazon. Start here, learn the fundamentals, then expand.

Frequently Asked Questions

Start with Amazon Associates if you’re new to affiliate marketing. It’s the easiest program to join, the product selection is massive, and the conversion rates are hard to beat. But don’t stop there. Build your content, grow your traffic, and add direct brand partnerships as your site matures. That’s where the real revenue comes from.