Simple Affiliate vs Refersion

App comparison

Simple Affiliate vs Refersion

Refersion is a long-running affiliate network and tracking platform with a Shopify App Store listing, a publisher marketplace, and cookieless first-party tracking. Its published paid plans pair a monthly subscription with a percentage of affiliate-generated sales, and the listing says charges may be billed by Refersion separately from the Shopify invoice.

Modeled at $10,000 affiliate-attributed GMV / month: Simple Affiliate Pro $78 vs Refersion $339 on published list prices. Autopay math assumes a 10% commission ($1,000).

Simple Affiliate: Pro $39/mo Refersion: App Store listing Updated September 1, 2026

Checked September 1, 2026 against the public App Store listing and vendor pricing page. List prices move; reread them before you buy.

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Refersion is stronger when

You need to recruit affiliates you have never met. The Refersion Marketplace lists your program so publishers can find and apply.
Launch includes a first-party tracking domain without cookies, which is the usual reason merchants pick Refersion over a store-native app.
The listing covers traditional and MLM programs, PayPal/ACH/bank payouts, and automated tax forms. Growth adds SKU tracking, multi-store, and APIs.
A free Marketplace Listing lets you publish a percent-of-sale offer before you pay for tracking.

Simple Affiliate is stronger when

We do not take 3% of affiliate-generated sales. At $10,000 GMV, Launch works out to $339 ($39 plus 3% of sales), while Pro works out to $78: a $39 Shopify subscription plus 3.9% Autopay on $1,000 of commission, not on GMV.
The program stays on your store. Affiliates sign in with your Shopify customer accounts; there is no Refersion portal in the middle.
Billing is a flat monthly Shopify subscription. The listing notes that Refersion may invoice its own charges separately from Shopify.
Autopay can facilitate IRS 1099-K and 1099-NEC for eligible U.S. affiliates when thresholds apply, on top of PayPal and store credit at 0% processing.

Who each one is for

Stay on Refersion when marketplace discovery, cookieless first-party tracking, or MLM is the job, or when your partners already live in that network. Switch when you already know your affiliates and want the program on your own store with a flat Shopify bill and no percentage of affiliate-generated sales.

Pricing

Four published tiers on refersion.com/pricing and the App Store listing, checked September 1, 2026: Marketplace Listing at $0, Launch at $39/month plus 3% of affiliate-generated sales, Growth at $199/month plus 2%, and Scale with no published price (contact sales; the page describes it as a flat monthly subscription for brands above $1 million GMV per year). Annual Launch and Growth prices are listed on the App Store. Our plans are Starter $0, Basic $19, Pro $39, and Premium $69, and the only usage-based charge is Autopay on commission payouts rather than GMV.

Line item	Refersion	Simple Affiliate
Published starting price	Marketplace Listing free; Launch $39/mo + 3% of affiliate-generated sales	Starter $0; Pro $39/mo
Revenue share	3% Launch / 2% Growth; Scale unpublished	None
Payout processing	PayPal, ACH, and bank on the listing; confirm current payout settings	PayPal, store credit, and Premium manual 0%; Autopay 3.9% bank / 8.9% card on Pro
Modeled at $10,000 GMV	$339 on Launch ($39 + 3% of $10,000)	$78 on Pro with Autopay bank (assumes 10% commission = $1,000)

Launch’s 3% meters affiliate-generated sales — the full $10,000. Autopay meters commission payouts: at a 10% commission that is $1,000, so Pro adds $39 of Autopay bank fees to the $39 subscription. Affiliates still receive the full commission. Growth at the same GMV is $399 ($199 plus 2%). Scale has no published price, so it is omitted from the model. Rates per the App Store listing and refersion.com/pricing as of September 1, 2026.

Features

Capabilities below are for a typical Shopify store. Plan and add-on limits apply. Refersion features come from its App Store listing and public docs, not from a paid trial of every SKU.

Yes: included for a typical setup Partial: limited, plan-tier, or human-in-the-loop Add-on: extra product or usage cost —: not offered or not the product

Feature	Simple Affiliate	Refersion
Platform
Shopify Admin embedded app	YesShopify Admin app home	Yes
Shopify App Store listing	Yes	Yes
In-house program on the merchant store	YesProgram stays on the merchant store	Partial
Affiliates use Shopify customer accounts	YesAffiliates use Shopify customer accounts	—
No revenue share	YesFlat monthly Shopify subscription	—3% Launch / 2% Growth
Publisher marketplace	—	Yes
Multi-level / MLM commissions	—	YesListing covers MLM
Program tools
Unlimited affiliates	PartialUnlimited on Basic+	YesLaunch+
Unique discount codes	PartialPro+	Yes
Per-product commissions	PartialPro+	PartialGrowth SKU tracking
Klaviyo integration	PartialBasic+	PartialGrowth integrations
CSV program import	YesPaid Shopify plan and store-age safeguards	Partial
Payouts and tax
Automatic commission payouts	YesStripe; merchant pays the fee	YesPayPal, ACH, bank
PayPal, store credit, and manual with no processing fee	YesPayPal and store credit every plan; manual on Premium	PartialPayPal and ACH on listing
Merchant pays Autopay processing fee	YesStripe; merchant pays the fee	Partial
IRS 1099-K / 1099-NEC facilitation	YesEligible U.S. Autopay affiliates	PartialListing advertises automated tax forms

Frequently asked questions

Common questions about Simple Affiliate vs Refersion. Updated September 1, 2026.

What does Simple Affiliate cost next to Refersion?

Four flat plans: Starter $0, Basic $19, Pro $39, and Premium $69, with a 14-day trial on paid plans. No percentage of affiliate-generated sales, ever. Turn on Autopay and the processing fee (3.9% bank / 8.9% card on Pro) is charged to you on commission payouts; affiliates get their commission in full. Refersion’s subscription-plus-percentage model is described on this page from its App Store listing and refersion.com/pricing as of September 1, 2026; rates change, so treat the numbers here as a snapshot. Scale has no published list price.

Where do my affiliates sign in?

On your store, with your store’s customer accounts. New customer accounts put the dashboard on your domain; classic accounts use a branded theme page such as /pages/simple-affiliate. Refersion gives affiliates a vendor-hosted portal and marketplace instead. More on why we built it in-house: /pages/sc-faq/why-use-simple-affiliate-instead-of-a-network.

Where does Shopify Collabs fit here?

Shopify Collabs is Shopify’s included creator marketplace, so there is no Simple Affiliate vs Shopify Collabs page: we name it in prose and link apps.shopify.com/collabs and shopify.com/collabs instead. These pages do not recommend uninstalling Shopify products such as Shopify Collabs.

Why is Refersion more expensive in this model?

The 3% on Launch. On $10,000 of affiliate-generated sales, 3% is $300; add the $39 subscription and Launch reaches $339. Our modeled $78 is the $39 Pro subscription plus 3.9% Autopay on an assumed $1,000 of commission. Skip Autopay and Pro is just $39. Growth at the same GMV is higher still because of the $199 floor.

Does Refersion include a free plan?

Yes: Marketplace Listing, which publishes a percent-of-sale offer so affiliates can view and apply. Tracking, payouts, and program management require a paid plan per refersion.com/pricing. Ours is Starter: $0/month, up to 10 affiliates, one group, one standard link per affiliate.

Sources and other comparisons

Refersion is a trademark of its owner. Simple Affiliate is not affiliated with Refersion. Shopify is a trademark of Shopify Inc. Simple Affiliate is a third-party Shopify App Store app and is not affiliated with, endorsed by, or sponsored by Shopify. These pages compare independent App Store products and do not recommend uninstalling Shopify products such as Shopify Collabs. See shopify.com. List prices verified September 1, 2026.

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