Disclosure: Partli publishes this guide and Partli is on the list. To keep it useful anyway, every competitor fact comes from that company's own website (checked 17 October 2026, linked in each comparison page), and we say where others beat us.
The short list, by situation
| IF YOU… | LOOK AT | WHY |
|---|---|---|
| Bill through Stripe and want flat pricing | Partli, Rewardful | Partli has no revenue cap; Rewardful is the long-standing Stripe partner |
| Bill through Chargebee, Recurly or Braintree | FirstPromoter | Native integrations Partli and most others lack |
| Bill through Polar, Creem or Dodo Payments | Partli, Affonso | Both integrate natively |
| Sell on Shopify or WooCommerce | Partli, Tapfiliate | Tapfiliate also covers BigCommerce, Magento and more |
| Need tiered or time-based commission rules | Tolt, Dub | Rules engines beyond per-group rates |
| Need multi-level commissions | FirstPromoter, Tapfiliate, Affonso | Partli doesn't support MLM |
| Run reseller and co-sell partners | PartnerStack | Deal registration, CRM sync, B2B marketplace |
| Want an agent to do the admin | Partli | MCP tools that can act, incl. payouts with confirmation |
| Have almost no affiliate revenue yet | Affonso | €15/mo billed yearly up to $1,000/mo |
What each tool costs as your program grows
Headline prices mislead, because most tools charge more as affiliates sell more. Here is the monthly bill for a single SaaS product at three levels of affiliate-driven revenue, assuming a 20% commission (so payouts are 20% of revenue) and monthly billing. Platform payout fees are included; your payment provider's own fees are not.
| AFFILIATE REVENUE / MONTH | $5,000 | $15,000 | $40,000 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Partli (pay via your PayPal or Wise) | $29 | $29 | $29 |
| Partli with fraud detection (Growth) | $79 | $79 | $79 |
| Rewardful | $49 | $99 | Enterprise, above $149 |
| FirstPromoter | $49 | $99 | $149 |
| Tolt (manual payouts) | $69 | $99 | $199 |
| Dub Partners (5% ACH payout fee) | $90 + $50 = $140 | $300 + $150 = $450 | $300 + $400 = $700 |
| Affonso (monthly billing, approx.) | ~€39 | ~€99 | Enterprise, from €149 |
| PartnerStack | Quoted | Quoted | Quoted |
How we got these: each tool's published plan limits on 17 October 2026. Dub caps partner payouts per plan ($2,500 on Business), so $3,000+ of payouts needs Advanced; we applied its 5% bank-payout fee to the payout amount, which its help center doesn't state explicitly. Tapfiliate is left out because its price depends on clicks and conversions, not revenue. If Partli sends payouts through Stripe for you, add 1% of payouts plus Stripe's fee.
How we compared them
- How the price scales. Flat, by affiliate revenue, by payouts, or by usage. This decides your bill a year from now.
- What payouts cost and who sends them. Percentage fees on payouts add up faster than plan prices.
- Billing integrations. Sales should reach the tool without custom code, refunds included.
- Commission flexibility. Recurring for N months, lifetime, per-group rates, tiers.
- Operating effort. How much of the weekly admin can be delegated, including to an AI agent.
1. Partli
Best for: founders who want flat pricing and want an AI agent to run the program. Price: $29 / $79 / $149 a month, $23 / $63 / $119 billed yearly, 7-day trial with a card.
Partners, programs and tracked sales are unlimited on every plan, so a growing program never forces an upgrade. It integrates natively with Stripe, Paddle, Polar, Creem and Dodo, has a WooCommerce plugin and Shopify webhook, and takes anything else (Lemon Squeezy included) through its REST API. Payouts go out through Stripe Connect (1% plus Stripe at cost) or from your own PayPal or Wise (no Partli fee). The hosted MCP server lets Claude, ChatGPT, Cursor or Codex approve partners, change rewards and run payouts with confirmation.
Weaker at: no Chargebee, Recurly or Braintree; no multi-level commissions; fraud detection and custom domains start on Growth; shorter trial than most. See pricing.
2. Rewardful
Best for: Stripe-first SaaS that wants a proven, simple tool. Price: $49 / $99 / from $149 a month, capped at $7,500, $15,000 and $30,000 of affiliate revenue. 14-day trial.
A Premier Stripe Partner with two-way sync, Paddle support and many membership-platform integrations. 0% of revenue; PayPal and Wise bulk payouts, or Managed Payouts at 3%. Fraud detection on every plan. Weaker at: revenue caps, 2 team members and one campaign on Starter, no MCP server. Partli vs Rewardful.
3. FirstPromoter
Best for: subscription businesses on Chargebee, Recurly or Braintree. Price: $49 / $99 / $149 a month, capped at $5,000 and $15,000 of affiliate revenue. 14-day trial, no card.
The broadest subscription-billing support on this list, unlimited team members, multi-tier commissions and 45 webhook events. Its MCP server is in beta and leaves money movement out on purpose. Weaker at: a low revenue cap and 1,000 affiliates on Starter; no Shopify or WooCommerce. Partli vs FirstPromoter.
4. Tolt
Best for: SaaS that wants detailed commission rules. Price: $69 / $99 / $199 a month, capped at $10,000, $20,000 and $50,000 of affiliate revenue. 14-day trial, no card.
A rules engine for time-limited, per-plan and tiered commissions, the Radar fraud toolkit, and tax forms with 1099 filing on Growth. Integrates with Stripe, Paddle and Chargebee. Weaker at: 2% fee on automated payouts, higher entry price, read-only MCP today. Partli vs Tolt.
5. Dub Partners
Best for: teams that want managed global payouts with tax compliance, or already use Dub links. Price: $90 / $300 a month with $2,500 and $15,000 of partner payouts; Enterprise custom. 14-day trial.
Flexible reward conditions, SOC 2 Type II, strong developer API and SDKs, and an MCP server. Weaker at: a 5% payout fee (8% by card), a low payout cap on Business, 500 partners on Business. Partli vs Dub.
6. PartnerStack
Best for: B2B SaaS with a partnerships team running resellers, co-sell and affiliates together. Price: not published; quoted after a demo.
A partner relationship platform: deal registration, Salesforce and HubSpot sync, partner training, MDF and a marketplace of B2B partners. It pays partners for you on one monthly invoice. Weaker at: no self-serve start or trial; partners pay withdrawal fees. Partli vs PartnerStack.
7. Tapfiliate
Best for: ecommerce on BigCommerce, Magento, Wix or similar, or multi-level programs. Price: $89 / $179 a month with click, conversion and affiliate limits plus overages. 7- or 14-day trial.
The longest ecommerce integration list here, multi-level commissions, an affiliate marketplace and white label on Enterprise. Weaker at: usage limits (50 affiliates on Launch), payouts via a file you upload yourself, read-only MCP. Partli vs Tapfiliate.
8. Affonso
Best for: very early SaaS with little affiliate revenue. Price: €15 / €29 / €79 a month billed yearly, capped at $1,000, $10,000 and $30,000 of partner revenue. 14-day trial.
The lowest entry price, unlimited affiliates, a marketplace with a discovery agent, Stripe, Paddle, Polar, Creem and Dodo support, and MCP from Growth. Weaker at: the $1,000 cap on Launch, one seat on Launch, tax forms only on Elite. Partli vs Affonso.
FAQ
What is the best affiliate software for a SaaS startup?
It depends on how your price should scale and what you bill through. For a Stripe-based startup that wants low, flat pricing, Partli ($29/mo, no revenue cap) or Rewardful ($49/mo up to $7,500 of affiliate revenue) are common starting points. For Chargebee, Recurly or Braintree billing, FirstPromoter. For B2B channel and reseller programs, PartnerStack.
Do affiliate platforms take a percentage of revenue?
Most SaaS affiliate tools do not: Partli, Rewardful, FirstPromoter and Tolt all state 0% of revenue. Several charge on payouts instead, for example Rewardful's optional Managed Payouts (3%), Tolt's automated payouts (2%), Dub (5% ACH, 8% card) and Partli when it sends payouts through Stripe (1% plus Stripe at cost).
What does 'revenue cap' mean in affiliate software pricing?
Many platforms price plans by the revenue your affiliates generate each month. When affiliates bring in more than the plan allows (for example $5,000/month on FirstPromoter Starter or $7,500 on Rewardful Starter), you move to a more expensive plan. Partli does not cap revenue on any plan; its plans differ by workspaces, seats and features.
Which affiliate software works with Claude or ChatGPT?
As of October 2026, Partli, Dub, FirstPromoter (beta), Affonso, PartnerStack, Tolt and Tapfiliate all publish MCP servers; Rewardful does not. They differ in what an agent can do: Tolt's and Tapfiliate's are read-only, FirstPromoter's excludes money movement, and Partli's can act on the program, including payouts with confirmation.
Next steps
Setting up your first program? Read how to start a SaaS affiliate program and, if you bill through Stripe, how to run an affiliate program on Stripe.