Affiliate Agreement Template and How to Draft One (2026)

What is an affiliate agreement, and when do you need one? An affiliate agreement is a contract between a business and an affiliate who promotes the business's products and earns a commission on the sales or actions they drive, usually tracked through a unique link or code. It is the backbone of affiliate marketing, influencer partnerships and partner programmes. The agreement sets the commission, how it is tracked and paid, and the rules the affiliate must follow when promoting the brand. You need an affiliate agreement whenever you pay others to drive sales or sign-ups on a performance basis. It differs from a simple referral because affiliates usually promote publicly and continuously, often to an audience, so the agreement has to cover not just the money but also how the brand is used, what the affiliate may claim, and the advertising-disclosure rules the affiliate must follow. Done well, it protects the brand as much as it defines the payout. This article is general guidance, not legal advice. Affiliate marketing engages advertising, consumer-protection, tax and data rules, which vary by jurisdiction, so have a qualified professional review one before you rely on it. ## Affiliate agreement template Copy the block below and fill the bracketed fields. ```

AFFILIATE AGREEMENT This Affiliate Agreement ("Agreement") is made on [DATE] BETWEEN: [COMPANY NAME], [address] ("Company") AND [AFFILIATE NAME], [address] ("Affiliate") 1. APPOINTMENT The Company appoints the Affiliate to promote the Company's products ("Products") and earn commission on Qualifying Sales, on a non-exclusive basis. The Affiliate is an independent party, not an employee, agent or partner of the Company. 2. TRACKING Sales are tracked through the Affiliate's unique [link / code]. A sale counts only if attributed to the Affiliate by the Company's tracking, subject to the attribution window in clause 3. 3. QUALIFYING SALE AND ATTRIBUTION A "Qualifying Sale" is a completed, paid purchase by a customer who used the Affiliate's link or code within an attribution window of [N] days, and who is not returned, refunded or cancelled. [Last-click / first-click] attribution applies. 4. COMMISSION The Company will pay [X]% of [net sale value] OR [CURRENCY/AMOUNT] per Qualifying Sale. Commission is [one-time / recurring for [N] months on subscription renewals]. 5. PAYMENT Commission is calculated [monthly] and paid within [N] days of period end, once the Affiliate's balance reaches [minimum payout]. Refunds, chargebacks and cancellations reverse the related commission. [Applicable taxes are handled as required by law.] 6. PROMOTION RULES The Affiliate will: (a) promote honestly and make no false or misleading claims about the Products; (b) clearly disclose the affiliate relationship as advertising law requires; (c) not bid on the Company's trademarks in paid search unless permitted; (d) not use spam, misleading coupons, cookie stuffing, or self-referrals; and (e) follow the Company's brand guidelines. 7. INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY AND BRAND USE The Company grants a limited, revocable licence to use its name, logo and approved materials only to promote the Products under this Agreement. All goodwill belongs to the Company. 8. COMPLIANCE The Affiliate will comply with applicable advertising, consumer- protection, anti-spam, data-protection and tax laws in each market it promotes in. 9. TERM AND TERMINATION This Agreement runs from [START] and either party may end it on [N] days notice, or immediately for breach. Commission earned on Qualifying Sales before termination remains payable, subject to the reversal rules. 10. LIABILITY AND INDEMNITY The Affiliate indemnifies the Company against claims arising from the Affiliate's own promotional conduct. To the extent the law allows, neither party is liable for indirect loss. 11. GOVERNING LAW AND DISPUTES This Agreement is governed by the laws of [jurisdiction], with disputes subject to [courts / arbitration seat]. Signed for the Company: __________ Signed for the Affiliate: __________ Name / title / date Name / title / date

- **Commission (clause 4).** Choose a percentage or flat amount, define the base, and say whether it recurs on subscription renewals. Recurring commissions are powerful for subscription products but need an end date.
- **Payment (clause 5).** Set a calculation period, a payout delay long enough to absorb refunds, a minimum payout threshold, and the rule that refunds and chargebacks reverse commission.
- **Promotion rules (clause 6).** This clause protects your brand. Require honest claims, clear disclosure of the affiliate relationship, and ban practices such as trademark bidding, cookie stuffing and self-referrals that inflate payouts or damage the brand.
- **Brand use (clause 7).** Grant only a limited, revocable licence to use your name and approved materials, and keep all goodwill with the company.
- **Compliance and indemnity (clauses 8 and 10).** Put responsibility for the affiliate's own promotional conduct on the affiliate, including disclosure and advertising law, and back it with an indemnity. ## Common mistakes to avoid - No clear attribution window or model, which makes every contested sale an argument.
- Paying out before the refund window closes, so you pay commission on sales that later reverse.
- No disclosure requirement, which exposes both sides to advertising-law breaches.
- Allowing affiliates to bid on your brand name in paid search, which can raise your own ad costs.
- No end date on recurring commissions. ## A note on jurisdiction Affiliate marketing rules vary by jurisdiction. In India, an affiliate agreement is a contract under the Indian Contract Act, 1872, commissions usually attract GST, advertising must follow the ASCI code and the Consumer Protection Act, 2019, including rules on misleading advertisements and endorsements, and data use engages data-protection rules. In the US, affiliates must disclose material connections under advertising guidance, and in the UK, EU, Ireland, Singapore and Australia consumer-protection and advertising-disclosure rules differ. Because affiliates often promote across borders, the safe approach is to require compliance with the law of each market the affiliate promotes in, and to say "varies by jurisdiction" rather than assume one rule covers all. ## Where a contract workspace helps A template gets you a solid affiliate agreement. The ongoing work is everything after signing: keeping commission, attribution and brand-use terms consistent across many affiliates, checking each version for weak terms before you sign, tracking which commissions are earned and which reverse, and keeping versions straight as the programme grows. Drafting an affiliate agreement and then keeping commission, attribution and brand-use terms consistent across many affiliates can live in one AI workspace tuned to how your company runs its programme. [Adira](https://adiralaw.com) works this way: it drafts from an affiliate template, models the agreement as linked clauses so it shows per-clause risk, lets you edit terms in plain language, and keeps obligations and key dates in view. This template alone is enough to put a fair affiliate agreement in place; a workspace simply joins drafting, review and tracking across the programme into one connected job.