Commission structures optimized for software/SaaS affiliate programs where subscription LTV makes standard product commission rates inadequate: (1) First-month percentage (most common): 20-40% of first month's MRR — e.g., $10-20 per referral on a $49/month product; (2) Flat CPA by plan tier: $25-75 per annual plan, $10-25 per monthly; (3) Recurring commission: 20-30% of each payment for 12 months. Programs paying product e-commerce rates (5-10%) struggle to attract specialized software publishers who have benchmarks set by Shopify Partners ($2,000/merchant) and HubSpot (15% recurring for 1 year).
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