Impact.com vs Refersion
Choose Impact.com if you want to manage affiliate, creator, customer referral, and retail media partnerships together; choose Refersion if your priority is an ecommerce affiliate program with unlimited affiliates, clicks, and conversions on its entry paid plan. Both products are available to buy and publish enough detail to make this a useful comparison. Their clearest differences are program scope, pricing structure, and which features require a higher tier.
Last updated November 1, 2026.
At a glance
| Dimension | Impact.com | Refersion |
|---|---|---|
| Program scope | Affiliate, creator, customer referral, retail media | Affiliate, influencer, ambassador, multi-level marketing |
| Published plan prices | Starter $30/mo; Essentials $500/mo; Pro $2,500/mo | Launch $39/mo; Growth $199/mo; Scale by sales inquiry |
| Entry-plan variable charge | Starter: 2.5% of revenue | Launch: 3% of affiliate-driven sales |
| Contract and billing | 12-month contract | Monthly or annual billing |
| Ecommerce platforms | Starter: Shopify, WooCommerce, BigCommerce, Adobe Commerce, and others | Shopify, BigCommerce, WooCommerce, Magento |
| Partner discovery | Partner recommendations on Starter; Marketplace on Essentials | Marketplace listing and personalized discovery on Launch |
| Creator and referral tools | Creator and customer referral management on Essentials | Influencer and ambassador programs |
| Tracking | Basic tracking on Starter; API-based tracking on Pro | First-party tracking on Launch; product and email tracking on Growth |
| Partner payouts | Automated payouts in 70+ currencies | PayPal on Launch; additional payment options listed by plan |
| API access | API-based tracking on Pro | API access on Growth |
| Support | Email and chat on Starter; dedicated support on Essentials | Email on Launch; chat on Growth; premium support on Scale |
| Published limits | Essentials includes up to $2,500/mo in partner payouts | Unlimited affiliates, clicks, and conversions on Launch |
Scroll the table sideways to compare each row.
Which should you choose?
Choose Impact.com if
- Brands managing affiliate, creator, and customer referral programs together
- Teams that also need retail media partnership reporting
- Programs seeking a partner marketplace on Essentials or above
- Businesses needing API-based tracking on Pro or above
Choose Refersion if
- Ecommerce brands launching an affiliate program
- Teams needing unlimited affiliates, clicks, and conversions on Launch
- Merchants wanting monthly or annual billing
- Brands needing product-level tracking and multi-store management on Growth
The verdict
Impact.com is the better fit when several partnership types need to share one platform, particularly if you need its creator and customer referral tools. Refersion is the better fit when you are building an ecommerce-focused affiliate program and want published monthly and annual billing options. Compare the full cost, not just the starting subscription: both vendors publish a variable charge on their entry paid plans, and some capabilities require higher tiers.
Impact.com vs Refersion: common questions
- Which costs less to start, Impact.com or Refersion?
- Impact.com lists Starter at $30 per month plus 2.5% of revenue. Refersion lists Launch at $39 per month plus 3% of affiliate-driven sales. Those percentage charges use different descriptions, so the subscription prices alone do not establish which will cost less for a particular brand.
- Can I use Impact.com or Refersion for free?
- Impact.com offers a 30-day free trial of Starter. Refersion offers a free marketplace listing, but a paid plan is required to review affiliates, track referrals, manage commissions, or issue payouts.
- Do both Impact.com and Refersion work with Shopify?
- Yes. Impact.com lists Shopify among the supported platforms for Starter, and Refersion lists a Shopify integration.
- Do both products offer a partner marketplace?
- Impact.com includes its Partner Marketplace on Essentials and above, while Starter includes partner recommendations. Refersion offers a free marketplace listing and includes a marketplace listing and personalized affiliate discovery on Launch.
- Which is a better fit for influencer and referral programs?
- Impact.com includes creator management and customer referral management on Essentials and above. Refersion publishes influencer and brand ambassador solutions, but its paid plans are presented primarily around ecommerce affiliate management.
- When do I get API capabilities?
- Impact.com lists API-based tracking on Pro, priced at $2,500 per month. Refersion lists API access on Growth, priced at $199 per month before its published variable charge.
- Are affiliates, clicks, or conversions limited?
- Refersion explicitly lists unlimited affiliates, clicks, and conversions on Launch. Impact.com does not state comparable counts on its pricing page; it instead publishes included monthly partner payout amounts for Essentials and Pro.
- Do the products require an annual commitment?
- Impact.com says it requires a 12-month contract. Refersion publishes monthly and annual billing options, with annual billing paid once per year.
