Comparison
AffiliateRail vs Affonso
Below $1,000 a month of affiliate revenue, Affonso is cheaper than anything AffiliateRail sells, at a published $15 a month. Above that the comparison turns on managed payout fees: Affonso's published rates add a per-invoice fee, a per-affiliate fee above 25 affiliates and a card surcharge, where AffiliateRail takes 0% of payouts.
Written by Jimi Barkway, who built AffiliateRail and has run affiliate programs from both sides of the link. Corrections go to support@affiliaterail.com. Updated 1 September 2026.
What is the difference between AffiliateRail and Affonso?
Affonso wins on entry price and says so plainly at $15 a month. The difference appears as a program grows: their published overage is $19 per additional $1,000 of affiliate revenue, and their managed payouts list a $25 per-invoice fee, $0.50 per affiliate above 25 affiliates, and a 3.25% card surcharge. AffiliateRail's founding prices are $29, $59 and $99, and payouts run through the merchant's own PayPal or Wise account with nothing taken.
| Where they differ | Affonso | AffiliateRail |
|---|---|---|
| Entry price | $15 a month, to $1,000 of affiliate revenue | $29 a month founding, to $10,000 of affiliate revenue |
| Going over the ceiling | $19 per additional $1,000 of affiliate revenue, per their published pricing | Move to the next plan. No per-thousand overage |
| Managed payout fees | $25 per invoice, $0.50 per affiliate above 25 affiliates, and a 3.25% card surcharge, per their published pricing | 0%. AffiliateRail never takes a cut of a payout |
| Who holds the money | Managed payouts route funds through the platform | Non-custodial. The merchant's own PayPal or Wise account pays the affiliate |
| Affiliate portal languages | English | Thirteen languages, on the merchant's own domain from the $29 plan |
What does each one cost?
These are the published plan prices on both sides, read from the same verified figures that drive our true-cost calculator. AffiliateRail's founding prices are held for the life of the subscription. The list price is what the plan costs once the founding places are gone.
| Plan | Ceiling | Price | Automated payouts |
|---|---|---|---|
| AffiliateRail | to $10,000 a month | $29 founding, $59 after | No |
| AffiliateRail | to $20,000 a month | $59 founding, $89 after | Yes |
| AffiliateRail | to $50,000 a month | $99 founding, $179 after | Yes |
| Affonso | to $1,000 a month | $15 a month | No |
| Affonso | to $10,000 a month | $39 a month | Yes |
| Affonso | to $30,000 a month | $99 a month | Yes |
| Affonso | no published ceiling | from $149 a month | Yes |
Plan price is not the whole bill. What a program actually costs depends on payout fees and what happens in a good month, so the arithmetic on your own numbers lives on one page: the true-cost calculator.
Who holds the money when affiliates get paid?
Affonso's managed payouts route the merchant's funds through the platform, and their published rates list a $25 per-invoice fee, $0.50 per affiliate above 25 affiliates, and a 3.25% card surcharge. On a program paying $8,000 to 40 partners those published rates come to roughly $294 a month on top of the plan. AffiliateRail is non-custodial on every plan and takes 0%, because the money never arrives to take a cut from. The custody page sets out each platform's own published position, with sources and dates.
AffiliateRail is non-custodial on every plan. The merchant connects their own PayPal Payouts or Wise Business account, AffiliateRail computes the ledger and calls that rail with the merchant's own credentials, and the money moves from the merchant's account to the affiliate's without passing through AffiliateRail. AffiliateRail takes 0% of every payout.
Where Affonso is the better choice
No product wins on every axis, and a comparison page that pretends otherwise is not worth reading. Affonso is genuinely the cheapest way into this category, and for a program that is still finding out whether affiliates work at all, that matters.
- The lowest published entry price in the category at $15 a month, which is a real advantage while a program is small and unproven.
- An affiliate marketplace, so partners can find your program rather than only being recruited into it. AffiliateRail has no marketplace.
- A modern interface and a fast setup, aimed at the same founder AffiliateRail is aimed at.
- Managed payouts handle the administration for merchants who would rather pay a fee than connect their own rail.
How do you move a program from Affonso?
AffiliateRail's tracking script reads the generic referral parameters many Affonso programs use, so those links keep attributing from the day the script goes on your site, and affiliates with their balances import from CSV checked against your Affonso dashboard. The switch guide covers the order, the parallel-running window and what does not carry across.
Common questions
Is Affonso cheaper than AffiliateRail?
Below $1,000 a month of affiliate revenue, yes: their published $15 plan is cheaper than anything AffiliateRail sells, and that is worth saying plainly. Above it the picture changes with their published $19 per-thousand overage and their managed payout fees. The true-cost calculator compares the real monthly bill at your own revenue.
What do Affonso's managed payouts cost?
Their published rates list $25 per invoice, $0.50 per affiliate above 25 affiliates, and a 3.25% card surcharge. On $8,000 paid to 40 partners that is roughly $294 a month on top of the plan price. AffiliateRail takes 0% because the merchant pays from their own PayPal or Wise account.
Will my affiliate links break if I move from Affonso?
The tracking script reads the generic referral parameters many Affonso programs use, so those links keep attributing from day one. Affonso's own parameters are being added to the tracker as well. Running both platforms in parallel for a period is the safe way through, and the switch guide sets out how.
Does AffiliateRail have a marketplace like Affonso?
No. Affonso runs an affiliate marketplace and AffiliateRail does not, so if discovery through a marketplace is how you expect to find partners, that is a reason to choose Affonso. AffiliateRail is built around recruiting and paying partners you find yourself.
Where these facts come from
Every claim about another product on this page was read off their own published pages on the date shown. Prices change, and when they do this page is wrong until we update it. If you find a stale number, email support@affiliaterail.com and we will correct it and move the date.
- Affonso pricing page, checked 1 September 2026
- AffiliateRail pricing, checked 1 September 2026