Affiliate program for a SaaS with no budget: a 90-day plan
A SaaS affiliate program pays people a commission, a cut of each sale, when they send you a paying customer. SaaS means software people pay for each month or year. An affiliate is a person with an audience who recommends your product.
You can start one with no ad budget. The only cash you must spend is the tracking tool. On 28 October 2026, none of the six tools below listed a free plan. The lowest paid plans start at $49 a month. This post gives a 90-day plan, week by week, and then a day-90 scorecard of what to expect.
The scorecard is plain, not rosy. After 90 days, expect a handful of sign-ups. None to three of them may bring a paying customer. The plan is built to find that out cheaply.
Selling physical products instead? Read the no-budget plan for Shopify stores. Choosing a tool? The buyer checklist covers eight checks. This page adds the cost to start and the plan.
We make RecruitAffiliates.ai and AffiliateRail, so we describe both near the end. Our editorial policy says how we check and date facts.
What does it cost to start?
Every vendor price below comes from the vendor's own pricing page, read on 28 October 2026. Prices change, so open the live page before you decide. The table shows the lowest paid plan on each page.
| Tool | Lowest paid plan, per month | Free trial | Affiliate revenue it tracks on that plan | Revenue cut or payout fee |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Rewardful | $49 | 14 days, card not stated | Up to $7,500 a month | 0% transaction fee. Optional managed payouts carry a 3% processing fee |
| FirstPromoter | $49 | 14 days, no card | Up to $5,000 a month | None listed |
| Dub | $81, as listed. The page also offers 10% off yearly billing | 14 days | Partner payouts up to $30K a year | 5% payout fee. No revenue cut listed |
| Tapfiliate | $89 | 7 days | Not stated. Limits are 50 affiliates, 5,000 clicks and 500 conversions a month | None listed. Overage fees apply past the click and conversion limits |
| Tolt | $99 | 14 days, no card | Up to $20,000 a month | None from Tolt. Affiliates pay their payout method's own fee |
| PartnerStack | No price shown | Demo only | Not shown | None listed |
- No free plan. None of the six pages lists a free plan for affiliate tracking. Each offers a trial or a demo.
- No revenue cut. No page lists a share of your sales. A payout fee is a charge taken when you pay an affiliate. Dub does charge 5% on payouts, and Rewardful charges 3% if you use its optional managed payouts.
- Caps differ in kind. Rewardful, FirstPromoter and Tolt cap affiliate revenue. Dub caps payouts. Tapfiliate caps affiliates, clicks and conversions.
- PartnerStack shows no price. Its page says the final plan and price are confirmed during a demo.
A tracked-revenue cap is the most affiliate-sourced revenue a plan covers in a month. If your product costs $50 a month, $5,000 a month is about a hundred paying accounts. You are unlikely to pass it in your first 90 days.
What do the first 90 days cost?
The sum is simple. Multiply the monthly price by the number of bills that land in 90 days. A free trial pushes the first bill back.
| Tool | One bill | Two bills | Three bills (earlier start, or a 7-day trial) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rewardful | $49 | $98 | $147 |
| FirstPromoter | $49 | $98 | $147 |
| Dub | $81 | $162 | $243 |
| Tapfiliate | $89 | $178 | $267 |
| Tolt | $99 | $198 | $297 |
Take the week 4 plan below. You start a trial that lasts 14 days on day 22, and the first bill lands on day 36. Then a second bill falls on day 66, and a third on day 96. That is two bills inside 90 days. The 7-day Tapfiliate trial would land a third bill on day 89, so count three for that one.
So the cheapest of the six costs about $98 in tool fees, leaving out any recruiting tool. Ad spend is zero. Commissions are the only other cost, and you pay those only after a sale.
What does the 90-day plan look like?
The plan has one rule: spend nothing until a real person says yes. Weeks 1 to 3 cost $0. You start a tool's free trial in week 4, once replies are in.
| Week | The job | First emails sent so far | Cash spent |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Write the offer on one page | 0 | $0 |
| 2 | Build a sign-up page and a first list. Send the first 25 emails | 25 | $0 |
| 3 | Reply to every answer by hand | 75 | $0 |
| 4 | Start one tool's free trial and run a test sale | 150 | $0 |
| 5 | Approve the first affiliates and give them links | 250 | $0, trial running |
| 6 to 8 | Keep sending, and help each affiliate publish | 400, 550, 700 | First bill, day 36 |
| 9 to 10 | Last new emails, then read the numbers | 850, 1,000 | Second bill, day 66 |
| 11 to 12 | Hold, test payout, first payout | no new emails | $0 more |
| 13 | Day-90 scorecard and a decision | no new emails | None |
The email column assumes a new inbox. We take its pace from our own sending rules, in the week 3 section. It also assumes you can find enough names, which is the hard part.
Week 1: write the offer on one page
Write down five terms before you contact anyone. They are the commission rate, how long you pay it, the cookie window, the hold and the refund rule. A cookie window is how long after a click a sign-up still counts for the affiliate. A hold is the days you wait before paying a commission, so a refund can still reach it.
For the numbers, look at what seven SaaS programs say they pay. Then read what nine programs publish on cookie, clawback and payout. Our advice is a 12-month commission to start, because extending later is easier than cutting a lifetime promise. Set the hold to match your refund window.
Check the sum too. A 20% commission on a $50 plan is $10 a month. That has to leave you a margin after serving the customer. The worked sum is in how many affiliates a SaaS program needs.
Cost this week: $0. A page in a document is enough.
Week 2: a sign-up page and a first list
You don't need the tool yet. Build a sign-up page, a short page that explains your offer and asks people to apply. A form that emails you the answers works. What goes on a SaaS affiliate program page lists nine sections. Use the first three: the offer, the terms and the apply button.
Then build the list. Start with people who already cover your rivals, such as review sites and YouTube channels. How to find affiliates for your SaaS walks through it. Our scans for five software-brand profiles returned 1,759 results on 22 October 2026. Websites were 54.6% of them and YouTube channels 36.6%. That is what the scanner returned, not how many of each exist. These are our own counts from one set of scans, not a published study.
Your rivals' affiliates are usually fair game, though a contract may stop them. Can you recruit your competitor's affiliates covers the rules.
In week 2, send 5 each weekday, 25 in all. The recruitment email guide has wording that gets replies.
Cost this week: $0.
Week 3: reply by hand
Send 50 more emails. Answer every reply the same day. A person who answers is worth the time. Ask each one what they would need to feel safe promoting you.
A new inbox sends up to 5 first emails a day in its first week, which is plan week 2. It sends 10 a day in its second week, 15 in its third and 20 after that. It stays under 25 a day until 200 emails have gone out, then it can send 30. Sending runs Monday to Friday (our sending rules, read 28 October 2026). If you send by hand, copy that pace. A cold inbox that sends 100 on day one risks being flagged as spam.
Cost this week: $0.
Week 4: start one trial and run a test sale
By now you should have a few yes replies. Pick one tool and start its free trial. Use the eight checks in the buyer checklist above to choose. If two tools tie, pick the one with the clearer refund answer.
Connect your billing tool. Then run a test: make a sign-up through a tracked link, pay, refund, and watch what the tool does with the commission. If you only click around, you learn little.
Cost this week: $0. The trial is free. On the plans with a 14-day trial, the first bill lands on day 36.
Week 5: approve the first affiliates
Approve every sensible applicant. Send each one three things: their tracked link, your one-page offer and your disclosure rule.
The disclosure rule matters. The US Federal Trade Commission says to disclose the relationship if someone got anything of value to mention a product (FTC, Disclosures 101, November 2019). A commission is a financial connection. Ask each affiliate to put a clear line next to the recommendation. Affiliate disclosure examples gives wording.
By the end of week 5, about 250 first emails have gone out. That is the number our first-10 plan uses for ten sign-ups at a 4% rate. That rate is one vendor's example for Shopify bloggers. It is probably the good case.
Weeks 6 to 8: keep sending, and help
Two jobs run in parallel. First, keep sending: 30 a day once 200 emails have gone out, on an inbox with a good record. That is about 150 a week. Second, help every approved affiliate publish.
Ask each one what they plan to write. Offer a demo account, a screenshot set and an honest answer to the hardest question their readers will ask. Affiliates who get help publish more often. We have not measured that for software, so treat it as our view.
Cost these weeks: the first bill, on day 36.
Weeks 9 and 10: last new emails, then read the numbers
Send the last new emails in week 10. After that, only follow up. Then read your tool's numbers. For each affiliate, look at clicks, sign-ups and paying customers. Keep a short note of why each one did or did not send traffic.
A few good affiliates tend to beat many. FirstPromoter, a vendor reporting its own platform, says that in the median program, the top 10% of revenue-generating promoters drive 58.5% of referred revenue (FirstPromoter, 20 October 2026). So find your top one or two early and look after them. The second bill lands this week, on day 66. When to raise a top affiliate's rate gives a fair rule.
Weeks 11 and 12: the hold, the test payout, the first payout
A commission isn't safe to pay on the day of the sale. Wait for the hold to end. A long hold can push the first payout past day 90, which is fine. Then pay the first affiliate a small amount, and check that the money arrives. Learn how your tool handles a refund after you have paid. Some tools correct the commission for you. Some leave you to chase it. Ask before you rely on it.
Cost these weeks: nothing new.
Week 13: the day-90 scorecard
Compare what you got with the scorecard table below. Then decide one of three things: keep the plan going, change the offer, or stop. Stopping is a fair result. You spent about $98, or nothing if you cancelled inside the trial.
What should you expect by day 90?
These are targets, not forecasts. Every row rests on a guess or a vendor median.
| Measure | Low | High | Where the number comes from |
|---|---|---|---|
| First emails sent | 500 | 1,000 | The pace in the plan, if you can find the names |
| Sign-ups | 5 | 40 | Guessed 1% and 4% rates, on 500 and 1,000 first emails |
| Affiliates who ever send a referral | 1 | 6 | FirstPromoter's 15% median (3,425 programs, vendor-reported), applied to the sign-ups |
| Affiliates with a paying customer | 0 | 3 | FirstPromoter's 6.4% median, applied to the sign-ups |
Here is how the high column works. A 4% rate on 1,000 first emails is 40 sign-ups. FirstPromoter's 15% of 40 is 6, and its 6.4% of 40 is about 2.6. The low column uses 1% of 500, which is 5 sign-ups. FirstPromoter's 15% of 5 is 0.75, shown as 1, and 6.4% of 5 is 0.3, which rounds to zero.
Rewardful gives a harsher check. Across 2,847 active programs, it says "1.28% affiliates generate at least one sale." It also says 56% of programs have fewer than 50 affiliates (Rewardful, published 17 March 2026, updated 21 July 2026). Rewardful's 1.28% of 40 sign-ups is about 0.5, which is below our high column. Both vendors report their own platforms, and neither figure is a 90-day number.
Our reading: a small program of 5 to 40 sign-ups is normal, and most of them send nothing. That is why the plan costs little. If you want a bigger program, this worked sum shows the scale it takes.
Can you find 1,000 names?
Maybe not. In our first search on 30 public Shopify brands on 22 October 2026, an email was found for 916 of 2,924 people (31%). At that rate, 1,000 first emails need about 3,200 names. That sample is Shopify brands, not software. We have not measured the share for software, so plan on fewer. If you reach 500 first emails, use the Low column. The method and limits are on our scan method page.
Where do we fit?
We make two tools. They do different jobs.
RecruitAffiliates.ai does weeks 2 to 10 of the sending job for you. It finds the websites, newsletters and channels covering your rivals, looks for an email, drafts the first email and sends it from your inbox once you approve. It doesn't track sales or pay anyone, so it pairs with whichever tracker you pick. Launch is $79 a month, with a 7-day free trial and no card. If you have no budget, send your first 25 by hand first. Buy the tool only when the hand-sending is the slow part.
AffiliateRail is our tracking tool. Its pricing page, read 28 October 2026, lists Launch at $59 a month, or $29 a month for the ten founding places. Launch covers up to $10,000 of affiliate revenue a month. The trial is 14 days with no card, and the platform takes 0% of payouts. With a 14-day trial and two bills, that is $118 at the usual price or $58 at the founding price. We made it, so weigh that.
Frequently asked questions
Can you start an affiliate program with no budget?
Yes, for ad spend. The tool is the only fixed cost. None of the six pricing pages we read lists a free plan, and the lowest paid plans start at $49 a month. A trial lets you test before the first bill.
How much does it cost to run an affiliate program for 90 days?
About $98 in tool fees on the cheapest of the six, which is two bills of $49. That leaves out any recruiting tool. Three bills happens if you start earlier, and costs $147 on the two cheapest tools. You pay commissions only after a sale.
Do I need affiliate software on day one?
No. Weeks 1 to 3 need only a document, a form and an inbox. Start a trial in week 4, once real people have said yes.
How many affiliates will I have after 90 days?
Plan for roughly 5 to 40 sign-ups and perhaps none to three affiliates with a paying customer. Those figures come from guessed sign-up rates and vendor medians. Your product and offer will move them.
Should I pay a flat fee instead of a commission?
For a no-budget start, a commission is safer. You pay only when a customer pays. A flat fee is due whether or not anyone buys.
Sources
All vendor pages were read on 28 October 2026. Prices change.
- Rewardful pricing
- FirstPromoter pricing
- Dub pricing
- Tapfiliate pricing
- Tolt pricing
- PartnerStack pricing
- AffiliateRail pricing
- Rewardful, state of SaaS affiliate programs, published 17 March 2026, updated 21 July 2026
- FirstPromoter, affiliate program management, 20 October 2026
- FTC, Disclosures 101 for Social Media Influencers, November 2019
- RecruitAffiliates.ai, how sending works