When someone clicks your affiliate link, a cookie is placed in their browser. That cookie tracks whether they buy. If they buy within the cookie window, you earn the commission. If they buy after the window closes, you earn nothing.
Cookie duration is the window you have.
Most bloggers know this. What most bloggers do not know is how dramatically cookie duration varies across programs, what the research actually says about how much it affects earnings, and which programs quietly closed or changed their terms while affiliate marketing guides kept recycling the same outdated tables.
This article covers all of it with verified, current data.
How Affiliate Cookies Work
When a visitor clicks your affiliate link, the program sets a cookie in their browser with an expiration date. If the visitor returns to that merchant's site and completes the target action (usually a purchase or signup) before the cookie expires, your affiliate account gets credited.
A few important mechanics that most explanations skip:
Last-click attribution is the default. Most programs credit the most recent affiliate link clicked before a purchase. If your visitor clicks your link today, then clicks a competitor's link tomorrow and buys, the competitor earns the commission, even if your link introduced the buyer.
Cookies can be deleted. A visitor clearing their browser history or using incognito mode removes the cookie. The purchase still happens. You do not get paid.
Some programs use first-click attribution. This is rarer but it works in your favor. The first affiliate who sent the visitor gets credit regardless of subsequent link clicks.
Add-to-cart extends some cookie windows. Amazon Associates is the most notable example. The standard cookie is 24 hours, but if a visitor adds a product to their cart within those 24 hours, the attribution extends to 90 days for that cart session.
The Cookie Duration Comparison Table
These figures are verified against each program's official affiliate documentation or partner pages in March 2026. If you are joining any of these programs, always confirm current terms directly, as they change without notice.
| Program | Cookie Duration | Commission Type | Payout Minimum | Network |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Amazon Associates | 24 hours (90 days if added to cart) | One-time, 1–10% by category | $10 (gift card), $100 (bank) | Direct |
| Semrush | 120 days | $200 per sale, $10 per trial | $50 | Impact |
| ConvertKit (Kit) | 60 days | 30% recurring | $50 | Direct |
| Hostinger | 30 days | 60% of first payment | $100 | Direct |
| Canva | 30 days | $36 per Pro referral | $100 | Impact |
| WP Engine | 180 days | $200+ per sale | $50 | ShareASale |
| Grammarly | 90 days | $0.20 per free signup, $20 per Premium | $50 | Direct / CJ |
| Bluehost | 60 days | $65+ per sale | $100 | Direct |
| Notion | 90 days | 50% of first 12 months of Plus plan | $100 | Direct |
| Elementor | 45 days | 50% per sale | $200 | Direct |
| ShareASale (network) | Varies by merchant | Varies by merchant | $50 | Network |
| Impact (network) | Varies by merchant | Varies by merchant | $10 | Network |
| Benable | 24 hours (via retailer cookies) | Varies by brand | $80 | Direct |
| Coursera | 30 days | 15–45% per purchase | $50 | LinkShare |
| TubeBuddy | 30 days | 50% recurring (first year) | $10 | Direct |
Note on Ahrefs: Ahrefs closed its public affiliate program in 2019. It currently negotiates private arrangements with select partners only. Any affiliate guide listing Ahrefs as a joinable program is working from outdated information.
What the Duration Data Actually Tells You
Looking at this table, the range is striking. WP Engine gives you 180 days. Amazon gives you 24 hours. That is a 180x difference in the window you have to earn a commission from a single click.
But here is the nuance that changes how you should think about this:
Research published by PostAffiliatePro found that a 24-hour cookie window captures approximately 93% of conversions that a longer cookie would have captured. A 30-day cookie captures roughly 98%.
The practical implication: extending a cookie from 24 hours to 30 days recovers about 5% of conversions. Extending from 30 days to 90 days recovers another 2 to 3%. After 30 days, the incremental value of a longer cookie diminishes sharply.
Most buyers who click an affiliate link and intend to purchase do so within hours, not weeks. The research supports this. The 5% you recover by pushing from 24 to 30 days matters. The extra recovery from 30 to 90 days is marginal for most product categories.
The exception is high-consideration products: premium hosting plans, expensive SaaS subscriptions, annual software contracts. These have longer decision cycles. A 180-day window for WP Engine reflects that the average buyer researches web hosting for weeks before committing.
Cookie Duration vs Commission Rate: Which Actually Matters More
Bloggers often fixate on cookie duration when evaluating affiliate programs. The better question is which variable moves your actual earnings more.
Consider two programs:
Program A: 90-day cookie, 5% commission on a $50 product, average conversion rate of 1%
Program B: 30-day cookie, 30% commission on a $50 product, average conversion rate of 1%
Program A earns $2.50 per sale. Program B earns $15 per sale.
At 100 clicks per post per month, Program A earns approximately $2.50 in commissions. Program B earns $15.
The cookie duration difference between 90 and 30 days recovers a small percentage of additional conversions. The commission rate difference of 5% versus 30% is the dominant variable by a wide margin.
This does not mean cookie duration is irrelevant. It means: choose programs based on commission rate, commission type (recurring vs one-time), and product-audience fit first. Cookie duration is a secondary criterion.
Where Recurring Commissions Change the Math
The programs on this list that pay recurring commissions (ConvertKit at 30%, TubeBuddy at 50% for the first year) have a structural advantage that has nothing to do with cookie duration.
A one-time commission on a $29/month product at 30% pays $8.70 per referred customer, once. A recurring commission at 30% on the same product pays $8.70 every month that customer stays subscribed.
If a referred customer stays for 18 months, a recurring program pays $156.60 per referral. A one-time program pays $8.70.
From this perspective, cookie duration matters most for one-time commission programs where a longer window meaningfully increases the probability of capturing purchases. For recurring commission programs, the long-term value per referral is so much higher that a 30-day versus 90-day window is a secondary concern.
The Amazon Associates Problem
Amazon Associates appears in virtually every affiliate program list for bloggers, and for good reason: universal product availability, high brand trust, and conversion rates that outperform most other programs.
The 24-hour cookie is its main weakness. For content about physical products where readers do comparison research before buying, 24 hours may not be enough to capture all potential conversions.
Two things partially offset this:
First, the add-to-cart extension. A visitor who adds a product to their cart within 24 hours retains cookie attribution for 90 days on that cart. Writing content that drives immediate add-to-cart behavior (specific product recommendations with clear calls to action rather than general overviews) somewhat mitigates the short window.
Second, Amazon's conversion rate. Buyers on Amazon make purchasing decisions faster than on most other platforms because the checkout process is familiar and trusted. The 24-hour window captures a higher share of Amazon's total conversion behavior than a 24-hour window would on a lesser-known merchant site.
How to Evaluate Cookie Duration When Choosing Programs
Work through these questions in order:
Is the commission rate worth the effort? Low commission rates on cheap products require enormous traffic to generate meaningful income. Evaluate commission rate before anything else.
Is the commission recurring or one-time? Recurring commissions fundamentally change the economics of each referral. A program with a shorter cookie but recurring commissions often outperforms a program with a long cookie and one-time commissions over a 12-month horizon.
How long does your audience typically take to make this buying decision? For books, 24 hours is usually fine. For annual software contracts, 30 days is a minimum. For web hosting or premium tools, 90 to 180 days is appropriate given how long people research before switching.
Is the product something people buy after comparison research? If yes, a longer cookie matters more because buyers are likely to visit multiple affiliate sites before committing. If someone is buying a specific book you recommended, they probably buy it within the same session.
What to Verify Before Joining Any Program
Affiliate program terms change without public notice. Before joining:
- Read the current version of the program's terms and conditions directly from their official affiliate page
- Confirm the current cookie duration (do not rely on third-party comparisons including this one without cross-checking)
- Confirm the payout minimum and whether payout is by bank transfer, PayPal, or gift card
- Note whether attribution is first-click or last-click
- Check the qualification requirements (Amazon requires 3 qualifying sales within 180 days, or your account closes)
The table above is accurate as of March 2026. Verify directly before making program decisions.
For more context on how individual affiliate programs in the SEO and blogging niche compare on commission structure and fit, see the best affiliate programs for bloggers in the SEO and side hustle niche. For how affiliate commission tracking and the full mechanics work in practice, see how affiliate marketing actually works.
