The Best 78 Affiliate Marketing Statistics In 2023 (Insights & Trends)

The affiliate marketing industry is worth $17 billion currently and is expected to reach 40 billion by 2030.

Almost every brand has an affiliate program, and the competition is very high. If you wish to gain an edge while starting out in affiliate marketing or need to enhance your current efforts, you can rely on our well-researched post on affiliate marketing statistics and make a brand-new strategy or adjust your current efforts!

We have also shared the latest trends that the affiliate industry is observing right now! Excited? Let’s get right to it.

Affiliate Marketing Statistics 2023 (Top Picks)

• Affiliate marketing has a market value of over $17 billion as of 2023.
• It is estimated that affiliate marketing spending in 2023 will be around $13 billion.
• 107,179 companies worldwide make up the Affiliate Networks industry as of 2023.
• The affiliate marketing industry will be worth $27.78 billion by 2027, which is around a 91% increase from 2020.
• 16% of online orders in the United States come through affiliate marketing.
• Affiliate marketing is used by 83% of marketers to raise brand recognition.
• Some of the top businesses in the world get 5% to 30% of their internet revenue via affiliate marketing.
• 57.55% of affiliate marketers earn less than $10,000.
• 80% of brands have an affiliate program.
• Bloggers and Review sites are the leading channels for affiliate marketing.
• There are over 10,000 affiliate marketing-related services and companies globally.

General Affiliate Marketing Statistics at a Glance

1.) In the United States, affiliate publishers make almost 40% of their income from articles and blogs. (Awin Report)

2.) Since 2015, searches for the keyword “affiliate marketing” have increased by more than 300%. (Google Trends)

Google Trends shows interest in a keyword on a scale of 100. The interest in the term “affiliate marketing.” is a whopping 95.

3.) Affiliate programs are used by 84% of businesses. (Mediakix)

Know about the highest-paying ones here.

4.) Across sectors, organic search yields a traffic share of 53% on average. (BrightEdge)

5.) 53% of Shoppers research before buying to ensure they are making the best possible choice. (Think With Google)

6.) Affiliate marketing is seen as a critical skill by 40% of digital marketers. (BloggingX)

7.) Affiliate programs are the most important client acquisition method for 40% of US firms. (Backlinko)

8.) Approximately 67.32% of affiliate marketers communicate with clients using social media. (Blogging Master)

9.) The apparel business accounts for about a quarter of all affiliate programs. (The AM Navigator)

10.) Mobile devices account for 50% of affiliate-related traffic. (Call Hippo)

11.)  Affiliates advertise B2C items or services in 81.4% of services. (AffStat)

12.) A whopping 94% of publications utilize numerous affiliate marketing programs. (Affise)

13.) Prior to making a purchase, 74% of United States internet consumers visit numerous affiliate websites. (Worldwide Cyber Cash)

14.) Affiliate marketing is used by 79% of businesses to engage existing clients. (Get Cake)

15.) Blogging Statistics reveal that 65% of affiliate marketers use blogs to drive visitors. (Awin)

16.) In the United States, 71% of affiliate publishers operate with three or more networks. (Forrester)

Affiliate Marketing Revenue Statistics at a Glance

17.) Around 86% of publishers anticipate that their affiliate marketing revenue will remain stable or rise in the future. (Fetch Profits)

18.) Yearly affiliate marketing revenue of up to 20% is reported by 65% of retailers. (BloggingX)

19.) As of 2023, 15% of affiliate marketers earn between $80,000 to $1 million annually. (Authority Hacker)

Here is a table showing the income of affiliate marketers:

20.) According to 73% of retailers, affiliate marketing initiatives fulfill their income goals. (Fetch Profits)

21.) Affiliate marketing generates at least $20,000 in yearly revenue for 35% of affiliates. (AffStat)

Industry-Related Affiliate Marketing Statistics

22.)ShareASale controls the majority of the worldwide affiliate marketing business with 55.7% and 241,000+ affiliate partners. (Appsero, ShareASale)

23.) The affiliate sector is responsible for 16% of all internet orders, and Advertisers generate between 15% to 30% of all sales via affiliate programs. (Uniqodo, Truelist)

24.) Affiliate marketing has been used by 81% of marketers and 84% of publishers in the United States alone. (Forrester)

25.) Affiliate marketing generated a whopping $6.4 billion in revenue in 2019. (eMarketer)

26.) Affiliate marketing accounts for 16% of worldwide e-commerce revenues. (Fetch Profits)

27.) With a 39% stake in the worldwide affiliate marketing sector, America is the dominant participant. (Software Locator)

28.) The global affiliate marketing industry is worth $17 billion as of 2023.

29.) Over $1 billion in revenue is generated by the top coupon affiliate websites. (Statista)

30.) Amazon associates have over 900,000 affiliates (Statista)

31.) Affiliate Marketing spending in the USA is projected to reach $13 billion in 2023:

In-depth Affiliate Marketing Statistics

32.) Since the COVID-19 outbreak, 65% of Chief financial officers planned to increase their investment in affiliate marketing. (Awin, Saas Scout, Finances Online)

The annual growth rate of affiliate marketing is predicted to be over 10%.

Most affiliate networks, on the other hand, indicate a rise in investment and marketing activity. E.g., the number of advertisers on Amazon increased by 150% in July 2020.

33.) Each year, the affiliate marketing sector’s overall revenue grows by 10%. (Streamline)

It is clearly clear that the affiliate marketing sector’s income is expanding year after year. According to current statistics, incomes have been increasing by 10% each year since 2015, and this trend appears to be continuing well into 2023. It is reasonable to predict that there will be a significant increase in the number of experts and agencies in this business in the future.

34.) Affiliate marketing is the most successful channel for 20% of brand marketers. (Pepperjam)

A survey conducted among 178 affiliate directors and marketers revealed that affiliate marketing is the most important customer acquisition channel for 20% of brand marketers.

Here is a table showing the findings from that survey:

35.) Affiliate marketing drives around 16% of eCommerce sales in the United States and Canada.

Two of the world’s biggest e-commerce markets get their fair share of sales via affiliate marketing.

Brand affiliates enable brands to reach out to customers in a subtle manner. Because brand affiliates have followers who trust their material, they may find it simpler to influence or persuade others to buy things from businesses they recommend.

Did you know that Shopify powers 2.68 million e-commerce websites in the United States?

Well, you can try it for just $1!

36.) According to the most recent data, affiliate marketing is used by more than 80% of advertisers. (Rakuten Advertising)

The Rakuten Affiliate Network report reveals some intriguing tendencies. According to the reports, 8 out of 10 marketers use affiliate marketing in their firm and indicate that these agreements provide around 20% of their annual income.

37.) Mobile devices account for more than half of all affiliate referral traffic. (Saas Scout)

As per the existing mobile affiliate marketing statistics, every other website visitor reads blog posts on a smartphone when hunting for a certain product or service.

That’s why affiliate marketers optimize their websites to make them more responsive, create a better user experience, and earn more visitors.

38.) Affiliate marketing accounts for 15% of all online media profits. (Business Insider)

This means that publishers have become a critical component of the purchasing funnel. While advertising may attract a large number of individuals and convert them into purchasers, businesses are becoming aware of an alternative and far less expensive strategy to acquire new leads and consumers.

39.)  Blogging generates commissions for 64.48% of affiliate marketers. (Wonder)

Affiliates can generate traffic in a variety of ways. According to recent affiliate marketing statistics, approximately 65% of marketers utilize blogging as their primary traffic generation channel.

Another 69.22% utilize SEO, while 67.32% use social networking sites.

40.) Around 14% of Instagram affiliate marketers operate in the lifestyle niche. (Influencer Marketing Hub & Sellfy)

It has been consistently found that 13.8% of Instagram influencers who earn affiliate income through the platform are active in the lifestyle niche as of 2023. This number has always been higher and was at 12% during the previous survey.

The other top niches on Instagram are:

• Travel
• Beauty
• Fashion
• Health and Fitness
• Parenting
• Motivation (this is very trending nowadays)

41.) B2C affiliate programs account for 59.32% of all affiliate programs used by marketers. (Wonder)

B2C sales are the most common, accounting for 59.32%, and the majority of affiliate marketers use B2C programs to promote items. B2C campaigns, on the other hand, are used by 22.08% of marketers.

42.) According to 76% of content providers, affiliate marketing has made monetization simpler. (Sovrn)

Nearly 8 out of 10 content marketers believe affiliate programs have made their monetization easier, and this is the primary reason for their enthusiasm for these programs. Furthermore, 45% of website owners claim that posting Affiliate links in blogs did not detract from the user experience in any way.

You might want to check our take on the Facebook Affiliate Marketing.

43.) 24.46% of affiliate marketers locate affiliate programs on the merchant’s website. (Cleverbridge)

Another 19.21% will utilize search engines like Google and Yahoo, while 17.52% will browse for programs on affiliate network websites.

44.) Health and Wellness is the most profitable Affiliate Niche. (Influencer Marketing Hub)

The actual worth of the Health and Wellness industry is well over $4 trillion US dollars. The affiliates in this niche earn the most. Although the earnings are high, the competition is fierce and sometimes impossible to rank. As it is a very sensitive topic, people only trust Authoritative sites like WebMD, etc.

45.) According to 18.15% of marketers, the most crucial aspect to consider when enrolling for a certain program is product or service relevancy. (Business4You)

Another 15.97% believe the program’s credibility is the most essential aspect, and 11.58% say they chose the program after examining and monitoring the program.

46.) Social media networks are used by more than 65% of marketers to connect with potential consumers.

More than 3.03 billion people use Facebook. Instagram, on the other hand, has over 2.3 billion active users. With such large numbers, it’s no surprise that affiliate marketers use social media to engage with specialty groups.

47.) Approximately 65% of retailers claim yearly revenue of up to 20% through affiliate marketing. (BloggingX)

This data suggests that a large number of affiliate marketers are pleased with the results of their efforts. Additionally, affiliate marketing statistics show that the size of their yearly income ranges from 5% to 20%, and almost 60% of merchants produced earnings of $5 million or more by spending wisely.

48.) More than 80% of marketers anticipate an increase in their income in the future. (Fetch Profits)

This stresses the effectiveness and dependability of affiliate marketing.

Additionally, 90% of retailers want to maintain or raise their affiliate marketing expenses. This is due to the fact that affiliates are no longer restrained to selling only physical products; now marketers are joining affiliate programs for software, ebooks, digital courses, etc.

Being an affiliate marketer is an excellent career choice! While there is no official college degree for this profession, there are top notch courses to learn the 101s of affiliate marketing.

49.) Booming Affiliate Niches (Influencer Marketing Hub)

The Fashion industry is taking the affiliate industry by storm. With the recent increase in Instagram and TikTok influencer marketing, People are buying products recommended by their favorite influencers. 

Other booming Niches Include:

• Beauty products
• Luxury Items
• Travel and Tourism. 
• Pet Care
• Gaming
• Technology
• Sports
• Personal Finance

50.) About 9% of affiliate marketers earn more than $50,000 per year. (Investopedia)

Approximately 9% of affiliate marketers currently earn more than $50k annually.

It’s vital to understand that the revenue of different sorts of marketers fluctuates significantly. Only about 9% of all sector experts earn more than $50k/year. There is also a small percentage of marketers earning billions.

51.) Affiliate marketers can make anything from $10.000 to $400.000 per year. (Neil Patel)

While it’s impossible to anticipate affiliate income with accuracy, Neil Patel, who is among the most successful marketers, believes that affiliate marketing earnings may range from $10k to $400k annually. The greatest affiliates may make up to $1.500.000 per year, if not more.

52.) An affiliate marketer in the United Kingdom earns around £35,000 annually. (Glassdoor)

In the United Kingdom, the average affiliate marketing revenue is around £35,000 per year. The source’s data is largely contributed by people who work as affiliates for larger corporations. Their salaries range from £21k to £61k a year. We believe self-employed marketers earn significantly more in the same amount of time.

53.) Affiliate marketers in the United States earn $50k annually on average (PayScale, Taboola)

The average affiliate marketing earnings of a marketer in the United States is around $50,000 annually.

The bottom 10% of affiliate marketers earn around $37k per year, while the top 10% earn $71k per year.

54.) Amazon made $1.28 billion in revenue through affiliate programs in Q1 2023. (Amazon, Forbes)

If we look at the most recent Amazon sales figures to have a better understanding of affiliate marketing and its possibilities. Amazon generated $1.28 billion via affiliate programs.

These high figures explain why most affiliates start their careers on Amazon’s network. It’s simple to join Amazon’s associate program, and marketers may start attracting an online following right away.

55.) Affiliate marketing spending in the United States will reach $13 billion in 2023 (Statista)

Around $1.6 billion was spent on affiliate marketing in 2010, when the idea was still in its infancy. Since then, the figure has risen steadily, reaching $6.8 billion in 2020.

The upward trend is expected to continue this year, with total spending expected to exceed $13 billion in 2023.

56.) The United States controls 39% of the global affiliate marketing business. (Saas Scout)

The future of affiliate marketing is inextricably linked to the internet market in the United States. According to available statistics, the United States has the largest share of worldwide affiliate marketing accounting for 39%. The United Kingdom comes in second with 15%, followed by Germany with 11%. India has around 2% of the share.

57.) Artificial Intelligence and voice search are the next BIG things to watch out for in 2023.

Over 72% of smartphone users use voice assistants every day. Nearly 40 million people have a smart speaker at home in the United States alone. By 2023, it is projected that 50% of households in the United States will have a smart speaker, which is equivalent to around 63 million households.

According to one more study, 43% of the people who own smart speakers use voice search to shop.

Read our detailed : AI in Sales Statistics 2023 [Adoption, Benefits, Market Size]

Demographics of Affiliate Marketing

58.) Males make up 54% of affiliate marketers, while female affiliates make up 43%.

59.) Roughly 32% of affiliate marketers are between the ages of 35 to 44.

60.) 57% of affiliate marketers are situated in the United States, 10% in Canada, and 2% in India

61.) 34% of affiliate marketers are single, and 55% are married..

62.) Affiliate marketers work from home 54.28% of the time, while they work from the office 19.21% of the time.

63) In most affiliate systems, roughly 10% of marketers account for around 90% of revenues.

64.) Smartphones alone drive 50% of the traffic to the Awin marketplace.

65.) Direct payment options are preferred by almost 50%  of affiliate marketers.

66.) PayPal is used by 19.16% of marketers as their primary payment channel, followed by BTC (bitcoin) , which is used by 69% of the affiliates’ population.

67.) The speed with which a website loads has a significant impact on revenues.

68.)  47% of site visitors want the website to load in under 2 seconds.

69.) If your site takes more than 3 seconds to load, you’re likely to lose 40% of your clients.

70.) A one-second delay in the loading time of a site leads to 7% fewer sales.

71.) Saas-based products pay 20 to 70% commission to their affiliates. This is the highest percentage in the market!

72.) Over 80% of social media users reported in a survey that they would read reviews of brands on social media before making a purchase.

73.) 54% of affiliate marketers are males, while 43% are females.

Here is a table showing the gender split of affiliate marketers:

74.) 95% of affiliate marketers fail and quit.

75.) Cost per action (CPA) is the most frequently used payment model for affiliate networks.

Affiliate Marketing Fraud Statistics

76.) 63% of marketers are concerned about affiliate marketing fraud. (influencer marketing hub)

In a survey of affiliate marketers, 63% of respondents said they are worried about fraud happening, a fair share of 30.9% of respondents also admitted to experiencing affiliate marketing fraud in the past.

Concerns among affiliate marketers about experiencing affiliate marketing fraud are nothing new. Marketers lost $1.4 billion in revenue due to affiliate marketing fraud in 2020 alone.

77.) Marketers are expected to lose around $1.5 billion to affiliate marketing fraud In 2023.

This amount seems less than the 2022 figures. But it might go higher, especially with the increased usage of AI in fraud activities.

78.) Affiliate marketers lost $3.4 billion to frauds in 2022. (PRNewswire, Cheq.ai)

fraudulent clicks accounted for 17% of 2022’s affiliate traffic and cost companies an estimated $3.4 billion in 2022.

This figure was just $1.4 billion in 2020. (This was part of a wider $23 billion ad fraud that occurred across various advertising marketing channels.)

Global Affiliate Marketing Industry Overview & Growth

Despite the rapid changes brought on by AI, the affiliate marketing industry is booming. The value of the global industry is at an all-time high and is projected to increase substantially in the near future. Companies and investors continue to value and prioritize affiliate marketing. 

• The global affiliate marketing industry is worth over $17 billion. 
• The global affiliate marketing industry is expected to grow to a market size of $27.78B by 2027. 
• The global affiliate marketing industry is expected to increase by 63% in the next 4 years.  
• America is the dominant sector, with a 39% stake in the worldwide affiliate marketing sector. 
• Affiliate marketing is responsible for 16% of all internet orders in the U.S. 
• Affiliate marketing is growing at a rate of 10% year-over-year.  
• Amazon made $1.28 billion in revenue through affiliate programs in Q1 2023. 
• Yearly affiliate marketing revenue of up to 20% is reported by 65% of retailers. 
• Google searches for “affiliate marketing” have quadrupled since 2020.
• 81% of brands use affiliate programs to boost brand awareness and drive sales. 
• Affiliate programs are the most important client acquisition method for 40% of US firms. 
• A whopping 94% of publications utilize numerous affiliate marketing programs. 
• Over $1 billion in revenue is generated by the top coupon affiliate websites.
• 20% of brand marketers say affiliate marketing is their most successful channel. 
• Major brands get 5% to 25% of their overall online sales from affiliate marketing. 
• Affiliate marketing links receive over 5 billion clicks per year. 
• Affiliate marketing companies have received over $1.5 billion in funding from investors.
• Brands who use affiliate marketing get an average ROI of $15 for every dollar spent, which equates to a 1400% return.  
• 44% of brands use first-interaction attribution for affiliate marketing campaigns.

Affiliate Marketing Trends (What Is Working In 2023)

Track User Engagement on Multiple Devices: Cross-device tracking is now more important than ever as consumers use multiple devices to browse and shop online. If you are an affiliate marketer, start tracking users’ activity across devices to get a complete picture of their engagement. This will help you target your marketing efforts better and measure the results of your campaigns accurately.

Read more: PayPal Affiliate Program & Best Alternatives in 2023

Capitalize on Videos and Podcasts: Brands are prioritizing video, podcast, and SEO affiliates that use long-tail search terms. Video and podcast content is popular, so brands partner with affiliates who create it. Consumers use specific keywords for their searches, making long-tail search terms important. So if you are an affiliate who is lacking on this part, cover it ASAP!

Affiliate Marketing In The Metaverse: Affiliate marketing in the Metaverse is starting to gain traction as it grows. As more people spend time in this virtual world, affiliate marketers will see opportunities to promote products and services.

How Can You Miss AI: The use of Artificial Intelligence in affiliate marketing is expected to grow. Already used in almost all fields, AI will automate tasks like lead generation and customer support, personalizing marketing campaigns, and enhancing ad targeting effectiveness.

Affiliate Partnerships On The Rise: Co-partnerships are increasing in the affiliate marketing niche. In this strategy, two or more affiliates collaborate to promote a product or service, which can broaden reach and visibility and spread campaign risk. Are you already practicing it? let us know your experience with it in the comments below.

Affiliate Programs For Secondhand Items: Affiliate programs targeting the second-hand market are expected to grow in 2023. With the second-hand market experiencing rapid growth, Fortune even predicted that the global market for secondhand clothes is set to reach $350 billion by 2027. affiliate marketers are recognizing this potential and responding with more programs that focus on the same.

FAQs

Conclusion: Affiliate Marketing Statistics (2023)

We hope the Statistics mentioned above have helped you understand how big is the affiliate marketing segment in 2023. The figures above demonstrate how the affiliate marketing sector will grow in the future.

Read more: The 50+ Best Home Security Affiliate Programs In 2023 (Top Offers)

If you’re confused about how to approach this industry, use our detailed statistical guide as your mate in the learning process and start with your first website today! We also cover a lot other topics on affiliate marketing topics, you can explore our blog page for the same!

Sources

• Awin
• Google Trends
• Mediakix
• BrightEdge
• Kenshoo
• Bloggingx
• Backlinko
• The AM Navigator
• Call Hippo
• AffStat
• Affise
• Worldwide Cyber Cash
• Get Cake
• Forrester
• Fetch Profits
• Investopedia
• Appsero
• Uniqodo
• eMarketer
• Statista
• Saas Scout
• Finances Online
• Streamline
• Rakuten Advertising
• Business Insider
• Wonder
• Sovrn
• Cleverbridge
• Business4You
• Neil Patel
• Glassdoor
• PayScale
• Taboola
• Amazon
• Forbes