Web Hosting Affiliate Programs: 9 Payouts Checked (2026)
Updated October 2026. Every commission, cookie length and payout rule below was read from the hosting company’s own affiliate page or affiliate agreement on 22 October 2026.
Short answer: the hosting affiliate programmes worth comparing in 2026 split into two kinds. Recurring programmes pay you every month a referral stays: Kinsta pays 10% for the lifetime of the account plus a one-off bonus of up to $500, and Cloudways offers $30 per sale plus 7% for life. One-off bounties pay once: WP Engine pays at least $200 on most plans with a 180-day cookie, Bluehost from $65, SiteGround $50 to $100 a sale, and Hosting.com (formerly A2 Hosting) 50% of the first invoice up to $400. Pick by how your readers buy, and check the cookie length, which runs from 30 to 180 days.
The nine programmes at a glance
| Programme | How it pays | Amount | Cookie | Payout |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Kinsta | Bonus plus recurring | $50 to $500 one-off, plus 10% of monthly revenue for life | 60 days, last touch | PayPal, monthly, once approved commission passes $50 |
| Cloudways | Bounty or hybrid (your choice) | Slab plan up to $125 a sale; hybrid plan $30 a sale plus 7% for life | 90 days | PayPal once approved commission reaches $250 |
| WP Engine | One-off bounty | $100 on Lite; otherwise $200 or the first month’s payment, whichever is higher | 180 days | Around the 20th of the month after the referral is 62 days old |
| Bluehost | Bounty (some plans recurring) | From $65 per qualified sale | 30 days | PayPal or direct deposit, 45 to 70 days after the sale |
| SiteGround | Tiered bounty | $50 (1 to 5 sales a month), $75 (6 to 10), up to $100 (11 to 20), custom above | 60 days | Weekly, no minimum |
| Hostinger | Revenue share | Landing page: starts at 40% and grows with volume. Agreement: up to 40%, capped at $300 a sale | Up to 30 days | PayPal from $100, wire from $500, after 3 approved sales |
| Hosting.com (formerly A2 Hosting) | Share of first invoice | 50% up to $400 on most hosting; 20% on reseller, Windows and domains | Not stated | PayPal from $100 |
| DreamHost | Fixed amount per plan and term | $15 to $1,000 (the top figure is DreamPress on a 3-year term) | Not stated | Monthly bank transfer, no minimum, 97-day hold |
| Namecheap | Share of first order | 35% on hosting and SSL, 20% on domains | 30 days | Through Impact or CJ, with their minimums |
Recurring programmes: Kinsta and Cloudways
Kinsta pays “a one-time bonus of up to $500, plus lifetime monthly commissions of 10%” on referrals to its managed WordPress hosting, with a 60-day cookie and last-touch attribution (Kinsta affiliates). Kinsta does not list the bonus for each plan, only the $50 to $500 range. Payment is by PayPal between the 15th and 20th of each month once approved commissions pass $50 (Kinsta affiliate FAQ).
Cloudways lets you choose a commission model. The slab model pays a bounty that rises with your monthly referral count, up to $125 a sale. The hybrid model pays $30 a sale plus a 7% lifetime commission. A commission is approved only after the referral has moved from trial to paid and paid two full invoices. The cookie lasts 90 days, and PayPal payouts start once approved commission reaches $250 (Cloudways affiliate programme).
Recurring commission suits blogs whose readers stay with a host for years, which is common with managed hosting. It pays less up front, so it takes longer to beat a one-off bounty.
One-off bounties: WP Engine, Bluehost, SiteGround
WP Engine pays $100 for its Lite plan and, on other plans, “$200 minimum or equal to the first month’s payment, whichever is higher”. Its 180-day cookie is the longest here. Tracking runs through Everflow (WP Engine affiliate programme).
Bluehost says commissions “start at $65 for every qualified sale”, with a 30-day cookie, and mentions recurring commission on some plans without giving rates. Payment arrives 45 to 70 days after the sale (Bluehost affiliates).
SiteGround pays by monthly volume: $50 a sale for 1 to 5 sales, $75 for 6 to 10, up to $100 for 11 to 20, and a custom deal above that. Its Website Builder and email marketing products pay 60% of the first year instead. The cookie lasts 60 days and payouts are weekly with no minimum (SiteGround affiliates).
Percentage programmes: Hostinger, Hosting.com, Namecheap
Hostinger publishes two descriptions that disagree. Its affiliate page says commission “starts at 40% and grows depending on sales volume”. Its affiliate agreement says affiliates “will receive up to 40%” on most hosting products, with a cap of $300 a sale on revenue-share offers (Hostinger affiliates; Hostinger affiliate agreement). The agreement is the binding document. The cookie lasts up to 30 days and a newer affiliate’s cookie replaces an older one.
Hosting.com is the new name for A2 Hosting; old A2 affiliate pages now redirect to hosting.com. It pays 50% of the first invoice, up to $400 a sale, on shared, managed WordPress and VPS hosting, and 20% on reseller, Windows hosting and domains (Hosting.com affiliate programme). If you have old A2 Hosting affiliate links on your blog, check where they now lead.
Namecheap pays 35% of a new customer’s first order on hosting and SSL, and 20% on domains, through Impact or CJ, with a 30-day cookie (Namecheap commission rates). Namecheap last updated that rates article in February 2025.
DreamHost pays a fixed amount that depends on the plan and billing term, from $15 on a monthly shared plan up to $1,000 on a three-year DreamPress plan, through the TUNE network, with a 97-day hold before payment (DreamHost affiliates).
How to choose a programme
- Your readers are beginners on a budget: they tend to buy cheap shared hosting, so bounty programmes such as Bluehost, SiteGround and Hostinger match what they buy.
- Your readers run serious WordPress sites: managed hosting customers stay longer, which favours Kinsta’s or Cloudways’ recurring models.
- Your readers research for weeks: a longer cookie matters. WP Engine’s 180 days and Cloudways’ 90 days beat the 30-day programmes.
- You publish honest hosting reviews: recommend the host you would pick with no commission at all, then see whether it has a programme. Our Stake Test study found that 80% of page-one blogging tool advice has a financial stake in the answer, and readers notice.
How to promote hosting without losing trust
Disclose the affiliate relationship above the first link, in plain words. Show the real price after the introductory period ends; our pricing pages keep dated price histories for the major hosts. Mark affiliate links with rel=”sponsored”. And write for the reader’s situation, a first blog or a growing one, with one recommendation each.
What we could not verify
Kinsta’s bonus for each individual plan; Bluehost’s recurring rates and payout threshold; the cookie length for Hosting.com and DreamHost, which their affiliate pages do not state; and Hostinger’s volume tiers, which it does not publish.
Frequently asked questions
Brief answers on choosing and promoting hosting affiliate programmes.
Which hosting affiliate programme pays the most?
On a single sale, Hosting.com (up to $400) and the top DreamHost tier ($1,000 on a three-year DreamPress plan) publish the highest figures. Over time, Kinsta’s 10% lifetime commission can pay more, if referrals stay.
Which programme has the longest cookie?
WP Engine, at 180 days, followed by Cloudways at 90.
Is web hosting affiliate marketing still worth it in 2026?
It pays well per sale, and competition for “best hosting” searches is intense. It works best on a blog whose readers are building websites anyway.
Related: affiliate marketing for bloggers and the six blog monetisation strategies compared.
Written by
Blogging Titan Team
Blogging Titan is an independent team of bloggers documenting what actually grows a blog in the AI search era. We have been building, ranking, and monetizing WordPress sites since 2017, and every guide on this site is based on strategies and tools we have tested ourselves. Want a second pair of eyes on your blog? Request a free blog audit or start with the 2026 playbook.