LearnDash affiliate tracking pays your affiliates when a visitor they referred buys a LearnDash course or group. Ultimate Affiliate Pro reads each LearnDash transaction, credits the affiliate and keeps the referral status in sync with the transaction.
The visitor is linked to the affiliate through an affiliate referral link, and the commission comes from the affiliate’s rank. There is nothing to set up in LearnDash itself.
Before you start
- LearnDash is installed and active, and you sell courses or groups with LearnDash payments (for example Stripe or PayPal in LearnDash).
- The LearnDash Tracking add-on is installed and active. See Pro Add-ons.
- Your affiliates have a rank with a commission rate.
How the commission is calculated #
When LearnDash records a transaction, Ultimate Affiliate Pro applies the affiliate’s rank rate to the amount paid for the course or group.
- Transaction amount
- $199.00
- Affiliate rank
- Standard, 20%
- Referral
- $39.80
If the rank uses a flat rate, the affiliate earns that amount for each purchase.
Turn on the LearnDash affiliate integration #
Go to Ultimate Affiliate Pro›Integrations and find the LearnDash card in the LMS / Online Courses group.
Turns LearnDash tracking on. The card shows Enabled while it is on.
Default: Off
Opens the LearnDash Tracking settings.
Set the source name #
Click Configure on the card.
The name of the referral source shown in the Referrals list and in the affiliate’s Affiliate Portal.
Default: LearnDash
Click Save Changes.
Credit subscription payments to the affiliate #
If you sell LearnDash courses as subscriptions, turn on the Recurring Commissions module in Ultimate Affiliate Pro›Modules›Recurring Commissions. With the Recurring Commissions module on, LearnDash subscription transactions are credited to the affiliate who referred the student, even after the referral cookie has expired. The commission uses the rank rate. See Recurring commissions for subscriptions.
Check the referrals #
Go to Ultimate Affiliate Pro›Referrals to see LearnDash referrals.
The Source Custom Name, LearnDash by default.
The amount of the LearnDash transaction.
The commission for the purchase.
Follows the LearnDash transaction, as shown below.
| LearnDash transaction | Referral status |
|---|---|
| Created and already paid (published) | Approved |
| Pending or draft | Pending |
| Published later | Approved |
| Moved to trash | Rejected |
If Keep Referral Status as Pending is on in Ultimate Affiliate Pro›Settings›Admin Workflow, automatic approval is turned off, and you approve referrals yourself.
Test it #
- Open a private browser window and visit your site through an affiliate link, for example
yourstore.com/?ref=emma.collins. - In the same window, log in as a student who is not the affiliate and buy a course with a LearnDash payment method in test mode.
- In Ultimate Affiliate Pro›Referrals, check that a LearnDash referral was created for the affiliate with the right amount.
See Test your affiliate program for a full test routine. The LearnDash documentation explains how to set up course payments.
Frequently asked questions #
Does LearnDash tracking work for groups?
Yes. A referral is created for every LearnDash transaction, whether the student bought a course or a group.
I sell LearnDash courses with WooCommerce. Which integration do I use?
When courses are sold as WooCommerce products, the WooCommerce integration creates the referrals. The LearnDash integration handles purchases made with LearnDash payments.
Do affiliates earn on LearnDash subscriptions?
Yes. With the Recurring Commissions module on, LearnDash subscription transactions are credited to the affiliate who referred the student, even after the referral cookie has expired. The commission uses the rank rate.
What happens if I delete a LearnDash transaction?
When the transaction is moved to trash, its referral changes to Rejected and is not paid.
No referral was created for a test purchase. What should I check?
Check that the LearnDash card is enabled in Integrations, that you opened the affiliate link in the same browser, and that you did not buy as the affiliate. See Referrals or clicks are not recorded.
