The affiliate commission calculation in Ultimate Affiliate Pro starts from what the customer paid for each product, after discounts. The plugin takes every rate that applies to the affiliate and the product, keeps the biggest or the lowest one, and adds the results into one referral per order.
This page explains the order of the calculation, the settings that change the commission base, and how rates from ranks, product rates and WooCommerce products are compared. To set the rates themselves, see Ranks: commission tiers for affiliates and Commission rates per product.
Before you start
- Ultimate Affiliate Pro installed, with your license active.
- At least one rank with a rate. New installs come with a default rank that pays 10%.
- A store connected to Ultimate Affiliate Pro, such as WooCommerce, Easy Digital Downloads or Ultimate Membership Pro.
How a commission is calculated #
When a referred customer places an order, Ultimate Affiliate Pro works through the order line by line:
- Find the affiliate. From the referral link cookie, an affiliate coupon, the checkout field or a linked customer, depending on the modules you use.
- Take the line amount. The price the customer paid for that product after coupon discounts. Shipping and taxes are left out by default.
- Collect every rate that applies. The affiliate’s rank rate, active product rates for that affiliate and product, and in WooCommerce the product, variation or category rate.
- Keep one rate. The biggest or the lowest result, as set in Which Rate should be used?.
- Add up the lines. The sum becomes one referral for the order, capped by the Maximum Amount Rate module if you use it.
A percentage rate is applied to the line amount. A flat rate is paid once for each product line in the order, whatever the quantity: a flat rate of $5 pays $5 for 3 units of the same product and $10 for two different products.
- Cork Yoga Mat
- $49.00
- Yoga Block Set × 2
- $48.00
- 10% coupon
- −$9.70
- Shipping and tax
- $15.86, not counted
- Commission base
- $87.30
- Rank rate 20%
- $17.46 referral for Emma
Choose which rate wins #
Go to Ultimate Affiliate Pro›Settings›General Settings. The first section, Referral Calculation, decides what happens when more than one rate applies to the same product.
Applies when a product has more than one rate, for example a rank rate of 20% and a product rate of 30%.
- Biggest Amount: the affiliate gets the highest result. Use it when product rates are rewards on top of the rank rate.
- Lowest Amount: the affiliate gets the lowest result. Use it when product rates lower or remove the commission on some products.
Default: Biggest Amount
The rule compares amounts, not percentages. On a $40 product, a 10% rank rate ($4) and a flat product rate of $5 give $5 with Biggest Amount and $4 with Lowest Amount.
- Where
- Ranks, Rank Rate
- Applies to
- Every product the affiliate refers
- Where
- Product Rates
- Applies to
- Selected products and affiliates, optionally for a date range
- Where
- Product data, Ultimate Affiliate Pro – Custom Referral Rate tab
- Applies to
- One product or one variation
- Where
- Products, Categories
- Applies to
- Every product in the category
Tip
An affiliate coupon from the Static Coupons module pays the amount set on the coupon instead of these rates. For referrals from linked customers and for subscription renewals, the rank’s LifeTime or Recurring rate takes the place of the rank rate when you set one. See Affiliate coupons and Commissions on every future order.
Set what counts in the commission base #
On the same screen, scroll to Referral Calculation Exclusions.
Leaves shipping out of the commission base. Turn it off to pay commission on shipping too. In WooCommerce, the shipping cost is split evenly between the product lines of the order.
Default: On
Leaves taxes out of the commission base. Turn it off to calculate the commission on the price including tax.
Default: On
Saves a referral even when the commission is $0, for example an order paid fully with a coupon. Keep it on to see every conversion in your reports. Turn it off to keep the Referrals list for paid commissions only.
Default: On
Changes the referral to Rejected when the order is refunded, so the commission is not paid.
Default: On
Creates a referral only for a customer’s first order. Later orders from the same customer account earn nothing. It applies to customers who order with an account on your site. Subscription renewals are not affected.
Default: Off
Click Save Changes at the bottom of the page.
Note
Changes apply to new orders only. Referrals that already exist keep the amount calculated when they were created. To correct one, edit it in Ultimate Affiliate Pro›Referrals. See Manage referrals.
How order status changes the referral #
A new referral starts as Pending. For WooCommerce orders, the referral follows the order:
- Completed: the referral becomes Approved and can be paid.
- Pending payment, On hold or Processing: the referral stays Pending.
- Cancelled or Failed: the referral becomes Rejected.
- Refunded: the referral becomes Rejected when Reject Commissions on Refund is on.
To approve every referral by hand instead, turn on Keep Referral Status as Pending in Settings›Admin Workflow. For how orders and statuses work in your store, see the WooCommerce guide to order statuses.
Test it #
- Open a referral link of a test affiliate in a private browser window.
- Place an order with a coupon and a shipping method.
- Go to Ultimate Affiliate Pro›Referrals and open the new referral.
- Check the amount against the order: line totals after discount, times the affiliate’s rate.
Frequently asked questions #
Is the commission calculated before or after coupon discounts?
After. Ultimate Affiliate Pro uses the price the customer paid for each product, so a coupon lowers the commission base by the same amount.
How do flat rates work when a customer buys several items?
A flat rate is paid once per product line. Three units of the same product earn the flat amount once. Two different products earn it twice.
Can an affiliate earn more on some products than on others?
Yes. Add a product rate for those products, or set a custom rate on the WooCommerce product or category, and keep Which Rate should be used? on Biggest Amount.
Does changing a rate update existing referrals?
No. New rates apply to new orders. Existing referrals keep their amount, and you can edit any of them in Ultimate Affiliate Pro, Referrals.
Why does a referral show $0?
The commission for that order was zero, for example a 100% coupon or a product rate of 0. Turn off Save Zero Value Referrals if you do not want these referrals saved.
