Free affiliate tracking software splits into two jobs. If you promote other people's products, a free link tracker or cloaker counts your clicks. If partners promote you, you need commission tracking and payouts, and free tools usually track referrals but leave you paying each affiliate by hand. Decide which job you have, then check the free tier's limits.
Do you need to track the affiliate links you put in your own content, or run a programme where other people send you customers? Most searches for free affiliate tracking mix the two, and the free tools split cleanly between them.
Get the job wrong and you'll install a plugin that tracks perfectly and does nothing you needed. So start with the job, then look at what each free tier leaves out.
Two jobs that both get called affiliate tracking
If you promote other people's products, you need a link tracker or cloaker: something that turns a long affiliate URL into a tidy link and counts who clicks it. The free link tools do that well, but they cap or lock extras such as link rotation, geo redirects, cloaking and click volume.
If affiliates promote you, you need commission logic and a way to pay people. Free WordPress plugins and hosted free plans track referrals, but they tend to keep payouts and coupon tracking on premium add-ons or higher plans. A free plan can track every sale and still leave you sending each commission by hand. If what you want is customers referring friends rather than affiliates, our guide to referral programme software covers that side.
Where each free affiliate tier stops
Here's how the nine split by where the tracking lives and what you end up running yourself. Free-tier limits are as of Nov 2026.
Hosted affiliate platforms with a free plan
GoAffPro's free Hobby plan covers unlimited affiliates, sales and revenue, by the vendor's claim, and is recommended for stores under a set number of daily orders. It gets a basic affiliate portal, with targets, bonuses, multi-level marketing, a payout scheduler and server-to-server callbacks on higher plans. UpPromote's free plan allows 1 affiliate programme, one coupon per affiliate and a monthly limit on referral sales reviewed; unlimited coupons, PayPal auto-pay and custom affiliate links sit higher up.
Trackers and shorteners that count clicks
These don't run a partner programme at all. BeMob's free plan keeps data for 1 month, caps active campaigns and offers at 10 each, with 5 landing pages and 3 traffic sources, and has a monthly event allowance with no overage option, so tracking stops at the limit. Short.io's free plan allows 5 custom domains but 1,000 branded links in total, tracks clicks up to a monthly allowance, and keeps country targeting, link cloaking and password protection on higher plans.
Free WordPress plugins on your own site
SliceWP runs a full affiliate programme, but PayPal payouts, affiliate coupon tracking, multi-level affiliates and email list integrations are premium add-ons. Affiliates Manager's page lists unlimited affiliates and creatives, so counts aren't the limit; it only tracks sales from the ecommerce and membership plugins it integrates with, and payouts through PayPal or manual marking happen on your side. ThirstyAffiliates keeps automatic keyword linking, product displays, advanced reports and geolocation redirects for Pro. Pretty Links logs clicks on free, while link rotation, split testing, expiring links and targeting are Pro features.
Fully self-hosted open source
YOURLS is free and open source, by the vendor's description. You upload it to your own hosting and create a database, and it's a link shortener with click reports, not an affiliate portal, so there's no partner sign-up or commission feature. Extras come from community plugins.
The nine affiliate tools, in no particular order
Affiliates Manager
Best for: WordPress store owners wanting affiliate sign-up, referral tracking, real-time reports and flat or percentage commissions handled from their own dashboard.
BeMob
Best for: Media buyers and affiliates tracking impressions, visits, clicks and conversions across traffic sources and networks, on modest monthly volumes.
GoAffPro
Best for: Smaller online stores starting an affiliate programme with tracked sales and commissions, across several store platforms.
Pretty Links
Best for: Bloggers turning long affiliate URLs into branded links on their own domain, with clicks, unique clicks and bot filtering logged.
Short.io
Best for: Marketers who want branded short links on custom domains and a click dashboard for campaign and affiliate links.
SliceWP
Best for: Sites on WooCommerce or Easy Digital Downloads that want affiliate pages and automatic commission and visit tracking on their own WordPress install.
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ThirstyAffiliates
Best for: Content sites managing many outbound affiliate links, with cloaking, categories, a button in the editor and a recommends-style link prefix.
UpPromote
Best for: Shopify sellers who want affiliate, influencer and referral links plus coupon tracking and fraud detection in one app.
YOURLS
Best for: Tinkerers who'd rather host their own link shortener, with referrer and location stats and full control of the data.
All nine affiliate tools in one table
| Tool | Kind of tool | Good for |
|---|---|---|
| Affiliates Manager | WordPress plugin | Recruiting, tracking and paying affiliates inside WordPress |
| BeMob | Campaign tracker | Counting clicks and conversions across ad sources |
| GoAffPro | Store affiliate platform | Store affiliate programmes on Shopify, WooCommerce and others |
| Pretty Links | WordPress link tool | Branded short links on your own domain, with click logs |
| Short.io | Branded link shortener | Branded campaign links with click analytics |
| SliceWP | WordPress plugin | A self-hosted affiliate programme for WooCommerce or EDD |
| ThirstyAffiliates | WordPress link tool | Cloaking and organising the affiliate links you place |
| UpPromote | Shopify affiliate app | Shopify affiliate links and coupons with fraud checks |
| YOURLS | Self-hosted link tracker | Click stats on your own domain and server |
My advice on running affiliate tracking for free
If you're a blogger or creator promoting other people's products, a free WordPress link plugin or a self-hosted shortener covers most of what you need, and you can add a branded link service later if you want click reports in one dashboard. Don't pay for partner-programme software to manage links you place yourself.
If you're running your own programme, start free only while your affiliate list is small enough to pay by hand each month. The moment that list grows, the payout step becomes the real work, so check what each tool keeps on its upgrade before you invite your first partner. For a full comparison of programme platforms, see our guides to affiliate tracking platforms and affiliate apps for online stores.
Paying affiliates when your free tool won't
Most free setups leave the payout to you, and that's manageable with a simple routine. Export the commission report on the same day each month, check refunds and cancelled orders before you approve anything, and pay through whichever method you agreed in your affiliate terms. Keep a short record of each payout and its date, because affiliates will ask, and a tidy record settles questions in minutes rather than days.
Do you make affiliate tracking software with a free plan? Tool makers can ask to be considered for a featured place on this list.
Want your tool on this list? Featured spots and reviews here are paid partnerships. Here's how to partner with me.
Frequently asked questions
What's the difference between an affiliate link tracker and affiliate software?
A link tracker counts clicks on links you place, such as product links in your blog posts. Affiliate software runs a programme where other people promote you, tracking their referrals and working out their commission.
Can I run an affiliate programme for free?
Yes, with a free plugin or a hosted free plan. You'll usually track referrals and commissions for free, but expect to pay affiliates by hand unless you upgrade.
Do free affiliate plugins slow down WordPress?
Any plugin adds some load. Tracking speed and security depend on your hosting, so keep the plugin updated, use a caching setup that respects tracking cookies, and test checkout after installing it.
Is link cloaking allowed?
Cloaking only tidies the link a reader sees, and many affiliate programmes accept it, but some don't. Check each programme's terms, and always say clearly that a link is an affiliate link.
How do I track affiliate sales from coupons?
Coupon tracking ties a discount code to an affiliate so sales count even without a click. Several free tools keep this on a premium add-on or a higher plan, so check before you promise affiliates their own codes.
Should I self-host my affiliate links?
Self-hosting keeps your click data on your own server and your own domain. It suits people comfortable with hosting and databases; if that sounds like a chore, a hosted link tool is simpler.
