How LinkQuill compares
Real pricing from real platforms. We show you where we win, where we don't, and let you decide what matters for your business.
Feature-by-feature comparison
| Feature | LinkQuill You are here | Rewardful | FirstPromoter | Tapfiliate | impact.com |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Free tier | Yes ($0/mo) | No | No | No | No |
| Cheapest paid plan | $29/mo | $49/mo | $49/mo | $89/mo | $30/mo |
| Transaction fee on sales | 0% | 0% | 0% | 0% | 2.5% |
| Per-payout fee | $2.50 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 |
| Automated payouts | All plans | All plans | All plans | Scale ($149/mo) only | All plans |
| Revenue cap (cheapest plan) | $25K/mo | $7.5K/mo | $5K/mo | N/A (click-based) | No cap |
| Affiliates (cheapest plan) | Unlimited | Unlimited | 1,000 | 50 | Varies |
| Programs (cheapest plan) | 5 | 1 | 2 | 1 | Varies |
| Affiliate marketplace | Built-in | No | No | No | Yes ($500/mo+) |
| Tax form collection (W-9/W-8BEN) | Built-in | 3% add-on only | Business ($99/mo) | Via Trolley | Built-in |
| 1099 filing | Free (PDF + IRIS CSV + FIRE export) | 3% add-on only | Managed payouts only | Via Trolley | Yes |
| Payment rail | Stripe Connect + PayPal | PayPal / Wise | PayPal / Wise | Trolley | Proprietary |
| E-commerce integrations | 6 platforms | 4 platforms | 3 platforms | 30+ platforms | 5+ platforms |
| Paddle Billing integration | Yes (native webhook) | No | No | Limited | No |
| API access | Starter ($29/mo) | All plans | All plans | All plans | All plans |
| Official TypeScript SDK | Yes | No | No | No | No |
| OpenAPI 3.1 spec | Yes | Partial | No | Partial | Yes |
| Zapier integration | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Multi-touch attribution | Yes (5 models) | Last/first | Last/first | Last/first | Yes |
| Sub-affiliate (two-tier) programs | Pro ($149/mo) | No | No | Custom | Yes |
| PayPal Payouts API | All paid plans | No (manual CSV) | No (manual CSV) | Trolley addon | Custom |
| Contests / bonus campaigns | Pro ($149/mo) | No | No | No | Yes |
| Landing-page builder + templates | Yes | No | No | No | No |
| Partner-app marketplace | Yes | No | No | No | Yes |
Free tier
Cheapest paid plan
Transaction fee on sales
Per-payout fee
Automated payouts
Revenue cap (cheapest plan)
Affiliates (cheapest plan)
Programs (cheapest plan)
Affiliate marketplace
Tax form collection (W-9/W-8BEN)
1099 filing
Payment rail
E-commerce integrations
Paddle Billing integration
API access
Official TypeScript SDK
OpenAPI 3.1 spec
Zapier integration
Multi-touch attribution
Sub-affiliate (two-tier) programs
PayPal Payouts API
Contests / bonus campaigns
Landing-page builder + templates
Partner-app marketplace
Free tier: LinkQuill is the only platform with a functional free plan. You can launch an affiliate program at zero cost.
Transaction fee on sales: impact.com charges 2.5% on the full sale amount driven by partners — not the commission, the entire order value.
Per-payout fee: LinkQuill charges a flat $2.50 per payout — you only pay when money moves. Other platforms bundle payout costs into higher subscriptions, so you pay even in months with no payouts.
Automated payouts: Tapfiliate requires the $149/mo Scale plan for automated payouts via Trolley.
Affiliate marketplace: LinkQuill includes a two-sided discovery marketplace where affiliates can find and apply to your program. impact.com offers this on Essentials ($500/mo) and above.
1099 filing: LinkQuill generates IRS-compliant 1099-NEC forms as PDF, IRIS CSV (for IRS direct e-file via the new IRIS platform), and legacy FIRE .txt export — included on all paid plans at no extra cost. Managed e-file transmitter integrations are scaffolded for future enable.
Payment rail: LinkQuill ships two brand-owned rails: Stripe Connect (ACH/SEPA in 45+ countries) and PayPal Payouts API (200+ countries). The brand never loses custody of funds — no money-holder middleman.
E-commerce integrations: LinkQuill integrates with Shopify, WooCommerce, BigCommerce, Squarespace, Wix, and Square. Tapfiliate leads in integration count.
Paddle Billing integration: Paddle-billed brands (common in SaaS, especially EU/UK) can connect their Paddle account directly. LinkQuill verifies transaction.completed + subscription.canceled + adjustment.created webhooks and credits conversions natively. No middleware required.
Official TypeScript SDK: LinkQuill ships @linkquill/sdk — typed, retry-aware, with async-iterator pagination. The other platforms expose REST endpoints but no first-party SDK.
OpenAPI 3.1 spec: LinkQuill ships a hand-authored OpenAPI 3.1 spec with CI lint, a generated Postman collection, and an interactive Scalar reference at /docs/api/reference.
Multi-touch attribution: LinkQuill supports last-touch, first-touch, linear, time-decay, and position-based attribution. Per-touch credit is recorded in attribution_touches with full reporting.
Sub-affiliate (two-tier) programs: Affiliates recruit other affiliates and earn a configurable override % on their downline. Depth-1 only to stay clear of MLM regulations.
PayPal Payouts API: LinkQuill brands OAuth-connect their PayPal Business; LinkQuill calls the Payouts API on their behalf. No CSV exports. Other platforms hand-off to Trolley/Tipalti or require manual CSV uploads.
Contests / bonus campaigns: Set a metric, window, and prize ladder; LinkQuill computes rankings and emits prizes via the normal payout pipeline. No third-party tooling required.
Landing-page builder + templates: Block-based pages with brand templates affiliates can fork in one click — tracking link baked in. Other platforms direct affiliates to external landing-page tools.
Partner-app marketplace: Third-party developers can submit apps; brands install with scoped API keys. Built on the same API-key infrastructure as first-party integrations.
Real cost scenarios
Monthly cost estimates using ACH payouts (recommended). Card processing costs noted where applicable.
A small brand just getting started with affiliate marketing.
$29 + $17.75 fees = ~$47/mo
Card processing: $29 + $31.50 = ~$61/mo
$49/mo
$7,500/mo revenue cap
$49/mo
$5,000/mo revenue cap
$89/mo
No automated payouts at this tier
LinkQuill is price-competitive at this size with ACH payouts, with a $25K revenue cap vs. $7.5K (Rewardful) and $5K (FirstPromoter). Tapfiliate doesn't include automated payouts until $149/mo.
A growing brand with an established program.
$79 + $87 fees = ~$166/mo
Card processing: $79 + $196 = ~$275/mo
$99/mo
$15K/mo revenue cap
$99/mo
$15K/mo revenue cap
$149/mo
Automated payouts via Trolley
LinkQuill's per-payout model costs more at this volume, but you get a $100K revenue cap vs. $15K, plus a built-in affiliate marketplace. If your program drives over $15K/mo in revenue, the others require upgrading or custom pricing.
A serious brand scaling to six figures in affiliate-driven revenue.
$149 + $258 fees = ~$407/mo
Card processing: $149 + $665 = ~$814/mo
$599+/mo
$149 base + 3% managed payouts
$149+/mo
Custom pricing at this volume
$1,000+/mo
$500 base + 2.5% of total sales volume
At scale with ACH, LinkQuill is cheaper than Rewardful's managed payouts ($599+) and significantly cheaper than impact.com's 2.5% transaction fee on total sales volume. ACH is strongly recommended for high-volume programs.
Trade-offs to consider
Every platform makes trade-offs. Here's an honest look at ours.
Pay-per-payout vs. flat subscription
LinkQuill charges $2.50 per payout instead of bundling it into a higher subscription. This means you pay nothing when no payouts happen, but at high volumes the per-payout model costs more than a flat fee. We recommend ACH payouts to keep processing costs low — and at scale, you're still cheaper than platforms charging 3% managed payout fees.
Stripe Connect payouts
Payouts run through Stripe Connect or PayPal — both brand-owned, no money-holder middleman. If your affiliates specifically need Wise or other rails, platforms like Rewardful or Tapfiliate offer those options.
1099 export (automated filing coming soon)
We collect W-9 and W-8BEN forms from affiliates and provide a one-click CSV export with all the data your accountant needs to file 1099s. Automated IRS e-filing is on our roadmap.
Growing marketplace
Our built-in affiliate marketplace is included free on every plan — something competitors charge $500+/mo for. As a newer platform, our network is growing. If you need access to an established network of thousands of affiliates today, a legacy network like CJ Affiliate may complement LinkQuill.
What we do differently
Start at $0
Launch an affiliate program for free. No monthly fee, no trial countdown. Pay 5% rev share only when affiliates drive actual revenue.
Pay-per-payout
The $2.50 payout fee is a pass-through for Stripe processing. No payouts this month? No charge. You only pay when money actually moves.
Built-in marketplace
Affiliates discover your program directly on LinkQuill. No separate network fee, no $500/mo add-on. It's included on every plan.
Competitor pricing sourced from public pricing pages as of June 2026. Prices may have changed. Rewardful / FirstPromoter / Tapfiliate / impact.com