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CJ Affiliate vs FirstPromoter

CJ Affiliate and FirstPromoter are both affiliate & referral programs tools. CJ Affiliate is aimed at E-commerce and enterprise, while FirstPromoter is aimed at small businesses. Only CJ Affiliate has a free plan.

CJ Affiliate

Large affiliate network connecting brands with publishers and creators

FirstPromoter

Affiliate and referral tracking for subscription businesses

PricingPaidPaid · $49
Starting priceNot published$49/mo
Free planYesNo
Free trial—14 days
Built forE-commerce, Enterprise, CreatorsSmall businesses
Platformswebweb
CountryUS · 1998RO · 2017
Rating——

Choose CJ Affiliate if

Mid-sized and enterprise brands that want an established affiliate network with managed services and detailed reporting.

  • Access to one of the largest established publisher networks
  • Strong presence with major retail, travel and finance publishers
  • Detailed reporting on customer type and incrementality

Look elsewhere if: Small stores or SaaS startups that want self-serve, flat-priced referral tools (Refersion, PartnerStack, Rewardful).

Choose FirstPromoter if

Subscription businesses with varied billing systems.

  • Wide billing support
  • Mature features
  • Fraud tools

Look elsewhere if: Enterprise partnerships.

CJ Affiliate vs FirstPromoter pricing

CJ Affiliate

  • AdvertiserCustomPublisher commissions plus network fees set per contract
  • Publisher$0Free to join; earn commissions from approved brand programs

FirstPromoter

  • Starter$49/mo$490/yr billed annually; up to $5k/mo affiliate revenue
  • Business$99/mo$990/yr billed annually; up to $15k/mo affiliate revenue
  • Enterprise$149/mo$1,490/yr billed annually; above $15k/mo revenue

CJ Affiliate · Key features

  • Universal Tag tracking with item-level and cookieless measurement
  • Turnkey ecommerce plugins and tag manager integrations
  • Publisher discovery and recruitment across a large network
  • Situational commissioning by customer type, product or channel
  • Insights reporting on new, lapsed and returning customers
  • Compliance monitoring with a violation tracking dashboard

Cons

  • No public pricing; fees and minimums are negotiated
  • Network fees add a meaningful cost on top of commissions
  • Too heavy and costly for small or early-stage stores

FirstPromoter · Key features

  • Recurring commission tracking
  • Broad billing integrations
  • Fraud detection
  • Custom portals
  • Multiple campaigns
  • Payout management

Cons

  • Revenue tiers
  • UI less modern
  • Limited discovery

CJ Affiliate vs FirstPromoter: FAQ

Do CJ Affiliate and FirstPromoter have a free plan?

CJ Affiliate has a free plan. FirstPromoter has no free plan, a 14-day free trial.

Which is better for small businesses, CJ Affiliate or FirstPromoter?

FirstPromoter lists small businesses as a core audience, while CJ Affiliate is aimed more at E-commerce and enterprise.

Not sure yet?