CJ Affiliate vs Viral Loops
CJ Affiliate and Viral Loops are both affiliate & referral programs tools. CJ Affiliate is aimed at E-commerce and enterprise, while Viral Loops is aimed at small businesses and creators. Only CJ Affiliate has a free plan.
Large affiliate network connecting brands with publishers and creators
Referral campaigns and viral waitlists
| Pricing | Paid | Paid · $49 |
| Starting price | Not published | $49/mo |
| Free plan | Yes | No |
| Free trial | — | 14 days |
| Built for | E-commerce, Enterprise, Creators | Small businesses, Creators |
| Platforms | web | web |
| Country | US · 1998 | GR · 2016 |
| 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 Viral Loops if
Startups and marketers running launch or referral campaigns.
- Ready-made templates
- Great for launches
- Easy to deploy
Look elsewhere if: Ongoing affiliate programs.
CJ Affiliate vs Viral Loops pricing
CJ Affiliate
- AdvertiserCustomPublisher commissions plus network fees set per contract
- Publisher$0Free to join; earn commissions from approved brand programs
Viral Loops
- Start-up$49/mo$35/mo billed annually; 1,000 participants
- Plus$139/mo$99/mo billed annually; 5,000 participants
- Growing$159/moBilled annually; 10,000 participants
- Power$399/mo$279/mo billed annually; 25,000 participants
- EnterpriseCustom25,000+ participants
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
Viral Loops · Key features
- Prelaunch waitlist template
- Milestone referrals
- Giveaways and sweepstakes
- Newsletter referral programs
- Ambassador programs
- Widgets and integrations
Cons
- Participant limits
- Less customizable
- Pricing per tier
CJ Affiliate vs Viral Loops: FAQ
Do CJ Affiliate and Viral Loops have a free plan?
CJ Affiliate has a free plan. Viral Loops has no free plan, a 14-day free trial.
Which is better for small businesses, CJ Affiliate or Viral Loops?
Viral Loops lists small businesses as a core audience, while CJ Affiliate is aimed more at E-commerce and enterprise.