# Affiliate tracking software: price payouts and protect the ledger

Compare affiliate tracking costs and payout fees, and reconcile paid commissions before moving platforms.

Canonical page: https://quillwell.com/guides/affiliate-tracking-software/
Updated 2026-10-31
Publisher: Quillwell Guides (https://quillwell.com/guides/about/). Editorial standards: https://quillwell.com/guides/editorial/

## The short answer

- Price the subscription against your attributed revenue, then add commissions and payout fees.
- If your program needs a larger entry allowance, [Rewardful Starter](https://www.rewardful.com/pricing) permits $7,500 monthly affiliate-attributed revenue; compare the full payout cost.
- Distinguish approval, payout creation and receipt when setting partner expectations.
- Reconcile paid and unpaid commissions before importing old sales or enabling payouts.

## Price the whole payout workflow

Start with affiliate-attributed revenue, then add the commissions you owe and the cost of sending them. A low subscription price can leave a different total once the program grows.

We compare documentation from Rewardful, FirstPromoter and Tolt. Their published material answers different parts of the cost and migration question; use the same workload for each quote.

[Rewardful Starter](https://www.rewardful.com/pricing) costs $49 monthly or $490 annually and permits $7,500 in monthly affiliate-attributed revenue. Rewardful lists unlimited affiliates and a zero percent fee on affiliate-attributed revenue across its plans.

[FirstPromoter Starter](https://firstpromoter.com/pricing) costs $49 monthly or $490 annually, with up to $5,000 in monthly affiliate revenue and 1,000 affiliates. Affiliate revenue is the revenue attributed to affiliates; it is distinct from the commission owed to them.

[Rewardful Managed Payouts](https://help.rewardful.com/en/articles/11930611-what-is-managed-payouts) charges a 3% processing fee per payout, and affiliate withdrawal fees may also apply. That percentage applies to a payout; Rewardful’s zero percent applies to affiliate-attributed revenue.

Rewardful’s 3% fee is charged on each payout, so it grows with the commissions you pay. Add commissions to the subscription and include any applicable withdrawal or other fees to estimate your total.

Forecast a month near your allowance as well as a normal month. Ask each vendor how your actual plan handles a higher revenue volume, and include the cost of any payout method you intend to use.

## Compare limits and the controls you need

Choose the plan around the records and controls your team needs, then request a complete quote. The available documentation does not give a comparable Tolt subscription price here.

Documented limits and controls

| Vendor | Billing unit and limit | Control or migration feature |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Rewardful | Starter: $49 monthly or $490 annually; $7,500 monthly affiliate-attributed revenue. | Manual attribution can generate commissions for selected past invoices. |
| FirstPromoter | Starter: $49 monthly or $490 annually; up to $5,000 monthly affiliate revenue and 1,000 affiliates. | Customer-level Stripe event import generates past commissions; activity logs require Enterprise Plan 3 or above. |
| Tolt | Subscription price and allowance not documented in the pages reviewed. | Approval is configured per flow; payout terms determine when payouts are created. |

Source: [Rewardful: pricing](https://www.rewardful.com/pricing), [Rewardful: manual attribution](https://help.rewardful.com/en/articles/2248017-how-to-manually-attribute-a-referred-customer-to-an-affiliate), [FirstPromoter: pricing](https://firstpromoter.com/pricing), [FirstPromoter: referral import](https://help.firstpromoter.com/en/articles/8970451-how-to-manually-create-referrals-in-firstpromoter), [FirstPromoter: activity logs](https://help.firstpromoter.com/en/articles/13941895-activity-logs-overview), [Tolt: commission approval](https://help.tolt.com/en/articles/9965701-approve-commissions-automatically-or-manually), [Tolt: payout terms](https://help.tolt.com/en/articles/9921217-set-your-payout-term)

The plan with a sufficient revenue allowance may still lack an operational control you need. [FirstPromoter activity logs](https://help.firstpromoter.com/en/articles/13941895-activity-logs-overview) require Enterprise Plan 3 or above and enablement. Access depends on Super Admin or custom-role permissions; the log covers payout and export actions as well as referral reassignment.

Record who can make adjustments and who can review them. An exported ledger is useful only if someone can identify the customer and affiliate associated with each entry.

## Separate approval from money received

A commission can be earned before it is approved, and a created payout can precede receipt. Put each date on the calendar before promising a partner when money will arrive.

[Tolt approval settings](https://help.tolt.com/en/articles/9965701-approve-commissions-automatically-or-manually) allow immediate, delayed or manual approval for each flow. Changes apply to new commissions; existing commission statuses remain unchanged. Review the flows for each partner group.

[Tolt payout terms](https://help.tolt.com/en/articles/9921217-set-your-payout-term) create payouts 15, 30 or 60 days after the commission month ends under NET-15, NET-30 or NET-60. The None setting requires manual generation. Creation is a separate event from receipt.

[FirstPromoter payout guidance](https://help.firstpromoter.com/en/articles/9019492-how-payouts-work-in-firstpromoter) says refunds generate negative commissions that reduce a promoter’s payout. Its default NET-30 means payment thirty days after month end, and a minimum payout threshold can postpone payment.

[FirstPromoter managed payouts](https://help.firstpromoter.com/en/articles/9998853-how-managed-auto-payouts-work) require Enterprise 2 or above, SaaS status, US registration and US-bank invoicing and payment, subject to review and excluded-business rules. The same guidance suggests Wise for customers without a US bank account. That suggestion does not show that a business outside the US qualifies.

FirstPromoter says managed payout setup replaces partners’ configured payout methods with Dots and requires the partner agreement. Its guidance says transfers can take seven to ten days after invoice payment is received, with affiliate withdrawal fees. Include that interval when planning a payout schedule.

Rewardful requires a separate ACH-capable funding method and manual invoice payment for Managed Payouts; its guide directs customers to contact support for access. Confirm eligibility and the fees each partner may face before changing the payout process.

## Reconcile the ledger before importing

Preserve the attribution record and the payment record together. The essential question for each old sale is whether its commission remains owed.

[FirstPromoter’s referral import instructions](https://help.firstpromoter.com/en/articles/8970451-how-to-manually-create-referrals-in-firstpromoter) say importing Stripe events after creating a referral brings in past customer sales and generates corresponding commissions. The referral UID must be the Stripe customer ID. Compare those generated entries with the old payment ledger before enabling payouts.

Suppose an old customer has an earned commission already paid to a partner. If that sale generates a new commission on import, treating the new entry as unpaid could lead to paying it twice. Record the original payment and resolve the new balance before the cutover.

[Rewardful’s manual attribution guide](https://help.rewardful.com/en/articles/2248017-how-to-manually-attribute-a-referred-customer-to-an-affiliate) gives a mobile-click and laptop-signup example that needs manual attribution. After association, future invoices generate commissions; selected past invoices can also generate them manually. Reconcile those invoices before selecting them.

Rewardful uses an affiliate link token in customer metadata for a read-write Stripe connection. Its read-only connection requires a generated referral ID. Record the connection mode and identifiers in the migration mapping.

[FirstPromoter’s changelog](https://changelog.firstpromoter.com/) describes an optional setting that sends earnings to the promotion used on an order while customer and revenue attribution stays with the original promoter. The setting is disabled by default. Keep commission ownership alongside reporting ownership when reconciling totals.

Keep a copy of the old ledger with the evidence for paid balances. Map customer and partner identifiers to the destination, then inspect a sample of imported records. Agree who resolves discrepancies and who authorizes the first live payout.

## Test tracking and the cutover

Run a small synthetic ledger through the intended setup before moving real balances. Keep payout execution disabled during the test and record the expected result for every event.