Affiliate networks
FirstPromoter vs ReferralCandy compared on 9 fields
- FirstPromoter score
- 66/100 (6 of 7 criteria)
- ReferralCandy score
- 92/100 (5 of 7 criteria)
- Fields won by FirstPromoter
- 1 of 7
- Fields won by ReferralCandy
- 1 of 7
FirstPromoter
ReferralCandy
Data checked Oct 14, 2026 against the vendors' own pages. How we verify
FirstPromoter and ReferralCandy are both affiliate networks. We compared them on 9 fields read from each vendor's own pages.
On the affiliate networks scorecard FirstPromoter scores 66/100 (6 of 7 criteria) and ReferralCandy 92/100 (5 of 7 criteria) (ranks 8 and 2 in the category).
Of the 7 fields with a clear rule (lower price, higher count, yes over no), FirstPromoter wins 1, ReferralCandy wins 1 and 5 are ties.
ReferralCandy scores clearly higher on entry price.
Side by side
| Field | FirstPromoter | ReferralCandy | Winner and basis |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cheapest paid plan (billed monthly) | $49/month | ✓ $9/month | ReferralCandy |
| Free plan | No | No | Tie |
| Free trial | Yes | Yes | Tie |
| Trial length (days) | ✓ 14 | 7 | FirstPromoter |
| Public API | Yes | Yes | Tie |
| Data export | Reports exported as CSV and JSON | – | No winner: needs a value on both sides |
| Analytics | Yes | Yes | Tie |
| Team access | Yes | – | No winner: needs a value on both sides |
| AI assistant | Yes | Yes | Tie |
– = not published by the vendor, or not verified yet.
Sources: FirstPromoter pricing page, checked Oct 14, 2026; ReferralCandy pricing page, checked Oct 14, 2026. Each feature value links its own source on the tool's page.
Scorecard, criterion by criterion
| Criterion | Weight | FirstPromoter | ReferralCandy |
|---|---|---|---|
| Entry price | 25% | 26$49/month billed monthly on Starter (scored on the monthly price) | 100$9/month billed monthly on Basic (scored on the monthly price) |
| Free plan or trial | 15% | 60Free trial (14 days), no free plan | 60Free trial (7 days), no free plan |
| Pricing transparency | 10% | 1003 of 3 plans have a public price | 1004 of 4 plans have a public price |
| Verified features | 15% | 1003 of 4 tracked features verified: analytics, team access, ai assistant | 1002 of 4 tracked features verified: analytics, ai assistant |
| API, integrations and export | 10% | 100public API, documented data export | 100public API |
| Cost per user (team of 3) | 15% | 59$16.33 per user per month on Starter (team of 3, billed monthly) | – |
| Total score | 100% | 66/100 (6 of 7 criteria) | 92/100 (5 of 7 criteria) |
FirstPromoter plans
| Plan | Billed monthly | Billed yearly | Charged per | Published limits |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Starter | $49 | Not stated | per workspace |
|
| Business | $99 | Not stated | per workspace |
|
| Enterprise | $149 | Not stated | per workspace |
|
Prices in USD per month, before tax. Read from the vendor's pricing page on Oct 14, 2026. "Not stated" means the page does not publish it.
ReferralCandy plans
| Plan | Billed monthly | Billed yearly | Charged per | Published limits |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Basic | $9 | Not stated | per workspace | None stated |
| Grow | $79 | Not stated | per workspace | None stated |
| Scale | $249 | Not stated | per workspace | None stated |
| Enterprise | $799 | Not stated | per workspace | None stated |
Prices in USD per month, before tax. Read from the vendor's pricing page on Oct 14, 2026. "Not stated" means the page does not publish it.
How we picked
Every one of these affiliate networks is scored by the same 7 criteria (scorecard v1). Each criterion gives 0 to 100 from the vendor's published data; the total is the weighted average. A criterion without verified data is left out and the other weights are re-normalised. A tool with under 60% of the weight covered is listed as not ranked, and so is a tool with no verified price and fewer than 2 verified features (“needs a verified price”); each score shows how many criteria it is based on. The core criteria are the same in every category; the category criteria are specific to affiliate networks. Nobody gets custom weights, including our own products.
| Criterion | Weight | Type | What we measure |
|---|---|---|---|
| Entry price | 25% | Core | Price per month of the cheapest paid plan, against the prices of other affiliate networks on the same billing basis (monthly-billed prices against monthly, annual-billed against annual).Log scale. Billed monthly: $9/month or less = 100, $89 or more = 0. Only billed annually: $5/month or less = 100, $59 or more = 0. Only free plans = 100. Usage-priced and one-time plans are not scored. |
| Free plan or trial | 15% | Core | Whether you can use the tool before paying: a free plan, or failing that a free trial, as shown on the vendor's pricing page.Free plan = 100. No free plan but a free trial = 60. The pricing page lists plans but shows neither = 0. No plans read = not scored. |
| Pricing transparency | 10% | Core | How much of the pricing is public: the share of plans with a published price ("contact sales" counts against), and whether there are at least 3 published tiers.80 x (plans with a public price / plans listed) + 20 x (public plans, up to 3) / 3. No plans read = not scored. |
| Verified features | 15% | Core | How many of the 4 features we track for this category the vendor's own pages verifiably show (analytics, team access, templates, ai assistant). This counts verified features only: a tool that documents less scores lower here, and only here.Linear: verified features / 2 (half the tracked list) x 100, capped at 100. No tracked feature verified = not scored. |
| API, integrations and export | 10% | Core | Whether a public API exists, how many integrations the vendor states, and whether the vendor documents a way to export your data.Average of the parts with data: public API yes = 100, no = 0; integrations on a log scale (100 or more = 100); a documented data export = 100. None verified = not scored. |
| Cost per user (team of 3) | 15% | Category | Monthly price per user for a team of 3, on the cheapest paid plan that is priced per seat or states room for at least 3 users.Log scale: $5 per user or less = 100, $88 or more = 0. Plans that do not state a user limit are not used. No such plan = not scored. |
| Fee on sales | 10% | Category | The percentage of each sale the platform keeps, as the vendor states it (the cheapest paid plan that states a fee).Linear, lower is better: 0% = 100, 10% or more = 0. No stated fee = not scored. |
Sources are vendor pricing pages, docs and changelogs, each with the date we checked it. We did not test these tools hands-on unless a listing says so. Full formulas: methodology.
Questions, answered from the data
Is FirstPromoter cheaper than ReferralCandy?
ReferralCandy starts lower: $9 per month billed monthly on the Basic plan, against $49 per month billed monthly on the Starter plan for FirstPromoter. Check the unit: per-user and per-account prices scale differently.
Do FirstPromoter and ReferralCandy have free plans?
Neither has a free plan.
Which is better, FirstPromoter or ReferralCandy?
On our scorecard ReferralCandy scores higher (92/100 (5 of 7 criteria) vs 66/100 (6 of 7 criteria)). The score weighs every criterion the same way for every tool; check the rows above for the ones that matter to you.