If you sell subscriptions, you can pay affiliates recurring commissions: every time a subscription they referred renews and is paid, a fresh commission is created for them. Affiliate and Referral Program for WooCommerce turns this on with one setting, and this guide covers that setting, what it requires, and why a renewal sometimes pays nothing. Part of the plugin documentation.
What you need first
↑ Back to topRecurring commission works on top of WooCommerce Subscriptions. The plugin listens for the renewal payment that Subscriptions reports, so a store without that extension has nothing to listen to and the setting has no effect. Subscription-style products built with other tools are not covered.
Turn on commission for renewals
↑ Back to top- Go to: WooCommerce > Affiliate & Referral > Advanced Features > General.
- Turn on Generate commission for woocommerce subscription renewal.
- Save Changes.
Note that this setting lives on Advanced Features, not on the Commission screen with the rate rules — the rates themselves come from your ordinary commission rules.
Who gets paid on a renewal
↑ Back to topThe affiliate credited for the original order keeps earning on its renewals. When a renewal is paid, the store looks up the commission recorded against the order that started the subscription and creates a new pending commission for that same affiliate — reviewed and approved exactly like any other.
Renewals pay only when the first order earned a commission. If that original sale produced none — a guest bought without a referral, the product was excluded, or the affiliate had reached their monthly ceiling — there is nothing for the renewal to follow, and it will keep paying nothing. There is no screen for attaching an affiliate to an existing subscription afterwards, so check the first order rather than waiting for renewals to correct themselves.
How much a renewal pays
↑ Back to topRenewal commission is calculated with the same rules as any other sale, so a change to your rates applies to renewals from that point on. Two details are worth knowing:
- The setting Commission for only the URL opened? does not restrict renewals — the renewal earns on its full value.
- Your monthly ceiling, Maximum commission to an Affiliate in a month, still applies. On a store with many subscriptions this is what keeps a single affiliate’s monthly total predictable.
Because renewals recur for as long as the customer stays subscribed, most stores set a lower rate than they would for a one-off sale, or exclude subscription products from the higher promotional rates.
Recurring commission and lifetime commission
↑ Back to topThese are two different answers to “keep paying my affiliate”. Recurring commission follows one subscription: it pays whenever that subscription renews. Lifetime commission follows the customer: it pays on anything they buy afterwards. You can run both, and stores that sell subscriptions alongside ordinary products often do.
FAQ
↑ Back to topDo I need WooCommerce Subscriptions?
↑ Back to topYes. Renewal commissions depend on the renewal payment that WooCommerce Subscriptions reports. Without it, the setting stays on but never fires.
Are renewal commissions approved automatically?
↑ Back to topThey follow the same path as every other commission: pending until you approve them, or approved automatically if you have set Affiliate Referral Automation on the Commission screen.
Does this work on stores using high-performance order storage?
↑ Back to topYes. Renewals are matched to their original order on both the classic and the high-performance order storage.
What happens when a subscription is cancelled?
↑ Back to topNo further renewals means no further commission. Commissions already approved stay in the affiliate’s wallet.