Direct commission — what an affiliate earns on the orders they refer — has two modes in Affiliate and Referral Program for WooCommerce. Product-based direct commission prices every sale from the commission rules: store-wide, per product, per category, per affiliate. Performance-based direct commission sets that ladder aside and pays each affiliate by the level they hold, so their own rate rises automatically as they hit referral or sales targets. In the plugin this is the User Levels screen. This guide covers switching to it, building your level ladder, and how promotions happen. Part of the plugin documentation.
Affiliate levels are not MLM levels. A performance level changes the affiliate’s own direct rate on their own referred orders. Multi-tier (MLM) levels are network depth — the rates paid upward to sponsors from a recruit’s sales — and they never change an affiliate’s direct rate. The two run independently; see How to Set Up MLM in Your Affiliate Program.
How performance-based mode changes commissions
↑ Back to topThe two modes are an either/or choice, made once under Commission Based On: — Products for product-based direct commission, Users for performance-based. In performance-based mode the entire rules ladder is set aside: the only thing that decides the rate is the level the affiliate holds. Each level pays either a Percentage of the eligible order line totals or a Fixed amount per item purchased.
Two commission-wide settings still apply in performance-based mode: products excluded under Exclude products from affiliate commission stay excluded, and Restrict commission on sale items still skips discounted products when enabled.
Levels are not ranks. A level replaces the commission rules and changes the rate on every sale; a rank sits on top of any commission model and pays a one-off bonus at a milestone. An affiliate can hold both. See Affiliate Ranks and Rank Bonuses.
Switch to performance-based mode
↑ Back to top- Go to: WooCommerce > Affiliate & Referral > Commission.
- Under Commission Based On:, choose Users instead of Products.
- Save Changes.
Until you make this switch, the User Levels screen reminds you with a notice to select the Users commission base — levels you create are only paid once the base is Users.
Build your level ladder
↑ Back to top- Go to: WooCommerce > Affiliate & Referral > User Levels.
- Click Add New Level.
- Fill in the level and Save Changes.
- Level Name – what affiliates see on their dashboard.
- Commission Type – Percentage or Fixed.
- Commission Amount – the rate this level pays.
- To Reach Criteria – how the level is earned: Become Affiliate (the starting level everyone holds), No. of Referrals, or Total Sale Amount.
- To Reach Value – the referral count or sales total that earns it.
Make your first level a Become Affiliate level — it is the default every affiliate starts on. Then add one level per milestone, each with a better rate. The ladder in the screenshots is a typical one: Starter pays 10% on joining, Advanced 12% after 5 approved referrals, and Partner 15% after $1,000 in referred sales. Each rung is the affiliate’s own direct rate — the same sale simply pays them more as they climb.
How promotions happen
↑ Back to topThe program re-evaluates an affiliate’s level every time one of their referrals is approved. It counts their approved referrals and their referred sales total, finds the highest level each of those earns, and assigns the better of the two. Because those totals only grow, affiliates move up the ladder as they perform — there is no automatic demotion.
You can also set a level by hand: open the affiliate under Users and pick their level on the profile, or use the Level column on the Affiliates screen. A hand-picked level lasts until the next referral approval, when the program recalculates from the affiliate’s real totals — so treat manual assignment as a temporary override, not a permanent grant.
Deleting a level moves every affiliate who held it down to the level before it. Check who holds a level — the Level column on the Affiliates screen — before removing rungs from the ladder.
FAQ
↑ Back to topIs a performance level the same as an MLM level?
↑ Back to topNo. A performance level sets the rate an affiliate earns on their own referred orders. MLM levels are positions in a multi-tier network and set what sponsors earn from their recruits’ sales — a separate commission that never changes the affiliate’s direct rate. An affiliate can hold a performance level and sit in a network at the same time.
Do my per-product commission rates still work in performance-based mode?
↑ Back to topNo. With Commission Based On: set to Users, the level is the only rate that applies — product, category and per-affiliate rules are ignored, and the commission box disappears from the product edit screen. See Commission per Product or Category.
How does a Fixed level rate count quantities?
↑ Back to topPer item. A $2 fixed level rate on an order line of three items pays $6 — different from product-rule fixed amounts, which pay once per order line. Keep that in mind when you price fixed levels.
Where does an affiliate see their level?
↑ Back to topOn their dashboard: the level name shows on their overview, and the commission tab shows the level rate that currently applies to them. More questions are answered in the Affiliate and Referral Program: FAQ.
