MailerLite Affiliate Program: How To Make Money With It

Looking to build recurring income as an affiliate? MailerLite’s affiliate program offers something most programs don’t: lifetime 30% recurring commissions. That means every customer you refer keeps paying you month after month. With over 1.3 million users already on the platform, this email marketing tool practically sells itself to the right audience.

Quick Program Stats

💰 Commission: 30% recurring (lifetime)
🍪 Cookie Duration: 30 days
💳 Payment Terms: Monthly via PayPal, $50 minimum
⏱️ Payment Timeline: Within 45 days
🎯 Platform: Email marketing software

Join the MailerLite Affiliate Program →

Why MailerLite Commissions Actually Add Up

Here’s the thing about recurring commissions. Most affiliate programs pay you once and you’re done. MailerLite pays you every single month your referral stays subscribed. Let’s break down what this means for your wallet.

If you refer just 20 customers who each pay $50 per month for MailerLite’s service, you’re earning $300 every single month without lifting another finger. That’s $3,600 per year from just 20 referrals. Now scale that to 50 customers and you’re looking at $9,000 annually in passive income.

The platform serves over 1.3 million customers globally, which tells you two important things. First, people actually use and stick with this product. Second, there’s a massive market of businesses that need email marketing tools. Your job is simply connecting those businesses with a solution they’re already searching for.

What Makes MailerLite Different From Other Email Tools

MailerLite competes in a crowded space with names like Mailchimp, ConvertKit, and ActiveCampaign. But it carved out its niche by being the straightforward, affordable option that doesn’t sacrifice features.

The platform lets users create email campaigns, build landing pages, automate workflows, and even sell digital products directly through email. For small businesses and solopreneurs watching their budget, MailerLite hits the sweet spot between powerful and affordable.

This matters for you as an affiliate because your audience isn’t looking for the most expensive solution. They want something that works without breaking the bank. That’s an easier sell than convincing someone to drop $300 per month on enterprise software.

Getting Started With The MailerLite Affiliate Program

The signup process is refreshingly simple. Head to their affiliate page, fill out the application, and you’ll typically get approved within a day or two if you have an active website or social media presence. They’re not overly strict about approval, but they do want to see you have an actual audience to promote to.

Once approved, you get access to their affiliate dashboard where you can grab your tracking links, view your stats, and track your commissions in real time. MailerLite built their own in-house affiliate software, which means the tracking actually works properly. I’ve dealt with enough janky third-party affiliate platforms to appreciate when a company invests in their own system.

The dashboard shows you everything you need to know. How many clicks your links got, how many people signed up, how much you’ve earned, and what your projected monthly recurring revenue looks like. It’s all laid out clearly without having to dig through complicated reports.

Who Actually Buys Email Marketing Software

Before you start promoting, understand who you’re selling to. Email marketing tools attract a specific type of customer, and knowing this helps you create content that converts.

Your ideal audience includes bloggers who’ve built a subscriber list and want to monetize it better. Small business owners who realize social media isn’t enough and need to own their audience. Course creators and coaches who need automated email sequences. E-commerce stores wanting to recover abandoned carts and run promotional campaigns.

These people share a common pain point. They know email marketing works, but they’re either intimidated by complex platforms or frustrated with expensive ones. MailerLite solves both problems by being intuitive and reasonably priced.

How To Actually Drive Traffic To Your Affiliate Links

Let’s get tactical. You need eyeballs on your affiliate content, and there are several paths to get there depending on your strengths and budget.

The organic route means creating content around email marketing topics. Write comparison articles like “MailerLite vs Mailchimp” or tutorial posts about “How to Build Your First Email Sequence.” These target people actively searching for email marketing solutions. The key is answering real questions people type into Google, then naturally mentioning MailerLite as the solution you recommend.

SEO takes time but pays off long term. Target keywords like “best email marketing for small business,” “affordable email marketing tools,” or “MailerLite review.” These have decent search volume without insane competition. Create genuinely helpful content first, then include your affiliate link as the natural next step.

If you’ve got budget for paid traffic, Facebook and Instagram ads work well for this offer. Target small business owners, online entrepreneurs, and digital marketers. Your ad copy should focus on the pain points: frustrated with expensive email tools, want something simple that actually works, need better email deliverability. Drive traffic to a bridge page that pre-sells MailerLite before sending them through your affiliate link.

Email marketing itself is incredibly effective for this program. If you have an existing list of business owners or marketers, create a sequence about email marketing best practices. Naturally weave in how you use MailerLite and why you recommend it. The recurring commission model means building your own email list creates a multiplying effect on your affiliate income.

Creating Content That Converts Browsers Into Sign-ups

Generic “check out this tool” posts don’t cut it anymore. Your content needs to demonstrate actual value while making the case for MailerLite specifically.

Tutorial content works exceptionally well. Show people how to accomplish something they want using MailerLite’s features. How to set up a welcome sequence. How to create a landing page that converts. How to segment your list for better engagement. When you walk someone through the process using specific screenshots and examples, signing up becomes the obvious next step so they can implement what you taught them.

Comparison content addresses the elephant in the room. Most people considering MailerLite are also looking at alternatives. Write honest comparisons that acknowledge where other tools excel, but highlight why MailerLite makes more sense for most users. Be specific about pricing differences, feature sets, and ease of use.

Case studies and results posts build credibility. Share how you or others have grown their email lists using MailerLite. Include actual numbers when possible. People buy results, not features. If you can show someone grew from zero to 5,000 subscribers and generates $2,000 monthly revenue from their email list using MailerLite, that’s infinitely more compelling than listing features.

The Honest Challenges With This Program

Let’s talk about the less exciting parts because transparency matters. The 30-day cookie duration is shorter than ideal. Many affiliate programs offer 60 or even 90 days. This means if someone clicks your link but doesn’t sign up within a month, you don’t get credit for that sale.

This actually forces you to create better content. You need to catch people when they’re ready to make a decision, not just casually browsing. Target bottom-of-funnel keywords where people are comparing options and ready to choose a platform.

The $50 minimum payout threshold is standard but can feel slow when you’re starting out. If you refer two customers who each pay $20 monthly, you’re earning $12 per month in commissions. It’ll take about four months to hit that first payout. The upside is that once you hit it, payments come regularly because of the recurring model.

Competition exists in the email marketing space. Lots of affiliates promote these tools because everyone needs email marketing. Stand out by going deeper than surface-level reviews. Create content that actually teaches people how to use email marketing effectively, position yourself as the expert helping them succeed, and MailerLite becomes the natural tool recommendation.

Scaling Your MailerLite Affiliate Income

Once you’ve got your first few referrals, scaling becomes about doubling down on what works. Track which content pieces drive the most conversions. If your tutorial on building email sequences converts well, create more tutorial content. If comparison posts bring in sales, write more comparisons.

Build an email list specifically around email marketing education. This creates a perfect audience for MailerLite promotions. You’re literally teaching people about email marketing while using email marketing. The meta nature of this actually works in your favor because you’re demonstrating the value of the tool while promoting it.

Partner with other creators in adjacent niches. If you know someone teaching course creation or blogging, they could mention your email marketing resources to their audience. You could return the favor with relevant promotions. These partnerships expand your reach without requiring more content creation from you.

Consider creating a free resource like an email marketing checklist or template pack. Offer it in exchange for email signups. Use that list to nurture subscribers with helpful email marketing content, naturally mentioning MailerLite throughout your sequence. This builds a predictable funnel where you control the entire journey from awareness to sign-up.

Making Your First Sale This Month

Stop overthinking this and start with one piece of content today. Write a tutorial post about setting up an email welcome sequence. Include step-by-step instructions using MailerLite’s interface. Embed your affiliate link naturally within the tutorial. Publish it and share it in relevant Facebook groups or Reddit communities where your target audience hangs out.

The recurring commission model means your first few sales matter more than with one-time payouts. Landing just five customers who stick around creates $45 in monthly passive income if they’re on $30 plans. That might not sound like much, but that’s $540 per year from five referrals. Get to 25 customers and you’re looking at real money every month.

The key is starting. Most people never publish that first piece of content. They research and plan and optimize in their head but never actually put something out there. Your mediocre content published today beats perfect content you never finish. Get that first affiliate post live, send some traffic to it, and learn from the results.

Start Your MailerLite Affiliate Journey →

The lifetime recurring commission structure makes MailerLite one of the better long-term plays in affiliate marketing. Every customer you refer today keeps paying you next month and the month after that. Build this consistently over six months and you’ve created genuine passive income that compounds over time.