Brands are doubling down on the proven effectiveness of affiliate marketing in the face of rising customer acquisition costs, with influencers taking an increasing share of affiliate budgets. This is among key findings of The Global State of Affiliate Marketing in 2025 study carried out by the world’s leading commerce partnership marketing platform, impact.com.

The study of more than 800 marketers across eight countries reveals that investment in affiliate marketing is increasing, with 74% of brands saying they have increased affiliate investment in the past year due to other marketing channels becoming more expensive. 30% of brands allocate between 10 and 20% of their marketing budget to affiliate marketing, while 38% allocate between 21 and 30%. In addition, 20% allocate 31-50% of their marketing budget to affiliate, while for 6% of brands, it’s more than 50% of their budget. 

Other key findings include:

• Increased investments in affiliate marketing are directly impacting the bottom line
  
• Influencer marketing is also becoming a bigger priority for brands

• Partnerships are paying off
• AI is also impacting affiliate marketing

When questioned about their reasons for using affiliate marketing, the top three goals for the year ahead were to increase sales; run more cost-effective marketing; and reach a targeted audience. The top three partner types companies are choosing to work with are those specialising in search and media arbitrage; loyalty and rewards; and deals and coupons.

impact.com believes the report provides a framework for companies to assess where they are on their affiliate roadmap and to map where they want to be. The company has identified five pillars of partnership sophistication that visionary brands follow to achieve measurable results. These are a diversified partner portfolio; elevated creator partnerships; strategic investment; intelligent AI deployment; and evolved approaches to measurement. 

Methodology

The company surveyed 818 marketers who manage, contribute to, or oversee their affiliate marketing programs involving those with fewer than 25 to 500+ active partners in mid-2025 in eight countries – US, Canada, Australia, Singapore, UK, France, Germany, and Italy. The survey also included 284 publishers who manage, work on, or have visibility into their company’s affiliate marketing programs, and 421 content creators who actively post content, earn income through these platforms, and engage in brand collaborations.

Download a copy of the report [HERE]. 

Impact.com

The leading global partnership management platform, impact.com transforms the way enterprises manage and optimise all types of partnerships—including affiliates, influencers and commerce content publishers. The company’s purpose-built platform he...

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