How to Pay Affiliates in WooCommerce (2026 Guide)

WooCommerce can’t pay affiliates on its own, so you need an affiliate plugin to track what each one is owed. Commission becomes “unpaid” once a referred order is completed. From there, the affiliate (or a schedule) requests a payout and you send the money by PayPal, Stripe, bank transfer or store credit.

With Coupon Affiliates PRO, PayPal, Stripe and store credit payouts go out in one click. Wise bank transfers take a couple of clicks plus a confirmation inside Wise, and a Bulk Pay screen can clear every pending request at once. We’ll start with choosing a payout method, then get into the payout process itself.

Quick disclosure: Coupon Affiliates is our own plugin, built by us at RelyWP, and so is Simple Store Credit, which comes up in the store credit section. The payout advice here applies to any affiliate setup, but the settings and screenshots come from our plugins. Payout management is a PRO feature. If you’re using the free version, skip to the free version section.

Jump to a section:

• Which payout method should you use?
• Set your payout rules before the first payout
• How to pay affiliates in WooCommerce, step by step
• How to automate affiliate payouts
• Paying affiliates in store credit
• Paying affiliates with the free version
• Frequently asked questions

Which Payout Method Should You Use?

You probably won’t need every method. Most stores get by with one cash option for the bulk of their affiliates, and store credit for any who also shop with them. Here’s how the methods in Coupon Affiliates compare.

PayPal and Stripe both pay out of your balance with that provider. If there isn’t enough in it, the payout fails and stays unpaid until you top up. Stripe Payouts also works best for businesses based in the US or UK. Elsewhere, some Stripe features are limited or unavailable, and PayPal is usually the easier route.

Wise reaches bank accounts in more than 50 countries, and affiliates don’t need their own Wise account. It handles currency conversion too, and shows the fee before you confirm each transfer (rates are on its pricing page).

Store credit costs you the least, because the money never leaves your shop. The catch is that it’s only useful to affiliates who buy from you. On coupon-based programs, where plenty of affiliates started out as customers, that can be a good chunk of them.

Set Your Payout Rules Before the First Payout

An easy way to lose money is paying commission on an order that’s refunded a week later. The settings below (all under Coupon Affiliates > Settings > Payouts) help prevent that. Set them up before affiliates start requesting money, because changing the rules later means explaining the change to everyone.

• Commission delay. How many days after an order is placed before its commission turns into “unpaid commission” that affiliates can request. Set it to your refund window, or a bit longer. It runs on WordPress cron, so check that cron is working on your site first.
• Order status for unpaid commission. This defaults to “Completed”, and most stores can leave it alone. Change it only if you use a custom final status for some orders.
• Payment threshold. Affiliates can’t request a payout until their balance reaches this amount. Handy if every payment you send carries a fee.
• Custom payout amount. With this on, affiliates can ask for part of their balance (anything from the threshold up to the full amount).
• Processing commission. Shows commission from orders that are still processing as a small note above the affiliate’s unpaid balance. We added it after store owners told us affiliates were confused about why a recent sale hadn’t appeared in their balance yet.

On refunds: when a referred order is refunded, Coupon Affiliates recalculates the commission and takes it off the affiliate’s unpaid balance. A partial refund only removes the refunded part. Commission that’s already been paid out isn’t touched, which is why the delay matters. Your affiliate terms and conditions should also say when payouts happen and what happens to refunded orders.

How to Pay Affiliates in WooCommerce, Step by Step

This assumes Coupon Affiliates PRO is installed and your program is already running. If not, start with our guide to creating a WooCommerce affiliate program and come back here.

Step 1: Turn on your payout methods

Head to Coupon Affiliates > Settings > Payouts and scroll down to the payment methods. They’re collapsed by default, and switching one on opens its settings. What you need to set up depends on the method:

• PayPal Payouts: in the PayPal Developer dashboard, create a REST API app under “My Apps & Credentials” and paste its Client ID and Client Secret into the plugin (our PayPal setup guide walks through it). Your PayPal Business account also needs Payouts access. PayPal has to approve that, and accounts with little transaction history are sometimes turned down at first. Use Sandbox credentials while testing and Live ones for real payouts.
• Stripe Payouts: this one takes a bit more work. Turn on Connect as a platform in your Stripe dashboard, then upload an icon and pick a brand color in the Connect branding settings, since affiliates can’t finish connecting without them. Back in the plugin, choose Standard or Express accounts (here’s the difference) and add your Publishable and Secret keys. The full Stripe setup guide has every screen.
• Wise bank transfer: the Wise setup is shorter. Generate an API token in your Wise Business account, paste it in, click “Fetch Profiles” and pick your business profile. If you want affiliates’ bank details encrypted in your database, the settings page gives you a line to add to wp-config.php.
• Direct bank transfer (manual): just switch it on. If you need different details from affiliates, you can rename the bank fields or add your own.
• Store credit: switch on Store Credit Payouts here, activate the module under “PRO Modules”, and pick a wallet system: the built-in one or Simple Store Credit (more on that below).
• Custom methods: give the method a name and, if you need them, add a field for the details affiliates should enter (a crypto wallet address, for example).

Try a small test payout on each method before paying anyone for real.

While you’re on this screen, set a default payout method. It’s pre-selected for every affiliate, which means new sign-ups always have one. You can also limit methods to certain user roles if, say, only your bigger partners should get bank transfers.

Step 2: Have affiliates add their payout details

Affiliates choose how they want to be paid in the Settings tab of their affiliate dashboard. What they fill in depends on the method:

• PayPal: their PayPal email address.
• Stripe: they click “Connect to Stripe” and go through Stripe’s own sign-up, where they add a bank account and may need to verify their identity.
• Wise or bank transfer: they pick their bank’s region, and the form asks for the right details for it (sort code in the UK, routing number in the US, IBAN in the EU, SWIFT/BIC code elsewhere).

Nothing can be paid until these are filled in. Mention it in your affiliate onboarding emails.

Step 3: Create payout requests

Every payout starts as a request on your admin Payouts page. Most come from affiliates, who click Request Payout in the Payouts tab of their dashboard once their balance is over your threshold. You get an email each time.

You can also create requests yourself on the Create Payout Requests page, opened from the admin Payouts page. Under “Manual Admin Requests”, select the affiliates you want to pay and create the requests. Where something’s missing (no payout method chosen, no user assigned to the coupon, or no payout details), the row flags it and you can sort it out without leaving the page.

If you want to decide when payouts happen, hide the Request Payout button in the settings. Affiliates can still see their balance and payout history, but requests will only come from you or from a schedule (covered below).

Step 4: Pay the requests

Each request on the Coupon Affiliates > Payouts page has a button matching the affiliate’s payout method:

• PayPal and Stripe: “Pay via PayPal” or “Pay via Stripe” sends the money and marks the payout as paid, with a popup confirming it went through.
• Wise: “Pay via Wise Bank” creates the transfer in your Wise account and sets the payout to “Created”. Click “Complete Payment in Wise” to approve it there, then come back and click “Mark as Paid”.
• Store credit: “Pay as Credit” adds the commission to the affiliate’s wallet.
• Manual bank transfer and custom methods: pay from your bank (or wherever), then click “Paid”.

Once there are more than a handful waiting, Bulk Pay is quicker. It pulls every pending request onto one screen and pays the lot across PayPal, Stripe, Wise and store credit, showing progress as it goes. Anything that fails is flagged for you to retry.

Step 5: Keep records for your accounts

For accounting, affiliates can attach an invoice to each payout request, and the plugin can generate a PDF statement for every completed payout. You’ll find both in the “Invoices & PDF Statements” section of the Payouts settings.

Export Payouts, on the Payouts page, gives you a CSV or PDF of your payouts. Filter it by status, payment method or date, and include payment details if your accountant wants them.

How to Automate Affiliate Payouts

It’s best to run a few payout cycles by hand before automating anything. Once you’re happy the numbers are right, there are two features to look at.

Scheduled payout requests create requests for you, exactly as if each affiliate had clicked Request Payout. Switch it on under PRO Modules > Scheduled Payout Requests in the plugin settings and pick a daily, weekly or monthly schedule and a time of day. Weekly schedules can run on any weekday, and monthly ones on any date (or the last day of the month). Requests are only created for affiliates who meet your payout criteria, such as the payment threshold.

Automatic payouts pay a request as soon as it’s created, for PayPal, Stripe, Wise and store credit. Turn it on in the Payouts settings tab, then set up its two safeguards:

• A maximum amount that can be paid automatically. Anything above it waits for you to approve it.
• Manual approval for each affiliate’s first payout, which gives you a chance to look over new accounts before any money leaves.

With both switched on, payouts run without you. The exception is Wise, where a transfer can still wait for you if Wise asks for extra verification or your balance is short.

The risk is fraud, since money goes out before anyone has checked it. Have a read of our guide to preventing affiliate coupon abuse first. A halfway option is to schedule the requests but pay them yourself through Bulk Pay. You still get a look at the list, and it’s one click either way.

Paying Affiliates in Store Credit

Store credit payouts go into a wallet that the affiliate spends at your checkout. Coupon Affiliates has a basic wallet built in, and since version 8.5.0 it also connects directly to Simple Store Credit for WooCommerce, which gives affiliates a proper wallet with an activity log and vouchers.

To use it, open the Store Credit Payouts method in the Payouts settings and choose Simple Store Credit from the Wallet System dropdown. The integration works with the free version of Simple Store Credit from WordPress.org, and if it isn’t installed yet, the settings screen offers to install it for you. Other wallet plugins such as TeraWallet and YITH Account Funds are supported through integration addons.

Before you switch over:

• Payouts can go into the wallet balance or arrive as a voucher code, with an optional expiry date.
• Bonus Commission still works, if you want to give affiliates a bit extra for choosing credit.
• Reversing a payout takes it back out of the wallet balance. Vouchers are different: once issued, they can’t be revoked automatically.
• Balances held in the built-in wallet can be moved across with the migration tool in Simple Store Credit.

Paying Affiliates With the Free Version

The free version of Coupon Affiliates tracks commission on every referred order, but the payouts system is PRO only. That means paying affiliates yourself, outside the plugin.

Start by collecting each affiliate’s payment details, for example by email when they join. Then pick a regular payout day and follow this routine:

1. Generate an admin report for the period since your last payout. Free reports cover the last two weeks, which lines up nicely with paying every fortnight.
2. Filter it to coupons where commission earned is more than zero.
3. Pay each affiliate the amount shown, using whatever method you’ve agreed with them.
4. Keep your own record of what you paid, because the free version doesn’t track paid and unpaid balances.

If referrals only come in now and then, you can pay per order instead. The Affiliate Orders page in the Coupon Affiliates menu lists every order that used an affiliate coupon, along with the commission for each.

This works fine for a handful of affiliates. Once it starts eating into your week, it’s time to look at the PRO payouts system.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the best way to pay affiliates in WooCommerce?

For most stores it’s PayPal, because affiliates only need an email address and each payout takes one click. Add store credit for affiliates who shop with you, and Wise for anyone who wants the money in their bank account.

How often should you pay affiliates?

Monthly is fine for most small programs. Affiliates aren’t kept waiting long, and refunds have time to come through. Whatever you pick, write it into your affiliate terms so nobody has to ask.

How much should you pay affiliates?

Most affiliate programs pay between 5% and 30% per sale, but your profit margins should set the number. We cover how to work it out in our guide to setting affiliate commission rates in WooCommerce.

How do you pay affiliates in other countries?

PayPal and Wise are the two easiest options. Wise covers bank accounts in 50+ countries and converts the currency for you, while PayPal only needs the affiliate’s email address. Stripe Payouts can be limited if your business isn’t based in the US or UK.

What happens to commission if an order is refunded?

If it hasn’t been paid out yet, it’s removed from the affiliate’s unpaid balance automatically (only the refunded part, for a partial refund). A commission delay that covers your refund window stops refunded orders from reaching a payout at all.

Can affiliate payouts in WooCommerce be fully automatic?

Yes, with Coupon Affiliates PRO. Scheduled payout requests create the requests, and automatic payouts pay them through PayPal, Stripe, Wise or store credit. Keep the maximum amount and first-payout approval safeguards switched on.

Where to Start

If you’re setting this up for the first time, turn on PayPal (and store credit, if your affiliates are also customers) and set a commission delay that covers your refund window. Pay the first few rounds by hand. Scheduled requests and Bulk Pay can come once you trust the numbers, with fully automatic payouts after your fraud checks are in place.

We make Coupon Affiliates, so bear that in mind when we recommend it. If you’re still comparing plugins, our roundup of the best WooCommerce affiliate plugins covers the alternatives. If you want to try ours, PRO has a 7-day free trial, which is long enough to run a test payout or two.

Priyanka Okidi

Priyanka is a writer for WordPress and eCommerce companies. She loves breaking down complex ideas into simple concepts.