2025 study shows 74% of brands increasing affiliate budgets due to rising costs in other marketing channels 

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.

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Other key findings include:

• Increased investments in affiliate marketing are directly impacting the bottom line: 74% of brands said they generate between 11 and 30% of their total revenue from affiliate marketing, with 14% generating more than 30%. Additionally, 73% report increased revenue from affiliate programs over the past year, and 71% said they find affiliate marketing more cost-effective than other marketing channels.

• Influencer marketing is also becoming a bigger priority for brands: 59% plan to dedicate a quarter or more of their affiliate budget to influencer partnerships in the coming year, of which 18% are allocating more than half.

• Partnerships are paying off: 28% of brands surveyed said their collaborations with influencers have improved brand awareness and reach. Meanwhile, 27% said the partnerships had led to higher engagement with their brand content, and 27% reported increased sales and revenue attributable to influencer partnerships.

• AI is also impacting affiliate marketing: For brands, the top three use cases for AI are chatbots for customer support (35%); predictive analytics and optimization (33%); and partner performance analysis and feedback (32%). For creators, it’s content translation and subtitles (26%); visual and video creation (26%); and content ideas and outlines (25%). Finally, publishers are using AI for content creation and optimization (41%); automating affiliate tasks (35%); and personalizing content or offers (29%).

When questioned about their reasons for using affiliate marketing, the top three goals for the year ahead were to increase sales (45%); run more cost-effective marketing (37%); and reach a targeted audience (36%). The top three partner types companies are choosing to work with are those specializing in search and media arbitrage (40%); loyalty and rewards (38%); and deals and coupons (37%).

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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 is the world’s leading commerce partnership marketing platform, transforming the way businesses grow by enabling them to discover, manage, and scale partnerships across the entire customer journey. From affiliates and influencers to content publishers, brand ambassadors, and customer advocates, impact.com empowers brands to drive trusted, performance-based growth through authentic relationships. Its award-winning products—Performance (affiliate), Creator (influencer), and Advocate (customer referral)—unify every type of partner into one integrated platform. As consumers increasingly rely on recommendations from people and communities they trust, impact.com helps brands show up where it matters most. Today, over 5,000 global brands—including Walmart, Uber, Shopify, Lenovo, L’Oréal, and Fanatics—rely on impact.com to power more than 225,000 partnerships that deliver measurable business results.