CJ Affiliate vs impact.com (2026): which should you pick?
As of Nov 12, 2026, impact.com grades higher than CJ Affiliate: 2.0 against 1.6 out of 4.0.
Checked Nov 12, 2026 · graded Nov 12, 2026 by ToolGPA
CJ Affiliate grades higher on value for money. impact.com grades higher on the free plan, features and platforms. They get the same grade on ease of use.
Price, platforms and features side by side. The table says where each price was read and when.
CJ Affiliate
Affiliate network and platform for brands, publishers and creators
impact.com
Partnership platform for affiliate, creator and referral programs
Which one is for you
Pick CJ Affiliate if
- Fits if you want to recruit publishers and creators from an existing network
- Works for brands ready to talk to a sales team
Look elsewhere if
- Skip it if you want to see a price, since none is published
- Not for you if you want a free plan or trial, because the buttons say Get Started and Talk with CJ
- Watch out: no API or integration list is shown on the pages we read
- Tight if you're small: nothing on the site says there's a plan for a one-person program
Pick impact.com if
- Fits if you run a larger brand with partners across affiliate, creators and referrals
- Makes sense if you can commit to a 12-month contract
Look elsewhere if
- Pricey if you outgrow Starter: Essentials is $500 a month and Pro $2,500
- Watch out: every plan needs a 12-month contract, and a tier change needs a new 12-month addendum
- Not for you if you're off the listed store platforms, as Starter works only with them
- Tight if you want add-ons or setup help: add-ons cost extra and onboarding on upper tiers is $250 an hour
How we grade them
| 1.6GPACJ AffiliateWeak | 2.0GPAimpact.comFair | |
|---|---|---|
| Value for money | CNo price or plan is published on the pages read, so cost has to be requested. Middle by default. | DStarter is $30 a month plus 2.5% of revenue, but only for listed stores. Essentials is $500 a month and Pro $2,500, at or above the dearest tenth ($499). |
| Free plan and trial | FNo free plan or trial is shown on the listing or the pages read. | D30-day free trial on Starter only, and no word on a card. |
| Features | COnboarding, partner discovery, several partner types, commission structures and insights. The listing shows no API or tooling detail. | BAffiliate, creator and referral programs, reporting, attribution, payouts and add-ons. The listing names no gap in the core work, only paid add-ons. |
| Ease of use | CNo store rating on record. A network program takes setup and a sales conversation to start. | CNo store rating on record. Larger plans are sold through sales and billed onboarding. |
| Platforms and integrations | CWeb only, with no integrations listed on the listing. | BWeb only, with 8 integrations and API-based tracking on Pro. |
| Best for | an affiliate network for brands, publishers and creators | partnerships across affiliate, creator and referral programs |
The GPA is the average of the five grades: an A is 4 points, an F is none. The full reasons are on each tool's page: CJ Affiliate and impact.com. How we grade
Where they differ
At a glance
| CJ Affiliate | impact.com | |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing | Paid | Free trial |
| Starts at | Not published | $30 per month, plus 2.5% of revenue (Starter) |
| Free plan | None | None |
| Free trial | None listed | 30-day free trial on the Starter tier only |
| Web | ||
| Made by | CJ | impact.com |
| Price read from | Not confirmed | impact.com |
| Checked | Nov 12, 2026 | Nov 12, 2026 |
Worth knowing
CJ Affiliate
- No price or plan is published on the pages read, so cost has to be requested from CJ.
- The site's calls to action are Get Started and Talk with CJ, which point to a sales conversation.
- CJ's own claims about rankings and growth figures are marketing statements and were not checked.
impact.com
- The page says every plan needs a 12-month contract, and a tier change needs a new 12-month addendum.
- Starter is limited to Shopify, WooCommerce, BigCommerce, Adobe Commerce, Squarespace, Ecwid, Shoplazza, nopCommerce and Zoho Commerce.
- Essentials, Pro and Enterprise setup and onboarding is billed at $250 an hour.
- Add-ons (Creator Premium, Advocate Premium, Optimize, AI Search Visibility, Brand Safety) cost extra and are not on Starter.
Key features
CJ Affiliate
- Onboarding
- CJ describes onboarding with an integration set up for current and later needs, plus a set of featured onboarding tools.
- Partner discovery
- Brands find and activate new partners from a network that CJ describes as curated and transparent.
- Partner types
- The platform lists partner types including ambassadors, browser extensions, card-linked offers, coupons, editorial, email, influencers and paid search.
- Commission structures
- Brands set omni-channel program strategies and commission structures to reward partners.
- Insights
- On-demand data on customer value, journey touchpoints and how a program compares with competitors.
- Related products
- CJ also sells CJ Influence, CJ Leads and CJ Marketplaces as separate solutions.
impact.com
- Affiliate program management
- Recruitment, tracking, payouts and fraud protection for an affiliate program, with a partner marketplace on Essentials and above.
- Creator and influencer management
- Creator and influencer partnerships are managed in the same account, with a paid Creator Premium add-on for dedicated support.
- Customer referral
- The Advocate product runs customer referral programs next to affiliate and creator ones. It is included from Essentials up.
- Reporting and attribution
- Basic tracking and reporting on Starter, a Data Lab analytics tool on Pro and multi-touch attribution on Enterprise.
- Partner payouts
- Each paid tier includes a monthly amount of partner payouts; beyond that, payouts are paid a la carte with no overage fees, per the FAQ.
- Add-ons
- Optional paid add-ons on Essentials and above include Optimize, AI Search Visibility and Brand Safety tools.
Plans
CJ Affiliate
Pricing could not be confirmed. See cj.com.
impact.com
Starter$30
per month, plus 2.5% of revenue
Basic tracking and reporting, Amazon, Walmart and Best Buy integration, partner recommendations and chat support. Only for listed store platforms.
Essentials$500
per month
For brands with up to $2m a year in ecommerce revenue. Includes up to $2,500 a month in partner payouts. Sold through sales.
Pro$2,500
per month
For $2m to $15m a year in revenue. Includes up to $14,300 a month in payouts, API-based tracking and custom commission rates. Sold through sales.
EnterpriseCustom
For $15m+ a year or multi-channel programs: white-labeled partner portal, fraud and risk scoring and multi-touch attribution.
Common questions
Which is cheaper, CJ Affiliate or impact.com?
As of Nov 12, 2026, CJ Affiliate has no price we could confirm, and impact.com starts at $30 per month, plus 2.5% of revenue (Starter).
Which has a free plan, CJ Affiliate or impact.com?
As of Nov 12, 2026, neither CJ Affiliate nor impact.com has a free plan. impact.com has a free trial.
More comparisons
How this page was made
- The verdict at the top follows a fixed rule. When both tools are in the same category and either is in our top three for it, the verdict follows that ranking: the higher-placed tool is our pick. The top three weigh who each tool suits as well as its grades, so a pick can go against the GPA. Otherwise the page does not pick one and says which grades higher: the higher GPA first; on a tie, the one with a free plan, then the one that starts cheaper in dollars a month, counted the same way for both; if they are still level, what the choice depends on.
- The grades are our own, from each tool’s review or report card. The GPA is their average.
- Prices, plans and platforms come from each tool’s listing. The table above says where each price was read and when.
- The differences and the answers to the questions are worked out from those listings.