impact.com vs Skimlinks (2026): which should you pick?
As of Nov 13, 2026, Skimlinks grades higher than impact.com: 2.4 against 2.0 out of 4.0.
Checked Nov 12, 2026 and Nov 13, 2026 · graded Nov 12, 2026 and Nov 13, 2026 by ToolGPA
impact.com grades higher on features. Skimlinks grades higher on value for money and the free plan. They get the same grade on ease of use and platforms.
Price, platforms and features side by side. The table says where each price was read and when.
impact.com
Partnership platform for affiliate, creator and referral programs
Skimlinks
Affiliate link monetization for publishers, with paid merchant tiers
Which one is for you
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
Pick Skimlinks if
- Fits if you run a content site and want links monetised without hand-building them
- Works for merchants already on a major affiliate network
Look elsewhere if
- Watch out: what a publisher keeps from each sale isn't stated on the pages we read
- Pricey if you are a merchant, since tiers run $166 to $1,620 a month
- Tight if you choose Preferred, as it has a three-month minimum
- Watch out: Premium and VIP cost more by ACH ($1,100 and $1,900) than on a yearly contract
- Skip it if you need a standalone program, because merchants join inside an existing network
How we grade them
| 2.0GPAimpact.comFair | 2.4GPASkimlinksFair | |
|---|---|---|
| Value for money | 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). | CPreferred is $166 a month on annual billing ($200 monthly), at the top of what affiliate tools cost, and Premium is $900. |
| Free plan and trial | D30-day free trial on Starter only, and no word on a card. | BPublishers join for free. The paid tiers are for merchants, so a publisher can use it without paying. |
| Features | BAffiliate, creator and referral programs, reporting, attribution, payouts and add-ons. The listing names no gap in the core work, only paid add-ons. | CAutomatic links, one contract across networks, a reporting hub and merchant search. It isn't a program host, so merchants need an existing network. |
| Ease of use | CNo store rating on record. Larger plans are sold through sales and billed onboarding. | CNo store rating on record. You set up accounts and programs before it does anything, so there is a learning curve. |
| Platforms and integrations | BWeb only, with 8 integrations and API-based tracking on Pro. | BWeb, with Awin, CJ, Impact, Rakuten, Partnerize, PartnerStack, Refersion and Tradedoubler. |
| Best for | partnerships across affiliate, creator and referral programs | turning product links in articles into affiliate links |
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: impact.com and Skimlinks. How we grade
Price against what you get
impact.com starts at $30 a month and scores 2.7 out of 4 on features, ease of use and platforms. Skimlinks starts at $166 a month and scores 2.3.
impact.com scores higher and starts $136 a month lower. Of the other affiliate and referral tools on the chart, none scores higher than impact.com for less, and 17 score higher than Skimlinks for less.
Features, ease of use and platforms, averaged
What paid plans start at, a month (each step along is roughly double) →
- The best score at each price
- Has a free plan
- No free plan
Where they differ
- impact.com also covers partner payouts.
At a glance
| impact.com | Skimlinks | |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing | Free trial | Free plan |
| Starts at | $30 per month, plus 2.5% of revenue (Starter) | $166 per month, billed annually ($200 billed monthly) |
| Free plan | None | Publishers join for free; the paid plans are the Preferred Partner tiers sold to merchants. |
| Free trial | 30-day free trial on the Starter tier only | None listed |
| Web | ||
| Made by | impact.com | Skimlinks |
| Price read from | impact.com | skimlinks.com |
| Checked | Nov 12, 2026 | Nov 13, 2026 |
Worth knowing
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.
Skimlinks
- Merchants join by accepting Skimlinks inside their existing affiliate network; it is not a standalone program host.
- The Preferred tier has a three-month minimum, and Premium and VIP need a yearly contract for the lower rate.
- Premium and VIP are quoted at higher rates if paid by ACH ($1,100 and $1,900 a month) than on a yearly contract.
- The publisher revenue split is not stated on the pages we read, so what a publisher keeps is unconfirmed.
Key features
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.
Skimlinks
- Automatic link monetization
- A piece of code on the site converts organic product links into affiliate links, so editors do not have to build each one by hand.
- One contract, many networks
- The site says one integration and one contract connect a publisher to 48,500 merchants across more than 50 affiliate networks.
- Publisher Hub and data tools
- Performance, merchant and product data are available in the Publisher Hub and through APIs, feeds and cloud-based tools.
- Merchant search
- Publishers browse merchants and their commission rates and cookie windows. Preferred Partners rank higher in those results.
- Preferred Partner program
- Merchants pay a monthly access fee for commission-rate benchmarking, weekly or 7-day reporting and promotion in publisher newsletters.
Plans
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.
Skimlinks
Publisher access$0
Free for publishers, who join to monetize links and read reports in the Publisher Hub.
Preferred$166
per month, billed annually ($200 billed monthly)
Merchant tier: commission rate recommendation, 7-day performance reports and higher ranking in merchant search.
Premium$900
per month on a yearly contract ($1,100 by ACH)
Adds a dedicated growth manager, analytics help, twice-yearly competitor analysis and a program audit.
VIP$1,620
per month on a yearly contract ($1,900 by ACH)
Adds a newsletter placement, monthly check-ins, a featured guide listing and a backlink from Skimlinks.com.
Ways to pay less
impact.com
No public discounts listed.
Skimlinks
- Annual discount
Up to 17% off Preferred with annual billing
The Preferred tier is $200 a month billed monthly or $166 a month when paid annually, a saving of up to 17%.
Common questions
Which is cheaper, impact.com or Skimlinks?
As of Nov 13, 2026, impact.com is cheaper to start with: $30 a month, against $166 a month for Skimlinks. impact.com starts at $30 per month, plus 2.5% of revenue (Starter), and Skimlinks starts at $166 per month, billed annually ($200 billed monthly).
Which has a free plan, impact.com or Skimlinks?
As of Nov 13, 2026, only Skimlinks has a free plan. impact.com does not, though it 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.