ReferralCandy vs UpPromote
We give ReferralCandy a 2.2 GPA and UpPromote a 2.6, out of 4.0. UpPromote grades higher on value for money and the free plan. They get the same grade on features, ease of use and platforms.
Price, platforms and features side by side. The table says where each price was read and when.
ReferralCandy
Customer referral and affiliate programs for online stores
UpPromote
Affiliate, influencer and referral programs for Shopify stores
How we grade them
| 2.2GPAReferralCandyFair | 2.6GPAUpPromoteGood | |
|---|---|---|
| Value for money | DGraded on $5,000 a month of referred sales: Grow is $79 plus a 3.5% success fee ($175), so $254 a month, with no yearly price. Basic's 10.5% fee would make it $534. That's just inside this category's dearest tenth. | CFree stops at $3,000 of referral sales a month, so a store at $5,000 needs Growth: $24.99 a month on yearly billing plus 2% of sales ($100), $124.99 a month in all. That's on the dear side of this category, where several tools take no cut at all. |
| Free plan and trial | CNo free plan, but a 7-day free trial on any plan, and the clock starts when you switch the app on, not when you install it. The listing doesn't say whether it wants a card. | BA free plan with link and coupon tracking, analytics, fraud detection and manual payouts, and no fee on sales, up to $3,000 of referral sales a month. A new store could live on it a good while; one at $5,000 a month is past it. |
| Features | BCustomer referrals and affiliates side by side, unlimited campaigns, custom coupon codes, store credit or cash through PayPal, Venmo, bank or virtual cards, a Fraud Center that blocks self-referrals, and full API access. Every plan has every feature. | BLink and coupon tracking, commissions by product, collection or order value, lifetime and multi-level rates, customer referrals, a marketplace, payouts in store credit, PayPal or Wise, and 1099 forms. Anti-leak codes come on Professional. The whole job. |
| Ease of use | CNo rating on record. It's one click on Shopify and a plugin elsewhere, but you'll still set rewards, coupons and fraud rules before friends start referring. | CNo rating on record. It installs on Shopify and the free plan gets you going, but there are programs, commission rules and payouts to set up. |
| Platforms and integrations | BWeb, with Shopify, BigCommerce, WooCommerce and Magento, plus Klaviyo, Mailchimp, Recharge and Tremendous, and full API access on every plan. No desktop or phone app, so B is the top. | BWeb, built for Shopify, with PayPal, Wise, Klaviyo, Mailchimp, Omnisend, Recharge and Appstle. The API and MCP start on Professional. No desktop or phone app, so B is the ceiling. |
| Best for | refer-a-friend programs for online stores | Shopify affiliate programs that start free |
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: ReferralCandy and UpPromote. How we grade
Price against what you get
ReferralCandy starts at $9 a month and scores 2.7 out of 4 on features, ease of use and platforms. UpPromote starts at $24.99 a month and scores 2.7.
They score the same, and ReferralCandy starts $15.99 a month lower. Of the other affiliate and referral tools on the chart, none scores higher than ReferralCandy for less, and none scores higher than UpPromote 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
- ReferralCandy starts at $9 per month. UpPromote starts at $24.99 per month, billed annually ($29.99 billed monthly).
- UpPromote has a free plan. ReferralCandy does not, though it has a free trial.
At a glance
| ReferralCandy | UpPromote | |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing | Free trial | Free plan |
| Starts at | $9 per month | $24.99 per month, billed annually ($29.99 billed monthly) |
| Free plan | None | One affiliate program with link and coupon tracking, analytics, fraud detection and manual payouts, reviewing up to $3,000 of referral sales a month. No performance fee. |
| Free trial | 7-day free trial on any plan, starting when the app is activated | 14-day free trial on Growth, Professional and Enterprise |
| Web | ||
| Made by | Anafore Pte Ltd | UpPromote |
| Price read from | referralcandy.com | uppromote.com |
| Checked | Oct 18, 2026 | Oct 18, 2026 |
Who each one suits
ReferralCandy
- Shopify stores that want customers to refer friends for a reward
- Brands running a small affiliate or ambassador program next to referrals
- Stores that prefer month-to-month billing with no contract
UpPromote
- Shopify stores starting an affiliate or ambassador program for free
- Brands paying affiliates in store credit instead of cash
- Stores fighting coupon-code leaks from influencer codes
Worth knowing
ReferralCandy
- Each plan adds a success fee of 10.5%, 3.5%, 1.5% or 0.25% of referred new customers' first three orders, after discounts and before tax and shipping.
- Each extra store costs $20 a month plus the main store's success-fee rate.
- PayPal, Venmo and bank-transfer payouts carry the provider's own fees; Tremendous cards and store credit do not.
- Billing is month to month only; no yearly price is listed.
UpPromote
- Paid plans add a fee of 2%, 1.5% or 1% of successful referral sales to the monthly price, charged monthly.
- It is built for Shopify; pages off Shopify need the third-party tracking integration.
- PayPal auto-payouts, anti-leak discounts, 1099 forms and the API start on Professional; unlimited staff accounts need Enterprise.
- Creator Discovery is a separate add-on starting at $39 a month on any plan.
Key features
ReferralCandy
- Referrals and affiliates in one app
- Run a customer referral program and an affiliate program side by side, with unlimited campaigns and custom coupon codes; a loyalty program is offered on Shopify.
- Store platforms
- One-click install on Shopify, plugins for BigCommerce, WooCommerce and Magento, and an email-based install for custom stores, at the same price.
- Cash or store-credit rewards
- Pay advocates in store credit, or in cash through PayPal, Venmo, bank transfer or Tremendous virtual debit cards, with no transaction fee added.
- Fraud Center
- Exact self-referrals, existing customers and already-referred friends are blocked automatically; close name matches, shared IPs and bursts of referrals are flagged for review.
- Integrations and API
- Connect Klaviyo, Mailchimp, Omnisend, Recharge and Tremendous, and build on full API access on every plan.
UpPromote
- Link and coupon tracking
- Credit affiliates by link or coupon, with auto-generated coupons, custom affiliate links and anti-leak discount links on higher plans, and third-party tracking for pages not on Shopify.
- Commission rules
- Rates by order value, product or collection, lifetime and subscription commissions, new-customer rates, automatic tiers between programs and multi-level marketing.
- Customer referrals and recruiting
- Turn customers into ambassadors, list your offer in the UpPromote marketplace, and find creators with the Creator Discovery add-on from $39 a month.
- Payouts and tax forms
- Pay as store credit, through PayPal or with Wise bank transfers, schedule automatic payouts, export invoices and generate 1099-NEC forms.
- Affiliate engagement
- A customizable affiliate account in 8 languages, in-app chat, bulk emails, a media gallery for brand assets, and gifts or bonuses.
Plans
ReferralCandy
Basic$9
per month
Plus a 10.5% success fee on referred new customers' first three orders. Every feature, unlimited campaigns and full API access.
Grow$79
per month
Plus a 3.5% success fee. For brands growing referral and affiliate revenue; the vendor's example puts $12,000 of referred sales at $499 for the month.
Scale$249
per month
Plus a 1.5% success fee, for high-volume brands where margins matter.
Enterprise$799
per month
Plus a 0.25% success fee, with dedicated onboarding and an account manager.
UpPromote
Free$0
One program, one coupon per affiliate, up to $3,000 of referral sales reviewed a month, manual payouts and 24/7 live chat support.
Growth$24.99
per month, billed annually ($29.99 billed monthly)
Plus 2% of successful referral sales. Unlimited programs, 300 referral orders reviewed a month, customer referrals, marketplace listing and store credit.
Professional$74.99
per month, billed annually ($89.99 billed monthly)
Plus 1.5% of referral sales. 600 referrals a month, anti-leak discounts, PayPal auto-payouts, multi-level commissions, 1099 forms, API and MCP.
Enterprise$166.66
per month, billed annually ($199.99 billed monthly)
Plus 1% of referral sales. Unlimited referral reviews and staff accounts, multi-store sync and coupon code commissions. Shopify Plus pricing is custom.
Ways to pay less
ReferralCandy
No public discounts listed.
UpPromote
- Annual discount
Save 17% with yearly billing
Yearly billing saves 17%: Growth is $299.90 a year, Professional $899.90 and Enterprise $1,999.90, against $29.99, $89.99 and $199.99 a month.
