How a cookie window works
When a user clicks your affiliate link, the network drops a tracking cookie (or stores a click ID server-side) that ties the visit to you. The cookie window is the expiration clock on that record:
- User clicks your link → cookie set with your affiliate ID
- User browses around, leaves, maybe comes back directly two weeks later
- If the window is 30 days and they buy on day 14 → you get the commission
- If the window is 24 hours and they buy on day 2 → no commission
The window is set by the advertiser or network. You can't negotiate it for most public programs, but high-value affiliates sometimes get extended windows as part of private deals.
Common cookie windows by program
| Program | Window | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Amazon Associates | 24 hours | Extends if item added to cart |
| eBay Partner Network | 24 hours | |
| Walmart Affiliates | 3 days | |
| ShareASale (typical) | 30–60 days | Varies by merchant |
| Impact (typical) | 30 days | Varies by merchant |
| CJ (typical) | 30 days | Varies by merchant |
| Awin (typical) | 30 days | Varies by merchant |
| ClickBank | 60 days | Initial + order bump |
| Kinsta | 60 days + lifetime RevShare | 10% recurring on referrals |
| ConvertKit | 90 days + lifetime RevShare | 30% recurring |
| SEMrush / Ahrefs | 120+ days |
Ranges vary by merchant inside the big networks (ShareASale, Impact, CJ, Awin), so always check the specific program's terms before promoting.
Why cookie window matters
- Long-consideration products (SaaS, courses, furniture, travel) benefit massively from long windows. A 24-hour cookie on a $2,000 product is a bad deal.
- Comparison content earns more with long windows because readers often bookmark and return days later.
- Impulse-buy products (low-ticket Amazon, fashion) don't need long windows — people buy in the session or not at all.
Cookie stuffing and last-click attribution
Most affiliate networks use last-click attribution: whoever's cookie is most recent wins the commission. If a user clicks three affiliates' links before buying, only the last one gets paid. Some premium networks offer first-click or multi-touch models, but last-click is the default.
This creates pressure around the purchase window. Coupon sites, cashback extensions, and browser extensions exist partly to intercept traffic at checkout and overwrite the original affiliate's cookie. It's a core reason editorial affiliates lose commissions they "earned."
Cookie window vs referral period vs earning period
- Cookie window: the click-to-purchase clock. The commission is earned here.
- Referral period: some programs pay on every sale from a referred customer for a fixed window (e.g. 60 days from signup). Common in SaaS.
- Earning period: how long a recurring RevShare keeps paying. Can be first month, 12 months, or lifetime.
These get conflated constantly in program pages. When you see "30-day cookie," confirm whether that's click-to-purchase only, or whether the 30 days also defines the recurring earning window.
How 2026 privacy changes affect cookies
Safari ITP caps first-party cookies at 7 days regardless of what the network says. iOS privacy restrictions further shorten effective windows on mobile. Programs running on S2S tracking sidestep most of this because the click ID lives on the advertiser's server, not in the browser cookie. The stated cookie window is increasingly a floor, not a ceiling — real attribution depends on how the program tracks.