Affiliate Programs That Pay Per Download

Top Affiliate Programs That Pay Per Download

The affiliate world is predominantly focused on products like subscriptions, holidays, electronics, financial deals, and more. However, in a world where so much is done on smartphones and tablets, affiliates can also focus on the fast and valuable world of downloads.

From apps, music, movies, and games to business content, including white papers and training sessions, there is a booming market of infinitely distributable content. From entertainment to productivity, it is easy for affiliates to build content around downloads and promote them to the right audience.

The pay per download (PPD) affiliate market consists of two basic types, services that let you upload content, say your own music or video clips, and then you get paid when they get viewed or downloaded. Others include direct downloads of apps that deliver services, and games or open up a market to other content.

Either way, mobile downloads are big business with 255 billion app downloads in 2022. And affiliates can take advantage in a number of ways, directly promoting your own or others’ content, creating more varied opportunities for content, and linking to affiliate offers.

What Are Affiliate Programs That Pay Per Download? (PPD)

As affiliate programs and networks focus on retail, nutraceuticals, travel, and fashion, there are many that focus purely on the digital market. Pay per download programs provide apps, browser extensions, media content, or reading material for a broad audience. Affiliates earn a commission for every referral that downloads the app, etc.

PPD Affiliate networks provide affiliates with ads, marketing material (banners, videos, etc.), and landing pages that affiliates can show as offers to their audience. The app or content creators payout per download by unique user. Some networks focus on entertainment content, others on the business sector, while some encourage others to leverage their own content for sale.

A split in approaches for PPD is that some providers gate their content behind surveys or portals to get more information about customers, while others let users freely download the content once they have clicked on the affiliate offer, and likely viewed other advertising on the download site.

While the return per download might not be huge, compared to holidays or credit card affiliate sales, PPD is all about volume. While those few cents per download might seem minimal, when you have thousands of downloads per month, it can become substantial. Typical examples of PPD affiliate programs might include:

• Personally created videos and music
• Mobile games for iOS and Android devices
• Access to movie streaming services or bespoke content
• Music, ringtones, and entertainment videos
• Desktop and home page art or videos
• Money-earning extensions or apps
• Antivirus, VPN, and security solutions
• Business content including white papers, how-to guides, and industry news

Marketing Pay-Per-Download Affiliate Offers (PPD)

Since digital content is massively scalable, the aim of an affiliate is to highlight the value of the content, be it the fun factor, the potential value or benefits to a customer, or the utility of a download. Focus on these benefits to attract and build an audience that will be happy to download the latest content.

With a typical affiliate income of around $20-40 per 1,000 downloads from PPD services, the key to making money in this niche is to attract a large and engaged audience that keeps on growing to develop economies of scale. Once you build that audience, revenue can stream in consistently, and perform just as well as more traditional affiliate offers.

For entertainment content, you could focus on content covering showbiz news and stories as a basis for your affiliate offers. Or, for apps, ringtones, and background images, you might focus on the latest smart devices, smartphones, and other tech gadgets. As people who obsess over these are more likely to be the ones customizing and looking for the latest content or apps.

For business PPD content, such as PDFs and training guides, you will need related subject content, offering news or expert advice around a similar area, be it how to grow a business, keep data secure, or learn how to code, manage teams, or build your own affiliate marketing business.

People have been selling this type of content in eBooks for decades, and the pay-per-download approach places them in a format that more people will be happy to download. That makes PPD ideal for companies or individuals with a long history of available content they can use from any hobby, entertainment, or business area. Whatever you have, there are many ways to get your PPD content or apps in front of a keen audience, using the following affiliate services or programs.

Top 10 Pay Per Download Affiliate Programs

Having established the basics, here are some of the best-performing pay-per-download affiliate programs and networks that you can use as part of your affiliate marketing.

1.    Honey – Best Coupon Extension Affiliate Program

Acquired by PayPal for $4 billion in 2019, Honey is a free Google Chrome extension that shows discount coupons for the things that people are searching for online automatically. PayPal users saved nearly $200 million in 2022 through PayPal Honey-enabled cash back and discounts.

Honey works with a large range of affiliate networks and programs to help spread the browser extension as far and wide as possible. Affiliates can work with an existing partner or find the best affiliate network to engage with. Typical offers pay up to $1 commission and $1 per install and registration on mobile.

As an affiliate for Honey, you can highlight the great deals available for 30,000+ sites with your audience and the fact that users can save loads of money. There are many content opportunities too, including why Honey is free, and what the privacy and security process is like. The fact is all shoppers want to save money, and the fact that Honey is a PayPal company is another huge positive.

2.    FileSpace – Best Storage Affiliate Program

With so much digital stuff, people are always looking for somewhere to keep it or have trouble moving large files around. FileSpace has been running for 12 years as a cloud storage service providing a solution to that problem, with its own affiliate program to encourage uptake.

FileSpace affiliates can earn up to $38 per 1,000 downloads, with further perks. The FileSpace affiliate program works best if you can get your audience to sign up for the Premium program, which pays up to 60% commission on sales. There’s also a 2-iter affiliate referral program that pays you 5% of the revenue generated from affiliates that you referred.

3.    AdWork Media – Best Content Locking Network

AdWork is a little different from the traditional affiliate marketing flow but presents incredible earnings opportunities. Here is how it works: You find a digital product that you can redistribute legally or create your own content. You then upload it to Content Lockers on AdWork Media.

Then, you promote that downloadable content like any other affiliate offers. When a visitor clicks your link, they are directed to the Content Locker, but before they can download, AdWork Media presents them with a brief task from a sponsor such as an email submit or short survey in order to unlock the content.

AdWork Media has a super extensive website with loads of information and lots of marketing tools to help you become a successful PPD affiliate.

4.    Algo-Affiliates – Best Performance Marketing Affiliate Network

As a performance marketing affiliate network, at Algo-Affiliates, we’re focused on providing our affiliate partners with all the tools and assistance to succeed. Our programs provide many app install offers with high-ticket value payouts, with up to $11.25 per sign-up for free-to-play games and more content.

The Affiliate Network currently includes downloadable titles like Raid Shadow Legends a fantasy game for PC and mobile. These have strong visuals and marketing tie-ups with the likes of Rhonda Rousey and others, that can be used as the basis for some great content.

Other downloads and apps on our roster that can be used as part of a PPD affiliate effort include eBooks, sports content streaming apps, and many more with high-value payouts, all backed by our smart dashboard and performance marketing tools, including Smartlinks that dynamically adapt adverts for your audience so that they see the best offer for them.

5.    MacKeeper – Best Utility Download Affiliate Network

Apple Mac owners are rightly proud of their secure MacBooks and other devices. But the OS can’t do it all and MacKeeper is a well-rated utility that protects against adware, and ID fraud while keeping the system secure and running well.

MacKeepers’ affiliate program has rewarded affiliates with over $20,000,000 in commissions and works well with content creators and social types who focus on Apple products. Rather than direct PPD, MacKeeper offers a revenue share model or CPS that can see you earn over $1,000 a year on just one sale per day. With a cookie length of 180 days and an average cart value of $75, MacKeeper can be a great source of income.

6.    Mobidea – Best Mobile App Affiliate Network

Mobidea is a mobile-focused affiliate network, offering apps, content, and digital products firmly aimed at the 60% of people who predominantly use their iOS or Android device. Among its affiliate offers are games, music, videos, movies, coupon offers, and other services, with payouts from around $10 to $20.
The Mobidea affiliate program offers monetized apps and content, with weekly pay for affiliates. Mobidea also offers a VIP affiliate program if you make over $10,000, with expert help to drive sales higher, while top-performing affiliates can take advantage of invite-only offers for higher-value credit cards and video-on-demand private affiliate networks to deliver even stronger income.

Be aware that some offers are only valid for specific mobile carriers, or devices like the iPhone 13 or 14. But with plenty of affiliate offers, Mobidea is a popular service with over 100,000 affiliates and smart tracking tools to monitor performance. Affiliates can also take advantage of the Mobidea Academy which provides advice, tips, and updated guides about how to start and improve affiliate marketing efforts.

7.    Indishare – Best Video Content Download Affiliate Program

Indishare has been operating since 2014, providing a way for indie creators to share their video, music, and image-based works for payment. Once signed up, affiliates can upload files to the service that provides 300GB of storage.

Affiliates can use the provided link, sharing it with their audience in content or on social media, and whenever someone downloads a file, they get paid, typically around $12 per 1,000 downloads, with an instant PayPal Payout of minimum $10  and other services.

8.    fuboTV – Best Sports Download Affiliate Program

Sports broadcasting around the world is a nightmare due to rights issues, broadcast delays, and other problems for people sitting in front of the big screen connected to a cable network. Mobile apps like fuboTV make it easier for people to watch the sports they like, including NFL games, MLB, NBA, and NASCAR on any screen.

Fubo’s affiliate program, managed by Impact Radius, pays a typical $30 commission for every qualified referral and download, for customers across the US, Canada, and Spain, although the apps can be advertised globally. For a non-sports audience, you can highlight how it offers the likes of ABC, CBS, FOX, Disney Channel, Discovery, and others, depending on the region.

9.    MobitEasy – Best Entertainment Download Affiliate Program

MobitEasy is focused on attracting mobile traffic from affiliates to drive sales of all sorts of entertainment from mobile games to contests, and chat apps to TV shows. Many are for emerging markets or eastern Europe, so check which offers are suited to your audience.

The MobitEasy affiliate program provides plenty of exciting-looking offers, and high commissions, up to $64 PPD depending on the product. Their service for affiliates comes with regular payments, polished marketing material, analytics tools, and professional support.

Your mobile audience will only see suitable adverts for them based on their device and geography, but there should always be something to grab attention based on the wide range of opportunities within their portfolio.

10.Toro Advertising – Best App Store Affiliate Program

Toro Advertising’s offer wall covers many areas including mobile content, apps, books, games, music, and multimedia, all with free and unlimited downloads. In a world of crowded app stores and endless new apps making discoverability hard, offer walls provide one way that apps can be easier to find, and affiliates can take advantage of.

The Toro affiliate network provides access to mobile and other programs that focus on downloadable content. As mobile continues to be the dominant internet access device, expect more focused offers, especially around Android, as it has fewer restrictions on app stores.

Summary

Whether you have content you want to upload, or popular apps you want people to download, there are plenty of ways to leverage pay-per-download as an affiliate. And as mobile is a fast-moving landscape, there will always be new and exciting opportunities including virtual reality content, AI-generated media, and simple fun social apps or games that can command a huge audience.

Pay-Per-Download FAQs

• 1.    What can I upload to PPD storage sites?

Most have limits and guidelines on what users can and cannot post, some will accept videos, others won’t, or have limits on file sizes. Check the rules for any service you use before uploading and highlight to your audience clearly what it is they will download to avoid disappointment.

• 2.    How do I appeal to the mobile audience?

Content and affiliate offers need to be designed for mobile devices, with plain text, bold visuals, and a clear call to action. It is imperative to use responsive site design so that your content will look good on any screen size.

You can also use social media to promote your affiliate offers as people spend more time on social media apps than other services. Carefully study good examples of posts, links, and ads that will appeal to your audience and use them as the basis for picking your offers to promote. 

• 3.    Do I need to be an app developer to use PPD affiliates?

While some people do create their own apps as wrappers for the content or services, you don’t need to create your app or content for download. Many app developers are looking to work with affiliates to help market their products outside of the very-crowded mobile app stores. 

• 4.    Are PPD upload/download sites illegal?

If you browse the web about some PPD sites, you can see clear concerns about the use and sale of copyright material. However, the same can be said for most storage and sharing sites. As long as you only upload your content that does not contain any copyrighted material (images, background music, etc.) then you should be clear to operate on these networks.

• 5.    Can I mix CPA and PPD offers, or will that confuse the audience?

Affiliates have mixed and matched offer types successfully before, as long as there is some clarity on what the compatible format, device, or system is. Most music and media will work on any device, But, for example, there is not much point in marketing CPA PC games to a mobile audience. Or there can be confusion between some games like “World of Tanks” on PC and “World of Tanks Blitz” on mobile. The only way to ever make an educated decision is to test and measure results. You may just find the right balance of offers that works for you and delivers robust earnings.