True passive income isn't about working once and getting paid once. It's about working once and getting paid forever. Here is why you need to switch to recurring affiliate models.
You refer a customer to a tool like Bluehost. They pay you $65 once. If that customer stays for 5 years, you still only get $65. You constantly need to find new customers to maintain your income.
You refer a customer to an API like HubSpot. They pay you 30% every single month. If that customer stays for 5 years, you get paid 60 times. Your income compounds over time.
We selected these because they are developer-focused, highly reliable, and offer "Lifetime" or long-term recurring commissions.
Rewardful is the affiliate system for Stripe. It allows developers to build affiliate programs into their SaaS with just a few lines of code. It's incredibly sticky because once a SaaS installs it, they rarely leave.
HubSpot isn't just a CRM; it's a massive platform with a robust API. Their affiliate program allows you to earn 30% recurring revenue for up to 1 year. Given that enterprise plans cost $3,000/mo, this is huge.
Kinsta provides a premium API for managing WordPress sites. Their commission model is arguably the best in the industry: a massive upfront bonus plus a lifetime recurring commission.
APILayer is a marketplace of essential developer utility APIs like Ipstack (Geolocation), Fixer (Currency), and Numverify. Referring a developer here means you earn on ANY API subscription they buy.
Web scraping is a massive industry. ScrapingBee provides an API that handles headless browsers and proxy rotation. Developers burn through credits quickly, meaning high monthly bills and high commissions for you.
Now known as Kit, their API is widely used by creators to build custom newsletter flows. They famously pay 30% recurring commissions for the lifetime of the account.
A powerhouse in marketing automation. Their API is complex and powerful, used by serious businesses. As your referred clients grow their lists, their bill increases, and so does your payout.