UpPromote vs. Refersion: Best Shopify Affiliate & Influencer Marketing App (2026)
You’re weighing UpPromote against Refersion because the pricing pages don’t line up, and you want to know which bill grows faster once your affiliates start selling. Both apps cover the basics of running a program, so on day one either one will track your referrals and pay your affiliates. The difference is in the pricing
Marcus Chen
Director of Attribution Engineering
- First core insight or takeaway for executive readers.
- Second actionable metric or strategic recommendation.
You’re weighing UpPromote against Refersion because the pricing pages don’t line up, and you want to know which bill grows faster once your affiliates start selling
Both apps cover the basics of running a program, so on day one either one will track your referrals and pay your affiliates. The difference is in the pricing model and how each app fits the way you sell.
Refersion is the more established name for brands running across several platforms, with first-party tracking and its own publisher network, and it earns that reputation. UpPromote is a data-backed affiliate & influencer platform built for Shopify that ties tracking to your real store data and helps you recruit creators, at a lower entry price.
The core difference: UpPromote is a data-backed, Shopify-native platform you can start free; Refersion is an established, multi-platform affiliate platform with first-party tracking and its own network.
Quick answer: Choose UpPromote if you sell on Shopify and want affiliate, influencer, and referral marketing in one app, creator discovery you can add on, and a free way to start. Choose Refersion if you want an established, multi-platform affiliate platform with first-party tracking and a built-in network, and its higher entry price fits your budget.
UpPromote vs. Refersion at a glance
| UpPromote | Refersion | |
| Model | Data-backed affiliate & influencer platform, Shopify-native | Affiliate-focused platform, multi-platform |
| Best for | Shopify brands that want more than affiliate tracking | Multi-platform sellers, or an established affiliate program with a network |
| Platforms | Shopify only (Built for Shopify) | Shopify, WooCommerce, BigCommerce, and more |
| Free plan | Yes, run a real program up to $3,000 referral sales/mo | Free Marketplace listing only, no free program plan |
| Paid pricing | Growth $29.99 / Professional $89.99 / Enterprise $199.99 per month, plus a declining 2% / 1.5% / 1% fee | Launch $39/mo + 3% / Growth $199/mo + 2% / Scale custom (brands over $1M GMV) |
| Tracking | 4 ways: affiliate link, coupon, connected customer, connected product, tied to Shopify orders | First-party, cookieless, no redirects |
| Creator discovery | Marketplace + Creator Discovery — search millions of creators on IG, TikTok, YouTube with audience data | Marketplace network + personalized affiliate discovery |
| Influencer + referral | Both, in the same app | Affiliate-focused |
| Payouts | PayPal, Wise (global, multi-currency), credits | PayPal, ACH, bank transfer, gift cards (multi-currency) |
| Support | 24/7 live chat + email, on every plan | Email; live chat on Growth and up |
| Shopify rating | 4.9★ / 3,827 reviews (Built for Shopify) | 4.8★ / 496 reviews |
Marcus Chen
Director of Attribution Engineering
Marcus leads core tracking and anti-fraud architecture at KickAffiliate.