Semrush pays affiliates a flat amount for each new customer they refer, and a smaller one for each free trial. The amounts depend on which product the customer buys and how many sales you made that quarter. This guide lays out every number on Semrush’s official program page, the rules that can cost you a payout, and the steps to apply.
How the Semrush Affiliate Program Works in 2026
The Semrush affiliate program pays $10 for each free trial and between $50 and $450 for each sale, with a 120-day cookie and last-click attribution, according to Semrush’s Affiliate Program page. It runs on Impact, a partnership platform that handles your links, your statistics and your payouts.
A note on where we stand: Indie Stack Lab isn’t a member of the Semrush affiliate program as of October 24, 2026, and no link in this guide earns us a commission. We haven’t applied, so we can’t describe the application form, the Impact dashboard or a payout from the inside. Everything below comes from Semrush’s own pages, which we read on October 24, 2026, in a US English browser that wasn’t logged in.
Why read a guide from someone who isn’t in the program? Because most guides on this topic are written by affiliates, and their figures often don’t match each other or the current page. If you’re new to the product itself, start with our plain-English guide to what Semrush is and who it’s for.
The old BeRush name still circulates in older posts. Today, berush.com simply redirects to the Semrush affiliate page, so there’s one program and one place to apply.
Key Takeaways
Semrush affiliates get a 120-day cookie window and last-click attribution, per Semrush’s Affiliate Program page. Sales pay a flat amount that rises with your quarterly sales tier, trials pay a smaller fixed amount, and approval goes to established sites and channels with real organic traffic.
Semrush Affiliate Commissions per Sale and per Trial
At the entry tier, a Semrush One sale pays $300, an SEO Toolkit sale pays $200, and most other toolkit sales pay $50 to $200, plus $10 for each free trial, according to the commission table on the Affiliate Program page. The page says these amounts apply “for any subscription level.”
Here’s the full table, as shown on October 24, 2026:
| Product | Per free trial | Per sale (Basic tier) |
|---|---|---|
| Semrush One | $10 | $300 |
| SEO Toolkit | $10 | $200 |
| Traffic & Market Toolkit | $10 | $200 |
| Content Toolkit | $10 | $100 |
| Advertising Toolkit | $10 | $100 |
| AI Visibility Toolkit | No trial commission | $100 |
| Social Toolkit | $10 | $50 |
| Local Toolkit | $10 | $50 |
Source: Semrush Affiliate Program, “What can you promote?” table.
What counts as Semrush One? It’s the name for the Starter, Pro+ and Advanced plans that bundle SEO with AI visibility tracking. The SEO Toolkit is the cheaper SEO plan on its own. Our breakdown of Semrush plans and prices explains which plan sits where.
The AI Visibility Toolkit row has no trial payment, which matches Semrush’s Subscriptions and Toolkits guide: the standalone AI Visibility Toolkit isn’t on its list of products with a free trial. The page also says commissions are “available for selected tools & apps,” and its tier table names one, AdCreative AI.
One detail is easy to miss. The banner at the top of the page says you “earn from $100 to $300 for every sale,” but the table goes lower and higher than that: $50 for Local and Social, and up to $450 for Semrush One at the top tier. Trust the table.
How the sale commission compares with the plan price
The flat amount can be larger than what the customer pays in month one. An SEO Toolkit sale pays $200 at the entry tier, while the SEO plan costs $139.95 a month on Semrush’s public pricing page. That’s our own comparison of the two pages, not something Semrush states.
The trial payment matters too, because trials are where Semrush steers new users. When we opened our free account on October 21, 2026, the last sign-up screen offered “Pro+ $299/mo … 7 days free, then $299/mo,” with “Get free trial” as the main button and “Skip trial” as the smaller one. Each referred visitor who takes that main button can earn the affiliate $10. For how those trials run and convert, see our guide to Semrush trial lengths and charges.
Loyalty Tiers: How Commissions Grow With Quarterly Sales
Semrush sorts affiliates into four tiers by sales per quarter, Basic at 0 to 4, Silver at 5 to 19, Gold at 20 to 49 and Platinum at 50 or more, and each tier raises the per-sale commission, per the loyalty table on the Affiliate Program page. The AI Visibility Toolkit stays at $100 in every tier.
| Per sale | Basic | Silver | Gold | Platinum |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sales per quarter | 0-4 | 5-19 | 20-49 | 50+ |
| Semrush One | $300 | $350 | $400 | $450 |
| SEO Toolkit | $200 | $250 | $300 | $350 |
| Traffic & Market Toolkit | $200 | $250 | $300 | $350 |
| Content, Advertising, AdCreative AI | $100 | $110 | $130 | $150 |
| Local, Social | $50 | $60 | $70 | $80 |
| Quarterly content bonus | $200 | $500 | $1000 | $1500 |
| Trial length on your links | 7 days | 14 days | 14 days, plus a co-branded landing page | 14 days, plus a co-branded landing page |
| Account manager | After 1st sale | Yes | Yes | Yes |
Source: Semrush Affiliate Program, “Scale your earnings with loyalty rewards” table.
So what does a tier change in practice? Mostly the per-sale amount and the trial your readers get. At Silver and above, visitors from your links get a 14-day trial instead of the standard 7 days. That may explain why some sites advertise a 14-day Semrush trial while Semrush’s own help pages say 7. The page also lists a bonus for your first product-related content piece and “special incentives for new affiliates,” without amounts.
Two Official Pages, Two Commission Lists
Semrush’s own site shows two different commission lists: the Affiliate Program page uses the per-product, per-tier tables, while the affiliate block on its Partners page still says “$200 for every new sale, $10 for every new trial, $0.01 for every new sign-up.”
Which one is current? The Affiliate Program page is the one Semrush’s footer links to as “Affiliate Program,” and berush.com redirects to it. The Partners page looks like an older summary: it doesn’t mention tiers, and the program page doesn’t mention a payment for free sign-ups. If the $0.01 sign-up payment matters to you, ask the affiliate team before you count on it.
Third-party reviews add more versions. When we searched for current Semrush affiliate figures on October 24, 2026, the results quoted different per-sale amounts and different cookie lengths from one site to the next. The binding numbers are the ones in the Affiliate Terms you accept when you apply, and Semrush says those sit on the sign-up page.
Cookie Length, Attribution and Missing Referrals
A referral counts if the visitor clicks your link and signs up within 120 days, and Semrush uses last-click attribution, so the last affiliate link clicked gets the credit, per the program’s FAQ on the Affiliate Program page. You’re credited with “the referral’s first purchase, even if they don’t buy immediately.”
Attribution happens when the person registers a Semrush account, not when they pay. That has three consequences, all listed in Semrush’s FAQ:
- Existing users don’t count. If your reader already had a Semrush account, the referral isn’t attributed to you.
- Cookie choices matter. A visitor who declines cookies on Semrush’s banner may not be tracked to your link.
- The visitor has to use your link when signing up. A reader who types semrush.com into the address bar later isn’t yours.
What if a referral seems to be missing? Semrush says there’s a delay of 2 hours or more before an action appears in your dashboard. If it still doesn’t show up, the affiliate team investigates through affiliates@semrush.com.
Semrush Affiliate Requirements: Who Gets Approved
Semrush asks content creators for a website with at least 1,000 unique visitors a month, or a social page or channel with a significant organic following, “typically at least 1,000,” according to the requirements in the Affiliate Program FAQ. The team reviews each application by hand.
Is traffic enough on its own? No. Semrush says it looks at “the quality of websites and social media profiles, traffic sources, keyword rankings, and content frequency,” and that it mainly accepts online marketing sites while considering related niches. Agencies, consultants, speakers and educators are welcome if they include a website, portfolio and LinkedIn profile.
The FAQ lists the applications Semrush generally declines:
- creators without much relevant, high-quality content and organic traffic
- websites that are under construction or unfinished
- coupon, cashback, deal or generator websites
- promotion through forums, browser extensions, mobile apps or offline methods
- applications built only on email or paid advertising
- social profiles without professional or business content
- applications with no links at all, or contact details that can’t be verified
Two practical tips come from the same answer. Sign up with an email address on your own website’s domain, and verify your properties on Impact, because unverified contact details are a common reason for a decline. If your site is new, Semrush suggests applying later, “when your channels are fully functional.”
How to Join the Semrush Affiliate Program, Step by Step
You join by filling in the application form linked from the Affiliate Program page; if you don’t have an Impact account yet, one is created for you, and Semrush says applications are reviewed “within 4 days.” Here’s the full path, in Semrush’s order:
- Check the requirements in the section above against your own site or channel.
- Click “Apply now” or “Become a partner” on the affiliate page. Both lead to Semrush’s application on Impact.
- Read the Affiliate Terms and Conditions on that sign-up page before you submit. Semrush says that’s where they’re published.
- Fill in every field, including links to the website, blog or social accounts you’ll promote on.
- Wait for the email. One FAQ answer says a review “normally” takes “about two working days,” another says “within 4 days,” and both allow for longer checks.
- Once approved, log in to Impact, open “Content,” then “Assets,” and copy your tracking link. Semrush shows a sample format: https://semrush.sjv.io/c/111111/222222/13053.
Can you copy the link from your browser’s address bar instead? Semrush says no: use the tracking link exactly as Impact provides it, with every parameter, and don’t copy it from the URL section.
Want to leave later? Semrush handles ending the partnership through affiliates@semrush.com, while deleting the Impact account itself goes through Impact’s support team.
When and How Semrush Affiliates Get Paid
Semrush pays affiliate commissions through Impact, by Electronic Funds Transfer or PayPal; transactions lock 27 days after the end of the month, then get paid 21 days after the end of the month in which they locked, per the payment answer in the Affiliate Program FAQ.
How long is that in real dates? Here’s our reading of the rule, using one example. A sale made in October 2026 would lock on November 27, 2026. The month it locked in is November, so payment would follow about 21 days after November ends, around December 21, 2026. Plan for roughly two months between a sale and the money, and confirm the exact schedule in Impact once you’re approved.
Semrush also links to an Impact help article on payments, but that article sits behind an Impact login, so we couldn’t read it. We don’t know whether a minimum payout or a transfer fee applies, so check your Impact account settings before your first payout.
Rules That Can Cost You Your Commissions
Semrush bans self-referrals, commission sharing, cookie stuffing and misleading claims, and it requires pre-approval for any paid search campaign, according to the restrictions in the Affiliate Program FAQ. The Creator Accelerator terms add that Semrush can “freeze, void, or reverse any and all commissions and bonuses” for a suspected breach of the affiliate terms.
These are the main restrictions, in Semrush’s words where it matters:
- No self-referrals. You can’t use your own link to buy or create accounts “for yourself, your relatives, or employees.”
- No fraud, including click fraud, cookie stuffing or “unauthorized promotional methods.”
- No misleading content. That includes “misrepresenting a free trial as a coupon or discount” and “advertising invalid trials or offers.”
- No unapproved PPC. Every paid search campaign needs pre-approval, and you can’t bid on Semrush’s brand name or misspellings such as Semrash or Sem rush. Direct linking and ad hijacking are banned outright.
- No restricted sites or spam: no adult, gambling or hate sites, and no emails to lists that didn’t agree to hear from you.
- No Semrush trademarks in domain names, social account names or community names.
What about discount codes? Semrush says it doesn’t offer exclusive discounts for affiliates, and references to “non-existing discounts” are prohibited. So when a site advertises a secret Semrush coupon, treat it with suspicion. Semrush’s trademark and brand policy adds a related rule: you can’t use Semrush’s marks in a way that “falsely implies an endorsement or sponsorship, partnership by, or an affiliation with, Semrush.”
Disclosing Semrush Affiliate Links: What Semrush and the FTC Expect
Semrush requires affiliates to disclose the partnership and follow Federal Trade Commission guidelines, stating that “you may earn a commission or receive compensation for referrals or sales made through your affiliate links,” per its Affiliate Program FAQ.
What does a good disclosure look like? The FTC’s Endorsement Guides Q&A suggests wording like “I get commissions for purchases made through links in this post,” placed clearly and close to the recommendation. The same Q&A says readers may not understand the words “affiliate link” on their own, while “paid link” right next to the link should be adequate.
For a site like ours, the honest version is simple. Today the disclosure reads: no Semrush link on Indie Stack Lab pays us anything. If that changes, the article will say so at the top, before the first recommendation.
The Creator Accelerator Bonus Through December 31, 2026
Semrush’s Creator Accelerator pays affiliates a one-time $150 for two qualifying pieces of new content, with leaderboard rewards capped at $1,500 per person, between September 20 and December 31, 2026, according to the Creator Accelerator terms linked from the affiliate page.
You have to be an approved affiliate first. Each piece must cover a topic from the “Content Ideas” section of Semrush’s Affiliate Hub and carry your tracking link. The terms set a minimum for each format:
| Format | Minimum to qualify |
|---|---|
| Website article | Published on a site with at least 500 monthly visits |
| Long-form YouTube video | At least 100 public views |
| Short-form video (Reels, TikTok, Shorts) | At least 300 public views |
| LinkedIn post | From a profile with at least 500 connections, with at least 100 engagements |
| Facebook post | In a group with at least 1,000 members, with at least 100 engagements |
Source: Semrush Creator Accelerator Terms and Conditions, section 1.1.
There are strings attached. Content must pass a plagiarism check with a similarity score of no more than 15%, carry an FTC disclosure and stay public for at least 90 days. Submitting it also grants Semrush a royalty-free license to reuse your content, including in paid advertising. Is $150 worth that license? For a post you’d write anyway, probably; for a video you’d rather keep exclusive, read section 1.4 first.
Other Ways to Partner With Semrush
The affiliate program is one of five partner tracks on Semrush’s Partners page, alongside regional resellers, technical partners, educational partners and Agency Partners. Each one fits a different kind of business.
- Agency Partners: certified agencies get a listing on Semrush’s Agency Partners platform to attract client leads. It’s sold as a paid listing, not a commission deal; our Semrush pricing guide lists its Lead Generation add-on price.
- Ambassador Program: a community for marketers with 5+ years of experience who are active paid Semrush customers. Semrush expects advocacy “roughly 1–2 times per quarter” and offers events, product access, prizes and “access to paid opportunities,” per its Ambassador Program page.
- Technical partners: platforms that integrate Semrush data through OAuth or the API.
- Educational partners: teachers who give students access to Semrush.
- Regional resellers: companies that sell Semrush in a specific local market.
Which one fits you? If you publish content and want per-sale payments, it’s the affiliate program. If you run client work, the Agency Partners listing and our comparison of white-label reporting across SEO suites are the better starting points.
Is the Semrush Affiliate Program Worth Joining?
For an established marketing site with at least 1,000 monthly visitors, it can be: a main-plan sale pays $200 to $450 and each trial pays $10, per Semrush’s Affiliate Program page. The rest of this section is our judgment, not a test result.
Here’s how we’d weigh it:
- The upside: a long 120-day cookie, trial payments that reward sending readers to try the tool, and tiers that raise every sale amount as you grow.
- The limits: the page describes a payment for the referral’s first purchase, not an ongoing share of the subscription, so one customer pays you once. Existing Semrush users earn you nothing.
- The fit: Semrush mainly accepts online marketing sites. A cooking blog or a coupon site will likely be declined.
- The trust cost: a flat $200 or more per sale is a strong pull toward the paid plans. A review that admits the price, the trial-to-paid conversion and the cheaper options is the one readers will believe.
Would we change a review to earn that payout? No. That last point is why we’d write about the tool honestly whether or not a link pays. Readers should know the free account exists, and our review of what a free Semrush account includes shows what it did on a small marketing website our own team runs. For readers on a budget, point them to our list of Semrush alternatives that cost less.
If your audience is newsletter readers rather than SEO buyers, affiliate links are only one income stream; our guide to ways newsletters make money covers the rest.
Further Reading
- Semrush pricing: every plan, the free account and the add-ons
- Semrush free trial: length, limits and how to avoid charges
- What Semrush is and who it’s for
- What a free Semrush account includes, tested on a real site
References
- Semrush: Affiliate Program
- Semrush: Partner with Semrush
- Semrush: Creator Accelerator Terms and Conditions (PDF)
- Semrush: Ambassador Program
- Semrush: Trademarks and Brand Usage Policy
- Semrush: SEO + AI Search Plans and Pricing
- Semrush Knowledge Base: Subscriptions and Toolkits
- Federal Trade Commission: FTC’s Endorsement Guides: What People Are Asking