Affiliate marketing stats for 2025
December 25, 2024
Digital marketing is constantly changing, but affiliate marketing is still a scalable growth strategy. In this article, we’ll introduce you to the latest trends and stats, so you can launch a modern and successful program in 2025.
Key Takeaways
- 1Affiliate marketing is expected to grow by 18.6% per year until 2032.
- 2Globally, the affiliate market is projected to grow from $27.8 billion in 2024 to $48 billion by 2027.
- 3Over 80% of brands use affiliate marketing to drive leads and sales.
- 4Mobile traffic accounts for around 62% of affiliate-driven visits.
- 5On average, businesses earn $6.50 for every $1 spent on affiliate marketing.
- 6Key growth areas: e-commerce, finance, health, and SaaS products.
Is affiliate marketing in high demand?
Affiliate marketing as a topic has grown steadily over the past few years, and 2025 seems to be no exception. Analysts expect the affiliate marketing industry to grow at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 18.6% between 2023 and 2032.
On Google Trends, we can see the ongoing ascending interest.
What’s the affiliate marketing market size?
The market is expected to expand at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of approximately 9% to 10% until 2027.
This growth shows how important affiliate marketing is as a revenue driver and a strategic marketing channel for businesses across industries.
How many marketers are there?
The number of marketers globally is significant and varies across categories, including digital, affiliate, content, social media and traditional marketing roles. Estimations vary, but as of recent reports:
Digital marketing professionals: Globally, there are roughly 2-3 million digital marketers. This number includes a range of specializations, including social media, SEO, PPC and email marketing.
Affiliate marketers: Around 9% of online marketers focus specifically on affiliate marketing, according to industry surveys. The global number of affiliate marketers is challenging to estimate precisely, but it's in the hundreds of thousands.
Marketing workforce in the U.S.: In the U.S. alone, around 1.8 million people work in marketing-related roles, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics.
Content marketers: As a specialization, content marketing also sees broad participation, with around 500,000 to 1 million content-focused professionals globally.
Given the growth in digital platforms and e-commerce, these numbers are only rising as more brands allocate resources toward online marketing.
How much is the affiliate marketing industry worth in 2025?
According to Statista, in 2023, affiliate marketing spending in the United States stood at 9.56 billion U.S. dollars. The source projected it would increase to 10.72 billion in 2024 and further to roughly 12 billion dollars in 2025.
Globally speaking, in 2024, affiliate marketing as an industry continued to bloom, being valued at $27.8 billion. It’s expected to reach $48 billion by 2027.
What is the affiliate marketing success rate?
The success rate of affiliate marketing varies depending on things like niche, strategy, experience and dedication.
It’s hard to tell the real "success rate" of affiliate marketing. But some estimates suggest that about 10-20% of affiliates make enough to treat it as a primary income. Around 1-5% of these top performers reach six figures.
Affiliate marketing growth statistics
Approximately 83% of marketers now use affiliate programs to increase their reach and engage with audiences more effectively.
Affiliate marketing industry statistics
Wondering how many companies have affiliate programs?
The global market size of the Affiliate Networks industry is over 100k companies. More precisely, there are 107,179 companies worldwide making up the Affiliate Networks industry.
Affiliate marketing has grown across various industries, with the most significant ones being:
E-commerce: Since online shopping has become more common, e-commerce brands are using affiliates to drive traffic and increase sales.
Finance and FinTech: Financial services use affiliate marketing to promote credit cards, loans and insurance products.
Health and Wellness: Due to a globally increasing interest in well-being, health brands use affiliate marketing to promote supplements, fitness and wellness products.
Latest affiliate marketing statistics
Here are some new marketing statistics you might be interested in:
Businesses usually earn an average return on investment (ROI) of $6.50 for every dollar invested in affiliate marketing.
More than 80% of brands use affiliate marketing to drive leads and sales.
Around 62% of affiliate-driven traffic comes from mobile devices.
The United States dominates the affiliate marketing sector with a 38% share, followed by Europe at 27%.
About 65% of retailers say that affiliate marketing contributes up to 20% of their annual revenue.
Trending affiliate marketing facts
We’ve gathered some new and interesting facts about affiliate marketing you might want to keep an eye on in the upcoming year:
AI
In 2025, AI will help us optimize affiliate campaigns through enhanced data analysis, dynamic personalization and improved targeting.
Influencer partnerships
Influencer partnerships, especially with micro and nano-influencers, are essential. Their highly engaged followers help boost conversion rates.
Mobile optimization
Optimizing for mobile is essential. Mobile-friendly sites help extend reach and engage consumers where they are.
Content diversification
High-quality content remains key to building trust and driving traffic. In 2025, diversifying content will help affiliate marketers connect more meaningfully with consumers.
Metaverse
The metaverse opens up new marketing opportunities for 2025. It offers unique ways for affiliate marketers to engage users and explore new revenue streams.
Fraud detection
The challenges of affiliate marketing include increasing ad fraud and shifting digital algorithms, which require marketers to adapt quickly and invest in fraud detection.
