Best Fishing Affiliate Programs
Fishing is one of the favorite sports and pastimes of Americans and British people, but it is popular across the world, too. If you’re thinking of creating a fishing blog or you already have one, you’re probably looking for creative ways of monetizing it.
In today’s article, we’re looking at some of the best fishing affiliate programs out there. For each and every one, we’re specifying the cookie duration and the commissions you can earn, so keep on reading!
Top Fishing Affiliate Programs
Enigma Fishing
The Enigma Fishing affiliate program has to be our first choice simply because they offer a commission of 20% on all of the purchases that your referrals make through your links. That’s something that we didn’t encounter with any of the other programs we analyzed for this article.
To top everything off, the cookie length is 3 whole months, which added to the commission value, really makes this the best fishing affiliate program out there today.
Columbia Sportswear
If you have hunting or fishing affiliate sites, this program would have to be one of the first you should consider. The brand is massive and while it specializes mostly in clothing, the apparel items are good-quality, so the company has made a great name for itself.
As for the affiliate program itself, the cookie lasts for 21 days, which is not bad, and the commissions can go up to 10%. The downside is that the average order value is just under $100, so it will take you more time to make a bit of money with it. You can join the Columbia Sportswear program through CJ Affiliate.
Trouts Fly Fishing
This is a fairly well-known online fishing store that’s been around for more than 20 years now. The company sells a variety of fly fishing accessories, most of which are manufactured by truly big brands, such as Patagonia, Orvis, or Simms.
Affiliates are paid a fixed 8% commission on all products and the cookie length is 90 days. Most orders have an average value of over $100, which is not bad. The program is run through AvantLink, an affiliate network you should look into.
Boatsetter
This florida-based company specializes in boat rentals, so it is actually a better match for folks who regularly engage in deep sea or ocean fishing. While they don’t have any fishing accessory that they sell per se, there is no shortage of fishing locations they can offer boats to rent in.
Also, there are several thousands of boats people can choose from. What’s interesting about the affiliate program is that you get paid a fixed commission per lead. That means that if someone clicks on your affiliate link and then gets in touch with a company representative, you’ll earn $30.
Okuma
This company needs no introduction, and whether you are just building an interest in the fishing niche or are a fisher yourself, you have probably come across at least several products manufactured by the brand before.
Okuma sells anything from tackle and fishing bags and maintenance products to sun protection clothing and travel rods on their site. The program is managed through ShareASale, which is an advantage, and the commissions are 5% on all orders. As for the cookie length, it is a pretty good 30-day period.
Bob Ward’s
This is by far one of the best fishing companies with affiliate programs out there, and the reason we are saying this is that while the commission might be a flat 8% that you could get from other sites, the commission lasts for 120 days.
So that means that you have 4 months at your disposal to convince folks to click on your affiliate links and make a purchase, which is excellent. Another reason to join Bob Ward’s affiliate program is that it runs through AvantLink or Commission Junction, so you can use those networks and all of their perks.
Bass Pro Shops
This is one of the largest online stores for fishing tackle and accessories, and lots of fishermen and women have used it in the past. In other words, you are not going to have a hard time promoting it on your website.
We would also like to note that the variety of the products you will come across here is much more generous compared to that of online shops, since they also sell items made for camping, hunting, boating, and other outdoor sports.
The 5% commission might not really be worth writing home about, but since the brand is so well-known, it might pay off. Also, the cookie lasts for 14 days, so it is pretty decent.
Cabela’s
This is a very well-known brand that mostly specializes in products made for outdoor lovers. You are not going to find a lot of fishing-specific items here, but they do have a plethora of clothing and other such items.
The affiliate program is managed through Impact and the commissions start at 4%. The company pays its affiliates every month, so that’s one less thing to worry about.
Bubba
Even though it might not be as well-known as some of the other fishing shops listed in today’s article, Bubba is great to recommend to fishermen and women. They mostly sell clothing, gaffs, knives, knife sharpeners, fileting gloves, and other such accessories.
You can become a Bubba affiliate if you already are an AvantLink user. The commission rates range from 7% to 10% depending on the products your referrals invest in. Moreover, the cookie lasts for 30 days.
Lucky Tackle Box
This one is slightly different from what you might be used to, meaning that the people you will refer it to will have to subscribe to get the box every month. It can be a quite exciting adventure, though, to get various baits and lures, as well as different tackle alongside the store’s magazine.
Every subscriber will make you $6.5 and the cookie duration is 30 days, which we would argue really is not bad.
Maxcatch
If you’re focused on recommending to your blog audience really well-known fishing retailers, this one should be right up your alley. They’ve been in the game for many years and they have a wide range of products available on the site, from fishing kits to chest packs and t-shirts.
Unfortunately, we couldn’t find any particular info on the cookie length, which is a bit frustrating. However, the commission is a 5% value on every order, which we’d say is pretty decent. You have to use their own website to become an affiliate, which can be a hassle.
West Marine Fishing
This is another very large retailer based in the United States with a particularly massive product inventory (there are more than 50,000 available at the time we’re writing this).
The affiliate program can be managed through AvantLink, which is a pro in itself. As for the money you can make with West Marine, the commission rate is a fixed 7% on all sales. Additionally, the cookie length is 30 days.
TackleDirect
If you become a fishing affiliate of this program, you will have no shortage of products to recommend to your blog readers. The store has an inventory of over 70,000 products and they are probably looking to add more in the future.
What is even better, you can join it through the Rakuten affiliate network, which can allow you to visualize all of your stats and earnings in the same place, without having to go on several dozens of websites every day.
The commission ranges depending on the types of products that your referrals purchase, but it can go up to 6%. The good thing is that they pay their affiliates every month and the cookie lasts for 30 days.
Piscifun
If you are a fisherman or woman yourself, you have probably heard about this brand before. Piscifun makes a lot of fishing tools that are somewhat more affordable compared to those of other brands. But the shop sells lots of other well-known brands, such as Pflueger or Abu Garcia.
But the best thing about this fly fishing affiliate program is that the commissions range from 12% to 16%, depending on the type of product your referrals purchase. To top it all off, the average order value is more than $150, which is not bad. Even better, the cookie lasts for 60 days and you can manage everything through ShareASale.
Fishing Booker
We have to give it to this one – it looks and feels nice and the website somehow manages to resemble the Booking.com page. As its name suggests, this is a service that folks can use to book fishing trips.
The best thing about the platform is that people can choose between the types of trips they want based on the type of fishing they most commonly engage in — river fishing, inshore fishing, backcountry fishing, and more. They can even select the species they are targeting and they will be displayed a list of locations that match their requirements.
But getting to the really good part, the affiliate program’s commission is a flat 9% on all orders and the cookie lasts for 3 whole months. On top of that, they pay their affiliates on a monthly basis, but there is a $100 threshold that you have to reach for that.
Hook & Tackle
This is one of the best fishing affiliate programs if you are looking to promote small, family-owned businesses. The products you’ll find on this website are rather unique since they also make their own.
They also have a wide range of clothing available, made for different categories, whether men, women, or children. As for the commissions, there’s a flat 8% on all orders and the cookie length is 30 days. We’d say that it wouldn’t hurt to consider this one.
Vail Valley Anglers
This store just had its 10-year birthday. The company retails heaps of products made by some of the best known brands in the industry, such as Sage or Patagonia fish.
You have to be an AvantLink user to become a Vail Valley Anglers affiliate, but you should consider doing so since the commission is 8% on all sales and the cookie lasts for 30 days. Also, the AvantLink platform will give you access to loads of marketing tools.
Pro Tackle Solutions
As their name suggests, this online store specializes in accessories made for various types of fishing. This fishing tackle affiliate program should be right up your alley if you’re looking to recommend to your audience products such as rods, reels, baits, and everything else.
The store runs its own program from what we gathered, so you might not be able to find it on any affiliate networks. However, it definitely pays off to join it separately because their base commission is 8% and the cookie length is 30 days.
Read more: Best hunting affiliate programs
Tackle Depot
Most of the information we came across with regard to this fishing affiliate program suggests that the signup process is pretty fast and straightforward.
The shop sells a variety of products and they even have a very well-researched blog.
As for the money you can make, while you might not make a fortune by becoming a Tackle Depot affiliate (commissions range from 2.5% to 5%), the cookie length is 30 days, which is definitely worth writing home about.
Marine Products Pro Shop
This one is fairly straightforward, so we are not going to lose a lot of your time other than by saying that the cookie length is a whopping 120 days. You can earn commissions ranging from 8% to 13% on every order.
Best of all, the average order value on this website is $250, which added to the somewhat high commission value, definitely makes this program worth considering.
Amazon Associates
We left this one for the end because let’s face it — Amazon Associates really isn’t what it used to be. Ever since they slashed their commissions a couple of years ago, they managed to convince their previous affiliates to abandon the program altogether and switch to something entirely different.
There were people who managed to make fortunes with Amazon Associates, but that’s mostly impossible these days. However, it is a good way of diversifying your income. What we’d like to note, though, is that according to Amazon’s rules, you are not allowed to use their API (for plugins and such) if you also recommend other shops on your site — which can be a significant drawback.
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Craig Campbell
I am a Glasgow based SEO expert who has been doing SEO for 22 years.
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