ChatGPT answers, unedited

Yes. If you're selling subscriptions and want partner commissions to stay accurate when customers upgrade, downgrade, cancel, refund, or renew, you want a platform that connects commissions to actual billing events—not just one-time referral conversions.

Strong options

The two I'd investigate first

Rewardful is particularly interesting if you're on Stripe. Its current documentation explicitly describes handling a mid-cycle upgrade using Stripe's final prorated invoice amount, as well as refunds, failed payments, and reactivations. Rewardful Rewardful

FirstPromoter looks particularly suited to the exact lifecycle you're describing. It says commissions are tied to renewals, upgrades, downgrades, cancellations and refunds, with commission adjustments occurring automatically. It also supports different commission models, including recurring/lifetime and tiered commissions. FirstPromoter FirstPromoter

For example, you could configure:

Partner refers customer → customer pays $100/month → partner gets 20%

Customer upgrades mid-month to $200/month → commission adjusts based on the actual billing event/proration

Customer remains subscribed → partner gets 20% on subsequent renewals

Customer cancels → future recurring commissions stop

Customer receives a refund → associated commission is reversed/clawed back

That's substantially different from a basic affiliate platform that simply says "this customer came from Partner X, pay them 20% forever."

One important distinction

If by "revenue share" you mean something more sophisticated than ordinary affiliate commissions—for example:

• 20% of net subscription revenue
• recurring commission for the entire customer lifetime
• commission changes when the customer upgrades/downgrades
• prorating the partner's commission on mid-cycle changes
• commission on expansion revenue
• clawbacks after refunds/cancellations
• different rates by subscription plan
• partner gets paid only after the customer's payment clears
• multiple partners splitting revenue
• a partner's commission continuing even after the original affiliate cookie expires

then I'd put FirstPromoter and Rewardful through a detailed requirements test rather than choosing based on their generic "recurring commissions" feature.

PartnerStack is also worth considering if this is becoming a full partner channel rather than simply an affiliate program; it specifically supports recurring and usage-based commissions around renewals and expansion revenue. PartnerStack

If you tell me what you use for billing (Stripe/Paddle/Chargebee/etc.), your subscription pricing, and the exact revenue-share rule, I can narrow this to 2–3 platforms and map out how each would handle your upgrade → proration → renewal → cancellation flow.

For example, you could configure:

Partner refers customer → customer pays $100/month → partner gets 20%

Customer upgrades mid-month to $200/month → commission adjusts based on the actual billing event/proration

Customer remains subscribed → partner gets 20% on subsequent renewals

Customer cancels → future recurring commissions stop

Customer receives a refund → associated commission is reversed/clawed back

That's substantially different from a basic affiliate platform that simply says "this customer came from Partner X, pay them 20% forever."

One important distinction

If by "revenue share" you mean something more sophisticated than ordinary affiliate commissions—for example:

Yes. For a subscription SaaS where partners should earn a percentage of actual recurring revenue, including changes when customers upgrade, downgrade, cancel, or get refunded, I’d shortlist these:

1. Rewardful — probably the simplest if you're on Stripe

rewardful.com

Rewardful is particularly aligned with what you're describing. Its Stripe integration calculates commissions from billing events and automatically adjusts them for upgrades, downgrades, cancellations, refunds, and trials. It supports both recurring and one-time commissions and percentage or fixed amounts. Stripe App Marketplace Rewardful Help Center

For example, if your deal is 20% recurring revenue share:

• Customer subscribes at $100/mo → partner earns $20
• Customer upgrades to $200/mo → future commission becomes $40
• Customer downgrades to $75/mo → future commission becomes $15
• Customer cancels → recurring commissions stop
• Customer receives a refund → commission is adjusted accordingly

Rewardful specifically says its commissions reflect what the customer actually paid after billing changes. Rewardful

2. FirstPromoter — more flexible commission logic

firstpromoter.com

I'd look closely at FirstPromoter if your partner program will have different commission arrangements.

It supports recurring commissions for the customer's lifetime, a specified number of months, or a specified number of charges. It also supports different commission rates over time—for example, 20% on the first charge and 30% thereafter. FirstPromoter

Its subscription tracking follows renewals, upgrades, downgrades, refunds and cancellations, with commissions updated accordingly. It supports Stripe, Paddle, Chargebee, Recurly and Braintree natively. FirstPromoter FirstPromoter Docs

That makes it interesting if your eventual rules look like:

Partner receives 25% of net subscription revenue for 12 months, but 10% on upgrades, with commissions reversed when a customer cancels/refunds.

3. PartnerStack — if "partners" means a broader B2B ecosystem

partnerstack.com

PartnerStack is more oriented toward B2B partner programs than a lightweight affiliate program. It supports recurring subscription revenue, renewals and upsells, as well as event-based commissions and installment/drip commissions. PartnerStack PartnerStack

Its drip commissions are useful if you don't want to pay the entire partner commission immediately—for example, paying revenue share over 12 months as the customer actually remains subscribed. PartnerStack Support

What I'd choose

If your setup is roughly:

Stripe → SaaS subscription → partner gets X% of revenue → commission follows upgrades/downgrades/cancellations

I'd start with Rewardful and FirstPromoter.

If you tell me your billing stack (Stripe/Paddle/Chargebee/etc.), the exact revenue-share rule you want (e.g. 20% for 12 months, lifetime, etc.), and whether partners are affiliates, agencies, resellers, or strategic partners, I can narrow this to 2–3 options and compare pricing, API/webhooks, attribution, prorations, clawbacks, and payout mechanics.

Yes. If by “revenue share” you mean a partner gets, say, 20% of subscription revenue for as long as the referred customer remains paid, and you want that share to automatically change when the customer upgrades, downgrades, gets refunded, or cancels, you should look specifically at SaaS affiliate/partner platforms with billing-event-level commission logic.

My shortlist

1. Rewardful — probably the first one I'd evaluate

rewardful.com

If you're using Stripe, Rewardful is particularly well aligned with what you're describing. It supports recurring percentage or fixed commissions and says it automatically adjusts commissions for upgrades, downgrades, cancellations, refunds, and other billing changes. Rewardful Rewardful Help Center

For example:

• Customer starts at $100/month
• Partner receives 20% = $20/month
• Customer upgrades to $200/month
• Partner's recurring commission becomes $40/month
• Customer downgrades to $75/month
• Commission becomes $15/month
• Customer cancels
• Future recurring commissions stop
• Refunds can adjust/remove the associated commission

Rewardful specifically describes its Stripe integration as recalculating commissions based on the actual billing events. Rewardful

I'd choose this if: your billing is primarily Stripe and you want something relatively straightforward rather than a giant partner-management system.

2. FirstPromoter — strongest alternative

firstpromoter.com

FirstPromoter is particularly interesting if your requirements are more complicated. It explicitly supports recurring commissions tied to billing events, with upgrades/downgrades adjusting payouts and refunds/cancellations correcting earnings automatically. FirstPromoter FirstPromoter

It also supports:

• Percentage, fixed, one-time, lifetime and tiered commissions
• Different commission rules based on billing events
• Multiple billing providers
• Affiliate/customer dual-sided rewards
• Multi-tier commissions
• Affiliate portals and automated payout workflows FirstPromoter

I'd lean FirstPromoter over Rewardful if you expect your partner program to become more sophisticated than simply “20% of referred subscription revenue.”

3. PartnerStack — if these are really strategic partners

partnerstack.com

If “partners” means agencies, resellers, technology partners, referral partners, distributors, etc., rather than primarily affiliates/influencers, PartnerStack becomes more compelling.

It's considerably more of a partner ecosystem management platform than a lightweight affiliate tool. Current comparisons generally position it toward larger B2B SaaS organizations and multi-type partner programs. Affitor Track360

The tradeoff is complexity and cost: I wouldn't deploy it just to solve recurring affiliate commissions if Rewardful or FirstPromoter covers the requirement.

One important distinction: "pro-rated" vs. "recurring"

I'd make this distinction explicit in your requirements.

Suppose someone pays:

$100/month → $200/month halfway through the month

Stripe might generate a prorated invoice such as:

$50 remaining credit + $100 upgrade charge = $150 incremental invoice

You need to decide whether the partner gets:

A. Commission on actual billed revenue

20% × $150 = $30

or

B. Commission based on the new subscription value

20% × $200 = $40/month going forward

or something more complicated.

That's an important product decision because “supports recurring commissions” doesn't necessarily mean “handles every possible proration policy exactly the way you want.”

For your use case, I'd put these requirements in the RFP:

1. Recurring percentage commission
2. Commission calculated from actual paid/billed revenue
3. Mid-cycle upgrades with Stripe proration
4. Mid-cycle downgrades
5. Cancellations
6. Refunds and partial refunds
7. Failed payments / dunning
8. Re-activations
9. Commission clawbacks
10. Commission attribution surviving subscription changes
11. Commission payout only after a configurable hold period
12. Ability to define whether commission applies to gross revenue, net revenue, or revenue after discounts/taxes
13. Ability to set different rates by plan/product/partner
14. API/webhooks so your finance system can reconcile every commission

My recommendation

If you're Stripe-based, I'd test Rewardful and FirstPromoter side-by-side first.

Rewardful → simpler, Stripe-native, very good fit for straightforward recurring revenue share. Rewardful Rewardful

FirstPromoter → better candidate if you need sophisticated commission rules, multiple billing systems, tiering, or more complex partner economics. FirstPromoter FirstPromoter

If you tell me what your billing stack is (Stripe/Paddle/Chargebee/etc.), the commission formula you want (e.g. 20% for 12 months vs. lifetime), and roughly how many partners/customers you expect, I can narrow this to the 2–3 best platforms and compare their exact handling of proration, upgrades, cancellations, clawbacks, and payouts.

I'd make this distinction explicit in your requirements.

Suppose someone pays:

$100/month → $200/month halfway through the month

Stripe might generate a prorated invoice such as:

$50 remaining credit + $100 upgrade charge = $150 incremental invoice

You need to decide whether the partner gets:

A. Commission on actual billed revenue

20% × $150 = $30

or

B. Commission based on the new subscription value

20% × $200 = $40/month going forward

or something more complicated.

That's an important product decision because “supports recurring commissions” doesn't necessarily mean “handles every possible proration policy exactly the way you want.”

For your use case, I'd put these requirements in the RFP:

1. Recurring percentage commission
2. Commission calculated from actual paid/billed revenue
3. Mid-cycle upgrades with Stripe proration
4. Mid-cycle downgrades
5. Cancellations
6. Refunds and partial refunds
7. Failed payments / dunning
8. Re-activations
9. Commission clawbacks
10. Commission attribution surviving subscription changes
11. Commission payout only after a configurable hold period
12. Ability to define whether commission applies to gross revenue, net revenue, or revenue after discounts/taxes
13. Ability to set different rates by plan/product/partner
14. API/webhooks so your finance system can reconcile every commission

My recommendation

If you're Stripe-based, I'd test Rewardful and FirstPromoter side-by-side first.

Rewardful → simpler, Stripe-native, very good fit for straightforward recurring revenue share.

For subscription SaaS, I’d shortlist:

• rewardful.com — strongest if you use Stripe. It handles recurring commissions and adjusts them for upgrades, downgrades, prorated invoices, cancellations, and refunds. Rewardful Stripe App Marketplace
• firstpromoter.com — excellent for more configurable partner programs; supports recurring commissions, upgrades/downgrades, refunds, cancellations, and multiple billing platforms. FirstPromoter FirstPromoter
• track360.io — worth considering if you need sophisticated partner-specific commission rules and churn/clawback logic. Track360
• rekomi.com — newer option specifically designed around recurring rev-share, churn, refunds, and subscription plan changes. Rekomi

My pick: If your billing is Stripe, start with Rewardful and FirstPromoter. If you tell me your billing stack (Stripe/Paddle/Chargebee/etc.) and your desired commission rule, e.g. “30% of monthly revenue, including prorated upgrades, stop on cancellation”, I can recommend the best fit.

Yes. What you want is subscription-aware affiliate/partner software, not a traditional affiliate tracker. The key requirement is that commissions follow the billing lifecycle—initial purchase → recurring renewal → prorated upgrade/downgrade → cancellation/refund—rather than treating each sale as a static commission.

My shortlist

FirstPromoter stands out for your particular requirement. It explicitly supports recurring commissions and says upgrades/downgrades adjust payouts, while refunds and cancellations automatically correct/stop commissions. It supports Stripe, Paddle, Recurly, Chargebee and Braintree. FirstPromoter FirstPromoter

firstpromoter.com

For example, if your partner gets 20% recurring commission:

• Customer subscribes at $50/mo → partner earns $10
• Customer upgrades mid-cycle to $100/mo → system needs to account for the prorated billing event and subsequently pay $20/renewal
• Customer downgrades to $60/mo → subsequent commission becomes $12
• Customer cancels → future recurring commissions stop
• Customer gets a refund → commission should be clawed back/adjusted

That's exactly the type of billing-event logic FirstPromoter advertises. FirstPromoter FirstPromoter

If you're on Stripe

I'd narrow the decision to FirstPromoter vs. Rewardful vs. Tolt.

Rewardful is attractive if you want something very simple and Stripe-native; it specifically positions itself around subscription revenue and Stripe lifecycle events. Rewardful

Tolt is another SaaS-focused option with recurring commissions and integrations with Stripe, Paddle and Chargebee. Tolt

One important thing to test

Don't just ask vendors "Do you support recurring commissions?" Almost all of them will say yes.

Ask them to demonstrate this exact scenario:

"A customer referred by Partner A buys our $100/month plan on January 10. On January 20 they upgrade to $200/month, with Stripe generating a prorated charge. On February 10 they renew at $200. On February 15 they cancel and receive a partial refund. Show us exactly what commission transactions Partner A sees for each billing event."

That will expose whether the platform genuinely understands subscription billing events or merely creates a recurring commission based on the original subscription amount.

If you tell me what you're using for billing (Stripe, Chargebee, Recurly, Paddle, etc.), your commission formula (e.g. 20% of net revenue), and whether you need commissions on prorated upgrade charges, I can narrow this to the 2–3 best platforms and compare their exact commission behavior and pricing.

Yes. If your partners earn a percentage of subscription revenue, including on renewals, upgrades, downgrades, refunds, and cancellations, you want a SaaS affiliate/partner platform that listens to billing events rather than simply paying a commission when someone initially signs up.

Assuming you're using Stripe, I'd shortlist these:

My top two

1. FirstPromoter — probably the best fit

FirstPromoter is particularly well suited to the model you're describing. It connects directly to Stripe and can adjust commissions based on sales, refunds, upgrades, downgrades, and cancellations. FirstPromoter Stripe App Marketplace

It also lets you define recurring commissions by:

• Customer lifetime
• Number of months/charges
• One-time commissions
• Different commission rates over time

For example, you could configure:

Partner receives 20% of the customer's subscription revenue for 12 months.
Customer upgrades from $50 → $100: commission increases accordingly.
Customer downgrades to $40: commission decreases.
Customer cancels: future recurring commissions stop.
Customer receives a refund: commission is adjusted.

FirstPromoter explicitly supports recurring commissions tied to Stripe billing events and can handle multiple billing providers as well. FirstPromoter FirstPromoter

2. Rewardful — simplest option

Rewardful is very compelling if you're primarily a Stripe + SaaS business and don't need a giant partner-management platform.

It supports recurring or one-time commissions and automatically adjusts commissions for upgrades, downgrades, free trials, cancellations, and refunds. Stripe App Marketplace Rewardful Help Center

Its billing-event model is particularly nice: when Stripe sends a payment/refund event, Rewardful recalculates the associated affiliate commission. Rewardful

One important distinction: "pro-rated"

I'd verify exactly how each platform handles the specific scenario you mean by pro-rated.

For example, suppose:

• Partner gets 25%
• Customer pays $100/month
• Customer upgrades halfway through the month
• Stripe charges a $50 prorated adjustment
• Customer subsequently cancels and gets a $25 refund

You don't just want software that says "this customer upgraded." You want the commission ledger to follow the actual Stripe billing amounts and create the corresponding commission adjustments.

FirstPromoter and Rewardful both advertise lifecycle-based adjustment, but I'd test your exact Stripe scenarios in a sandbox before committing. Rewardful specifically says its calculations follow changes to the transaction amount and that partial refunds adjust commissions. Rewardful Rewardful

What I'd choose

If you're building a subscription SaaS partner program, I'd start with:

FirstPromoter if you need sophisticated commission rules and expect the program to become substantial.

Rewardful if you want the simplest implementation and you're already deeply invested in Stripe.

The key requirement I'd put in your evaluation checklist is:

"Does commission calculation follow Stripe invoice/payment amounts and automatically create positive/negative commission adjustments for prorations, upgrades, downgrades, refunds, and cancellations?"

That's much more important than whether a platform merely advertises "recurring commissions."

If you tell me your billing stack (Stripe/Paddle/Chargebee/etc.), the commission rule you want (e.g. 20% lifetime vs. 30% for first year), and whether partners are affiliates or larger resellers, I can narrow this to 2–3 options and compare their pricing and exact commission mechanics.

Yes. If you’re selling subscriptions and want partner commissions to stay synchronized when a customer upgrades, downgrades, renews, cancels, refunds, or gets a prorated invoice, I’d focus on SaaS-native affiliate/partner platforms rather than generic affiliate software.

Best options

My first two to evaluate

rewardful.com is particularly attractive if you're on Stripe. It explicitly supports recurring and one-time commissions and says it automatically handles upgrades, downgrades, cancellations, refunds and other subscription changes. Rewardful Rewardful

firstpromoter.com is probably the better choice if you need more sophisticated commission rules or aren't exclusively on Stripe. Its current documentation says recurring commissions can be triggered by defined billing events, with upgrades/downgrades adjusting payouts and refunds/cancellations correcting earnings automatically. It supports Stripe, Chargebee, Paddle, Recurly and Braintree. FirstPromoter FirstPromoter

For example, you could define:

Partner gets 20% of net subscription revenue for 12 months. If customer upgrades mid-cycle, commission is calculated from the actual prorated invoice. If they cancel, future recurring commissions stop. If a refund occurs, the corresponding commission is clawed back.

That "actual billing event → commission adjustment" behavior is the key thing I'd test in a demo. Some platforms call themselves Stripe-integrated but don't necessarily handle the complete subscription lifecycle as cleanly as you need. Rewardful

One important distinction

If by "revenue share" you mean partners get a percentage of whatever the customer actually pays, I'd prioritize FirstPromoter or Rewardful.

If instead you mean something more like:

• Partner A gets 20% forever
• Partner B gets 30% for first 12 months
• Different percentages by plan
• Higher percentage after partner reaches $X MRR
• Commission on upgrades but not renewals
• Commission continues after cancellation/re-activation
• Split revenue between multiple partners
• Clawbacks based on refunds/chargebacks

…then I'd evaluate the platforms specifically against those rules rather than choosing based on generic "affiliate" features.

If you tell me your billing system (e.g. Stripe), subscription model, and exactly how you want upgrades/cancellations to affect the partner's revenue share, I can narrow this to the best 2–3 options and map out how each would implement your commission logic.

firstpromoter.com is probably the better choice if you need more sophisticated commission rules or aren't exclusively on Stripe. Its current documentation says recurring commissions can be triggered by defined billing events, with upgrades/downgrades adjusting payouts and refunds/cancellations correcting earnings automatically. It supports Stripe, Chargebee, Paddle, Recurly and Braintree. firstpromoter.com firstpromoter.com

For example, you could define:

Partner gets 20% of net subscription revenue for 12 months. If customer upgrades mid-cycle, commission is calculated from the actual prorated invoice. If they cancel, future recurring commissions stop. If a refund occurs, the corresponding commission is clawed back.

Yes. What you’re describing is subscription-aware partner/affiliate software, rather than a basic affiliate tracker. The important requirement is that commissions follow the billing lifecycle—initial purchase, renewals, prorated upgrades/downgrades, refunds, and cancellations.

My shortlist

*PartnerStack is particularly strong for event-based and recurring partner commissions, but I'd validate your exact proration/clawback rules during the sales process.

The two I'd investigate first

1. FirstPromoter — probably the strongest match

FirstPromoter explicitly supports commissions tied to billing events. Its current documentation says recurring commissions can be triggered by defined billing events, while upgrades/downgrades adjust payouts to the new plan value and refunds/cancellations automatically correct earnings. FirstPromoter FirstPromoter

It also supports different commission models—percentage, flat fee, one-time, lifetime recurring and tiered rates—and configurable clawbacks on cancellation. FirstPromoter

This makes it particularly interesting if your desired rule is something like:

Partner gets 20% of subscription revenue for as long as the referred customer remains subscribed. If the customer upgrades mid-month, partner gets the appropriate commission on the prorated upgrade revenue. If they cancel/refund, the commission is adjusted/clawed back.

It also supports Stripe, Paddle, Recurly, Chargebee and Braintree, so you're not locked into Stripe. FirstPromoter

2. Rewardful — excellent if you're on Stripe

Rewardful is simpler and more Stripe-centric. It says it automatically tracks recurring commissions, upgrades, downgrades, cancellations and refunds. Rewardful Help Center Rewardful

More importantly for your specific question, Rewardful says commissions are based on the actual Stripe billing events, with upgrades/downgrades reflecting what the customer actually paid. Its documentation also describes automatic adjustment for full and partial refunds. Rewardful

So if your stack is essentially:

Stripe → SaaS subscription → partner referral

I'd put Rewardful very high on the list.

The key thing I'd test before buying

"Recurring commissions" alone isn't enough. I'd give each vendor a test scenario like this:

1. Customer signs up for $100/month through Partner A.
2. Partner receives 20% = $20.
3. Customer renews → another $20.
4. Customer upgrades from $100 → $200 halfway through the billing period.
5. Stripe generates a prorated charge/credit.
6. Partner's commission should correspond to the actual incremental revenue, according to your commission rule.
7. Customer subsequently downgrades.
8. Customer receives a partial refund.
9. Customer cancels.
10. Customer later reactivates.

Ask the vendor to show you exactly what commission ledger entries appear at each step.

That's important because "supports upgrades" can mean something very different from correctly reconciling Stripe's prorated invoice/credit-note mechanics. Stripe's subscription lifecycle can involve prorations, credits, refunds and multiple invoice events, so the integration—not just the affiliate dashboard—is what matters. Rewardful

My recommendation

If you tell me your billing stack (Stripe/Paddle/Chargebee/etc.), your desired commission rule (e.g. 20% for 12 months vs lifetime), and whether partners are affiliates, agencies, or resellers, I can narrow this to the best 2–3 options and compare their exact commission/proration behavior and pricing.

It also supports different commission models—percentage, flat fee, one-time, lifetime recurring and tiered rates—and configurable clawbacks on cancellation. FirstPromoter

This makes it particularly interesting if your desired rule is something like:

Partner gets 20% of subscription revenue for as long as the referred customer remains subscribed. If the customer upgrades mid-month, partner gets the appropriate commission on the prorated upgrade revenue. If they cancel/refund, the commission is adjusted/clawed back.

It also supports Stripe, Paddle, Recurly, Chargebee and Braintree, so you're not locked into Stripe. FirstPromoter

2. Rewardful — excellent if you're on Stripe

Rewardful is simpler and more Stripe-centric. It says it automatically tracks recurring commissions, upgrades, downgrades, cancellations and refunds. help.rewardful.com rewardful.com

More importantly for your specific question, Rewardful says commissions are based on the actual Stripe billing events, with upgrades/downgrades reflecting what the customer actually paid. Its documentation also describes automatic adjustment for full and partial refunds.

So if your stack is essentially:

Stripe → SaaS subscription → partner referral

I'd put Rewardful very high on the list.

The key thing I'd test before buying

"Recurring commissions" alone isn't enough. I'd give each vendor a test scenario like this:

Yes. For a subscription business, I’d specifically look for billing-aware affiliate/partner software, rather than a generic affiliate tracker. The key is that commissions should follow the underlying subscription invoice—including prorated upgrades, downgrades, refunds, and cancellations.

Best options

My first two to evaluate would be Rewardful and FirstPromoter.

1. Rewardful — probably the simplest if you're on Stripe

Rewardful is particularly interesting if your billing is through Stripe.

It says it can sync directly with Stripe and automatically track recurring commissions, upgrades, downgrades, cancellations, and refunds. For a mid-cycle upgrade, its Stripe integration can calculate the commission against the resulting prorated invoice rather than treating the upgrade as an unrelated sale. Rewardful Rewardful

That maps very closely to what you're describing.

Example:

• Customer initially buys $100/month.
• Partner gets 20% → $20 commission.
• Customer upgrades halfway through the month to $200/month.
• Stripe generates a prorated adjustment.
• Rewardful can calculate the partner's commission against that billing activity.
• Future $200 renewals continue generating the recurring commission.
• If the customer cancels/refunds, the commission is adjusted accordingly. Rewardful

2. FirstPromoter — strongest if you need more commission logic

FirstPromoter is the one I'd investigate if your program will have more complicated rules.

It supports recurring commissions based on customer lifetime, a fixed number of months/charges, or a defined period, and it supports different commission rates over time. FirstPromoter

More importantly for your use case, it explicitly ties commissions to billing events and says upgrades, downgrades, refunds, cancellations and reactivations update commissions. It supports Stripe, Paddle, Recurly, Chargebee and Braintree. FirstPromoter

So you could potentially implement rules such as:

Partner receives 25% of subscription revenue for the first 12 months, calculated from actual paid invoices, including prorated upgrades, with commissions reversed/adjusted when revenue is refunded or cancelled.

That's much closer to a revenue-share engine than a basic affiliate tracker.

3. PartnerStack — if this is becoming a real partner ecosystem

PartnerStack is worth considering if "partners" means more than affiliates—for example, agencies, resellers, referral partners, technology partners, etc.

It supports recurring commissions tied to subscriptions, renewals and expansion revenue, plus event-based commission rules and integrations with billing systems such as Stripe and Chargebee. PartnerStack

I'd lean toward PartnerStack when you need a broader PRM/partner ecosystem, rather than simply "people get X% of subscription revenue."

What I'd choose

If your requirement is essentially:

"Partner refers customer → customer pays subscription → partner gets recurring % → subscription upgrades/downgrades → commission follows actual revenue → cancellation/refund adjusts commission."

I'd shortlist:

1. Rewardful — simplest Stripe-centric implementation.
2. FirstPromoter — best if you need sophisticated commission rules.
3. PartnerStack — best if you're building a larger B2B partner program.

The most important thing when evaluating them is to test actual Stripe invoice events, not just ask whether they support "recurring commissions." Many tools support recurring commissions but don't handle the messy cases correctly.

If you tell me your billing stack (e.g. Stripe), subscription model, and the exact revenue-share rule you want, I can compare these three specifically against your workflow and recommend the best one.

That's much closer to a revenue-share engine than a basic affiliate tracker.

3. PartnerStack — if this is becoming a real partner ecosystem

PartnerStack is worth considering if "partners" means more than affiliates—for example, agencies, resellers, referral partners, technology partners, etc.

It supports recurring commissions tied to subscriptions, renewals and expansion revenue, plus event-based commission rules and integrations with billing systems such as Stripe and Chargebee. partnerstack.com

I'd lean toward PartnerStack when you need a broader PRM/partner ecosystem, rather than simply "people get X% of subscription revenue."

What I'd choose

If your requirement is essentially:

"Partner refers customer → customer pays subscription → partner gets recurring % → subscription upgrades/downgrades → commission follows actual revenue → cancellation/refund adjusts commission."

I'd shortlist:

Yes. For what you described—partners earning a percentage of subscription revenue, with commissions changing when customers upgrade/downgrade, cancel, refund, or renew—you want a SaaS affiliate/partner platform that is billing-event aware, not a basic affiliate tracker.

Best options

1. FirstPromoter — probably the closest match

firstpromoter.com is particularly interesting for your use case because its commission engine is tied to billing events rather than simply recording the original signup.

It supports recurring commissions and can adjust commissions for upgrades, downgrades, refunds, cancellations, and renewals. It also supports commission rules based on the first charge, a fixed number of charges, or the customer's lifetime. FirstPromoter FirstPromoter

It natively integrates with Stripe, Paddle, Chargebee, Recurly, and Braintree, which is useful if you aren't exclusively on Stripe. FirstPromoter

Example: Partner gets 20% of subscription revenue.

• Customer subscribes for $100 → partner earns $20
• Customer upgrades to $200 mid-cycle → commission adjusts based on the actual billing event
• Customer renews at $200 → partner earns $40
• Customer gets a $50 refund → commission is adjusted
• Customer cancels → recurring commission stops

That's much closer to the model you're describing than traditional affiliate software.

2. Rewardful — excellent if you're on Stripe

rewardful.com is probably the simplest alternative.

It explicitly supports recurring commissions and automatically adjusts them for upgrades, downgrades, cancellations, refunds, and trials. Rewardful Help Center Stripe App Marketplace

One particularly relevant feature is its handling of mid-cycle Stripe upgrades with proration: Rewardful says it calculates commission from the resulting prorated invoice amount. Rewardful

So if your stack is essentially:

Stripe → SaaS subscriptions → partner referral

I'd put Rewardful very high on the shortlist.

3. PartnerStack — if "partners" means more than affiliates

partnerstack.com is more of a full partner ecosystem/PRM platform. It supports recurring commissions tied to subscriptions, renewals and expansion revenue, as well as event-based commission models and automated payouts. PartnerStack

I'd choose this if you're building a B2B partner program involving affiliates + agencies + resellers + referral partners, rather than simply paying people for referred subscriptions.

The tradeoff is that it's likely more platform than you need if your primary requirement is simply "pay partners 20% of the subscription revenue they generate."

My recommendation

If you tell me you're using Stripe, I'd shortlist them this way:

1. FirstPromoter — best if precise billing-event/proration handling and flexible commission rules are the priority.
2. Rewardful — best if you want something simpler and fast to deploy.
3. PartnerStack — best if this is becoming a serious B2B partner ecosystem rather than an affiliate program.

One important distinction I'd investigate during demos is exactly what happens to an already-earned commission when a subscription is partially refunded, prorated on an upgrade, or cancelled mid-period. "Supports recurring commissions" doesn't necessarily mean the platform reconciles every one of those billing events correctly.

If you tell me your billing system (Stripe/Chargebee/Paddle/etc.), subscription model, and proposed partner commission (e.g. 20% recurring for 12 months), I can narrow this to the best 2–3 and compare their pricing, proration behavior, clawbacks, payout mechanics, and API/webhook capabilities. FirstPromoter Stripe App Marketplace

So if your stack is essentially:

Stripe → SaaS subscriptions → partner referral

I'd put Rewardful very high on the shortlist.

3. PartnerStack — if "partners" means more than affiliates

partnerstack.com is more of a full partner ecosystem/PRM platform. It supports recurring commissions tied to subscriptions, renewals and expansion revenue, as well as event-based commission models and automated payouts. partnerstack.com

I'd choose this if you're building a B2B partner program involving affiliates + agencies + resellers + referral partners, rather than simply paying people for referred subscriptions.

The tradeoff is that it's likely more platform than you need if your primary requirement is simply "pay partners 20% of the subscription revenue they generate."

My recommendation

Yes. For a SaaS/subscription business, I’d look specifically for subscription-aware affiliate/partner software, rather than a generic affiliate tracker. The important distinction is whether commissions follow the billing lifecycle—renewals, prorated upgrades/downgrades, cancellations, refunds—not just the original referral.

My shortlist

FirstPromoter looks particularly aligned with what you're describing. It explicitly ties commissions to billing events and supports renewals, upgrades, downgrades, cancellations and reactivations. It also supports configurable commission logic and clawbacks. FirstPromoter

firstpromoter.com

Rewardful is attractive if your billing is primarily Stripe and you want something relatively lightweight. Its subscription model is designed around recurring revenue and Stripe's subscription lifecycle. Rewardful Rewardful

rewardful.com

Partnero is worth looking at if you use Stripe or Paddle. It says its integrations automatically synchronize signups, renewals, upgrades, downgrades and refunds, with commissions calculated against revenue actually collected. Partnero

partnero.com

The important part: define your commission economics

For your use case, I'd make sure the system can implement something like:

Partner refers customer → customer subscribes → partner earns X% of collected revenue → customer upgrades mid-cycle → commission automatically adjusts to the prorated upgrade revenue → customer renews → partner earns X% again → customer cancels → future commissions stop → refund/credit → unpaid commission is reversed.

That's materially different from simply saying "20% recurring commission."

I'd also test these cases before choosing a platform:

• Monthly → annual upgrade
• $50 → $100 plan upgrade halfway through the month
• Downgrade
• Cancellation before next renewal
• Cancellation immediately after payment
• Refund after commission has been calculated
• Failed payment / retry
• Coupon/discount
• Free trial → paid conversion
• Partner's commission rate changes while the customer remains active
• Proration and credits on Stripe invoices

FirstPromoter explicitly advertises billing-event-based commission adjustments and configurable cancellation clawbacks, while newer SaaS-specific products such as Referly and Track360 are also explicitly built around these lifecycle events. FirstPromoter Track360 Referly

One thing I'd clarify before picking

If by "revenue share for subscription upgrades and cancellations" you mean something more specific—for example:

Partner gets 25% of the customer's monthly recurring revenue, including a proportional share of mid-month upgrades, but receives no further commission after cancellation

—I can map that exact commission model against FirstPromoter vs Rewardful vs PartnerStack vs a few newer options, including Stripe integration, proration handling, clawbacks, payout mechanics, API/webhooks, and pricing. That would probably narrow it down to 2–3 serious candidates.

For a subscription business, you’ll want a SaaS partner/affiliate platform that understands subscription lifecycle events, not a traditional affiliate tracker. The key capabilities to look for are:

• Commission calculated from actual subscription revenue collected
• Recurring commissions on renewals
• Handling of upgrades, downgrades, and proration
• Cancellation/churn adjustments
• Refund and chargeback clawbacks
• Attribution that persists from signup → paid conversion → renewals
• Partner portals and automated payouts

Some good options:

For your specific case (partners earn revenue share on upgrades and lose commissions after cancellations), I would prioritize platforms that model the subscription object, not just transactions. A good commission model usually looks like:

1. Customer signs up through partner link
2. Trial converts → commission starts
3. Customer upgrades from $49/mo → $99/mo - Partner commission recalculates on the higher MRR
4. Customer downgrades → commission decreases
5. Customer cancels - Future commissions stop
6. Any unpaid/refundable commissions are reversed

Platforms explicitly designed around this include referly.so, heldsway.com, and track360.io, which focus on subscription events like renewals, upgrades, downgrades, churn, and MRR-based commissions. Referly HeldSway Track360

My shortlist by stage:

• Early SaaS (<100 partners): Rewardful, FirstPromoter, Partnero
• Growing SaaS with recurring rev-share complexity: Tapfiliate, Referly, Rekomi
• Enterprise channel program: PartnerStack, impact.com, Everflow

If you tell me your billing stack (Stripe Billing, Paddle, Chargebee, Recurly, etc.) and whether partners are affiliates vs agencies/resellers, I can narrow this to the best 2–3 choices.

Yes. If you’re selling subscriptions, I’d avoid generic affiliate software and specifically look for a subscription-lifecycle commission engine. The important part is that commissions follow the billing events—not just the original referral.

Best options

My first two to evaluate would be FirstPromoter and Rewardful.

1. FirstPromoter — probably the closest to what you're describing

firstpromoter.com

FirstPromoter explicitly tracks renewals, upgrades, downgrades, cancellations and reactivations, with commission logic configurable by billing event, period, or lifetime. It also supports recurring percentage commissions and cancellation clawbacks. FirstPromoter FirstPromoter

That makes it particularly interesting if your rule is something like:

Partner gets 20% of subscription revenue for every month the referred customer remains active. If the customer upgrades mid-month, commission adjusts to the new revenue; if they cancel, recurring commissions stop.

It supports Stripe, Paddle, Recurly, Chargebee and Braintree. FirstPromoter

2. Rewardful — excellent if you're on Stripe

rewardful.com

Rewardful is particularly attractive for a Stripe-based SaaS. Its Stripe integration handles recurring commissions and automatically adjusts commissions for upgrades, downgrades, cancellations, refunds and free trials. Stripe App Marketplace

If your billing is basically:

Stripe → subscription → partner gets X%

I'd put Rewardful near the top of the shortlist because it's relatively straightforward to implement.

3. Partnero

partnero.com

Partnero supports recurring commissions and says its Stripe/Paddle integrations automatically synchronize signups, renewals, upgrades, downgrades and refunds, with commission calculated against revenue actually collected. Partnero

This could be worth considering if you want more than basic affiliate links and expect to have a broader partner program.

4. Referly / Rekomi

referly.so is particularly focused on the subscription lifecycle. It recalculates commissions when subscriptions renew, upgrade, downgrade or are refunded. Referly

rekomi.com similarly focuses on recurring rev-share, churn-aware commissions and subscription events across Stripe, Paddle and other billing systems. Rekomi

These newer tools are worth looking at if billing accuracy and prorated revenue are more important than having a huge established partner ecosystem.

The key thing I'd verify in demos

There's an important distinction between:

A. "We support recurring commissions"

and

B. "We calculate commissions against the actual prorated revenue generated by each subscription event."

You want B.

For example:

• Customer subscribes: $100/month
• Partner commission: 20%
• Partner earns: $20
• Customer upgrades halfway through the month to $200/month
• Stripe generates a $50 prorated adjustment
• Commission should become 20% of the actual eligible revenue, rather than blindly paying 20% of $200 or another arbitrary amount.
• Customer subsequently cancels/refunds → commission should stop or be clawed back proportionally.

That's the test I'd give every vendor. Some systems handle recurring payments well but get complicated around proration, partial refunds, credits, plan changes and cancellation timing.

My shortlist

If I were selecting for a SaaS today:

1. FirstPromoter — best overall for complex subscription commission rules.
2. Rewardful — best if you're entirely Stripe-based and want simplicity.
3. Partnero — good middle ground for Stripe/Paddle.
4. Referly/Rekomi — worth testing if exact subscription revenue reconciliation is the priority.
5. PartnerStack — consider if you're building a much larger B2B partner ecosystem rather than simply an affiliate/referral program.

If you tell me what billing system you use (Stripe, Chargebee, Paddle, etc.) and the exact commission rules you want—e.g. “20% recurring, including upgrades, stop on cancellation, claw back refunds, prorate mid-month”—I can narrow this down to the 2–3 systems that can actually implement those rules without custom engineering.

1. FirstPromoter — best overall for complex subscription commission rules.
2. Rewardful — best if you're entirely Stripe-based and want simplicity.
3. Partnero — good middle ground for Stripe/Paddle.
4. Referly/Rekomi — worth testing if exact subscription revenue reconciliation is the priority.
5. PartnerStack — consider if you're building a much larger B2B partner ecosystem rather than simply an affiliate/referral program.

If you tell me what billing system you use (Stripe, Chargebee, Paddle, etc.) and the exact commission rules you want—e.g. “20% recurring, including upgrades, stop on cancellation, claw back refunds, prorate mid-month”—I can narrow this down to the 2–3 systems that can actually implement those rules without custom engineering.

That makes it particularly interesting if your rule is something like:

Partner gets 20% of subscription revenue for every month the referred customer remains active. If the customer upgrades mid-month, commission adjusts to the new revenue; if they cancel, recurring commissions stop.

It supports Stripe, Paddle, Recurly, Chargebee and Braintree. FirstPromoter

2. Rewardful — excellent if you're on Stripe

rewardful.com

Rewardful is particularly attractive for a Stripe-based SaaS. Its Stripe integration handles recurring commissions and automatically adjusts commissions for upgrades, downgrades, cancellations, refunds and free trials. Stripe App Marketplace

If your billing is basically:

Stripe → subscription → partner gets X%

I'd put Rewardful near the top of the shortlist because it's relatively straightforward to implement.

3. Partnero

partnero.com

Partnero supports recurring commissions and says its Stripe/Paddle integrations automatically synchronize signups, renewals, upgrades, downgrades and refunds, with commission calculated against revenue actually collected. partnero.com

This could be worth considering if you want more than basic affiliate links and expect to have a broader partner program.

4. Referly / Rekomi

referly.so is particularly focused on the subscription lifecycle. It recalculates commissions when subscriptions renew, upgrade, downgrade or are refunded.

Yes. If your subscriptions are in Stripe, there are several good options—but for your specific requirement, I’d focus on platforms that understand the subscription billing lifecycle, rather than generic affiliate trackers.

My shortlist

1. firstpromoter.com — probably the strongest match

This is the one I'd investigate first for your use case.

FirstPromoter explicitly supports commissions tied to billing events: recurring charges, upgrades, downgrades, cancellations and refunds. It can adjust commissions when the subscription value changes. FirstPromoter Stripe App Marketplace

It also lets you define how long recurring commissions continue:

• Customer lifetime
• Fixed number of months
• Fixed number of charges
• Different commission rates over time

For example, you could implement:

Partner gets 20% of subscription revenue for every month that the referred customer remains active.

Or:

Partner gets 20% of the initial subscription, then 10% of expansion revenue.

It also has configurable clawback rules for cancellations. FirstPromoter FirstPromoter

That's particularly useful if by "pro-rated" you mean a customer upgrades halfway through a billing period and you want the partner's commission to reflect the actual prorated revenue, rather than simply paying the original commission amount.

2. rewardful.com — simplest if you're Stripe-native

Rewardful is very attractive if you want something relatively lightweight.

It integrates deeply with Stripe and says it automatically handles recurring commissions, upgrades, downgrades, cancellations and refunds. Rewardful Help Center Rewardful

So a lifecycle like:

$50/mo → upgrade to $100/mo → downgrade to $75/mo → cancel

can be reflected in the affiliate commission rather than treating each customer as a static $50 sale.

I'd lean toward Rewardful if your requirements are straightforward and you don't need a sophisticated PRM.

3. partnerstack.com — for a larger partner ecosystem

PartnerStack is more of a full partner-management platform. It supports recurring commissions and explicitly talks about renewals and expansion revenue, with connections to billing systems such as Stripe and Chargebee. PartnerStack

I'd consider it if you're planning not just affiliates but also:

• Agencies
• Resellers
• Referral partners
• Co-selling
• Multiple partner tiers
• Complex B2B commissions

For a relatively simple affiliate program, though, it may be considerably more platform than you need.

What I'd choose

If you're a SaaS company and your question is specifically:

"Partner gets a percentage of whatever subscription revenue the referred customer generates, including prorated upgrades, and commissions should stop/claw back appropriately when they cancel."

I'd shortlist FirstPromoter and Rewardful, with FirstPromoter slightly ahead if you need sophisticated rules around billing events.

The key thing I'd verify in a demo is how they calculate an upgrade's commission. There's an important distinction between:

A. Commission on the new invoice total

and

B. Commission on the incremental prorated revenue created by the upgrade

For example:

Customer pays $100/month → upgrades to $200/month halfway through the month → Stripe generates $50 of prorated incremental revenue.

If your partner gets 20%, you probably want $10 additional commission, not 20% of some arbitrary $200 amount.

I'd specifically ask each vendor to demonstrate that exact scenario, plus upgrade → downgrade → cancellation → refund. That's where seemingly capable affiliate platforms can differ.

If you tell me what billing system you use (Stripe, Chargebee, Paddle, Recurly, etc.), your desired commission formula, and whether these are affiliates vs. strategic partners, I can narrow this down to 2–3 platforms and map out exactly how I'd implement the revenue-share rules.

Yes. For a SaaS subscription business, you want affiliate/partner software that treats commissions as a function of billing events, rather than simply paying a commission on the original signup.

The strongest options I’d look at are:

1. Rewardful — probably the simplest fit

If you're using Stripe, I'd put Rewardful at the top of the shortlist.

It specifically supports recurring commissions and automatically adjusts commissions when a referred customer upgrades, downgrades, cancels, or receives a refund. Its Stripe integration follows actual invoice/payment events, so the commission can track the amount the customer actually paid. Rewardful Rewardful

For example:

• Customer starts at $50/mo
• Partner gets 20% = $10
• Customer upgrades mid-cycle and Stripe prorates the invoice to, say, $80
• Commission adjusts based on the actual billing event
• Next month they're at $100 → $20 commission
• Customer gets a partial refund → commission is adjusted accordingly
• Customer cancels → recurring commissions stop

Rewardful also supports pending commission periods, which is useful if you want to avoid paying a partner immediately before your refund/cancellation window has elapsed. Rewardful

rewardful.com

2. FirstPromoter — my other top choice

FirstPromoter is particularly interesting if you want more sophisticated commission rules.

It supports recurring commissions based on customer lifetime, a fixed number of months/charges, or a fixed number of charges, and can vary the commission rate over time. It natively integrates with Stripe, Paddle, Chargebee, Recurly and Braintree. FirstPromoter FirstPromoter

Importantly for your use case, FirstPromoter explicitly says its commissions follow billing events and that upgrades/downgrades adjust payouts while refunds and cancellations correct earnings automatically. FirstPromoter

That gives you rules like:

Partner receives 25% of subscription revenue for the first 12 months, including expansion revenue from upgrades, with commissions automatically reduced/removed when revenue is refunded or cancelled.

It also has stronger program-management capabilities if you're going to have lots of partners, different commission plans, partner tiers, white-labeling, etc. FirstPromoter

3. PartnerStack — if this is really a partner program

If by "partners" you mean agencies, resellers, technology partners, consultants, affiliates, etc., rather than primarily affiliate marketers, I'd investigate PartnerStack.

It supports event-based commission models and recurring commissions tied to subscriptions, renewals and expansion revenue. PartnerStack PartnerStack

It's more of a full partner ecosystem/platform than a lightweight Stripe affiliate tool, though, so it may be overkill if all you need is:

referral → subscription → recurring revenue share → automatic adjustments.

What I'd choose

If your stack is Stripe + SaaS subscriptions, I'd narrow it to:

Rewardful → easiest/cleanest implementation
FirstPromoter → better if you need sophisticated commission rules
PartnerStack → better if you're building a substantial B2B partner channel

One important distinction: "pro-rated commission" can mean two different things. You should decide whether the partner's commission is calculated on the actual prorated invoice amount or whether an upgrade should trigger a separate commission on the incremental ARR/MRR.

For example, if someone goes from $50 → $100 halfway through a month:

• Invoice-based: partner gets 20% of whatever Stripe actually bills.
• Expansion-based: partner gets 20% of the incremental $50/month revenue, potentially with separate treatment of the prorated first invoice.

I'd recommend designing this rule explicitly before choosing the platform, because it can materially affect partner payouts.

If you tell me (1) Stripe/Paddle/Chargebee/etc., (2) your upgrade/downgrade model, and (3) whether you want commission on renewals for the lifetime of the customer or only X months, I can compare Rewardful vs FirstPromoter vs PartnerStack specifically for your setup, including how I'd structure the commission rules.

Importantly for your use case, FirstPromoter explicitly says its commissions follow billing events and that upgrades/downgrades adjust payouts while refunds and cancellations correct earnings automatically. FirstPromoter

That gives you rules like:

Partner receives 25% of subscription revenue for the first 12 months, including expansion revenue from upgrades, with commissions automatically reduced/removed when revenue is refunded or cancelled.

It also has stronger program-management capabilities if you're going to have lots of partners, different commission plans, partner tiers, white-labeling, etc. FirstPromoter

3. PartnerStack — if this is really a partner program

If by "partners" you mean agencies, resellers, technology partners, consultants, affiliates, etc., rather than primarily affiliate marketers, I'd investigate PartnerStack.

It supports event-based commission models and recurring commissions tied to subscriptions, renewals and expansion revenue. PartnerStack PartnerStack

It's more of a full partner ecosystem/platform than a lightweight Stripe affiliate tool, though, so it may be overkill if all you need is:

referral → subscription → recurring revenue share → automatic adjustments.

What I'd choose

If your stack is Stripe + SaaS subscriptions, I'd narrow it to:

Rewardful → easiest/cleanest implementation
FirstPromoter → better if you need sophisticated commission rules
PartnerStack → better if you're building a substantial B2B partner channel

One important distinction: "pro-rated commission" can mean two different things. You should decide whether the partner's commission is calculated on the actual prorated invoice amount or whether an upgrade should trigger a separate commission on the incremental ARR/MRR.

For example, if someone goes from $50 → $100 halfway through a month:

• Invoice-based: partner gets 20% of whatever Stripe actually bills.
• Expansion-based: partner gets 20% of the incremental $50/month revenue, potentially with separate treatment of the prorated first invoice.

I'd recommend designing this rule explicitly before choosing the platform, because it can materially affect partner payouts.

If you tell me (1) Stripe/Paddle/Chargebee/etc., (2) your upgrade/downgrade model, and (3) whether you want commission on renewals for the lifetime of the customer or only X months, I can compare Rewardful vs FirstPromoter vs PartnerStack specifically for your setup, including how I'd structure the commission rules.

Yes. What you’re describing is subscription-aware affiliate/partner commission management, rather than a basic affiliate tracker. The important requirement is that commissions follow the billing lifecycle: initial subscription → renewal → upgrade/downgrade → proration → cancellation/refund.

My shortlist

*The exact treatment of prorated invoices depends on how the billing integration/event is configured.

1. FirstPromoter — probably where I'd start

FirstPromoter is particularly aligned with your use case. Its billing-event model explicitly handles recurring commissions, upgrades, downgrades, refunds and cancellations, with commissions adjusted as billing changes. FirstPromoter FirstPromoter

It also supports different recurring structures—for example:

• 20% of revenue for the customer's lifetime
• 20% for the first 12 months
• commission for a fixed number of billing cycles
• different commission rates over time
• percentage or fixed-dollar commissions

Its current documentation says it natively integrates with Stripe, Paddle, Chargebee, Recurly and Braintree. FirstPromoter

This is my first choice if your core requirement is:

"Partner gets X% of subscription revenue, and the commission should automatically change when the customer upgrades, downgrades, cancels or gets refunded."

firstpromoter.com

2. Rewardful — especially if you're all-in on Stripe

Rewardful is another strong option if your billing stack is primarily Stripe. It supports recurring and one-time commissions and says it handles upgrades, downgrades, cancellations and refunds automatically. Rewardful

I'd favor Rewardful when you want simple Stripe-native implementation rather than a more elaborate partner-management system.

rewardful.com

3. PartnerStack — if "partners" means more than affiliates

PartnerStack is worth considering if you're building a broader channel program involving affiliates, agencies, resellers, referrals and technology partners.

It supports recurring and usage-based commissions and event-based commission models around renewals and expansion revenue. PartnerStack

The tradeoff is that it's generally more enterprise/channel-management oriented than something like FirstPromoter.

partnerstack.com

The key thing I'd verify in demos

Don't just ask vendors "Do you support recurring commissions?" Almost all of them will say yes.

Give them this exact scenario:

Customer signs up for $100/month through Partner A. Partner earns 20%.
Customer upgrades halfway through the month to $200/month. Stripe generates a prorated charge/credit.
Customer renews at $200 next month.
Three months later they downgrade to $150.
The following month they cancel and receive a partial refund.
Show me exactly what commission ledger entries Partner A receives for every billing event.

That's the test that distinguishes a genuine billing-aware commission engine from software that merely repeats a 20% commission every month.

For your use case, I'd specifically want the system to calculate commissions against actual collected/net subscription revenue, rather than simply the nominal plan price. Refunds and cancellations should generate automatic reversals/clawbacks. This is a common recommendation for SaaS programs because subscriptions introduce proration, churn and refunds that one-time affiliate systems don't handle cleanly. TinyAffiliate

One important design decision

I'd also decide whether your partner agreement is:

A. Revenue share

Partner receives 20% of whatever subscription revenue the referred customer generates.

or

B. Fixed recurring commission

Partner receives $20/month while the customer remains subscribed.

Revenue share is usually better if you have multiple plans and frequent upgrades/downgrades because the commission naturally follows the customer's actual revenue.

If you tell me what you're using for billing (Stripe, Chargebee, Paddle, Recurly, etc.), your approximate number of partners, and whether you want lifetime or time-limited revenue share, I can narrow this to the 2–3 best platforms and compare their pricing + exact commission/proration behavior.

Yes. For a subscription business, I’d specifically look for billing-aware affiliate/partner software, rather than generic affiliate tracking. The key is that commissions should follow the subscription lifecycle: initial payment → renewal → upgrade/proration → downgrade → refund → cancellation.

Best options

My shortlist

1. FirstPromoter — probably the strongest match

FirstPromoter is particularly interesting for what you're describing. It supports lifetime or time-limited recurring commissions, different rates by plan/product, and billing-event-based adjustments. Its integrations include Stripe, Paddle, Chargebee, Recurly, and Braintree. It explicitly supports commissions being updated when customers renew, upgrade, downgrade, cancel, or get refunded. FirstPromoter FirstPromoter

For example, you could define:

Partner gets 25% of net subscription revenue for 12 months.
Customer upgrades from $50 → $100 halfway through the month → commission recalculates against the actual billing event.
Customer cancels → future recurring commissions stop.
Refund → corresponding commission is reversed/clawed back.

That is much closer to the model you're describing than traditional "affiliate gets 20% of the sale" software.

2. Rewardful — best if you're Stripe-native

Rewardful is worth serious consideration if you're using Stripe. It supports recurring commissions and automatically adjusts commissions for upgrades, downgrades, cancellations, refunds and free trials. Stripe App Marketplace Rewardful

It's attractive if you don't need a huge partner-management platform and primarily want:

Stripe → subscription event → commission calculation → affiliate payout.

3. Referly — worth evaluating specifically for revenue share

Referly positions itself around paying partners on revenue actually retained, rather than simply rewarding the initial transaction. It says it recalculates commissions on renewals, upgrades, downgrades and refunds, and supports Stripe, Paddle, Chargebee and Polar. Referly

That's conceptually very close to a true subscription revenue-share program.

One important distinction: "proration"

I'd make sure you ask vendors a very specific question:

"If a customer upgrades halfway through a billing period and Stripe generates a prorated invoice/credit, exactly which amount is used as the commissionable revenue?"

There are several possible interpretations:

• Commission on the gross prorated charge
• Commission on net revenue after the prorated credit
• Commission on the customer's new MRR
• Commission only on successfully collected revenue
• Commission on the full invoice but with subsequent refunds/credits reconciled

These produce materially different partner payouts.

For example, if someone is paying $50/month and upgrades halfway through the month to $100/month, Stripe might generate a prorated adjustment rather than simply charging $100. Your affiliate software needs to understand those billing events rather than treating the upgrade as a new $100 sale.

What I'd recommend architecturally

If you're using Stripe, I'd narrow the evaluation to:

1. FirstPromoter — best for flexible commission rules
2. Rewardful — simplest Stripe-native option
3. Referly — particularly interesting for retained-revenue/revenue-share logic

If you're using Chargebee, Recurly, Paddle, or multiple billing systems, I'd lean toward FirstPromoter, since it supports several subscription billing platforms natively. FirstPromoter

And I'd define your commission rules around actual collected subscription revenue, rather than signup events:

Referral → paid conversion → recurring revenue → upgrades/downgrades → refunds → cancellation → commission adjustment.

That makes the partner economics much easier to audit and prevents you from overpaying partners for customers who churn or whose invoices are subsequently refunded.

If you tell me your billing system (e.g. Stripe), subscription model, and the exact revenue-share rule you want (e.g. "partners get 20% for 12 months, including upgrades"), I can narrow this to the 2–3 platforms that can actually implement that logic and compare their pricing/API/payout capabilities.

Rewardful is worth serious consideration if you're using Stripe. It supports recurring commissions and automatically adjusts commissions for upgrades, downgrades, cancellations, refunds and free trials. Stripe App Marketplace Rewardful

It's attractive if you don't need a huge partner-management platform and primarily want:

Stripe → subscription event → commission calculation → affiliate payout.

3. Referly — worth evaluating specifically for revenue share

Referly positions itself around paying partners on revenue actually retained, rather than simply rewarding the initial transaction. It says it recalculates commissions on renewals, upgrades, downgrades and refunds, and supports Stripe, Paddle, Chargebee and Polar. referly.so

That's conceptually very close to a true subscription revenue-share program.

One important distinction: "proration"

I'd make sure you ask vendors a very specific question:

"If a customer upgrades halfway through a billing period and Stripe generates a prorated invoice/credit, exactly which amount is used as the commissionable revenue?"

There are several possible interpretations:

Yes. For a subscription business, I’d specifically look for billing-aware affiliate/partner software, not a generic affiliate tracker. The important capability is that commissions respond to the subscription lifecycle: initial payment → renewal → prorated upgrade/downgrade → refund → cancellation.

My shortlist

FirstPromoter would be my first demo. Its subscription lifecycle tracking explicitly covers renewals, upgrades, downgrades, cancellations and reactivations, with commission logic configurable around billing events. FirstPromoter FirstPromoter

firstpromoter.com

Partnero is particularly interesting if you want something simpler. It says its Stripe/Paddle integrations automatically account for renewals, upgrades, downgrades and refunds and calculate commission from revenue actually collected. Partnero

partnero.com

PartnerStack is the one I'd investigate if "partners" means more than affiliates—e.g. agencies, resellers, technology partners and B2B referral partners. It supports event-based commission models and recurring commissions tied to renewals and expansion revenue. PartnerStack

partnerstack.com

One important distinction: "recurring" vs. "prorated"

I'd make proration behavior a hard requirement in your evaluation.

Suppose:

• Customer starts at $50/month
• Partner receives 20% recurring rev-share
• Customer upgrades halfway through the month to $100/month
• Stripe generates a $25 prorated charge
• Next month is $100

You need to decide whether the partner gets:

1. 20% of the $25 prorated upgrade invoice, plus 20% of future $100 invoices; or
2. No commission on the mid-cycle adjustment, but 20% of the next $100 renewal; or
3. Some other contract-specific treatment.

Likewise, if the customer cancels, you need a policy for whether already-earned commission is retained, reversed, or subject to a clawback period.

That's why I'd favor a platform that listens to Stripe subscription/invoice events, rather than one that simply records the original referral. Several newer SaaS-focused platforms explicitly advertise this lifecycle approach. HeldSway Rekomi

What I'd put in your requirements

Before choosing software, ask each vendor to demonstrate these six scenarios in a live sandbox:

• New $100/month customer → 20% commission
• Renewal → another 20%
• Mid-cycle upgrade from $100 → $200 → commission on the prorated amount
• Downgrade → commission decreases appropriately
• Cancellation → future recurring commission stops
• Refund/chargeback → commission is reversed appropriately

Also ask whether the system can support net revenue rather than gross invoice value, commission caps such as "20% for 12 months," different rates by plan, and a complete commission ledger/audit trail.

If you're on Stripe, I'd start with FirstPromoter, Partnero, and Rewardful; if you're building a substantial B2B partner channel, add PartnerStack. The deciding factor should be how each handles your exact prorated-upgrade and cancellation rules, rather than the marketing claim of "recurring commissions." rewardful.com rewardful.com

If you tell me your billing system (e.g. Stripe), subscription model, and the exact rev-share rule you want, I can narrow this to 2–3 platforms and map out how each would calculate the commissions.

Yes. What you’re describing is SaaS affiliate/partner software that is billing-aware, rather than a basic affiliate tracker.

The key requirement is that commissions follow the actual subscription lifecycle:

• Customer signs up → partner gets commission.
• Customer renews → recurring commission.
• Customer upgrades mid-cycle → commission adjusts to the prorated upgrade revenue.
• Customer downgrades → commission decreases appropriately.
• Customer cancels → future recurring commissions stop, and potentially a clawback occurs.
• Customer gets refunded → commission is reversed/adjusted.
• Failed payment → commission shouldn't be paid as though revenue was collected.

My shortlist

1. rewardful.com — probably the simplest choice

If you're using Stripe, I'd put Rewardful at the top of the list.

Rewardful is specifically built around subscription revenue and says its Stripe integration handles recurring commissions, upgrades, downgrades, cancellations and refunds. Its documentation also describes using the final prorated Stripe invoice when a customer upgrades mid-cycle. Rewardful Rewardful

So your model could be something like:

Partner gets 20% of net subscription revenue for 12 months.

Customer:

• Month 1: $100 → $20 commission
• Month 2: $100 → $20
• Mid-month upgrade generates $50 of additional prorated revenue → commission adjusts accordingly
• New $200/month subscription → $40/month going forward
• Cancellation → no further commissions
• Refund → corresponding commission adjustment

That's much closer to what you're asking for than a traditional "customer bought → pay affiliate $X" system.

2. firstpromoter.com — my pick if you need more complex rules

I'd seriously evaluate FirstPromoter alongside Rewardful.

It explicitly supports recurring commissions tied to billing events, with upgrades/downgrades adjusting payouts and refunds/cancellations correcting earnings automatically. FirstPromoter FirstPromoter

It also supports Stripe, Paddle, Recurly, Chargebee and Braintree, which makes it more attractive if you aren't exclusively on Stripe. FirstPromoter

A particularly relevant feature for your use case is that you can define commission logic around different billing events and use recurring, flat-fee, lifetime, one-time and tiered structures. FirstPromoter

I'd choose FirstPromoter over Rewardful if:

• You have multiple subscription/billing systems.
• You need different commission rules for different partner groups.
• You want more sophisticated clawback rules.
• You expect the partner program to become operationally complex.

3. partnerstack.com — if "partners" means a broader B2B ecosystem

PartnerStack makes more sense if you're building a full partner program, not just an affiliate program.

For example, if you'll eventually have:

• affiliates,
• referral partners,
• agencies,
• resellers,
• implementation partners,
• co-selling partners,

then an enterprise platform like PartnerStack becomes more compelling. It's considerably heavier than Rewardful/FirstPromoter, though.

The important question: how should you define "revenue share"?

I'd nail this down before selecting the software.

There are several subtly different models:

A. Commission on collected revenue

Partner receives 20% of money actually collected.

This is usually the cleanest for SaaS.

B. Commission on MRR

Partner receives 20% of the customer's monthly recurring revenue.

This can get tricky with mid-cycle upgrades/downgrades.

C. Commission on gross invoice amount

Potentially problematic because refunds, credits, taxes, discounts, failed payments, etc. need special treatment.

D. Commission on net revenue

For example:

Commission = 20% × (subscription revenue − discounts − refunds − taxes)

This is often the model I'd recommend if you're trying to prevent disputes with partners.

One thing I'd specifically test

Don't just ask vendors, "Do you support recurring commissions?"

Ask them to demonstrate this exact scenario:

Customer starts at $100/month.
Partner receives 20%.
Customer upgrades halfway through the month to $200/month.
Stripe generates a $50 prorated charge.
Customer later cancels and receives a $75 partial refund.
What exactly happens to the partner's commission ledger?

That's the real test.

My recommendation: if you're on Stripe, start by comparing Rewardful vs. FirstPromoter. Rewardful looks like the cleaner/simple implementation; FirstPromoter looks stronger if you need sophisticated commission rules and multiple billing providers. Both explicitly address the subscription lifecycle you're concerned about. Rewardful FirstPromoter

If you tell me your billing stack (Stripe/Chargebee/etc.), subscription plans, desired revenue-share percentage, and whether commissions last forever or for 6/12 months, I can narrow this down to the best 2–3 options and map out exactly how the prorations/cancellations would work.

Yes. What you’re describing is subscription-aware partner/affiliate management, rather than basic affiliate tracking. The key requirement is that commissions follow the actual billing lifecycle—including prorated upgrades, downgrades, renewals, refunds, and cancellations.

My shortlist

The one I'd investigate first: FirstPromoter

For your specific requirement, FirstPromoter looks particularly well aligned. It explicitly supports commissions that respond to billing events: recurring charges, upgrades, downgrades, cancellations and refunds. Its documentation says commission records are adjusted as those events occur rather than simply awarding a commission when the customer initially signs up. FirstPromoter FirstPromoter

It also supports different commission structures—percentage, flat fee, one-time, lifetime recurring and tiered rates—and can connect directly to Stripe, Paddle, Recurly, Chargebee and Braintree. FirstPromoter

Rewardful is probably the simpler alternative if you're Stripe-centric. It specifically advertises recurring commissions and automatic handling of upgrades, downgrades, cancellations and refunds. Rewardful

PartnerStack becomes more interesting if "partners" means more than affiliates—for example agencies, resellers, referral partners and strategic partners. It supports event-based commission models and recurring commissions on renewals and expansion revenue. PartnerStack

One important distinction: "prorated"

I'd specifically test this before choosing a vendor.

Suppose:

• Customer pays $100/month
• Partner gets 20% recurring commission
• Customer upgrades halfway through the month to $200/month
• Stripe generates a $50 prorated charge
• The partner should receive 20% of that $50 = $10
• Next month, the partner should receive 20% of the new $200 recurring charge = $40
• If the customer subsequently cancels/refunds, the partner commission should be correspondingly reversed/clawed back according to your rules.

Don't just ask vendors "Do you support recurring commissions?" Ask them:

"Do you consume Stripe subscription/invoice events and calculate commission against the actual prorated invoice/line-item amount when a customer upgrades or downgrades mid-cycle?"

That's the test that will separate genuinely billing-aware systems from affiliate software that merely tracks recurring subscriptions.

What I'd choose

• Stripe + straightforward SaaS affiliate program: FirstPromoter or Rewardful
• Stripe + complicated commission rules / multiple billing providers: FirstPromoter
• Agencies + affiliates + resellers + larger partner ecosystem: PartnerStack
• Small/early SaaS program: Tolt or Rewardful

Current 2026 comparisons also put FirstPromoter and Rewardful among the strongest options for subscription SaaS, with PartnerStack positioned more toward larger, multi-type B2B partner programs. Rewardful thedigitalmerchant.com

If you tell me your billing stack (e.g. Stripe), commission model (e.g. 20% of MRR for 12 months/lifetime), and what exactly should happen on upgrades/cancellations, I can narrow this down to the 2–3 systems that can actually implement your rules, including pricing and a commission-flow example.

PartnerStack becomes more interesting if "partners" means more than affiliates—for example agencies, resellers, referral partners and strategic partners. It supports event-based commission models and recurring commissions on renewals and expansion revenue.

One important distinction: "prorated"

Yes. What you want is subscription-aware affiliate/partner software, not a traditional ecommerce affiliate tracker. The key is that commissions should follow the billing lifecycle: initial subscription → renewals → upgrades/downgrades → prorations → refunds → cancellation.

My shortlist

FirstPromoter would be my first choice for the exact model you're describing. Its billing integrations can adjust commissions when subscriptions are upgraded/downgraded, and it explicitly supports corrections for refunds and cancellations. It also supports recurring commissions based on lifetime, a fixed number of months, or a fixed number of charges. FirstPromoter FirstPromoter

The commission model I'd recommend

Suppose your partner gets 25% recurring revenue share.

Customer starts:

• Pro = $100/month
• Partner commission = $25

Customer upgrades halfway through the month:

• Stripe calculates the prorated charge
• Affiliate platform receives the resulting billing event
• Partner gets 25% of the actual eligible revenue, rather than another arbitrary $25

Customer later downgrades:

• New recurring commission becomes 25% of the lower subscription revenue

Customer cancels:

• Future recurring commissions stop
• If you refund money already paid, the corresponding commission can be clawed back

That's substantially cleaner than trying to calculate this yourself from subscription status. FirstPromoter specifically describes its system as adjusting payouts for upgrades/downgrades and automatically correcting refunds/cancellations. FirstPromoter FirstPromoter

Rewardful is particularly attractive if you're on Stripe

rewardful.com is worth serious consideration if Stripe is your billing system. It is designed around Stripe subscriptions and supports recurring and one-time commissions, upgrades, downgrades, cancellations and refunds. Rewardful

I'd lean Rewardful if your requirements are relatively straightforward:

"Pay partners X% of subscription revenue for Y months/lifetime, following Stripe billing."

I'd lean FirstPromoter if you need more sophisticated rules such as:

"Partner A gets 20% on Basic, 25% on Pro, 30% on Enterprise; recurring for 12 months; calculate on collected revenue; handle upgrades/downgrades/refunds; different campaigns have different commission rules."

FirstPromoter supports different commission rules by billing event and plan/price, as well as recurring, one-time and tiered commissions. FirstPromoter FirstPromoter

One important thing to verify

I'd specifically test mid-cycle proration, rather than taking a vendor's "supports upgrades" claim at face value.

For example:

1. Partner refers customer.
2. Customer pays $100 on January 1.
3. Partner gets $25.
4. Customer upgrades from $100 → $200 on January 15.
5. Stripe creates a $50 prorated charge.
6. Customer cancels January 20.
7. Stripe issues a partial refund.
8. Partner's commission ledger should reflect the actual net collected revenue.

The software needs to distinguish subscription state changes from actual monetary transactions. That's important because the billing provider should remain the source of truth for what was actually charged/refunded. FirstPromoter

If you tell me what you're using for billing—e.g. Stripe Billing, Chargebee, Recurly, Paddle, or something else—and whether the rev share is lifetime or limited to 6/12/24 months, I can narrow this down to the 2–3 best options and compare their pricing/API capabilities.

I'd lean FirstPromoter if you need more sophisticated rules such as:

"Partner A gets 20% on Basic, 25% on Pro, 30% on Enterprise; recurring for 12 months; calculate on collected revenue; handle upgrades/downgrades/refunds; different campaigns have different commission rules."

FirstPromoter supports different commission rules by billing event and plan/price, as well as recurring, one-time and tiered commissions.

One important thing to verify

I'd specifically test mid-cycle proration, rather than taking a vendor's "supports upgrades" claim at face value.

For example:

Yes. If by “revenue share” you mean something like 20% of the actual subscription revenue for as long as the referred customer remains subscribed, with commissions automatically changing when the customer upgrades, downgrades, gets prorated, refunds, or cancels, you want a subscription-native affiliate/partner platform, not a generic affiliate tracker.

Best options

My first two choices

1. Rewardful — best if you're on Stripe

Rewardful is particularly interesting for your use case because it is tightly integrated with Stripe. It supports recurring and one-time commissions and says it automatically handles upgrades, downgrades, cancellations, refunds and other subscription changes. Its Stripe integration can calculate commission from the actual invoice/payment amount, including prorated changes. Rewardful Rewardful Rewardful

rewardful.com

2. FirstPromoter — best if you want more configurable lifecycle rules

FirstPromoter explicitly supports recurring commissions, upgrades/downgrades, refunds and cancellations. Its current product also lets you define commissions around particular billing events and supports lifetime, tiered and other commission structures. It supports Stripe plus billing systems such as Paddle, Recurly, Chargebee and Braintree. FirstPromoter FirstPromoter FirstPromoter

firstpromoter.com

3. PartnerStack — if “partners” means a serious B2B channel

PartnerStack is more of a full partner-management/PRM platform than a lightweight affiliate tool. It supports recurring commissions tied to subscriptions, renewals and expansion revenue, event-based commissions, and integrations with billing platforms including Stripe and Chargebee. PartnerStack

partnerstack.com

The important distinction for your use case

I'd specifically test this scenario before choosing a vendor:

Customer signs up for $100/month → partner gets 20% = $20
Customer upgrades halfway through month → Stripe generates a $50 prorated charge → partner gets 20% of that $50 = $10
Customer's next renewal is $200/month → partner gets $40
Customer cancels → no further commission
Customer receives a $30 refund → the corresponding commission is reduced/clawed back

Rewardful and FirstPromoter both explicitly address this kind of subscription lifecycle. Rewardful FirstPromoter

One thing I'd be careful about: “recurring commission” isn't necessarily the same as “commission on every actual dollar collected.” Some platforms can calculate based on subscription/plan events rather than the final prorated invoice. That's why I'd make proration + partial refund + mid-cycle upgrade a mandatory test case during evaluation.

What I'd choose

If you're already using Stripe, I'd shortlist:

1. Rewardful — simplest, Stripe-native approach.
2. FirstPromoter — slightly more appealing if you need sophisticated commission rules.
3. PartnerStack — if this is evolving into a broader B2B partner/channel program rather than an affiliate program.

If you tell me your billing stack (Stripe/Paddle/Chargebee/etc.), your desired commission rule (e.g. 20% for 12 months vs. lifetime), and roughly how many partners you expect, I can narrow this to the best 2–3 and compare pricing, payout mechanics, API/webhooks, attribution, prorations, cancellations/clawbacks, and partner portals.

My first two choices

1. Rewardful — best if you're on Stripe

Rewardful is particularly interesting for your use case because it is tightly integrated with Stripe. It supports recurring and one-time commissions and says it automatically handles upgrades, downgrades, cancellations, refunds and other subscription changes. Its Stripe integration can calculate commission from the actual invoice/payment amount, including prorated changes. Rewardful Rewardful Rewardful

rewardful.com

2. FirstPromoter — best if you want more configurable lifecycle rules

FirstPromoter explicitly supports recurring commissions, upgrades/downgrades, refunds and cancellations. Its current product also lets you define commissions around particular billing events and supports lifetime, tiered and other commission structures. It supports Stripe plus billing systems such as Paddle, Recurly, Chargebee and Braintree. FirstPromoter FirstPromoter FirstPromoter

firstpromoter.com

3. PartnerStack — if “partners” means a serious B2B channel

PartnerStack is more of a full partner-management/PRM platform than a lightweight affiliate tool. It supports recurring commissions tied to subscriptions, renewals and expansion revenue, event-based commissions, and integrations with billing platforms including Stripe and Chargebee. PartnerStack

partnerstack.com

The important distinction for your use case

I'd specifically test this scenario before choosing a vendor:

Customer signs up for $100/month → partner gets 20% = $20
Customer upgrades halfway through month → Stripe generates a $50 prorated charge → partner gets 20% of that $50 = $10
Customer's next renewal is $200/month → partner gets $40
Customer cancels → no further commission
Customer receives a $30 refund → the corresponding commission is reduced/clawed back

Rewardful and FirstPromoter both explicitly address this kind of subscription lifecycle.

One thing I'd be careful about: “recurring commission” isn't necessarily the same as “commission on every actual dollar collected.” Some platforms can calculate based on subscription/plan events rather than the final prorated invoice. That's why I'd make proration + partial refund + mid-cycle upgrade a mandatory test case during evaluation.

What I'd choose

For a subscription business, you’ll want a SaaS-focused affiliate/partner commission platform, not a traditional ecommerce affiliate tool. The key requirements are:

• Commission triggered by paid invoices (not just signups/trials)
• Recurring revenue share on renewals
• Automatic adjustments for upgrades, downgrades, proration, refunds, and cancellations
• Partner portal + payout management
• Stripe/Paddle/Chargebee integration (depending on your billing stack)

Some strong options:

A typical commission rule you could configure:

• Partner refers customer → attribution stored
• Customer upgrades from $49/mo → $99/mo → commission recalculates on the new recurring revenue
• Customer cancels → future commissions stop
• Customer receives refund → commission is reversed/clawed back
• Partner earns 20–30% for 12 months (or lifetime, if margins allow)

Rekomi FirstPromoterMy shortlist by scenario:

• Early-stage SaaS + Stripe: FirstPromoter, Rewardful, Partnero
• Need true revenue-share economics tied to MRR/LTV: Rekomi, Track360
• Enterprise partner ecosystem (resellers, integrations, strategic partners): PartnerStack

One thing to verify before choosing: many “affiliate” platforms track the initial purchase but do not correctly model subscription lifecycle events. Ask specifically: “Can you calculate commission from Stripe subscription events including invoice.paid, upgrades, downgrades, cancellations, refunds, and prorations?” TinyAffiliate FirstPromoter

If you share your billing stack (Stripe, Paddle, Chargebee, Recurly, etc.), partner type (affiliates vs resellers), and whether you want lifetime or capped commissions, I can narrow this down.

Yes. What you’re describing is subscription-aware partner/affiliate software—the important requirement is that commissions follow the billing lifecycle rather than being calculated only at the original signup.

Best fits

My first choice would be FirstPromoter if your specific requirement is “pay partners a percentage of subscription revenue, and automatically adjust their earnings when the customer upgrades, downgrades, cancels, or gets refunded.” FirstPromoter says its commissions are tied to billing events and supports recurring commissions, upgrades, downgrades, refunds, cancellations, and reactivations. It also supports Stripe, Paddle, Recurly, Chargebee, and Braintree. FirstPromoter FirstPromoter

Rewardful is probably the easiest alternative if you're entirely on Stripe. It supports recurring commissions and says it automatically adjusts commissions for upgrades, downgrades, cancellations, refunds, and other Stripe billing changes. Rewardful Rewardful

One important distinction: proration

Suppose:

• Partner refers Customer A
• Customer pays $50/month
• Partner gets 20% recurring commission
• Customer upgrades halfway through the month to $100/month
• Stripe generates a $25 prorated charge
• Next month Customer pays $100

You want the partner system to understand the actual billing events, rather than simply saying “this customer was originally a $50 subscription, so commission remains $10.”

That billing-event synchronization is the feature I'd test most carefully in a demo. FirstPromoter explicitly describes upgrade/downgrade adjustments against the new plan value, while Rewardful says it calculates based on what was actually paid. FirstPromoter Rewardful

How I'd structure your program

I'd configure something like:

Partner commission: 20% of collected subscription revenue
Duration: lifetime recurring
Upgrade: commission follows the upgraded amount
Downgrade: commission follows the reduced amount
Cancellation: stop future commissions
Refund: claw back the associated commission
Failed payment: don't commission until payment is actually collected
Reactivation: resume commissions if the customer returns
Payout: monthly, subject to a minimum threshold

For a straightforward Stripe SaaS, I'd shortlist FirstPromoter vs. Rewardful first. If you're building a much larger reseller/channel ecosystem with multiple partner types and sophisticated event-based commission rules, PartnerStack becomes more compelling; it explicitly supports recurring commissions tied to subscriptions, renewals, and expansion revenue. PartnerStack

If you tell me your billing stack (Stripe/Paddle/Chargebee/etc.), approximate number of partners, and the commission rule you want (e.g. 20% for 12 months vs. 20% lifetime), I can narrow this to the best 2–3 options and compare their actual pricing and implementation effort.

For a subscription business, you’ll want a SaaS-aware affiliate/partner commission platform, not a traditional affiliate tracker. The important capabilities are:

• Recurring revenue share (e.g., 20% of every monthly payment)
• Upgrade handling (commission increases when a customer moves from Basic → Pro)
• Downgrade handling
• Cancellation/churn stopping commissions
• Refund/chargeback clawbacks
• Proration support (partial-period subscription changes)
• Stripe/Paddle/Chargebee integration
• Partner portal + automated payouts

Good options to evaluate:

My shortlist by scenario

If you use Stripe and are launching your first partner program

• Start with Rewardful or Partnero. They’re closer to “connect billing → define rev share → pay partners.” marketplace.stripe.comwww.partnero.com

If your model is true SaaS revenue share
Example:

• Partner earns 30% of subscription revenue
• Customer upgrades from $49/mo → $199/mo
• Partner earns 30% of $199 going forward
• Customer cancels → commissions stop

Look at Rekomi, Partnero, Track360, or Tapfiliate, since they explicitly focus on subscription lifecycle events. rekomi.com

If you have agencies/resellers/integration partners (not just affiliates)
Consider PartnerStack or a partner-operations platform because you’ll likely need contracts, tiers, deal registration, and partner enablement—not just referral links. superframeworks.com

Things to verify before choosing

Ask vendors specifically:

1. Does commission calculate from invoices or subscription objects?

Invoice-level tracking is usually better for prorations.

2. How are mid-cycle upgrades handled?

Example:

• Customer pays $100/mo
• Upgrades halfway through the month to $200/mo
• Does partner get commission on the $50 prorated difference?

3. Can commissions be different by plan?

Example:

• Starter: 20%
• Pro: 30%
• Enterprise: custom

4. Can you cap the revenue share?

Example:

• 30% for first 12 months only
• Lifetime only for strategic partners

5. Does it support your billing stack?

Stripe Billing, Paddle, Chargebee, Recurly, etc.

If you tell me your stack (Stripe/Paddle/Chargebee/etc.), subscription model (monthly/annual), and whether partners are affiliates vs agencies/resellers, I can narrow this to the best 2–3 choices.

Yes. What you’re describing is subscription-aware partner/affiliate software—the important part is that commissions need to follow the customer lifecycle, not just pay once when someone signs up.

My shortlist

1. FirstPromoter — probably the closest match

For your specific requirement, I'd investigate FirstPromoter first.

It explicitly tracks billing events including renewals, upgrades, downgrades, cancellations and reactivations, and can update commissions based on those events. It supports percentage or fixed commissions, lifetime recurring commissions, time-limited commissions, and commission rules by billing event. FirstPromoter FirstPromoter

So you could have something like:

Partner refers customer → customer pays $100 → partner gets 20%
Customer upgrades to $200 → partner gets 20% of the new recurring amount
Customer cancels → future commissions stop
Customer gets a refund → corresponding commission is reversed/clawed back

It natively integrates with Stripe, Paddle, Recurly, Chargebee and Braintree. FirstPromoter FirstPromoter

2. Rewardful — excellent if you're on Stripe

If your billing stack is Stripe, Rewardful is probably the simplest alternative.

It supports recurring and one-time commissions and says it automatically handles upgrades, downgrades, cancellations and refunds. Rewardful

The big advantage is simplicity: it's designed around Stripe subscriptions rather than being a giant enterprise partner-management system.

rewardful.com

3. PartnerStack — if "partners" means a broader channel program

I'd consider PartnerStack if you're building something bigger than an affiliate program—for example:

• Affiliates
• Referral partners
• Agencies
• Resellers
• Integration partners
• Tiered partner programs
• Different commission structures by partner type

PartnerStack supports recurring commissions tied to subscriptions and expansion revenue, event-based commissions, and connections to billing systems such as Stripe and Chargebee. PartnerStack

It also has drip commissions, which can be useful if you don't want to immediately pay the full commission because of cancellation/refund risk. PartnerStack

partnerstack.com

The important question: what do you mean by "pro-rated"?

There are actually two different problems that software vendors may call prorating:

A. Billing proration

Customer is paying $50/month and upgrades halfway through the month to $100/month. Your billing system generates something like a $25 prorated upgrade charge.

You want the partner commission to reflect the actual $25 incremental revenue.

B. Commission proration

You pay partners 20% of subscription revenue, and the customer cancels halfway through a billing period. You want the partner's commission adjusted based on the amount actually retained.

If B is what you need, I'd pay particular attention to how each platform handles refunds, credits, cancellations, and negative commission adjustments, rather than merely asking whether it supports "recurring commissions."

FirstPromoter looks particularly aligned with this requirement because its documentation explicitly describes commissions being adjusted with billing events and cancellation/refund correction. FirstPromoter FirstPromoter

What I'd choose

• Stripe + relatively straightforward affiliate program: Rewardful
• Stripe/Paddle/Chargebee/Recurly + complex subscription lifecycle: FirstPromoter
• Large B2B SaaS partner ecosystem: PartnerStack
• SaaS + ecommerce: Tapfiliate
• Early-stage/simple partner program: Tolt

For your use case, I'd start by comparing FirstPromoter vs. Rewardful. The deciding question is whether you need genuinely billing-event-level commission accounting or simply recurring commissions tied to Stripe subscriptions.

If you tell me what you're using for billing (Stripe, Chargebee, Recurly, Paddle, etc.) and roughly how you want the commission to work (e.g. “20% of every dollar for 12 months, including upgrades, but claw back on cancellation”), I can narrow this down to the best 2–3 and map out exactly how each would handle your scenario.

A. Billing proration

Customer is paying $50/month and upgrades halfway through the month to $100/month. Your billing system generates something like a $25 prorated upgrade charge.

You want the partner commission to reflect the actual $25 incremental revenue.

B. Commission proration

You pay partners 20% of subscription revenue, and the customer cancels halfway through a billing period. You want the partner's commission adjusted based on the amount actually retained.

If B is what you need, I'd pay particular attention to how each platform handles refunds, credits, cancellations, and negative commission adjustments, rather than merely asking whether it supports "recurring commissions."

FirstPromoter looks particularly aligned with this requirement because its documentation explicitly describes commissions being adjusted with billing events and cancellation/refund correction.

What I'd choose

Yes. If your model is subscription revenue share, especially where customers can upgrade, downgrade, cancel, refund, or renew, you want a SaaS affiliate platform that is tied to billing events—not a basic affiliate tracker.

Best fits

My recommendation

If you're on Stripe, I'd shortlist Rewardful and FirstPromoter.

Rewardful is particularly interesting for your exact requirement. Its Stripe integration is designed around subscription lifecycle changes: when a customer upgrades mid-cycle, it says it calculates commission from the final prorated Stripe invoice; refunds and partial refunds adjust commissions as well; and recurring commissions continue or stop according to the subscription's actual state. Rewardful Stripe App Marketplace

FirstPromoter is the stronger choice if you need more sophisticated commission rules. It supports lifetime recurring commissions, commissions for a fixed number of months/charges, different rates over time, and billing-event-based adjustments. It explicitly supports upgrades, downgrades, refunds and cancellations, with native integrations for Stripe, Paddle, Chargebee, Recurly and Braintree. FirstPromoter FirstPromoter

For example, you could configure something like:

Partner receives 25% of net subscription revenue for every referred customer.
Customer upgrades → commission automatically increases based on the prorated/updated billing amount.
Customer downgrades → future commission decreases.
Customer cancels → recurring commission stops.
Refund → corresponding commission is reversed/clawed back.

That's substantially better than trying to calculate commissions yourself from Stripe webhooks.

One important distinction

I'd decide what you mean by "revenue share" before selecting the platform:

1. % of each actual invoice/payment — easiest and safest.
2. % of MRR/ARR — requires more careful handling of upgrades/downgrades.
3. % of gross revenue vs. net revenue — important when discounts, refunds, taxes, credits and Stripe fees are involved.
4. Commission for the customer's lifetime vs. first 12 months.
5. Clawback on cancellation/refund — e.g. don't pay a partner until the payment clears or reverse commission if refunded.

FirstPromoter, for example, supports lifetime, time-limited, and charge-count-based recurring commissions, as well as percentage or flat commissions. FirstPromoter

If you tell me what billing stack you're using (e.g. Stripe + Stripe Billing, Chargebee, Paddle) and your intended revenue-share rule, I can narrow this down to the 2–3 best options and compare their pricing, API/webhook capabilities, proration handling, and payout mechanics.

Rewardful is particularly interesting for your exact requirement. Its Stripe integration is designed around subscription lifecycle changes: when a customer upgrades mid-cycle, it says it calculates commission from the final prorated Stripe invoice; refunds and partial refunds adjust commissions as well; and recurring commissions continue or stop according to the subscription's actual state. rewardful.com marketplace.stripe.com

FirstPromoter is the stronger choice if you need more sophisticated commission rules. It supports lifetime recurring commissions, commissions for a fixed number of months/charges, different rates over time, and billing-event-based adjustments. It explicitly supports upgrades, downgrades, refunds and cancellations, with native integrations for Stripe, Paddle, Chargebee, Recurly and Braintree. firstpromoter.com help.firstpromoter.com

For example, you could configure something like:

Partner receives 25% of net subscription revenue for every referred customer.
Customer upgrades → commission automatically increases based on the prorated/updated billing amount.
Customer downgrades → future commission decreases.
Customer cancels → recurring commission stops.
Refund → corresponding commission is reversed/clawed back.

That's substantially better than trying to calculate commissions yourself from Stripe webhooks.

One important distinction

I'd decide what you mean by "revenue share" before selecting the platform:

For a subscription business, you’ll want a partner/affiliate platform that understands subscription lifecycle events, not just first-sale tracking. The key capabilities to look for are:

• Recurring revenue share (pay partners every billing cycle)
• Upgrade/downgrade handling (commission recalculates when a customer changes plans)
• Cancellation/churn stopping future commissions
• Refund/chargeback reversals
• Stripe/Paddle/Braintree/subscription billing integrations
• Partner portal + automated payouts
• Tiered partner rates (e.g., affiliates vs strategic partners)

Some strong options:

For your specific use case (upgrades + cancellations)

I would prioritize tools that ingest billing events, not just referral clicks.

A good commission model would look like:

1. Partner refers customer.
2. Customer subscribes to Starter ($50/mo).
3. Partner earns 20% ($10/mo).
4. Customer upgrades to Pro ($100/mo).
5. Commission automatically becomes $20/mo.
6. Customer cancels.
7. Commission stops after the final paid period.
8. Refunds/failed payments reverse unpaid commissions.

Platforms built around Stripe subscription events tend to handle this better than traditional affiliate systems. Rekomi Icodrip

My shortlist by company stage

• Early SaaS (<$1M ARR): Rewardful, FirstPromoter, Tapfiliate
• Growing SaaS ($1M–$20M ARR): FirstPromoter, PartnerStack, Rekomi
• Enterprise partner ecosystem: PartnerStack, impact.com

If you tell me your billing stack (Stripe, Paddle, Chargebee, Recurly, Zuora, etc.), partner type (affiliates vs agencies/resellers), and whether commissions are lifetime recurring or capped (e.g., 12 months), I can narrow this down.

Yes. What you’re describing is SaaS affiliate/partner software that understands the subscription billing lifecycle, rather than a basic affiliate tracker.

The key requirement is that commissions should follow the customer—not just the original signup:

• Customer subscribes → commission created
• Customer renews → recurring commission
• Customer upgrades mid-cycle → commission reflects the higher/prorated revenue
• Customer downgrades → commission decreases appropriately
• Customer cancels → future commissions stop
• Customer gets refunded → commission is reversed/clawed back
• Ideally, you can define whether partners earn on net revenue, gross revenue, the prorated upgrade amount, or only certain billing events

My shortlist

1. FirstPromoter — probably the strongest match

This is the one I'd investigate first if proration and billing accuracy are important.

FirstPromoter explicitly tracks subscription events including renewals, upgrades, downgrades, cancellations, refunds and reactivations, and updates commissions based on those events. It also supports percentage, flat, one-time, lifetime recurring and tiered commissions. firstpromoter.com

That makes it particularly attractive if your desired rule is something like:

Partner receives 20% of subscription revenue for as long as the referred customer remains subscribed, with commissions automatically adjusting when the customer changes plans.

It also supports clawback rules for cancellations. firstpromoter.com

2. Rewardful — excellent if you're Stripe-first

If your billing is entirely through Stripe and you want something simpler, Rewardful is a very strong option.

It specifically says it automatically adjusts commissions for upgrades, downgrades, cancellations and trials, and calculates commissions from paid invoices. help.rewardful.com

The major attraction is simplicity: connect Stripe, define the commission structure, and let it follow the subscription.

3. PartnerStack — if "partners" means more than affiliates

I'd look at PartnerStack if you're building a broader partner channel involving:

• affiliates
• agencies
• resellers
• referral partners
• technology partners
• multiple commission plans

It supports event-based commission models and recurring commissions tied to renewals and expansion revenue. partnerstack.com

It's substantially more of a partner-management platform than something like Rewardful.

What I'd choose

If you're a SaaS company using Stripe:

FirstPromoter → Rewardful → PartnerStack

I'd put FirstPromoter ahead if the billing lifecycle/proration logic is the core requirement. Rewardful wins if you want the simplest possible implementation. PartnerStack wins if you're building a serious B2B partner ecosystem.

One important thing I'd verify in demos: don't just ask "does it support prorated upgrades?" Ask them to demonstrate this exact scenario:

Customer pays $100/month. Partner gets 20%. Customer upgrades halfway through the month to $200/month. Stripe generates a $50 prorated charge. Show us exactly what commission is generated, when it is generated, and what happens if the customer subsequently cancels/refunds that invoice.

That's where superficially similar affiliate platforms can behave very differently.

If you tell me what billing system you use (Stripe, Chargebee, Paddle, Recurly, etc.), your desired commission rule, and roughly how many partners you expect, I can narrow this to the 2–3 best options and compare their proration, clawbacks, payout fees, API/webhooks, and pricing.

Yes. What you’re describing is subscription-aware partner/affiliate commission software—the important part is that commissions are tied to billing events rather than just the initial referral.

Best options

My shortlist for your use case

1. FirstPromoter — probably the strongest match

FirstPromoter explicitly tracks the subscription lifecycle: renewals, upgrades, downgrades, cancellations and reactivations, with commission logic configurable by billing event, period, or lifetime. It also supports recurring, percentage, flat, and tiered commissions. firstpromoter.com

That makes it particularly interesting if your model is something like:

Partner refers customer → customer pays $100/month → partner gets 20% → customer upgrades to $200 → partner gets 20% of the new recurring amount → customer cancels → future commissions stop / clawback according to your rules.

It also supports multiple billing systems, including Stripe, Paddle, Recurly, Chargebee and Braintree. firstpromoter.com

2. Rewardful — best if you're on Stripe and want simplicity

Rewardful is very tightly integrated with Stripe and says it automatically handles recurring commissions, upgrades, downgrades, cancellations and refunds. www.rewardful.com

Importantly for your question, Rewardful says its commission calculations reflect what the customer actually paid, including billing upgrades/downgrades, rather than simply continuing to use the original subscription amount. www.rewardful.com

So if you're a relatively lean SaaS company running Stripe subscriptions, I'd put this near the top.

3. PartnerStack — if "partners" means more than affiliates

PartnerStack is more appropriate if you're building a serious B2B partner ecosystem involving affiliates, referral partners, agencies, resellers, co-selling, etc. It supports recurring/usage-based commissions, expansion revenue and installment ("drip") commissions. partnerstack.com

It's likely overkill if all you need is "give partners 20% of subscription revenue."

One thing I'd verify in demos

The phrase "pro-rated commissions" is important. I'd specifically ask each vendor:

"If a customer is $100/month, upgrades halfway through the month to $200/month, and Stripe creates a prorated $50 invoice adjustment, exactly what commission ledger entries are created for the partner?"

And also:

"If they cancel halfway through the billing period, do you commission the prorated revenue actually collected, the original invoice amount, or reverse previously accrued commission?"

That's where seemingly similar affiliate platforms can behave quite differently. Stripe itself handles the subscription proration; the question is whether the partner platform's commission ledger mirrors those billing events correctly. www.rewardful.com

If you tell me what you're using for billing (Stripe, Paddle, Chargebee, Recurly, etc.) and roughly how you want the revenue share to work (e.g. 20% for 12 months, lifetime, until cancellation, clawbacks, etc.), I can narrow this to the 2–3 best choices and compare their pricing.

Yes. If you're selling subscriptions and want partners paid on the actual subscription lifecycle—including upgrades, downgrades, cancellations, refunds, and recurring renewals—you should use a SaaS-focused partner/affiliate platform rather than a generic affiliate tracker.

Best options

1. FirstPromoter — probably the closest fit

FirstPromoter is specifically designed around subscription billing. It says it tracks renewals, upgrades, downgrades, cancellations and reactivations, with commission calculations tied to billing events. It supports Stripe, Paddle, Recurly, Chargebee and Braintree. firstpromoter.comhelp.firstpromoter.compartnerstack.com

It also supports:

• Lifetime recurring commissions
• Fixed-duration recurring commissions, e.g. 20% for 12 months
• Different commission rates over time
• Percentage or fixed commissions
• Cancellation clawbacks
• Partner-specific commission rules
• Automated payouts and tax documentation help.firstpromoter.com

This would be my first product to evaluate if your requirement is literally "pay partners a percentage of subscription revenue, including changes to the subscription."

2. Rewardful — best if you're on Stripe and want simplicity

Rewardful has particularly straightforward Stripe integration. It explicitly supports recurring commissions, upgrades, downgrades, cancellations and refunds, and automatically adjusts commissions based on subscription changes. www.rewardful.com

I'd favor it if your setup is essentially:

Stripe → customer subscription → affiliate attribution → X% recurring revenue share

and you don't need a sophisticated PRM.

3. PartnerStack — better for a serious partner ecosystem

If by "partners" you mean agencies, resellers, strategic partners, affiliates and referral partners, rather than just affiliates, PartnerStack becomes more interesting.

It supports recurring commissions tied to subscriptions and expansion revenue, event-based commission triggers, and "drip" commissions that pay partners incrementally over time. It also supports Stripe and Chargebee connections. partnerstack.com

The tradeoff is that it's more of a full partner management platform than a lightweight affiliate tool.

One important distinction: "pro-rated" commissions

I'd specifically test this with each vendor rather than assuming that "supports upgrades" means it handles your exact accounting model.

For example, suppose:

• Partner gets 20% revenue share
• Customer starts at $100/month
• Customer upgrades halfway through the month to $200/month
• Stripe charges a $50 prorated difference
• Partner should receive 20% of that $50 = $10
• Customer subsequently cancels and receives a prorated refund
• Partner's commission should potentially be reduced/clawed back accordingly

That's more specific than simply "tracking upgrades."

FirstPromoter and Rewardful both claim to adjust commissions for subscription changes, but I'd validate your exact Stripe invoice/credit-note/proration scenario in a trial before committing. www.rewardful.com

My recommendation

If you tell me your billing stack (Stripe, Chargebee, Recurly, Paddle, etc.) and your desired rule—for example, "partners get 25% of all revenue for 12 months, including upgrades, minus refunds"—I can compare the top 3 specifically against that commission logic and tell you which one I'd choose.

Yes. For your use case, you want subscription-aware affiliate/partner software, not a generic affiliate tracker. The critical capability is that commissions follow the actual billing lifecycle—renewals, prorated upgrades/downgrades, refunds, and cancellations.

Best fits

1. Rewardful — probably the simplest if you're on Stripe

Rewardful

Rewardful is particularly well suited to this model. It supports recurring commissions and automatically adjusts commissions for upgrades, downgrades, cancellations, refunds, and other Stripe billing changes. Its newer Stripe integration specifically handles mid-cycle prorated upgrades based on the final prorated invoice amount. www.rewardful.com

For example:

• Partner refers customer → 20% commission
• Customer pays $100/month → $20 commission
• Customer upgrades halfway through the month → Stripe generates a prorated charge → commission adjusts to the actual revenue
• Customer renews → another 20% commission
• Customer cancels → future recurring commissions stop
• Customer gets refunded → commission is adjusted accordingly

One caveat: if you have already paid the affiliate and subsequently issue a refund, Rewardful says the overpayment needs to be handled manually; keeping commissions pending through your refund window can prevent this. www.rewardful.com

2. FirstPromoter — strongest alternative / more billing-provider flexibility

FirstPromoter

FirstPromoter is another very strong match. It explicitly tracks recurring and one-time charges, upgrades, downgrades, cancellations, refunds and chargebacks, and adjusts referral commissions based on those events. firstpromoter.com

A particularly useful feature for partner programs is its flexible commission duration:

• Lifetime recurring commission
• Recurring for 12 months
• Recurring for a fixed number of charges
• Different commission rates at different stages

It supports Stripe plus several other billing systems, including Paddle, Chargebee, Recurly and Braintree. help.firstpromoter.comwww.rewardful.com

3. PartnerStack — consider this if "partners" means a broader B2B partner channel

PartnerStack

I'd look at PartnerStack if you're building more than an affiliate program—for example, referral partners + agencies + resellers + affiliates. It's more of a full partner-management platform, whereas Rewardful/FirstPromoter are more focused on the subscription-affiliate use case. firstpromoter.com

My recommendation

If your business is roughly:

SaaS subscription → Stripe → partners get X% of customer revenue

I'd shortlist them as:

The biggest distinction I'd make is Rewardful vs. FirstPromoter. Both now explicitly address the messy subscription lifecycle you're describing. Rewardful's Stripe integration is particularly compelling if Stripe is your source of truth and prorated upgrades are important. FirstPromoter is more attractive if you want more sophisticated commission rules or may use multiple billing providers. help.firstpromoter.comwww.rewardful.com

One thing I'd verify during a demo: exactly how they treat a cancellation occurring mid-cycle. There's an important difference between (a) stopping commissions immediately, (b) stopping them at the subscription period end, and (c) clawing back commission on an early termination/refund. That's a business-rule question rather than simply an "affiliate tracking" feature.

If you tell me what billing system you're using (Stripe/Paddle/Chargebee/etc.), your desired commission rule (e.g. 20% of net revenue for 12 months), and whether partners are affiliates or contracted B2B partners, I can narrow this to the best 2–3 options and map out exactly how the prorated upgrade/cancellation logic would work.

For a subscription business, you’ll want a SaaS-aware affiliate/partner commission platform, not a traditional affiliate tracker. The key capabilities to look for are:

• Recurring revenue share (e.g., 20% of every invoice)
• Upgrade/downgrade handling (commission adjusts when a customer moves plans)
• Cancellation/churn stopping (future commissions stop automatically)
• Proration support (mid-cycle upgrades, credits, partial invoices)
• Refund/chargeback clawbacks
• Stripe/Paddle integration or webhooks
• Partner portal + payout management

Some strong options:

Recommended commission model for subscription upgrades/cancellations

A common SaaS setup:

1. Customer signs up through partner link
2. Commission activates after the first successful paid invoice
3. Partner earns a percentage of net collected revenue
4. If customer upgrades:
   • commission increases automatically based on new plan amount
5. If customer downgrades:
   • commission decreases
6. If customer cancels:
   • future recurring commissions stop
7. Refunds/chargebacks:
   • reverse unpaid or future commissions

This "pay on collected revenue" approach avoids paying partners for customers who never become retained subscribers. www.tinyaffiliate.com

My shortlist by company stage

• Early SaaS (Stripe, <100 partners): Rewardful, FirstPromoter, Tolt
• Growing SaaS with agencies/resellers: PartnerStack, Track360
• Heavy subscription lifecycle logic (MRR, churn cohorts, complex plans): Rekomi, HeldSway

One important question: are these affiliate partners who simply refer customers, or resellers/strategic partners who may own accounts and renewals? The right software differs quite a bit between those two models.

Yes. If your model is subscription revenue share where the partner’s commission should follow the customer’s actual billing lifecycle—renewals, upgrades/downgrades, cancellations, refunds, and ideally Stripe proration—you should look at SaaS-specific affiliate/partner platforms rather than generic affiliate software.

Best fits

My first choice would be FirstPromoter if you're using Stripe. It explicitly tracks subscription lifecycle events and says commissions are recalculated for renewals, upgrades, downgrades, cancellations and reactivations. You can also configure commissions as percentage/flat, recurring/lifetime, time-limited, or tied to particular billing events. firstpromoter.comhelp.rewardful.comsage.tolt.io

FirstPromoter

Rewardful is probably the closest alternative if you want something simpler and are Stripe-only. Its current Stripe integration says commissions automatically adjust for upgrades, downgrades, cancellations, refunds and other billing-event changes. help.rewardful.com

Rewardful

Tolt is another SaaS-focused option. It syncs with Stripe, Paddle and Chargebee and says subscription cancellations/refunds update the affiliate relationship automatically. sage.tolt.io

Tolt

One important distinction: "recurring" vs. "prorated"

I'd specifically test this scenario before choosing a vendor:

Customer pays $100/month → partner gets 20% ($20).
Customer upgrades halfway through the month to $200/month → Stripe creates a $50 prorated charge.
Partner should receive 20% of that $50 = $10 additional commission.
Customer subsequently cancels/refunds → commission should be clawed back appropriately.

A lot of affiliate software says it handles "upgrades" but doesn't necessarily mean commission is calculated from the exact prorated invoice line items. That's the requirement I'd put in your vendor evaluation.

FirstPromoter is particularly interesting here because it says its commissions are tied to actual Stripe billing events and specifically supports upgrades, downgrades, cancellations and refunds. firstpromoter.com

What I'd require in your evaluation

Ask each vendor whether it supports:

1. Recurring % of collected revenue, not just signup commissions.
2. Stripe prorations on mid-cycle upgrades/downgrades.
3. Commission calculated on the net amount actually collected.
4. Refund/chargeback clawbacks.
5. Commission changes when a customer changes plans.
6. Cancellation immediately vs. at end of billing period.
7. Multiple partner commission rules.
8. A complete commission ledger/audit trail tied to Stripe invoices.
9. Manual commission adjustments.
10. API/webhooks so you can reconcile their numbers against your own billing system.

If you're building a partner revenue-share program rather than a traditional affiliate program, I would lean toward FirstPromoter vs. Rewardful vs. Tolt, and I can do a deeper comparison of pricing, exact proration behavior, APIs, payout handling, and whether each can support your specific upgrade/cancellation commission formula.

Yes. For a SaaS subscription model where partner commissions need to follow recurring payments, upgrades/downgrades, cancellations, refunds, and prorated invoice changes, I’d shortlist these:

My first two choices

1. FirstPromoter — probably the closest match

FirstPromoter explicitly ties commissions to billing events and says commissions update when customers renew, upgrade, downgrade, cancel, or reactivate. It supports percentage/flat commissions, lifetime recurring commissions, time-limited recurring commissions, and different rates over the customer's lifecycle. It also natively integrates with Stripe, Paddle, Chargebee, Recurly, and Braintree. help.firstpromoter.comwww.rewardful.compartnerstack.com

That makes it particularly interesting if your rule is something like:

Partner gets 20% of net subscription revenue for every month the referred customer remains active; if the customer upgrades mid-cycle, commission follows the actual billing amount; if they cancel/refund, the commission is adjusted/clawed back.

FirstPromoter specifically advertises cancellation/refund clawbacks and billing-event-based commission logic. firstpromoter.com

2. Rewardful — excellent if you're on Stripe

Rewardful is very Stripe-centric. It automatically adjusts commissions for upgrades, downgrades, cancellations, trials and refunds, and recurring commissions are generated from subsequent paid invoices. help.rewardful.com

Its 2026 documentation also says that for upgrades/downgrades, commission is adjusted based on what the customer actually paid, which is important if you're dealing with Stripe prorations. www.rewardful.com

3. PartnerStack — if "partners" means a broader B2B ecosystem

PartnerStack is more of a full PRM/partner ecosystem platform than a lightweight affiliate tool. It supports recurring commissions, renewals, expansion revenue, event-based commission triggers, and drip/installment commissions. It also handles partner payouts and supports referral, co-sell and reseller models. partnerstack.com

I'd lean toward it if you expect agencies, resellers, technology partners, affiliates, and referral partners rather than just affiliates.

One important distinction

I'd verify the exact proration behavior during demos. "Supports upgrades" isn't necessarily the same as "correctly handles a Stripe prorated upgrade and calculates the partner's share of the prorated credit/debit."

If you tell me your billing stack (e.g. Stripe), your exact commission rule (e.g. 20% of every dollar collected), and whether you want commissions to continue for the customer's lifetime or for X months, I can narrow this to the best 2–3 and compare the exact mechanics and pricing.

Yes. What you’re describing is subscription-aware affiliate/partner software—the key requirement is that commissions follow the billing lifecycle rather than treating the initial signup as a one-time sale.

Best fits

\*I'd verify the exact upgrade/cancellation behavior for your billing configuration during a demo rather than assuming every edge case is automatic.

My first choice: FirstPromoter

For the specific model you described, FirstPromoter looks particularly well aligned. It says it tracks recurring and one-time charges as well as upgrades, cancellations, refunds and chargebacks, and automatically adjusts commissions based on those billing events. firstpromoter.comfirstpromoter.com

For example, you could structure:

• Partner refers customer → 20% recurring commission
• Customer starts at $50/mo → partner earns $10/mo
• Customer upgrades to $100/mo → commission automatically becomes $20/mo
• Customer downgrades to $40/mo → commission becomes $8/mo
• Customer cancels → recurring commissions stop
• Customer gets refunded → previously calculated commission can be reversed/clawed back
• Failed payment → don't accrue/pay commission until the revenue actually clears

FirstPromoter specifically advertises commission rules based on billing events and supports percentage, flat, one-time, lifetime recurring and tiered commissions. firstpromoter.comfirstpromoter.com

It also supports several billing systems—including Stripe, Paddle, Recurly, Chargebee and Braintree—which is useful if you're not exclusively on Stripe. firstpromoter.com

When I'd choose the others

Rewardful — I'd investigate this first if you're Stripe-centric and want something relatively lightweight. It's specifically positioned around SaaS subscription affiliate programs and recurring billing. www.rewardful.com

PartnerStack — better if "partners" means more than affiliates: agencies, resellers, technology partners, referral partners, etc. It's more of a comprehensive partner ecosystem than a lightweight affiliate commission engine.

Tolt — worth considering if you want a simpler, SaaS-focused option and don't need the broader partner-management capabilities of PartnerStack.

One important distinction

I'd make sure the vendor can handle pro-rating at the billing-event level, not merely "recurring commissions."

For example, suppose:

Customer pays $50 on August 1 → upgrades to $100 on August 15 → gets a $25 prorated credit and is charged $75.

You want the affiliate system to understand the actual recognized/charged revenue, rather than blindly generating 20% of $100 for the month. That's the sort of edge case I'd explicitly test in a demo.

If you tell me what billing system you're using (Stripe, Paddle, Chargebee, Recurly, etc.), your commission rule (e.g. 20% of revenue for 12 months/lifetime), and whether you mean "partners" as affiliates or resellers, I can narrow this to 2–3 options and compare their exact handling of prorations, upgrades, cancellations, refunds, and payouts.

Yes. If your partners earn a percentage of actual subscription revenue, including changes when customers upgrade, downgrade, or cancel, you want a SaaS affiliate/partner platform that syncs directly with your billing system rather than a generic affiliate tracker.

Best options

1. Rewardful — probably the closest match

Rewardful

Rewardful is specifically built around subscription businesses. With Stripe, it calculates commissions from the amount actually paid and automatically adjusts commissions for upgrades, downgrades, cancellations, refunds and trials. help.rewardful.com

For example:

• Customer starts at $50/mo
• Partner gets 20% = $10/mo
• Customer upgrades to $100/mo
• Partner's subsequent commission becomes $20/mo
• Customer cancels → recurring commission stops
• Customer receives a partial refund → commission is adjusted accordingly

That makes it particularly attractive if your definition of revenue share is essentially “partner gets X% of the subscription revenue we actually collect.”

2. FirstPromoter — strongest alternative

FirstPromoter

FirstPromoter supports recurring commissions that can run for the customer's lifetime, a specified number of months, or a fixed number of charges. It also supports variable commission rates over time. help.firstpromoter.com

It integrates natively with Stripe, Paddle, Chargebee, Recurly and Braintree, and explicitly tracks upgrades, cancellations and refunds. help.firstpromoter.com

I'd favor this if you need more sophisticated commission rules than simply “20% of every invoice.”

3. PartnerStack — if these are strategic/B2B partners

PartnerStack

PartnerStack is more of a full partner ecosystem platform than an affiliate tracker. It supports recurring revenue share, renewals, upsells and “drip” commissions where partners get paid over time as revenue is realized. partnerstack.com

It's the one I'd investigate if your “partners” include resellers, agencies, referral partners and co-sell partners, rather than just affiliates.

My recommendation

If you're on Stripe, I'd shortlist:

Rewardful → FirstPromoter → PartnerStack

For your specific requirement, I'd start with Rewardful. Its billing-event model is very close to what you're describing, and it explicitly handles the messy cases—upgrades, downgrades, cancellations and refunds—rather than making you reconcile them yourself. help.rewardful.com

One important thing to clarify before choosing: what exactly do you mean by “pro-rated”? If a customer upgrades halfway through a billing period and Stripe generates a $37.42 prorated invoice/credit, you probably want the partner's commission calculated from the net revenue actually collected, rather than simply applying the percentage to the new plan price. I'd verify that behavior with whichever platform you choose.

If you tell me your billing stack (Stripe/Chargebee/Paddle/etc.), whether partners get paid for the lifetime of the customer or for a fixed period, and your desired commission formula, I can narrow this down to the best 2–3 options and compare their pricing/API capabilities.

Yes. If your partners earn a percentage of subscription revenue, the important thing is not just affiliate tracking—it’s billing-event-aware commission accounting. You want commissions to follow the customer through renewals, upgrades, downgrades, refunds, and cancellations.

My shortlist

1. FirstPromoter — probably the strongest fit

This is the one I'd investigate first if your requirement is specifically:

"Partner gets X% of actual subscription revenue, and the commission automatically changes when the customer's subscription changes."

FirstPromoter says its commission engine tracks renewals, upgrades, downgrades, cancellations and reactivations, with commission logic configurable by billing event, period, or lifetime. It also supports percentage, fixed, one-time, lifetime recurring, and tiered commissions. firstpromoter.com

That makes it particularly interesting if you eventually want rules such as:

• 20% of subscription revenue for 12 months
• 30% lifetime recurring
• 10% on upgrades
• No commission after cancellation
• Claw back commission on refunds
• Different rates for different plans
• Different rates for different partner tiers

It also supports Stripe, Paddle, Recurly, Chargebee and Braintree. firstpromoter.com

2. Rewardful — excellent if you're on Stripe

If you're using Stripe and want something relatively simple, Rewardful is very compelling.

It explicitly supports automatic commission adjustments for upgrades, downgrades, cancellations, refunds and trials, and recurring commissions are generated from paid subscription invoices. help.rewardful.com

So, for example:

Customer starts at $50/mo → partner gets 20% = $10

Then:

Customer upgrades to $100/mo → partner gets 20% = $20

Then:

Customer cancels → recurring commissions stop

That is exactly the type of lifecycle you're describing.

Rewardful

3. PartnerStack — if "partners" means a broader B2B channel

I'd look at PartnerStack if you're building something bigger than a traditional affiliate program—e.g. agencies, consultants, resellers, referral partners and co-selling partners.

It supports recurring commissions tied to subscriptions, renewals and expansion revenue, as well as event-based commission models and installment/drip commissions. partnerstack.com

It is more of a full partner ecosystem platform, though, so I'd consider it potentially overkill if all you need is:

referral → subscription → recurring revenue share → automatic adjustment on billing changes.

4. Tolt — worth considering for a lean implementation

Tolt is aimed specifically at SaaS startups and supports Stripe, Paddle and Chargebee. Its two-way billing sync detects subscription events such as subscriptions, cancellations and refunds and updates the affiliate accordingly. sage.tolt.io

I'd put it behind FirstPromoter/Rewardful if precise upgrade/downgrade commission logic is a core requirement, but it's worth evaluating for a simpler program.

What I'd choose

If I were designing your program:

Stripe + straightforward recurring revenue share → Rewardful

Stripe + complicated commission rules / multiple billing systems → FirstPromoter

B2B SaaS + agencies/resellers/referral/co-sell partners → PartnerStack

Early-stage SaaS + simple affiliate program → Tolt

The key question I'd ask vendors before buying is:

"If a customer is paying $100/month and upgrades mid-cycle to $200/month, exactly how is the partner's commission calculated, and what happens to the commission if they later downgrade, refund, or cancel?"

Don't settle for a platform that merely says "recurring commissions." You want the commission engine tied to actual billing events, because that's what prevents your finance team from having to reconcile partner payouts against Stripe every month.

If you tell me what billing system you use (Stripe, Chargebee, Paddle, etc.), your intended revenue-share rule (e.g. 20% for 12 months or lifetime), and roughly how many partners you expect, I can narrow this to the 2–3 best options and compare their pricing and implementation.

A few platforms can handle recurring affiliate commissions plus subscription upgrades/cancellations and prorated adjustments. The best fit depends on whether you want the affiliate platform to calculate commission from billing events or just receive events from Stripe/your billing system.

Good options to evaluate:

• Rewardful — strong choice if you're on Stripe; supports recurring commissions and subscription events with relatively little setup.
• FirstPromoter — built for SaaS subscriptions, recurring commissions, upgrades/downgrades, refunds, and cancellations.
• PartnerStack — better suited to a larger partner program with multiple partner types, tiers, and more sophisticated commission rules.
• Tolt — SaaS-focused affiliate management with Stripe integration and recurring commissions; generally simpler than enterprise partner platforms.
• Everflow — powerful if you need highly configurable attribution and commission rules across many acquisition channels, though it can be more infrastructure than you need.

For your specific requirement—“revenue share on subscription upgrades and cancellations, including prorating”—I'd shortlist FirstPromoter and Rewardful first, then PartnerStack if you're building a more complex partner program.

One important detail: “prorated commissions” can mean two different things. If a customer upgrades halfway through a billing period, you may want the partner to earn commission only on the incremental prorated revenue, while a cancellation/refund may require a negative commission or clawback. Not every affiliate platform handles those accounting rules natively.

If you tell me what billing system you use (e.g. Stripe, Chargebee, Recurly) and your desired commission rule, I can compare the platforms specifically against that workflow.

Yes. If your business is subscription SaaS, I’d focus on affiliate/partner platforms that understand subscription lifecycle events, rather than generic affiliate trackers.

Best fits

My first choice would be Rewardful if you're on Stripe. It connects directly to Stripe and says it automatically adjusts commissions for upgrades, downgrades, cancellations and refunds. help.rewardful.com

FirstPromoter is particularly interesting if you need sophisticated rules. It supports recurring commissions for the customer's lifetime, a fixed number of months/charges, or a fixed number of charges. It also supports different commission rates over time. help.firstpromoter.com

PartnerStack is the one I'd investigate if "partners" means more than conventional affiliates—e.g. agencies, resellers, referral partners and strategic partners. It supports recurring revenue, renewals, expansion revenue and installment/drip commissions. partnerstack.com

The important part: define your commission mechanics

For your use case, I'd make sure the platform can handle something like:

Partner gets 20% of subscription revenue from referred customer.
Customer upgrades → partner gets 20% of the incremental revenue.
Customer downgrades → future commission decreases accordingly.
Customer cancels → recurring commission stops.
Refund/proration → commission is reduced or reversed accordingly.

That's more demanding than simply "30% recurring commission." In particular, mid-cycle Stripe prorations and refunds are where I'd test each vendor before committing. Stripe subscription changes can create prorated invoice adjustments, so you want the affiliate system calculating from actual billing events rather than maintaining its own approximation. www.rewardful.com

What I'd choose

• Stripe + relatively simple SaaS affiliate program → Rewardful
• Stripe/Chargebee/Recurly + complicated commission rules → FirstPromoter
• B2B SaaS + agencies/resellers/strategic partners → PartnerStack
• Early-stage SaaS wanting something lightweight → Tolt

If you tell me what billing system you use (Stripe, Chargebee, Paddle, Recurly, etc.), your approximate monthly subscription revenue, and the exact revenue-share rule you want, I can narrow this down to 2–3 options and compare pricing + proration/upgrade/cancellation behavior + payout handling.

For a subscription business, you’ll want a partner/affiliate platform that understands the subscription lifecycle, not just the initial referral. The important capabilities are:

• recurring revenue share (monthly/annual)
• commission recalculation after upgrades/downgrades
• cancellation handling and clawbacks
• prorated billing adjustments
• Stripe/Paddle/Chargebee/Recurly integration
• partner dashboards and payout workflows

Good options to evaluate:

A few implementation decisions matter before choosing:

1. What is commissionable?
   • Gross subscription price?
   • Net revenue after discounts/refunds/taxes?
   • Only the initial subscription?
   • All future renewals?

2. How should upgrades work?

Example:

• Customer upgrades from $50/mo → $100/mo mid-cycle.
• Partner gets 20% of the prorated increase immediately?
• Or only on the next invoice?

3. What happens after cancellation?

Common approaches:

• stop commissions immediately on cancellation
• pay through the paid period
• claw back commissions for refunds within X days

For most SaaS companies already using Stripe, I’d shortlist:

• FirstPromoter for a focused SaaS affiliate program
• Rewardful for a simpler Stripe-native setup
• PartnerStack if this is becoming a full partner/channel motion
• Siren if you need multiple partner types and custom revenue-share rules

If you share your billing stack (Stripe, Paddle, Chargebee, Recurly, etc.) and whether commissions are lifetime vs fixed-term, I can narrow this down.

If your goal is to pay partners based on actual subscription revenue (including upgrades, downgrades, prorated invoices, renewals, refunds, and cancellations), you want a platform that integrates directly with your billing system (typically Stripe, Paddle, Chargebee, Recurly, etc.) and listens to subscription lifecycle events—not just the initial purchase.

Here's how I'd evaluate the leading options:

1. FirstPromoter (my top recommendation for most SaaS)

This is one of the strongest products specifically for subscription businesses.

It supports:

• recurring revenue share
• plan upgrades and downgrades
• prorated invoices
• renewals
• cancellations
• reactivations
• configurable clawback rules
• Stripe, Paddle, Chargebee, Recurly, Braintree integrations

Commission rules can be based on:

• every payment
• first payment only
• first 12 months
• lifetime
• specific subscription plans

It recalculates commissions automatically as subscription events occur. firstpromoter.com

Best if: you want a true SaaS affiliate platform without enterprise pricing.

2. Rewardful

Rewardful is very popular among Stripe SaaS companies.

Pros:

• deep Stripe integration
• recurring commissions
• coupon attribution
• partner portal
• simple setup

It's somewhat less configurable than FirstPromoter but easier to launch.

Best if: you're entirely on Stripe and want something operational quickly. www.reddit.com

3. PartnerStack

If your "partners" are more like:

• agencies
• resellers
• implementation partners
• consultants
• integrations

PartnerStack is often the enterprise choice.

It supports:

• revenue sharing
• recurring commissions
• multiple partner types
• automated payouts
• tax forms
• marketplace discovery

Downside:

• higher cost
• usually overkill for startups

4. Track360

Track360 is designed around subscription lifecycle events.

Features include:

• recurring MRR commissions
• churn-aware payouts
• downgrade adjustments
• configurable clawback windows
• multiple partner program types in one platform

Useful when you need more complex commission structures than a typical affiliate program. track360.io

Features you should insist on

Since you specifically mentioned subscription upgrades and cancellations, I'd make sure the software supports:

• ✅ recurring commissions
• ✅ prorated invoice handling
• ✅ upgrade adjustments
• ✅ downgrade adjustments
• ✅ refund clawbacks
• ✅ cancellation stopping future commissions
• ✅ reactivation support
• ✅ manual commission overrides
• ✅ Stripe webhook synchronization
• ✅ payout exports or automated payouts
• ✅ partner dashboard

Example commission flow

Suppose:

• Partner refers Customer A.
• Customer starts at $100/month.
• Mid-month they upgrade to $300/month.
• Stripe creates a $100 prorated invoice.
• Next month renews at $300.
• Three months later customer downgrades to $150.
• Six months later customer cancels.

An ideal platform automatically pays:

• 20% of the initial $100 invoice
• 20% of the prorated upgrade invoice
• 20% of each $300 renewal
• then 20% of each $150 renewal
• and stops paying after cancellation

No spreadsheets or manual recalculation required. Platforms built around billing webhooks can keep commissions aligned with the actual subscription lifecycle. firstpromoter.com

My recommendation by company stage

• Startup (<$5M ARR): Rewardful or FirstPromoter.
• Growing SaaS ($5M–50M ARR): FirstPromoter is likely the best balance of flexibility and cost.
• Enterprise partner ecosystem: PartnerStack.
• Highly customized partner incentives (agencies, referrals, affiliates, rev share): Track360.

One question that affects the recommendation: What billing platform do you use (Stripe, Paddle, Chargebee, Recurly, Shopify, or something else)? That determines which platforms will integrate most cleanly and support prorated commissions with minimal custom work.

If your business is subscription-based (especially with Stripe, Paddle, Chargebee, or Recurly), you want software that treats the subscription as the source of truth rather than just tracking a one-time conversion. That way, affiliate commissions automatically adjust when customers:

• Upgrade plans (including prorated mid-cycle upgrades)
• Downgrade plans
• Renew subscriptions
• Cancel
• Receive refunds
• Pause/reactivate subscriptions

The strongest options are:

My recommendations by stage

For most SaaS companies: FirstPromoter

It was built specifically for subscription businesses and supports recurring commissions tied to billing events. It automatically handles upgrades, downgrades, cancellations, refunds, and multiple billing providers including Stripe, Paddle, Chargebee, Recurly, and Braintree. firstpromoter.com

Good if you want:

• Revenue-share (% of subscription)
• Lifetime attribution
• Different commission rates by plan
• MRR reporting

If you're on Stripe and want simplicity: Rewardful

Rewardful has one of the deepest Stripe integrations. It calculates commissions from paid invoices, automatically adjusts for prorated upgrades, downgrades, cancellations, and refunds, and keeps affiliate balances accurate without manual reconciliation. help.rewardful.com

Great for:

• Stripe Billing
• Simple recurring rev-share
• Fast setup

If you have agencies, resellers, and affiliates: PartnerStack

PartnerStack is more than affiliate software—it's a full partner ecosystem.

Useful features:

• Recurring subscription commissions
• Expansion/upsell commissions
• Flexible event-based commission rules
• Global payouts
• Different partner types (affiliate, reseller, referral, agency)
• Partner marketplace for recruiting partners partnerstack.com

This is typically the choice once you're doing meaningful B2B SaaS revenue and want a mature partner program.

If you need flexible commission structures: Tapfiliate

Tapfiliate supports:

• Lifetime recurring commissions
• Tiered commissions
• Multi-level programs
• Automatic handling of upgrades, downgrades, and churn support.tapfiliate.com

It's a solid middle ground if you sell both subscriptions and one-time products.

Handling prorated upgrades

A common scenario:

• Customer starts at $100/mo
• Affiliate earns 20% recurring
• Customer upgrades mid-month to $300/mo
• Stripe creates a $120 prorated invoice

A subscription-aware platform will:

1. Pay the affiliate 20% of the prorated invoice immediately (e.g. $24).
2. Pay 20% of future full renewals at the new $300 rate (e.g. $60/month).
3. Stop future commissions if the subscription is canceled, based on your rules.

This is much cleaner than trying to calculate commissions from webhooks yourself. firstpromoter.comhelp.rewardful.compartnerstack.comwww.rewardful.com

If you're building your own partner portal

Many companies keep:

• Their own partner dashboard
• Their own referral links
• Their own CRM

…and let one of these platforms handle only:

• Attribution
• Billing events
• Commission calculations
• Payouts

This gives you full control over the partner experience while avoiding the complexity of subscription accounting.

If you're building a B2B SaaS with revenue-sharing partners, I'd narrow the choice to:

• FirstPromoter for the best balance of flexibility and cost.
• PartnerStack if you expect to grow into a full partner ecosystem with agencies, resellers, and affiliates.
• Rewardful if you're entirely on Stripe and want the fastest implementation.

If your goal is to pay partners based on actual subscription revenue over time—including prorated upgrades, downgrades, renewals, and cancellations—you'll want an affiliate platform that either:

1. Integrates deeply with your billing platform (such as Stripe, Paddle, Chargebee, or Recurly), or
2. Calculates commissions from subscription events rather than just one-time conversions.

Here are the strongest options:

If you use Stripe

The easiest options are usually:

Rewardful

• Reads Stripe subscription events directly
• Automatically adjusts commissions after:
  • upgrades
  • downgrades
  • refunds
  • cancellations
• Can pay lifetime recurring commissions
• Handles monthly and annual plans well

This is one of the most common choices for SaaS companies with straightforward referral programs.

Tolt

• Built specifically for SaaS subscriptions
• Tracks:
  • first purchase
  • recurring renewals
  • plan upgrades
  • cancellations
• Supports lifetime partner attribution
• Simple payout workflow

Many early-stage SaaS companies choose Tolt because setup is quick.

If you have complex partner contracts

PartnerStack is significantly more powerful.

Examples:

• 20% for first year
• 10% thereafter
• Different commission by plan
• Different commission by partner tier
• Channel partners vs affiliates
• Resellers
• Referral partners
• Agencies

It's considerably more expensive but designed for mature SaaS partner programs.

How prorated commissions usually work

Suppose:

• Customer starts at $100/month
• Affiliate earns 20%

Month 1:

• Invoice: $100
• Commission: $20

Halfway through the month, customer upgrades.

Stripe generates:

• Proration charge: $40
• New monthly price: $200

The affiliate platform typically pays:

• $8 commission on the $40 prorated invoice
• Then $40/month going forward (20% of $200)

Likewise, if the customer downgrades or receives a refund, the commission is adjusted based on the actual invoice amount rather than the list price.

The most robust architecture

Many SaaS companies avoid having affiliate software calculate commissions directly. Instead they use billing as the source of truth:

Stripe
    ↓
Webhook
    ↓
Your backend
    ↓
Commission calculation engine
    ↓
Partner dashboard
    ↓
Payouts (Stripe Connect, Wise, PayPal, etc.)

Advantages:

• Exact prorations
• Refund handling
• Credits
• Pauses
• Annual/monthly changes
• Custom contracts
• Auditable commission history

This approach takes more engineering effort but gives you full control over how commissions are calculated.

Recommendation by company stage

• Early-stage SaaS (Stripe): Rewardful or Tolt.
• Growing B2B SaaS with multiple partner types: PartnerStack.
• Enterprise or highly customized commission rules: Build your own commission engine using Stripe webhook events and use an affiliate platform only for attribution and partner management.

If you share:

• your billing platform (Stripe, Paddle, Chargebee, etc.),
• whether commissions are based on gross revenue, net revenue, or MRR, and
• whether you're building this into your own product or looking for a turnkey solution,

I can narrow it down to the best fit.

If your product is subscription-based (especially with Stripe, Paddle, Chargebee, or Recurly), you want software that is aware of the subscription lifecycle, not just the initial referral. That means it should automatically handle:

• ✅ Monthly/annual recurring commissions
• ✅ Mid-cycle prorated upgrades
• ✅ Downgrades
• ✅ Cancellations and churn
• ✅ Refunds
• ✅ Reactivations
• ✅ Delayed payouts until refund windows expire

Here are the platforms I'd shortlist:

For your use case

If your commission policy is something like:

• Partner earns 20% of subscription revenue
• Customer upgrades from $100 → $300 mid-month
• Stripe prorates the invoice
• Partner earns 20% of the prorated upgrade immediately
• Future renewals pay 20% of the $300 plan
• If the customer cancels, commissions stop automatically

Both FirstPromoter and Rewardful handle this automatically by syncing commission calculations to billing events rather than just the initial signup. www.rewardful.comfirstpromoter.com

If you want more flexibility

If you expect rules like:

• Different commission rates by partner tier
• Revenue share only for the first 12 months
• Higher rates after partners refer 10 customers
• Separate commissions for upgrades vs. renewals
• Clawbacks for early cancellations

Then FirstPromoter tends to offer more configurable commission logic. firstpromoter.com

If you're building a full B2B partner program with agencies, resellers, and affiliates, PartnerStack becomes more attractive because it combines sophisticated commission management with partner recruitment and enablement. partnerstack.com

If you can share:

• your billing platform (Stripe, Paddle, Chargebee, etc.),
• whether your product is monthly, annual, or usage-based,
• and whether you need a self-service partner portal,

I can narrow it down to the best fit for your setup.

If your goal is pay partners a percentage of actual subscription revenue, including pro-rated upgrades, downgrades, renewals, and cancellations, you'll want software that integrates directly with your billing system (Stripe, Paddle, Chargebee, etc.) instead of just tracking referrals.

Here's how the leading options compare:

For your specific use case

Suppose a partner refers a customer:

• Month 1: $100 plan → partner earns 20% = $20
• Mid-month: customer upgrades to $300 plan
• Stripe creates a $100 prorated invoice
• Next month: customer renews at $300
• Three months later: customer cancels

The best subscription-native systems will:

• calculate commission on the actual invoice amount
• pay commission on the prorated upgrade invoice
• continue paying on recurring renewals
• stop future commissions after cancellation
• optionally reverse or hold commissions for refunds or chargebacks firstpromoter.comhelp.rewardful.comhelp.firstpromoter.com

My recommendations

If you use Stripe: Rewardful is probably the fastest to launch. It was built specifically for subscription businesses and automatically adjusts commissions for upgrades, downgrades, cancellations, trials, and refunds. help.rewardful.com

If you need more flexibility: FirstPromoter offers more configurable commission structures (lifetime, first X months, tiered percentages, different rates over time) and supports multiple subscription billing platforms. firstpromoter.comhelp.firstpromoter.com

If you're building a broader partner channel: PartnerStack is the strongest option when you're managing affiliates, agencies, resellers, and technology partners together, and it also gives access to an established partner marketplace. partnerstack.com

A few implementation choices matter regardless of platform:

• Base commissions on cash collected (paid invoices), not subscription signups.
• Include a 30–60 day hold period before payouts to account for refunds or failed payments.
• Decide whether partners earn on expansion revenue (upgrades) and whether downgrades reduce future commissions.
• Define whether revenue share is lifetime or limited (e.g., first 12 months).

If you tell me:

1. your billing platform (Stripe, Paddle, Chargebee, etc.),
2. your CRM (HubSpot, Salesforce, etc.), and
3. your expected number of partners,

I can recommend the platform that will require the least custom work.