Affiliate Disclosure

Last updated: April 10, 2026

The short version

RifRef is an independent product recommendation platform. We earn commissions when you purchase products through links on our site. This comes at no additional cost to you and does not influence our recommendations. Our product selections are based on research, analysis, and AI-powered evaluation. We participate in affiliate programs operated by Skimlinks, Sovrn Commerce, Amazon Associates, and other affiliate networks, which means we may earn a referral fee on qualifying purchases.

What "affiliate link" means

An affiliate link is a regular web link with extra tracking information attached. When you click a link on RifRef and make a purchase on the retailer's site, the retailer can tell that you came from us, and they pay RifRef a small percentage of the sale as a referral fee (a "commission").

This is the same business model used by nearly every major product review site on the internet, including Wirecutter, RTINGS, Tom's Guide, and countless others. It's disclosed here so you know exactly how we're supported.

Three things the commission does not do

It doesn't cost you anything extra. The price you pay at checkout is the same whether you reach the retailer through RifRef or go directly to their site. The commission comes out of the retailer's margin, not your wallet.
It doesn't influence our rankings. Our editorial process is completed before affiliate links are added to a guide. A product that pays zero commission can absolutely still be our top pick — and some of them are. A product that pays a high commission doesn't automatically get recommended — and many don't make the cut at all.
It doesn't change what we say about a product. If we think a product has a flaw, we say so, even if the retailer offering it pays us a commission. If we think a higher-rated product isn't worth the price, we say that too.

Who our affiliate partners are

RifRef participates in the following affiliate programs and networks:

Skimlinks — a network that connects publishers to tens of thousands of merchants. Many of the merchant links you see on RifRef are routed through Skimlinks for attribution.
Sovrn Commerce — another large affiliate network covering major online retailers. We use Sovrn's Commerce API to generate affiliate links programmatically.
Amazon Associates — the official Amazon affiliate program. When we link to products on Amazon, those links are typically Amazon Associates links.
Direct merchant programs — for some retailers (e.g., REI, Best Buy, Nike) we may participate directly in their in-house affiliate programs.
Other networks — we may work with additional networks like Impact, CJ Affiliate, Rakuten, and ShareASale from time to time as our catalog grows.

How we handle conflicts of interest

Our editorial team researches, shortlists, and ranks products before commercial links are added to a guide. The person writing the guide isn't checking commission rates as they write. When the guide is finalized, our backend automatically appends affiliate tracking to merchant URLs using Skimlinks, Sovrn, or a direct program — whichever is available.

If a top-ranked product doesn't have an affiliate relationship at all, we still link to it. Nothing gets demoted or removed for commercial reasons.

FTC compliance

The U.S. Federal Trade Commission requires that publishers disclose material connections with the companies whose products they recommend. RifRef complies with the FTC's Endorsement Guides by:

Placing a clear affiliate disclosure at the top of every article that contains affiliate links.
Including a one-line disclosure in the footer of every page on the site.
Maintaining this dedicated disclosure page and linking to it from every article and footer.
Using plain, non-jargon language so the disclosure is understandable to a typical reader.

Cookies and tracking

Affiliate networks typically place a small tracking cookie on your browser when you click an affiliate link. This cookie lets the retailer attribute the purchase back to RifRef if you buy something within a set window (usually 24 hours to 30 days, depending on the program). You can learn more about how cookies are used on our site in our Privacy Policy.

Questions

If you have any questions about how RifRef earns revenue, our editorial process, or any specific recommendation, please reach out to hello@rifref.ai. We take transparency seriously and are happy to answer.