Best Referral Programs To Make Money in 2021

Are you looking for a profitable side hustle to put some cash in the bank while you’re building your authority site?

Something that you don’t have to spend hours a day working on?

You’re not alone.

It also might be time for you to take a second look at referral programs.

But…aren’t referral programs those apps that nickel and dime you for taking surveys?

Nope.

Some of the programs we tracked down for you pay…up to $175 per referral.

We’re not talking pocket change here.

Excited?

Good – but first, let’s cover off some basics.

What is a referral program?

A referral program is where a company rewards you for recommending their product or service to others. 

The reward can come in the form of a fixed sum credited to your account, free hours on an app, eGift vouchers, or even prepaid debit cards.

Basically, you get paid to refer a friend as a new potential customer for a business. 

The latter seems to be the reward of choice for big brands currently operating referral marketing programs.

None of the programs listed below payout in “store credit” though.

You’ll either earn hard cash for your referrals, or receive an Amazon gift card, or one for a major offline retailer like Walmart.

So let’s get to our referral program examples.

Best Referral Programs To Make Money

1. ShareASale
2. Payoneer
3. Swagbucks
4. Coinbase
5. SoFi
6. Rakuten
7. Acorns
8. Do$h
9. Sam’s Club
10. T-Mobile
11. Direct Energy
12. Xfinity

ShareASale 

Yes, we’re aware that ShareASale is an affiliate network.

But how do you think they get new merchants to sign up with them?

Well, one way is they will pay you to refer new vendors to them through a referral program.  

To the tune of $150 each.

And all you need to do is make the introduction.

So if you know of a business that’s actively looking to start its own affiliate program, then this could be an easy win for both parties.

It’s also worth remembering that 99% of people looking to profit from referral programs will never think of affiliate networks.

That gives you a strategic advantage here – one you should make the most of.

You will need a ShareASale account to promote this offer.

But they’re free to set up, so there’s no real barrier to entry here.

URL: ShareASale referral program

Referral fee: $150

Payoneer

Payoneer is an online-only service that allows you to receive and transfer money.

So, it’s kind of like PayPal but minus all the red tape.

It’s also the payment method of choice for many affiliate marketers. 

Especially those either living the digital nomad lifestyle or working from international accounts.

And they also operate a referral program.

You take part in their “refer a friend” program and you get paid a cash bonus for doing that.

The financial services industry is super-competitive so Payoneer is always happy to have lots of new clients referred to them.

And they’ll pay up to US$25 per referral you send their way.

The only proviso is that your “friend” needs to receive at least US$1,000 into their account before you get paid your referral fee.

URL: Payoneer referral program

Referral fee: $25

Swagbucks

What if you could earn gift cards and cash for doing the stuff you already do online?

Like watching videos, shopping or even taking a short survey.

That’s what Swagbucks offers its users – the ability to get paid for doing mundane stuff like completing a questionnaire on survey sites.

And they have a lot of takers – they hand out 7,000 gift cards every single day.

Which isn’t quite the same as hard cash…but it’s close.

And it’s also entirely anonymous.

You could easily use some of those gift cards to invest in cryptos, for example. 

Does that sound like the kind of opportunity you’d recommend to a friend?

If you do you’ll get 10% of whatever your referral earns, plus an additional 100 Swagbucks deposited to your account. 

The more referrals you make, the more you’ll earn in gift card rewards. 

URL: Swagbucks referral program

Referral fee: 10% of what your referral earns

Coinbase

And now we come to something a little different a – cryptocurrency referral program.

Coinbase is one of the better-known crypto exchanges.

Something they’ve done for their customer base since 2012…long before the Bitcoin frenzy took hold.

So they basically provide you with an easy-to-use platform to buy and sell cryptos on.

But you can do that with FIAT currency i.e. a credit or debit card, which makes it ideal for crypto newbies like me!

Anyways, the Coinbase referral program is a pretty straightforward deal.

You sign up for an account with them.

Then you recommend it to friends via your “refer a friend” link.

Once your referral buys or sells US$100 worth of cryptocurrency you will both receive a $10 bonus to your account within 180 days of that happening.

Which you can then spend on even more Bitcoin, Ethereum, Tether, Stellar Lumens, etc.

URL:  Coinbase referral program

Referral fee: US$10

SoFi

SoFi started out as a way to provide better options for those needing student loans.

But the service proved to be such a success that they’ve since expanded into other financial markets.

So you can now apply for a student loan, personal loan, or even a mortgage with them.

Basically, the goal of SoFi isn’t to “punish” you for taking out a loan with them.

They instead want to help you get out of debt while learning how to better manage your finances.

And part of that is their referral program.

SoFi will give you a cash reward if your referrals sign up for (and funds) any of the following:

• SoFi Money account
• Investment account
• Student loan refinancing
• Personal loans

If, for example, a referral opens up a SoFi money account and deposits $500 to that account, you’ll receive a $50 bonus.

But they cap the number of possible referral earnings at US$10,000 per year.

Which means they have existing “advocates” earning at least that much with their referral program.

There’s no limit, however, on lifetime earnings.

URL: SoFi referral program

Referral fee: $50+

Rakuten

You’re probably already familiar with this company thanks to our review of the Rakuten affiliate network.

But affiliate marketing is only part of what they do, including a streaming TV service, for example. 

Rakuten is actually a massive Japanese e-commerce platform. 

And with a history dating back to 1996 of helping shoppers find the best deals online. 

Your visitors basically start from the Rakuten store and choose from their list of vendors.

They’ll then get money back when they make a purchase – this is paid to them by PayPal or check.

But you can also earn a referral bonus for every friend you refer to Rakuten. 

Because who doesn’t want money-back deals, right?

The only condition is every friend you refer has to spend at least $25 on Rakuten partner deals within 90 days of signing up.

Otherwise, you don’t get paid a referral bonus for referring your friends.

But they do offer unlimited referrals, so this could be a nice way to earn some extra money.

URL: Rakuten referral program

Referral fee: $20

Acorns 

Why would you call your investment platform Acorns?

Because “…mighty oaks from little acorns grow” – it’s an old English proverb.

It’s basically saying that your tiny investments can become huge given enough time.

And that’s what Acorns offers you – a way to invest your spare change on autopilot.

All the work of choosing what stocks or bonds to invest in is taken care of for you.

You just set it and forget it.

Their referral marketing offer works as follows.

You receive $5 for every person you refer.

Acorns then invest that $5 for you.

So, that means you can’t “cash-out” to your bank account. 

But you are building a long-term asset in the form of investments. 

It’s also worth mentioning that the person you refer has to be approved and make an investment of $5 before you receive your bonus.

URL:  Acorns referral program

Referral fee: US$5

Do$h

Dosh (English slang for money) is another cash back app of the many that exist right now.

But they don’t appear to be tied to the stores you typically find on other sites.

Sure you can earn up to 40% cashback from grocery shopping, 

But Dosh also covers the eating and drinking side of life.

So you can get cash back on a pizza, a box of delicious donuts, and even your next vacation.

Or even your next car or truck.

It seems that they’ve negotiated several private back deals of the 10,000 brands they work with.

Obviously, the more users they can get to download their app the better for Dosh.

And what better way to do that than offer an incentive in the form of money.

They’ll pay you US$10 for every new referral that is happy to link a valid debit or credit card to their account and receives their first rebate.

URL:  Dosh referral program

Referral fee:  $10

Sam’s Club

Sam’s Club is part of the Walmart family of stores.

So you get the same basic deal of brand name goods at low prices.

Except Sam’s Club follows the “Big Box” warehouse model – once you become a member you can buy 12 boxes of Kleenex at once.

Or an entire refrigerator and a new sofa.

But at warehouse prices.

And as a member still get 2% cashback on all your purchases even though you’ve already probably saved a small fortune by shopping there.

In terms of rewarding you to refer a friend, this is paid in the form of a $10 gift card per referral.

Your referral benefits because they’ll also receive a $20 eGift card.

All you need to redeem your gift card is an active account with Sam’s Club.

URL:  Sam’s Club referral program

Referral fee: $10 gift card

T-Mobile

So we’re not going to spend a lot of time telling you who T-Mobile is.

They sell Internet connections, smartphones, tablets, and corporate phone systems.

They’re one of the “Big Three” communications providers in North America, with 98.3 million customers.

So there’s a very good chance you’re an existing customer of theirs.

And if you are, you might not know they operate a referral marketing program.

I didn’t until I started the research for this roundup.

But that’s one of the many benefits of doing better research than your competitors.

Ahem.

So how much can you get paid for referrals, as an existing T-Mobile customer?

You can receive up to US$50 for every friend you refer x 10 referrals.

For a total of $500.

Each referral bonus of $50 is paid via a Prepaid MasterCard, so it’s the same as hard cash.

URL:  T-Mobile referral program

Referral fee: US$50

Direct Energy

The amount of energy our planet can currently produce is finite.

So as the population continues to grow, so will energy costs.

That’s why it’s such a good idea to have a service like Direct Energy where customers can shop for the best deal to keep your utility costs down.

Be that for electricity or natural gas.

A lower rate can save you several hundred dollars per year in energy costs.

And you could make even more money with Direct Energy by taking part in their referral program.

You will, however, need an account with Direct Energy.

So how much do you get paid per referral sign up?

Up to $50 each.

Your “refer a friend” bonus is sent in the form of a prepaid Visa card, which you can use for online or offline purchases. 

Just bear in mind that you can only earn a maximum of $500 in referral bonuses per calendar year.

URL:  Direct Energy affiliate program

Referral fee: US$50

Xfinity

Comcast doesn’t sound like a sexy Internet/movie streaming service does it?

Xfinity, however, does.

Which is why Comcast uses that brand name.

Xfinity covers all your digital communications needs, from Internet and telephone to home security products.

Not that anyone has a home telephone these days…but whatever.

The home broadband market is absolutely cutthroat, so companies are willing to do almost anything to win new customers.

And in the case of the Xfinity referral program that’s to pay you up to $175 per referral.

That’s $50 per referral for anyone who signs up for one service, $150 for a referral who signs up for two or more services.

And then a final $25 if your referral signs up for two more or more services, but also swaps to Xfinity’s mobile service.

That makes it the best referral program here by payout.

But they limit how much you can earn from such referrals to $500 per year.

URL:  Xfinity referral program

Referral fee: Up to $175

How to promote referral programs

So you’re all excited about earning money with referral programs.

Awesome.

Now you have to ask yourself how you’re going to get eyeballs on your referral link. 

Otherwise, you’re not going to be able to make money offline, or offline for that matter.

So let’s take a look at two ways to do that:

Use social media

You probably already have an account on at least one of the many social media platforms.

So make the most of it by finding a friendly way to mention the referral program you like in your posts, Tweets, or whatever.

But don’t start messaging friends to “sign up”– that’s as bad as trying to get them into your MLM downline.

If you’re feeling really brave then you could use a platform like TikTok.

Just record a quick video about a problem a lot of people have right now e.g. expensive cable service.

Then record another video that explains how excited you are because you found a great new Internet streaming package…one that’s actually saving you money every month.

And then your final video would be where you drop your referral link on them.

You could do the exact same thing with a series of Facebook posts or Tweets.

Go old school

Most of the referral programs listed above don’t really care how you promote them, as long as it’s not illegal.

Some of them even hint at printing out your referral code and handing it out to family and friends.

So why not do that?

Get your referral code printed on some cheap-as-you-can-find business cards.

And then hand them out to friends.

Or leave them with your tip at your favorite coffee shop or eaterie.

Think laterally.

Put a compelling message on the front side like, “Sick of paying through the nose for your cable service?”

And then on the reverse side, you list either:

1. Your referral link
2. A link to your free blog (Blogger, etc) where you feature your referral link

Why aren’t we recommending that you start a blog instead and not bother with the printed card idea?

Because a new blog can take months to get traction in the search engines.

A simple, clever business card can get “immediate” traffic.

It might be an interesting “hack” to experiment with if nothing else.

Over to You

And that brings us to the end of our roundup of the best referral programs we could find.

So can you make money with referral sites?

Yes.

And there’s a whole lot of high paying referral programs out there once you actually start looking.

You don’t have to rely solely on the typical “cashback” sites or apps.

But I wouldn’t make it your primary income stream.

That’s because the really good programs limit how many referrals you can make.

Although SoFi does have a referral limit of $10k per year – which is amazing when you think about it.

But “caps” are not something you typically have to deal with when promoting affiliate programs.

The sky tends to be the limit.

But there’s no reason you can’t promote both affiliate and referral programs as ways to make money online with your site.

You don’t have a site?

No problem – you should tune in to our Free 2-hour web class.

You’ll learn what it takes to get your first affiliate site up and running, niche research, how to use affiliate links, etc.

It’s an entirely ethical and legitimate “home business” model that you can run from anywhere.

Interested?

Cool – shoot over the best email address to send your invite to.

We do the rest.