OpenPromoter vs FirstPromoter
As of November 2026, the FirstPromoter facts come from FirstPromoter's own pages and documentation linked on this page. Check their site for current pricing.
FirstPromoter or OpenPromoter: who should pick which
Pick FirstPromoter if you want a hosted tool at high volume or need 3-level commissions. Pick OpenPromoter if you want 1099 reports on every plan, Lemon Squeezy or Polar or code you can run yourself. Below $15,000 a month OpenPromoter Cloud costs less and above that FirstPromoter's list price is lower.
Pick OpenPromoter if
- You want a 1099-NEC report without managed payouts
- You use Lemon Squeezy or Polar
- You have more than 1,000 affiliates on a small budget
- You want to self-host for $0
Pick FirstPromoter if
- You want one hosted price above $15,000 a month
- You pay commissions on 3 levels
- You bill through Recurly or Braintree
FirstPromoter pricing in 2026
FirstPromoter has three plans priced by the affiliate revenue they track each month. Starter costs $49 for up to $5,000 and Business costs $99 for up to $15,000. Enterprise lists $149 for anything above that and every plan has a 14-day trial with no credit card (pricing).
| Plan | Price a month | Affiliate revenue cap | What it adds |
|---|---|---|---|
| Starter | $49 ($490 a year) | $5,000 | 1,000 affiliates with 3 campaigns and fraud controls |
| Business | $99 ($990 a year) | $15,000 | Custom domain, embedded dashboard and EU VAT invoices |
| Enterprise | $149 ($1,490 a year) | Above $15,000 | White label, SSO and managed auto payouts |
Swipe the table sideways to see every column.
What happens above the cap
FirstPromoter moves your account to the next tier when you pass a limit. Tracking and commissions continue while it does. The Enterprise button asks you to talk to sales before you sign up.
Source: FirstPromoter pricing (November 2026).
FirstPromoter fees on payouts
FirstPromoter lists no platform fee on payouts. You pay affiliates through PayPal, Wise, Stripe, crypto or bank transfer on every plan. Under managed auto payouts on Enterprise the affiliates pay withdrawal fees such as $0.75 to a US bank (help).
Managed auto payouts run through Dots.dev and need a US company and a US bank account. Teams outside the US pay affiliates themselves on every plan.
OpenPromoter takes 0% and sends payouts from your own Stripe, PayPal or Wise account. You pay only that rail's fee, listed for Stripe on its Connect pricing page. The affiliate payouts page shows each rail.
What each costs at $5k to $100k a month
At $5,000 a month of partner revenue OpenPromoter Cloud costs $29 and FirstPromoter costs $49. At $25,000 it is $79 against $149. At $100,000 FirstPromoter's $149 list price is lower than Cloud Scale at $199 and self-hosting stays at $0.
| Partner revenue a month | OpenPromoter Cloud | FirstPromoter | Fee on payouts |
|---|---|---|---|
| $5,000 ($1,500 paid out) | $29 (Starter) | $49 (Starter at its limit) | None listed |
| $25,000 ($7,500 paid out) | $79 (Growth) | $149 (Enterprise) | None listed |
| $100,000 ($30,000 paid out) | $199 (Scale) | $149 (Enterprise list price) | None listed |
Swipe the table sideways to see every column.
We assume partners earn 30% of the revenue they bring in. Our program guide suggests that rate for plans from $15 to $499 a month.
Starter stops at exactly $5,000. One stronger month moves a $5,000 program to Business at $99.
Fees that Stripe, PayPal or Wise charge to move the money are left out for every tool. OpenPromoter Cloud plans are on the pricing page.
OpenPromoter vs FirstPromoter fact by fact
OpenPromoter vs FirstPromoter differs most on tax paperwork, billing systems and source code. FirstPromoter issues 1099s only under managed payouts and connects Recurly and Braintree. OpenPromoter exports a 1099-NEC report on every plan, connects Lemon Squeezy and Polar and is AGPL-3.0.
| Topic | OpenPromoter | FirstPromoter |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing | ||
| Plans | Self-host: $0 with every feature and no limits. Cloud: free up to $1k/mo partner revenue and $29, $79 or $199/mo above that. | Starter $49/mo, Business $99/mo and Enterprise $149/mo.[1] |
| Revenue caps | None when self-hosted. Cloud tiers cap partner revenue at $1k, $10k, $50k and $250k a month; unlimited partners. | $5k, $15k and above $15k a month; 1,000 affiliates on Starter.[1] |
| Fee on payouts | 0% of payouts on every plan. Only the payout rail's own fee applies. | No platform payout fee listed; affiliates pay withdrawal fees (for example $0.75 to a US bank).[2] |
| Tracking | ||
| Billing systems | Stripe (with import of products, customers and subscriptions), Paddle, Lemon Squeezy, Polar and Chargebee. | Stripe with historical import, Paddle, Chargebee, Recurly and Braintree.[3] |
| Ad blockers | data-api sends tracking through a first-party path on your own domain, and short links record the click on the server before redirecting. | A proxy setup guide for ad blockers.[4] |
| Payouts, tax and fraud | ||
| Payout rails | Stripe Connect Express transfers, PayPal Payouts, Wise or manual with CSV export. Every payout waits for a person to approve it, and batches above $1,000 (configurable) need a fresh 2FA code. | PayPal, Wise, Stripe, crypto and bank. Managed auto payouts (Enterprise, via Dots.dev) need a US company and bank.[2] |
| Tax | W-9, W-8BEN and W-8BEN-E collection. US partners without a TIN are blocked from payouts before the 1099 threshold. 1099-NEC export ($600 for payments before 2026, $2,000 for 2026), VIES-checked EU VAT ids and reverse-charge self-billed invoices. | W-9/W-8BEN on all tiers; EU VAT self-billed invoices from Business; 1099s only under managed payouts.[1][2] |
| Fraud | Self-referral, same network, duplicate accounts, shared payout accounts, coupon leaking, paid ads on your brand, click patterns, bots, refunds after payout and fast churn. Every plan has auto-hold above a risk score you set. | On all tiers: self-referral detection, reCAPTCHA, negative commissions on refunds, approval thresholds and 2FA on large payments.[1] |
| Multi-level commissions | Two-tier on every plan, one level up. | Up to 3 levels.[1] |
| Developers and AI | ||
| MCP | openpromoter-mcp is read-only unless you turn on write tools. Agents can prepare payouts but never send them; a person approves in the dashboard. | Experimental MCP with 53 tools; every change needs a confirmation card and money movement is excluded.[5] |
| Webhooks | Signed with HMAC-SHA256 and retried up to 8 times with exponential backoff. Slack and Discord alerts are included. | Webhooks v2 with logs and retries.[6] |
| Source code | AGPL-3.0. Self-host with one docker compose command. | Hosted only; no public source code or self-host option found in our research.[1] |
Pricing
- Plans
- OpenPromoterSelf-host: $0 with every feature and no limits. Cloud: free up to $1k/mo partner revenue and $29, $79 or $199/mo above that.
- FirstPromoterStarter $49/mo, Business $99/mo and Enterprise $149/mo.[1]
- Revenue caps
- OpenPromoterNone when self-hosted. Cloud tiers cap partner revenue at $1k, $10k, $50k and $250k a month; unlimited partners.
- FirstPromoter$5k, $15k and above $15k a month; 1,000 affiliates on Starter.[1]
- Fee on payouts
- OpenPromoter0% of payouts on every plan. Only the payout rail's own fee applies.
- FirstPromoterNo platform payout fee listed; affiliates pay withdrawal fees (for example $0.75 to a US bank).[2]
Tracking
- Billing systems
- OpenPromoterStripe (with import of products, customers and subscriptions), Paddle, Lemon Squeezy, Polar and Chargebee.
- FirstPromoterStripe with historical import, Paddle, Chargebee, Recurly and Braintree.[3]
- Ad blockers
- OpenPromoterdata-api sends tracking through a first-party path on your own domain, and short links record the click on the server before redirecting.
- FirstPromoterA proxy setup guide for ad blockers.[4]
Payouts, tax and fraud
- Payout rails
- OpenPromoterStripe Connect Express transfers, PayPal Payouts, Wise or manual with CSV export. Every payout waits for a person to approve it, and batches above $1,000 (configurable) need a fresh 2FA code.
- FirstPromoterPayPal, Wise, Stripe, crypto and bank. Managed auto payouts (Enterprise, via Dots.dev) need a US company and bank.[2]
- Tax
- OpenPromoterW-9, W-8BEN and W-8BEN-E collection. US partners without a TIN are blocked from payouts before the 1099 threshold. 1099-NEC export ($600 for payments before 2026, $2,000 for 2026), VIES-checked EU VAT ids and reverse-charge self-billed invoices.
- FirstPromoterW-9/W-8BEN on all tiers; EU VAT self-billed invoices from Business; 1099s only under managed payouts.[1][2]
- Fraud
- OpenPromoterSelf-referral, same network, duplicate accounts, shared payout accounts, coupon leaking, paid ads on your brand, click patterns, bots, refunds after payout and fast churn. Every plan has auto-hold above a risk score you set.
- FirstPromoterOn all tiers: self-referral detection, reCAPTCHA, negative commissions on refunds, approval thresholds and 2FA on large payments.[1]
- Multi-level commissions
- OpenPromoterTwo-tier on every plan, one level up.
- FirstPromoterUp to 3 levels.[1]
Developers and AI
- MCP
- OpenPromoteropenpromoter-mcp is read-only unless you turn on write tools. Agents can prepare payouts but never send them; a person approves in the dashboard.
- FirstPromoterExperimental MCP with 53 tools; every change needs a confirmation card and money movement is excluded.[5]
- Webhooks
- OpenPromoterSigned with HMAC-SHA256 and retried up to 8 times with exponential backoff. Slack and Discord alerts are included.
- FirstPromoterWebhooks v2 with logs and retries.[6]
- Source code
- OpenPromoterAGPL-3.0. Self-host with one docker compose command.
- FirstPromoterHosted only; no public source code or self-host option found in our research.[1]
Where FirstPromoter is the better choice
FirstPromoter is the better pick for a hosted tool at high volume. Its Enterprise list price stays at $149 for any revenue above $15,000 a month. It also pays commissions across 3 levels and connects Recurly and Braintree (how it works).
One price at high volume
Enterprise lists $149 a month above $15,000. OpenPromoter Cloud Scale costs $199 up to $250,000.
Multi-level commissions
Partners earn from sub-affiliates across up to 3 levels on all plans (pricing). OpenPromoter pays one level up only.
Recurly and Braintree
FirstPromoter connects both. OpenPromoter has no built-in handler and takes them through the REST API.
Is FirstPromoter worth it?
FirstPromoter is worth it for a hosted program that earns more than $15,000 a month from affiliates. At that level its $149 Enterprise list price covers any volume. Starter costs $49 but stops at $5,000 a month and 1,000 affiliates.
Check the tax rows if you have US partners. FirstPromoter issues 1099s only under managed payouts (help). OpenPromoter collects W-9 and W-8 forms and exports a 1099-NEC report on every plan.
FirstPromoter's fraud controls run on all plans: self-referral checks, reCAPTCHA, negative commissions on refunds and 2FA on large payments. OpenPromoter's fraud detection adds checks such as coupon leaking and fast churn.
Moving from FirstPromoter to OpenPromoter
Export your promoters from FirstPromoter as CSV and import them into OpenPromoter with their referral codes. OpenPromoter reads FirstPromoter's ?fpr= parameter and links partners already shared keep working. Past commissions are not imported and stay in your FirstPromoter export for your records.
- 1
Export your partners
Export your partners from FirstPromoter as CSV. The file needs an email column.
- 2
Connect billing
Connect Stripe, Paddle or Chargebee in OpenPromoter and match your current commission terms.
- 3
Import the file
Drop the CSV into Settings > Import. Partners arrive approved with their codes, PayPal emails and coupons where the file has them.
- 4
Swap the script
Replace the FirstPromoter script with op.js. The tracking docs show the script tag and the ?fpr= support.
- 5
Test one purchase
Buy through a Stripe test-mode Payment Link and check the commission. Delete the test data after.
- 6
Close out the old tool
Pay the commissions you still owe in FirstPromoter. Keep its export of past commissions for your records.
The FirstPromoter alternative page covers why teams switch. The getting started guide walks through each step in the app.
FirstPromoter and OpenPromoter questions
Does FirstPromoter have a free plan?
Does FirstPromoter file 1099 forms?
Does FirstPromoter work with Lemon Squeezy or Polar?
Does FirstPromoter work with ad blockers?
Can I self-host FirstPromoter?
Is OpenPromoter really free?
Sources6 vendor pages, checked November 2026
Table facts are numbered here. The sections above link theirs in place. Check FirstPromoter's site for current pricing. Spotted something out of date? Open an issue on GitHub and we will correct it.
Other comparisons: Rewardful · Tolt · Dub Partners
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