Friendbuy Alternatives: 8 Referral Tools Compared for 2026

Word of mouth has always been the cheapest growth channel you have. A happy customer tells a friend, the friend buys, and you pay for a sale you would never have made otherwise. Friendbuy was built to turn that quiet habit into a measurable program, and plenty of well-known brands run their referral campaigns on it.

But the moment you ask “what does it cost?” the conversation slows down. Friendbuy does not publish pricing, there is no public free trial, and you reach the numbers through a sales call rather than a checkout page. For a smaller team, or a founder who just wants to start a referral or affiliate program this quarter, that can be a wall.

That is why most people start searching for Friendbuy alternatives. This guide walks through eight referral and affiliate tools with clearer pricing, shows what each does well, and helps you match a tool to your stage. We will be fair to Friendbuy along the way, because it is genuinely good at what it does.

TL;DR: the quick picks

1. Rekomi is the best all-around Friendbuy alternative for brands that want affiliate and referral in one place with transparent pricing from $19/mo, plus payouts and tax built in.
2. Partnero is great if you want affiliate, referral, and newsletter referral programs together with a long 30-day trial and no usage caps.
3. ReferralCandy is a fast, ecommerce-friendly pick if pure referral marketing with flexible rewards is your main goal.

What is Friendbuy?

Friendbuy is an enterprise platform for referral, loyalty, and influencer or affiliate programs. The idea is to keep all three growth motions under one roof, with strong testing and analytics so a marketing team can tune campaigns over time.

It is built for established brands, especially in ecommerce and consumer subscriptions. Friendbuy issues rewards to people who refer friends, tracks who converts, and plugs into the larger marketing stack so the data flows where your team already works.

A few things Friendbuy does well:

• Combines referral, loyalty, and affiliate campaigns in one platform, so you are not stitching three tools together.
• Strong A/B testing and analytics, which matters a lot once you are optimizing at scale.
• Solid enterprise integrations, including Salesforce Commerce Cloud, Braze, and Klaviyo.
• A reward-issuance engine that supports coupons, account credit, and other incentives across campaigns.

Now for pricing, and this is the honest part: Friendbuy does not publish any prices or tiers. There is no public price list, no public free trial, and no free plan. Pricing is quote-only and sales-led, so you book a call, describe your volume and needs, and get a custom number. We will not invent figures here, because Friendbuy has not made any public. Just know going in that it is positioned as an enterprise tool, so expect enterprise-style pricing.

If transparent pricing and a faster start matter to you, the alternatives below are worth a close look.

Why look for a Friendbuy alternative?

Friendbuy is capable, but it is not the right fit for every team. Here are the common reasons people shop around:

• No public pricing. You cannot compare costs without a sales call, which slows evaluation and rules it out for budget-conscious teams.
• No free trial or free plan. You cannot quietly test it before committing, the way you can with most modern tools.
• Enterprise-first. The platform, onboarding, and likely cost are aimed at larger brands. Smaller teams can feel like they are paying for scale they do not need yet.
• Rewards, not managed payouts. Friendbuy issues rewards and incentives. It is not a compliant affiliate payout-and-tax platform, so if you want to pay cash commissions with tax forms handled, that is a gap.
• You want affiliate features front and center. If affiliate marketing is your main goal rather than friend-gets-friend referral, a purpose-built affiliate tool may serve you better.

None of this makes Friendbuy a bad product. It just means a different tool might fit your size, budget, and goals more cleanly.

What to look for in a Friendbuy alternative

Before you compare names, get clear on what actually matters for your program. Use this short checklist:

• Transparent pricing. Can you see the price and start without a sales call?
• A free trial or free plan. Can you test the tool with real data before paying?
• Affiliate, referral, or both. Some tools do customer referral, some do affiliate, and a few do both. Match the tool to the motion you want.
• Payouts handled for you. Does the tool pay your affiliates, or do you export a spreadsheet and pay them yourself?
• Tax compliance. Does it collect W-9 and W-8 forms and generate 1099s, or is that on you?
• Tracking quality. Look for reliable first-party tracking and recurring commission support if you sell subscriptions.
• Fees you can predict. Watch for take-rates, success fees, and payout fees that grow with revenue, and decide what you can live with.
• Integrations. Make sure it works with your store, billing, and marketing tools.

Keep these in mind as you read the comparison. The right answer depends on your stage and which fees you would rather avoid.

Quick comparison

The 8 best Friendbuy alternatives

Here are eight strong options, starting with our own. We will tell you where each shines and where it does not, so you can pick with confidence.

1. Rekomi

Rekomi is affiliate and referral software built for brands that want to launch fast, see exactly what they will pay, and let the platform handle the messy parts of paying people. It runs both motions, affiliate programs and customer referral, in one place, with pricing you can read on the website today.

The headline difference versus Friendbuy is honesty about cost. Friendbuy is quote-only, while Rekomi starts at $19/mo and shows every tier. On top of that, Rekomi actually pays your affiliates through Stripe Express and handles tax forms (W-9, W-8BEN, W-8BEN-E, and 1099s), which Friendbuy’s reward-issuance model does not do.

Who it’s for: Brands that want affiliate and referral together, with done-for-you payouts and tax, at a price they can see upfront.

Pricing: Starter $19/mo, Growth $39/mo, Pro $99/mo, plus custom Enterprise. There is a 14-day free trial and no free plan. The only usage-based cost is a flat 3% take on affiliate payouts (2.5% on Enterprise), which applies only when affiliates actually earn. Payouts and tax forms are included in the base, not an add-on.

Strengths:

• Transparent pricing from $19/mo with payouts (Stripe Express, with PayPal rolling out) and tax handling built in, not billed separately.
• Runs both affiliate and referral programs, plus first-party tracking on your own custom domain and recurring commissions for subscription businesses.
• One-click CSV migration from six platforms and an AI co-pilot to help you set things up.

Watch-outs:

• Cost scales with payout volume because of the 3% take, and payouts run through Rekomi by design, so it is not the right tool if you want to pay affiliates entirely on your own.
• Rekomi does not bundle a loyalty program the way Friendbuy does, and it is newer with fewer public reviews. PayPal payouts are still rolling out, though Stripe is live.

2. Partnero

Partnero is a flexible partner marketing platform that covers affiliate programs, customer referral programs, and even newsletter referral programs in one tool. That range makes it a natural Friendbuy alternative for teams that want more than one growth motion without paying enterprise rates.

Who it’s for: Teams that want affiliate, referral, and newsletter referral programs together, with no usage caps and a long runway to test.

Pricing: Newsletter $10/mo, Starter $59/mo ($49 annual), Partner $199/mo, plus custom Enterprise. It comes with a generous 30-day trial and includes unlimited partners and transactions on all plans. Payouts and tax are built in, and optional managed payouts cost an extra 7%.

Strengths:

• Multiple program types in one place, so referral, affiliate, and newsletter campaigns share a home.
• A 30-day trial, one of the longest around, plus no usage caps on partners or transactions.
• Clear public pricing that starts low, unlike Friendbuy’s quote-only model.

Watch-outs:

• A few advanced features are still maturing compared with older platforms.
• Managed payouts carry a 7% fee, so factor that in if you want fully hands-off payments.

3. ReferralCandy

ReferralCandy is a long-running ecommerce referral platform, with lighter built-in affiliate campaigns on the side. It is one of the closest fits in spirit to Friendbuy’s referral side, and it has public pricing and strong Shopify reviews, which makes it an easy tool to try.

Who it’s for: Ecommerce brands whose main goal is a customer referral program with flexible reward types.

Pricing: Basic $39/mo plus a 10.5% success fee, Grow $79/mo plus 3.5%, Scale $249/mo plus 1.5%, and Enterprise $799/mo plus 0.25%. There is a 7-day trial and no free plan. The success fee applies only to a referred customer’s first few orders.

Strengths:

• Low entry price and fast setup, with strong reviews from Shopify merchants.
• Flexible reward types, including coupons, store credit, PayPal cash, and gift cards.
• Public, predictable base pricing, which Friendbuy does not offer.

Watch-outs:

• The success fee stacks on top of the monthly fee, so cost climbs with revenue, and 10.5% on the Basic plan adds up quickly.
• Affiliate features are light, and it issues rewards rather than handling managed affiliate payouts or 1099 tax compliance.

4. Tapfiliate

Tapfiliate is a flexible affiliate tracking platform that works across SaaS, ecommerce, and influencer programs. If your main goal is affiliate marketing rather than friend-referral, and you want to run multiple programs with lots of integrations, it is a strong Friendbuy alternative with pricing you can read upfront.

Who it’s for: Brands that want customizable affiliate programs across several channels, with wide integration options.

Pricing: Launch $89/mo ($74 annual), Scale $179/mo ($149 annual), plus custom Enterprise. There is a 7-day trial on Launch and a 14-day trial on Scale. Payouts and tax run through the Trolley integration rather than being native.

Strengths:

• Flexibility across SaaS, ecommerce, and influencer channels, with support for multiple programs.
• Highly customizable, with a wide library of integrations.
• Transparent public pricing, unlike Friendbuy.

Watch-outs:

• A higher $89 entry point, and lower tiers cap clicks and conversions with overage fees.
• Payouts and tax need the Trolley integration, so it is not as turnkey as tools that include them.

5. Refersion

Refersion is an ecommerce-focused affiliate platform with deep Shopify roots. It is built for stores that want SKU-level commissions, first-party tracking, and access to an affiliate marketplace, which gives it more affiliate muscle than Friendbuy’s referral-led approach.

Who it’s for: Ecommerce and Shopify brands running affiliate programs that need first-party tracking and granular commissions.

Pricing: Professional $99/mo, Business $249/mo, Scale $599/mo (plus 1% over a GMV threshold), and custom Enterprise. There is a 14-day trial. Payouts run via PayPal or Trolley.

Strengths:

• Ecommerce-grade first-party tracking with SKU-level commission rules.
• Tight Shopify integration and an affiliate marketplace to help you recruit.
• Clear public tiers, so you can budget before you commit.

Watch-outs:

• Lower tiers cap conversions, which can push you up a plan as you grow.
• It is ecommerce-focused, so it is weaker for pure SaaS programs.

6. Rewardful

Rewardful is an affiliate and referral tool built natively on Stripe and Paddle, aimed squarely at SaaS. It is one of the simplest, fastest ways to launch a no-code affiliate program if your billing already lives in Stripe, and it gives you the transparent pricing Friendbuy lacks.

Who it’s for: SaaS companies on Stripe or Paddle that want a quick, accurate affiliate program.

Pricing: Starter $49/mo, Growth $99/mo, and Enterprise $149+/mo, with a 14-day trial. Rewardful charges 0% on subscription revenue. You self-manage payouts via PayPal or Wise, or add Managed Payouts (which also adds tax forms) for an extra 3%.

Strengths:

• The simplest, fastest no-code Stripe setup in this list.
• Accurate recurring tracking, which matters for subscription products.
• Strong support and a clean experience.

Watch-outs:

• It works with Stripe and Paddle only, so it is not for ecommerce or other billing systems.
• Done-for-you payouts and tax cost an extra 3% on top of the base price.

7. GoAffPro

GoAffPro is a Shopify-first affiliate and referral app known for an unusually generous free plan. If you run an ecommerce store and want to start a program at no cost, it is one of the friendliest entry points on this list, and a budget-friendly Friendbuy alternative.

Who it’s for: Shopify and other ecommerce stores that want a cheap or free affiliate and referral program.

Pricing: A free “Hobby” plan ($0, with unlimited affiliates, sales, and revenue tracking and a branded portal, aimed at stores under about 100 daily orders), Premium $49/mo (custom domain, MLM, a tax plugin with W-9 collection and 1099 generation, payout scheduler, and integrations), Business from $99/mo (automations, custom comp plans, fraud tools), and custom Enterprise. There is a 15-day trial on Premium.

Strengths:

• A genuinely generous permanent free plan, which is rare.
• Very low cost overall, with MLM and multi-level support.
• Works across Shopify, WooCommerce, BigCommerce, Wix, and more.

Watch-outs:

• It is ecommerce and Shopify focused, so it is not built for SaaS.
• The interface is basic, tax handling and key features are gated to paid tiers, and payouts are PayPal-only.

8. LeadDyno

LeadDyno is an affiliate platform built for SMB ecommerce and SaaS teams that want something approachable. It includes built-in payouts and tax handling, comes with a long trial, and shows its pricing plainly, all of which contrast with Friendbuy’s sales-led model.

Who it’s for: Small and mid-size ecommerce or SaaS teams that want easy setup with payouts and tax included.

Pricing: Lite $49/mo, Essential $129/mo, Advanced $349/mo, and Unlimited $749/mo, with a 30-day trial. There is no take-rate.

Strengths:

• Easy setup for non-technical teams.
• Built-in PayPal payouts and tax handling, so you are not exporting spreadsheets.
• A long 30-day trial to test before you pay.

Watch-outs:

• Lower tiers cap active affiliates, which can limit a fast-growing program.
• Scaling to a very large program can feel constrained.

When Friendbuy is still the right choice

Switching is not always the answer. Friendbuy may be the best fit if:

• You are a large enterprise that wants referral, loyalty, and affiliate in one suite rather than separate tools.
• Loyalty programs are central to your strategy, since most affiliate-first tools (Rekomi included) do not bundle loyalty.
• You need heavy A/B testing and deep analytics across high-volume consumer campaigns.
• You rely on enterprise integrations like Salesforce Commerce Cloud, Braze, or Klaviyo and want them tightly connected.
• A custom quote and a dedicated sales relationship fit how your company buys software.

If that sounds like you, Friendbuy’s all-in-one suite earns its place.

How to switch from Friendbuy

Moving to a new tool is less painful than it sounds. Here is a simple path:

1. List what you actually use. Note your active campaigns, reward rules, affiliate or referrer lists, and the integrations you depend on.
2. Export your data. Pull your affiliate and referrer records, commission history, and any reward data out of Friendbuy as CSV files. Keep a clean backup.
3. Pick your alternative and start a trial. Choose the tool that fits your stage from the list above and sign up for its free trial so you can test with real data.
4. Import your contacts. Use the new tool’s CSV import to bring over your affiliates and referrers. Rekomi, for example, offers one-click CSV migration from several platforms.
5. Recreate your programs. Set up your commission or reward rules, branded portal, and tracking links to match what you ran before.
6. Run both in parallel briefly. Keep Friendbuy live for a short overlap while you confirm tracking fires correctly and numbers line up.
7. Tell your partners and cut over. Send affiliates and referrers their new links, then turn off the old program once everything checks out.

Take it one step at a time and you can move without losing history or momentum.

How to pick the right Friendbuy alternative for you

Match the tool to your situation:

• If you want affiliate and referral in one place with payouts and tax handled, start with Rekomi. Transparent pricing from $19/mo and a 3% take only on actual payouts keep costs predictable.
• If you want affiliate, referral, and newsletter programs together, look at Partnero for its range and long 30-day trial.
• If customer referral is your main goal in ecommerce, ReferralCandy is a fast, flexible pick (just watch the success fee).
• If you run a flexible affiliate program across channels, Tapfiliate offers customization and wide integrations.
• If you are an ecommerce or Shopify store, Refersion brings SKU-level affiliate tracking, and GoAffPro is the budget and free-plan option.
• If you are a Stripe-based SaaS, Rewardful is the simplest no-code setup.
• If you want easy setup with payouts and tax included for an SMB, LeadDyno fits, with a long trial to test it.

There is no single best tool, only the best tool for your stage, budget, and the fees you would rather avoid.

Frequently asked questions

How much does Friendbuy cost?

Friendbuy does not publish pricing. It is quote-only and sales-led, so you book a call and get a custom number based on your volume and needs. There is no public price list, no public free trial, and no free plan. Because Friendbuy is positioned as an enterprise tool, expect enterprise-style pricing, but we cannot quote a figure it has not made public.

Why does Friendbuy keep its pricing quote-only?

It is built and sold as an enterprise suite, so pricing is scoped to your volume and the mix of referral, loyalty, and affiliate campaigns you run, then delivered through a sales call. That suits large brands but slows down smaller teams. If you would rather read the price and start today, Partnero, Rewardful, Tapfiliate, Refersion, GoAffPro, and LeadDyno all publish their tiers.

What is the cheapest Friendbuy alternative?

GoAffPro is the cheapest of all if you count its permanent free plan, though it is built for ecommerce. Among paid-only tools, Partnero has a $10/mo Newsletter plan and a $59/mo Starter plan. The right “cheapest” depends on whether you also want payouts and tax included, since those can carry extra fees on some tools.

Is there a free Friendbuy alternative?

Yes. GoAffPro has a genuinely generous permanent free plan for ecommerce stores. Several other tools offer trials rather than free plans, including a 30-day trial on Partnero and LeadDyno and a 14-day trial on most of the rest, so you can test before paying.

Does Friendbuy do loyalty programs, and do the alternatives?

Yes, loyalty is one of Friendbuy’s core motions, bundled alongside referral and affiliate, which is a genuine reason to stay if loyalty is central to your strategy. Most affiliate-first alternatives here do not bundle a loyalty program, so if you need referral, loyalty, and affiliate in one suite, Friendbuy’s all-in-one approach is hard to replace with a single cheaper tool.

Does Friendbuy pay affiliates and handle taxes?

Not in the managed sense. Friendbuy issues rewards and incentives with tracking, but it is not a compliant affiliate payout-and-tax platform, and there is no confirmed 1099 handling. If you want cash commissions paid out for you with tax forms collected and filed, LeadDyno and Rekomi both include payouts and tax, and GoAffPro offers a tax plugin on its paid tiers.

How do I migrate from Friendbuy to another tool?

Export your affiliate and referrer lists, commission history, and reward data from Friendbuy as CSV files, then import them into your new tool. Recreate your campaigns and reward rules, run both programs in parallel briefly to confirm tracking, then cut over. Most tools accept CSV import, and a few, including Rekomi, offer one-click migration to make that step easier.

Can a Friendbuy alternative run both referral and affiliate programs?

Yes. Partnero runs affiliate and referral motions and adds newsletter referral programs too. If you only need one motion, a focused tool keeps things simpler: ReferralCandy leans referral-first for ecommerce, while Rewardful and Tapfiliate are affiliate-first.

Final thoughts

Friendbuy is a capable enterprise suite, and for a large brand that wants referral, loyalty, and affiliate in one place, it earns its spot. The catch is the lack of public pricing, no free trial, and a reward-issuance model rather than managed affiliate payouts and tax.

If you want to see the price before you commit, start fast, and have payouts and tax handled for you, Rekomi is the most natural fit. It runs both affiliate and referral, starts at $19/mo, and only takes a flat 3% when your affiliates actually earn. The honest trade-off is that it does not bundle a loyalty program the way Friendbuy does, and costs scale with payout volume.

Whichever tool you choose, the best move is to try one with your real data and see how it feels. Word of mouth is too good a channel to leave on the table while you wait for a quote.

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