How to Set Up Multi-Tier Affiliate Commissions in Sparkforge

By Sparkforge Support Team ·Last reviewed May 3, 2026

Sparkforge supports up to 7 commission tiers so an affiliate earns on their own sales and on sales from sub-affiliates they recruited. Configure tier-by-tier rates inside the campaign's Advanced Commissions settings.

Multi-tier commissions reward an affiliate not only for their own sales but also for sales generated by affiliates they recruited. Sparkforge supports up to seven tiers, which is enough for most layered referral programs.

How multi-tier commissions work

The first tier is the affiliate who made the sale. Each tier above that is an upstream affiliate — the person who recruited the seller, the person who recruited that recruiter, and so on. Each tier carries its own commission rate.

Example 1: 5-tier chain on a $100 sale

Commission structure:

Tier 1: 20%
Tier 2: 10%
Tier 3: 5%
Tier 4: 3%
Tier 5: 2%

Jan refers a $100 sale. Payouts:

Jan (Tier 1) earns $20.
Toby, who recruited Jan (Tier 2), earns $10.
Ryan, who recruited Toby (Tier 3), earns $5.
Jim, who recruited Ryan (Tier 4), earns $3.
Michael, who recruited Jim (Tier 5), earns $2.

Total paid out: $40 on a $100 sale.

Example 2: 3-tier chain on a $100 sale

Same commission structure. Stanley refers a $100 sale, but only three levels exist above him.

Stanley (Tier 1) earns $20.
Dwight, who recruited Stanley (Tier 2), earns $10.
Michael, who recruited Dwight (Tier 3), earns $5.

Total paid out: $35. The remaining tiers simply do not pay out because there is no upstream affiliate.

Steps to set up multi-tier commissions

Create a new affiliate campaign or open an existing one.
Open Advanced Commissions inside the campaign builder.
Toggle on Multi-Tier Commissions and pick the number of tiers (up to 7).
Set rates per tier. Apply the default to all tiers or set each tier independently.
Review additional settings, including auto-enrolling new customers as sub-affiliates.
Publish the campaign to start tracking and paying out.

When multi-tier makes sense

Tiered programs work well when affiliates can credibly recruit other affiliates — for example, course creators with student communities or service businesses with operator networks. They are overkill for a small list of paid affiliates promoting a single product.

Frequently Asked Questions

How many commission tiers does Sparkforge support?

Up to seven. You can enable any number from two to seven and set commission rates independently for each tier.

What happens when the chain has fewer affiliates than the tier count?

Only the existing levels pay out. If you set five tiers but only three affiliates exist in the chain, tiers four and five simply pay nothing for that sale.

Can each tier have a different commission rate?

Yes. The most common pattern is a higher rate at Tier 1 (the seller) and decreasing rates upstream, but you can configure any structure.

Do multi-tier commissions work with pay-per-lead campaigns?

Yes. The same Advanced Commissions settings apply, so lead-based payouts can also flow up the affiliate chain.

How do new customers become sub-affiliates automatically?

Turn on Auto-Enroll New Customers as Sub-Affiliates in the campaign's additional settings. New buyers are enrolled under the affiliate who referred them.