Affiliate attribution windows explained
Read the contract behind a referral that receives credit.
The scenario
A reader clicks on Monday, returns from an email on Friday, and buys on Saturday.
A 30-day window alone does not guarantee credit. Last eligible click, coupon rules, device changes, and deduplication may change which partner is paid.
Apply it to your own work
Record the window, overwrite rules, eligible order types, and refund period for each program. Use a permitted test purchase or ask the network to verify a test event.
What to watch for
A cookie lifetime and the program's contractual attribution window can be different. Treat dashboards as evidence of tracked credit, not a promise about every visit.
Write a timeline for edge cases
Take a sample referral and note the click time, later visit source, conversion time, and device change. Read the program terms for each step. A purchase within the window can still be ineligible if the product, geography, or customer type is excluded.
Use a shared reference sheet with dates checked. When credit disappears, compare tracking with the contract instead of assuming the browser dropped a cookie. Ask the network about unresolved cases without transmitting unrelated customer information.
Try a related tool
Measure earnings per tracked referral click after refunds and reversals. Use counts and commissions from the same cohort.
