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Email marketing for affiliate marketers: which platform's policy actually lets you send
Short version: The platform choice matters for affiliate marketers in a way most tool roundups ignore. Kit explicitly permits affiliate links in email, with one restriction: sends cannot be 100% affiliate-based. MailerLite allows affiliate links subject to review. GetResponse permits it with consent requirements. beehiiv does not address affiliate links in its terms — the policy is silent. Mailchimp explicitly prohibits affiliate marketing as an industry in its Terms of Use, though incidental affiliate links in primarily original content may be allowed. Picking the wrong platform does not just limit your features; it risks account suspension without refund. The policy question comes before the pricing question.
The question most comparison guides skip
Most email tool roundups compare subscriber limits, automation depth, and price tiers. For affiliate marketers, there is a prior question: does the platform's own acceptable-use policy allow you to run an affiliate marketing newsletter at all?
This is separate from whether an affiliate program (like Amazon Associates or Kit's partner program) allows links in email. That is the affiliate program's rule. The sending platform has its own rule, and violating it can close your account immediately, without refund, regardless of what the affiliate program says.
Two platforms in particular draw an explicit line. Here is what each policy says.
What each platform's acceptable-use policy says
Here is what we found on each platform's acceptable-use policy, with the relevant clauses:
| Platform | Affiliate links in email | Key restriction | Risk level |
|---|---|---|---|
| Kit | Explicitly permitted | Not 100% affiliate-based | Low |
| MailerLite | Affiliate links permitted; affiliate marketing as primary model prohibited | Links must align with your brand; primarily-commission sends prohibited | Medium for primary affiliate senders |
| GetResponse | Permitted with conditions | Prior consent required; no unsolicited sends | Low to medium |
| beehiiv | Not addressed in ToS — policy is silent | Neither permitted nor prohibited in ToU as of August 2026 | Unclear |
| Mailchimp | Affiliate marketing prohibited as industry | Incidental links in branded original content may be allowed | High for primary affiliate senders |
| Substack | Not addressed in ToS | Neither permitted nor prohibited as of July 2026 | Unclear |
Kit's exact clause
Kit's acceptable-use policy, retrieved August 3, 2026 from help.kit.com:
"We do not restrict the use of affiliate links in emails as long as they are properly marked and used responsibly. However, we do not allow content that is 100% affiliate based, including selling other tools, software, 'business in a box', etc."
This is the most explicit written permission of any mainstream ESP. Kit names the use case and permits it with one boundary: the email must not be entirely promotional content with affiliate links. A newsletter with original analysis, recommendations, or research that includes affiliate links is within scope. We have run this way since July 2026 with no account issues.
Mailchimp's exact clause
Mailchimp's affiliate links help page, retrieved August 3, 2026 from mailchimp.com:
"Affiliate marketing as an industry is prohibited under our Terms of Use."
Mailchimp's stated reason: affiliate marketers "lack genuine relationships with their contact lists and aren't marketing their own offerings." Bloggers who occasionally recommend products under their own brand are treated differently from senders whose primary purpose is affiliate promotion. If affiliate commissions are a core part of your newsletter model, this prohibition is aimed at you specifically.
The practical risk: Mailchimp automatically scans for denylisted URLs. An account flagged during a send gets suspended pending review. There is no refund on prepaid plans.
Which platform fits your situation
You are starting a newsletter and plan to monetize through affiliate links
Kit. It is the clearest starting point: 10,000 subscribers free, explicit written permission for affiliate links, one automation sequence on the free plan, and paid subscriptions available even before you upgrade. The free tier removes cost from the equation while you build your list. Our Kit free plan breakdown covers exactly what you get before you need to pay.
You are on Substack and want to add affiliate revenue
Substack's ToS does not explicitly address affiliate links as of July 2026, which creates a gray area rather than a safe harbor. Substack is also a reader discovery network, not a marketing ESP, so its audience-growth mechanics differ from Kit's. If affiliate revenue is part of your long-term model and you want a written policy backing you, migrating to Kit or another permissive ESP is the cleaner move. Our Substack vs. Kit fee comparison covers the migration math. Our platform-switching guide covers what breaks and what survives the move.
You have a large list (10,000 subscribers or more) and need to control cost
Kit's paid plans start at $25/month for up to 1,000 subscribers and scale from there. GetResponse starts at $19/month for 1,000 subscribers. MailerLite's Growing Business plan is $18/month for 1,000 subscribers. Our cost-at-scale comparison has the numbers for 500 to 10,000 subscribers across all four platforms. The affiliate-links permission issue applies at scale too: verify each platform's current AUP before migrating a large, revenue-generating list.
You run an affiliate newsletter on a shoestring budget
Kit to 10,000 subscribers free is the strongest combination of free-tier headroom and affiliate permission. MailerLite's free tier drops to 250 active subscribers as of July 2026, which is not much runway. EmailOctopus allows 2,500 subscribers free but its affiliate policy should be verified before relying on it at volume. Our free-plan comparison covers the limits across six platforms.
You are moving away from Mailchimp specifically because of the affiliate policy
Kit is the most common migration destination for this reason. The subscriber import is straightforward: export a CSV from Mailchimp, import it into Kit, re-confirm your authentication records. Automation sequences do not migrate; you rebuild them on the new platform. Our platform-switching guide covers the full checklist.
What we run and why
We send our own newsletter through Kit. We chose it partly because of the explicit affiliate-links permission, partly because the free tier goes to 10,000 subscribers without a credit card, and partly because it supports paid newsletter subscriptions on the same account if we move in that direction. We have been on the free plan since July 2026. The affiliate link in this section earns us a commission if you start a paid plan; the free plan earns us nothing and it is still the right starting point for most affiliate newsletter builders.
The one limit worth flagging: Kit's free plan includes one automation sequence. If you need more than one welcome or nurture flow before you are ready to pay $25/month, that is the real constraint. See our Kit free plan breakdown for everything that caps out before the subscriber limit does.
Start free on Kit through our Kit affiliate link. No credit card. Cancels without penalty at any time.
A note on the two policy questions
This page covers whether your sending platform allows affiliate marketing newsletters. There is a second, separate policy question: does the affiliate program whose links you are promoting allow you to include those links in email? Those are different rules, enforced by different parties. Amazon Associates, for instance, has specific consent requirements for email promotion that exist independently of whatever your ESP allows. Our affiliate-in-email comparison covers the program-side rules for Kit, GetResponse, Amazon Associates, and beehiiv.
Sources
- Kit acceptable-use policy: help.kit.com/en/articles/3038130-acceptable-use-policy, retrieved August 3, 2026. Finding: affiliate links explicitly permitted; 100%-affiliate sends excluded. First-party verified: our account has operated affiliate links since July 2026 without issue.
- Mailchimp affiliate links policy: mailchimp.com/help/about-affiliate-links-in-mailchimp/, retrieved August 3, 2026. Finding: affiliate marketing as an industry prohibited; incidental affiliate links in primarily original content may be allowed. Down-rank: this is Mailchimp's own help center; the binding document is their Terms of Use.
- beehiiv Terms of Use: beehiiv.com/tou, retrieved August 2026. Finding: affiliate links and affiliate marketing in email are not addressed. Neither permitted nor prohibited; policy is silent on this use case.
- MailerLite Terms of Service: mailerlite.com/terms-of-service, retrieved August 2026. Finding: affiliate marketing as a primary send model (multiple unrelated referral links purely for commission) is prohibited. Individual affiliate links within brand-aligned content are explicitly permitted.
- GetResponse affiliate sending policy: getresponse.com/legal, retrieved July 2026. Finding: permitted with prior consent and no unsolicited sends.
- Substack Terms of Service: substack.com/tos, retrieved July 27, 2026. Finding: affiliate links in email not addressed, neither permitted nor prohibited.