Overview

Refferq brings affiliate registration, referral tracking, commission rules, a partner portal, and reporting into one platform. Administrators can review and approve registrations after OTP email verification. Affiliates inherit commission rates from their assigned partner group, a practical way to apply shared terms across a roster without configuring each affiliate independently.

A JavaScript tracker captures referral clicks, while conversions are recorded through the API. That division gives teams a browser-based way to capture referrals and a programmatic path for conversion events, but means the conversion workflow needs an integration with the product's API.

Key features

Tracking and reporting

Real-time analytics dashboards and a Reports API cover clicks, conversions, revenue, commissions, and top affiliates. The dashboard serves operational monitoring; API access makes those measures available to connected systems. With 38+ endpoints and 12 webhook event types, Refferq offers a substantial integration surface for a self-hosted product. Webhooks use HMAC-SHA256 signatures and exponential-backoff retries, useful safeguards for validating event origin and handling temporary delivery failures.

Commission rules and customization

Commission rates are set by partner group and inherited by assigned affiliates. This model fits programs with shared rate structures, though teams seeking a distinct rate for every affiliate should account for the group-based configuration. White-label branding is included in the pricing description, and users can customize the interface, branding, commission rules, and tracking logic—meaning teams can adapt the program to their own workflows rather than treating the defaults as fixed.

Deployment and email

Refferq documents Node.js 18+ and PostgreSQL 12+ requirements, with Docker, Vercel, and VPS deployment options. This flexibility helps teams choose among common deployment approaches, but does not remove the need to run and maintain the application. Email notifications use Resend and require a Resend API key in configuration, an additional setup dependency for registration verification and email flows.

Pricing

The Self-Hosted plan has no published price. It includes complete source code under the MIT License, unlimited affiliates, referrals, and conversions, 38+ API endpoints, 12 webhook event types, and community support through GitHub Discussions and Issues. It states no usage limits or per-transaction charges, making it a strong fit for teams that can provide their own infrastructure and want to avoid limits that scale with program activity. The absence of a published price means teams should confirm the applicable cost before committing.

Managed Cloud is 29.00 USD per month, billed monthly, and is described as including everything in Self-Hosted. It is marked Coming Soon, so it is not a current alternative for teams seeking a hosted service. Its stated email support with a 24-hour response could suit teams preferring help beyond community channels once the plan is available.

There is no additional paid tier with published seat or quota limits; the Self-Hosted plan states unlimited usage. The main cost distinction is therefore not a published usage charge but whether the team wants to operate the self-hosted deployment or wait for Managed Cloud.

Platforms

Refferq supports API, self-hosted, and web use. Its documented system requirements and deployment options make self-hosting the clearest fit for teams that want control over where the application runs; the API and web interface serve integration and administration needs alongside it.

Who it's for

Refferq fits businesses building an affiliate program that need partner approvals, group-based commissions, referral tracking, and reporting, and have developers able to deploy and integrate the system. Its source code, customization options, API, and usage terms are especially relevant to teams that want to adapt the platform and avoid per-transaction charges.

It is a weaker fit for teams that want a ready-made managed service today, cannot support the documented runtime and database, or prefer conversion tracking without an API integration. Email setup also depends on configuring Resend.

Pros and cons

Uncapped stated activity: unlimited affiliates, referrals, and conversions with no usage limits or per-transaction charges suit programs whose activity may grow.
Broad integration surface: 38+ API endpoints, a Reports API, and 12 signed webhook event types support connecting tracking and reporting to a team's systems.
Source and customization: MIT-licensed complete source code and configurable branding, commission rules, and tracking logic offer room to tailor the platform.
Self-hosting responsibility: teams must provide an environment meeting Node.js 18+ and PostgreSQL 12+ requirements and manage deployment.
API-based conversions: teams need to connect conversion events through the API rather than relying only on the JavaScript click tracker.
Resend dependency: email notifications require a Resend API key, adding a configuration step.

Alternatives

OpenPartner is worth considering for teams that want a free plan and a 3.00 USD per month Revshare option billed at 3% of GMV with no monthly fee; its plan includes unlimited partners, links, and campaigns.

UpPromote suits readers looking for a free affiliate program with a stated cap of one program and $3,000 referral review per month. Simple Kuma is another free-plan option with API, self-hosted, and web platforms.

CAKE is a paid alternative spanning Android, iOS, API, and web. SliceWP may suit teams seeking a WordPress-oriented self-hosted alternative: its Pro plan is 229.00 USD per year for one site, with annual renewals at full price, and Pro Plus is 349.00 USD per year.

Affilimate offers paid plans for creators and brands or agencies, with prices not published. Partnerize uses customized pricing based on program structure and service needs. PartnerStack is a paid option without a free plan.

For broader comparisons, see Affiliate Analytics Software and Affiliate Marketing Software.

Verdict

Choose Refferq if your team can run its own Node.js and PostgreSQL deployment and wants an adaptable affiliate system with source code, reporting, API and webhook integrations, and stated unlimited usage. Its strongest reason to choose it is the combination of customization and no usage or transaction charges. Look elsewhere if you need managed hosting now, want to avoid API work for conversions, or do not want to configure and maintain the infrastructure and Resend email dependency.

	Endorsely	Refferq
Free plan	Yes	Yes
Free trial	No	No
Paid from	—	—
Open source	No	No
Platforms	api, Web	api, self-hosted, Web
Free plan	Yes	Yes
Paid from	$39/mo	—
Partner portal	Yes	Yes
Automated payouts	Yes	Yes
Fraud prevention	Yes	—
API access	Yes	Yes

Endorsely vs Refferq

Endorsely

Refferq