About Upstart

Upstart is a leading AI lending marketplace that partners with banks and credit unions to provide consumers with access to personal loans, auto loans, and other financial products.

Founded in 2012, Upstart uses non-traditional variables like education and employment history, alongside traditional credit data, in its AI-driven models to assess creditworthiness.

This approach aims to expand access to credit for a broader range of borrowers who might otherwise be overlooked by conventional credit scoring models. The loans themselves are originated by Upstart’s network of partner financial institutions.

Upstart Affiliate Program Overview

The Upstart Affiliate Program offers partners an opportunity to earn commissions by referring qualified leads or customers for personal loans and other financial products offered through the Upstart marketplace. It primarily operates in the high-value financial services vertical, focusing on driving high-quality borrower applications.

Attribute Description
Industry Financial Services, Fintech, Lending
Product Type Personal Loans, Auto Refinance Loans, Home Equity Lines of Credit (HELOCs)
Affiliate Program Type Cost Per Lead (CPL) or Cost Per Sale (CPS) – based on qualified actions (e.g., funded loan applications)

Upstart Affiliate Program Offers

While specific, detailed program terms can be proprietary and may require direct enrollment to view, affiliate programs in the financial sector generally offer the following features. The information below is based on standard industry practice for a large financial affiliate program.

Offer Detail Description/Typical Feature
Promotional Materials Standard materials like text links, banners (various sizes), and potentially dedicated landing pages for specific campaigns.
Affiliate Cookie Duration Typically ranges from 30 to 60 days in the financial industry, though the exact duration is program-specific.
Accepted Traffic Sources Websites (blogs, comparison sites), email, paid search (with restrictions), social media (content creators, influencers), and often requires approval of the specific promotional method.
Accepted Countries Primarily focused on the United States, as their lending partners and regulatory environment are US-based.
Explicit Content Not Accepted. Financial affiliate programs strictly prohibit promotion on sites/channels with explicit or adult content due to brand safety and regulatory compliance.
Religious or Political Content Generally Not Accepted for direct promotion. Financial services maintain strict neutrality to ensure compliance and broad consumer appeal.

Upstart Affiliate Commissions & Payments

Upstart’s commission structure is performance-based and typically focuses on high-value actions due to the nature of the financial product (loans). Affiliates are compensated for driving quality applications or funded loans.

Payment Detail Description/Structure
MLM No. Upstart’s program is a standard affiliate program, not a Multi-Level Marketing (MLM) scheme.
Commission Rate Varies by loan type and performance. The commission is often a fixed rate per funded loan or qualified lead, rather than a percentage of the loan amount. Highly competitive in the loan vertical, potentially up to $350 per funded loan or higher.
Commission Structure Likely Pay-Per-Lead (PPL) for a qualified application or Pay-Per-Sale (PPS) for a successfully funded loan.
Payout Frequency Commonly Monthly, but can sometimes be set as weekly or bi-weekly depending on the affiliate network and performance tiers.
Payout Methods Typically includes Bank Transfer (ACH/Global ACH) and PayPal. Other methods may be available through the specific affiliate network.
Minimum Payout Varies by network, often $50 to $100.

Suitable Affiliates for Upstart Affiliate

The Upstart Affiliate Program is highly suitable for affiliates whose audience is actively seeking financial advice, loan comparisons, or debt management solutions.

  • Bloggers: Highly Suitable. Especially those running financial blogs, personal finance review sites, debt consolidation guides, or money management websites that rank for loan-related keywords.
  • TikTokers/KOC/KOL/Influencers: Suitable (with caution). Content creators focusing on personal finance, budgeting, and “getting out of debt” are a good fit, provided their content strictly adheres to financial promotion regulations and platform guidelines. The audience must be US-based and seeking loans.
  • YouTubers: Highly Suitable. Channels focusing on personal finance, credit score improvement, loan reviews, or debt management can successfully promote the program through detailed video reviews and tutorials.
  • Video Editors/Livestreamers: Suitable in a supporting role. These roles are suitable if they are part of a larger team creating content for the appropriate channels (Blogger/YouTuber/Influencer) or if their streams/content center on relevant financial topics.

Upstart Affiliate Software

Upstart uses established third-party affiliate network software to manage its program.

Upstart’s affiliate program is typically managed through major affiliate networks, such as Impact.com. This means they use a dedicated affiliate management platform rather than solely in-house software, which provides affiliates with professional tracking, reporting, and payment management.

3 Alternatives for Upstart Affiliate Program

Upstart’s primary competitors in the personal loan and fintech affiliate space include companies like SoFi, Upgrade, and Credible. These programs offer similar financial products and generally target the same high-value consumer niche.

Here is a comparison of Upstart with three well-known alternatives in the loan/fintech affiliate space:

Comparison Factor Upstart SoFi Upgrade Credible
Primary Product Personal Loans, Auto Refi Personal Loans, Student Loans, Invest Personal Loans, Credit Card Loan Comparison Marketplace
Target Borrower Wide range, AI-driven (education, job) Generally Good to Excellent Credit Lower minimum credit score accepted All credit types (compares lenders)
Affiliate Commission High Fixed CPA (per funded loan) High Fixed CPA (per funded loan/product) High Fixed CPA (per funded loan) High CPL (per qualified lead/match)
Conversion Focus on funded loans (high value) Focus on funded loans/account sign-ups Focus on funded loans Focus on completing comparison form (easier convert)
Marketing Materials Banners, Text Links, Data Feeds Banners, Text Links, Brand Assets Banners, Text Links Banners, Text Links, Widgets
Entry Fees None (Standard Affiliate) None (Standard Affiliate) None (Standard Affiliate) None (Standard Affiliate)
Payment Frequency Typically Monthly Typically Monthly Typically Monthly Typically Monthly
Withdrawal Threshold Typically $50 – $100 (Network Dependent) Typically $50 – $100 (Network Dependent) Typically $50 – $100 (Network Dependent) Typically $50 – $100 (Network Dependent)