As at the date at the foot of this page, we have no active affiliate relationships — we earn no commission from any link on this site. When that changes, we'll say so here and mark every affiliate link clearly. The rest of this page explains how affiliate links will work if and when we add them.
The short version: where a link on this site is an affiliate link, it means that if you click it and end up paying for the tool, we may earn a small commission. It costs you nothing extra, and it never changes what we cover, what we recommend, or what score we give a tool. If you'd rather not contribute, you can skip the link and go directly to the vendor's website. We will not feel bad about it.
The longer version is below — for anyone who wants to know exactly how the publication makes money, what the rules are, and how to spot an affiliate link when you see one.
What an affiliate link is
An affiliate link is a regular link to a vendor's website with a small tag on the end that tells the vendor we sent you. If you go on to subscribe or buy a paid plan within a set window, the vendor pays us a percentage of that subscription as a commission. The price you pay is exactly the same as if you'd typed the URL into your browser.
Most affiliate programs we participate in pay a one-off commission on the first month of a subscription, sometimes a small recurring percentage. The total revenue from any single affiliate click is small — typically a few dollars to a few tens of dollars.
How affiliate revenue does not affect editorial
This is the part that matters. The publication's credibility — and the reason anyone reads it — depends on the verdicts being honest. So:
- Affiliate relationships do not influence which tools we review. We choose tools based on what's useful to Australian readers. If a tool we'd otherwise cover doesn't have an affiliate program, we still cover it. If a tool offers a generous affiliate program, that doesn't get it onto the directory.
- Affiliate relationships do not influence scores. The five-criteria scoring framework is applied identically whether or not a vendor pays a commission. We currently hold no affiliate relationships at all, so every score on this site today was set with no commercial relationship in play — and that is the rule we will keep applying when relationships are added: a tool with a generous affiliate program will still score below a tool with none if that's what the criteria say.
- Affiliate relationships do not influence verdicts. When we recommend against paying for a tool, or recommend a free alternative over a paid one, we do so even when the affiliate revenue would point the other way. There are reviews on this directory that explicitly tell you to use the free tier and skip the paid plan that would earn us a commission.
- No vendor sees a review before it goes live. We don't share drafts with vendors for approval, comment, or "fact-checking" prior to publication. If a vendor disputes a claim after publication, we verify it against primary sources and correct or stand by the original publicly.
If we ever can't apply these rules to a piece — for example, sponsored content paid for by a vendor — we won't quietly bury the relationship. The piece will be clearly labelled "Sponsored" at the top, walled off from our editorial scoring, and not counted in any roundup or "best of" recommendations.
How to spot an affiliate link
Affiliate links on this site look like normal links. Where one is present, you'll see a small note in the same paragraph, the table cell, or directly above the call-to-action that says:
Affiliate link — see our Affiliate Disclosure for how this works.
If a link doesn't carry that note, it isn't an affiliate link. Most outbound links on the directory aren't.
Sponsored content — content paid for by a vendor — is labelled even more visibly. Any sponsored piece will carry a banner at the top of the article reading "Sponsored content" along with the name of the sponsoring vendor.
Current affiliate relationships
As of the date at the bottom of this page, the publication participates in the following affiliate programs:
- (None active yet — this section will be updated as relationships are added.)
We update this list whenever a new affiliate relationship is added or an existing one is ended.
What we do not accept
So that there's no ambiguity, here's what we will never do, regardless of the commercial offer:
- Paid placement disguised as editorial review or roundup.
- "Pay to be included" arrangements that change which tools appear on the directory.
- Vendor-written content published under our editorial byline.
- Removal of negative reviews or downgrading of negative scores in exchange for advertising or affiliate revenue.
- Pre-publication review by vendors of any editorial content.
If a vendor approaches us with one of these proposals, we say no, and the proposal goes on the file in case there's a future pattern worth writing about.
Where the rest of the money comes from
For full transparency:
- Affiliate commissions — none yet. We hold no active affiliate relationships as at the date at the foot of this page. If that changes, we expect commissions to be a small revenue line, and we'll update this section.
- Paid membership — A$5 a month or A$50 a year, billed by Stripe in AUD. Members get a monthly AUD Price Ledger and early access to new review editions. Every review stays free to read, and the free Price Watch email stays free.
- Sponsored editorial — none accepted to date. If we accept any in future, every sponsored post will be labelled as described above and disclosed in this section.
Questions
If you've spotted a link that should be disclosed and isn't, or you want to know whether a particular review carries an affiliate relationship, email adam@theaidirectory.com.au. We will respond and, where appropriate, update the relevant page.
The rules above sit alongside our Advertising and Sponsorship Policy and our Methodology page, which explains how a score is reached.
Last reviewed: 20 September 2026. This page is reviewed quarterly and updated whenever an affiliate relationship is added, changed, or ended. Next scheduled review: 20 December 2026.
Update history
- 8 Oct 2026 — "Where the rest of the money comes from" now lists paid membership (launched 7 Oct); it still said there was no paid subscription tier.
- 24 Sep 2026 — Meta description and excerpt brought into line with the page: they still said "some of our reviews contain affiliate links" and "last updated May 2026".
- 20 Sep 2026 — Quarterly review completed. Checked again: no active affiliate relationships, and no tracking link anywhere on the site. Added links to the Advertising and Sponsorship Policy and the Methodology page.
- 2 Jun 2026 — Opening statement added confirming there are no active affiliate relationships.
- 14 May 2026 — First published.