Table of contents

What is the Amazon Associates program?What you need before adding Amazon affiliate linksHow to get Amazon affiliate linksHow to add Amazon affiliate links to WordPressUsing plugins to manage Amazon affiliate linksBest practices for using Amazon affiliate linksCommon mistakes to avoidGetting clicks and conversions: tips to optimizeGetting StartedAdditional Resources

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WordPress Guide → Monetize → Amazon Affiliate

How to add an Amazon affiliate link to WordPress

Adding Amazon affiliate links to WordPress is one of the easiest ways to earn money from your content. Whether you run a blog, review site, or niche product roundup, these links turn your product mentions into passive income. All it takes is a bit of setup—and once you get the hang of it, the process becomes second nature.

Let’s walk through exactly how to do it, step by step.

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What is the Amazon Associates program?

Amazon Associates is Amazon’s official affiliate marketing program. It lets you promote Amazon products on your website and earn a commission when someone clicks your link and makes a purchase.

You don’t need to sell products yourself. Instead, you help people find products they’re already looking for—like laptops, kitchen tools, or pet supplies—and Amazon rewards you for the referral. Commissions range from 1% to 10%, depending on the category.

Because Amazon has millions of products and a trusted brand name, the program is a favorite among bloggers, reviewers, and niche site owners.

What you need before adding Amazon affiliate links

Before you can start adding affiliate links to your site, make sure you have these in place:

An engaged audience. Getting approved for an Amazon Associates account depends on people using your links. You need some consistent site traffic before you’re ready to get started.
An approved Amazon Associates account. You can apply at affiliate-program.amazon.com, but Amazon won’t fully approve your account until you’ve made at least three sales within 180 days.
A live WordPress site with some content. Amazon reviews your site before approval. If your site is empty or under construction, they may reject it.
HTTPS enabled. Amazon requires all affiliate links to be served over HTTPS. If your site isn’t using SSL yet, your web host or a plugin like Really Simple SSL can help you switch.
A privacy policy and affiliate disclosure. This isn’t optional. You must clearly tell users that you earn commissions from affiliate links, both in a general site disclosure and near the links themselves.

How to get Amazon affiliate links

Once your Amazon Associates account is active, here’s how to generate links:

Log into your Amazon Associates dashboard. Head to the Amazon Associates central site.
Search for a product. Use the “Product Linking” tab or just search directly from the Amazon homepage using the SiteStripe toolbar.
Choose a link type. You can get:
- Text links, which are simple URLs or HTML anchor tags
- Image links, which show a product photo and link to Amazon
- Text + image links, which show both
- Native Shopping Ads, which display recommended products dynamically
Copy the link. You can grab a short link (like https://amzn.to/…) or full HTML code. The short link is easier to paste into WordPress; HTML gives more control if you’re adding images or styled elements.

Tip: The SiteStripe toolbar appears at the top of any Amazon page when logged into your Associate account. It’s the easiest way to generate links without leaving the page.

How to add Amazon affiliate links to WordPress

There are two main ways to add Amazon affiliate links: manually, or using a plugin. If you’re just adding a few links here and there, manual works fine. If you want to track links or create advanced layouts, a plugin can save time.

Add links manually using the WordPress editor

This is the easiest option if you’re already familiar with editing posts or pages in WordPress.

Open your post or page in the WordPress editor.
Highlight the text you want to use as the link. For example, “Check price on Amazon.”
Click the link icon in the toolbar.
Paste your Amazon short link. Make sure it’s a valid affiliate URL from your Amazon Associates account.
Click the gear/settings icon.
- Check “Open in new tab” so visitors stay on your site.
- Toggle on “nofollow” to comply with search engine guidelines.
Click Apply or Update. Your link is now active.

You can also add affiliate links to images by clicking the image block and pasting the link into the “Link” field.

Add links with HTML in the code view

Amazon also gives you full HTML for image links or text + image combos.

Copy the HTML from Amazon.
In WordPress, switch your editor block to “Custom HTML.”
Paste the code. Make sure to preview it to ensure it looks right.
Update the post or page.

This method is useful when you want Amazon-styled image ads or product boxes. Just be aware that these HTML snippets may not be responsive by default and could require custom styling.

Using plugins to manage Amazon affiliate links

If you plan to use many affiliate links or want to track performance, plugins can help you:

Organize and categorize your links
Automatically apply nofollow and open in new tab
Replace keywords with affiliate links
Display ads, product boxes, or tables

Recommended Amazon affiliate plugins for WordPress

Here are three plugins that work great with Amazon affiliate links:

Feature	ThirstyAffiliates	Pretty Links	Advanced Ads
Link management dashboard	✅	✅	❌
Link cloaking (not for Amazon)	✅	✅	❌
Click tracking	✅	✅	✅ (with addon)
Auto-insert links in content	✅	✅	✅
Ad and display controls	❌	❌	✅
Amazon API integration	❌	❌	✅ (via add-on)

Note: Don’t use cloaking for Amazon links. Amazon’s terms of service prohibit this. You can still use ThirstyAffiliates or Pretty Links for organizing and inserting links, just disable cloaking for Amazon URLs.

How to add Amazon links with a plugin (example: Advanced Ads)

Here’s how to use Advanced Ads to place affiliate links and product boxes:

Install and activate the plugin. Go to Plugins > Add New, search for Advanced Ads, and click Install Now, then Activate.
Create a new ad. Go to Advanced Ads > Ads and click New Ad. Name your ad something descriptive, like “Amazon Toaster Link.”
Choose “Plain Text and Code” as the ad type. Paste your Amazon affiliate HTML (text, image, or both) into the box.
Configure display conditions. Choose where to display the ad: below the content, in the sidebar, on certain post types, etc. You can also schedule when the ad appears or rotate it with others.
Insert using shortcodes or auto-placement. Advanced Ads gives you a shortcode to use anywhere ([the_ad id=”123″]), or you can let it place the ad automatically on posts or pages.

This approach works well for product boxes, banners, or links that you want to reuse across multiple posts.

Best practices for using Amazon affiliate links

Following best practices helps you stay compliant with Amazon and get better results:

Always disclose affiliate links. Add a note near the link (“This is an Amazon affiliate link”) and include a full disclosure in your footer or sidebar.
Use “nofollow” and open links in new tabs. This avoids passing SEO juice and improves the user experience.
Avoid cloaking links. Amazon prohibits link shortening or masking services that hide the Amazon domain.
Use buttons or images for higher click-throughs. “Check price” buttons often perform better than plain text.
Stay updated on Amazon’s policies. The Associates Program Operating Agreement can change at any time.

Common mistakes to avoid

Avoid these missteps to protect your account and improve conversions:

Link cloaking Amazon URLs. This can get you banned.
Posting links on social media or in email newsletters. Amazon restricts where you can use affiliate links.
Showing prices manually. Prices change often. Unless you’re using Amazon’s API (and updating in real time), avoid quoting prices.
Promoting restricted items. Some products (like certain health items) are excluded.
Skipping your disclosure. It’s a legal requirement in many countries.

Getting clicks and conversions: tips to optimize

Once you’ve added links, here’s how to make the most of them:

Write useful, honest content. Focus on solving a problem or helping someone make a decision.
Use product comparison tables. Tools like Advanced Ads (or manual HTML tables) help readers compare features.
Target buyer intent. Content like “Best X for Y” or “Top Picks for…” often converts better.
Add clear calls to action. Say “View on Amazon” or “Check Price” instead of just linking product names.

Next steps for adding Amazon affiliate links to WordPress

Adding Amazon affiliate links to WordPress can turn your existing content into a reliable revenue stream. With just a bit of setup, you can help your readers while earning a commission every time they shop through your links.

Start by applying for Amazon Associates and getting your first affiliate link. Then decide whether you want to place links manually or use a plugin like Advanced Ads to scale your monetization.

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