Affiliate Disclosures for Amazon Associates

The world's largest affiliate program adds its own required disclosure — 'As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases' — on top of the FTC rules, and enforces its own terms.

The Amazon Associates program is the largest affiliate program in the world, and it carries its own disclosure requirement layered on top of the FTC rules. If you participate, you must satisfy both Amazon’s operating agreement and the law — and Amazon actively enforces its own terms.

Amazon’s required disclosure statement

Amazon’s Associates Program Operating Agreement requires participants to state clearly that they may earn from qualifying purchases. Amazon specifies acceptable language, most commonly:

Where it must appear

The disclosure must be clear and conspicuous in the same sense the FTC requires: visible near your Amazon links, on the pages where those links appear, not buried in a footer or a separate page only. Because Amazon links can appear across many pages, the disclosure should be placed so a reader encountering any Amazon link also sees the disclosure.

Amazon-specific pitfalls

• Do not state prices manually. Amazon prices change; Amazon restricts stating a specific price except through approved, real-time methods, because a stale price can mislead.
• Do not use Amazon links in email, e-books, or offline. Amazon’s terms restrict where associate links may be used; misuse can terminate your account.
• Do not cloak or shorten Amazon links in ways that violate the operating agreement.
• Keep reviews genuine. Amazon and the FTC both prohibit fake or incentivized reviews.

The Amazon requirement and the FTC requirement point the same way: tell readers plainly that you earn a commission, near the links, on every page that uses them. For the underlying legal standard, see the clear-and-conspicuous standard, and for reusable wording, the templates library.

Last reviewed July 2026. This page is general educational information, not legal or tax advice.