How to Write a Compliant Disclosure
Say plainly that you are paid, in words an ordinary person understands, where they will see it. Wording that works, wording that fails, and a reliable formula.
Writing a compliant disclosure is not difficult once you accept a simple premise: say plainly that you are paid, in words an ordinary person understands, where they will actually see it. The FTC does not require legal language. It requires clarity.
Wording the FTC endorses
- “I get commissions for purchases made through links in this post.”
- “Paid link” (placed next to the link).
- “This post contains affiliate links, which means I may earn a commission if you buy through them — at no extra cost to you.”
- “[Company] gave me this product to try” (for gifted items).
- “#ad” or “Ad:” at the start of a social post.
Wording that fails
The FTC has specifically criticized vague or coded terms that ordinary readers do not reliably understand as “I am being paid.” Avoid the following as stand-alone disclosures:
Adequate
- “Paid link” beside the link
- “I earn a commission from purchases through this post”
- “#ad” at the very start of a caption
- “Sponsored by [Brand]”
- “[Brand] sent me this for free”
Inadequate
- “#sp”, “#spon”, “#collab”
- “#ambassador”, “#thanks”, “#partner”
- The bare word “affiliate” (many readers do not grasp it)
- “Affiliate” buried in a footer or terms page
- A brand tag with no statement of the relationship
“Affiliate” alone is not enough
The FTC’s position is that a meaningful share of consumers do not understand that the word “affiliate” signals a paid commission. Use language that states the money relationship in terms anyone would grasp.
A reliable formula
A dependable disclosure has three qualities: it names the compensation (“commission,” “paid,” “free product”), it is written in first-person plain English, and it sits where the reader encounters the recommendation. If your disclosure has all three, it will satisfy the standard in the US and, with minor wording choices, in the UK, EU, Canada, and Australia as well.
Ready-to-use templates
For a library of disclosure statements you can adapt for blogs, social posts, video, email, and podcasts, see the disclosure templates library.
Authoritative sources
Last reviewed July 2026. This page is general educational information, not legal or tax advice.