With your personal referral link, you can share a project and track the support it generates. You don't have to be an Ambassador to do this. You'll only receive an affiliate commission if you have an explicitly accepted commission agreement.
Share a project using your personal link
- Sign up for Startnext and open the public project page.
- Tap the Share button.
- Share the project using one of the options provided, or select “Copy Link.”
Startnext uses your personal referral link for this. You can find it under User Menu → Affiliate Links → My Affiliate Links. Simply opening the Share menu does not create an entry there; to do so, you must actually share the link, or someone else must click on it.
As a guest, you share the regular project link without any personal assignment. This also applies when sharing a draft project.
View Recommendations and Results
Under "My Affiliate Links," you can find your links, share them again, and track the associated views and referrals. Search, filter, and sort options help you locate specific projects.
There are three things to distinguish here:
- Personal Referral Link: Makes the impact of your referrals visible.
- Ambassador Role: You are part of the project team and promote the project to others. This role does not grant you access to the project interface.
- Commission Agreement: Sets forth your compensation for eligible referrals. The link or the ambassador role alone does not entitle you to a commission.
Without a commission agreement, you may be shown a non-binding earnings estimate. This estimate does not represent a credit balance and will not be paid out. You can use the messaging feature to ask the Starter if they’d like to collaborate with you. A commission agreement entered into at a later date does not retroactively compensate you for previous support.
Accept an invitation to become an ambassador
An Ambassador invitation may or may not include a commission offer. If your invitation includes a commission offer, review the commission rates, the offer period, and the terms and conditions for the project.
Before accepting the project, check the type of funding:
- All or Nothing (AON): Your affiliate commission is contingent upon successful funding. If the funding fails, you will not receive an affiliate commission—even if donations were made through your link.
- Flex: Your commission is not contingent on whether the project reaches its funding goal.
The following applies to both types of funding: Only contributions eligible for commission, starting from the date the contract is accepted, are counted. Typically, the project creator makes the payment after the project ends and after the funding amount has been disbursed to them—not to Startnext.
- Open the private invitation link.
- Sign in or create an account during the registration process.
- Review the invitation and—if included—the commission rates and terms.
- Explicitly accept or decline the invitation and, if applicable, the commission offer.
Without a commission offer, you'll become an Ambassador, but you won't be eligible for commissions.
If you are already an Ambassador without a commission agreement, you can review a commission offer at a later date under "My Affiliate Links" and accept or decline it.
A sign-up or registration alone does not constitute acceptance. Within the original offer period, you can still change your rejection and accept the same offer. An expired offer does not give rise to a commission claim.
Share only the public referral link, not the private invitation link. You can use the referral link from the invitation even before you accept the offer. However, referrals made before you accept the offer will not be eligible for commission retroactively.
Once your application is approved, you'll find your link and—if agreed upon—the commission agreement under "My Affiliate Links." The link from the invitation will remain active.
You can have a commission agreement for as many different projects as you like at the same time. Each commission agreement applies only to the respective project; commission rates, entitlements, and settlements remain separate from one another.
AON: Working Together Toward Project Success
If you’ve accepted a commission agreement, your affiliate commission with Alles oder nichts (AON) is also contingent on successful funding. If the project doesn’t reach its minimum funding goal, you won’t be entitled to a commission—even if you’ve already contributed your time and reach. Be sure to factor this risk into your collaboration.
The same principle applies to Startnext: If an AON funding campaign fails, Startnext does not receive a success commission. Your affiliate commission and Startnext’s success commission are different forms of compensation, but they follow the same basic principle here: Commissions are paid only upon successful funding.
This is a fair shared incentive: project creators, ambassadors, and Startnext all work together to raise enough money to bring the project to life. A binding minimum amount can motivate the community to support the project earlier and recommend it to others. With your recommendations, you can help reach the funding threshold faster.
Why Your Efforts Can Still Be Worth It
A Startnext analysis of 387 active projects in January 2026 shows: The median funding amount for AON projects was 5,500 euros, while for Flex projects it was 1,156 euros—meaning AON projects raised roughly 4.8 times as much. The median is the middle value: half of the projects were above it and half were below.
The analysis highlights differences among the projects observed, not the sole influence of the funding type. This snapshot is no guarantee of a single project’s success or of your commission.
Therefore, when making your decision, don’t just focus on the risk of default. Also consider how compelling the project is, how realistic its minimum funding goal is, and how well you can reach the right people for it. If you believe in the project, you can actively contribute to its successful funding as an ambassador.
Which types of support count toward my commission?
Your affiliate commission is based on eligible referrals for the agreed-upon project that are attributed to your link starting from the date the contract is accepted.
There are two commission rates:
| Part of the support | Commission Rate Applied |
|---|---|
| Booked Thank-You Gifts | "Thank You/Sale" |
| Discretionary assistance or discretionary supplemental payment | "Donation" |
As a general guideline, Startnext suggests 5–15 percent for thank-you gifts and 10–20 percent for donations or unsolicited contributions. These recommendations are not binding. The rates agreed upon in the commission agreement are decisive; they should be commensurate with the project budget and the effort involved in the collaboration.
Example: A person books a "Thank You" gift for 80 euros and adds an additional 20 euros in unrestricted support. With a 5 percent commission for "Thank You" gifts and a 10 percent commission for unrestricted support, this results in 4 euros plus 2 euros—for a total of 6 euros in affiliate commission.
Cancelled, failed, or reversed donations do not qualify for an affiliate commission. Even a donation you make yourself using your link may be eligible for a commission.
How is a donation assigned to my link?
For registered visitors, support for your project can be attributed up to 180 days after the link is clicked. If there are multiple matching recommendations, the most recent one generally counts; a direct recommendation for the supported project takes precedence. Each instance of support is attributed to no more than one link.
For guests, the association remains in the current browser session for the time being. If they log in or register during that session, it is transferred to their account. Without this transfer, the recommendation cannot be permanently associated with future visits or other devices.
Referrals can also trigger support for other projects. These can be tracked statistically within seven days, but they do not earn you any affiliate commission under the commission agreement for your project.
When will I receive my affiliate commission?
A payout requires an accepted commission agreement and commission-eligible referrals starting from the date the agreement is accepted. A non-binding earnings estimate without a commission agreement will not result in a payout. Even a calculated commission amount does not constitute a payout.
- Calculated: Startnext has calculated an amount based on the allocated contributions and your commission rates.
- Confirmed: The eligibility requirements have been met. For "All or Nothing," this requires successful funding. For "Flex," eligibility does not depend on reaching a funding goal.
- Paid: The project creator made an external payment and documented the payment with Startnext.
Typically, payment is made after the project ends and after the funding amount has been paid out to the project creator. The project creator pays your affiliate commission directly—Startnext does not transfer it. Clarify the payment method and any required documentation with the project creator.
If an all-or-nothing project is not successfully funded, no commission is due. You should clarify the financial implications of a refund after the commission has already been paid directly with the project creator.
Clarifying and Reporting Commissions for Tax Purposes
Find out how you need to report your commission income for tax purposes and what documentation is required. Depending on your tax situation and the agreed-upon payment terms, you may need to issue an invoice to the starter for your affiliate commission.
Clarify payment details with the project creator in advance and discuss tax-related questions with a tax advisor or the appropriate tax office. The commission overview and a documented payment from Startnext do not replace any invoice that may be required or your tax return. Startnext does not provide legal or tax advice.
Track Changes and Notifications
The Starter may increase agreed-upon commission rates during the drafting, launch, or funding phase, but may not decrease them. Any increase also applies to contributions that have been eligible for commission since the contract was accepted. You will be notified by email.
Emails will also notify you of contract offers, documented payouts, and contract terminations by the team. You can opt out of notifications about new support options in your profile; contract-related emails will continue to be sent.
End the collaboration
If you opt out, you will no longer earn affiliate commissions on new supporters. Any affiliate commissions you have already earned will still be owed to you and will remain visible. Your referral link can continue to be active without generating new affiliate commissions. You can opt out in “My Affiliate Links” in the corresponding box under the commission agreement.
If the project team terminates an active commission agreement early, it must first pay out all outstanding affiliate commissions in full to the external party and confirm the payment. You will receive an email explaining the reason.
An account cannot be deleted normally as long as there is outstanding affiliate commission.