Solid Affiliate vs Asteris Affiliates
Solid Affiliate is a WooCommerce-only affiliate plugin that does its core job well and ships per-product commission rates in core — a feature AffiliateWP charges extra for. Asteris Affiliates extends the same self-hosted model with two-tier referrals, EDD + Surecart adapters, AI swipe-copy generator, cloud-assist fraud detection and Stripe Connect Express direct payouts, included from $149/yr.
Solid Affiliate
A WooCommerce-only affiliate plugin focused exclusively on WC stores. Direct, modern, no SaaS layer.
Visit Solid Affiliate →Asteris Affiliates
Self-hosted WordPress affiliate plugin. Two-tier referrals + AI swipe-copy + PayPal API auto-payout, included from Starter ($149/yr).
See pricing →When Solid Affiliate wins
- You're committed exclusively to WooCommerce and want a single-purpose tool
- You value Solid Affiliate's narrower focus and simpler admin surface
- You don't need MLM, AI swipe, cloud-fraud, Stripe Connect, EDD or Surecart support and never will
When Asteris Affiliates wins
- EDD + Surecart adapters — Solid Affiliate is WooCommerce-only
- Two-tier (MLM) referrals included from Starter
- AI swipe-copy generator built in (no Solid Affiliate equivalent)
- Cloud-assist fraud detection (opt-in, SHA-256 hashed)
- Stripe Connect Express direct payouts at 0.25%
- PayPal API auto-batch payouts
- Vanity /go/ landing pages with cookie + view tracking
- A/B email testing on transactional emails
- Real-time stats REST API
- Full WP-CLI suite
Side-by-side
| Feature | Solid Affiliate | Asteris Affiliates |
|---|---|---|
| WooCommerce support | Yes (native) | Yes (native) |
| EDD adapter | Not available | Included |
| Surecart adapter | Not available | Included |
| Custom cart adapter API | Not available | Order_Source interface |
| Two-tier (MLM) referrals | Not available | Included from Starter |
| AI swipe-copy generator | Not available | Included |
| Per-product commission rates | Included | Included |
| Cloud-assist fraud detection | Not available | Opt-in (hashed) |
| Stripe Connect direct payouts | Not available | Included |
| PayPal API auto-batch | Limited | Included |
| Vanity /go/ landing pages | Not available | Included |
| A/B email testing | Not available | Included |
| WP-CLI commands | Limited | Full suite |
| Self-hosted | Yes | Yes |
Competitor capabilities sourced from public documentation as of 8 Jun 2026. Verify against the current published features before purchase.
Solid Affiliate is the WooCommerce-purist pick — Asteris is the multi-cart pick
If you're 100% WooCommerce and you'll never sell anything outside WC, Solid Affiliate is a clean, focused choice. Its per-product commission rate handling is in core (rather than as a paid add-on like AffiliateWP), the admin is tight, and it doesn't try to do anything outside WooCommerce. The trade-off is the size of the feature surface — Solid Affiliate is a small product, and that's deliberate on their side.
The stores who switch from Solid Affiliate to Asteris tend to fall into three groups: stores adding a second cart (an EDD course site, a Surecart digital store) and discovering Solid Affiliate can't track it; stores wanting to add a two-tier MLM layer to their referral program; and stores wanting Stripe Connect direct payouts at 0.25% rather than manual mark-as-paid or PayPal's 2% mass-pay flow.
The EDD or Surecart trigger
This is the most common reason stores leave Solid Affiliate. You launch a course site on EDD, or move digital downloads to Surecart, and suddenly you've got two stores and only one of them has affiliate tracking. Asteris's adapters cover both with the same admin and the same affiliate portal — affiliates see one dashboard regardless of which store generated the commission. EDD adapter docs → · Surecart adapter docs →
The MLM trigger
Solid Affiliate doesn't offer two-tier referrals and we don't see it on their roadmap. If you ever want to add a 5% tier-2 layer (affiliates earn 5% on sub-affiliates they recruit), Asteris ships it in Starter. Two-tier docs →
The payout trigger
Manual mark-as-paid works fine when you have 5 affiliates. At 50 affiliates with monthly payouts, it's a job in itself. Asteris ships Stripe Connect Express (0.25% fee, direct to bank), PayPal Payouts API (2% with batch scheduling), and bank-CSV (AU + US formats) in core. Stripe Connect docs →
Migrating from Solid Affiliate
Solid Affiliate's data export covers affiliates, commissions and historical payouts. Our Solid Affiliate migration guide walks through the WP-CLI command that reads that export and creates matching records in Asteris. Solid Affiliate's referral parameter keeps working via a compatibility redirect — affiliate links you've already published continue to track and credit the matching Asteris affiliate.
The honest case for staying on Solid Affiliate
Stay on Solid Affiliate if you're WooCommerce-only forever, you don't need MLM, you're happy with manual or PayPal mass-pay payouts, and you actively prefer a small focused product over a fuller-featured one. We respect that preference and we won't try to talk you out of it. For everyone else — particularly the multi-cart and growing-program crowd — Asteris's $149/yr Starter is the lower-friction answer.
FAQ
How much does Asteris Affiliates cost?
Asteris Affiliates starts at $149/yr with two-tier referrals included, and runs self-hosted so your data stays in your own WordPress.
Is two-tier included?
Yes, two-tier referrals are included from the Starter tier, where some rivals charge extra or omit it.
Can I migrate from Solid Affiliate?
Yes. Follow the step-by-step migration guide.
Try Asteris Affiliates risk-free
14-day money-back guarantee. Self-hosted. No SaaS subscription.
Get Asteris — $149/yr →