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PartnerStack is Scaling Revenue Precision in 2026
Tracking the data from the past year that'll set up your success for 2026
In 2025, the partnership economy didn't just grow, it graduated. While much of the B2B SaaS market scrambled to find efficiency in a volatile year, ecosystem-led growth solidified its place as the primary engine for predictable and scalable revenue.
The numbers tell the story of a massive shift in trust and transaction volume: the PartnerStack Network reached a historic milestone of $2.7B in all-time GMV, fuelled by a 52% year-over-year surge in transaction volume.
But this report isn't just a victory lap for 2025, it’s a roadmap for 2026. Successful vendors are no longer just chasing affiliate traffic, they’re scaling with precision. They are driving a 112% surge in high-intent buyers, leveraging vetted network partners to unlock 14x better performance and future-proofing their demand by securing 43% of the trusted citations grounding AI answers for software sales.
Read on for insights that are designed to help you benchmark your performance and capture the momentum of a network that’s growing faster than ever.
The numbers tell the story of a massive shift in trust and transaction volume: the PartnerStack Network reached a historic milestone of $2.7B in all-time GMV, fuelled by a 52% year-over-year surge in transaction volume.
But this report isn't just a victory lap for 2025, it’s a roadmap for 2026. Successful vendors are no longer just chasing affiliate traffic, they’re scaling with precision. They are driving a 112% surge in high-intent buyers, leveraging vetted network partners to unlock 14x better performance and future-proofing their demand by securing 43% of the trusted citations grounding AI answers for software sales.
Read on for insights that are designed to help you benchmark your performance and capture the momentum of a network that’s growing faster than ever.
Growing the world's largest B2B network
01
Software sales in PartnerStack reached $2.7B in GMV in 2025
Chart
PartnerStack’s GMV (all-time)
Source: PartnerStack | January 2026
Insight
Partnerships are defying broader economic stagnation. While other channels plateaued in 2025, the ecosystem effect compounded, driving a 52% surge in transaction volume as vendors shifted spend from ads to performance-based channels.
Key Metric
$
0
B
PartnerStack GMV grew by 52% in 2025 compared to 2024
ACTION
See the real-time partner activity data in the PartnerStack Globe.
02
Partners continue to drive high-intent buyers — not just traffic
Chart
Paid customer signups
Source: PartnerStack | January 2026
Insight
The "quantity vs. quality" debate is settled. While vendors’ customer actions increased by 120% and qualified signups grew by 70%, we’re most excited by the paid conversions, which grew more than twice as fast (112%). This proves partners are recruiting customers who are ready to buy, not just browse.
Key Metric
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0
%
YoY growth in paid customers
ACTION
Looking to boost customer signups? Unlock the innovative strategies in our guide to activated partnerships.
03
ERP software drives major growth as top category by partner commissions quarter-over-quarter
Chart
Quarterly partner commissions by top category
Source: PartnerStack | January 2026
Insight
Partners are moving up the stack. We saw a 61% surge in commissions for Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) tools, signaling that partners are now trusted advisors for core business infrastructure, not just lightweight productivity apps.
Key Metric
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0
%
Increase in partner commissions from Q1 2024 to Q1 2025
ACTION
Discover how to leverage these trends and find your next impactful partnership with the top ERP affiliate programs and the top collaboration tools affiliate programs.
04
The PartnerStack Network hosts top agency partners ready to unlock co-sell opportunities
Chart
HubSpot and Shopify partners in the PartnerStack Network
Source: PartnerStack | July 2025
Insight
The experts you want are already here. You don't need to look far for qualified service partners. There is a 67% overlap between top HubSpot/Shopify agencies and the PartnerStack network, meaning the co-sell partners you want are likely already active on the platform.
Key Metric
0
%
Overlap of HubSpot agency and Shopify solution partners with PartnerStack Network partners
ACTION
Learn more about how PartnerStack delivers an entire partner experience — built around how partnerships actually work.
Vendors and their partners
05
Top-performing vendors tend to offer 20–25% for commissions
Chart
Best performing offer ranges among top 25 vendors in 2025
Source: PartnerStack | January 2026
Insight
The data shows a sweet spot for incentives. Across our top 25 highest performing vendors, offers based on a total commissions paid out are 20%, 25% and 30% (in order). When it comes to rewarding partners, certain software industries like IT infrastructure paid out up to 30-35% on average.
Key Metric
0
%
Amount of the average offer
ACTION
Future-proof your business with scalable solutions. Learn how PartnerStack can grow enterprise partner programs.
06
PartnerStack Network partners are far more likely to earn a commission compared to non-network partners
Chart
Percentage of partners who have earned a commission
Source: PartnerStack | January 2026
Insight
Network partners are 14x more likely to generate revenue than non-network partners. Two thirds (67%) of partners join their first partnership the same day they  join the network, and 74.5% of partners join their first partner program within 10 days.
Key Metric
0
x
The increased likelihood of earning a commission as a Network partner
ACTION
Stop relying on open web forms. Use Partner Discovery to invite Network-approved partners and increase your activation odds by 14x.
07
Active partner earnings grew by 19% in 2025 — commissions earned through PartnerStack increased 54% in 2025
Chart
Annual partner commissions
Source: PartnerStack | January 2026
Insight
The average active partner saw their annual earnings jump by 19% in 2025. This "productivity raise" proves that partners aren't just closing more deals, they are closing better ones — capitalizing on the network-wide shift toward higher-value Mid-Market and Enterprise contracts.
Key Metric
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0
%
Commissions increase per user in 2025
ACTION
These are 10 of the top AI affiliate programs to join to maximize earnings.
Retain your winners. Use Tiered Rewards to ensure compensation scales with their performance.
Retain your winners. Use Tiered Rewards to ensure compensation scales with their performance.
08
North America leads — but global payouts are accelerating
Chart
Top 5 regions by total partner commissions
Source: PartnerStack | January 2026
Insight
North America still leads wallet share ($29M) with significant growth in Europe and Asia for international recruitment opportunities. North America remains dominant in network-approved partner commissions but multi-currency payouts are extending reach and improving the partner experience.
Key Metric
$
0
M
Commissions paid to partners in North America in 2025
ACTION
Explore the real-time partner activity of 100K+ commission-earning partners with the PartnerStack Globe.
Looking ahead at go-to-market opportunities
09
Nearly half (44%) of PartnerStack vendors used PartnerStack’s AI features in 2025
Chart
Percentage of vendors Using PartnerStack AI
Source: PartnerStack | January 2026
Insight
AI recruitment is the new standard. In 2025, 44% of active vendors adopted PartnerStack AI to enhance their partner programs. This rapid adoption suggests partnership teams are eager to automate the busy work and start closing. In addition, 34% of vendors used PartnerStack’s AI Recommendations.
Key Metric
0
%
Active vendors adopted PartnerStack’s AI tools in 2025
ACTION
Stop scrolling, start matching. Get started with PartnerStack’s AI Matches to instantly identify the partners most likely to sell your product.
10
Top-performing partner programs earn 43% of AI citations for software sales
Chart
Benchmark: AI Visibility of top-perfoming vendors
Source: PartnerStack | January 2026
Insight
Top-performing vendors show 43% of citations AI models use to generate answers are found within the PartnerStack ecosystem. Active partners bring in 21% of current traffic while the other 22% represents an immediate optimization opportunity to support vendor citation today. PartnerStack gives you the tools to capture the full 43%.
Key Metric
0
%
The citations AI models use to build answers about top vendors are sourced from the partner ecosystem
ACTION
Don't settle for your current coverage. Get a free AEO audit. Learn where your brand is (and isn’t) showing up in AI search and what to do next.
11
Mid-market and enterprise brands see surge in partner commissions in 2025
Chart
Growth in partner commissions by segment
Source: PartnerStack | January 2026
Insight
The Enterprise and Mid-Market segments combined now drive 78% of all transaction volume. GMV rising means more rewarded partners. Mid-Market vendors saw 56% growth while Enterprise vendors experienced 67% growth in commissions in 2025.
Key Metric
0
%
GMV made up by MM/ENT in 2025
ACTION
Learn from the most talked about enterprise partner programs in 2025. Future-proof your business with scalable solutions.
TL;DR
COPIED
The verdict from 2025 is clear: the "quality over quantity" era is here, and it pays. We saw paid customer conversions jump 112% and enterprise deals capture nearly 78% of all volume, proving that partners are now capable of driving the entire sales funnel.Â
For 2026, the path to growth is specific: diversify your programs beyond simple affiliates, trust in network-approved partners for a 10x performance lift and use AI to target the right people.Â
The network is ready and waiting. It’s time to turn these numbers into your next quarter’s targets.
For 2026, the path to growth is specific: diversify your programs beyond simple affiliates, trust in network-approved partners for a 10x performance lift and use AI to target the right people.Â
The network is ready and waiting. It’s time to turn these numbers into your next quarter’s targets.
COPIED
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SOURCEÂ DATA
Where we get our data
This proprietary ecosystem data is analyzed and synthesized into insights from our network. It is anonymized.
PartnerStack Research Lab uses primary but fully anonymized data sourced from our ecosystem to gain rich insights into possibilities for growth in partnerships. We processed and analyzed this anonymized data to provide ecosystem benchmarks that help to seek answers within the partnerships industry.
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Growth in revenue seen by the average PartnerStack customer
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In revenue driven by partners on PartnerStack in the past year
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Year-over-year growth in partner acquisition
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