What is the iTunes Affiliate Program?

The iTunes Affiliate Program allows you to place links on your website to the U.S. iTunes Music Store. You can link to songs, albums, artists, audiobooks, popular public radio programs, podcasts and more. Earn a commission on all qualifying revenue generated by links posted on your website to iTunes.

You will find more information about the iTunes Affiliate Program in Europe here.

Why should I sign up for the iTunes Affiliate Program?

iTunes is the world’s best digital music jukebox with the #1 music download store inside. To date, iTunes has sold over 500 million songs worldwide, providing music fans with the best digital music experience on PC or Mac.

In addition to generating commissions, you can add valuable and compelling content to your site with special promotions from iTunes. iTunes offers the largest legal music download catalog — over 1.5 million songs from the major music companies and over 1,000 independents — so your customers are guaranteed to find music they will love.

iTunes has partnered with LinkShare, the leading Internet provider of innovative technology that helps affiliates sell more products and earn more commissions. LinkShare provides the technological interface that enables iTunes Affiliates to access iTunes links, track performance and get paid.

How do I sign up?

Sign up here. Once you complete the iTunes Affiliates registration form, you will receive an email from LinkShare regarding your participation as an affiliate in the LinkShare Network. Your email will contain your username and password. Within 3 business days, you will receive an email from iTunes regarding the status of your iTunes Affiliate Program application.

What happens next?

Once you have been accepted as an iTunes Affiliate, you will be able to access your account from www.linkshare.com using your LinkShare username and password. From there you can access all of the tools you will need to create links to iTunes.

If you need to update your affiliate account, select the “Your Account” tab and select “Update Profile” from the left-hand column.

What does it cost to join?

Nothing. It’s free to become an iTunes Affiliate.

Is my site eligible to become an iTunes Affiliate?

Any site can fill out an application, and we will accept a wide variety of sites into our program. However, we reserve the right to refuse any site that does not comply with our Terms and Conditions.

Can websites outside the United States join?

Yes, but since the iTunes Affiliate Program is only for the U.S. iTunes Music Store, we seek affiliates who cater to customers residing in the United States.

European-based sites can apply to the iTunes Affiliate program in Europe here.

If I have more than one site, can I still become an iTunes Affiliate?

Absolutely. Just register each of your sites as sub-affiliates under one affiliate account and receive a single check for all of your sites.

How do I create iTunes links?

Use your affiliate username and password to log in at www.linkshare.com. On the Create Links page for Apple iTunes, you will find banners and text links. As an affiliate, you will also have access to the iTunes RSS feeds and the ability to create direct links to any song, artist, album or audiobook on iTunes as well as iMixes, podcasts and iTunes Essentials.

How do iTunes links work?

All links to iTunes will launch the iTunes software application and open to the iTunes Music Store. If a visitor to your site does not yet have iTunes installed, the link will redirect the browser to a website where they can download the iTunes software for both PC and Mac for free. iTunes links are compatible with Safari, Internet Explorer and Firefox.

You can download iTunes free of charge. You will need a Mac running OSX or a PC running Windows 2000 or XP to visit the iTunes Music Store. However, you can include iTunes links on your website regardless of your operating system.

How do I know how much money I’ve earned?

You can access information on sales, commissions, visitors, clicks, impressions and conversion rates via the iTunes affiliate section at www.linkshare.com.

When do I get paid?

You will get a single check from LinkShare each month for the commission you’ve earned from the iTunes Affiliate program and any other LinkShare merchants through which you generate commission.

Why don’t I see my commission?

As an iTunes Affiliate, you will earn commissions on sales generated on the US iTunes Music Store. Links to the Apple Store Online or international iTunes Music Stores do not earn commission through the US iTunes Affiliate program.

Apply to the Apple Store affiliate program.

Join the iTunes Affiliate program in Europe.

Can I sell music or host music samples on my website?

No. All transactions must take place on the iTunes Music Store.

What is an RSS feed? How do I add an RSS feed to my website?

RSS (Really Simple Syndication) is an Internet technology that allows you to subscribe to content changes and display them on your website.

Using the iTunes Music Store RSS Feed Generator, you can easily create feeds to display iTunes Top Albums and Songs charts that match the look and feel of your website.

To create a feed, start on the Create Links page for iTunes Affiliate program at www.linkshare.com and click the iTunes Music Store RSS Feed Generator link. Customize the feed by selecting the options for music you’d like to display and click Generate to create your feed. Copy the URL to your custom RSS feed. This feed will be automatically updated to reflect changes in the iTunes Music Store.

To publish the feed to your website, you will need an RSS parser.

If you need more information on RSS parsers and how to integrate RSS feeds into your website, we recommend the following resources:

RSS Feeds via JavaScript

RSS on PHP Pages

RSS on any webpage via an iFrame

If you have additional questions, please contact us at itunesaffiliates@apple.com

How do I link to my favorite song/artist/album/audiobook on iTunes?

Use the iTunes Link Maker, available on the Create Links page of the iTunes Affiliate interface. From there, search for the song, artist, album or audiobook you’d like to link to and you will receive a URL to add to your website and email campaigns.

How do I make an iMix and promote it on my website?

Learn more about creating an iMix. Use the Individual Product Link creator on LinkShare to create an affiliate link you can use to promote your iMix.

How do I link to a podcast?

Use the Individual Product Link creator on LinkShare to create an affiliate link to promote any podcast available in the iTunes Music Store Podcast Directory.

Thank you for your interest in the iTunes Affiliate Program.