The APMA has welcomed the publication of Germany’s first Affiliate and Partner Marketing market report, produced by the Affiliate and Partner Marketing Circle (APMC), a new working group within the German Association for the Digital Economy (BVDW).
The report is the organisation’s first attempt to quantify the size and contribution of Germany’s affiliate and partner marketing industry, providing a valuable benchmark for Europe’s second largest digital economy.
According to the study, advertiser investment in German affiliate and partner marketing reached €932 million in 2025, an increase of 8% year-on-year.
Revenue generated through the channel grew even faster, rising 12% to €18.7 billion.
The report also found that affiliate and partner marketing drove 228 million transactions during the year, equivalent to around 625,000 orders every day.
The findings reinforce many of the trends identified in the APMA’s own State of the Affiliate Nation research in the UK. Both studies show a channel that continues to grow despite economic uncertainty, while increasingly demonstrating value beyond traditional last-click attribution models.
Affiliate marketing’s far reaching impact
One of the most striking findings from the German report is that affiliate and partner marketing was involved in at least one touchpoint in a quarter of all transactions analysed. However, under traditional last-click attribution, only 12.4% of those touchpoints became visible. The authors argue that the channel’s contribution to digital value creation is therefore significantly larger than conventional reporting suggests.
The report also highlights the growing role of content publishers, influencers and social content creators. Together, these partner types accounted for 19.1% of investment in 2025, reflecting the increasing importance of upper-funnel influence and discovery activity within affiliate programmes.
Performance-based remuneration remains central to the model, with 80% of spend focused on last-click CPA. However, that still means that one in five euros is spent away from last click; an indication of the channel’s early funnel impact.
ROI remains strong
The German data also demonstrates the channel’s importance to ecommerce. According to the report, every €1 invested in affiliate and partner marketing generated €16 in revenue across retail and travel. Around 16% of German ecommerce revenue was attributed to affiliate links, while on Black Friday, one in every eight euros spent online was generated through affiliate partnerships.
Commenting on the publication, APMA Founder and Director Kevin Edwards said: “We’re delighted to see the publication of Germany’s first national affiliate and partner marketing market report. The UK and Germany are Europe’s two largest digital economies and, between them, account for a around 50% of digital marketing spend.
“The publication of robust market data in both countries helps strengthen the evidence base for our industry and provides policymakers, advertisers and investors with a much clearer understanding of the channel’s economic contribution.
He added: “Taken together, the UK and German studies are likely to provide insight into a significant proportion of the European affiliate market and help improve understanding of a channel that continues to be underrepresented in wider digital advertising discussions. We look forward to working closely with the APMC on other initiatives in 2026 and beyond.”
Future collaboration
The German report was based on submissions from 13 leading affiliate networks and platforms and analysed investment, transactions, revenue, clicks and impressions across 2024 and 2025. The study also incorporated touchpoint analysis from real customer journeys, providing a broader understanding of how affiliate and partner marketing contributes throughout the customer journey.
The APMA congratulates the APMC working group on producing an important piece of industry research and looks forward to continued collaboration as both organisations work to improve understanding, transparency and best practice across the European affiliate and partner marketing sector.
