By SelPage Editorial Team — Published and last reviewed October 18, 2026.
Amazon affiliate disclosure involves two checks: identifying yourself as an Associate and making the commercial relationship clear with your recommendations. A sentence on a policy page does not automatically solve the second check.
This guide focuses on Amazon.com's published instructions, with US FTC guidance for context. Other marketplaces and local laws can differ. Use your own program agreement when reviewing a specific account.
Review Both the Account and the Recommendation
The Statement Amazon Associates Requires
Section 5 of the Amazon.com Operating Agreement requires a clear, prominent Associate identification. Use the published wording:
As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.
Keep it readable on your Site. Amazon's identification help page separately calls for disclosure with links, and says the Associate statement must be associated with your social account. Include both checks in your publishing notes. Do not turn the relationship into a claim that Amazon endorses your store.
Write a Notice That Fits the Recommendation
For a buying guide, a practical editorial starting point is: I earn a commission on qualifying purchases made through the Amazon links in this guide. For a product card, a nearby paid-link label may communicate the relationship; choose wording your audience will understand and check the context.
The FTC's affiliate guidance warns that readers may not understand the phrase “affiliate link” on its own. Explain the benefit in ordinary language. Avoid adding an unverified promise about prices or extra cost.
Three Checks to Keep Together
Use these prompts alongside the detailed review below.
Identity
Check the required Associate statement on the relevant site or account.
Recommendation
Explain the commission relationship where the reader considers the product.
Presentation
Review the notice in the actual medium and mobile layout.
Where to Put Amazon Affiliate Disclosures
Use the table as an editorial review plan. The correct implementation depends on the actual page, medium, and audience; a location name alone cannot establish compliance.
| Surface | Practical review | Common gap |
|---|---|---|
| Blog or buying guide | Read the notice alongside the first relevant recommendation; revisit deep sections. | A footer separated from product links by a long article. |
| Product store | Open the collection on a phone and inspect each paid recommendation. | A prominent banner at the top that later entry points bypass. |
| Social post | Check the recommendation and account identification separately. | Relying on a bio to explain an individual post. |
| Video | Review the disclosure in the video and alongside description links. | A description notice that viewers never open. |
| Livestream | Plan repeated notices for people joining partway through. | A single opening notice. |
FTC social guidance addresses visible, spoken, and recurring notices. Treat video and live content as their own publishing formats. Do not rely solely on a platform's branded-content switch.
Make Your Next Review Concrete
Open the Store
Follow the Product
Recheck After Changes
A Store Review You Can Repeat Before Sharing
Consider an illustrative kitchen-tools collection. The creator posts a short video recommending a pan, links to a curated store, and offers several Amazon purchase links. Review the video, its link description, the social account, and the destination store separately. One notice cannot be assumed to reach everyone across that journey.
- Inventory the surfaces. List the store address, social accounts, buying guides, videos, and any other approved publishing locations you use.
- Record the applicable program. Note the marketplace and the agreement you checked. Keep account information accurate using the program's own tools.
- Review the wording. Check the required identity statement and the commission explanation against the actual arrangement.
- Open a direct entry point. Follow a product or section link without first visiting the homepage.
- Check mobile readability. Inspect contrast, line wrapping, pop-ups, collapsed captions, and content overlays.
- Save a review record. Keep the page URL, review date, and a screenshot for your own maintenance notes.
This is an editorial inspection workflow, rather than an Amazon approval process. Recheck it after a theme change, new campaign, or substantial catalog edit.
Apply the Review to Your SelPage Store
SelPage supports multiple selectable store themes, store categories, and product category assignment. Use the store setup guide to organize the collection and the product guide to review your listings. Then check where your disclosure actually appears in the selected theme.
For the kitchen example, keep product names and destinations clear so the notice connects to identifiable recommendations. If the available content fields cannot provide adequate notice placement, resolve that before sharing paid links. The feature overview describes product capabilities; it does not certify a particular disclosure.
Common Mistakes to Catch
- One distant policy link. Inspect the recommendation itself as well as the fuller policy.
- Using a generic template unchanged. Remove statements that do not describe your compensation.
- Forgetting another benefit. A free sample or sponsorship may need an additional explanation.
- Assuming your followers remember. A new visitor may arrive at just one recommendation.
- Implying official approval. An affiliate relationship does not mean Amazon sponsors your content.
See affiliate disclosure examples for other relationships and the publishing legal checklist for broader review areas. Use store visit reporting to understand traffic, then consult your program for commercial results.
Open your SelPage store and run the review on your actual catalog. Check current plans when planning capacity.
Sources Checked
- Amazon.com Associates Operating Agreement, section 5
- Amazon.com Associates identification and disclosure help
- FTC Endorsement Guides questions and answers
- FTC Disclosures 101 for Social Media Influencers
Checked October 18, 2026. Examples, review workflows, and scorecard conventions are editorial applications of the cited material. Recheck the applicable guidance and program terms when publishing or changing your setup.
FAQ
Frequently Asked Questions
Practical answers about Amazon Associate disclosures.
- Use the Associate identification sentence quoted above from the applicable Operating Agreement. Check your marketplace agreement, and also review the separate disclosure accompanying paid recommendations.
- A distant footer can miss the reader at the relevant moment. Review both your Associate identification and the notice near the recommendation or paid link.
- The FTC cautions that readers may not understand that phrase. Explain that purchases can earn you a commission, using wording suited to the audience and actual arrangement.
- Account identification and the disclosure in an individual recommendation are separate checks. Review each post and its destination as well as your profile.
- FTC guidance says video endorsements need disclosure in the video. Review visible and spoken presentation, and keep a corresponding notice with the relevant description links.
- Do not assume automatic placement or certification. Inspect the fields, chosen theme, public recommendations, and your applicable program requirements before sharing.
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