If you earn commission through a telehealth affiliate program for a GLP-1, peptide or hormone brand, you have proved the hard part: your audience pays for these programs. The question is who keeps the patient after the first order. This guide puts real affiliate payouts next to what the same patients earn under your own brand, shows where the break-even sits, and is honest about when staying an affiliate is the better call.
How Telehealth Affiliate Programs Pay
Most telehealth affiliate programs use one of two payout models.
Flat fee per order or lead. You earn a fixed amount when someone you refer signs up or pays. Hims, Inc. lists $4 per online lead and $24 to $64 per order on FlexOffers, depending on the product. Once the order is placed, every refill that follows earns the brand money and earns you nothing more.
Revenue share, sometimes recurring. You earn a percentage of what the patient pays. OurHealthRx, for example, lists 20% of the first month and 10% recurring for GLP-1 weight loss, and $40 per converted consult for men’s health. Recurring share is the better affiliate deal, because you earn something on every month a patient stays.
Rates change often and vary by network, so confirm current terms on the program’s own page before you compare.
What the Hims Affiliate Program Pays
Hims is one of the most searched telehealth affiliate programs. Its listing on FlexOffers shows a flat-fee model: $4 per online lead, and $24 or $64 per order depending on the product. Hims also runs its program through other affiliate networks, where the terms can differ.
Under that model, each patient you refer becomes a Hims customer. The order pays you once, and the refills, the price and the customer relationship stay with Hims. That is the flat-fee column in the comparison below.
In both models, the patient belongs to the brand. Its name is on the box, it sets the price, it owns the email list, and it can change your rate or end the program.
The Math: Same Audience, Three Payout Models
To compare fairly, hold the audience constant. Assume your content sends 10 new paying patients a month to a GLP-1 program, and 85% of patients refill each month. That reaches 57 active patients by month 12.
| Flat fee ($64 per new order) | Recurring share (20% first month, 10% after, $300/mo program) | Your own brand ($150 net per patient, minus $297/mo) | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Month 1 | $640 | $600 | $1,203 |
| Month 3 | $640 | $1,080 | $3,603 |
| Month 6 | $640 | $1,560 | $6,003 |
| Month 12 | $640 | $2,010 | $8,253 |
| First 12 months total | $7,680 | $17,940 | $68,136 |
How each column is calculated:
- Flat fee: $64 on each new patient, the top of the Hims range above. Refills pay nothing.
- Recurring share: $60 on each new patient’s first month, then $30 a month for every patient who stays.
- Your own brand: $150 net per active patient per month, the low end of the $150 to $350 GLP-1 margin covered in our cash-pay revenue model guide, minus Karpa’s $297 monthly platform fee. A brand priced at $399 typically nets more, so this is a conservative figure.
The own-brand column leaves out the one-time costs: the implementation fee, $3,000 for LegitScript certification through Karpa, and any marketing you pay for. Even with those subtracted, the first year is several times either affiliate model, because the margin on every refill stays with you.
Where the Break-Even Sits
At $150 net per patient, your own brand covers its $297 monthly platform fee with 2 active patients. Recovering the one-time costs takes longer. At 10 new patients a month, the first three months net about $7,350 before those costs, so an audience at that volume has room to absorb them early.
The risk is the opposite case. If your link sends one patient every few weeks, the fee and setup costs can outrun the margin for months. That is a real reason to stay an affiliate.
When Staying an Affiliate Makes Sense
An affiliate program is the better fit when:
- Your audience sends one or two paying patients a month. Below a handful of active patients, the fixed costs of a brand eat the margin.
- You only want to recommend, not run a business. An own brand means setting prices, answering billing questions and promoting a program under your name.
- You need zero upfront cost. Affiliate programs are free to join. An own brand has an implementation fee and certification costs before the first patient.
If that describes you today, Karpa runs a free affiliate program too: you refer patients to a Karpa partner’s clinic with your own link and earn recurring payouts. Your referral numbers then tell you whether your audience is ready for its own brand.
What Changes When It Is Your Brand
Moving from a commission to your own brand changes four things:
- You keep the patient relationship. Contact and order data for every patient stay with your brand, so a refill reminder or a new program goes out under your name.
- You set the price. Most GLP-1 brands price between $250 and $500 a month. You decide where yours sits, and what bundles or plans to offer.
- Your revenue compounds. Each patient who refills adds to next month’s base, which is why the own-brand column keeps climbing while the flat fee stays flat.
- You carry the business. The domain, Stripe account and LegitScript certification are in your name. Patients’ billing questions come to you. Clinical questions go to the provider network, and shipping questions go to Karpa and the pharmacy.
The clinical work stays where it legally belongs. Independent licensed providers in the patient’s state review every intake and decide whether a prescription is appropriate, and licensed compounding pharmacies fill and ship it. You do not need a medical license, and you never prescribe or advise on dosing. For the full build, see how to launch a white-label GLP-1 brand.
How Affiliates Usually Make the Switch
Most affiliates who move to their own brand follow the same order:
- Check your current agreement. Look for clauses about promoting competing products and how long your existing links keep paying.
- Launch the brand. On Karpa, plan on about 30 days when Karpa builds your website: about 2 weeks for the site, then LegitScript approval, typically 14 to 21 days.
- Keep earning until you are live. Leave your affiliate links up until your own program is approved and taking patients.
- Move your link, list and content. Point your link in bio, email list and pinned content to your own program. Your audience already trusts your recommendation, so the message is simple: this is now my program.
- Keep promotion compliant. Disclose your connection to the brand, as the FTC’s Endorsement Guides require, and leave medical claims, eligibility and dosing to the providers.
The Bottom Line
A telehealth affiliate program rents your audience to someone else’s brand. If your audience sends steady paying patients, the same effort under your own brand earns several times more, because every refill is yours. If it does not yet, a free affiliate link is the right place to start and the cheapest way to find out. See how the own-brand route works for affiliates and creators, or compare the plans side by side.
