Affiliate Marketing with Medium: A Step-by-Step Guide for Beginners
Want to start affiliate marketing for free — without building a website or paying for traffic?
Medium.com is one of the easiest platforms for beginners to start making money online with affiliate marketing.
In this guide, you’ll learn how to do affiliate marketing on Medium step-by-step, what rules to follow, and how to get readers and clicks (even if you’re starting from scratch).
💡 Why Use Medium for Affiliate Marketing?
- ✅ It’s free to use
- ✅ No need to build your own blog
- ✅ Medium articles can rank on Google
- ✅ Built-in audience of millions
- ✅ Great for writing helpful content with affiliate links
But you can’t just drop links randomly — you need to follow Medium’s guidelines and use a strategy that works.
✅ Step-by-Step: How to Do Affiliate Marketing with Medium
1. Create a Free Medium Account
Go to medium.com and sign up with Google or email.
Pick a username that reflects your niche if possible (e.g., sidehustlesbyjoe).
Then add a simple profile bio like:
“I write about side hustles, affiliate marketing, and tools for making money online.”
2. Pick a Niche and Affiliate Offer
Choose a niche that people search for and spend money on:
- Make money online
- Fitness
- Personal finance
- Productivity
- Digital tools
Then select an affiliate offer that:
- Solves a real problem
- Has a solid landing page
- Offers a free trial or lead magnet
- Pays well (recurring or high-ticket preferred)
3. Understand Medium’s Affiliate Link Policy
Medium allows affiliate links, but they must:
- Be clearly disclosed (e.g., “This post contains affiliate links.”)
- Be relevant to the content
- Not be spammy or misleading
- Add value to the reader
To stay safe:
✅ Don’t overuse links
✅ Use a bridge page or landing page when possible
✅ Always give real value before pitching
4. Write Helpful, SEO-Friendly Articles
Focus on creating content that solves problems, such as:
- How-to guides
- Listicles
- Tutorials
- Reviews
- Case studies
Examples:
- “How I Started Affiliate Marketing With No Money”
- “The 5 Best Tools for Online Side Hustles in 2025”
- “Affiliate Marketing vs. Dropshipping: Which Is Better?”
Use keywords in:
- Title
- URL slug
- First paragraph
- Headings (H2, H3)
💡 Use tools like Ubersuggest or Google Auto-Suggest to find long-tail keywords.
5. Add Your Affiliate Links Strategically
You can include:
- 1–2 affiliate links in the body (with a clear explanation)
- A CTA at the end like:
👉 Want to learn affiliate marketing step-by-step? Check out my favorite free training
Or link to your bridge page or funnel where you collect emails and send people to the affiliate product after.
6. Promote Your Medium Article
Even though Medium has built-in traffic, you should still promote your content:
- Share it on Pinterest
- Post in Facebook groups (if allowed)
- Turn the article into a YouTube video
- Repurpose it into TikToks
- Answer questions on Quora and link to your article
The more views and reads you get, the better it performs in Medium’s algorithm and Google.
7. Build a Content System (Not Just One Post)
To grow consistent affiliate income with Medium:
- Post 2–3 articles per week
- Focus on evergreen topics
- Use a funnel to collect emails
- Reuse the same affiliate links across multiple articles
You can even republish blog content from your own site on Medium for more exposure (just use a canonical tag to avoid duplicate content issues).
⚠️ Common Mistakes to Avoid
🚫 Spamming affiliate links in every paragraph
🚫 Writing low-quality, short posts
🚫 Ignoring SEO keywords
🚫 Forgetting to disclose affiliate links
🚫 Expecting overnight results
Final Thoughts: Medium Is a Free Goldmine for Affiliate Marketers
Medium is perfect for:
✅ Beginners with no website
✅ Writers who love sharing value
✅ Affiliates who want to rank on Google without blogging from scratch
The key is to give value first, use your affiliate links strategically, and post consistently.