A tracking link is a unique URL assigned to an affiliate for a specific offer or campaign. When someone clicks it, the tracking server logs the click, identifies the affiliate, assigns a click ID, and redirects the visitor to the advertiser's landing page, usually in a fraction of a second. Every attributed affiliate conversion starts with a tracked click.
How it works
A tracking link typically encodes the affiliate, the campaign or offer, and optional sub-IDs. On click, the tracker:
- Records the click with timestamp, IP address, user agent, referrer, and sub-IDs.
- Applies the program's checks, such as country targeting or fraud filters.
- Generates a click ID, then sets a cookie and/or appends the ID to the destination URL.
- Redirects the visitor, usually with an HTTP 302, to the landing page.
Example
Illustrative URLs:
https://track.example.com/c/1042?aff=317&sub1=youtube_review
↓ 302 redirect
https://brand.example.com/pricing?click_id=9b8e2f41&utm_source=affiliate
Here 1042 identifies the campaign, 317 the affiliate, and sub1 the affiliate's own label for the traffic source. The visitor only sees the final page; the click has already been logged.
Why it matters
For affiliates, the tracking link is how you get paid: traffic sent to a brand's site without it is generally not attributed to you. Test links after every edit, and avoid shorteners or extra redirects that strip query parameters. For brands, the tracking link is where data quality is decided. It is the first and best place to filter bots, blocked countries, and suspicious clicks before they reach reports. MassPartner runs fraud checks and country targeting on every click; see the platform for brands.
Related: click ID, deep link, cookie duration.