Table of Contents
About this list
Choosing the best WooCommerce referral plugin is not just about finding the tool with the longest feature list. A good referral plugin should help store owners launch a program that is easy to understand, simple for customers to use, and reliable enough to track referrals, rewards, and performance without creating extra manual work.
This list compares WooCommerce referral plugins based on the things that matter most when building a referral program: ease of setup, referral link and coupon options, reward flexibility, fraud prevention, customer experience, reporting, integrations, pricing, and whether the plugin is built specifically for WooCommerce or connected through an external platform.
Some plugins on this list are lightweight tools focused only on referrals. Others are broader loyalty or marketing platforms that include referral features as part of a larger system. The goal is not to declare that every store needs the same solution, but to help you understand which plugin fits your situation best — whether you want a simple refer-a-friend setup, a double-sided reward program, stronger fraud controls, advanced analytics, or a full loyalty program with points, ranks, and referrals working together.
Below is our list of the best WooCommerce referral plugins for 2026.
#1 WooCommerce Refer a friend
WooCommerce Refer a Friend plugin can help you create a simple yet powerful referral system on your website that you can get up and running in no time.
The plugin comes in two different versions:
If you are looking for a simple referral program where users can have referral links to share with friends, the Light version can do just that. After installing it, under the “My Account” dashboard page, users will find a referral link that they can share with their friends. You can set up a coupon reward for Advocate, and define an email that will notify them of a reward. They can also see their rewarded coupons under the My Account page, below the referral link. This is a simple plugin and will do a good job for simple referral programs.
If you want to reward both the advocate and his friend, if you want to check statistics on how well your referral program is doing, if you want shortcodes so you can create special landing pages for referral programs, ability to have referral codes next to links, compatibility with WooCommerce Subscription and much more, this is where the Premium version comes up. Currently, outside SaaS apps that you pay monthly, no plugin has so many features as WooCommerce Refer a Friend PREMIUM, while also keeping the plugin light and easy to use through the modern admin interface.
Referral link and Coupon referral program
- Easy referral program setup with modern admin interface
- Both guest and registered users can have referral links or referral discount coupons
- referral links are visible in several places, such as Refer a friend tab under the default My Account page
- Product page tab (if activated)
- Landing page of your choice (you can use a shortcode to display wherever you want)
- You can use either referral links or coupons, or both
- Share via socials
- Email, Facebook, X (Twitter), WhatsApp & Viber
Fraud prevention
- Multiple fraud prevention systems
- IP address check
- Shipping address check
- Email address check
- Phone number check
- Customizable fraud prevention options
Customers can track discount coupons
- Coupons displayed under the My Account page
- Coupons sent to customers via email
- Customers can track referral coupons
- Customers can see the status of the friend’s order
Referral program settings
- Set the value of each coupon
- Define the minimum order amount
- Choose whether the coupon is category & product-specific, or not
- Compatible with WooCommerce Subscription
- Sign-up discount coupons and recurring coupon rewards
You can learn more about how to combine WooCommerce with Refer a friend plugin by reading Using a Referral Plugin with WooCommerce Subscriptions.
Customize email
- Two templates
- One template is sent when advocates share their referral link
- The other is sent when a coupon code reward is issued
- Include sender name
Check out WooCommerce Refer a friend documentation for more details on Configuring emails.
Check and track program performance
- Track how often referral orders are made
- Track who brought in the most referrals
- Export data into a CSV
- Track referral events
WooCommerce Refer a friend plugin is easy to set up and it’s very light so you know it won’t slow down your website.
WooCommerce Refer a friend PREMIUM pricing:
- Single Site – 1 Year Updates – $49/year
- Up to 3 Sites – 1 Year Updates – $99/year
- Single Site – Lifetime Updates – $109
- Unlimited Sites – 1 Year Updates – $199/year
All options come with a 14-day money-back guarantee.
#2 WooCommerce Loyalty Program
Loyalty Program for WooCommerce by WPGens is a loyalty solution for WooCommerce stores that currently offers a Referral program, Ranks program and a Points and rewards program. Unlike other WooCommerce plugins, this loyalty plugin for WooCommerce comes with its own dashboard that offers a modern approach to program management.
Loyalty Program for WooCommerce by WPGens offers three programs that can work separately AND together, but for the purpose of this article, we will only focus on the Referal program and discuss the benefits it can bring to the WooCommerce platform.
Here are some of the features users get with LoyalGenie:
Core features
- Easy setup
- User friendly interface
- Customer management
- Automated referral program
- Instant reward notifications
- For both advocates and their friends
- Different rewards for program members
- Single-sided and double-sided rewards
- Unique referral links
- Referral program promotion
- Automatic referral approval process
- Easy redemption options
- Automatic emails
- Dedicated Loyalty page
- Dedicated Loyalty widget
Analytics
- Real-time analytics
- Referral activity overview
- Track referral stats
- Referral revenue
- Average referral order
- Lifetime referral order
- Referral traffic
- Average conversion rate
- Total advocates
- Track top advocates
- Track referring websites
Referral sharing
- Sharing via email
- Sharing via socials such as Facebook, X (Twitter) and WhatsApp
Brand customization
- Detailed Loyalty page customization
- For both guests and program members
- Detailed Loyalty widget customization
- For both guests and program members
- Detailed email customization
Fraud prevention
- Built-in automated fraud prevention mechanisms
- Choose which fraud rules you want to implement
Loyalty program for WooCommerce by WPGens pricing:
- Single Site – $149
- Up to 3 Sites – 1 Year Updates – $289
- Single Site Lifetime – $399
#3 WPLoyalty
Unlike WooCommerce Refer a friend plugin which focuses entirely on Referral programs, WPLoyalty is a platform that offers an all-in-one Loyalty program solution, but with a twist.
Users can choose between Points, Rewards, Levels AND Referral programs, or use them all together as a Loyalty program. While their Points program is free to use, the rest of the features do require a subscription. This includes the WPLoyalty’s Referral program, which is the main focus of this article.
Since WPLoyalty’s referral program for WooCommerce requires a subscription, this means that it does come with a nice set of features.
Here are some of the features users get with WPLoyalty:
Core features
- Simple setup
- User-friendly interface
- Customer management
- Instant reward notifications
- For both advocates and their friends
- Easy redemption options
- Automatic emails
- Set up expiry date per campaign
- Set up Points expiry (outside of the referral program)
Diverse referral rewards
- Fixed discount
- Percentage discounts
- Freebies
- Free shipping
- Redeemable points (works in conjunction with WPLoyalty Points program)
- Multiple rules and conditions
NOTE: Guest referral is only available as an add-on, which will increase the subscription cost by close to 20%, depending on the plan you choose.
Analytics
- Real-time analytics feature
- Track clicks, conversions, and ROI
Brand customization
- Customer reward page
- Email customization
WPLoyalty pricing:
- Started – $99/year
- Professional – $129/year
- Agency – $199/year
#4 ReferralCandy for WooCommerce
Though its primary focus was on the Shopify platform, the ReferralCandy team expanded its offer with a plugin that integrates well into the WooCommerce ecosystem. It offers a great platform designed to help you automate customer referral campaigns.
Referral candy for WooCommerce also comes with a built-in live-chat support option which speaks a lot about their commitment toward improving their product.
Here are some of the features users get with ReferralCandy:
Core features
- Automatically pay out coupon rewards to advocates
- Referral nudges such as pop-ups, email reminders, and social media sharing buttons
- Create unique rewards such as store credit, gift cards, cash rewards, and many more
- Unique referral links for each customer
- Email service provider integrations
- Mailchimp, Klaviyo, Google Analytics, Google Ads, Facebook Pixel
- Send email blasts
Analytics
- Detailed analytics about the program
- Referral reports
Brand customization
- Email customization
- Set up a landing page
- Set up a widget
Fraud prevention
- Built-in automated fraud prevention mechanisms
ReferralCandy pricing:
- Premium – $47/month (billed yearly) + 3.5% commission fee
- Plus – $239/month (billed yearly) + 1.5% commission fee
- Enterprise – custom plan
It comes with a 14-day free trial on the WooCommerce platform.
#5 AutomateWoo – Refer a friend
Refer a friend by AutomateWoo is an add-on to AutomateWoo, a powerful marketing automation tool for the WooCommerce platform. This means that in order to set up a referral program, you need to have the AutomateWoo plugin installed, as well.
This simple add-on allows you to quickly create a program customized for your WooCommerce store. It also comes with unlimited email support, which may come in handy.
Here are some of the features users get with AutomateWoo – Refer a friend:
Core features
- Effortless referral management
- Automatic referral approval process
- Manuals referral approval process
- Program report
- Integration with AutomateWoo workflows
Referral sharing
- Sharing via email
- Sharing via socials (Facebook, Twitter, and WhatsApp)
Post-purchase widgets
- Post-purchase share widget on the order confirmation page
- By creating order follow-up emails
Fraud prevention
- Ability to set up custom fraud rules
AutomateWoo – Refer a friend pricing:
- $99/year + $119/year for main plugin.
NOTE: Make sure to factor in the cost of AutomateWoo on top of that which is an additional $119/year, at the time of writing this article.
#6 Retainful
Retainful is another great solution for setting up a WooCommerce referral program that can help you turn your existing customer base into brand advocates.
This plugin follows the same practices as the rest but provides a bit more when it comes to other features you can integrate with your program, such as abandon cart emails, marketing automation, email segmentation, etc. We will focus on the Retainful’s referral program plugin only.
Here are some of the features users get with Retainful:
Core features
- Launch a referral program within minutes
- Coupon code rewards for advocates and friends
- Unique referral link for each customer
- Referral widget that showcases your program
- Several types of referral rewards
- Coupon expiry date
- Referral program promotion
Analytics
- Easy referral management
- Track issues rewards
- Track total revenue
Customization
- Drag & drop email editor
- Reminder emails
- Brand customization
- Shortcodes personalization
Other features include Referral link sharing, Post-purchase pop-ups, Automatic fraud prevention, etc.
Retainful pricing:
- Free – with limited features
- Started – $19/month
- Growth – $49/month
- Professional – $199/month
Pricing is also determined by the number of contacts you have.
#7 Referral System for WooCommerce
This complete referral marketing solution for WooCommerce comes with a nice set of features that will help you attract new customers and increase the loyalty of your existing customer base.
An additional benefit of this plugin is that integrates well with WooCommerce Points and rewards extension, which is a useful feature if you plan to expand your referral program and create a better loyalty program platform for your customers.
Here are some of the features users get with Referral system for WooCommerce:
Core features
- Light-weight and well-optimized
- Offers sign-up rewards for advocates and friends
- Offers several types of referral rewards
- Fixed-price discount coupons
- Percentage discount coupons
- Loyalty points as a referral reward
Analytics
- Customers can track their rewards through My account page
Referral sharing
- Customers can share their referral link via email or socials
- Socials include Facebook, LinkedIn and X (Twitter)
Referral system for WooCommerce pricing:
- $49/year
This plugin also offers a 30-day money-back guarantee.
#8 Coupon Referral Program
WooCommerce Coupon Referral Program is quite similar to the Referal System plugin but offers a few additional features. On top of that, it is compatible with WooCommerce Points and Rewards and WooCommerce Subscriptions.
When you combine all of these, you can create a loyalty program that will improve the customer engagement rate and overall customer satisfaction.
Here are some of the features users get with Coupon Referral Program:
Core features
- Quick set up
- Easy-to-use referral tools
- Program management
- Referral management by user role
- Referral link redirection
- Coupon reporting
Customization
- Customizable branding options
- Customizable referral button
- Customizable referral template
Referral sharing
- Customers can share their referral link via email or socials
- Socials include Facebook, LinkedIn and X (Twitter)
Other features include Referral reminders, Coupon restrictions, CSV export, Recurring payments with coupons.
Coupon Referral Program pricing:
- $49/year
This plugin also offers a 30-day money-back guarantee.
#9 Gratisfaction
Unlike some of the plugins on this list that focus strictly on Referral programs, Gratisfaction offers an all-in-one loyalty solution that helps businesses drives leads, referral, followers, purchases, repeat purchases, and more.
Here are some of the features users get with Gratisfaction:
Core features
- Multiple single-sided programs
- Multiple double-sided programs
- Built-in goal campaigns
- Increase sales and repeat sales
- Increase customer loyalty
- Grow email list
- Increase referrals
- Integrations with multiple email service providers
- Klaviyo, Aweber, Constant Contact, etc.
Customization
- Various pre-built templates, including a WooCommerce referral program
Referral sharing
- Customers can share their referral link via email or socials
Gratisfaction plugin is packed with so many features that you may not even use some of them. It can be overwhelming at first, so if you decide to go with this plugin, make sure you load up with patience.
Gratisfaction pricing:
- Free for 100 program users
- Premium pricing ranges from $19.95/month for 500 users, all the way to $399/month for unlimited users.
This plugin also offers a discount for a yearly subscription.
#10 InviteReferrals
InviteReferrals is a referral software that can help businesses grow and acquire new customers through referral marketing. It comes with its own platform that connects to your WooCommerce store. The platform offers a great dashboard with an overview of all the necessary information needed to run your program.
Here are some of the features users get with InviteReferrals:
Core features
- Multiple platform support
- Mobile, tablet & desktop
- Android & iOS apps
- Customizable reward logic flow
- Single-sided and double-sided rewards
- Personalized coupon-based program
- Automated notifications
- Multiple roles for e-commerce store users
- Referral fraud prevention mechanisms
Analytics
- Referral statistics
- Automated referral tracking
- Automat
Referral sharing
- Multiple referral and social sharing options
- Email, Facebook, LinkedIn, Pinterest, X (Twitter), WhatsApp
Customization
- Branding customization
- Customizable coupon-based program
InviteReferrals pricing:
- Basic – $99/month (with 1000 new referrers a month and 3 campaigns)
- Standard – $249/month (with 3000 new referrers a month and 6 campaigns)
- Enterprise – Custom plan
This plugin also offers a 14-day free trial that includes 100 new advocates and offers a discount for a yearly subscription.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the best WooCommerce referral plugin in 2026?
The best referral plugin depends on your store's needs. For most WooCommerce stores that want a self-hosted, lightweight refer-a-friend program with strong fraud prevention, referral links and coupons, social sharing, and detailed tracking, WooCommerce Refer a Friend PREMIUM is the most feature-complete option without monthly fees. If you want referrals combined with a full loyalty system (points, ranks, rewards), Loyalty Program for WooCommerce is a better fit. SaaS platforms like ReferralCandy and InviteReferrals make sense if you prefer monthly billing and an external dashboard.
How does a WooCommerce referral program work?
A WooCommerce referral program turns your existing customers (advocates) into a marketing channel. Each advocate gets a unique referral link or coupon code to share with friends. When a friend clicks the link or uses the code and makes a qualifying purchase, the plugin tracks the referral and issues a reward — usually a discount coupon — to the advocate, and often to the friend as well. Most plugins handle this automatically, including tracking, reward generation, fraud checks, and email notifications.
Are there free WooCommerce referral plugins?
Yes, but free options are limited. WooCommerce Refer a Friend Light is free and works well for simple single-sided referral programs. Retainful and WPLoyalty also offer free tiers, though core referral features usually require a paid plan. Free plugins are good for testing the concept, but stores serious about growing referral revenue typically outgrow them quickly because they lack fraud prevention, double-sided rewards, analytics, and shortcodes for custom landing pages.
Should I use referral links, coupon codes, or both?
Referral links are easier for customers to share and track automatically — the friend just clicks and the plugin attributes the order. Coupon codes are better for offline sharing (word of mouth, in-person) and for stores whose audience is used to entering codes at checkout. The most flexible plugins, such as WooCommerce Refer a Friend PREMIUM, let you offer both at the same time so each advocate can use whichever method works for their audience.
How do I prevent referral fraud in WooCommerce?
Referral fraud (self-referrals, fake accounts, friends and family abuse) is the biggest threat to a referral program's ROI. Look for a plugin that checks for duplicate IP addresses, shipping addresses, email addresses, and phone numbers between the advocate and the referred customer. The strongest fraud controls in this list come from WooCommerce Refer a Friend PREMIUM, which lets you toggle each fraud rule on or off, plus the built-in checks in Loyalty Program for WooCommerce, ReferralCandy, and InviteReferrals.
Can I run a referral program for guest (non-logged-in) customers?
Yes, but only some plugins support it natively. WooCommerce Refer a Friend PREMIUM treats guest and registered users equally — both can generate referral links and coupons. Some platforms, like WPLoyalty, only support guest referrals as a paid add-on, which can add ~20% to the subscription cost. If you sell to a lot of one-time buyers or your checkout doesn't require an account, guest referral support should be a hard requirement when choosing a plugin.
Do WooCommerce referral plugins work with WooCommerce Subscriptions?
Not all of them. If your store uses WooCommerce Subscriptions, you need a plugin that supports recurring coupon rewards and sign-up discount coupons for subscription products. WooCommerce Refer a Friend PREMIUM and Coupon Referral Program both explicitly support WooCommerce Subscriptions. For a deeper walkthrough of the setup, see Using a Referral Plugin with WooCommerce Subscriptions.
How much does a WooCommerce referral plugin cost?
Self-hosted plugins are usually a flat annual or lifetime fee. WooCommerce Refer a Friend PREMIUM starts at $49/year for a single site, Referral System for WooCommerce and Coupon Referral Program are $49/year, and Loyalty Program for WooCommerce starts at $149 for a single site. SaaS options are billed monthly and often include a commission fee — ReferralCandy starts at $47/month plus 3.5% commission, and InviteReferrals starts at $99/month. For most small and mid-size WooCommerce stores, a self-hosted plugin works out significantly cheaper over time.
What's the difference between a referral program and a loyalty program?
A referral program rewards customers for bringing in new customers. A loyalty program rewards existing customers for repeat behavior — purchases, sign-ups, reviews, points accumulation, reaching tiers. They're complementary: a customer can be both a loyal repeat buyer and an active advocate. Plugins like Loyalty Program for WooCommerce, WPLoyalty, and Gratisfaction combine both into one system, while Refer a Friend and AutomateWoo's Refer a Friend focus only on referrals.
Need help setting up your WooCommerce referral program?
Refer a Friend is the most popular WooCommerce referral plugin with all the features you need to launch a successful referral program. We offer quick support, regular updates and can help you get everything up and running fast. Trusted by 7000+ store owners since 2015.