Reports
Amazon Associates tracking IDs: how to create them, how to name them, and the one way they get you in trouble.
Tracking IDs are free, you get 100 of them, and they are the only way Amazon’s reports can tell you which part of your business sells. A setup that takes ten minutes, from Amazon’s own help pages.
100 per account
Naming plan
Report tips
The short version
- A tracking ID splits your reports, not your money. Every sale still pays into your one account.
- Create them under Manage your Tracking ID in Associates Central. The limit is 100 per account.
- Use one per channel or page type, and pick it every time you build a link: SiteStripe pre-fills the last one you used.
- Never one per visitor. Amazon forbids tying a tracking ID to a specific user.
Most new affiliates use one ID everywhere, then six months later cannot answer the only question that matters: what is actually selling? Amazon’s reports can answer it, but only if the links were split from the start. Tracking IDs are how you split them.
What a tracking ID is
Amazon’s help describes tracking IDs as a way to analyse the performance of different websites or merchandising strategies while all earnings collect under a single Associates ID. Its own example is an Associate using one tracking ID for a website and another for a newsletter. You can view earnings for all tracking IDs together, or report on each one separately, and Amazon’s report downloads include the tracking ID on every transaction.
How to create one
- Sign in to Associates Central.
- Go to your account and click Manage your Tracking ID, the link Amazon’s help points to.
- Add a new tracking ID with the name you want. US IDs end in
-20, as in Amazon’s own examples. - Use it: in SiteStripe’s Get Link panel and in the Amazon app’s Share sheet, your tracking IDs appear in a picker. How to create an Amazon affiliate link shows both.
The setting that undoes the whole plan. SiteStripe pre-fills the tracking ID you used last. Build an Instagram link, then go back to writing an article, and the article’s links quietly get the Instagram ID. Glance at the ID every time you copy a link.
A naming plan that answers real questions
Amazon gives you up to 100 tracking IDs, so the limit is not the problem; the plan is. Name each ID after the question it answers. This is our suggested starting set:
| Tracking ID | Use it on | The question it answers |
|---|---|---|
yoursite-20 |
Main store ID | Anything you have not split out yet |
yoursite-yt-20 |
YouTube descriptions | Which channel actually sells |
yoursite-ig-20 |
Same, for Instagram | |
yoursite-best-20 |
“Best X” roundups | Whether roundups or reviews earn more |
yoursite-rev-20 |
Single-product reviews | The other half of that test |
yoursite-email-20 |
Opted-in email list | What a subscriber is worth |
- Short and readable. You will read these in reports for years.
- No “amazon” in the name. Amazon’s policies forbid its trademarks, and misspellings of them, in any tag or Associates ID.
- One ID per website. If you run several sites under one account, each gets its own ID before anything else.
- Do not split too fine. An ID per article sounds useful, but most will show a handful of clicks and tell you nothing. Split by channel and page type first.
The one way tracking IDs get you in trouble
Amazon’s policies allow extra IDs, but add a firm limit: you must never associate a tracking ID or sub-tag with a specific end user of your site. The example Amazon gives is assigning sub-tags dynamically to visitors as they arrive in order to monitor their behaviour. In practice that rules out any scheme that generates a tag per visitor, per email subscriber or per customer. Tag by channel and by page, never by person.
Reading the report
The Tracking ID Summary Report in Associates Central shows each ID’s activity, and Amazon’s help says it lists only IDs that had activity in the period you choose. For anything deeper, download the earnings report: Amazon includes the tracking ID on each transaction, so you can sort sales by channel in a spreadsheet.
Three things to look for in the first months:
- Clicks with no sales on one ID. Either that channel sends browsers rather than buyers, or the links are broken. Link not tracking covers the second case.
- Sales of things you never linked. Normal. Any product bought in the 24-hour session counts; see the cookie duration guide.
- A channel with fewer clicks but more sales. That is where to spend the next month.
Tracking IDs are per store. If you earn in more than one country, each store account has its own set. Localising links by country explains how the stores fit together, and Amazon links on social media covers the channel rules for each platform.
Part of The Amazon Affiliate Site Playbook — the whole job in six stages, from choosing a niche to keeping a mature site earning.
Set the tracking ID once per site
Ama Affiliate Pro applies your tracking ID to every product box and link on the site, and reports clicks per article, so Amazon’s report and yours tell the same story.
Common questions
What is an Amazon Associates tracking ID?
An extra ID under your account that you put in links instead of your main store ID. All earnings still go to your one account, but Amazon’s reports split clicks and sales by tracking ID, so you can see which site, channel or page type sells.
How do I create a new tracking ID?
In Associates Central, go to your account and click Manage your Tracking ID, then add a new one. It appears in the Tracking ID Summary Report and in the ID picker in SiteStripe and the Amazon app.
How many tracking IDs can I have?
Amazon’s limit is 100 tracking IDs per Associates account. Its help page says to contact Associates Customer Service if you need more.
Can I give each visitor their own tracking ID?
No. Amazon’s policies forbid associating any tracking ID or sub-tag with a specific user of your site, including assigning tags dynamically to visitors as they arrive.
Do tracking IDs change how much I earn?
No. They only change how the report is split. The commission is the same whichever of your tracking IDs is in the link.
Can a tracking ID contain the word Amazon?
No. Amazon’s policies forbid any Amazon trademark, or a misspelling of one, in a tag or Associates ID.