This ClickBank review answers the question most people type into Google first: is ClickBank legit? Yes. ClickBank has run since 1998, processes payments for thousands of merchants and says it has paid out more than $7 billion in commissions. But “legit platform” and “good way for you to make money” are two different questions. Its own support pages list fees, holdbacks and first-payment rules that most sign-up pitches skip, and its best-selling products are mostly supplements with a refund problem you can read about on ClickBank’s own review page. Here’s the full picture for affiliates — and for anyone who just found a CLKBANK* charge on their statement.
Verdict in 20 seconds
ClickBank is a real, long-running marketplace that pays affiliates reliably once they qualify. It is not easy money: you need five sales with two payment methods before your first payout, every payout costs $5, 10% of earnings is held back for about 12 weeks, and an idle account starts paying fees after 90 days. The bigger risk is reputational — much of the marketplace is supplements and hype-heavy offers, so choose what you promote carefully.
What is ClickBank and how does it work?
ClickBank is an online retailer and affiliate marketplace. Product owners (“sellers”) list digital and physical products; affiliates promote them with a tracking link called a hoplink and earn a percentage of each sale. ClickBank itself is the merchant of record: it takes the payment, handles refunds and pays both sides. Its homepage claims $7.3B+ in commissions paid and more than 100,000 active affiliates; its reviews page says it has been in business since 1998. Each product in the marketplace shows a “gravity” score, ClickBank’s measure of how many affiliates recently made a sale with it.
ClickBank fees and payout rules affiliates should know
Signing up as an affiliate is free and there’s no monthly fee. The costs show up when you get paid. All of these come straight from ClickBank’s own fees article and its payment-amount article:
- $5 per payout. Every payment ClickBank issues carries a $5.00 processing fee. A higher payment threshold means fewer payouts and fewer fees.
- Payment threshold. You choose between $10 and $1,000,000; the default is $100.
- The five-sale rule. Before your first payment, your account must show at least five sales using at least two different payment methods (such as Visa, MasterCard, PayPal or Amex). ClickBank calls this the Customer Distribution Requirement, and it exists to stop people buying through their own links.
- A 10% reserve. ClickBank holds back a “return allowance” — 10% by default — and releases it after 12 weeks (about 84 days) to cover late refunds and chargebacks.
- Dormant-account fees. A balance with no activity costs $1 per pay period after 90 days, $5 after 180 days and $50 after 365 days.
- Refunds come out of your commission. When a customer gets a refund, the commission is debited back from your account.
By default, payments go out on a Wednesday two weeks after a pay period ends, and you can switch to weekly or every-other-week payouts. Sellers pay more: a one-time $49.95 activation fee, and ClickBank keeps 7.5% plus $1 of every sale before commissions are split.
What actually lands in your bank account?
Uses ClickBank’s published defaults: 10% return allowance (released after ~12 weeks) and a $5 processing fee per payout. Refunds and wire fees not included.
What ClickBank reviews really say
ClickBank scores 4.5 out of 5 on Trustpilot from 6,438 reviews. Much of that praise is for its live-chat agents — Trustpilot’s own AI summary highlights “support staff and service representatives”, and the recent five-star reviews read like “Jose was very helpful” and “Osiris resolved my issue”. Trustpilot also notes ClickBank has replied to just 3% of negative reviews.
The more revealing reviews sit on ClickBank’s own reviews page, which embeds its latest Trustpilot feedback. There, buyers describe waiting months for refunds on returned supplements — $318.62 for SugarHarmony, $221.49 for NeuroDyne, $293 for Brain Vex — and one affiliate says their account was disabled a day before a scheduled payment, with no explanation. Those are individual reports, not proof of a pattern on their own, but they match the complaints you’ll find in r/Affiliatemarketing: the platform pays, but accounts get closed when refund rates spike, and product quality varies wildly.
The product problem: what’s actually selling on ClickBank
ClickBank’s own top offers for August 2026 were FemiCore, ProDentim, NeuroVera, Audifort and Soulmate Sketch — supplements plus a psychic drawing offer — and it lists dietary supplements as its number-one niche. The make-money-online category isn’t much better: we’ve reviewed Live Chat Jobs, a ClickBank product that sells a $27-a-month membership as if it were a job. As an affiliate, you inherit the reputation of whatever you promote. If your audience trusts you, one hype-heavy supplement can cost you more than the commission is worth.
ClickBank also sells its own affiliate training, Spark by ClickBank: $23.50 for the first month and $47 a month after that, or $297 one-time for the “Ultimate” bundle, with a 30-day money-back guarantee. It’s owned by ClickBank, which means it’s not a random guru course — but it’s also a paid upsell, and it holds 2.8 out of 5 on Trustpilot. You don’t need it to start.
Why am I being charged by ClickBank?
If you see a charge starting with CLKBANK* on your card statement, it means you — or someone using your card — bought something from an online merchant that uses ClickBank to process orders. ClickBank is the retailer of record for thousands of products, so the product name usually follows the asterisk. To look it up, cancel a subscription or request a refund, go to clkbank.com: enter the purchase email plus your order number, the last four digits of the card or its zip code. Live chat runs 5 AM to 7 PM MST, seven days a week. Check the money-back guarantee on your order (many offers advertise 60 days), and escalate through ClickBank rather than the seller if a refund stalls.
ClickBank review verdict: is it worth it in 2026?
ClickBank is worth it if you already have a way to reach buyers — a site, an email list, a channel or an ad budget — and you’re willing to be picky about products. The payment system is proven, commissions on digital products are often 50% or more, and signing up costs nothing. It’s not worth it if you’re hoping for quick money with no audience: the five-sale rule, the $5 payout fee and the 12-week reserve all bite hardest when your earnings are small, and the most visible offers are exactly the kind that damage trust. If you’re drawn to ClickBank by an ad showing someone making $500 a day, remember how a BlackHatWorld member put it in April 2026: don’t trust the sales training courses, because it’s very hard for beginners to hit those numbers.
ClickBank review FAQ
Is ClickBank legit or a scam?
ClickBank is legit. It has operated since 1998, acts as the retailer of record for its merchants and pays affiliates on a fixed schedule. The “scam” label usually comes from the products sold through it, not the platform itself.
How much does ClickBank cost?
For affiliates, sign-up is free with no monthly fee. You pay $5 per payout, and dormant accounts pay $1 to $50 per pay period. Sellers pay a $49.95 activation fee plus 7.5% and $1 per sale.
How does ClickBank pay you?
By direct deposit, wire or check once your balance passes your payment threshold ($10 to $1,000,000, default $100) and you’ve met the five-sale, two-payment-method requirement. Payments go out on Wednesdays, by default two weeks after the pay period ends.
Why is there a CLKBANK charge on my card?
You or someone with your card bought a product from a merchant that sells through ClickBank. Look up the order and request a refund at clkbank.com.
This review is based on ClickBank’s own support articles, marketplace pages and customer-service site, its Trustpilot profile and linked community discussions, checked on September 26, 2026 — see how we review. There are no affiliate links in this article. Fees and rules change; check ClickBank’s linked support pages for today’s terms. Research and drafting were AI-assisted; all facts and the final judgment are the author’s.