Commission rules

Commission of its own for products, categories and customers.

A commission rule gives certain products, categories, dynamic product groups or customers a rate of their own: less for thin margins, more for a promotion, nothing for gift vouchers. Every rule has a priority and, if you like, an order period, a rule from the rule builder and a selection of partners. Which rule applies is decided by the plugin for every order according to fixed rules.

Marketing → Affiliate program → side menu Commission → Commission rules

What commission rules are

Switch commission rules on

By default the plugin evaluates no rules; only the rate of the partner applies. Only with the switch “Enable commission rules” in the card “Commission · Commission rules” do all active rules count, the customer rules included. The switch applies per sales channel, to be precise for the sales channel of the partner.

  • Enable commission rules: on for rules to count. Off means: only the rate of the partner or the partner's rate for subsequent orders.

  • Commission selection: how the plugin decides between several matching rules. By default “Priority first, highest rate on equal priority”. The four modes are explained below under Which rate applies.

  • Include the individual partner rate in “Always highest/lowest rate”: the partner's own rate then competes with the rules and can win.

All rules in one list

The list shows every rule with status, priority, validity, rate and subsequent order rate, plus how many customers, products, categories and dynamic product groups it names and which partners it applies to. It is sorted by priority, the highest on top. In the sidebar you filter by active status, partner, customer, product and category.

  • Priority: a whole number; the higher one wins.

  • Validity: “From 23/11/2026” for a planned rule, “Running until 30/11/2026” or “Running” for a running one, “Expired” after the end. A grey chip names the rule from the rule builder, here “Cart from €100”.

  • Rate in the unit of the rule: “12 %”, “€5.00 per item” or “€8.00 per order”. A rule without a type of its own shows the number with the note “like partner”.

  • Customers, Products, Categories and Dynamic product rules: how many the rule names.

  • Partners: “All partners” or the number of selected partners.

  • The menu of a row offers Edit, Duplicate and Delete. A copy starts inactive so that it does not count straight away. Deleted rules do not change any booked commission.

Create a rule

Tab General: name, priority, type and rate

A new rule is active, has priority 300, no type of its own and a rate of 0. The example is a Black Week promotion: 12 % on yoga, running and fitness for orders from 23 to 30 November with at least €100 in the cart.

  1. 1Open Commission rules and click Create commission rule. On a product or customer you can also go straight through “Create rule for this product” or “Create rule for this customer”; the product or customer is then already selected.

  2. 2Enter the Rule name. With Rule active it counts; switched off it stays stored but does not calculate.

  3. 3Set the Priority. It decides which rule wins when several match; the number is free, only the order matters.

  4. 4Choose the Commission type: “Per product: percentage of net”, “Per product: fixed amount per piece” or “Per order: fixed amount”. Empty (“Like the partner”) the rate counts in the type of the respective partner. The blue box below explains what the chosen type does.

  5. 5Enter the Rate. With the purple bracket it also applies to subsequent orders; with the bracket removed you enter a Rate for subsequent orders of its own, 0 included.

  6. 6Optionally set the period and the rule at checkout (see below), make your selection in the tabs Assignments and Partners and click Save.

Tab Assignments: for which products, categories and customers

A rule matches an order line when one of its selections fits: customer, product, category or dynamic product group. One match is enough. The kind of match gives no precedence; a customer rule is not more important than a product rule. Without an assignment a rule does not apply.

  • Customers: the rule matches every line of every order of this customer, regardless of the product. Lines without a product, surcharges for example, are only matched by a customer rule.

  • Products: a main product applies to all its variants, including variants created later. A single selected variant applies only to itself. Between a rule for the main product and one for the variant the priority decides.

  • Categories include their subcategories. If a category and its parent category have rules with the same priority, the nearer one applies; with a different priority both count.

  • Dynamic product groups apply to all products that meet the filters of the group, regardless of the sales channel. Whether a product belongs to it is checked at the sync.

Tab Partners: for all or only certain partners

Without a selection a rule applies to all partners. With a selection it applies only to these partners; for all others it takes part in nothing. A kettlebell challenge with three fitness partners, for example, pays €5.00 per item, while all other partners keep their normal rate.

  • Without a selection: “No partners selected”, the rule applies to all partners.

  • With a selection: the partners with partner code and status; the menu of a row removes a partner again.

  • Partners with a commission per order: for them a rule without a type or per product only counts by the customer selection. If such partners are selected, a yellow notice names them.

Period and rule at checkout

Which orders does the rule apply to?

A rule can be limited to orders from a period and tied to a rule from the rule builder. Both follow the order, not the day the commission is calculated. That matters because commission is only created after the waiting time: switching a rule on for a promotion and off afterwards is therefore not enough.

  • Order date from and Order date until, each with a time in UTC, both limits included; empty means no start or no end. Example: Black Week from 23/11/2026, 00:00 to 30/11/2026, 23:59 applies to every order from these days, even if its commission is only booked in December after the 14 days of waiting time.

  • Rule at checkout: the commission rule only applies if this rule of the rule builder matched at purchase, a cart from €100, a customer group or a sales channel for example. Shopware stores this with the order; later changes to the rule do not change earlier orders. A rule used by a commission rule cannot be deleted.

  • In the log of a booking a rule outside its period shows “Does not apply” with the reason, for example “Order date before the start (23/11/2026, 00:00)”.

Which rate applies?

The highest priority wins

For every line of an order the plugin collects all valid rules that match it: active, for all or for this partner, within the period and with the rule at checkout met. An active partner group competes with its priority like a rule that matches every line. By default the highest priority wins, on equal priority the highest rate. If no rule matches, the rate of the partner applies. The help of the page works this through with a fixed example:

  • The example: customer Lisa Bauer buys the Oslo armchair from the dynamic product group Living room. Rule A matches the product (8 %, priority 300), rule B the customer (10 %, priority 300), rule C the product group (12 %, priority 100); the partner has 4 %.

Commission selectionWinnerWhy
Priority first, highest rate on equal priorityRule B, 10 %A and B have the highest priority 300; between 8 % and 10 % B wins. C drops out with priority 100.
Priority first, lowest rate on equal priorityRule A, 8 %as above, on a tie the lower rate
Always highest rate, regardless of priorityRule C, 12 %the priority does not count
Always lowest rate, regardless of priorityRule A, 8 %with the partner rate included in the configuration, it wins with 4 %

Commission selection: four modes

The setting “Commission selection” decides how the plugin chooses between matching rules. It applies per sales channel.

  • Priority first, highest rate on equal priority (default) or lowest rate: only the rules with the highest priority remain; among them the rate decides.

  • Always highest rate or Always lowest rate, regardless of priority: all matching rules compete, the priority does not count. If rules per order and per product meet, the plugin compares the best amount per order with the sum per product; on an equal result per order applies.

  • Include the individual partner rate: only works in the two “Always” modes and only without an active partner group. The rate of the partner then competes as well and can win. If no rule matches at all, the rate of the partner applies anyway.

Per order or per product: an order is never mixed

A rule of the type “Per order: fixed amount” gives the whole order one fixed amount; all others calculate per product. First the highest priority among all rules matching anywhere in the order decides, the partner group included: if it is a rule per order, the order gets its amount and rules per product do not count. On equal priority per order comes first. Otherwise every line calculates with its winner, and rules per order do not count.

  • Example: customer X buys product A for €100, B for €50 and C for €30 net; the partner has 10 % per product. The rule “Product A: 20 %” has priority 600, “Customer X: €10 per order” priority 500. The 600 is a rule per product, so every line calculates: €20.00 + €5.00 + €3.00 = €28.00. The log names the rule per order with “does not count”.

  • If “Customer X: €10 per order” had priority 600 and “Product A: 20 %” priority 500, the order would get €10.00. More cases with partner groups and the “Always” modes are in the chapter Calculation.

  • Partners with a commission per order: for them rules without a type and rules per product only count by the customer selection. A rule without a type then gives its number as the amount per order, “Customer X: 7.5” gives €7.50 for example. A rule per product calculates for the whole order: as a percentage of the net value of the order or per piece times the pieces of all goods. Rules of the type “Per order” count for every partner by products, categories and dynamic product groups as well.

Help with decision tree and examples

The button Help at the top of the page opens an explanation in ten tabs: what rules are, which rate applies, the comparison of the four modes, the commission types, the decision tree, worked examples, validity, assignments, partners and the migration of old rates.

  • Help is on the list and on every rule.

  • The decision tree shows the way of an order from top to bottom: questions in blue, results in green, the end without commission in red.

  • Examples: an order of €180 net with changing rules, for a partner per product and one per order, with the amount that comes out each time.

  • Commission type: what every type does and what “Like the partner” means.

Rules on the product, the customer and the partner

Which rules match this product?

On the product the tab Affiliate program shows all commission rules that match the product: through the product itself, its main product, a category or a dynamic product group. Below it says which rule applies today.

  • Hits through: product, main product, category or dynamic product group, with its name.

  • Period and Status: “Applies”, “Planned”, “Expired” or “Inactive”. Rules for certain partners only or with a rule from the rule builder carry a grey note.

  • The sentence below the list names the rule that applies today, here “Yoga mats” with 12 %. Rules with a condition do not count for it, because they only apply when the condition is met. With “Always highest rate” or “Always lowest rate” it names the selection instead of a rule.

  • Create rule for this product opens a new rule with the product already selected; Go to commission rules opens the list filtered to the product.

Affiliate program on the customer: referred by and rules for this customer

On the customer the tab Affiliate program shows which partner referred the customer, since when, how long the assignment lasts and what the customer brought the partner. If the customer is a partner, the partner data is shown there. Below are the commission rules that name this customer, a lower rate for key accounts for example.

  • Referred by: partner, code, “Assigned since”, “Assignment lasts”, orders through the partner, net revenue and commission of the partner.

  • Commission rules for this customer with rate, priority, period and status.

  • Create rule for this customer: a new rule with the customer already selected.

Which rules can apply to a partner?

On the partner the tab Commission lists under “Commission rules” all rules assigned to the partner or applying to all partners, with status, priority, rate and “Applies to”. If the partner has a commission per order, a notice says which rules count; rules that can never count for this partner show “Does not count”.

  • “Applies to” shows “All partners” or “This partner”. “Show all commission rules” leads to the list.

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Common questions

How do I give one product a different commission from the rest of the shop?

With a commission rule: select the product in the tab Assignments, enter rate and priority and switch on “Enable commission rules” in the configuration. A main product applies to all its variants.

Can I pay no commission at all for vouchers or reduced products?

Yes, with a rule with the rate 0, for the category of gift vouchers or a dynamic product group with all reduced products for example. To make sure it wins, give it a high priority.

Which rule applies when several match?

By default the one with the highest priority, on equal priority the one with the highest rate. Alternatively the lowest rate wins on a tie, or always the highest or lowest rate regardless of priority. Whether a rule matches by customer, product, category or product group gives no precedence.

How do I set up a promotion for a certain period?

With “Order date from” and “Order date until” on the rule. The order date counts, not the day of the booking; so the promotion also applies to orders whose commission is booked after the waiting time.

Can a rule apply to single partners only?

Yes. In the tab Partners you select the partners; without a selection the rule applies to all partners.

Can a rule give a fixed amount per order?

Yes, with the type “Per order: fixed amount”. If it has the highest priority of all rules in the order, the whole order gets exactly this amount; on equal priority it comes before rules per product.

What happens to the old commission fields on products and categories?

On the update the plugin converted them into commission rules with fixed priorities: variants 400, products 300, categories 200, dynamic product groups 100. This way they calculate as before.

In detail in the manual

More chapters

Partner groups Bronze, silver, gold: rates of their own for groups of partners, with priority and automatic promotion by turnover, orders or customers. Read on → Calculation How the commission of an order comes about: the way in ten steps, the log on the order and worked examples. Read on → Payout Commission as a voucher or a payout: fixed amounts, review list, SEPA file, PayPal run, automatic payout and payout document. Read on →