TL;DR
- You share a unique referral link. The new creator has to register through that link, in the same browser, with the referral cookies accepted.
- Help text dated 25 November 2025: 5% of the referred creator’s earnings for their first 12 months, up to $50,000 per creator. No cap on how many creators you refer.
- The Referral Program Terms, in the contract text we read, say 5% of fan payments for 12 months after they become a registered user, same $50,000 cap.
- Those are not the same base. Five percent of fan payments is larger than 5% of earnings after the 20% fee.
- OnlyFans pays the referral. It is not deducted from the referred creator. Google Ads and lookalike search ads are forbidden for the link.
Rate5%Both documents. The base differs.
Window12 monthsFrom registration, not forever.
Cap$50,000Per referred creator, not per referrer.
The disagreement, in one table
| Help Center | Referral Program Terms |
|---|
| What the 5% applies to |
The referred creator’s earnings. |
Fan payments generated by the referred creator. |
| Worked on $10,000 of fan payments |
If “earnings” means the 80% share, 5% of $8,000 = $400. |
5% of $10,000 = $500. |
| Cap |
$50,000 per referred creator. |
US$50,000 per referred creator. |
| How it is paid |
Processed on the first working day of the month, to your bank within 7 business days. Rolls over if under the payout minimum. |
You need a bank account or a payment method on the account. The terms also carry a statutory warning that this is not a scheme you pay to join. |
We will not pick a base the company states two ways. The Statements page on the account is the amount that was actually credited. A $100 gap on $10,000 of fan payments is the size of the ambiguity, not a secret rate.
What makes a referral count
- The new person must be a creator, and must use your link.
- They must register in the same browser that opened the link. If they, or you, block the referral cookies, OnlyFans says it will not link the account and will not pay.
- A suspended, terminated, or deleted account cannot participate.
- Do not impersonate OnlyFans. Do not buy search ads for the link. The terms name Google Ads and similar platforms.
- OnlyFans can withhold a referral payment if the referred creator breaks the terms.
The company’s own promotion guide describes the link as a way to earn 5% from creators who join because of you. It does not resolve the earnings-versus-fan-payments gap.
The terms include a legal warning, required under UK trading-scheme rules: do not be misled by claims that high earnings are easily achieved by recruiting others. This page is not an invitation to buy into a downline. Read the
disclaimer.
Where these figures come from
- Help Center, “How does OnlyFans Creator Referral Program work?” (wording dated 25 November 2025): 5% of earnings, $50,000, monthly processing, bank credit within 7 business days.
- Referral Program Terms inside the Terms of Service: 5% of fan payments, $50,000, cookie and same-browser rule, advertising limits. Read against a 13 January 2025 public capture as well as the live terms; if the live clause has moved, the live clause wins.
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