Amazon Affiliate Disclosure for Social Media and Email: Wording That Fits the Format
The disclosure rules were written for websites, and most of the advice copies the website answer: a sentence near the top of the post. Social platforms don't have a top of the post.
They have a caption that's cut off after two lines, a video with no text at all, a bio with one link, and an email where the footer is three screens down. The rule is the same everywhere; where it goes is different on every format.
This post covers the FTC's platform-specific rules in plain terms, the wording and position for Instagram, TikTok, YouTube, X, Facebook, Twitch and email, what Amazon wants on top of the FTC, and the placements that fail on each platform. The disclosure post covers websites; this is the rest of the channels.
The short answer
Put the disclosure where the link or the recommendation is, in a form the audience sees without clicking, scrolling or expanding: at the start of a caption, spoken or on screen in a video, above the links in a description or email, and next to the link on your bio page.
"Affiliate link" or "#ad" is enough for the FTC in the moment; Amazon's full sentence goes where the links live. A disclosure only in your profile, only in a footer, or only behind "more" doesn't count.
What the FTC requires on social
The FTC's influencer guidance is specific about placement. A disclosure has to be hard to miss: in the endorsement itself, not in a profile or an "about" page; visible without clicking "more" or expanding the caption; in the video for video content, not only in the description; and repeated during long or live streams.
On wording, it accepts "ad", "advertisement", "sponsored", "affiliate link" and "I earn a commission", and names "#sp", "#spon", "#collab" and "thanks [brand]" as too vague. The guidance applies whether or not the platform offers a paid-partnership label; the label helps, and doesn't replace the words.
What Amazon adds
Amazon's Operating Agreement requires that visitors can see you earn from qualifying purchases, and its preferred sentence is "As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases." On a website that's one line under the title.
On social, where the caption is short, most creators split it: a short disclosure in the moment ("affiliate link" or "#ad") and the full Amazon sentence on the page the bio link points to, or at the top of the YouTube description, where the actual links sit.
Platform by platform
| Platform | Where | Wording that works | What fails |
|---|---|---|---|
| Instagram feed / Reels | First line of the caption, before the fold; again by the bio link | "Affiliate links in bio, I earn from qualifying purchases" or "#ad" | Disclosure after "more"; only in the profile; only in a comment |
| Instagram Stories | On the story frame with the link sticker, as text | "Affiliate link" overlaid, readable size | Tiny text; text in a different frame |
| TikTok | Start of the caption; spoken or on screen when the product shows; bio page carries the full sentence | "#ad" plus "link in bio, I earn a commission" | Caption only, with nothing in the video |
| YouTube | In the video (spoken or on screen) at the product; top of the description above links; the paid-promotion checkbox too | "Links below are affiliate links; as an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases" | Description only; below the links; the checkbox alone |
| X / Twitter | In the same post as the link | "#ad" or "(affiliate link)" in the post text | In a reply; in the bio |
| Facebook page / group | In the post text, before the link | "Affiliate link, I earn from qualifying purchases" | In the first comment; in the page About |
| Twitch / live | On the panel with the links; said aloud periodically | Panel text plus a spoken line every so often | Panel only on a four-hour stream |
| One line above the first link, body text size | "Links in this email are affiliate links; I earn from qualifying purchases" | Footer only; small grey text; below the links |
Wording, by format
- Caption, short: "#ad" or "affiliate link" at the start. Hashtags buried among twenty others don't count as hard to miss; put it first.
- Caption, with room: "Links in my bio are affiliate links. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases."
- Spoken: "The links in the description are affiliate links, so I earn a small commission if you buy through them." Said when the product first comes up, not in a rushed outro.
- On screen: "Affiliate links in description" as a lower-third, long enough to read.
- Bio link page: the full Amazon sentence at the top, above the product links.
- Email: one line above the first link, same size as the body: "This email contains affiliate links; I earn from qualifying purchases at no extra cost to you."
The placements that fail
- Profile or bio only. The FTC names this one directly: a disclosure in the profile doesn't cover posts.
- Behind "more". If the caption truncates before the disclosure, it's hidden for most viewers.
- Description only on video. The viewer watching full-screen never sees it.
- Below the links. In a description or an email, a reader who clicks the first link never reaches it.
- Vague tags. "#sp", "#spon", "#collab", "thanks Amazon".
- The platform's label alone. Paid-partnership and paid-promotion markers help; the FTC still wants words the audience understands.
- Cold DMs. Not a disclosure problem but an Amazon one: links in unsolicited messages aren't allowed at all. The social media post covers which placements Amazon permits.
A quick check before posting
- Can someone see the disclosure without clicking, expanding or scrolling past the link?
- Is it in the same place as the recommendation (caption with the caption, video in the video)?
- Does it say "affiliate" or "ad" or "commission", not "#sp" or "thanks"?
- Does the page the links actually live on carry Amazon's full sentence?
Four yeses and the post is covered on both the FTC side and the Amazon side.
Doing it with AffSERP
The bio link and the "links below" in a video usually point at a page on your site, and that page carries the full Amazon sentence. Guides written by AffSERP's X Best Review tool include it above the first affiliate link, so a social post that says "affiliate link in bio" lands on a page that completes the disclosure.
The in-post wording on each platform is yours to add; the table above is the cheat sheet. The email post covers the rest of the email rules.
FAQ
Do I need to disclose Amazon affiliate links on Instagram?
Yes, in the caption where the link or product mention is, visible without tapping 'more', and again next to the link in your bio or landing page. The FTC says a disclosure in the profile alone, or hidden behind the caption fold, doesn't count. '#ad' or 'affiliate link, I earn from qualifying purchases' at the top of the caption does.
Is #ad enough for an Amazon affiliate link?
For the FTC, '#ad' or '#affiliate' placed where it's seen is accepted; '#sp', '#spon', '#collab' and 'thanks Amazon' are not. Amazon additionally wants its own sentence ('As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases') somewhere the reader of the link can see it, so most creators use the hashtag in the caption and the full sentence on the bio link page.
Where does the disclosure go in an affiliate email?
Above the first link, in the body, in the same size as the text. A line in the footer below the links isn't visible before the reader clicks. One line at the top ('Links in this email are affiliate links; I earn from qualifying purchases at no cost to you') covers the whole email.
Do I have to say the disclosure out loud in a video?
For video, the FTC wants the disclosure in the video, not only in the description, because many viewers never read it. Say it or show it on screen when the product comes up, and repeat it for long or live videos. The description gets it as well, above the links.
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